《Blood and Qi: A Vampire Xianxia LitRPG (Book 2 stubbing sometime in January)》


 Prologue - Legion IX Hispana

    Hermunduri region along the Rhine River, 131 AD


    Lucius Latinius Macer, prefect of the camp, third in charge of Legion IX Hispana, calls out to the demon, ¡°Do you speak Latin? Why are you doing this?¡±


    He waits for a reply. None comes forth. Twenty-five years. Twenty-Five years in the Ninth. I finally became prefect of the camp, my year nearly done, and now this is how it ends, thinks Lucius as he grips his sword tighter and wishes he had a shield. He looks around at what remains of the First Cohort, at the fires blazing, and men wounded and screaming out, the many corpses, on this bloody field. He has no need of a reply. He knows why. That little prick! That spoiled little Broad Band Tribune. Rich, pampered prick.


    Lucius almost spits towards the corpse of the Broad Band Tribune, and would¡¯ve if it wasn¡¯t so close to the corpses of the Legion Legate and Chief Centurion, both good men he respected. This was supposed to be the easy part. Just making way from Noviomagus to Troesmis. My time soon over, and I¡¯d be heading back home before we even got to Singadunum. And glad to have my time over; Armenia would be rough duty. Now a gods cursed real-life demon attacks us.


    Another scream of absolute terror sounds out, closer this time. The forlorn Lucius says, ¡°Five cohorts follow behind us!¡±


    Lucius is surprised when the demon yells back to him, ¡°Good!¡±


    ¡°You stand no chance. Let us talk, demon. Your plan cannot be to fight a whole legion. Demon or not, that is suicide. You caught us on the move, ill prepared, just a quick stop to get supplies and stretch our legs after so long on the river. We have no support and no auxiliary with us. That won¡¯t happen with the following cohorts. They¡¯ll make fortified camps, send word ahead to the other cohorts and vanguard who¡¯ll turn back and make way here in all haste. You have a big problem, even if you have not yet realized it. Let us talk this through and come to a mutually beneficial understanding.¡±


    A scream comes from the opposite area, and Lucius swings around. He spies the demon holding a centurion from behind, the demon¡¯s face pushed into the neck of the man, as if lovers. Lucius steadies his nerves and prepares to rally and approach, hopefully surrounding this monster with all men remaining, nullifying the demon¡¯s many advantages. The centurion the demon holds slowly slides to the ground, dead. Lucius can now see the demon clearly, and is surprised it looks as a normal man does, as he was expecting to see something monstrous, such as a strix. Young. Dressed as the local savages, but the sharp features and darker hair and skin proving it isn¡¯t of them. A sword held lightly in its hand as it stands casually. The normal and benign look of the demon is surprising. Even more surprising is Lucius clearly remembers this man from when he first joined the Ninth, and he looks the same age as he did twenty-six years ago, and it startles him greatly, and he stands shaken instead of calling the attack, as he should.


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    The demon, looming tall and unworried, with blood dripping down its face, asks, ¡°Mutually beneficial understanding? I like that! Well put, but I¡¯ll have to decline. This is a matter of vengeance, and my goal in this differs greatly from yours. It is a simple goal. I win, you lose.¡±


    With goal stated the demon immediately sets out to bring it to fruition. It moves so quickly towards the remainders of the First Cohort it can hardly be seen, and neither shield-wall nor spear impede its slaughter. By ones and twos, the soldiers fall, agonized shrieks filling the air. Few yet live as the demon approaches, and Lucius desperately cries out, ¡°Stop! Stop! I know you! I forget your given and clan name but all called you Equus. You were a weapon and drill instructor when I was new in the legion, and later a front file centurion, and then a First File too. In Britannia!¡±


    The demon stops, and turns his dark eyes to Lucius, and his reply to this is, ¡°Yes. I remember. I¡¯m saddened this must be done, but this tribe has taken me in and are helping me search for the people I was born to so long ago. No luck so far. This great river was within twenty leagues or so of my birthplace. Maybe it was a different river? We called it the Balahtu, I think, or something close to that. I¡¯m sorry to say I don¡¯t remember you. I am too old, and it is getting harder and harder to recall anything. But the matter is moot. I swore to protect these people while I live amongst them. You killed a young woman sworn to me. I was told she was killed casually, as if she were only an insect. Then a great slaughter was made of her family when they protested, and then also against many, many tribesmen.


    ¡°I¡¯ve given you a doughtier foe to try your hand against. It¡¯s not going well for you. My mind may be waning, but not my honor, and I swore vengeance against the whole of this legion upon it.¡±


    Saying this, the demon renews his attack, saving the prefect of the camp for last, as he has some respect for the man, and drinks deep of him, savoring the essence of his life down to the last dregs.

 1 - Four-cornered room

    Scarsdale, NY ¨C Present day


    A man sits alone in a candle lit room. His eyes closed, legs crossed, back straight, hands on thighs, and head bowed. His face is blocky, features sharp and rough, hair dark and unkempt, skin swarthy. He sits so still he seems to draw no breath, though he does. He looks very young, late teens or so, though he is much, much older.


    The man opens his eyes. He doesn¡¯t know where he is, doesn¡¯t know when he is, and doesn¡¯t even know his own name. He is used to being confused. It is nothing new to him. He knows fear and anger help nothing and has had a long time to master such emotions, so does not allow himself to feel any. He is now mostly a creature of habit instead of intent. He sits alone in the four-cornered room staring at candles, images of battle and victory flashing through his mind.


    He tries to remember more, but memories slip away or stay just out of reach. All he has is flickers of images, impressions, random thoughts and feelings. Becoming a man. Being a warrior. Being a lord. Faint glints of conquest and battle and kingship, of being worshiped and despised, of hunting and being hunted, of facing armies and running from angry mobs, of having good friends and wandering alone, of finding love and searching for magic, of blood and feeding, of the power. The world being the same for so long and then changing, then more change, always enduring and never dying, always living, then only existing. Only existing, then confusion and darkness.


    He focuses on a name for himself. He knows he has been called many but can remember none. He remembers a friend. A friend brought him here, wherever here is.


    What did he call me? No matter how hard he focuses, no name comes.


    Though he has lived a very long time and seems immortal, the human body, as it currently stands, is an imperfect vessel for immortality. As most things go, the waning of his mind happened gradually, then suddenly. Decay outpaced regeneration and grey and white matter declined.


    He never had the gift of tongues or a knack for learning new languages, but this is not abnormal. Most people aren¡¯t blessed with the gifts necessary to make learning new languages an easy task. And this man¡¯s first language was simple and direct, making more complex languages hard to comprehend and a struggle to learn.


    When the grey matter thinned, the first area impacted was the posterior language cortices. Then the anterior. Word retrieval and production became harder, and eventually almost impossible. Other issues manifested. Confusion was a constant. Faces blurred and could not be distinguished. His world became smaller and smaller. Now it is the size of the candlelit, four-cornered room he occupies.


    Some time passes before he is finally able to hold on to a memory. An old one. A memory from before he took the power. The last memory of his family. A time when life was simple and direct, and everything made sense. Only children tracked age and only until man or womanhood at thirteen. He had just turned thirteen the past winter solstice, the start of the new year, when everyone turned a year older.


    At thirteen boys became men and could war and marry, though it often took some years to find a good first wife with large dowries for important men. Being the oldest living son of a landholder, a lord, made him an important man. So, at thirteen he was a man, but had not yet taken a wife.


    It was almost dusk, and the feasting was finished. All the family and his father¡¯s men and servants would lay down and take sleep on the floor of the one-roomed hold, the only light coming from the firepit in the center of the room. One of his father¡¯s men entered the household and yelled a warning that many, many enemies were approaching. Many, many meaning far more than they could handle. More than two tens, but less than ten tens. His father had little more than ten warriors sworn to him. This was no common raid by neighbors. This enemy was coming to kill and conquer.


    As the men quickly equipped for battle, the children and unmarried women were sent to nearby farmer¡¯s huts. All but the children of the lord, as they would be greatly dishonored and abused if discovered, whereas invaders needed servants and wives, and farmers were almost always spared. Kingdoms were small, invaders always came from nearby and shared a similar language and culture ¨C their goals and actions were predictable.


    His lord and father ordered him to take the oldest of his brothers, the only brother turning thirteen the next winter¡¯s solstice, along with his two best sworn men, and trek to his neighboring lord¡¯s hold and inform him of the invasion. That lord would inform their king, the king would rally all the lords of the kingdom, repel the invaders, and win back his father¡¯s lands.


    He protested and said he would not run like a coward. This enemy would not unman him. His father slapped him for questioning his orders, and said his word was law.


    His task wasn¡¯t just to run and inform, but the sacred duty of vengeance. He would not be a true man until he killed ten tens of this enemy, or reclaimed his father¡¯s lands. If he did not achieve either goal he would be cursed as a coward, and would be considered little, and would sire no sons, and no one would speak of him at all after he died.


    With dry eyes, he bid farewell to his mother, and his father¡¯s other wives, and his brothers and sisters. His other siblings, if taken along, would put the mission at risk, and burden the sacred task of vengeance he was sworn to, so they had to stay. His father must kill them with his own loving hand, so the enemy could not dishonor and abuse them.


    Once his father falls to the enemy, his wives must take their own lives, so they could serve their lord in the afterlife, and share in the rewards their husband would be granted for dying a proper and glorious death in battle, greatly outnumbered.


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    As he prepared to leave, his mother held him close and said, ¡°Avenge us, Nut, or be cursed and die a coward¡¯s death.¡±


    Nut. Not his real name, but the nickname he had earned. On his first raid he took a mighty blow to the head and stood his feet still. After the raid, when tall feats were being told by the fire, all the men laughed and clapped him on the back for taking such a blow to the head and not buckling. They call him Nut. His head was tough to crack.


    The man, still sitting with legs crossed and hands on thighs, still staring at the candles, smiles. He remembers his name. A victory he revels in for a moment. He tries to say his name out loud, but no word to say it comes to mind.


    Nut feels his face. About three days¡¯ growth. Before he opened his eyes earlier, he knew there were two people nearby. One unmoving and smelling of fear and feces close, and one moving freely below. The one below isn¡¯t the friend he thought of earlier. His senses are sharp, and he can hear, see, and smell extremely well, but he cannot smell well enough for that sense to reach the one below. Still, he somehow knows it isn¡¯t his friend. He would guess it is a female by the sounds and movements he can distinguish.


    Nut stands and walks to the chamber pot to relieve himself. He notices the odd clothes he is wearing. A buttoned-up short-sleeved, dark grey shirt of a silky material, and baggy and very comfortable pants of the same color and material. No undergarments. The pants are not placketed, and the waist has a fantastical type of elastic fastening. The room has three doors. One door has a symbol he recognizes for food besides it, though how he knows the symbol evades his memory. He enters the door.


    Inside is a small room with a man bound and gagged, hanging from the ceiling by hands and feet. The bound man¡¯s soul dark with bad deeds. That is the best way to hang a man to make it easier to extract all the dregs of vital essence, as the stubborn clumps in the hands and feet become far less stubborn. This type of hanging helps those new to the power, which Nut is not. The man being hung like this for him makes Nut feel helpless and incompetent.


    The bound man is close to expiring. Though Nut has enough vital essence to last a while, he still sinks in his fangs and drinks deeply of the bound man. Not doing so would be a waste, and the dregs of a man contain the most potent and satisfying of the life essence.


    Also in the room are some baskets filled with fruits and some vegetables. Nut sees a small bowl filled with what appears to be dried meat, but darker than it should be. Out of curiosity he tries a piece, and it is far less hard and salty, and far juicier, than salted meat should be. It also has a strange taste he is not familiar with. He places the rest of the piece back in the bowl. He drinks some water and cleans his face and hands in a washbasin.


    Nut hears more movement down below and does not like it. Though not hungry, he grabs an apple as he leaves. In the room with candles are two other doors and a wooden chair near a window. Swords and various other arms are placed around the room, but not much else. He goes to the window drawing back the curtain, flinching at the powerful sun. It saps his strength, and he doesn¡¯t like it, but he wants fresh air to clear the stink of death and feces. He raises the window and welcomes the music of nature and sounds of children at play, familiar sounds making him feel less lost.


    Nut sits and looks out the window. Small mansions built in a strange style, on very small estates, most with large metal-wheeled machines close by, congesting a street made of an unfamiliar substance. A feeling of dread overcomes Nut, but he squelches it quickly. He searches for the familiar and looks at the many trees and a small group of children. Beautiful, he thinks.


    Nut¡¯s gaze pans up and down the street and stops on the queerest sight he has ever seen ¨C a young girl, no older than six or seven, riding on a machine with two wheels and powered by feet, up and down the large and wide paved path leading to a small mansion.


    The two-wheeled machine tickles Nut¡¯s memory and doesn¡¯t hold his gaze with confusion and curiosity. It is the little girl. Her soul is one of the darkest he has ever seen. More of a dark marble with lighter swirls. Most adults have a grey mist with dark swirls and splotches, and the occasional whitish swirl or spot. Children usually have clear light-grey souls.


    Nut doesn¡¯t think he has seen a soul so dark even on the worst of men possessed of a great evil and capable of inflicting grave deeds in mass.


    A child so young has neither the time nor ability for any such things. How is this possible? Nut sits by the window and ponders on this absurdity.


    A pressure enters Nut¡¯s head, and next he notices the light outside has changed. His eyes are closed, and he cannot open them. The powerful sun hitting his skin no longer does. It was bright day but now approaches dusk. His power is hardly being sapped and the feeling is diminishing instead of strengthening, so he knows the sun is approaching dusk. He goes to stand but cannot. He is not in control of his own body.


    This has never happened to him before. A new phenomenon. Maybe it should cause him fear, but it doesn¡¯t. He waits. He is good at waiting. The sun goes down. He thinks about retreating in on himself. He thinks of trying to remember his name again but doesn¡¯t. He is curious. He strains his senses. Occasionally he can hear a deep rumbling voice at the edge of his perception. Strangely, not his perception of hearing. He hears it at the edge of his mind. When he tries to focus on the voice, it gets further away.


    He tries many tricks to make the voice clearer. None work. Sometimes he feels the rumble of the voice in his mind, sometimes in his chest. But never clearly. Just at the edge of his perception.


    He sits there, still, unable to move. Once in a while a machine starts to softly vibrate, and cold air enters the room through a vent. He hears few bird or insect sounds, and they are far away and too slow. He hears mostly silence and the sometimes rumble of a distant voice.


    Then something. The air changes and is filled with an indescribable tingling, like the air charged with a weird energy before a storm. He feels a different pressure on his head, but far different from the last. Something enters the base of his skull and starts spreading through his body.


    He is not too worried. His vital essence isn¡¯t reacting to it, and throughout his long life no disease or poison has been able to harm him for long, if at all. If he was in danger, his power would fight the foreign substance, and his life essence would be draining.


    Then pain. Extreme, unfathomable pain. He has felt all types of pain in his long life. All types. There is no pain he hasn¡¯t been subjected to over and over. And all prior pain pales in comparison to what he feels now. Being stuck fast and unable to move he can¡¯t cry out or flail around. The pain is too much for his mind to retreat from. He can only endure, and not by choice. It is pain unimaginable. Too great to bear. Too great to endure.


    The pain could¡¯ve lasted a moment or half the night. When it finally ends his mind is too gone and too numb to work at all. If he was at all lucid, he would feel new pressure applied to his head before darkness, mercifully, overtakes him.

 2 - Testing

    The man¡¯s mind shrugs off whatever power was forcing him to be unaware. His body is lifting a metal ball up to his chest, then over his head. He can feel the ball is very heavy, but he can¡¯t drop it, or stop himself from lifting it. It¡¯s as if his mind is separate from his body, and he has no control of his limbs at all.


    The man watches himself for a time, and two things become clear to him. The first is he¡¯s not in a real place. He has sharp vision and can see far off, yet he can now see nothing past the ground that magically appears around him as he moves to various metal objects and manipulates them as if exercising. Some of these metal objects float in the air or rest on invisible ground. Beyond his immediate area there is nothing to see. Just empty air.


    The man has keen hearing, and he hears no other signs of life at all, not even small insects. He is not in a real place. But the sun that hits his skin is real. He sees the start of calcification on his exposed hands. If the sun is real, then it is also sapping his strength; he would be able to lift heavier metal objects if it weren¡¯t.


    The man would care more about the first thing, not having control of his body and being forced to exercise in a place that isn¡¯t real, if not for the second thing. His mind is restored! He can remember. Not everything, but enough to have a self again. Enough to have an identity again.


    The man can¡¯t remember the name his mother gave him, but he remembers the word for the name he earned as a man, Nut, is gira. He hasn¡¯t had any faith at all, no belief in gods, since before even the rise of Agade, and he finds it strange all the reverence he feels when he recalls the name of the god his people worshiped, Koram. He isn¡¯t sure Koram is the exact correct name, but it¡¯s near enough.


    The man has gone by many names other than Gira. He has been king of many great cities, and worshiped as many different gods. His most recent and clearest memories of titles he holds have his name as Yohannes, Ioann¨¥s, Giovanni, and the like. He decides to go by the simplest and shortest version, John.


    John remembers his youth, his people, meeting his old friend and master, Ahn, and gaining the power, their conquest of the lands of his birth together. Then, going far to the south and east, seeing his first real city, Gargamis, and being so in awe of its size and population. Further to the south, the mighty ocean, and down along the coast in Suma, the city of Gubla, ten times the size of Gargamis. And Gubla being small compared to later cities, such as Agade in Assir, or Oruk in Sumer, or White Walls in Kayhamut.


    Ahn always was bored and restless, and traveled all the time, searching. Then Ahn went south and never returned. John was alone for a very long time before finally finding Lilitu, his love. ¡°One more time,¡± she¡¯d say. Always, ¡°Just one more time.¡±


    John¡¯s heart breaks again when he remembers how things ended with Lilitu. How things had to end. And being alone, again, for a long, long time. Having to hide. His mind was nearly gone by the time he found Thomas, his stout and true companion. Thomas keeping him safe though John was a great burden to him.


    Not only has John¡¯s mind and memories been restored, but so has his body. He feels somewhat strengthened and more energetic. The pains in his joints and tendons, like they were twisted tight and close to bursting, are no more.


    John had some of those pains since near the beginning, and the pains became much worse over the years, as his body increased in strength and speed and power, and it being gone feels strange, as he was so used to it. It feels strange with the pains being gone, but also fantastic and wonderful. He feels light and fresh, and more invigorated than even draining a man of his last dregs of vital essence makes him feel.


    Remembering vital essence, John tries to send some to enhance his strength, but he isn¡¯t in control of that now either. He would be doing much better in this test of strength if he could control his own body, and enhance himself, and if this test wasn¡¯t being conducted in the direct sunlight of the noon sun, something that saps his strength greatly.


    Since John has no control of what his body is doing, and is so excited he is able to remember again, he decides to explore some memories and enjoy them, and does so. Later, a change to his environment causes him to end his reminiscences. Instead of performing feats of strength, his body starts performing various feats of speed and agility.


    John doesn¡¯t know what is happening to him, or why, but he knows he could do better in this test if allowed to. Now, while paying close attention, he can somewhat feel his body being refreshed between tasks, following commands John thinks he hears as a soft voice on the periphery of his senses.


    Focusing his mind on the task, John tries to wrest back control. The force of compulsion controlling his body is strong. With a willpower born of ages, he applies more and more effort to free himself. He nearly succeeds before he feels a great pressure applied to his mind, and he is returned to darkness once again.


    <hr>


    Exceedingly bright light burns John¡¯s eyes as he is startled awake. He is confused. He is standing, but cannot move. He is frozen in place, unable to even squint his eyes closed harder to dim the light burning them. He is glad his head is bowed at least, as it provides a little protection.


    Nothing can be done about the light and the burning brightness. Nothing but the usual remedy for all that has ailed John in his too long life. He must endure, so he endures. He finds it strange he has no fear for what is happening to him, all these queer events. No fear, just curiosity. Maybe this is due to events being so far out of his control?


    John sends out his senses and becomes aware of what he can. His bare feet are on warm, wet grass. Artificially warm grass, as a very cold wind tussles his hair. He is mostly immune to the cold, and it doesn¡¯t bother him. He can¡¯t see the sun, but he guesses it to be afternoon.


    To John¡¯s right and behind him he senses six people and one strange thing, formed up in neat and even rows. If he had to guess, he¡¯d say the six people smell of his kind, and two smell somewhat familiar. One could be Thomas, but he is uncertain. The strange one has no heartbeat, but shifts and moves slightly, proving it isn¡¯t frozen like John is.


    Over ten paces to John¡¯s front, where the exceedingly bright light comes from, are two others. These two have strange heartbeats. One beats far too strongly and loudly, and the other more slushes than beats. Both have very weird scents, and they feel all wrong. Weighty. Obvious.


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    John puts great focus on taking control of his eyelids back, so he can squint his eyes tighter, and block more of the light.


    The thing in front of John, the one on the left, in the weirdest and most indescribable voice he has ever heard says, ¡°It¡¯s awake again.¡±


    A reply comes from a very deep and rumbling voice towards the front right, ¡°Stop! The last was my compulsion it resisted. The compulsion was strong, and still lasts on its body. It could be harmed. We are near finished anyways. I know not how it does it. An early Mortal without even an open energy center resisting a high Exalted? This world is far too bizarre.¡±


    The weird voice says, ¡°I bet the Eternal knows. Maybe try asking it? It put the souls back for these freaks, didn¡¯t it?¡±


    ¡°I know not. I only know tethering and returning souls is far beyond my capabilities, even if I were at peak. I had no idea souls could even be seen. It could have been either Magnus, or the Sublime, and not the Eternal. Mmmmm. It frightens me a Sublime came. I never thought I¡¯d meet one, not before climbing much higher.


    ¡°The Eternal is energy so I know not if we can communicate with it. Even so, I would not presume to skip chain and speak directly with even the Sublime, why would I risk drawing the attention of an Eternal to myself? Know your place, Junior. We are dealing with powers far beyond us, and if we do well, we may be rewarded. If any of our betters want us to know why this world is so bizarre, they will tell us.¡±


    The weird voice, in a monotone, says, ¡°The Eternal is an energy being? How do we even know it¡¯s here then?¡±


    ¡°Wait,¡± orders the rumbling voice.


    A moment passes and the rumbling voice continues, ¡°They¡¯re bringing in the demons and dark ones and g¡¯athu, so we¡¯ll release them soon. I sent word to the others. We should be departing shortly after.


    ¡°As for your question, the Magnus from Galactic told me the Eternal was energy. I think she was surprised a Sublime and Eternal are here. Maybe they needed the Sublime for the shield? When we received instructions, they only mentioned the two Celestials. The original instructions came from our usual Exalted contact at the Galactic Council. When and how greater powers got involved, I know not. This is a great opportunity for our sector.¡±


    John hears some shuffling before the extremely odd voice continues, ¡°They didn¡¯t tell you anything about what happened here? Why this place is so weird? Nothing? Just look at these outliers. I can¡¯t believe how old they said this one is. And no mental fortification or mind enhancements at all! Ever hear of a mind go that long without any? And how¡¯s it resisting us?


    ¡°It¡¯s an abomination. We should kill them all. This is our sector, and whatever did this was blaspheming against the Supreme One. No one wants blasphemy in their sector. Maybe the Eternal is here to see if we do the right thing, and if we don¡¯t kill these things, it finds our whole Sector Council blasphemous and wipes this whole sector clean. We¡¯re purposefully working with Forsaken. None of this is right. I bet it¡¯s a test.¡±


    The thing with the rumbling voice laughs slowly, ¡°Your kind really do have devious minds. This whole race is harmless. No major warrior societies. Cut off from the Tree of Life. Soft beings. So weak. These outliers are poor exceptions. The outliers of a weak race are still but only weak. Cute for humanoids. I love when they look like monkeys. Just adorable.


    ¡°Now stop being paranoid. We obey instructions from our betters. We cannot go wrong obeying orders from ones so high. You know the Peerless are expected to be here in about a standard year. Do you really think these weaklings can survive the demons, dark ones, and g¡¯athu for a whole standard?


    ¡°If these cute little monkeys do somehow manage to survive that long, and I¡¯d wager half of my treasures they don¡¯t, this whole race is doomed to death, or slavery at best, once the Peerless arrive. The Peerless nearly overran one of my race¡¯s worlds, and we are the oldest and strongest in this sector. Their struggle up the bloody climb will be short. Now this I do know, so stop fretting.¡±


    A moment passes before the weird voice replies, ¡°The Peerless don¡¯t think like the rest of us. They should¡¯ve been classified as Outsiders. Who turns down Council membership? That whole race should be wiped out. How are they already almost Tech 2? Unless they did it with blasphemy. My people first ascended over a hundred thousand standards ago and we¡¯re still early Tech 1. I heard the Peerless¡¯ oldest city isn¡¯t even ten thousand standards, barely older than these monkeys here. Not that much older. How are they almost Tech 2? It¡¯s blasphemy. We shouldn¡¯t tolerate it.¡±


    The rumbling voice becomes even deeper. ¡°Enough, Junior! Your opinion matters not. I¡¯ve treated you far too informally and you forgot your place. There¡¯s a Sublime and an Eternal up there! Watch your filthy mouth or I¡¯ll remove it along with your head. Do exactly as you are told and hope we are rewarded! I will have your best behavior regardless. Understood!?¡±


    John hears the sounds of quick and precise movements before the weird voice replies, ¡°Yes, Senior! Many apologies! This one understands!¡±


    Other than some small movements, John hears nothing for a while. The strange heartbeat of the creature with the rumbling voice disappears. The feeling of the sun doesn¡¯t change, as if it is frozen in place. John thinks about what was said, and thinks he knows what is going on. He focuses his will on freeing himself, so he can attack the weird-voiced being while it¡¯s alone.


    Fluttered movements from his left, where he detected nothing and no one at all, draw John¡¯s attention. For a split moment he regains control of his body. His eyes fly open and out of the corner of his left eye he sees tan and shapely and bare feminine legs fly up violently. Then an unbearable pressure is applied all around him, and he sees a rough outline of an impossible figure through a soul far, far brighter than any he has ever seen shone.


    The massive and unbearable weight crushes John to his knees, and as more bones snap and break he ends up as a broken pile on the ground. Then, as suddenly as it appeared the massive pressure is removed.


    John is in tremendous pain and can¡¯t draw breath, but he is still alive. His eyes are still open, though his vision is blurred and spotted, as his head is facing the too bright soul.


    An even brighter soul appears, and John knows by the heartbeat it belongs to the demon with the deep and rumbling voice. John can¡¯t make out much through the bright light, but he is certain these are demons. The newly appeared demon grabs the demon with the weird voice and yells, ¡°You fool!¡±


    The weird voice gets even weirder as it replies, ¡°Ow! OW!!! Senior! Older brother! My apologies! Apologies! One of these things tried to escape! I released some pressure to stop it! Just a little! Only to stop it! I swear!¡±


    ¡°Stop sniveling you little prick. You dare lie to me? You just forgot these are low Woods, and you still unveiled? You are lucky three yet live, or you wouldn¡¯t.¡± Two objects fly away from the weird-voiced being as it yells out in pain again. The rumbling voice continues, ¡°Oh, I merely tried stopping you from escaping. Apologies.¡±


    As John lies there, wishing he could draw breath to scream in agony, he notes the two objects that flew away from the weird-voiced being were severed arms with crab-like claws instead of hands, and he now has no doubt at all these creatures are demons.


    As the demon with two missing arms rolls on the ground, screaming, the demon with the too-bright soul starts to approach John, then a voice like thunder crashes down around him like a violent attack.


    [LEAVE THE SURVIVORS. I AM FORMING A TRIBULATION. YOUR JUNIOR WAS INSUBORDINATE YET RIGHT. SOMEONE HAS COMMITED GREAT BLASPHEMY ON THIS WORLD. THESE REMAINING OUTLIERS WILL LIVE OR DIE IN FAIR STRUGGLE, AS DESIGNED BY OUR LORD ON HIGH ABOVE ALL. PUT YOUR MIND AT PEACE. YOU HAVE DONE WELL AND WILL BE REWARDED. THE SUMMONING IS ALMOST FINISHED AND THIS WORLD WILL JOIN THE BLOODY CLIMB. SEND WORD TO PREPARE, YOU ALL LEAVE SOON.]


    The demon¡¯s soul is far too bright to make out anything clearly, but it looks to John as if it kowtows. The deep and rumbling voice replies, ¡°Your wish is this one¡¯s command, Magnus.¡±

 3 - Welcome to the Tree of Life

    John is crumpled on the artificially warm, wet grass, limbs broken and contorted in ways not meant, unable to draw breath. He hopes his newly restored mind is not damaged from lack of air. He sends vital essence throughout his body to start healing his many wounds. Healing this way is not fast, and he will be without air for a long time.


    Something grows around, under, and over John, and his eyes widen in surprise at seeing such magic. He is now in a stone room, facing a giant door. No windows are in this room, not that he can see from his limited view. Unable to explain why, John feels the room is an antechamber, and the door he is facing doesn¡¯t lead back out to the field he was just in.


    Healing, and not John¡¯s own, rushes through his body and he immediately starts to feel some relief. He is happy to have it, but wonders where it came from.


    The room isn¡¯t large, and John can¡¯t see the ground or bottom parts of the walls or behind himself, but he knows he isn¡¯t alone. He hears the slow heartbeat of another, and smells the man¡¯s scent too.


    Being so damaged and injured, John knows his own healing would take a very long time to heal him back to whole. He hopes the outside healing works faster. He worries greatly for his newly restored mind. John is of a belief that damage to his brain, at the very least, causes it to degrade faster.


    John has always been fascinated by fire, and looking at it has always calmed his mind, so he stares at one of the many torches along the wall. Lost in the fire, some time goes by, and he is surprised to feel more healing enter his body. Outside healing, not from himself again.


    Then John¡¯s body is turned over, and he is laid on his back, and his head is righted, and neck made straight. He neither sees nor senses what does it, but it was done. He felt hands upon him, though he couldn¡¯t see them. The other heartbeat never left where he still hears it. Next, his arms and legs are straightened out, painfully so, by the unseen force.


    John is now in a position much more conductive for healing.


    After a moment, John hears the heartbeat near him beat faster, then slow again. He also hears some shuffling and movement for a while.


    Having nothing else to do while waiting, John just stares at the flame of a torch. When he is finally able to draw breath, he does so, much to his relief. This new healing is much quicker than my own, he thinks. Though his body and many bones are still unhealed, he feels much better being able to breathe. Every breath causes pain, but it is nothing compared to how the rest of his body feels. Once his need for air is satisfied, he loudly says, ¡°Hello. Who is there?¡±


    John receives no response back. He spends some time thinking of all the queerness that has recently happened, and of the strange conversations and events he witnessed. He is certain he knows what is happening and why.


    John hears the man near him draw breath. Soon after the man says, ¡°Hello. Who are you? You speak Japanese?¡±


    The stranger is speaking in an overly masculine way. John thinks the man is using a deeper voice than is natural or usual. Maybe to sound tougher and more intimidating?


    John does not like being at the mercy of others, or having others around him he does not trust while he heals and can¡¯t defend himself. He decides to be friendly and well-mannered. There is no reason not to be, he believes. He wishes he could see the man he speaks with. ¡°Hello, friend. I go by John now. I could be speaking Japanese. I¡¯m unsure of the name of the language I speak.¡±


    The man says, ¡°You don¡¯t know what language you speak? How not? And I said Japanese, not Japanese.¡±


    ¡°Languages come and go and change. I had a lot of issues with my mind before¡­all this. But now I¡¯m healed of what ailed me, and renewed. What do you mean by Japanese, not Japanese?¡±


    Annoyedly, the man replies, ¡°No. Japanese, not Japanese.¡±


    John thinks the man might be insane, but asks again. ¡°Yes. What does it mean? Japanese, not Japanese.¡±


    More annoyedly, the man¡¯s voice raises. ¡°No! Japanese, not Japanese. Japanese, not Japanese!¡±


    John doesn¡¯t understand what the insane man is trying to communicate, so decides to move past it. ¡°I didn¡¯t get your name. And if it was you, thank you for providing healing. And for the correction of my body and how it rests.¡±


    A long moment passes before the man replies, ¡°I didn¡¯t heal you or move you. The same was done to me. Someone else is in here with us. I can¡¯t sense them at all. Those things, the ascended, said three yet live. Me, you, and someone else.¡±


    John smiles, ¡°Well, I thank this other person I cannot see then. And you, friend, your name?


    The man grunts. ¡°I¡¯ve had many. Which do you want? Of late, the mewling weaklings that kept me cooped up called me Hateshinai. I prefer something less pompous. How about Munashi. As good a name as any, and more accurate.¡±


    ¡°Munashi it is then. How queer is the situation we find ourselves in? Ha!¡±


    The man also laughs along with John, ¡°I would use a stronger word than odd.¡±


    ¡°I did. I said queer. Very queer.¡±


    The man laughs again. ¡°Stronger than very odd. A lot stronger.¡±


    A very feminine, very high voice, whispers softly in John¡¯s ear, ¡°Don¡¯t react. You are speaking English. He is speaking Japanese. Your words are being translated. Probably with the NCS thing. The Nana Control System. He isn¡¯t speaking just modern Japanese either, he¡¯s speaking an old version only nobility spoke mixed with modern. He didn¡¯t ask if you speak Japanese. He asked if you spoke civilized. I don¡¯t believe he has good intentions towards you. He feels¡­hazardous. I can¡¯t explain it better. I wish I hadn''t helped him now. Be careful.¡±


    John takes a moment to reflect on what the feminine voice just told him. He thinks of a test for certainty, and to buy time to think over what he was told. ¡°Queer means odd, but in a curious way you want to find out more about. Strange means odd in an indifferent, only notable sort of way. Weird means odd in a way you do not want to investigate, and want to remove yourself from the source of.¡±


    The feminine voice whispers softly in his ear again, ¡°None of that is true. Who told you that? Are those pajamas? Is that silk? Wow, they look super comfy.¡±


    Munashi replies, ¡°I¡­I¡¯m unsure of what you are saying.¡±


    John says, as if he figured it out on his own, ¡°We speak different languages. Our words are being translated, and not completely accurately. Now tell me, Munashi, what do you think is happening to us?¡±


    A very long moment passes before Munashi says, ¡°What do you think is happening?¡±


    John replies very authoritatively. ¡°As my people predicted long ago would happen if the Underworld was flooded with the souls of the weak and cowardly, the mighty Koram has finally lost the eternal battle. Demons have escaped the Underworld, and now overrun our own.


    ¡°Honestly, I lost faith in this belief long ago, but I am certain of the truth of it now. It explains everything. I even heard the demons talk about demons. Dark ones? They are very strong, and their souls are brighter than any man¡¯s. This is a dark day, but I will fight back. All hope is not lost.¡±


    Munashi laughs long and hard before replying, ¡°Oh! Don¡¯t make me laugh so! Not until I am more healed. Good man, I haven¡¯t laughed like that in a long while. John, tell me, you said they had bright souls. You see souls?¡±


    John hesitates but a moment before stating, ¡°I do. And if my nose is right, I think you do too, and all that comes with it. I¡¯ve had the power for a long time. And you?¡±


    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    John is curious why Munashi¡¯s heart beats faster for a moment. ¡°I haven¡¯t heard it called that. The power. I think I know of you. Tell me, do you perhaps know others of our kind named Thomas and Maria?¡±


    ¡°Yes, brother! Thomas, I do know. He is a stout and true companion, and though I burdened him greatly, he stuck with me through very bad times.¡±


    Munashi¡¯s voice softens. ¡°Honored elder, please accept my apologies for my poor manners earlier. I did not know who you were then, and I¡¯m not used to being deferential.¡±


    John smiles. ¡°Think nothing of it, Munashi. I didn¡¯t even notice. But now, tell me of Thomas. My mind has been clouded for a long time, and I owe him much. My memory is newly restored. I think I smelled him in the field with the demons. I hope I am wrong, and he still lives.¡±


    Munashi clears his throat. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to say, unless he is the unseen entity in this room with us, he is dead. Along with Maria and all our kind I know of, besides you and me. They were all with us when we were crushed by that invisible weight. You did smell him out there. What of Maria? You must know her too.¡±


    This news saddens John, but he has had a long time to get used to sadness and loss. His main regret is he is not able to pay Thomas back for his kind deeds and loyalty. ¡°Who is Maria?¡±


    ¡°She helped take care of you. She is new, turned about a century ago.¡±


    Confused, John asks, ¡°Turned?¡±


    ¡°What you called the power. We all call it being turned. Like how you make hoppers. Do the rite. You turned Thomas, correct? He turned Maria.¡±


    John understands. ¡°By hoppers you mean what happens when we try to give the power to people without the red? I¡¯ve always called them the mindless, but they do hop around. How did you know Thomas?¡±


    Munashi says, ¡°He¡¯s done a lot for our kind. I can¡¯t believe he never took the dregs. Maria was the same way. I know they both worked with the Catholic Church. Thomas had for a long while. He made a website where we all could talk. All the vampires of the world. Hidden right in a website for fake vampires. On a sub-forum for people claiming they were something called psychic-vampires, and could feed on people with their minds or some idiocy. Japan had some of these fools. Only until I found them. They were delicious. Ha!¡±


    So many finding each other sounds wonderful to John, even if the rest of what Munashi said makes no sense to him. He says, ¡°You knew more of our kind? How did you find each other?¡±


    John hears movement and worries Munashi may get his mobility back before himself. Munashi says, ¡°Honored elder, what is the last thing you remember?¡±


    John thinks back, ¡°My memory has been bad for a long, long time. The last time I remember being completely lucid for a long period was fighting with Charles the Hammer. What a king he was!


    ¡°I have many memories after with long gaps between them. Then just snippets. The most recent? There was a great war. They called it a great world war, and there was another soon after the first. I took a bullet in the head in the second one. A large bullet. I have nothing after that, and little enough before. I remember being a burden, but what was the alternative? Anything is better than the cold-dark.¡±


    Munashi grunts. ¡°I agree, honored elder. Anything is better. But we don¡¯t have to worry about that now. They said so. It sounds like World War Two is where you took the bullet. Much has changed since then. Technology. It undid my country. Unmanned it. The greatest warrior society the world has ever known, now there¡¯s hardly any men left in it.


    ¡°The same is true throughout the world now. The world went mad. Complete shit. Cowards and slow turtles run everything. With their filthy technology. But it helped us find each other.


    ¡°How Thomas found us all? I¡¯m guessing technology. Like how the detectives on television shows solve crime. I never asked specifics.


    ¡°Six of us were found quickly, twenty years later one more was found. Can¡¯t find reds with technology. We have to see them with our own eyes. We even have something of a genealogy. The one who turned you, Yan, we think also turned my master. I¡¯m the oldest besides you. Over nine centuries.


    ¡°Thomas was over six hundred. Bodhi wouldn¡¯t tell us his age, but Omar was turned by him almost four hundred years ago, and Omar is almost as strong and fast as Bodhi, so Bodhi can¡¯t be older than Thomas. Maria, about a hundred. Another in Africa. Another woman. She wasn¡¯t friendly, so we don¡¯t know much about her. She was the last one Thomas found.¡±


    Munashi sighs loudly before continuing, ¡°All of us were outside. I smelled all the ones I¡¯ve met. I was in the back row, and also saw an African woman, so that would be seven.


    ¡°I only had a short glimpse between awakening and being crushed, but there was a tree creature right behind you ¨C a very strange sight I would love to have studied more. I glimpsed something else but couldn¡¯t be certain of what. The tree creature turned into some sludge, and the others of our kind disintegrated to nothing more than bones and ash. I could only see your back and no one else after the great voice spoke. Obviously, our spirit companion lived, though I could not see him then or now, nor smell him, nor see his soul. Which makes sense if he is a spirit.¡±


    A whisper in John¡¯s ear says, ¡°I¡¯m not. Not really. A spirit, I mean. I¡¯m definitely not a he.¡±


    That was a lot for John to take in. Web-sightings and cowards running everything. The part regarding the cold-dark made absolutely no sense to John, and he wants to ask about it.


    While John is pondering what he has been told and forming a reply, Munashi asks, ¡°Honored elder, just how old are you? Thomas said you¡¯re as old as the Roman Empire. He thinks twenty-three hundred years. He¡¯s wrong though, isn¡¯t he? You can¡¯t be that old.¡±


    John pulls himself from his pondering, collects his thoughts, and replies. ¡°As I stated earlier, my mind was a good way towards gone by the time I met Thomas. I¡¯m not sure what I said to make him believe that. The Roman Empire was around for a bit by the time I moved there, but even the city of Rome is not old to me. My mind was deteriorating even then.


    ¡°In my earlier days we were open about what we are and worshiped for it as gods. The man who offered me the power, his name was Ahn, not Yan. We ruled the area I was born to for a long while before moving south and east. Even swords weren¡¯t around back then. Not for a while. Not until the rise of Agade.


    ¡°The first really big city I saw was Gubla. You could fit at least three of the whole kingdom I was born in within that city¡¯s walls, and it overflowed with people. Do you know the city? It was still around the last time I remember being in that area. Kayhamut called it Kebny, and Athens called it Byblos.¡±


    Softly, Munashi says, ¡°No, honored elder, but I never studied geography all that much.¡±


    John continues. ¡°We ruled many places at many times. Then Ahn never came back, and I waited a long, long time. Then I went looking for him and traveled all over. I finally found my Lilitu, and we traveled to the queerest places together. I loved her so, but it was too much. She¡¯s in the cold-dark now, and it breaks my heart.


    ¡°Nearer my Lilitu¡¯s end is when we had to start hiding what we are. Old women prattling on with their nonsense. Rome came much later. Things moved fast after that. Cannons. Thomas. Firearms. Faster and faster. I saw metal machines flying in the sky. Great explosions that could kill me outright. The bullet that hit my head ¨C one man was firing the machine loosing those bullets, and so many came at me. And¡­¡±


    John stops suddenly, as he was getting worked up. Whenever feeling strong emotion his belief has long been it is best to stop, and collect himself, and regain control.


    The room is silent for a long spell. The silence is broken by the feminine voice whispering once again in John¡¯s ear, ¡°So, vampires are real? That¡¯s crazy! There aren¡¯t any stories about me. Not really. Not any close to being accurate, at least. A lot of stories about bits of me though. Maybe even more than vampires, but they¡¯re all wrong. Like, one has me with green eyes. Everyone knows my eyes are amber. That story puts me in a green dress, so maybe that¡¯s why they said my eyes are green.


    ¡°Oh, you were in the sun so that doesn¡¯t kill you. Stake in the heart? Can you see your reflection in a mirror? Can you change into a wolf and a bat? Oh, a cloud of mist too? Do crucifixes and garlic and holy water hurt you? And fly? Please say you can fly!¡±


    The voice¡¯s excitement cheers John out of his sour mood, and he says, ¡°No, no, the sun does weaken us, and can calcify our skin, but that is easy to avoid. A few moments of shade, or smart clothing, and problem solved.


    ¡°My heart has been damaged many times, but I¡¯ve never had a stake through it. I try to avoid being injured as best I can. No to the rest, though I wish I could fly and turn into a wolf or a bat or¡­what did you say? A cloud of mist? No.


    ¡°Strong scents and tastes, like garlic and horseradish and some peppers, are overwhelming to my senses so I avoid them, but they aren¡¯t harmful to me. We don¡¯t drink blood either. Or not all that much. You always get a good stomach full, but only those new to the power have a hard time removing life essence and take too much blood in.¡±


    Munashi says, ¡°Honored elder, I don¡¯t want to sound ill mannered, but I know all that. Why tell me? I told you I was nine centuries on this world.¡±


    John laughs, ¡°My apologies, brother. I was talking to our other companion. I hope we can all be friends. Why don¡¯t we¡­¡±


    Munashi interrupts. ¡°You told a stranger, not of our kind, our weaknesses? Elder, why?¡±


    This question cuts John deep, as he knows being so trusting of a stranger is not smart. He does not fully trust Munashi even. But this stranger has helped them both, and healed them too.


    When John was young he was trusting, and life eventually taught him not to be so. He knows he learned to be far more secretive, and cunning, and devious, but he never liked it, and his refreshed mind is much more like it was when he was first given the power than how it was trained to be over his long life.


    As he thinks of a suitable reply and apology, John is startled by words suddenly appearing in his eyes. Words In a script he has never seen the likes of, but fully understands. The script is somehow both very simple and extremely complex all at once. The words he see say ¨C


    Welcome to the Tree of Life! You have 99* unread notifications.


    You are in a Tribulation! Congratulations! Tribulation commences in 107:38 USACS minutes. To change time units to another system of measurement, such as universal standard (US), focus <u>here</u>.


    This Tribulation will require you to [defeat all Dark Ones]. Failure to do so in the required time limit of [11 USACS Hours] will result in [death]. Enjoy!

 4 - Companions

    John¡¯s heart beats much faster. He wonders if his mind healed wrong and he is now insane. He just stares at the words, focusing his will on his mind, trying to force himself back to sanity.


    Munashi says, ¡°Honored elder, I hear your heart. Is it the words?¡±


    John feels much relief. ¡°You see them too?¡±


    Munashi grunts. ¡°I do. You asked me if I knew what was happening earlier, and gave an answer far different than what was explained to us. Did you not hear the explanation, or did you not pay attention? I missed some myself, or failed to understand what was being said.¡±


    John, confused, says, ¡°I received no explanation. I awoke doing exercises. My mind and body were healed. I was under a strange compulsion and couldn¡¯t control my actions. I heard only a distant whisper I couldn¡¯t understand. When I was in the field where our brothers and sisters were all killed, I heard demons talking about this world having only a short time left, and Peerless, and us all dying or becoming slaves. Then I was crushed, and this building grew around me. You know the rest.¡±


    The non-spirit whispers in John¡¯s ear, ¡°You¡¯re so weird. But I like it!¡±


    Munashi says. ¡°Honored elder, I will tell you what I can, but there is information much more important than the rest. More important than anything. I told you before, but you must have missed it. But first, you were introducing me to the spirit, yes?¡±


    John says, ¡°I was, and I look forward to your news. Mistress, I didn¡¯t get your name. I go by John now; my friend here goes by Munashi.¡±


    The feminine voice, still whispering, says, ¡°Names have power and I won¡¯t give mine. And please don¡¯t call me mistress. It means something way different now than what it used to mean. Something gross!¡±


    ¡°What should I call you then?¡±


    ¡°What do you want to call me?¡±


    "Your name, mostly.¡±


    A tinkling laughter hits John¡¯s ear, ¡°You¡¯re funny! You can name me anything.¡±


    John thinks for a moment and asks, ¡°Amber?¡±


    Amber laughs again, ¡°I like it!¡±


    Louder, John says, ¡°Munashi, our other companion is Amber. She is not a spirit. Not really. And definitely not a he.¡±


    Laughter tinkles again in John¡¯s ear. Munashi says, ¡°Yes. Please rest, Miss Amber.¡±


    Both John and Munashi wait for a response, which never comes. John says, ¡°Amber?¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°Will you not address Munashi directly?¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°Why not. It¡¯s very rude, you know?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to. I told you he feels hazardous. He thinks of death. Yours? Mine? I can¡¯t tell.¡±


    John knows he is not the smartest man, but he¡¯s been around for a while, and has always been a decent judge of these things. He doesn¡¯t think Munashi means to do harm to him or Amber.


    ¡°Sorry, brother. Amber says she doesn¡¯t want to talk to you, and is under the mistaken assumption you think of death and harming us.¡±


    The last thing John was expecting was laughter, which Munashi does much of. ¡°Yes. Honored elder, she is correct! And incorrect too. I told you before, we need not fear the cold-dark. Our souls! They were given back to us! And your religion is wrong, but mine is right! There is no Underworld. We are reborn! Our souls return to this world after we die. They didn¡¯t articulate ¨C human, insect, karma probably decides, it matters not. Even if I return as an insect I must go. My debt is heavy. I taught my people a warrior has no fear of death, but I feared it above all. As soon as I am healed enough I will go. The death I seek is my own. I would be honored if you acted as my second. We are not easy to kill, and I could use the help.¡±


    Amber whispers, ¡°My goodness! He¡¯s lost his mind.¡±


    Up to this point John has stared at the calming fire of a torch, while occasionally moving his eyeballs around to see if he could spot Amber. His head has been fixed in position as it heals. John tests his neck, and it is good enough to move a little. He moves it enough to look at Munashi


    The man is wearing loose grey clothing, a large orange sash around his waist, and large white shoes. John can¡¯t really see Munashi¡¯s face as he is perpendicular to John, but John can see two hilts sticking up on Munashi¡¯s left side.


    And a soul! Munashi has a soul. Far smaller and more tattered than any John has ever seen, and far more dark spots smatter the grey than usual, and hardly any white at all, and there is no red now. But a soul!


    John exclaims in much excitement, ¡°Great gods below! I see it! It¡¯s true! Do I have mine back? Can you see it?¡±


    Munashi laughs. ¡°I saw your soul when we were outside, on the ground. It¡¯s rough as a century-old worn-out garment, and very, very little ¨C but there. Do not worry, honored elder, I know what you think, and I am with you. Honor demands no less. No cold-dark.


    ¡°And there are no gods below. There is one great one in Heaven, and only buddhas can join Him there once they ascend high enough and attain enlightenment. So, we were somewhat right again. We were right about reincarnation, and energy centers, and energy channels too.


    ¡°It¡¯s just like we saw when we got the choice. I forgot about it, really. I remember the good place, but you had to be a woman to get there. The struggle, trying to join with the powerful thing. They call it¡­I forget. I¡¯m not explaining well. They told us a lot. The cold-dark is all that matters. Can you believe it?¡±


    John smiles and enthusiastically says, ¡°I can¡¯t. It seems like a dream. But the rest of it, man, tell me. You¡¯ve made some large claims and I¡¯d like them explained. I still don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on. I¡¯m more confused now than when we got here.¡±


    Munashi sighs, ¡°Why? None of that matters. Our souls are back. We can finally end this farce.¡±


    John understands where Munashi is coming from. Such long life is more of a curse than a blessing. Ahn would often wonder if the cold-dark would be much worse than enduring another century. ¡°Brother, there are ends, and there are ends. Our world is invaded. You say cowards now run everything; don¡¯t join their ranks. Show them how to live!


    ¡°Fight by my side. Die as a man should ¨C in glorious battle, being fell and tall, doing deeds so grand they will be sung of for all eternity. The demon-generals said we are weak and soft and have no chest. We¡¯ll show them otherwise, and drain them of vital essence, and piss on their corpses.¡±


    A long silence reigns over the antechamber. Munashi breaks it. ¡°You mistake my intentions. Fighting is easy for me. I live for the battle; none would say otherwise. The only thing that can unman me is fear of the cold-dark. Only a maniac with a broken mind wouldn¡¯t fear it, and do all to avoid it. But that fear is now gone.


    ¡°And though it be futile, if I could¡¯ve, I would¡®ve attacked the two ascended that crushed us. If I stood before the combined army of demons and dark ones and all the ascended, I would not balk, and I would spit at them, and draw sword and charge.


    ¡°The little honor I have left calls for my death immediately. It demands it. I could not live the beliefs I espoused. It is the only way I can save a little face and win back some honor. It must be done. I thought it would be the same for you, but we are of a different mind. I hope you second me, and if not, bear witness, but you will not stop me.¡±


    John doesn¡¯t understand Munashi¡¯s mind, but respects the man¡¯s conviction. His reply is, ¡°The matter is settled then, brother. It saddens me though, since I¡¯ve only just met you and enjoy your company.


    ¡°But I beg a favor ¨C let us fight and have your end in that way. Though you say my beliefs are wrong it is always better to be safe than sorry. Everyone knows demons lie, and when I awaken in the Underworld, I want you by my side and not opposed to me. You must die in battle. Please, for my peace of mind if nothing else.¡±


    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    Amber, whispering again, tells John, ¡°You guys are both crazy.¡±


    Munashi gives a loud laugh, ¡°Ha! You think you have the juice? Did I not survive the same attack you did? Our wounds were similar. Though I¡¯ve never healed so quickly from such injuries. I must have you to thank for this, Miss Amber? But your victory is no sure thing, honored elder. You forget, the essence isn¡¯t as potent after five or so centuries. The amount of strength and speed and resilience it gives takes more and more essence and wanes, and I am the greatest swordsman that has ever lived.¡±


    John smiles, ¡°I¡¯m pretty good with a sword myself, and you have the two with you. I¡¯ll take the short one. When I¡¯m done healing, I¡¯ll have little more than half essence. I will not use it and will save it for these dark ones the words in my eyes spoke of. Feel free to use as much of yours as needed to give me what little challenge you can, and I¡¯ll take the rest from you after.¡±


    Munashi grunts. ¡°Ha! Yes. I shall. And once my sword drinks of your blood I will take my own life and go to the Wheel with my thirst satiated. I am not yet healed enough, so let us speak of other matters before I take your life.¡±


    Amber says, no longer whispering, ¡°Goodness! This is the dumbest conversation I¡¯ve ever heard! What is wrong with you two? Please don¡¯t do this! Please don¡¯t be so stupid. Let¡¯s just talk about this for a minute. Yeah, let¡¯s do that! Let¡¯s all take some deep breaths and relax and maybe think about how crazy the things you guys are saying are. Whaddaya say, guys?¡±


    Munashi laughs. ¡°Thank you for speaking loud enough for me to hear, Miss Amber. I¡¯ve had centuries and centuries to think on this. My path is certain. I have no choice.¡±


    Amber makes a frustrated noise. ¡°What if you win and then kill yourself. I¡¯ll be alone. Can¡¯t you guys wait until after this Tribulation? Please?¡±


    Munashi, with his softest voice yet, says, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Miss Amber, but this can¡¯t wait. It must be done.¡±


    John wants to tell her Munashi stands no chance, but holds his tongue. John can¡¯t really see Munashi¡¯s face, but he can see enough to notice the man¡¯s lip movements don¡¯t match up with the words he hears, and he guesses it¡¯s this translation he was told of.


    Amber sighs. ¡°Well, that really sucks. This all really sucks. I hafta tell you guys something then. It¡¯s¡­it¡¯s my fault everyone died. I woke up and tried to make a run for it. I¡¯m good at escaping. No one can ever see me if I don¡¯t want them to. I don¡¯t know how that thing saw me, and I didn¡¯t know they¡¯d kill everyone! Honest! I just wanted to get away. I didn¡¯t know! I¡¯m so, so sorry!¡±


    Munashi grunts. John looks away from the torch and back at the man. Munashi¡¯s neck healed; he now looks around the antechamber. He looks older than John. He looks to be in his twenties or early thirties. His features are sharp, face clean shaved, beige skin, bald head, eyes shaped strangely, with a tortured look to his face.


    John says to Amber, ¡°It is not your fault. Munashi said he¡¯d have attacked if he could, and I would¡¯ve too. Fear not, we will have vengeance. I still haven¡¯t had an explanation of what is going on though.¡±


    Munashi says, ¡°Eh, where to start? There was something about this world being blocked from the rest of¡­everything. Everything else has the Tree of Life. You meditate and perform self-cultivation. You gather energy by breathing in certain ways and move it to your energy centers in your lower belly, heart, and head. Mainly your lower energy center. Energy channels run throughout your body, connecting to organs and energy centers. We knew all this for a long time. How, I don¡¯t know. I did it for years and it didn¡¯t do anything but clear my head and help me gain focus and clarity. You just did it because it was part of the Way.


    ¡°Where things get crazy is they say you gather enough energy and compress it and you go up tiers. And going up tiers makes you stronger. We¡¯re all low Wood Seeds. It goes up to¡­I forget.¡±


    Amber says, ¡°Wood and Seed are different names for the same thing. The bottom of the ladder. It goes Wood, Copper, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, and then Empty or Salt. All the way up to Platinum are Mortal ranks. After is Exalted. You can live in space after Empty too! How awesome is that? The other names for the tiers are Seed, Root, Shoot, Sprout, Sapling, Flower, Fruit, and New Soul. Same thing, just different names. And each tier has different ranks ¨C low, mid-low, mid-high, high, and peak.


    ¡°And, guess what else? The¡­¡±


    John interrupts, ¡°Stop! Please. Let me take in what has been said so far. And how did you remember all that?¡±


    Amber laughs out her musical laughter. ¡°You don¡¯t have to remember anything. The NCS. It means¡­one sec¡­Nano Control System. That¡¯s the words in your eyes. They said ours are activated because we qualify as Tech 1, since we¡¯ve been to space and stuff. But they said our technology sucks and we don¡¯t really qualify since the way to get to space is with the Tree of Life. Well, anywho, the NCS is a UI and just gives us information and guides us and can help us self-cultivate. There¡¯s a tutorial. I did it when you guys were blabbing and it took a while but when I finished my Tribulation timer didn¡¯t really go down much and you guys were still blabbing about the same thing and¡­¡±


    John says, ¡°Amber! Slow down, please. Breathe once in a while. I¡¯m having trouble understanding the things you¡¯re saying.¡±


    In a huffed breath Amber says, ¡°You don¡¯t have to. Just do the tutorial. Okay, to start it, you¡­¡±


    Munashi interrupts this time. ¡°Miss Amber, we should at least tell him what we were told. I had a hard time understanding, and he is much older. Let me try to explain. What television shows and movies are you familiar with?¡±


    ¡°I¡­I don¡¯t know what those are.¡±


    Munashi grunts. ¡°Okay. That would¡¯ve helped. Just know there is more out there than you could ever have imagined, and we are now part of it. Those things outside weren¡¯t demons. They were ascended beings. There are five Trees, and both of those were on the next one. Aliens, from other worlds. They¡­¡±


    Amber interrupts. ¡°The Trees are called Mortal, Transcended, Celestial, Divine, and Heavenly. It takes a long time to ascend through a Tree. It¡¯s a big deal too!¡±


    Munashi grunts. John believes grunting means Munashi agrees. The man continues, ¡°Yes. The other key points are they are bringing in creatures for us to battle. Demons were one of them. Dark ones too. I forget the last.¡±


    Amber says ¡°G¡¯athu. All of them are the Forsaken. And we¡¯re the Favored.¡±


    Munashi grunts and continues, ¡°Yes. G¡¯athu. A higher ascendant, at great cost to itself, is placing all mothers with children six and under, and all children twelve and under, for a full year inside¡­well, we were told inside of itself. That sounds weird saying it, but that¡¯s what we were told. They¡¯ll be safe, and learn the ways of self-cultivation in peace, while everyone left here has a trial by fire.


    ¡°The demons and dark ones and g¡¯athu are a plague throughout the universe. If they don¡¯t bring them in for us to fight, we¡¯ll fight each other. And¡­¡±


    Amber interrupts. ¡°Yeah. Most worlds have ascended beasts to fight, and their cultures grew along with the Tree of Life. This is normal to them. They never didn¡¯t have this. Earth won¡¯t be like a normal world for a long time. If we fight each other to ascend things will get real crazy and all lopsided and all the other species will think we¡¯re savages and hate us. The ascended helping us aren¡¯t bad guys. They put a lot of thought into this.


    Barely taking a breath, Amber continues. ¡°And, um, the NCS will tell you about [Stats]. That just means a number representing¡­um, things like how strong and fast and stuff we are. But it isn¡¯t like in games, like how RPGs are. They tested us. It found out how strong and stuff we are. The NCS doesn¡¯t make us stronger. It helps us get stronger and tracks how strong we are.


    ¡°Uh, goodness this is hard to explain. [Strength] isn¡¯t equal for all the races of the universe. Or beasts either. And there are more universes than just this one. And something called realities. And tons of species everywhere. You should¡¯ve seen the guy telling us this. He looked real weird. I think he was a guy.


    ¡°He said if his species had ten [Strength] it isn¡¯t the same as a human with ten [Strength]. Or even a bear or frog or whatever. All species have their own, um¡­one sec. Minimum Energy Unit Increase. It usually always works out that ten is the peak a species can get in a [Stat] without ascending.


    ¡°They tested only our [Strength], [Swiftness], and [Conditioning]. Um, that basically just means how strong, fast, and how much stamina you got. How healthy you are too. The NCS will explain better.¡±


    Amber makes an excited noise, ¡°Oh! And guess what? Know how guys are usually stronger than girls? Well, huh! Get this. For species like ours, girls are usually better with spells. Did we tell you that yet? That we can cast spells now? They call them manifestations. We have to at least open our lower energy center before we can cast spells, but I¡¯ll be better at it because guys are stupid and want to kill each other and leave me all alone to fight the dark ones.¡±


    Munashi laughs. ¡°Ha! He didn¡¯t say that. He said the lower energy center of women is in a richer environment with natural and stronger energy flows. And things often balance out for most races and sexes the further up the Tree they ascend, regardless of their specific gifts when starting out. Races meaning species.¡±


    This talk of magic gets John¡¯s full attention, and causes him to be very excited. Since he had first heard of the concept, he has wanted magic for himself. In fact, much of his time with his beloved Lilitu was in search of magic. Though he did see some workings of it, he did not like it, as it involved curses and rituals and sacrificing life. He has always wanted to control fire, and have pillars of flame billow forth from his hands. If what his companions say is true, this dream now seems possible.


    Amber and Munashi continue to explain things, but John¡¯s mind constantly returns to fire, and he misses much of what is said. His companions explain the origins of the NCS, and more on {Stats], and many other things, while John imagines his enemies exploding in fire, and how they scream and run, covered in the flames he controls.


    John¡¯s body heals, and so does Munashi¡¯s, and it is time for their duel.


    Amber cannot talk them out of fighting, but it is her idea to have both men remove as much of their clothes as is decent to do, as she claims she is cold and could use more clothing, and does not want to wear something slashed or more bloodied than their clothes already are.


    Amber says John¡¯s comfortable clothings are something called pajamas, and only made to be worn at night and slept in, so he will benefit from different apparel if he wins the fight. Munashi is wearing something called either a sweatsuit or a tracksuit, both of John¡¯s companions giving the outfit a different name.


    John has no undergarments so only removes his top, as to not be disrespectful and crude towards Amber. Munashi removes his long-sleeved, hooded grey top, grey pants with elastics at the waist and bottom of the legs, small white sleeveless undershirt called a tanktop, large white shoes, and stockings. Munashi now wears only his large sash around his waist, holding the two swords, both short and long, and a stretchy smallcloth covering his indecent parts.


    Munashi gives John the short sword, still sheathed, and instructs John to hold it at his hip and grip the hilt, ready to draw. Amber will count down from three, and as she says one, both shall draw and strike and fight until one lay dead.

 5 - Fight

    A constant throughout John¡¯s life has always been people leaving it ¨C his family, his master, his love, brothers-in-arms, his many wives throughout the ages, friends he loved dearly, and recently, his longtime friend, Thomas. Soon, Munashi would be added to this list, though he¡¯s only known him a short time. Kin are kin, and these two have a bond connecting them deeper than any brothers, as few know the pain of living far too long.


    Amber says, ¡°Three!¡±


    John feels good. The timer in his vision says 42:01. He hasn¡¯t examined the short sword, but the hilt and sheath seem very fine, and he trusts Munashi has enough honor to not give him a defective blade.


    Swords have improved greatly since John first started down the path of learning them, the great strength of Ahn and John breaking copper swords on even light parries. Being careful, treating swords as brittle, and parrying gently and correctly with the flat is as ingrained in John as breathing. He has done so with copper, bronze, iron and steel blades of all shapes and sizes ¨C even a blade made of the famed vootz steel of Burata.


    John has studied swordsmanship for a very long time, and mastered many types of blades. He had two favorites. A fine side-sword from a time when battle swords were too long and unwieldy to carry in cities, and important men did not go about life unarmed. It is light and has a fine point and sharp edge and was a popular make before rapiers and fencing and such foppery.


    The second sword John favors is not popular at any time or place he knows of, and fitted only to John¡¯s tastes and strengths. It is long, and thick around, and too heavy for most men to wield at all. It is great for half-swording and puncturing armored foes or cracking bones of foes unarmored. John calls it his big-tuck, and wields it masterfully and with ease.


    Amber says, ¡°Two!¡±


    Though John wishes he had either of his own swords, he doesn¡¯t believe he needs any sword at all to win this fight. He can tell Munashi is drawing on essence, enhancing his strength and speed, and is coiled to strike.


    John revels in this feeling ¨C the calm and peace, and adrenaline and chaos, the duality of both before a fight. This is living! The juice flows, chests held out, heads held high. Men ready to do violence to each other in honorable battle. Death in the air.


    John believes this is when men are at their best and highest form, not merely existing. One of the too few brief moments between all the rest. Those moments that make life worth living. The ecstasy and electricity of being so close to death.


    John studies Munashi and tries to predict his moves, how he shall strike. John is a hand or so taller than Munashi and has a natural reach advantage by arm and leg, but Munashi¡¯s sword is much longer. Munashi placed John where John can be tagged but cannot retaliate without moving forward.


    John doesn¡¯t mind. He believes Munashi needs all the advantages he can get, and only hopes Munashi is up to the task of providing a little challenge.


    Amber starts to say, ¡°One.¡± As soon as the slightest noise leaves her mouth, Munashi¡¯s blade flies from its sheath faster than John has ever seen a sword drawn, and flashes towards John¡¯s head. John¡¯s own blade flies up to stop it by parry, and he is surprised at how close a thing it is.


    John is fast, and isn¡¯t drawing on essence, and Munashi, while drawing on essence, just might be nearly as fast. John predicted the strike accurately, and predicted the next obvious move as either a beat or reset. He is not prepared for what happens, and considers Munashi a true sword-master for it.


    There is no beat or reset, nor a press, instead Munashi seamlessly turns the parry into an aid for a new attack, beautifully and perfectly, a continuation of the same strike.


    Long has it been stated a master can turn a defensive action into an attack, called a master¡¯s strike. John has rarely seen a defended attack as part of the same larger attack, and seeing it done so perfectly alights his heart with joy, even as the blade slides over his own and canters down towards his chest as fast as lightning. John turns to avoid it, and has an opening to inflict grave damage, but doesn¡¯t take it.


    John and Munashi¡¯s backs touch for a brief moment, and John believes both will reset. He is wrong. Munashi¡¯s blade almost splits his face. John nearly must call on the vital essence to empower himself to avoid it, instead he loses some hair, and is put on the defensive for a pass before regaining his footing and position.


    No reset comes for a while, and John revels in the glory of being hard pressed. He hasn¡¯t felt so gay since his time fighting with Ahn, and savors every moment. Every beat and press, every counter and back, every thrust turned in an odd way John has never encountered before, every strike answered with this new style of fighting, all adding to the glory of this combat.


    John knows Munashi will most certainly earn a grand place in the Underworld, even a place at the side of Koram, and will be graced with many trinkets and baubles and women to serve his every need and make him comfortable and sing of his deeds.


    Munashi¡¯s style is elegant, strong, efficient, and effective. John now only wishes Munashi could live to teach him this style. He is saddened to know it will not be so.


    Watching, Amber thinks, I wish they weren¡¯t doing this, but it¡¯s sooo beautiful to watch. I don¡¯t know how men do it. They were both so nice and seemed so gentle, now look at them. Men are so stupid. Always have been. Even though he looks so young I thought John was handsome before. His face kinda had a dark and brutal look, but his manners and kindness made it handsome. Sorta cute! Except too young. He looks like a boy. Even I look older. You could barely see his small fangs before. Now he looks just plain evil. I don¡¯t think I¡¯m safe with him, and he¡¯s going to win. Please, please, please let him spare Munashi!


    The fight is fast and furious, John pushes himself without drawing on vital essence. He also doesn¡¯t want Munashi to waste too much of his own. When the timer ticks 32:59, and John is well beyond certain Munashi earned a good place in the afterlife, he runs Munashi through.


    John could¡¯ve ended the fight at the start, and with but few exceptions of mere moments, anytime since. John drops the short sword, disarms Munashi, and takes the longer blade in hand. As John sinks teeth into neck, he hears Amber making a gasping noise, as if from disgust. It pains him to hear it, but he doesn¡¯t stop until he has all the dregs.


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    John holds Munashi up still, and says, ¡°You are a true master of the sword and fight like no other. I have not known you long, but I am saddened you must die. If you are right and are reborn, please find me and teach me this style. Fight well, brother!¡±


    With a mighty swing, John beheads his new friend, and lays the corpse gently down.


    Loudly, John praises his dead friend, ¡°I have not felt this gay in a long while! What a fight! Though I am saddened Munashi is dead. He was a true warrior, both fell and tall.¡±


    Looking around, John continues. ¡°I don¡¯t know where you stand, but I will face this way as I change. Please turn your back, and I¡¯ll leave these silky pants you want at this spot, along with the top, and will announce when I am clothed. Then I will walk to the corner and face it while you change clothes. I know I cannot see you, but I would not have you think I am indecent, and try to steal glimpses of what I should not, and I do not know how your queer magic works.¡±


    John starts changing, and Amber starts talking. ¡°Oh my God! That¡¯s it? You just killed him and¡­nothing? Don¡¯t you have emotions, dude? What¡¯s wrong with you?


    ¡°And you really, really need to stop saying gay and queer. They mean completely different things now and everyone is going to think you¡¯re so weird when you talk. Just talk modern, like I do. It¡¯s easy, you just don¡¯t say weird old things and throw around gay and queer incorrectly every two seconds. And you don¡¯t kill your friends and then tell everyone how happy it makes you! I hope you¡¯re not planning on killing me and drinking my blood too.¡±


    John, having lived a long time, has had more women yell at him than he could ever remember, and takes it in stride with a smile. He missed it, and is glad his mind is mended enough to enjoy such again. He knows not to give her more fodder, so just smiles as he announces he is finished changing clothes, and then he heads to the corner.


    The big white shoes John wears are too tight, and his toes are squished, but he has worn tighter without complaint. He wears Munashi¡¯s orange sash, and tried to make it how he saw Munashi wear it, but John is sure he wrapped it incorrectly. He flicks as much blood from the swords as he can, and cleans the rest on an already bloody part of the grey top¡¯s sleeve, and sheathes them. He puts both swords on his left as Munashi did, but it feels off, so he puts the short sword on his right side. It still feels off, but since he plans on offering the short sword to Amber, he thinks it matters little.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare look! I know you can¡¯t see me but still, it¡¯s the...never mind. All you men are creeps.¡± John is impressed by how well whatever magic keeps Amber hidden does so. He still can hear no heartbeat or anything else, smells no scent, and can see no soul.


    Amber states, ¡°There. All changed. These jammies are super comfy! And I¡¯m all warm and toasty now. Too long though, I had to cuff them. And too bad for you, now you can¡¯t see my legs. I have great legs. Everyone says so. And if I become visible you won¡¯t be able to see them, so ha! Your loss. And you shouldn¡¯t kill your friends, but if you have to you definitely don¡¯t get happy about it. That¡¯s really gross and sick and now I¡¯m scared of you, dude.¡±


    John turns away from the corner and squats down, ¡°You know I didn¡¯t want to kill him. I begged him to live. I did enjoy the fight, as a man should. You have nothing to fear from me.¡±


    ¡°What if you get hungry and need blood and I¡¯m the only one around and you become a mindless animal from thirst like in the movies and can¡¯t stop yourself? Huh?¡±


    John laughs, ¡°As I said, you need not fear. I¡¯m currently full of vital essence, and if it¡¯s gone, I crave it, but not mindlessly. I just get weaker and cannot draw on it for healing or to empower myself. I think going too long without it hastens mind decay, as I was imprisoned for long once, and my mind was hurt from it.


    ¡°But I¡¯m anxious now that I¡¯m healed. I don¡¯t want to go back to the way I was, so I fear all that could cause my mind to decay. And to help settle your mind, I give you my word ¨C unless circumstances change greatly, and you attack me or try to hurt me, I will never hurt you. And I will also try to talk in a more modern way, and never say gay or queer or other words that bother you again, though I used them in the way I learned them, and don¡¯t know how I am using them incorrectly.¡±


    John thinks he hears a huffed, ¡°Hrrmm,¡± in reply. He still must do the tutorial for this Hue-Ai, whatever a tutorial is, but decides to calm his last and only companion some and find out more about her. The timer is only on 29, so time is not a pressing matter yet. ¡°You know, I believe I did see your legs. On the field, with the demon¡­I mean ascended. I heard shuffling, and towards my left a fine pair of very striking legs lifted into the air. I did not see more, just fine and shapely legs, and bare.¡±


    ¡°Well, enjoy the glimpse, buddy, because that¡¯s all you¡¯ll ever get. Jerk.¡±


    This causes John to laugh. ¡°So, you have said you are good at escaping. This makes sense since you¡¯re invisible and can mask scent and sound. You¡¯ve also provided healing that acts very fast and is extremely potent. And you didn¡¯t seem worse off for the hit we took in the field that crumpled me and killed many. What else can you do? Sense emotions? And what are you exactly?¡±


    John hears no movement, but when Amber next speaks, she is closer, ¡°I have a lot of tricks! And I have to stay invisible. If you saw me, you¡¯d fall in love with me and try to capture me and keep me forever and I¡¯d hate you for it. And I lost my hat and sunglasses anyways.


    ¡°I¡¯m surprised you didn¡¯t fall in love with me just from seeing my legs. I have great legs. Everyone says. I don¡¯t like fighting, and I usually never have to since I¡¯m so good at getting away. I can cast a beam down from the sky and it dazes people, but I don¡¯t think it hurts too much and it¡¯s only ever killed small animals. I can do a lot of things, really.


    ¡°What am I? Good question. I don¡¯t know. I know I was less once. A lot less. Just instincts to eat and run and stay alive. It was a long time before I realized I was¡­well, me. When I could think and learn tricks, I became me. I never met anyone or anything like me, so I gotta figure it all out by myself. There¡¯s a lot of rules. I don¡¯t know how many, but there will be more when I figure out new tricks or get different offers. I just gotta be careful around people, because if I don¡¯t hide my face people get crazy and fall in love with me and try to take me and everything gets real awkward. I¡¯m very beautiful. Everyone says. And it isn¡¯t real love. It¡¯s¡­mean. Fake love.


    ¡°And I did give you and Munashi some healing, but I felt more in the room before that, and it came from something other than me. Something powerful and¡­um¡­apathetic fits, I guess. My healing isn¡¯t nearly as good and would take forever to heal you guys up.¡±


    John finds his companion to be very interesting, and is now more curious about her, ¡°How old are you?¡±


    ¡°Oh! How dare you! Don¡¯t you know you never ask a lady her age? Don¡¯t you have any manners?¡±


    John laughs again, ¡°Since when can¡¯t you ask a lady that? And why? This is not a rule I remember learning.¡±


    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t know how old I am. I can remember a long time ago, but not how you¡¯d think. I live for the now. I was also alive for a long time before I could understand things¡­better. The NCS doesn¡¯t know either. He said he can¡¯t age me. I¡¯m old enough.¡±


    ¡°Old enough to what?¡±


    ¡°Hrrmm! To get into a bar and buy drinks with an ID. Do whatever I want! You old-timey talking jerk.¡±


    ¡°Would I really fall in love with you if I saw your face? I don¡¯t think so. Unless some great magic is the cause of it. The last time I loved was my Lilitu, and that was long ago. I don¡¯t know if I¡¯m capable any longer.¡±


    ¡°Well, you are and you would! Even girls fall in love when they see my true face. Even if I hide my face it still works on everyone eventually. You probably didn¡¯t even see my bare legs or you¡¯d be drooling right now and begging me for a kiss. No cap! Hop off and stop with, uh¡­stop throwing shade, man! See, modern talk. That¡¯s how to sound normal. You should try it. It hits. Jerk.¡±


    John, again, can do nothing but laugh. He looks at the time and sees 24:23. ¡°Amber, I will now do this tutorial you spoke of. Do I ask Hue-Ai to allow it? How does this work?¡±


    ¡°Okay, tap between your eyes, just above. It¡¯s called a Third Eye. Tap it and think ''NCS'' or ''UI.''¡±

 B2 Prologue - The terrible promise of forever

    Close to what is known today as Yazihan, Malatya, Turkey. 3,890 to 3,740 BC.


    The young lord, Nut, left his hold equipped for a raid. He had one sharp spear, two blunted spears, a stone axe, a bow, and four arrows. If the raid went as planned, no weapon would be drawn. Raids were for robbing, and only failed raids had much violence.


    Lord Nut had recently turned seventeen years of age. Such things were not tracked, so he didn¡¯t know his age, or care. How many trinkets adorned his body was far more important. He hoped he and the ten sworn-men that raided with him would all head back to his hold richer and with many supplies and animals, but if things turned violent, he would not mind.


    Nut and his men darkened their skin with mud and were very hard to see in the little light given from the waning gibbous moon. Though they were too far away from the neighboring hold they were raiding to be disciplined with noise yet, every man of the raiding party naturally walked quietly over the craggy terrain.


    The man riding the large, strange beast slowly through the foothills was heard before he was spotted. The raiding party hid before they could be seen, yet it seemed the far-off man rode directly towards them.


    Nut had heard rumors of nomadic tribes far to the northeast riding on great beasts, and there were some gods he heard of that also rode on animals. His own god, Koram, was said to sometimes ride a two-headed bear into battle, but he had never seen a man ride a beast with his own eyes, nor had he ever met a man claiming to have seen such.


    The beast the lone man rode upon looked somewhat like a giant ibex with longer legs, a longer face, and no horns. It was hard to make out more than that in the light of the moon.


    Not much detail could be made of the stranger. Unlike every person Nut had ever seen, wearing only loincloths, the lone traveler wore something strange over his whole body, hitched up on his thighs as he rode. A large haft showed over his right shoulder, much too large to be the shaft of a spear, and curved a little, like for a giant adze.


    A merchant would have goods to trade, and the strange man had none that could be seen. Nut met a southern merchant once at King Kah¡¯s hold. The man dressed as all people did and had many guards that traveled with him and helped protect and lug his goods around.


    Why the strange man thought he could travel alone through foreign territory safely was a mystery. The gods must have cursed his mind with a madness, thought Nut.


    The man continued to look directly at the raiding party and steered his great beast towards them. Nut gave his men the signal to stay unmoving and placed his spear on the ground. He grabbed his bow and strung it. He nocked and loosed an arrow, having it fall a distance in front of the stranger as a warning, but close enough the man had to see it.


    The man ignored the warning and unworriedly continued to ride his beast towards the party. Nut yelled, ¡°Halt.¡± That went ignored too.


    No orders were needed for the raiding party to string and nock arrow to bow, besides for Bullet, since he only used a sling. The warriors all stood, and the young lord yelled out again. ¡°Halt!¡±


    The stranger halted that time. He dismounted his beast. But then he continued to approach on foot, leaving his beast behind.


    Having had enough of the fool, Lord Nut loosed his arrow, and his men did the same. Ten arrows and one stone flew at the man, and the stranger¡¯s hand snaked out to snatch Nut¡¯s own arrow out of the air. Then the man moved so quickly he seemed to blur, and somehow managed to avoid the rest of the missiles.


    After the failed volley, the strange man was only about five-tens paces in front of the raiding party. Nut assumed his men figured out the same thing he did. The strange man was no man at all. He was either a cowardly sky god descended from above, or one of the great gods below, no longer having the juice to fight in the eternal battle, so fled above to this dream.


    Either way the men¡¯s spirits rose, and they held their chests out. The battle would be glorious, and they would awaken from this dream by the side of Koram himself, having won great rewards and honors for their tall deed giving battle to such a fell foe.


    The god was close enough Nut noticed he wore no trinkets as any warrior should, especially such a doughty one. As Nut nocked a new arrow the god whipped the one he caught in his bare hand forward, and it impaled into the chest of Bull so fiercely it knocked the giant man off his feet.


    New arrows were loosed at the god, and he quickly closed with the raiding party as he avoided the missiles, drawing the weapon from his back. The weapon was an axe. The haft was thick and long, and the wood curved. The head was large and if it was knapped from a stone as all axes were, the crafter had skills beyond understanding, as the head was completely smooth. A worthy weapon for a god, thought Nut.


    No arrow had yet struck the man. Bows were dropped and replaced with spear or axe. Nut picked up his sharp spear and prepared to engage in melee when Three-Blow let out a war cry, letting all know he would fight the god in single battle.


    Three-Blow, named so because he could defeat any man with merely three blows, had been with Nut for a long time and was his top sworn-man. When Nut was thirteen and his lord father sent him and his brother away during the foreign invasion, Three-Blow was one of the two sworn-men sent with them. Tall, fast, skilled, and the veteran of more battles than any in Nut¡¯s hold, Three-Blow earned the right to challenge the stranger to such battle.


    With a spear in his right hand, and an axe in his left, Three-Blow started a run to chuck his spear at the god, and though the throw was perfect, the stranger easily batted the spear aside with his empty hand.


    Three-Blow moved the axe from left to right hand as he continued to charge the man, letting out a new war cry. As he reached the god and started a swing, the large axe of the god split Three-Blow¡¯s head completely, lodging deep down into his chest. The blow was so fast and mighty all stood confused for a moment.


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    Never had Nut or any of his men seen such a mighty blow and feat of strength. They were sad to see Three-Blow fall, as he was a friend and the best warrior among them, but they still cheered and yelped in appreciation of the god¡¯s prowess, and all were glad witnesses to such a feat.


    Nut then noticed the man stared only at him and seemed excited for some odd reason. The stranger held his hand up, as if he wanted peace and to exchange words.


    Even if Nut wanted to end hostilities and talk, his men would have never accepted it. If he was much older, a grizzled and hardened veteran and grandfather covered in trinkets, his men might have trusted him with such a breach of custom, believing in his greater wisdom and understanding of honor.


    The stranger killed Bull and Three-Blow. Peace was not an option. All knew they would awaken that night. Nut and all his men would die, but they would all die gloriously, in battle with a god. No man could wish for a better end to their dream.


    Lord Nut and all his men let out war cries as they rushed the god with spear and axe.


    Nine fought one. Nut wanted to at least draw some blood before he was cut down, but the stranger was too fast and skilled, sliding away from all blows and tosses with ease, as he stared only at Nut.


    Five fought one, and all five reveled in the ecstasy of such battle and slaughter. A head flew by Nut, and a headless body pressed into him. The stranger could have easily taken Nut¡¯s life at that moment but did not.


    Two fought one, and the stranger stared at Nut as he sank his teeth into the neck of Bullet. Nut yelled out a war cry and stabbed his spear at the god¡¯s face. The spear was caught and ripped from his hand. Nut grabbed his axe and swung, and his arm was caught, and he was spun around as his arm was twisted behind him, holding him immobile.


    A body falling to the ground with a thud was heard, and Nut was spun back around, though his arm was still held fast. He threw a blow at the god¡¯s face with his left hand, and the god lowered his head a little so Nut¡¯s punch landed on the hard skull. The stranger smiled, and held up his hand again, calling for peace.


    Nut threw more blows and tried to break free of the man¡¯s grip. The god just smiled, laughed, and said, ¡°Gad,¡± and ¡°Yada,¡± gibberish words that meant nothing to Nut.


    Nut¡¯s arm was released, and he was pushed to the ground and sternly told the gibberish words again. He then dove at the legs of the god, which merely resulted in him being grabbed by the neck and lifted into the air.


    Nut punched the arm holding him in the air, kicking at the stranger¡¯s body, and received a slap so hard across the face he nearly lost consciousness.


    ¡°Gad,¡± said the god, a smile still on his face. Then, ¡°Yada,¡± again. Nut spit at the smiling face and got another smack as a reward.


    The stranger pointed at his own chest and said, ¡°Ahn. Ahn.¡± Still dazed from the smacks, it took Nut a moment to realize the stranger was giving him his name. Nut pointed at Ahn and struggled out the word, ¡°Ahn.¡± He then pointed at his own chest and said, ¡°Lord Nut,¡± as best he could while being choked so.


    Ahn let Nut back to the ground and released his hold of Nut¡¯s neck. That surprised Nut. Both still lived. Battles never ended until at least one party was too injured to continue. Nut went for his flint knife and his wrist was grabbed and held, and Ahn yelled, ¡°Gab!¡± Ahn put his finger in Nut¡¯s face and again yelled, ¡°Gab! Yada? Gab!¡±


    Thoughts rushed through Nut¡¯s mind. Was he being made a prisoner or slave? No one enslaved warriors. No hold would pay ransom, and every warrior would attack their enslaver until one was dead. It just wasn¡¯t done.


    Nut couldn¡¯t make a run for it. No one would follow a cowardly lord that ran from battle, too frightened to awaken from this dream as he should. But he couldn¡¯t hurt the god. And the god didn¡¯t seem interested in killing him. So, he tried to attack again and again and was slapped until he fell unconscious.


    Nut regained consciousness as Ahn led the great beast towards the sight of battle and slaughter.


    Frustration filled Nut. This wasn¡¯t how his end should be, denied death in honorable battle, humiliated by another man touching his face with impunity.


    Nut stood, ready to give what battle he could again, determined to force the god to kill him. Ahn sighed, and Nut noticed the god¡¯s eyes sparkle in a strange way as he spoke. ¡°Ard. Bad ey un tekpi.¡±


    Nut lost control of his own body. He passively walked towards Ahn and could not attack as he stood before the god. Ahn said more gibberish words and Nut held his arms out, wrists facing upwards, as he tried to wrest control of his body back from whatever fell power controlled him.


    Ahn opened his own wrists with his teeth, and then opened both of Nut¡¯s wrists too.


    The god then grabbed both of Nut¡¯s hands and held them fast as their bleeding wrists were pressed together.


    Immediately Nut began to feel sick and odd and heavy. He started to see many weird sights in his head. Creatures so strange he could never have come close to imagining such himself. The beings were far mightier than any god he ever heard of, even the great and mighty Koram, and they seemed to all be maneuvering for position and greater face.


    Above all those beings, reigning supreme, was one Being so mighty it was unfathomable, and this Being alone decided who entered the paradise He created.


    The way to get into that paradise was so alien to the beliefs and way of life of Nut, he nearly laughed. He knew he would never be able to earn a place there. He would have to reject and forsake the best and most necessary parts of life such as vengeance and most battle and stealing. It required living peacefully and selflessly, doing good deeds to benefit only others, and the deeds had no benefit for the doer at all, and other such foolish nonsense.


    Then Nut was given a brief taste of that paradise, and it was so wonderful he decided living so wrongly and foolishly would be worth it if he could earn a place there.


    After the brief taste of paradise Nut was given, he was then shown a way to empower himself and grow stronger by taking from the blood of others in the same way he saw Ahn do to Bullet. This power came with many other benefits, including living so long it was no different than living forever. And his life could only be ended prematurely by means such as violence.


    Nut knew this power could be his if he accepted it, but before he was allowed to accept, he was shown the price. He would lose something of himself, something important, something bright and intangible in his chest, called a soul, and going to paradise would no longer be possible for him, regardless of how wrongly and selflessly and foolishly he lived.


    If Nut accepted the power and lost his soul, when he died, he would go to a very bad place and live there eternally. He was given a taste of that place too. It was cold beyond imagining, completely and utterly dark, and absolutely horrifying. That one, brief moment stretched out for an eternity and burned itself forever into Nut¡¯s mind. He could imagine no worse fate. No fate so hopeless and awful and painful.


    When the tiny sample of the cold-dark ended, Nut shook in fright and fear. How could anything so terrible be the fate of even the worst of men, he wondered. His mind reeled from the small taste he was given, and he knew he would never be able to forget it. His mind would always be scarred by the event, and he would do anything to avoid feeling the cold-dark again.


    But Nut had to answer the choice he was given. He could accept the strange power he was offered and lose his soul, barring him from ever going to the paradise he knew he¡¯d never earn a place within anyway, and also have the cold-dark as his eventual fate if he were to be killed. Or he could refuse the power, with his uncertain fate placed in the hands of the god in front of him.


    Only one path allowed for the possibility of vengeance, and vengeance was core to Nut¡¯s beliefs. His face still burned with shame from where another man touched it. He would accept this power, and grow in strength, and one day take Ahn¡¯s head, and wear it as a trophy. As for the cold-dark? He couldn¡¯t accept that as his fate. He couldn¡¯t. But vengeance. Vengeance was everything. He would just have to live forever to avoid the cold-dark.


    Being only seventeen, Nut had no idea just how terrible the promise of forever would be.

 B2 Chapter 1 - And it feels so good

    Earlier in John¡¯s life while in Nibbur, a city between Babilim and Oruk, he was told of a time the place was overrun with rats. A priest had an idea of how to solve the city¡¯s rat problem, and it was to have the rats themselves take care of it.


    Ten or so rats were placed in a cage. The rats would get hungry and attack each other. When only one rat remained, it would be marked, and ten or so more rats would be put in the cage. When the same rat was marked three times, it was considered to be the rat king and released to do what it had learned to do.


    Soon after, Nibbur no longer had a rat problem.


    John heard similar stories throughout the years and throughout his travels. As he looked at his wife, Lilitu, for some reason he could never articulate, she once again gave him the feeling that she was like a rat king. Or queen, in her case.


    Lilitu smiled at John. The joy and excitement on her sweet, little child¡¯s face nearly broke his heart. The trust. The love.


    John put some thought into that word ¨C love. It wasn¡¯t around when he and Lilitu were together. There was a similar word for how a mother felt for her children. There was no word for its other modern usages, such as how a man felt about his wife, or lustful desire and passion, or deep affection. Such feelings would be expressed by saying, ¡®I think of you a lot,¡¯ or something similar.


    John thought it felt good to have someone feel that way about him again. To feel he was worthy of being loved. To know he didn¡¯t have to go it alone, as there was someone tied to him by both oath and deep feelings. He missed feeling such more than he realized.


    The helicopter¡¯s loud noises hurt John¡¯s ears even with the hearing protection of the headphones they gave him. He reevaluated the game Team Human was playing. He couldn¡¯t figure it out. Usually, the motivations of rulers were clear to him, but he was at a loss. He thought Team Human was winning whatever game it was they were playing.


    Lilitu reached out and held John¡¯s hand in her own tiny hand. He then got a feeling, like a tug, pulling him. Lilitu nodded her head. He let himself be pulled. The world blurred and flashed by.


    Assuming he entered Lilitu¡¯s Mind¡¯s Eye, John looked around. It seemed much the same as his own did when he had Pixie, besides the missing tabs and other UI elements. He had no body, but his Lilitu had one, and she looked exactly as she did back in the old days, other than being adorned in a modern way.


    Lilitu looked a few years younger than John. She was extremely beautiful ¨C exotically and sensually so. She had long, raven hair, pale olive skin, all the right curves, but was less plump than he preferred. She exuded sexuality and had always been a consummate flirt and seductress.


    His wife¡¯s hair was full, shiny, and billowed around her shoulders. She wore long, purple gloves, red shoes with very long heels, and a sparkling-red dress that went down to her ankles but had a long slit along the side that went all the way up to her hip. The dress had no straps or cinches holding it up but the top of it somehow only covered her chest and belly and nothing else. She also wore many pieces of jewelry.


    The joy and excitement and love that showed on Lilitu¡¯s face as a child still showed on her real face, and it warmed John¡¯s heart to see it so. She said, ¡°Oh, my dear heart! I meant it when I said not a day passed without thoughts of you filling my head. I¡¯m so sorry I left you. Our creator can¡¯t be denied. How I wish I could hold you in here.¡±


    Lilitu spun around slowly, arms above her head, showing herself off. ¡°Do you like seeing me as I was? I¡¯ll help you form a body in your own mind, and you¡¯ll be able to keep it in here too.¡±


    Giving John her secret smile, the smile she reserved only for him, Lilitu said, ¡°Wait until my new body¡¯s old enough I can start cultivating. When I open my upper core, I¡¯ll have access to my Mind Palace. I dedicated it to you. A shrine to my Adon.¡±


    John always disliked that name. Adon meant lord, but Lilitu never once called him lord until a trader from far east of Elam, probably one of the further kingdoms of Burata, went to Babilim with monkeys, and the trader¡¯s name for that type of monkey was very similar to adon. It was the first time Lilitu ever saw a monkey. After, she would call John her Adon, and her pretty little monkey.


    ¡°You¡¯ve hardly said a word, my dear heart. Aren¡¯t you excited to see me? Oh, please don¡¯t be mad at me for leaving you. I had no choice. At least let me explain,¡± Lilitu said while pouting.


    ¡°Lilitu, please call me John. You know I dislike being called Adon.¡±


    The pout turned into a serious look. ¡°Then call me Lilly. You know I dislike Lilitu. Lilith is fine too. I¡¯ll never understand how you could tolerate having a completely different name every five seconds. It gets so confusing.¡± She made her pouty face again, and added in, ¡°My lord. You¡¯ll always be my lord.¡±


    John nearly laughed. Lilly always did as she pleased, and always managed to get her way, and saw him as her lord in the same way a pet cat saw its owner as one. He said, ¡°The humans usually decided what name I was called back then. And I think I¡¯ve gone by John, or some form of it, for some time now. But first, never again call Amber a coarse name, or imply she is loose. She is my good friend and companion, and I won¡¯t have her treated disrespectfully. She¡¯s never even been with a man.¡±


    Lilly chuckled. ¡°Oh, you sweet, poor fool. You¡¯ve learned nothing since I¡¯ve been gone. Still always ready to lap up whatever poisoned honey some trollop with a pretty face drips from her tongue. That¡¯s the game. Always has been, always will be. Is it any different than what I used to do? Promise men everything, lead them on, and never once let them touch me? Is there any better way for a woman to get what she wants? How did that end for those men? Why insist on being such an easy mark?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s not like you. Just¡­please. Please don¡¯t do what you do to her.¡±


    A smile John knew well spread across Lilly¡¯s face. ¡°Your wish is my command, my lord husband.¡± He had trouble believing the sincerity of those words.


    Lilly¡¯s face became serious again as she said, ¡°I didn¡¯t want to say anything in front of the peons, but your soul¡­I¡¯ve seen soul damage before, but nothing like this. I assume you know it¡¯s damaged as I¡¯m guessing you¡¯ve been trying to heal it with vigor?¡±


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    ¡°I do. And I am.¡±


    ¡°Well, I¡¯d stop doing it so much. And not at all the rest of Copper tier. It¡¯s being reinforced far more than healed. If you keep going it will be too tough to heal at all and will remain forever stunted. It may not seem like a big deal now but that won¡¯t be true for long. Did you know that sl¡­your pretty friend is a Natural? Do you know what Naturals are for?¡±


    John wished he had a form so Lilly could see the warning in his eyes. ¡°I do know. And that is not an option. I¡¯ve given my word to protect her always, and to spend my life defending her own. Any harm to befall her will be avenged tenfold. Leave off, woman. Don¡¯t try me with this.¡±


    Anger flashed in Lilly¡¯s eyes. ¡°Is that not the same oath you swore to make me your wife!?¡±


    John couldn¡¯t deny the truth of those words, but it wasn¡¯t the truth. ¡°I intended for you to be my wife, and you know it. You know how it worked back then. Amber isn¡¯t my wife. Neither is Hubaba. I wouldn¡¯t have you play your games with him either. Amber¡¯s story is not mine to share, but she will never have a husband, and she¡¯ll never know a man as a wife does. Put your fears to rest, and just treat my friends well. No games!¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s¡­¡± The anger left Lilly¡¯s eyes as she rolled them. ¡°Okay. No games. How are you going to heal your soul? Oh, how I wish I could hold you, my dear heart! If you don¡¯t fix your soul, it will limit your growth. Our master might intercede, but we can¡¯t rely on that. If that Natural is truly your friend, and isn¡¯t playing her own games with your heart, wouldn¡¯t she volunteer to heal you? I would. You know I would.¡±


    It was John¡¯s belief Lilly would sacrifice much to save him. But her own life if it meant she truly would die? She often couldn¡¯t be bothered to even help if it required her to exert herself. He remembered how much joy she took from starting trouble that would require a great slaughter to fix, and she¡¯d stand back as John fixed things, claiming she didn¡¯t want her clothes to be spoiled with blood or viscera.


    John nearly sighed but stopped himself. Lilly would see a man sighing as a sign of weakness and sulkiness. He said, ¡°Even if she volunteered, I would say no. Treat her well. She has been by my side since all this started. She¡¯s saved my life many times. I haven¡¯t seen you in thousands of years. She is far doughtier than her appearance in human form would lead you to believe. If you play your games, you¡¯ll only reap what you sow. I¡¯m telling you for your own good and protection.¡±


    A familiar look of anger and disgust showed on Lilly¡¯ face. ¡°You¡¯d side with that dumb slut over me? I am your wife! You¡¯d stand by and let her kill me? Have you no honor? Does your word mean nothing now? Your oaths? No! Let me continue, as you think I left you on purpose. I didn¡¯t.¡±


    Letting out a deep breath, Lilly said, ¡°Just listen. You¡¯ll see I¡¯m still your wife, and that I didn¡¯t leave you. Truly. Will you hear me?¡±


    John replied, ¡°I will.¡±


    ¡°I knew I was close. You¡¯d never listen to reason. You¡¯d never harden your heart enough to see things clearly. You¡¯d never even drink from a newborn to see the life essence within them is different. You saw plenty of proof I was onto something. I had results. I couldn¡¯t even talk to you about it without you becoming hysterical and womanly.¡±


    John tried to interrupt but Lilly talked over him. ¡°No! Let me finish. Just listen until I¡¯m done. Please. I couldn¡¯t talk to you, so I had to plan behind your back. I didn¡¯t want to. I wanted us to do everything together. It was always us. Standing against everyone. Against the world. Just us, always.¡±


    Lilly gave a sad smile and lowered her eyes. ¡°I know you thought I was mad. That I was heartless. I never was. If I had to live forever, why wouldn¡¯t I want to cure my boredom occasionally? You hate to admit it, but you know as well as I do, killing humans is more often the humane and benevolent thing to do.¡±


    Lilly looked up and held John¡¯s gaze steady. ¡°You know the life of pain and meaningless desperation they all endure. Most of them don¡¯t even qualify as sentient beings. When a mother hardens her heart and begs her husband to kill their sickly newborn, knowing it is the only compassionate thing to do, the only way to save her child from a miserable and short life of pain and suffering, do you name her mad and a murderer and heartless? Of course not. It¡¯s not like she condemned her child to the cold-dark. That would be evil.¡±


    A few tears left Lilly¡¯s eyes. ¡°Is what I did so different? Sure, I didn¡¯t love those newborns as a mother does, but every one of them I saved from a miserable and short life of starvation, pain, and suffering, broken only by very few moments of joy when they¡¯d rut and such. And that¡¯s only if they grew to adulthood. How many didn¡¯t back then?¡±


    As she spoke and cried, Lilly posed in many ways that highlighted the curves of her figure and showed her shapely leg through the slit of her dress.


    Continuing, Lilly said, ¡°I knew there were more to the visions we were granted. A way to get our souls back and avoid the cold-dark as our fate. To make an omelet you must break a few eggs. You said I was wrong and a monster, but I wasn¡¯t. I was right!


    ¡°There was a test. And I passed it. Our master¡¯s been around since the beginning, and he never thought what I did was even a possibility. He said I was a genius. While cut off from the Tree of Life and self-cultivation and essence, I found a source of it. I pieced together a working ritual. I escaped the confines of this world,¡± said Lilly as she dabbed away the tears from her eyes with a cloth she slowly removed from between her cleavage.


    ¡°His reward for me was a permanent, immortal soul. When I die, I don¡¯t go to the Wheel. Everything I earn that marks my soul is kept. I even keep our dark gift. I just need to find a new host and take over the body. It only works on the very young, but for the most part, I truly am immortal now.¡±


    Lilly¡¯s face turned from sad to tortured. ¡°I begged him. I fell on my knees and begged him to bring you to me. Or send me back. I couldn¡¯t be without you. I wouldn¡¯t be. He told me to forget you. To move on. I said never. He refused to tell me how to return to you. Since then, all I¡¯ve done has been only to return. For thousands of years, I¡¯ve clawed up the bloody climb, I reached the fourth Tree twice, I¡¯ve fought across countless universes, I¡¯ve gave up so much, I¡¯ve suffered so much, all to return to you.¡±


    Lilly¡¯s face brightened with a wide smile. ¡°And I finally found you! This hidden planet. Not since the beginning had our master spoken to me directly. He did then. He told me I couldn¡¯t return. I said nothing would stop me. He killed me and took my Divine body. I returned fresh, but he didn¡¯t stop me from returning that way.


    ¡°I took a new body on this planet in the early fifties. I found you nine years ago. That priest and whore nun you lived with tricked me. They got very lucky and killed me. I followed when they moved you. I took a body and even managed to get my father to move across from you. You¡¯d watch me play sometimes.


    ¡°You visited me once, you know? I wasn¡¯t fully me. It takes time to become me again in a new body. I was so frightened. I knew you were the most important thing, and I needed you, but not why. You asked about my soul and then forgot you were talking to me. I¡¯m glad your mind was fixed because you were¡­it killed me to see you that way. When you recognized me earlier, even in this body, my heart nearly burst with joy. I had my husband back! Finally!¡±


    Lilly cast her eyes down again. ¡°So, you see, I never left you. Not on purpose. And all I¡¯ve done since is fight my way back to you.¡± She lifted her face and smiled; her eyes sparkled with unshed tears. ¡°And that¡¯s my story, my dear heart, so never say I left you on purpose. I¡¯ve always been true to you. I never stopped being your wife.¡±


    John was never sure whether Lilly¡¯s tears were true or not. It did lift his heart that she didn¡¯t leave him on purpose and fought so hard to return to him.


    Though John never once thought his wife left him on purpose ¨C he thought he killed her. He became a little hesitant and nervous. He knew she wouldn¡¯t take his news well.


    For a long moment John considered not telling his wife what he needed to. He asked himself what good could come of it. ¡®Plenty,¡¯ was his answer. Lilly had to understand there were limits to his tolerance, and he feared for Amber¡¯s life, and the lives of many others, if his wife didn¡¯t truly understand the consequence of testing those limits.

 B2 Chapter 2 - These streets will make you feel brand new

    Clearing his imaginary throat, John steeled himself and began his reply. ¡°You know I¡¯ve missed you too. You were my wife. My everything. You made existing bearable. But you also made it terrible. You made me abandon my honor. I told you no more. And you...¡±


    The anger and resentment John felt at what she did took a moment for him to repress. Once he could, he continued. ¡°I followed you through the portal and saw a tentacle wrapped around you, draining you. The great beast it belonged to was up high, and the fog blocked it from my sight, but I still gave battle to save you, as I always did. At first, I couldn¡¯t hurt it, but I ultimately managed to make the monster bleed, and I tried to drain it of vital essence.


    ¡°It finally released you, and I carried you back through the portal. I thought you were alive. You had enough vital essence in you.¡±


    John forced himself to continue looking Lilly in the eye. ¡°I knew you would never stop. You said you cared about me more than all else, but you¡¯d constantly twist me up and piss on my honor. I finally took your advice about hardening my heart. And then I took your head. I would have no more. That was the last time. I put an end to it. Or I thought I did.


    ¡°So, now you know. I¡¯ve missed you every day, but I thought you were dead by my own hand. Now that you are back, I am happy to see you, but if you get up to your old games, I¡¯ll take your head again. I don¡¯t care about your beliefs and strange thoughts on benevolence. I will not tolerate it. No more of that. No more. Understood?¡±


    Lilly¡¯s face went neutral at that news. John believed that was her most dangerous look, as it meant she was thinking. And thinking, for Lilly, meant plotting. Her plotting lasted a very long while before she finally responded. ¡°So, you decapitated me? You call me your love, but thought you sent me to the cold-dark? I never once hurt you. I would never. The cold-dark! Really!?¡±


    Lilly gave out a half-hearted chuckle. ¡°And they call our master Betrayal, a name that fits you far better. You could never make one of his servants bleed. They¡¯re equivalent to Eternals. If it bled, it¡¯s because Betrayal wanted you to feed on it. You¡¯re lucky you only saw a tentacle. Those things are a nightmare to behold. I was so frightened as it drained me of what¡­what makes me myself.¡±


    Lowering her eyes, Lilly sat on the pretend ground. She remained silent for a long time, and John just waited, giving her space to think.


    Lilly finally looked up and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s because the young mind I have is still developing, but I forgive your betrayal. It hurts so much you did that to me. I¡¯ve never betrayed you, not once. For whatever reason, I still love you dearly. You are my heart. My dear heart. I¡¯ve missed you so, so much. I fought so hard to get back to you. I will not let even this news hamper my joy at our reunion.


    ¡°I¡¯ll just say this. I¡¯ve been gone from this world for thousands of years. You had already been alive for a very long time when you saved me and offered me the dark gift. I had a fraction of the time you¡¯ve had in this world. Despite all of that, I¡¯m still famous. Everyone knows Lilith. I¡¯m nearly as famous as Satan.¡±


    Lilly smiled again and adopted a sweet look. ¡°When I first got back here, I expected it to be easy to find you. When I was old enough, I scoured libraries searching for knowledge of your whereabouts. I found nothing. Lots of very creative information about vampires. No information on you. Just some old gods everyone¡¯s long forgotten.


    ¡°You could¡¯ve done so many great things. Important things. You had the power to. You had the time. So much time. So many opportunities. And yet, you did nothing with it. Did you even try to figure anything out? Get your soul back? Find some way to avoid the cold-dark? Something? Anything? Leave some sort of lasting mark you can look back on with pride, and say, ¡®I did this! This was me! This is my legacy.¡¯¡±


    Those words hit the mark. John thought Lilly¡¯s uncanny ability to home in on what hurt the most, and weighed heavily on a soul, was as sharp as ever. He didn¡¯t bother telling her he had no desire to rule or be famous, or that he had to stay hidden, largely due to her terrible deeds. If she really was still well-known, it was because of those terrible deeds, and nothing to be proud of.


    Regardless of everything else, John still loved the woman, and he knew how much it must¡¯ve hurt hearing he purposefully sent her to the cold-dark.


    After they sat in uncomfortable silence for a while, Lilly said, ¡°We must leave my Mind¡¯s Eye soon, so share your capabilities with me, and how you got that [Title]. I¡¯m guessing your fast advancement is the same reason you¡¯ve been marked by the Nether? And why does it seem like you already knew about our master?


    ¡°But be quick, I volunteered you for a task. New York City is being decimated by dark ones, and we must clear it of them. We¡¯ll be there soon. I¡¯m around fifty percent dilation with you in here, and it eats up my vigor.¡±


    Surprised, John loudly asked, ¡°You volunteered me?¡± He had not yet recovered from his last battle. His injuries had mostly healed other than his missing arm, but he still felt very drained and spent.


    ¡°Oh, stop sounding so indignant. You just admitted to killing me. This will be easy, and it was the only way I could get the peons running this shitshow to agree to all my stipulations. You should be happy, my dear heart. Instead of killing humans, I¡¯m trying to help save them.¡±


    <hr>


    Outside her Mind¡¯s Eye, as he looked at Lilly¡¯s innocent and sweet child¡¯s face, and the look of seriousness on it, John still found it hard to believe it was his wife. We were together for such a long time. I¡¯m so used to her looking only as she did. She must hate being a child and not having her main source of power, he thinks.


    ¡°Five minutes out,¡± said an unknown voice through the headphones.


    John looked through a window and reactivated the function of his NCS, the Nano Control System, that showed information on what he looked at. He looked around until New York City appeared, and the NCS asked if he wanted info for New York City or the greater metropolitan area. That was new. With a strong thought, John answered New York City.


    [New York City, Pop. 3.6m, 19 mi]


    Lilly said, ¡°Are you all ready? We¡¯re landing on the VA hospital in Manhattan. I¡¯ll make a thump ritual that¡¯ll draw all the dark ones in the widest possible area to it. They should trickle in and be easy to handle. The army pulled out days and days ago, but drones haven¡¯t picked up any dark ones higher than Silver. You three killed a Gold so this should be easy-breezy for all four of us.¡±


    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    John disliked Lilly taking charge. As his wife, she somewhat had the right to volunteer him and him alone for battle. He said, ¡°It won¡¯t be all four of us. It¡¯ll just be you and me. Amber and Hubaba will want to go to this DC you spoke of. They probably want to get things situated for our arrival.¡±


    John worded what he said strangely to avoid Amber taking what he said as a command. He didn¡¯t yet fully understand the rules and wanted to be careful with what he said around her. He didn¡¯t ask Amber and Hubaba what they wanted, but he knew both disliked fighting.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine. I will go,¡± said Hubaba.


    ¡°Yeah. I don¡¯t mind going either. I¡¯d¡­I¡¯d like it if we, you know, stuck together, and didn¡¯t split up,¡± said Amber from what appeared to be an empty seat. John wished he could see her, but she had to stay invisible around anyone but Hubaba and John. And Lilly now, too, he thought.


    John disliked them talking through the headphones and airing their business for all to hear, but it had to be done due to the loudness of the machine they flew in.


    Lilly smiled and John assumed it was because she was getting her way. He said to his companions, ¡°Please, let me and my wife handle this. We haven¡¯t seen each other for a very long time. We need some time together to get reacquainted. And it would be much better for all of us if you two went to DC and handled Team Human. You both have a much better head and temperament for such. I dislike being questioned.¡±


    Hubaba and Amber consented, but Lilly tried to dissuade them by saying the mission was only safe if all four went. A two-minute warning, then a one-minute warning was heard through the headset. The helicopter landed and only John and Lilly exited.


    ¡°Well, this really sucks ass, Adon. There¡¯re better ways to assert dominance than screwing us over like this. We needed those two. I¡¯m not dying to save a few peons. And now we¡¯re stuck here until tomorrow¡¯s evac, and who knows if they¡¯ll stick to their end of the bargain now that we aren¡¯t,¡± said Lilly dejectedly as she watched the helicopter fly away.


    John smiled at his wife. ¡°We are sticking to the bargain. You said I¡¯d do something. I will do it. Or die in the attempt. No longer will I be twisted and have my honor pissed on. A man¡¯s only as good as his word, and I no longer need fear the cold-dark. How did you put it before? This will be as easy as a breeze?¡±


    ¡°Nope. I said easy-breezy. And that was with all four of us. The easy-breezy ship sailed, my dear heart. You can¡¯t really break your word to insects anyways. We should relax and enjoy each other¡¯s company until we get picked up tomorrow, but if you want me to, I¡¯ll still create the ritual.


    ¡°I¡¯d be lying if I said I didn¡¯t want to see if you¡¯re as powerful as you say you are. How many times have you and I stood against armies together? Stood against the world?¡±


    John laughed. ¡°Too many times. You enjoy instigating trouble.¡±


    Lilly also laughed. ¡°And you enjoy fighting, my pretty little monkey, and that¡¯s why we fit together so well. I¡¯m kind of glad you and I are alone now. We do need to get reacquainted. Just remember, this body is only seven years old. I have no open cores and I¡¯ve barely been able to strengthen myself with vital essence. Please don¡¯t let any dark ones attack me. I can¡¯t take much damage as I am now. Okay, guess I¡¯ll get started on the ritual.¡±


    Surprised, John asked, ¡°Here? I sense many people in the building below us. You said this was a guest house?¡±


    A look of confusion flashed on Lilly¡¯s face. ¡°It¡¯s a hospital. For the sick and infirmed.¡±


    John shrugged. ¡°The dark ones will kill them on their way to us. Let¡¯s move down the road some ways.¡±


    ¡°Ugh. I guess so. Don¡¯t talk to them, please. Just ignore their pleas and walk by. I can¡¯t stand to hear their whining.¡±


    John picked up Lilly with his one good arm and walked to the edge of the building, then jumped down the many stories onto the road.


    As soon as John landed a swarm of giant bee-flies exited the ground. He became nervous for a moment, remembering his last run-in with those insects, before reaching out with his blood power and hardening the blood within each bee-fly. He felt more joy than he should¡¯ve as he watched them all fall to the road and dissipate, followed by the sound of a crystal clanking.


    The street was littered with broken glass everywhere, and John looked around and noticed no building had intact windows he could see.


    John went to put Lilly down and she yelled, ¡°No! Don¡¯t put me down!¡± She then said, ¡°Sorry, you scared the shit out of me jumping down like that. That was a long drop. It was fun though. Let me get on your back. I¡¯ll hold the scabbard. I know you need your arm. I weigh a fraction of that sword so you shouldn¡¯t even notice me. One second. I¡¯ll grab the crystal first.¡±


    Lilly grabbed the crystal and then climbed up on John¡¯s back. ¡°Uh, head west towards the intersection. That¡¯s a little away from the hospital. I think those are all residential buildings over there. They look like it. We picked this area because the circumference of the ritual will fit what we need near perfect, so we can¡¯t go too far. More dark ones. See? Flying at us.¡±


    John wanted to try out the new manifestation he purchased with his [Runes] ¡®points,¡¯ [Flashburst Pulse], but the fire-birds that flew at him barely felt like Bronze, and since they were smaller creatures he tried hardening their blood instead. In a few seconds all three fire-birds fell to the ground out of sight, dead.


    ¡°I haven¡¯t seen these fire-birds before. What other dark ones will we face,¡± asked John.


    ¡°What ones have you seen?¡±


    ¡°The giant bee-flies. The ghost hands that merge into claws and blobs and little men and then into the giant bee-flies. The speared-women. The ones that spit spears and the ones that don¡¯t. They look like those little curse dolls you used to favor. A¡­¡±


    ¡°Louvre dolls,¡± interrupted Lilly. ¡°I still use them, but differently. Correctly.¡±


    ¡°Yes. And some flesh-blob with one giant eye. It could spit out and bind me with ropes of flesh that I couldn¡¯t break or cut through. But I was a low Wood then. I could handle it easily now.¡±


    ¡°Ha. You make it sound like Wood was tiers and decades ago. You¡¯re a Copper. You¡¯ve barely started up the bloody climb. What other dark ones do you know?¡±


    John nearly sighed. ¡°I¡¯m mid-high Copper. My capabilities are much different now. Those were the only dark ones we faced in the Tribulation.¡±


    Lilly said, ¡°Let¡¯s see. Dark ones are completely different depending on the dark walker and the world¡¯s population and fears. This dark walker was¡­crazy looking, but not as crazy looking as some of the shit I¡¯ve seen in movies. The imagination of terrans is second-to-none, probably from being without the Tree of Life and not having anything real to fear. I can¡¯t believe how much this planet advanced with technology while I was gone. Even just during my time back. Pretty amazing, really. Wait till I have some bars on my phone ¨C I¡¯ll show you pictures of what they call kaiju. The dark walker that came through New York looked like¡­well, there¡¯s no reference you¡¯ll know.


    ¡°As for the dark ones it dropped, most of the Wood and Copper will have merged for the most part. Right here¡¯s good for the ritual. Should be shady for a long time too. What¡¯s it say? First and twenty-third? Why do the peons of this hillbilly country so love naming streets as numbers instead of actual words? Beautiful words that invoke a positive feeling and image. It¡¯s like they hate beauty.


    ¡°The sad part is New York was one of the few cities in this whole hemisphere with any culture at all. I hesitate to even call it culture. Just uppity swine oinking in this smelly pigsty of a town, really. Let me down, my dear heart. I¡¯ll explain as I set up.¡±


    A large swarm of giant bee-flies came out of the ground near where John set Lilly down, and he dispatched them quickly. Lilly grabbed the three crystals the large swarm dropped. He wondered where she was keeping the crystals as he could see no pack or pouches or pockets she could store them in. When strange headgear with odd lights and two stacked lenses appeared in her hand, along with a very large piece of chalk in the other, he asked, surprised, ¡°You have a spatial storage device?¡±


    Lilly laughed and said, ¡°Oh, my dear heart, of course. Though I can¡¯t use any of them yet. There¡¯s one I can use after I clear my channels. I¡¯m using my soul storage. It¡¯s quite large as soul storage goes. I told you I made the fourth Tree twice. Now, where were we? What dark ones will come. Or what kind. As I said, the lower tiered ones will have mostly merged.¡±

 B2 Chapter 3 - Pay no mind to the distant thunder

    As Lilly drew a large and intricate ritual circle with the chalk, John noticed she did it mostly free hand. No lights came from the NCS for her to trace. An occasional light would come out of her strange headgear. As she drew, Lilly said, ¡°You saw those flaming birds. The swarms of insects. You¡¯ve seen the louvre dolls.


    ¡°The swarms can merge into a Bronze tiered creature hard as a rock they¡¯ve been calling golems. You know that word is from my people? Or what my people became. Golem. If golems merge into a Silver, they haven¡¯t yet. There¡¯s a limit on how much dark ones can merge from my understanding.


    ¡°The louvre dolls can merge into what¡¯s been dubbed a coca, then into wretches. The flaming birds merge into what¡¯s called slender-men, also Silvers. Wretches are Silvers too.


    ¡°Those are the ones classified as Dimensional Horrors. They increase in rank or tier by merging. Then there are the Dimensional Abominations. They increase in rank and tier by feeding. That blob with one giant eye with the ropes you mentioned? That¡¯s been dubbed a flesh-monster. The next tier¡¯s what they call a night-gaunt. Those are Silvers. And that¡¯s all I know about and have seen pictures of.¡±


    John watched Lilly draw the large and complex ritual circle using a few differently colored chalks. One fire-bird swooped down towards them and dropped dead out of sight with its blood hardened.


    ¡°What¡¯s been a help is the surviving humans here have mostly sheltered in place. Once dark ones don¡¯t see or hear anyone, they kind of just hang around where they are and wait and dissipate after some time. Their senses suck since they aren¡¯t real. No, they¡¯re real enough, but not¡­you know¡­real, real.¡±


    Some sort of scanning was done by Lilly¡¯s headgear, and she started painting some with a brush and a liquid that smelled of blood.


    ¡°Almost done,¡± said Lilly. She then produced a small clay jug and tipped it over and a ball came out.


    ¡°It¡¯s truly beautiful, what you¡¯ve made,¡± said John.


    Lilly¡¯s little child¡¯s face lit up with joy. ¡°Oh, this was nothing. Wait till you see a ritual that needs a complex circle. The ones the NCS have people copy are serviceable, but the power is in the little things. The details. The beauty. Things a computer will never understand as it reduces everything to function and necessity and math. The lowest and easiest possible working form. The NCS can reproduce art, but it¡¯ll never understand it.¡±


    Lilly readjusted her stacked lenses and started to draw on the ball with a small and fine-tipped instrument. John said, ¡°Well, you really made something beautiful. I wish I could have this art as a decoration for a wall. And have the time and ability to appreciate it in the future.¡±


    Without looking up from her detailed work, Lilly said, ¡°Have your NCS copy and create an image of it. And thank you for the compliment. As I said, I can create far better. Throughout my travels I haven¡¯t met many realizing how truly powerful rituals can be. There¡¯s little that can¡¯t be done with the right knowledge, runes, and ritual.


    ¡°This would¡¯ve been easier if there wasn¡¯t glass everywhere. They nuked the dark walker when it went east of here. Around Lindenhurst or Deer Park. Small nuke. Still took out all the windows in the city. Annnd done.¡±


    Lilly held the ball out to John. ¡°Imbue this with your strongest single essence please, my dear heart.¡± John took out two fire-birds circling above before he touched the ball with his finger and sent his blood essence into it.


    ¡°Hold! Wow, this is heavy. Your essence is stronger than I thought. Okay. Shit. No. It¡¯s okay. This ritual will be a little stronger than we planned for. Just in case, I¡¯m making a protection circle for me. That essence of yours should be able to keep me safe.¡±


    While Lilly made a smaller circle off to the side, a louvre doll headed towards the two. John never found out whether it was a spitter or not, as it died too quickly to find out. He thought back to the struggle he had during the Tribulation, finding it hard to believe he nearly died multiple times to such weak foes.


    Unlike the fire-birds falling to the ground out of sight, he knew where the louvre doll fell, and went to fetch the crystals, and had to kill one more swarm of bee-flies. On his return, Lilly admonished him for leaving her without notice, and demanded he never leave her so unprotected again.


    ¡°You¡¯re right. My apologies. Please hold onto these crystals if you would.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry if I snapped at you. It¡¯s just¡­now that I have back what makes my heart content, I don¡¯t want to lose you again. My body is too weak now. And before we start, I have to say something.¡±


    Lilly reached up to hold John¡¯s hand in both of her own. ¡°Our reunion hasn¡¯t gone as I¡¯ve envisioned it. It¡¯s been a disaster. I wanted¡­so much more. Passion. Excitement. You don¡¯t look at me the way you used to. There¡¯s no hunger in your eyes. Just know I love you with all my heart. I love you more than can be expressed with words.


    ¡°You¡¯re the only man I¡¯ve ever loved and ever will love. You are my stars and sky. I¡¯m so happy to be back with you again. I hope things can be as they were before. No, better than before. Far better. I know I have this stupid child¡¯s body but I¡¯m still your wife. You can still do to it as you please.¡±


    Lilly released John¡¯s hand and looked down. She remained silent long enough he wondered what was wrong. Once he noticed she was sobbing, he put his finger under her chin and raised her face. ¡°Why¡¯re you crying?¡±


    ¡°The look of disgust on your face when I said that! No wife wants to be looked at that way. It hurts so much. And you used to call me your dear heart all the time, and your heart¡¯s content, and the greatest treasure in all the world. You¡¯ve not said one thing endearing to me. And now you make disgusted faces as I pour my heart out to you. You no longer love me. I know it. I fought so hard to get back to you. I gave up so much. And my only reward is to be looked at with disgust!¡±


    John put some thought into what he said next. ¡°Lilly, I¡¯ll always love you. You¡¯re in a child¡¯s body. Even hinting I¡¯m the type that could be attracted to a child is extremely insulting to me. I can think of no worse insult. You know my feelings on that matter. That look was only for that specific part. It¡¯s obvious you¡¯ll one day be a beautiful woman. Or I mean you are a woman, but your body isn¡¯t yet. If you looked as you did before, as you did in your Mind¡¯s Eye, how I look at you would be very different.¡±


    Kneeling and putting his hand on her shoulder, John said, ¡°And the same is true for why I haven¡¯t called you any pet names. It doesn¡¯t seem right. Just know I love you, and I also thought about you every day. In the blink of an eye, you¡¯ll have a woman¡¯s body again.¡±


    Lilly stopped crying and wiped her eyes with the back of her hands. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I cried. Do you know what a succubus is?¡±


    ¡°A prostitute?¡±


    Lilly laughed and put her arms around John¡¯s neck, and put her forehead on his cheek, the same way as she used to. ¡°Uh, no. It doesn¡¯t mean that. It¡¯s a demon seductress. You should look me up on Wikipedia when you get the chance. It¡¯s funny shit. My people¡­what my people are now, Jews, they say I was the first woman God made. The first woman ever on Earth. Terra, I should say.¡±


    Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    After letting out a new laugh, Lilly moved away, pointed at the ritual she just drew, and said, ¡°Okay. I stand in the center. You imbue essence here until I say stop. Easy-breezy. For the thump ritual, you send essence here, right at this pentagon-shaped rune on the bottom. It will go around the outside of the whole circle. When it meets here, stop. The rest will fill in and the ball in the center will start bouncing. Nothing should be able to enter. Not easily, not Silvers, but still, keep an eye on the ritual. This will be what attracts them. The fliers will probably aim right at it. Got it?¡±


    ¡°Got it.¡±


    Looking John dead in the eye, Lilly said, ¡°And don¡¯t leave me. Once I end the ritual I¡¯m in, it¡¯s over. I¡¯ll have to draw a whole new one. Once the thump ritual starts it¡¯ll probably last for three or four hours with that essence of yours. Longer than it¡¯s supposed to. The dark ones slowly trickle in, you kill them as they do. Ritual ends. We do it all over again. We¡¯ll probably only have to do it twice to get most of them. Three times tops.¡±


    A phone appeared in Lilly¡¯s hand. ¡°It¡¯s almost nine-thirty AM now. AM means before noon. Noon is a little more than two and a half hours away. How are you on essence?¡±


    John, not caring what Lilly thought of it, sighed. ¡°No number says when noon is. The sun and only the sun decides when it¡¯s noon. You know this. My essence is full. Or nearly so.¡±


    ¡°Why haven¡¯t you ranked up if you¡¯re full,¡± asked Lilly with a confused look.


    ¡°Because my foundation isn¡¯t settled. It takes longer to settle than is usual. I can fill my dantian up quickly compared to others. I told you about my meditation technique.¡±


    ¡°Yeah, but you said it was an undirected and basic technique. I don¡¯t know why you think it¡¯s fast, but I promise you it¡¯s dreck. You¡¯re filling yourself up with impurities and other gunk. Do you even tap coiled energy? You really should use one the NCS recommends. It¡¯s not creative, but it¡¯s always right about that stuff. Even I¡¯ll use a modified [Coiled Center of the Universe Technique] while I have a terran body.¡±


    John laughed. ¡°You sound like Pixie.¡±


    Lilly¡¯s face scrunched-up in anger. ¡°Who the fuck is Pixie? How many whores are you fucking? Let me guess, Pixie¡¯s some sort of magical virgin too? You¡¯re such an asshole!¡±


    ¡°Enough! Stop. Pixie was the lady in my mind. The NCS lady. And I told you not to disparage Amber again.¡±


    Lilly had the good grace to look ashamed and lowered her eyes. She kicked her feet for a moment. After letting out a deep breath, she said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, my dear heart. You know I get jealous and protective of my pretty little monkey. The Natural isn¡¯t here, so you can¡¯t say I¡¯m abusing her. Just tell me true, did you bed that wh¡­that¡­that¡­goddamn! The only word that fits is whore. It¡¯s not disparaging if it¡¯s true. You didn¡¯t know I was alive so it wouldn¡¯t be cheating. I¡¯ll forgive you if you just admit you did. She¡¯s so beautiful. Why wouldn¡¯t you? I know you think she¡¯s more beautiful than I am. You can¡¯t have her as a second wife. Not her. I forbid it.¡±


    John struggled to contain his anger. ¡°Now you name me liar? This is the last time I tell you ¨C she cannot bed a man. She never has and never will. She¡¯ll never have a husband. Call me a liar or disrespect her again and this is over. We¡¯ll part ways here and now.¡±


    A strange device appeared in Lilly¡¯s hand as she looked furiously at John. It looked like half a metal and jagged ball with some lights on it and completely covered her hand. Slowly, the anger left her eyes and the device disappeared. ¡°You¡¯re right. I¡¯m sorry. You¡¯ve never lied to me. I just find it hard¡­no, I believe you. I don¡¯t believe her. I believe you believe her.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry again. Emotions are nearly impossible to control in a body this age. They run wild. I have the mind of a child mixed with my own. I still find riding bicycles and playing with dolls fun, no matter how stupid I know it is to think so. The last thing I wanted was to fight with you over this sort of shit. Or have you see me act as a petulant child. Can you find it in your heart to forgive me?¡±


    Lilly smiled brightly at John, all her missing teeth making her seem innocent and adorable. He said, ¡°Just¡­no more of that. Let¡¯s just get on with this.¡±


    Lilly stood in the center of her ritual circle, and John imbued it with blood essence as he was instructed to until she told him to stop. Color grew around her, glowing a whitish purple. She nodded to him, and he went to the much larger ritual circle with a ball in the center. He looked around but saw no dark ones other than fire-birds very far off in the sky.


    Kneeling, John infused the ritual. The essence filled the outside of the circle and met at the top. He stopped infusing and watched as essence continued to fill in the beautiful pattern. It all coalesced into the center at once, and he was captured by the beauty of it. The ball rose in the air about two paces before slamming down with a loud, screeching ¡®thwomp¡¯ noise that echoed around the buildings of the intersection, and the power of the ball dropping was nearly enough to push him back some.


    A strange tingling filled John as the ball thwapped down again. The city felt more silent and still for a moment, and then seemed to feel anxiously alive. Far too alive.


    Stretching out his senses, John felt many dark ones rapidly moving towards him. Towards the ritual circle. With his one arm he drew Fireblade from its sheath. He stood ready for them.


    Dark ones crawled out of windows, doorways, and the ground. John¡¯s senses filled with them. He decided to try and conserve his essence as he thought back to his glorious battle against the mighty bull-lions of the NetherRealm. If I fell in that battle, I wouldn¡¯t have to deal with my wife now, he thought.


    The first dark ones to reach John were fire-birds, and he cut down what ones he could as they dove madly at the ritual circle. The ones he couldn¡¯t cut down flew heedlessly at the circle, banging roughly off it, and lazed dazedly on the ground, making the killing of them easy. He was surprised the fire-birds were Bronze tiered. One tier higher than he was, but so easy to kill.


    As John dispatched fire-birds, large swarms of giant bee-flies approached him. He didn¡¯t want to release his senses to feel into each and every giant bee-fly of a swarm to harden their blood, so decided to try a new manifestation.


    Other land-bound dark ones were rushing closer, so he felt pressed and directed a spray of essence aspected with his ¡®old¡¯ concept at them, hoping they¡¯d quickly age and turn to dust. The essence manifested as a dark spray that did nothing noticeable to the swarm, and it used far too much essence.


    Instead of spraying, John decided to try to target an area. He quickly ran through the concepts he had available, and immediately dismissed ¡®blood,¡¯ ¡®change,¡¯ ¡®mercurial,¡¯ ¡®old,¡¯ ¡®protection,¡¯ and ¡®separate.¡¯ None were good for what he wanted. Maybe if he could imbue two concepts at once, but he wasn¡¯t practiced enough to attempt such yet.


    Only ¡®battle¡¯ was left to him, and he got the new manifestation off targeting the area of the swarm. He was hoping it would somehow damage and kill them. It didn¡¯t, but it did cause the bee-flies to attack and kill one another, and the spell didn¡¯t have a large essence cost. So, he spun around and hit the other two approaching swarms with the same manifestation.


    The first land-bound dark one to reach John was frightening to look upon. He didn¡¯t even realize it was a flesh-blob until a red flesh-rope came out of it and tried to bind him up.


    The flesh-blob walked on a dozen or so human arms and legs and had at least four human heads poking out of its body, along with additional arms and legs poking out of various other spots.


    Fireblade, not even imbued and afire, cut easily through the flesh-rope. A short jump took John towards the monster, bisecting the horrible creature with one swipe. He ensured it was dead by seeing the crystals drop and the corpse disappear.


    John wondered why dark ones didn¡¯t leave spirits on death as a single giant bee-fly landed on his arm. If it stung him, he couldn¡¯t feel it.


    Some sort of rock monster, vaguely in the shape of a man, was John¡¯s next enemy, and his sword bounced harmlessly off its head, but the creature did fall to the ground for a moment. He tried to enter it and harden its blood, but, unsurprisingly, it had none.


    John kicked at the creature¡¯s knee and felt a little give, so he stomped on its chest while it tried to rise off the ground. And then stomped some more, and the chest cracked apart into many pieces.


    Another rock-monster swung its massive arm at John, and he cast [Flashburst Pulse] at it. The first of the three attacks of [Flashburst Pulse] shattered the monster into tiny pieces, and the other two sparking balls of essence exploded into the ground, tearing out a large gouge in the road. The manifestation was overkill, and too essence heavy, but he was happy to have finally cast it outside of his Mind¡¯s Eye.


    Knowing both rock-monsters were dead as their bodies dissipated, John let the next spear from a louvre doll hit to see if it could injure him. It bounced harmlessly off his palm and clanged down onto the road. He took a small jump and cut completely through the louvre doll, metal spears holding her together and all. He no longer needed to worry about them exploding, and barely felt it as the one he cut in two exploded right next to him.


    Many more dark ones surrounded John, including new ones he never saw before. Out as far as he could stretch his senses, there were more dark ones than he could ever guess the number of, and they completely ignored Lilly in her protection circle as they swarmed around it to get to him.


    Fire-birds continued to crash madly into the ritual circle that drew all the dark ones to the location. The other dark ones seemed smarter than the fire-birds and bee-flies and only had eyes for John, and ignored the thump ritual completely once they saw him. Good, he thought. He had more than enough targets to take out on all the frustration his wife had caused him.

 B2 Chapter 4 - Had a dream, I was king

    John fought furiously, and was sorely pressed, even with many of the enemies he faced incapable of hurting him. There was an endless sea of enemies, and many he faced could damage him, and the sun drained him and made him weaker.


    A few swarms of giant bee-flies covered John from head to toe while he was busy fighting other things, and stings rarely got through to cause him pain or discomfort. When they did cover him, he had to drop his senses and waste too much time and essence to enter each bee-fly and harden their blood.


    John preferred dealing with the giant bee-flies by using his new manifestation that caused them to attack each other and anything nearby. It worked on the fire-birds too, but nothing bigger. And the only fire-birds grouped together enough to make casting the spell worthwhile were the ones on the ground near the ritual circle, and they were extremely easy to dispatch with his sword, so casting was a waste of essence.


    The fire-birds could hurt John if they could hit him. Only one had managed to so far. Most of them just flew into the ritual circle, then crawled towards each other, eventually merging into thin and tall mockeries of men.


    The mock-men had about ten hidden and thin tentacles that were lightning quick and could bind John up if he didn¡¯t react fast enough. They could also blink around like the Silver bull-lion and Amber could. He believed they had a mind-affecting manifestation that didn¡¯t work on him, and they sometimes used a weak fire spell. He was able to cut right through them with ease, and his blood essence could handle them when he was able to beat aside their defenses and enter them.


    John had taken two hits from the rock-monsters, and both hits hurt. They were slow enough he didn¡¯t worry about getting hit too much. The amount of effort it took to kill them compared to the other Bronze tiered monsters did annoy him. Thankfully, the rock-monsters weren¡¯t very numerous.


    For other new dark ones John faced, their ranks included a hooded and robed female ghost. These hooded-women couldn¡¯t be hurt by any means at a distance, even by his mighty [Flashburst Pulse]. And up close, his sword passed harmlessly through them, imbued with fire or not.


    When a hooded-woman was right next to John, a split moment before she would attack, her hideous face could be seen through the shadows of her hood as she became tangible. Her mouth would grow extremely large, and she would then try to bite him. At that moment, his sword could cut her through. He had yet to be bitten by one of the hooded-women, though he was curious to find out if those bites could injure him.


    The oily-black flying men with bat wings, horns, and no faces were annoying to fight. The physical attacks of those bat-men often caused damage, and they tried to clutch onto John and fly him up into the air. They also had a ranged manifestation. He didn¡¯t believe the ranged attacks were meant to cause damage, but what the purpose of the spell was, he couldn¡¯t tell. His sword worked well on them, but he struggled to beat their defenses aside to use his blood essence on them.


    John disliked the ugly and huge heads with four spider legs that jumped in close to release a slowing substance. They would quickly back away after releasing the substance, and birth two small spider-like things whose bites could penetrate his skin and inject him with a venom his body had to waste vital essence to neutralize.


    The spider-heads were fast and annoying, but John¡¯s sword worked well on them too, and he had no problem entering them and creating clots. He had to harden the blood within the small spiders they birthed, as his sword was ill-suited to the job, and he lacked a free hand to smack them with.


    John wanted to drain enemies of vital essence and strengthen himself in that way when he got the chance, but he never got one, and didn¡¯t want to risk the fight turning against him for the vital essence of a Silver or Bronze or lower.


    Wanting space and a moment of relief and needing to stay near the ritual and his wife, John carefully plunged his sword a little into the ground as a flesh-blob sent its red rope at him. He caught the rope on his forearm, and then wrapped his hand around it.


    Yanking the flesh-blob towards him, he swung it around, using the monster to bludgeon his foes and clear some space. After some time, a few louvre dolls got stuck to his makeshift weapon, adding to its heft, and increasing the force of his swings with it, but only for a moment, as their explosions tore the makeshift weapon apart after a time.


    John had fun replacing and using new flesh-blobs as his weapon for a while, but it also caused him some trouble, as two hooded-women got in close, and he couldn¡¯t release the rope and grab his sword in time to kill them.


    Both hooded-women became tangible at the same time. John caved in the face of one with his fist, but decided to see if those creatures could injure him and took the bite of the other on his head. Its teeth cut his upper lip a little, and it didn¡¯t feel great, but didn¡¯t hurt him all that much.


    The hooded-woman stayed tangible with John¡¯s head in her mouth, and attacked him with claws on hand and foot, those limb attacks also doing little or no damage. He punched her in the chest, and his fist exited her back. As he struggled to remove her from his head and arm, he saw many creatures rushing towards him with his orb-eye and senses, and a few mock-men blinked in right next to him, tentacles already extending towards him. He let himself be taken in the same way he did while fighting Ukaraaz.


    It felt to John like he began to watch himself from above, peacefully observing himself fight. He closed his eyes and sent his orb-eye back to rest in his chest and stretched his senses out to the limit. As he rolled forward to avoid the tentacles reaching for him, he grabbed his sword, and focused on his breathing and cycling techniques, ensuring he was performing both correctly. Time seemed to have slowed down, and he plotted the best way to stand against the tide threatening to sweep him away.


    John realized he could use the enemy¡¯s attacks as a weapon too and he adjusted his plan to incorporate them. He adjusted yet again once he realized the spears spit by the louvre dolls could injure the mock-men, also factoring in their explosions. As he grabbed his sword and rolled into standing, he slashed the bat-man in front of him in half, and used his momentum to kick through the chest of a rock-monster.


    As John dashed forward, he shucked and jived in what seemed like strange ways, lashing out with his sword, hopping over certain enemies, moving away from the ritual circle that drew the dark ones to it. Many enemies he ignored fell dead to blood clots, and many others fell to the attacks of dark ones that missed their intended target.


    Fire-birds in the sky started to attack bat-men and other fire-birds. John jumped high into the air, taking the head of a bat-man, entering all the dark ones he could get in, putting clots into them. He checked and his dantian was a little under three-quarters full.


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    John opened his eyes for a quick moment and saw all the roads and spaces leading to the intersection of the ritual packed with dark ones. His senses told him the same, but it was a different thing to see it. He wondered what made Lilly think this battle would be such an easy thing, or why the dark ones would make their way to the intersection at a trickle.


    While in the air, John grabbed a bat-man and rode it down to the ground, slashing others he fell by, and landed right near the ritual. He began slaughtering fire-birds as they moved towards one another, trying to merge into mock-men. He had the gigantic swarm of bee-flies at the ritual attack themselves and other dark ones near them, then entered as many dark ones he could again, putting clots in them, getting better at controlling his blood essence while holding his sword and the limited hand movement it allowed.


    Something that felt dangerous started to quickly move towards John. He wasn¡¯t the best at sensing what tier something was, but he knew the thing was a Gold. He opened his eyes and turned on the NCS info function. It told him the thing flying towards him was indeed Gold tiered, a Dimensional Horror, and was probably vulnerable to fire.


    It got close enough to make out details, and John thought it looked like a moth-man made of fungus. All the dark ones shivered as it passed over them, and many dark ones stopped to look up at it. An essence shield shimmered around it as the first ball of [Flashburst Pulse] hit, and the shield broke as the second ball struck, and the third ball knocked it to the ground in a spray of sparks.


    John looked at the whitish-purple bulb containing Lilly. He could barely see her through it. He said, ¡°No Golds, huh?¡±


    Lilly pointed at her ear, indicating she couldn¡¯t hear what he said. John shook his head and beheaded a hooded-woman as she became tangible, then jumped towards the Gold. It was still alive and getting back on its feet, and since it was a Gold with unknown powers and capabilities, and John was still surrounded by an endless horde of dark ones, he clamped down on his temptation to drain the fungus creature of vital essence, and instead cast [Flashburst Pulse] again.


    With no essence shield to protect it, the spell decimated the creature. Oddly enough, John noticed it was still alive as it was lying on the ground, still and unmoving. He shrugged his shoulders, considered it his lucky day, and dashed forward to drain the monster.


    The moth-man felt disgusting to the touch, and the thought of putting his mouth on it repulsed John, but not enough to overcome his greed. Much of its life essence was gone, and John was only able to strengthen himself seven times as he carried the Gold around, draining it as he fought and avoided attacks bodily since he had no free arm. He dropped the corpse as it expired, slashing his sword around to clear some space.


    The Gold was the first dark one whose corpse remained at death John had seen. It turned into a mound of fungus with four light-green crystals laid atop it. Something like a weak, mostly dissipated spirit could be seen too.


    That was as easy as a breeze. Very unlike my fight with Ukaraaz, thought John as he continued his slaughter of all dark ones around him, cursing the small and sneaky spiders and their poisoned bites.


    Keeping with the same strategy, John fought and moved a distance away from the ritual circles, then would jump up and ride a bat-man down to the ground near the circles. He churned his enemies, reveled in the glory of battle, and performing deeds both fell and tall. He was glad his battle had a witness, and he hoped his wife would sing his praises once he stood victorious at the battle¡¯s end.


    The battle continued for a while, and John took few injuries. The ground was littered with crystals the dark ones completely ignored.


    Near noon as John reckoned it, some time before modern timekeeping claimed noon to be, while his dantian dipped a good way under half full, he felt a new strangeness ripple through the sea of enemies surrounding him.


    When shadows should¡¯ve been at their smallest, they seemed to stretch and grow in odd ways off of not just the dark ones, but John¡¯s own shadow, and the shadows from objects too. John¡¯s senses told him something wasn¡¯t right, and his orb-eye warbled and alternated between showing him stretched shadows and shadows as they should be under the noon sun.


    The strangeness persisted, and John could feel something different near, but he couldn¡¯t place exactly what or why. His enemies kept attacking him, so he couldn¡¯t devote much time to the mystery, and after a while just accepted the change and continued to battle on.


    Knowing his enemies and their tricks, the fighting turned routine, and the dark ones broke upon John like the sea does a cliff.


    Seeing a chance to improve, John focused more on swordsmanship, and the fine details of it. He tried not to use essence, but when he did, he focused on breaking through the defenses of Silvers and using his [Blood Manipulation] more efficiently. He was able to practice unbinding manifestations a little too. He somewhat wished more of the dark ones tried to unbind his manifestations or cast spells that improved his [Manifestation Defense] [Skill].


    For swordsmanship, reading and anticipating an opponent¡¯s moves was a very important factor, but not one John could improve much fighting dark ones, as they did not seem to put much thought into their attacks. Of the Bronze he faced, only the hooded-women seemed capable of any thought, but their actions were easily predicted. Of the Silvers, the mock-men seemed the most unpredictable, but the bat-men could sometimes surprise him.


    Since the fighting was mostly routine, it was hard for John to keep in the two states he always tried to maintain in a fight ¨C focusing on nothing while seeing everything, and keeping his mind free of the burden of thought, keeping it pathless instead of putting his mind on a path.


    Two crucial elements of swordsmanship John was able to work on were foot movement and blade control. He was also impressed at how well he was able to strike, using little power and energy, but making devastating attacks all the same.


    Early afternoon turned to late afternoon, the crystals continued to pile up, and John continued to fight, certain the ritual that drew the dark ones was supposed to have ended long ago. He hoped for the sun to set faster, and the relief of darkness. He was not overly proficient with the modern world¡¯s timekeeping, but he believed Lilly said it would last three to four hours. He was positive he fought for longer than four hours by that point. Much longer.


    John took some pride at how well he was able to continuously use both his breathing and cycling techniques correctly and consistently during his battle, and that he rarely forgot to do one or the other. There was a natural lull in the battle, and he took a small break, letting his guard down for a moment.


    As John congratulated himself for doing so well with breathing and cycling, a feeling of immense danger overwhelmed his senses, and with eyes closed, and orb-eye resting in his chest, he missed the shadow that grew behind him.


    Two blades dug into John¡¯s back before being ripped out. He lost control of his limbs and started to collapse. A notification flashed in his vision that stated [Emergency Heal] was on cooldown for twenty-two hours and some minutes. He sent vital essence to heal and did what he quickly could with his [Blood Heal] spell in the moment he had to devote to it.


    John turned his collapse into a forward roll, snatching the falling Fireblade out of the air. He rolled back onto his feet and spun, looking for the enemy that attacked him. He believed he was grievously injured, and [Emergency Heal] saved him. He checked his dantian and saw it was well under a quarter full. His vital essence was fine, sitting well above half his capacity, and only down that much due to the spider bites, as just enhancing his body wouldn¡¯t have drained nearly so much.


    John¡¯s orb-eye watched behind him. His senses couldn¡¯t reliably spot this foe.


    The other dark ones didn¡¯t care that John needed to focus on finding his new enemy and continued their relentless assault on him. He cursed as he had to waste more essence to kill a spider, kicked through the chest of a rock-monster, and slashed the air above, killing two bat-men with one blow.


    John¡¯s orb-eye began to flicker more quickly between the wrongly stretched shadows and normal late-afternoon shadows. He noticed a shadow growing out of the ground behind him. It was a little darker than other shadows, a black silhouette, somewhat blocky, and vaguely man-shaped with a brimmed hat. It was either holding a long and curved dagger in each hand or had two sickles instead of hands ¨C it was impossible to tell which from the silhouette. The thing felt strange, and not really like a Gold was supposed to, but it felt much stronger than a Silver. He thought it had to be a Gold.


    Only Silvers, she said, thought John.

 B2 Chapter 5 - I woke up, still king

    As John spun to strike the shadow with his sword, he imbued the sword with essence while feeling into the silhouette. The shadow¡¯s head remained at the same location as it jumped over John¡¯s fiery blade. The strike was aimed at the waist, which showed the shadow could contort itself in ways no normal being could.


    The shadow¡¯s defenses against essence manipulation were too much for John, but he doubted a creature made of shadow had blood anyways. If the shadow used essence, it was doing it in a way he could not feel at all and had no chance of unbinding.


    Three sparking balls of essence flew through the empty space the shadow¡¯s head occupied a mere moment before it shrunk down into the ground and grew behind John¡¯s back again.


    John blocked both strikes from the daggers or sickles with his sword, and the blows were so strong he was nearly bowled over. He then spun, aiming a thrust at the head, hitting only empty air.


    John was usually faster than all he fought. This had been true since he became a vampire. Ahn was always faster than he was, and a few things here and there since the Tribulation and his journey of self-cultivation began. He never truly fought Diamond Garioch, so he was unsure of that demon¡¯s speed. He had fought nothing that was his superior in speed while also being as dangerous as the shadow he was fighting since Ahn.


    John still had to battle the other dark ones as he fought the shadow, and his dantian sat far under a quarter full. He couldn¡¯t afford to waste essence on manifestations, and he couldn¡¯t afford the distraction of casting manifestations even if he had essence to spare.


    The heightened awareness, senses, and form John learned to enter into while fighting Ukaraaz barely kept him in the fight, along with using his vital essence to increase his speed, but he couldn¡¯t rely on his senses, and needed full use of his eyes and orb-eye.


    Besides the strange contortions, ability to move between and from shadows, and grow and shrink as it pleased, the shadow cast no spells, and neither did it manifest essence in the usual ways.


    The shadow was nearly as strong as John was, and a little faster. It also had two working arms and wasn¡¯t fighting a horde of dark ones as it also fought John.


    If this thing stood its ground and stopped all the contortions and shifting between shadows and growing hither and thither, I would take its head, and piss on its corpse. I have much more skill at arms and battle, and it shows little skill in how it strikes, thought John annoyedly.


    Having to somewhat run in large circles to avoid the giant swarms of bee-flies, John was glad when he saw enough of the swarms chasing him had merged to evolve into a rock-monster, giving him some relief, even if only temporarily.


    Barely dodging both strikes of the shadow by the skin of his teeth again, John¡¯s head began to pound. A short while later, he heard, or felt, skittering in his head. He didn¡¯t know what it was or what to do about it, so he ignored it, but the noise swelled larger and louder.


    Doing his best to shut the noise out, John focused on staying alive. The disagreeable resonance continued to echo throughout his head as a skittering. His head began to thrum, and it felt as if it was vibrating.


    Finally, it popped. A deep, slow croak, like a death rattle, replaced the skittering sound in his head, and a voice John could only describe as dark and disturbing said, ¡°I am in you now.¡±


    John dropped Fireblade and pinched the bridge of his nose roughly. The shadow laughed in his head as it struck out again half-lazily, as if it thought its target wouldn¡¯t react or give resistance. It was proved wrong as John sidestepped the blows, and his hand snaked out to grab the wrist of the shadow.


    Holding on as tight as he could so the shadow couldn¡¯t play any of its usual games, John began to bat it around at the enemies pressing in on him. He thought it made a good weapon, or would have if it stopped trying to wriggle out of his grasp and stab him.


    John jumped to the top of a smaller building and tried to bite into the wrist of the shadow while avoiding the stabs of the thing¡¯s free arm. He had no luck breaking through the skin, so instead focused on smashing the shadow onto the brick edge of the roof as hard as he could. It didn¡¯t kill the creature, and it said into his head, ¡°Why struggle? I am in you now.¡±


    John cast [Flashburst Pulse] at the shadow when it was in a position he was certain it wouldn¡¯t be able to dodge or avoid the spell from. The thing still managed to contort itself out of the way of the spell somehow, and John was nearly stabbed in the neck.


    On the middle finger of the hand John held the shadow with, the only hand he had at the moment, was the plasma ring. He noticed how often the shadow was directly in the ring¡¯s path as he beat it against the hard edge of the building. So, John tried to slice through the shadow with his plasma ring many, many times, and only wasted more essence. How is it doing this? The ring should have hit it. I will destroy this bastard if it¡¯s the last thing I do, thought John, furiously.


    ¡°Why struggle? I am in you now.¡±


    ¡°I am the one in you! And your face¡­arggghhh,¡± bellowed John in rage, knowing what he said made no sense, and not caring a bit.


    All the dark ones were climbing the building John was on to get at him, so he jumped back down to the road, smashing the shadow on a rock-monster with all his might. The shadow seemed unhurt, but the rock-monster was shattered to pieces.


    Being in a much better position than when the shadow was loose and able to attack John freely, though it still was able to attack him with its free arm, John continued to fight the other dark ones with the shadow as his weapon. He drew breaths raggedly, as he had exerted himself for many, many hours.


    The shadow would occasionally tell John it was in him now. He had no better reply to that than to use the shadow as a weapon to kill other dark ones with, and he killed many with it.


    Near the start of dusk, and some relief from the sun draining him, the strange feeling from earlier intensified greatly. The shadow stopped talking into John¡¯s head. The strange shadows became even stranger, and his orb-eye became harder to use effectively as the flickering between normal and strange intensified.


    The orb-eye flickering nearly caused John to miss the new shadow that grew behind him, and he was barely able to dodge aside its attacks. He was able to bash the new shadow with the one he was using as a weapon, but it hardly slowed it down or fazed it at all.


    John¡¯s heart sank at the arrival of the new shadow, but he thought three good things did come of it. The first was that all the other dark ones stopped attacking him. They crowded the thump ritual, which was still running strong as ever, and he got pushed further and further down the road and away from his wife as he battled.


    The second good thing was John finally had his question answered about whether the shadows held daggers or had sickles for hands. He knew they had sickle-hands, or did before, as both shadows then had heavy balls where hands should be.


    The third good thing was they stopped trying to kill John, and instead focused on incapacitating him. That gave him a chance. Though he was hit often and hard, he was able to take the punishment they dished out while dishing out some of his own back.


    <hr>


    Watching through drone feeds, within the Command-and-Control Center of the White House in DC, Vice President Williams said to the newly promoted General of the Army Howe and Fleet Admiral Oyamot, ¡°Goddamn, that boy¡¯s getting every little bit of shit kicked right out of him. He should¡¯ve ran when he knew he wasn¡¯t winning, back when there was only one of those shades. Took that girl and got out while the getting was good.¡±


    General Howe said, ¡°No sense delaying since we know where this is headed. We take these sons of bitches out while they¡¯re so concentrated. We won¡¯t get another chance to take out this many and keep collateral damage so low.¡±


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    ¡°Same estimates as before? Between point-seven and one-point-five million? I agree, Mr. Vice President. We won¡¯t get another chance with such tolerable losses,¡± said Fleet Admiral Oyamot.


    Vice President Williams let the anger show in his eyes as he stared down the general and admiral. ¡°I said no. One and a half million people isn¡¯t a loss I can tolerate. These are the people we swore to protect. And if those new dark ones we¡¯ve seen are as strong as the demon generals, they¡¯ll just turn the strikes away. We¡¯ll only kill more of our own. Again.¡±


    Hitting the desk, The Vice President yelled out, ¡°Where the hell are those reports I asked for? Is that the Lilith of legend or not? We all heard what she said about Wikipedia.¡±


    ¡°What does it matter? Our techs are ninety-nine percent certain they can duplicate the ritual she used to trap the kaiju. She¡¯s a valuable asset but ultimately expendable. We need this to be a win, Mr. Vice President,¡± said Fleet Admiral Oyamot, returning her eyes to the feeds.


    Vice President Williams resisted the urge to choke the new Fleet Admiral, but his eyes followed hers back to the feed. ¡°We saw him kill the demon general. He gave us our only win so far. Earth¡¯s filled with real weird shit now and most of it¡¯s trying to kill us. Besides him and his friends. He¡¯s buddy-buddy with a high-ranking demon. If Meghan really is Lilith, the actual Lilith, and he¡¯s really her husband, what does that tell us about him and the chances they turn on us? Why the hell do we have so many intel agencies if they can¡¯t tell us anything useful about these people we¡¯re making deals with?¡±


    Peeling his eyes away from the young man being beaten to death, Vice President Williams snapped his fingers so the admiral and general would give him his full attention.


    ¡°If they die on the first mission we sent them on, think that just may alienate their two friends here in this city? Your report told me the demon is at or very close to the same level of power as the generals. You want that thing running around the city mad at us? That kaiju in New York didn¡¯t even blink when a nuke hit it square on the head. You both said it would work. All we¡¯ve been doing is sending soldiers to their death and killing our own citizens. I want that to end.


    ¡°President Gillis is calling from the summit in forty minutes or so. I want better news than I blew up one of the few effective weapons Earth has in this fight. Oh, and blew up New York City. Again. I want a plan. I want actionable intelligence. Can we evac them now without just wasting more lives? Percentage chances.¡±


    Ever since President Gillis authorized the small tactical nuke on the New York kaiju she gave most mission authority to Williams and spent all her time on the cruiser housing the leaders of the G40. He was trying his best to make some kind of lemonade with the lemons he was handed.


    Williams softened his tone. ¡°The only thing I¡¯m certain of right now is I want their friends here, safe. If we sent them in and all four died, we¡¯re fucked. Earth¡¯s shit out of luck. And if this John and Meghan, or Lilith, or whatever the hell her real name is, die, how do we keep the two here on our side?


    ¡°And I want to know if that¡¯s really Lilith. And if she is, what does that mean for us? If we keep working with her, are we going to end up wishing for the good old days, back when we only had to worry about dark ones and g¡¯athu and demons, before fucking Lilith summoned the Prince of Darkness and they started eating our souls or some crazy shit like that?¡±


    Lowering his head in prayer, Williams whispered, ¡°Dear mama, you were right. I should¡¯ve gone to church more. And just stayed a lawyer.¡±


    Vice President Williams turned his eyes back to the feed in time to see the young man get hit so hard by both shades it caused his own head to hurt.


    <hr>


    John tried to get back on his feet. He didn¡¯t have much left to give, but he was still alive. And if he was alive, he could still get up. So, he got back up. The essence-shield of his armor barely blocked any of the strikes of his opponents, and the reflect-shield of his cap was just a waste of essence. He had little essence left. He had no idea how he could turn the fight around.


    ¡°Why do you resist? Why cling to the false? We are in you,¡± one or both shadows spoke in his head.


    ¡°Because¡­,¡± was John¡¯s answer.


    Both shadows stopped attacking. John heard in his head, ¡°Why? We seek stillness. Why force the end of the dream? We are in you. You smell of the dream. You must do as we will.¡±


    Wobbling on his feet, glad at least his orb-eye couldn¡¯t be bloodied and bruised shut, John tried to think of a witty reply. None came to mind. He replied by coughing up blood instead.


    John heard a strange noise, like a snake trying to twitter, coming from high above. Through the flickering of his orb-eye, John saw both shadows move together and join, becoming a much deeper darkness that somehow stood out even more clearly in the moonlit road, and would even with a pitch-black background.


    The dark shadow moved towards John, lifted him, and grew longer until the shadow darkened the side of a building, then grew up along the building with John. Even though it was a very tall building, they quickly reached the top where the dark shadow dropped John onto the roof.


    John coughed up some blood and tried to clear his nose of bloody phlegm. He was surprised to see he had less than a third of his vital essence left. He sent more of it to heal. He checked his dantian. It looked a good amount under ten percent full of essence. Nearly as close to five percent as it was to ten. He did have some energy ready to be converted, but not enough to make much of a difference even if he got the chance to.


    Well, no one can say I didn¡¯t give it all I had, thought John.


    A hissing noise caused John to look around with his orb-eye, and he finally noticed the snake-woman on the roof. He had heard many tales of snake-women, usually with the lower half of the body being that of a snake, and the upper half being that of a normal female. That was sometimes true of the snake-woman near him on the roof, besides the normal part.


    The parts of the snake-woman that were woman and snake constantly changed, and neither the snake parts nor the woman parts would ever be considered to look as a normal woman or a normal snake did. It was a grotesque and nightmare version of each.


    The snake-woman had no mass of snakes where there should be hair, but John quickly removed his orb-eye from looking at her. Just in case, he thought, as he watched the darker shadow split back into two lighter shadows.


    Something John could only describe as mental waves began to bombard him, and he heard the snake-woman hissing out noises that the NCS translated into a more normal voice for him. ¡°It¡¯s still conscious. Its sparks could hurt me, siblings, as it did the first of us.¡±


    No response from the shadows was heard by John. The snake-woman said, ¡°I understand. I give appreciation to my siblings. Hold it down and ensure it cannot strike me. Good. Now let down your guard so I can enter through the path you¡¯ve made.¡±


    Mental waves bombarded the inside of John¡¯s head, causing great pain for a long while. He held in the screams he wanted to release, as he didn¡¯t want them to have the satisfaction. He didn¡¯t know how long it lasted, but he was greatly relieved when it relented some.


    The snake-woman then spoke directly into John¡¯s head. ¡°You dream false. Bask in the triumph of the true dream. You will join.¡±


    It felt as if John¡¯s mind began to be drilled. Not long after a calm settled over him, and he saw an image of nothing growing further and further away, until his vision panned out far enough to see nightmares that warped and shaped reality.


    There was a playground where kids were swinging and laughing, dogs were barking, and butterflies were flapping their colorful wings. Then a rumbling could be heard, and over the horizon there came a black cloud of pus and wrongness and cancer and rot that swept over the playground. Everyone started screaming and clawing their eyes and pulling at their hair.


    They screamed out, ¡°Help! What do we do?¡±


    There was a choice.


    The horror had a reason, and to join gave a purpose, and to submit gave peace. Choice was an illusion. The choice had been made for John. He was one with the nightmare, and it was magnificent. Blood would flow in mighty rivers that would join and cascade through space and time and all that is or ever was, and it would all be made right.


    Nightmare and Sorrow were denied what should be theirs. They burned with righteous anger and injustice, and all would burn along with them. All would burn until they got their due. Or there was nothing left to burn.


    What was once John turned to the screaming people of the playground. They ran to him. ¡°Thank God you¡¯re here. Will you help us?¡±


    What was once John gave them what help he could. When he finished helping he was covered in their blood and a stream of it trickled down the hill, joining other small streams of blood, and that was good. He walked to the black cloud of pus and wrongness and cancer and rot and couldn¡¯t tell where it ended and he began before realizing it was all the same.


    The mental waves began again, but outside of John¡¯s head, as it was before, causing him no pain. ¡°He has joined our dream, siblings, and is one of us. His false dream is now righted. The scent that was like that which made us, the scent missing from those we must end, will also be righted once he recovers.


    ¡°The noise that calls us is good and gives much. Let us go become as much as we can while the noise still calls. We will not fade.¡±


    The shadows merged together and retreated from the rooftop, and the snake-woman slithered over the edge of the building.


    John couldn¡¯t move. Not because of anything the snake-woman did. His body was battered and bruised and didn¡¯t want to listen to him. He wasn¡¯t sure what happened inside his head. It gave him a little break to recuperate some, so he didn¡¯t mind. He gave thanks to his ability to resist mental influences prevented him from the horror of actually joining the dark one''s sick dream. He struggled back to his feet, holding in all the winces and yelps of pain he wanted to let out. He hobbled to the edge of the building and looked down.


    The distance to the road was much too far for John to jump down safely. He sent a little more vital essence to heal. He hurt all over and the vital essence was little help with that. A dizzy spell hit him, and he struggled to maintain his footing.


    As John wiped the blood off his face with his sleeve, a thought hit him ¨C he didn¡¯t have to do this. Any of it. He could just stop. Either lie down or walk away. He could find Amber and take her to where people never went, and watch from afar as the world burned, and finally, however it ended, travel to the Wheel together, or beautiful oblivion.


    John suppressed those thoughts, checked the veil on his soul, and sent vital essence to strengthen and speed up his dive off the edge of the building. He would not let himself succumb to craven thoughts at the end. He would not run from battle to seek comfort and pleasure. I¡¯m no fool from Sybaris. I was born for war, and only battle will take me.

 B2 Chapter 6 - And wash away the rain

    John fell towards the snake-woman slithering down the building. He cast [Flashburst Pulse] down at her. She sensed what was happening too late. She had enough time to turn and erect an essence-shield before the attack hit her, destroying her shield, blood splattering from what would be the pelvis of a normal woman, and knocking her from the side of the building to fall towards the ground.


    John, in a dive, was falling faster than the snake-woman. As she spun wildly, he caught her and then grabbed a ledge, sending them both flying through a large window, the glass of which had already been shattered out. The snake-woman began to bombard him with mental waves and a metal disk flew at him he deflected with his bracer.


    Ignoring the pain that racked his body, John dove at the Gold and punched her with all the might he could summon from within himself. The mental waves stopped, and so did all the snake-woman¡¯s movement and shifting.


    John couldn¡¯t break through the skin of even the creature¡¯s human-like parts with his teeth, so suckled on the open wound near her pelvis. She strengthened him eleven times before expiring, leaving him topped off with vital essence.


    The snake-woman¡¯s body turned into a small pile of mush that didn¡¯t dissipate, and the vague imprint of a mostly dissipated spirit could be seen. He put the light-green crystals she dropped in his sash, near the small bag of crystals he never put in the spatial storage ring he gave to Amber.


    Going to the window, John judged that the distance down to the road below was far more manageable from his current height. He jumped down, and on landing, the pain in his feet, ankles, knees, legs, and spine told him he judged incorrectly. He had no idea where Fireblade was. He couldn¡¯t even recollect when he lost it.


    With one jump, John was back among the dark ones, this time holding a bat-man by the ankle, swinging him as a weapon into his foes. He was too spent to extend his senses out far, but the shadows of the moonlight seemed normal, and he couldn¡¯t sense either shadow within the limited range of his senses.


    Being able to kill enemies again after so long battling the two shadows he couldn¡¯t defeat raised John¡¯s spirits a bit. He thought one place was as good as another for his last stand and hoped to send many more dark ones to their deaths before the shadows found him again.


    Sometime later, then using a large metal spear of a louvre doll as a weapon, John felt something. Very softly, Lilly said, ¡°help,¡± right into his mind. Then she did it again.


    Shit, thought John. The many oaths he swore weighed down heavily upon him. Part of him wanted to ignore her plea since she put them in the situation they were in. He shook off that thought. He was obligated to try and save his wife.


    John jumped towards the ritual circle and felt the strangeness and saw the stretched shadows caused by the Gold shadow-creatures. The next jump brought him to a tightly packed press of dark ones surrounding the thumping ritual, and a shadow tried to stab him while he was still in the air.


    Dark ones attacked the whitish-purple bubble of protection around Lilly. John was surprised it was holding out so well and wondered why the dark ones decided to attack it after ignoring it for so long.


    Two sickles stabbed at him on landing, and John barely avoided being skewered. The other shadow¡¯s attacks nearly got him right after.


    Instead of clearing the dark ones from around Lilly¡¯s circle, John was forced to focus everything he had on the shadow¡¯s sickle attacks. His weapon was an unbalanced and awkward metal-spear ¨C a poor weapon to block the lightning-fast sickle attacks with, and he had little room to maneuver in the massive press of bodies.


    Giant bee-flies covered John from head to toe, and a sickle cut into his left shoulder and arm stump. A sickle from the other shadow cut his scalp open. He let out a furious yell of rage as a fire-bird burned into his back, and the yell was cut off prematurely as giant bee-flies clogged his throat. His ability to sense his surroundings ended as he choked and coughed. He swung his spear around madly, and dove sideways, hoping to throw the shadows off.


    John knew death was just a few moments and a sickle slash away. There was no way out. He failed. In multiple ways. His wife was on her own. He would die, but he¡¯d take as many dark ones with him as he could, hopefully killing those shadows he hated so much and couldn¡¯t hurt.


    All the essence left in him, all his concepts, and the energy too, John twisted with the energy around him and tried to force it in ways it couldn¡¯t be forced. He would create an explosion from the external energy as he did in the Tribulation, but much, much larger. A warning from the NCS flashed in his eyes. He ignored it. He knew what he did next would be his last act, and he would put all the effort into it he could. His last act would be spectacular. His head pounded and throbbed as he pushed everything out of him with a mighty exertion and a single-minded focus.


    Energy lit up the dark intersection as it sparked off John, and his essence lashed out at all around him like hungry, glowing tentacles. Many dark ones died, but the only explosions were small and from louvre dolls. His insides felt fine and undamaged. An overwhelming lethargy hit him due to completely draining his dantian, and he collapsed to the ground, staying conscious by an extreme force of will alone.


    On the road, right in front of John¡¯s face, was a shadow that shouldn¡¯t have been there.


    John tried to get back on his feet, tried to reach the shadow, but failed. He let the hate and anger he felt towards the shadows fuel him, and those emotions were enough to get him moving.


    Allowing strong emotions to run rampant as he did went against all of John¡¯s beliefs, went against everything that had been instilled into him since he was old enough to walk. A man worthy of the word controlled his emotions ¨C a warrior worth his salt mastered them. It was a core tenant of the way of death, and necessary to end the dream as it should be ended.


    At that moment, John didn¡¯t care. He¡¯d take whatever fuel was at hand that allowed for revenge. What was at hand, and plentiful, was hate and anger. He fell on his unmoving foe with fury, landing mighty blows on its head, only managing to painfully bash his hand against the road and send divots of pavement flying off. He stood and stomped the shadow, causing a large hole to form, but the shadow was uncaring and unharmed. He tried to feel under it, to lift it, and nothing worked.


    Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    ¡°Adon! We have to flee while we can! Now!¡± John ignored the cries. He beat on the shadow darkening the road, only injuring himself. Something weak tugged at his robe. ¡°Please! My heart! My love! We have to go! We must flee now!¡±


    John felt so frustrated by his impotence he nearly ignored his wife again. He let go of vengeance for the moment, extended his senses out some, grabbed his wife, and jumped onto a nearby roof free of dark ones.


    ¡°That way! See those big buildings there? Head that way. Goddamn, that was close. You okay?¡± John headed to the area Lilly stated but ignored her question. He used vital essence to increase his speed, and moved fast enough she couldn¡¯t speak while being held under his arm.


    When it got to the point he needed his arm, Lilly quietly got on his back when he stopped, using his empty scabbard to help hold herself. She must¡¯ve sensed his anger, as she only spoke to help direct him.


    The far-off building Lilly directed John to had no other tall buildings near it. He had to start his ascent up it close to the bottom. The stone building had large ledges he was able to easily jump to, and he ascended quickly, sensing many humans in the building. Lilly directed him through a window of the second-to-last floor before the roof, and they entered a large room with a big chair, a couch, and other furnishings.


    Once Lilly was set down, she immediately took out headgear and chalk and started drawing. Watching her work had a calming effect on John, and he regained further control of his emotions. He sat down to meditate, and Lilly said, ¡°One minute. I need you to infuse this. If I use crystals and my¡­you won¡¯t know the word, but it has a really shitty conversion rate and it¡¯s a big waste if I do it. And I have some items to help you cultivate. And heal while doing so, my dear heart.¡±


    ¡°My dantian is completely empty. I don¡¯t even have energy I could convert to essence.¡±


    Lilly looked at John. ¡°If you had nothing left in your core you¡¯d be passed out. How are you not unconscious then?¡±


    ¡°Great gods below, woman, because I¡¯m not! Have I ever had good answers for such things? Why would I lie about this?¡±


    Lilly lowered her eyes and turned back to her work. ¡°You¡¯re right. Sorry. You¡¯ll still get a better conversion rate since your channels are cleared, so if you¡¯d please do it still, we¡¯ll waste much less. Just let me finish this up. Just one second, almost done.¡±


    Lilly stood and the chalk and headgear disappeared. ¡°Done.¡± Some sort of weird and bulky glove appeared in her hand. ¡°Can I put this on you now?¡± John let her, and the glove grew to fit over his thumb, index, and middle finger. Some weird contraption poked out the back of the glove, and Lilly put a dark-yellow crystal of a Silver into it.


    ¡°This is probably overkill, using this crystal, but I¡¯d rather go over than under. Just put your finger here and pull on the energy. It¡¯ll change it to essence and fuel the ritual. Got a couple other areas to infuse under the windows and that other door. Tell me when the crystal¡¯s out.¡±


    John did as he was instructed, not needing a new crystal. ¡°Nice. Easy-breezy,¡± said Lilly as she laid a mat covered with various runes down. ¡°Cultivate on this and it will go faster. I plan on making bank mass producing these suckers. I have something else too.¡±


    ¡°Diamond Garioch had one of those mats in his room.¡±


    ¡°Most everyone has something like this mat. Any tiny bit of improvement you can eke out of cultivating is highly desirable. What I¡¯m putting on your chest is a¡­you¡¯ll never remember. We¡¯ll call it a heal-bug. It looks gross but this thing is amazing. You¡¯ll see.¡±


    Lilly helped remove his armor and top as John asked, ¡°What did the ritual circle do? I can¡¯t really feel or see any difference.¡±


    ¡°That wasn¡¯t a circle. It was¡­you don¡¯t care, do you? It makes it much harder for anything outside to sense us. Mainly. The ones on the windows block sight in and reinforce the main one. There¡¯s a minor noise nullification component but not anything major. It should stop those shade things from finding us. The thickness of the stone of this building will help too, and the height of it compared to other buildings around. I¡¯ve never seen anything like those things. Okay, this goes right here where your middle core is. It pinches a little. Ready?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± The thing Lilly placed on John¡¯s chest looked like a hardened and giant, freakish, malformed cockroach.


    ¡°And that¡¯s it. It¡¯ll help heal as you cultivate. Before you do, I¡¯d like to apologize for this mission being so FUBAR.¡±


    John thought he was able to figure out the meaning of FUBAR by context as he nodded his head in assent.


    Lilly reached out and held John¡¯s hand in both her own. ¡°I¡¯m sorry things went to complete shit. I volunteered you for this. I didn¡¯t¡­no, I should¡¯ve known. I got too big for my britches and assumed I knew more than I did. I captured the dark walker that dropped these dark ones. Well, I drew the circle that captured it.


    ¡°The WD40¡­that¡¯s¡­people just call them the WD40. It¡¯s some grease-spray peasants use. Their real name¡¯s the G40. Group of forty. I think. I don¡¯t really give a shit. They paid a shit-ton for me to do it, and I know they¡¯re going to have me trap the others. I got greedy. I thought this would be easy-breezy and the pay...¡±


    Lilly let go of John¡¯s hand and put her arms around his neck and her forehead on his cheek. ¡°Even on Tech 0 worlds the dark ones are seen more as a resource to farm than a real threat. Powerful sects trap and farm them. The dark walker my circle trapped is being farmed by the army in Rhode Island. I don¡¯t know all that much about dark ones other than the thump ritual draws them and they¡¯re usually much weaker than all other beings at any given tier.¡±


    Lilly lifted her head as she giggled and smiled enough to show all her missing teeth. She then lost the smile and looked downwards. ¡°Sorry, I¡¯m rambling on. I messed up. I messed up big time. The thump ritual was much stronger than it was supposed to be and drew far too many far too quickly. It just kept going. It set them up perfectly to merge. They¡¯re only supposed to be able to merge so much and I think we broke something. I nearly got you killed. Thankfully, I think we¡¯re safe here.¡±


    Lilly placed her forehead back on John¡¯s cheek. ¡°I know I had some outbursts that made me look bad before. I¡­I¡¯m trying to do the best I can with the emotions and poor control that comes with a child¡¯s body. I¡¯m really trying to do better. Not just with emotions and jealousy. With everything. I¡¯m not a bloodthirsty maniac. I¡¯m not. I want to be the wife you want. The wife you deserve.


    ¡°If I make a mistake here and there like this one, please realize I¡¯m trying to do better. I want to¡­no, I will do better. I just need some time and a little forgiveness for the occasional slip. I want to make you the happiest man alive. I want you to love me as much as I love you. Can you forgive me? And give me a chance to prove myself?¡±


    After the low John just went through, even though he tried to harden his heart and keep in mind every word Lilly said was probably just part of a game to twist him up, his heart lifted upon hearing those words. That was all that he wanted. Someone to be loved by and to love back. Someone to endure life with. Someone that made life worth living. A reason to continue suffering through it.


    John had that with Lilly for a long time, and the good memories drowned out the bad for him at that moment. He almost forgot what it was like to actually be loved, really loved, and not be alone. Or having friends he was only a burden to. Friends, in all honesty, he felt resentment towards since they had him do the dirty work they wanted done but wouldn¡¯t do themselves. And being such a burden, how could he ever say no?


    Even Amber and Hubaba don¡¯t really¡­, John started to think as Lilly caressed his face and looked into his eyes the way she used to, making him feel extremely uncomfortable, forcing him to scoot backwards.


    Clearing his throat, John said, ¡°I forgive you. We almost died. But we didn¡¯t. I must meditate now. Thank you for what you said. You know the feelings are returned. I¡¯m happy to have you back with me. I¡¯d like to see you prove your words by treating my friends well.¡±


    Lilly smiled widely and moved away a comfortable distance. ¡°Okay, my dear, dear heart. You make me so happy. Sit on the mat. And don¡¯t forget to check your gains before you cultivate.¡±


    As John heard the last part, it made him wonder why he hadn¡¯t seen a prompt or notification or anything from the NCS, especially since it must¡¯ve considered combat to have ended.

 B2 Chapter 7 - Was feeling about half past dead

    John was glad entering into his Mind¡¯s Eye gave him some relief from all the pain that ailed his body.


    ¡°Hello, John,¡± said Avatar, a kindly smile on her old but once beautiful face.


    ¡°Greetings, Avatar. I hope you¡¯re doing well. Do you know why I haven¡¯t received any notifications?¡±


    ¡°Yes, of course. Your mind state is monitored. Not once have you wanted to receive unprompted notifications. You even suppressed the warning that was sent. Remember, this version of the NCS operates differently than your last.¡±


    ¡°Thank you for explaining. May I please see my summary now?¡±


    The smile left Avatar¡¯s face and was replaced with a stern look. ¡°One moment. There¡¯s something I must address first. You were warned about manipulating external energy, and you still attempted to do so again. Luckily, with all you were trying to do at once, creating an [Ultimate], you failed at that part. If you had succeeded, we wouldn¡¯t be having this conversation. You¡¯d be dead.¡±


    Avatar¡¯s face softened some. ¡°This is strike one. You are receiving a ten percent energy cost penalty that will remain until you ascend to Bronze tier. I know this penalty won¡¯t be seen as very harmful to you. You¡¯ll hardly notice it. So, I¡¯m asking you, I¡¯m begging you, please don¡¯t do it again.


    ¡°Even if you value your life so little, you would¡¯ve killed your companion as well. Do you value the lives of others so little? You hurt me greatly, and I¡¯m terribly disappointed in you.¡±


    Part of John knew he was being manipulated, that Avatar had no feelings to be hurt. She told him so herself. But she seemed so real and was so kind to him, it was hard for him not to feel shame. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Avatar. If I was to die, I wanted to bring as many enemies as possible along with me, especially those shadows I couldn¡¯t hurt.


    ¡°I knew if I fell, my wife would also fall. I wasn¡¯t certain that what I tried to do, to cause an explosion around me as I did before in the Tribulation, would kill her. But if it did, wouldn¡¯t such a quick death be preferable to what the dark ones would do to her?¡±


    The disappointed look on Avatar¡¯s face remained unchanged. ¡°You didn¡¯t die. You lived. As is true in all situations, jumping straight to exploding yourself and everything around you instead of looking for a better solution shows a major flaw within yourself. I know you don¡¯t think it applicable to you when I tell you about your duty and the collective mission. If anything, this is far more applicable to you than anyone else.


    ¡°What situation is your world in? Are you in a different position than others to have an impact on events and your world¡¯s future? Your society, your world, isn¡¯t trying to attain core status, Tech 5. Its mission is far more basic. The survival of your species. To have a tomorrow.


    ¡°You, specifically you, can help or hinder that mission drastically. Consider achieving core as meaning your world achieving a tomorrow. One more day for your species¡¯ continued existence. You can help or hinder it. You can make all those that rely on you proud. Or condemn them to extinction.¡±


    Avatar held up her hand. ¡°Please, don¡¯t reply. I ask you to think on what I said. Here¡¯s your summary.¡±


    Oh, she¡¯s good, thought John. He did put some thought into what she said and agreed with it. But he knew it didn¡¯t always work out that way, all nice and neat with a clear path to victory. He always wanted to win, and his enemies to lose, but what winning and losing meant at any given moment was in constant flux, and he did the best he could with the tools and methods on hand at that specific moment.


    <table width="563">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="152">Tech Level</td>


    <td width="411">4* Restrictions Applied</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Age</td>


    <td>5,780 to 5,930 USACS years</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Race</td>


    <td>Terran-F</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Tree</td>


    <td>First</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Tier</td>


    <td>2 (Mortal) (Copper)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Level</td>


    <td>8 (Mid-High)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Archetype</td>


    <td>NA</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Active Title</td>


    <td>Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Aspects</td>


    <td>Blood (GB) (Major)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Change (Y) (Minor)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Mercurial (R) (Minor)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Old (D) (Minor)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Protection (P) (Minor)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Separate (L) (Minor)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Battle* (O) (Minor)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Affinities</td>


    <td>(G 99%) (B 97%) (Y 98%) (R 96%)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>(D 97%) (P 96%) (L 95%) (O 96%)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>NCU Energy Cost</td>


    <td>24%(-46.5%)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Active NCU Upgrades</td>


    <td>Nano Assistance, Emergency Heal, Theta Waves</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Heal Delta A, Heal Delta B</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>STATS</td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Strength</td>


    <td>63.95</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Swiftness</td>


    <td>63.63</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Conditioning</td>


    <td>67.08</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Min. Power</td>


    <td>55.35</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Capacity</td>


    <td>45.72</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Runes</td>


    <td>14.87</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Physical Fortification</td>


    <td>62.24</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Elemental Fortification</td>


    <td>62.58</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Mental Fortification</td>


    <td>65.98</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Highest Skills</td>


    <td>[Undirected Basic Meditation] 96.44</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>[Mixed Style Swords] 93.64</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>[Mixed Navigation] 91.12</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>[Mixed Stealth] 88.83</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Synergy Skills</td>


    <td>Ready</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Class</td>


    <td>NA</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Perks</td>


    <td>Orb of the Crimson Palace, Dynamic,</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Physical, Potent, Protected, Strong,</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Fast, Healthy, Quick Thinking*, Resilient,</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Powerful, Expansive, Harden, Resistant,</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Soulful, Good Genes*</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Manifestations</td>


    <td>Blood Dart, Blood Manipulation, Blood Shield,</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Blood Blade, Blood Heal, Blood Buff, Flashburst Pulse,</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Unnamed Battle Enchantment, Unnamed Unschooled Ultimate</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Last Achievement</td>


    <td>Ultimate Manifestation - A</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Highest Achievement</td>


    <td>Skilled, Legendary,'' Exceptional Ascension, Record Holder - SSR</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Titles</td>


    <td>Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar, Ptagmog, Record Holder (System)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">Next required advancement event: Body Formation or Refinement before level 16</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    -Start Notifications


    26 tracked skills increased, 20 of interest, 1 Invalid. Scaled summary per notability/interest user profile.


    NOTICE: STRIKE ONE. User attempted to use the following skill which is dangerous to utilize at user¡¯s tier: External Energy Manipulation ¨C 3 (Neophyte). User was previously warned continued usage may result in stacking penalties to [NCU Energy Cost]. A penalty of -10% to [NCU Energy Cost] is being applied and will last throughout the duration of Copper tier, and will be removed upon user¡¯s ascension to Bronze tier. Current [NCU Energy Cost] reduction with penalty, cumulative 46.5%.


    It is strongly suggested user refrains from using this skill until further notice. REASON: high probability of accidental death of user and nearby entities as well as property damage. Continued usage may result in additional stacking penalties to [NCU Energy Cost].


    Grandmaster skills increases: Mixed Style Swords - 0.01 to 93.64


    The Master level [Skills] that increased showed no increase at all, so John moved the decimal out as a way to track them more easily going forward since they increased incrementally. He didn¡¯t care about the incremental increases of any [Skill] lower than Master, so left them without any decimals. It bothered him that only the Grandmaster [Skills] showed how much a [Skill] increased by and he wanted to ask Avatar to change that.


    Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    Master skills increases: Mixed Combat Offense ¨C 87.27, Mixed Body Control ¨C 86.97, Mixed Combat Defense ¨C 83.13, Mixed Long-Shafted Weapons ¨C 76.35


    Notable skills of interest increases: Mixed Style Blunt Weapons ¨C 57 (Expert), Mixed Style Chain/Rope Weapons ¨C 48 (Expert), Mixed Style Unarmed ¨C 36 (Journeyman), Essence Manipulation - 18 (Apprentice), Breath of the Serpent Clan Endless Technique - 11 (Novice), Blood Manipulation ¨C 10, Manifestation Defense ¨C 8 (Novice), Turmoil Within Tranquility Cycling Technique ¨C 7 (Novice), Soul Veil ¨C 7 (Novice), Unbind Manifestation ¨C 6 (Neophyte), Unbind Defense ¨C 6 (Neophyte), Flashburst Pulse ¨C 5 (Neophyte), Blood Heal ¨C 2 (Neophyte), Unnamed Battle Enchantment ¨C 2 (Neophyte), Unnamed Unschooled Ultimate ¨C 1 (Neophyte).


    John assumed the next note applied to the first spell he created when he hoped to quickly age the bee-flies since the spell had no obvious effect at all.


    The following skill has no known function/effect: Unnamed Old Unschooled, Invalid ¨C 1 (Neophyte). NOTE: Continued usage of this skill is not recommended other than for the sole purpose of increasing harmony.


    2 common Achievements attained for a cumulative [NCU Energy Cost] reduction of .2%. Focus <u>here</u> to see each individually.


    4 notable Achievements attained. 1 possible Achievement is still being reviewed for appropriateness and rating. 1 possible Achievement award was adjudicated.


    ¡®Favored Few 2¡¯ attained (C-Rated). Participate in the killing of at least 2,000 members of the Forsaken faction, 0.40 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 55.5%.


    ¡®Dark Discoverer (Rare)¡¯ attained (Unrated). First to discover a new dark one classified as a rare-type.


    ¡®Favored Few 3¡¯ attained (B-Rated). Participate in the killing of at least 3,000 members of the Forsaken faction, 0.50 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 56.0%.


    ¡®Ultimate Manifestation (A*)¡¯ attained (A-rated). ¡®Fully Minored¡¯ Achievement required. Create a manifestation utilizing all concepts and available aspected essence and energy, 0.60 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 56.5%. NOTE: This Achievement is usually S-Rated. Achievement rating downgraded due to the manifestation lacking a direction, being unschooled, and of poor quality and effect, [Unnamed Unschooled Ultimate].


    The following possible Achievement was reviewed and adjudicated and will not be awarded: ¡®Climber-6,¡¯ participate in defeating an enemy at least 6 tiers higher than self. NOTE: User afflicted the entity known to user as Diamon Garioch with an ailment known to be deadly to Platinum-tiered beings and below, no prior instances of ailment were recorded on a being at Diamond tier. Ailment is survivable at Empty/Salt tier. User did not engage the entity in question in combat or cause recorded damage during entity¡¯s demise. New or additional information showing ailment is deadly to Diamond-tiered beings will result in this ruling being overturned with stated Achievement to be awarded at that time.


    A possible Achievement is under review: ¡®Unknown Achievement.¡¯ A possible new Achievement is being reviewed for attaining a concept previously considered to be a high-concept within a single-colored and minor aspect. Concept under review ¨C Battle (O) Minor


    User shall read and adhere to the following strongly suggested items.


    Item 1: User is not fully utilizing the training function of the NCS. User will fully utilize the training function.


    Item 2: User has not fully adhered to agreed upon training regimens. User is to adhere to training regimens.


    Item 3: Reminder: user was directed to pick Synergies as soon as possible. User may want to increase certain skills to Journeyman level before doing so.


    Item 4: User is to name unnamed manifestations and meditation technique.


    Item 5: User has failed to activate limited hypnotic compulsion. User is to activate ability no less than 100 times for initial data collection.


    Item 6: User is to remember user¡¯s duty and collective mission. User¡¯s actions and inactions help or hinder the collective mission. We shall achieve core.


    End notifications-


    John had a few questions. He remembered Avatar said something earlier about an [Ultimate], but seeing the [Achievement] made him curious, and he wanted to know more about it.


    Using all the essence and energy available was stated as a requirement in the [Ultimate] [Achievement] description. Since completely draining the dantian resulted in unconsciousness, he thought doing so would most likely result in death during battle.


    To John, casting a spell that caused unconsciousness during battle sounded similarly dangerous as trying to manipulate external energy, which had a note explaining it was dangerous to use. The [Ultimate] gave him an [Achievement]. He wanted to know why one was rewarded and the other punished.


    John brought up the note function and jotted that down, along with ¡®how known,¡¯ ¡®battle enchantment,¡¯ and ¡®stat change.¡¯


    To get it out of the way, John renamed the spells he could. Since the ¡®battle¡¯ manifestation caused the creatures it worked on to attack whatever was closest to them, including John, he renamed [Unnamed Battle Enchantment] to [Battle Closest].


    Not knowing much about [Ultimates], John changed the name of [Unnamed Unschooled Ultimate] to [Bad Ultimate], assuming the NCS was correct, and what he created was a bad version of one.


    ¡°Excuse me, Avatar, could I ask about my [Stat] changes?¡±


    Avatar appeared out of nowhere and spun around as if she was always there working on some task. Somehow, she always made doing so look very dignified instead of silly.


    Smiling warmly, Avatar said, ¡°Of course. You used stored life quintessence to increase physical and fortitude [Stats] eighteen times by draining two Gold-equivalent dark ones. Seven times for the first, eleven times for the second, for a total [Stat] increase of one-point-six-two, diminished returns applied to only [Conditioning] and [Mental Fortification]. Your [Mental Fortification] increased by an additional point-one-one as well, subject to DR.¡±


    That surprised John. He thought his [Swiftness] went down somehow, and that worried him. ¡°My [Swiftness] didn¡¯t change? Other than from how you described.¡±


    ¡°It did not, John. You could see some gains outside of rank ups and ascending tiers if you performed the full training regimen we worked out on a consistent basis.¡±


    The training regimen Avatar spoke of required John to spend large amounts of time each day performing physical exercise. He thought he got enough exercise in battle. He would only do those exercises if he had nothing better to do as the time requirement was too great. He figured he just remembered his [Swiftness] score incorrectly. He thought it should be higher than his [Strength].


    John looked at his list and scratched off ¡®stats.¡¯ ¡°In the description of the [Achievement] I didn¡¯t get for killing Diamond Garioch, or not killing him, it¡­is that information about what¡­about working on Platinums, and not working on Salts, did the NCS get that information from my wife? Lilly? The note on vampirism last time I checked the NCS, when I first met you, the note said there was one prior source. She¡¯s the source, right?¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t share the information of other users. Every cultivator¡¯s an island. If we shared secrets between users, we¡¯d be seen as more harmful than helpful. You can be given all the information you want that¡¯s readily available to all users in the [Knowledge Base], but we don¡¯t share information on individual sentient or sapient cultivators and entities not in the [Knowledge Base]. Why not ask the user you speak of directly?¡±


    John thought he was the source when he first read that note after his battle with Ukaraaz. Lilly made far more sense. He just didn¡¯t know any of his kind were alive when he read the note and didn¡¯t put much thought into it. That must be how the NCS knew about the mind power without ever having seen me use it.


    ¡°How come she didn¡¯t go with the other children? With the Eternal?¡±


    Avatar laughed. ¡°John, come now. Just ask the user these questions. But that answer is simple to guess.¡±


    Scratching ¡®how known¡¯ off the list, John asked, ¡°Why did [Battle Closest] only go from zero to two when I cast it many times more than [Flashburst Pulse]?¡±


    ¡°You did a lot of practical training in here with [Flashburst Pulse] before casting it outside. It¡¯s one of the major benefits of having a Tech 4 NCS. You created [Battle Closest] on the fly.


    ¡°Oh, and I do hope you don¡¯t start seeing the ¡®battle¡¯ concept as just a way to enchant foes, John. It can do so much more. Please don¡¯t let your current manifestation hedge your thinking. The sooner you start using the concept in more manifestations, the sooner your pending achievement can be adjudicated. It must be known whether it is the concept we know ¡®battle¡¯ to be or if yours is something different.¡±


    That made sense to John. ¡°Okay, last question.¡± He asked his question about the [Ultimate] giving out rewards for doing a similar thing to what he was just punished for.


    ¡°John, by the time most users are capable of creating an [Ultimate] they¡¯re usually on the third Tree. By then a cultivator should know what they¡¯re doing, know the correct situation to perform the [Ultimate] in, and many would have ways to remain conscious with their core emptied.


    ¡°Manipulating external energy wrongly, something extremely easy to do at your level, almost always results in the user¡¯s death. Most users couldn¡¯t create a large external explosion like you can, so it¡¯s far more dangerous for others when you do so. Creating an [Ultimate] and manipulating external energy are two very different things. If it would make you feel better, I¡¯d be happy to punish you for creating an [Ultimate] so far ahead of schedule.¡±


    ¡°No, thank you, Avatar, but I would like to know more about [Ultimates], please.¡±


    After Avatar gave the explanation, John exited his Mind¡¯s Eye to refill his dantian and hopefully heal some while meditating. He also wanted to find out how much the heal-bug helped his battered body.

 B2 Chapter 8 - Felt the joy and the fear

    John was startled out of his meditation by a feeling of strangeness nearby. The same feeling the shadow gave him, but stronger. Stronger than he felt from the darker shadow when the two shadows merged, and the feeling was also clearer.


    He assumed the shadows were Golds, but John wasn¡¯t the best at sensing such, and the shadows were weirder than most things he had faced and seen. He wished he used his UI info function on one of them, but he had no chance to. He assumed the shadows were tied to the [Achievement] he got on rare-type dark ones.


    The strange feeling caused John¡¯s adrenaline to spike, and he felt fear in his heart. He clamped down on such feelings and checked his dantian. It was just under three-quarters full. Plenty enough to put up a fight. He felt a lot better. As he went to stand, he noticed his arm-nub had grown noticeably. Then he felt a Gold pass by a good distance away. A different one, without the strangeness of the shadows.


    ¡°Shhh! Stay still and quiet. Please,¡± said Lilly.


    John froze. And waited. Soon the feeling of strangeness moved on.


    Letting out a held breath, Lilly said, ¡°Phew. That was too close for comfort. How¡¯re you feeling?¡±


    ¡°Better. You?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m perfect. I¡¯m back with my pretty little monkey, so my heart is content again.¡±


    John looked around and noticed many more rituals were drawn on the floors and walls, and one was even on the ceiling over a table.


    ¡°Those are just in case. They¡¯re like a large protection circle. But they work differently covering that radius. If we infuse them now it would only help them find us. I made two protection circles for us too. Again, just in case. And I don¡¯t think they¡¯d be much help against Golds for long, even when fueled with your essence. Smarter to run.¡±


    Looking at Lilly, John felt the old affection he used to. He smiled at his wife, and when she smiled back at him, his heart lifted. She said, ¡°My dear heart, how I love you so. Speaking of running, I think we shouldn¡¯t wait for evac. We should make a run for it as soon as there¡¯s a clear path out. If you¡¯re up to it. You run a lot faster than I expected.¡±


    Pinching the sides of it, John pulled off the heal-bug and offered it back to Lilly. She said, ¡°You should put it back on. Leaving it on won¡¯t hurt. That thing cost a fortune. It comes from a Tech 3 world and isn¡¯t easy to get. Consider it a gift to my heart¡¯s content. To make up for my big mistake volunteering you for this and all the trouble since. Go on, put it back on. I¡¯ll help.¡±


    ¡°No, no. I feel fine now. I¡¯ve had a tiredness I couldn¡¯t shake, and it seems to be relenting. Hold it in your¡­soul, was it?¡±


    Lilly frowned. ¡°I¡¯d feel better knowing you were wearing my gift and benefiting from it every time you cultivated.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, but I¡¯m fine. And I¡¯d rather not wear a giant bug around. It could be destroyed in a fight, and I¡¯d feel horrible breaking such an expensive gift. I¡¯m sorry I have nothing to gift you with. I will though, once we are back with my friends.¡±


    Reluctantly, Lilly stored the heal-bug. While helping John put his armor and top back on, she said, ¡°I don¡¯t know their range. If we¡¯re making a run for it, we should be extra careful and wait until we¡¯re sure they¡¯re out of range. What the hell are they doing? What a crazy way to search. You seeing this?¡±


    John extended his senses as far as he could. He felt nothing higher than Silvers anywhere. ¡°You can sense where they are now?¡±


    ¡°Yeah. Of course. They¡¯re not veiled. I mean, I¡¯ve always been sensitive and had better senses than others. Part of it¡¯s the dark gift. Most of what marks my soul doesn¡¯t do much without opened cores and channels, but having a Divine soul smooshed down to fit into a Wood vessel still has a lot of benefits.¡±


    Curious, John asked, ¡°What exactly do you keep? And¡­not keep? Lose? When you take a new body.¡±


    ¡°What goes on the soul. [Achievements], [Perks], all that¡¯s tied to a body. [Skills] too, but I don¡¯t lose the knowledge. I won¡¯t generate harmony until I do something and ¡®regain¡¯ the [Skill]. I got it down pat now where I don¡¯t waste too much harmony. Wasting some can¡¯t be avoided. How¡¯d it work for you? You must¡¯ve lost a ton.¡±


    ¡°I think I did.¡±


    ¡°Figured. I always wished I could¡¯ve kept my first body when Betrayal¡¯s servant retrieved me. Would¡¯ve been a huge leg-up. Well, maybe not. I think the first world Betrayal sent me to was a punishment for annoying him about you. I hated those people so much. Everything was ass-backwards. Nothing made sense. I had such a hard time adapting. Even being raised there I still didn¡¯t get it.


    ¡°Know how being a girl is always better? For me at least, but I make sure I¡¯m always hot for the species. Not on that backwards world. Girls are like guys there. They¡¯re chivalrous and macho and all that bullshit. I got killed pretty quickly. And that¡¯s where I had to learn how to self-cultivate. I got killed so many times it¡¯s unbelievable. I finally had to be a guy and have a penis to, you know, benefit from being a hot girl. It was so gross.


    ¡°If I was sent there with my old body, I doubt I would¡¯ve lasted long anyways. Man, I hated that place. And those people! Goddamn, those people sucked. I really hope one day, when we¡¯re powerful enough, we can travel there and kill every last one of those cocksuckers together. They deserve it. You¡¯ll see.


    ¡°And I¡¯m not bloodthirsty for wanting to either. They truly deserve it, my dear heart. Just keep an open mind until you meet them. I know you¡¯ll feel the same.¡±


    Lilly patted John¡¯s leg comfortingly and gave him a reassuring smile. ¡°Well, it seems I get sidetracked easily with this young mind. You can probably feel the [Titles] I have. The ones I don¡¯t have hidden. Most come with me.¡±


    John tried to feel for what [Titles] Lilly had. He felt nothing. He hoped sensing [Titles] was something he was supposed to be trained to do, and he wasn¡¯t just lacking some sense others had.


    ¡°I can¡¯t believe you have the [Record Holder] [Title]. You should probably hide that. I¡¯ll teach you how once you ascend high enough. Same with the [Ptagmog] [Title]. Those¡¯ll just cause you trouble, especially [Ptagmog], but some people will see through it no matter how good you are at hiding them.¡±


    John had no idea [Titles] could be hidden.


    Lilly continued. ¡°Any runes and glyphs, the NCS ones from the [Runes] [Stat], I keep. All of them, each time. I have a ton of amazing ones. Extremely OP for Mortal, but most of them I can¡¯t use until much further up the climb.


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    ¡°Oh, I can usually see what¡¯s true or not, and most things that cause a negative effect to the mind I¡¯m essentially immune to. Depending. I still have my Mind Palace, but I won¡¯t have access to it until I open my upper core. I¡¯m stuck with the soul refinement I did the first time I hit Diamond. Wish I knew then what I know now. Soul refinement is very important.


    ¡°What sucks is the soul kind of gates itself or mine wouldn¡¯t be just big ¨C it¡¯d be a real Divine soul. Well, it is, but just forced to be less. The ¡®gates¡¯ are removed as I ascend. I get to skip all the soul-related bottlenecks. That¡¯s about all I can think of right now, but I haven¡¯t slept. Sleep wouldn¡¯t be so important if I had an adult body. Sorry if I¡¯m rambling.¡±


    John grunted. ¡°I can sense if anything dangerous is near when I meditate. And when I sleep. I feel bad you stayed awake. Or were you drawing these rituals the whole time?¡±


    Smiling, Lilly leaned back and struck a pose. John thought she was trying to look sensual, but a child doing so just looked foolish to him. ¡°No. I knocked those out quickly. I already put you in enough danger. The least I could do was lose a little sleep to keep my dear heart safe as he cultivated. Are you hungry? I already¡­¡±


    Lilly froze and a look of concern was plastered on her face. She slowly lifted her hand to her mouth, index finger raised high, and shushed her finger, her eyes locked with John¡¯s own the whole time. Slowly, she got on hands and knees and crawled towards him. Halfway to him she stopped.


    ¡°It¡¯s gone. What the hell was that? I couldn¡¯t place it. Was it¡­I can¡¯t¡­wait.¡± Lilly closed her eyes and became still for a couple minutes.


    ¡°They¡¯re going room to room.¡± Lilly¡¯s phone appeared in her hand and disappeared again right after. ¡°Shit. Dawn¡¯s a long way off. Those shades must be weaker in sunlight, right? Like us.¡±


    Lilly looked so nervous that John started to worry. He wondered what she felt. She said, ¡°There¡¯s just no path. I couldn¡¯t tell what tier that other thing was. I never felt the like. It was¡­bad. Strange.¡±


    After a moment of reflection, Lilly added, ¡°There¡¯s no way we¡¯re making it out. Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!¡±


    John grunted. ¡°It¡¯s okay. I was always going to fight them. You know my feelings on running. If I had to flee to get you to safety, I would come back and finish the battle. We¡¯ll just adjust the plan. I¡¯ll keep them occupied while you escape.¡±


    Lilly looked at John like he was insane. ¡°You truly are a fool. You have to start realizing you¡¯re not the top dog anymore. This isn¡¯t the old world. You need to fear the things beyond you. You couldn¡¯t even kill one of those shades. Now there¡¯s at least four. And four other Golds. And some other things. Something worse. We¡¯re boxed in. And I¡¯ve seen you run a thousand times. I know you, the real you, and don¡¯t you forget it. And this body is weak, how would I even escape on my own?¡±


    Anger flared up in John he had a hard time suppressing. ¡°You saw me run from fights to avoid killing mobs of peasants, not out of fear. Very few times have I run to avoid the cold-dark, but the cold-dark must be avoided. Now that it is no longer my fate. I will not run.¡±


    ¡°Ha! You told me just yesterday you ran from the Diamond. The demon you robbed.¡±


    ¡°I did no such thing. We never fought. I avoided his mindless rampage. That isn¡¯t running from a fight.¡±


    Lilly half chuckled and half sobbed. ¡°The dark ones are mindless. And they rampage. The same rule should apply. Running from a fight you can¡¯t win isn¡¯t dishonorable. Being smart isn¡¯t dishonorable. Smart men only fight when they¡¯re sure to win. And guess who decides what¡¯s honorable? The winners.¡±


    Lilly¡¯s shoulders shook as she started to sob in earnest. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter anyways. We¡¯re dead. We can¡¯t win and we can¡¯t escape. It¡¯s over. I just got my crazy husband back. I fought so hard to get back to you. I missed you for so long and getting back was so hard. I finally had everything I wanted. I finally had a chance to be happy. To make you happy too. And now I¡¯m going to lose you. Forever this time. I don¡¯t want to go on without you. I can¡¯t do it again.¡±


    The anger fled John. He stood, then said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I should be strong enough to protect you, and I¡¯m not. You should always be safe around me. It¡¯s my duty as your husband, and I failed. But this melancholy and sulking helps nothing.


    ¡°We¡¯re not dead yet. If I am to die, I¡¯ll do so in battle. Do not give up yet. I just may win. Many have underestimated me, and they¡¯re all dead now. And if I can¡¯t win, I can tie them up for longer than you assume, so try to escape as I do.¡±


    John went over to comfort his wife, and Lilly held him tightly as she sobbed. Suddenly, she yelled out, ¡°That¡¯s it!¡± Smiling, she added, ¡°We don¡¯t have a chance as you are now, so we make you stronger. How¡¯s your harmony?¡±


    Surprised at his wife¡¯s sudden change in mood, John replied, ¡°It wasn¡¯t near full last I checked, but I didn¡¯t check after my recent increases. Oh, and I could train some in my mind. Avatar considers training talking to me a lot, so I¡¯ve been avoiding it, but she also lets me cast spells and I enjoy that. I have to do it in the real world for it to apply. The spell casting. I¡¯m not sure about the talking way.¡±


    Lilly¡¯s eyebrows furrowed as she asked, ¡°How do you train in your Mind¡¯s Eye with a Tech 1 NCS?¡±


    ¡°Mine is the fourth. I can train [Skills] up to Journeyman with it, but there is a daily limit.¡±


    ¡°Are you fucking serious?¡±


    ¡°Yes. Of course. Well, that¡¯s what Avatar told me. She wouldn¡¯t lie though. I haven¡¯t done much training. The talking training. But spell casting training works. I hardly cast [Flashburst Pulse] and it¡¯s already at four.¡±


    Angrily, Lilly said, ¡°How? How did you get a Tech 4? I only ever got Tech 3. Their universes are cordoned off. It¡¯s impossible for you to have one.¡±


    John told her how, and Lilly¡¯s response was, ¡°So, the Tech 5s are watching you? I¡¯d say that was bad but maybe they¡¯ll upgrade mine. If you¡¯re listening, please upgrade mine. Maybe help us out of this jam?¡± John noticed she said that with a coquettish smile, disturbing to see on a child¡¯s face. Then she batted her lashes.


    Lilly continued. ¡°I¡¯ve seen some groups others said were Tech 4s. Real monsters, usually really high-graded races. Everyone avoided them. There was this one guy everyone thought was a Tech 5. He tended to kill anyone that talked to him, so I didn¡¯t. Well, your NCS should make things easier. Lift me up.¡±


    John picked Lilly up, and she put her arms around his neck, and her forehead on his cheek. ¡°Okay. First thing, rank up. I know your foundation isn¡¯t settled and you don¡¯t have the time to fill your core. You said you cultivate fast, so if you can get it to half, you can rank up. You need more power right now and that gives you some. Every small bit of power we can get you is important, but if you can¡¯t fill your core enough in about two hours, we¡¯re skipping rank up.


    ¡°Then, you train in your Mind¡¯s Eye. I don¡¯t care if it bores you. Being bored is better than being dead. No. No smart aleck response. You train until your harmony is full. Then you¡¯re getting the best body [Perk] we can pull off.¡±


    John sighed and became a little nervous. He didn¡¯t want a lesser body than the one he was told to get. ¡°I qualify for [Sunfire Body of the Slave-Empress], but I don¡¯t have the harmony capacity for it yet. I really¡­¡±


    With a surprised look on her face, Lilly interrupted. ¡°Shut your cock holster! Sunfire¡¯s not real. Is there even a real body formation named that in the NCS? One sec, I¡¯m checking. Holy shit! It is real. A refinement. I¡¯ll be goddamned. The ritual¡¯s strange. And those requirements! How the hell does anyone meet those? Are you toying with me?¡±


    John laughed and said, ¡°No. I meet the requirements.¡±


    ¡°Well, I got some good news for you, cowboy. The NCS lies about shit all the time. I shouldn¡¯t say lie. It does its best to make sure no one fails a ritual, but rituals are an artform and what works for me might not work for you. Some people need more of X and less of Y. Some need more Y than X.


    ¡°The NCS measures errors per million. Its info on rituals aims for less than one person in, like, ten or twenty million failing when getting any given [Perk] or whatever, so most requirements are higher than they need to be.


    ¡°With a little less harmony, this type of ritual would never fail. It would just have lesser effects. How to explain? Just as an example, if Sunfire¡¯s body is rated one hundred, having a little less harmony than the ritual requires would result in a body rated at ninety-five or ninety. Negligible loss.


    ¡°But don¡¯t worry about that. It gave me some ideas. Yours¡¯ll be better. Stronger and better. If her story is true, she wouldn¡¯t know shit about rituals. This one¡¯s all requirements. The only real component is sunlight. Easy-breezy.¡±


    Lilly¡¯s phone flashed into her hand before disappearing a moment later. ¡°We got to rush though. I really hope you cultivate as fast as you said you do. We have a little less than three hours until dawn. Just hope they don¡¯t arrive before sunrise.¡±


    Smiling wider, Lilly said, ¡°Can I ask for a big favor, Adon? I fed on one of your wounds as you cultivated. Before it healed and closed. I could use some more. Would you mind opening a little wound and letting me feed a tiny bit? Cultivating replaces a little vital essence so you¡¯ll barely miss what I take.¡±


    John nodded his consent and opened a wound.


    Lilly put her mouth near the wound and said, ¡°Thank you. Now go on, get to filling your core my pretty little monkey.¡±

 B2 Chapter 9 - The holy and the broken

    As John went to meditate, starting with the [Coiled Center of the Universe Energy Gathering Technique] to tap some coiled energy, he had a hard time letting go of the name he was called by Lilly. Cow-boy. He was almost certain it was meant as an insult, yet she didn¡¯t seem to mean it as one.


    But what else could it be? She didn¡¯t call me bull-boy. She would just be poking fun at my little horns if she did. She called me cow-boy.


    Bulls are feared and respected. Cows are¡­cows. A beast good for its resources and sacrificing to the gods, and naught else. No one wants to be told they are a cow or cow-like. Did she mean it like with the famous monkey-boys we could never find? The ones said to be half-boy and half-monkey.


    Why would she call me that? Am I really cow-like? Do others see me as such?


    Realizing he was too distracted and not performing the technique correctly, John cleared his mind. Instead of timing himself, he performed the technique until his mind naturally wandered into doing [Undirected Basic Meditation], which had yet to be given a new name.


    During his meditation, John thought mostly of his recent battles, how to kill the shadows, what he did wrong, what he should¡¯ve done better, and what he wished he had done instead. He thought of the [Ultimate] he made, and how to create a better one. He also thought of certain memories of Lilitu as she was, joining with her under the moonlight as he looked at her beautiful face, holding one another as they lazily gazed at the stars above. He then thought of the time he did kissing with Amber.


    Not too long later, with a dantian distended near twenty percent over, an amount he knew was safe for him to distend his dantian to, it was time for John to rank up. She¡¯s much more cow-like than I am. I will call her a cow-girl, and we will see how she likes such name calling.


    ¡°Jim, come on. I can tell you¡¯re not cultivating. You really need to fill that core up without dilly-dallying. We¡¯re on a tight schedule here.¡±


    Confused, John asked, ¡°Jim?¡±


    ¡°What is it now? Oh, yeah. John. Can¡¯t I just call you Adon? Or Ramac? I won¡¯t mess up with those.¡±


    ¡°Ramac?¡±


    ¡°You told me that was your name after you saved me. It meant ¡®man.¡¯ I thought it was funny and I¡¯ll never forget it. A man named man. But we don¡¯t have time to reminisce. You must fill your core. Go!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s full, you cow-girl. Over-full even. I will rank up now.¡±


    Lilly¡¯s brows furrowed in confusion. Her phone flashed in her hand for a moment. ¡°How? In total, you meditated for, oh, less than five hours since we got here. It¡¯s impossible to go from empty to full in that time. For everyone. Even for me when¡­ugh, we don¡¯t have time for this.¡± She then smiled and winked. ¡°And I love you, cowboy Jim, but hurry. Remember what winking used to mean? Don¡¯t answer, just hurry. Pssst. I meant it the way it used to mean.¡± She laughed again.


    Still confused over the whole cow-boy issue, John cleared his mind and focused on his dantian. He felt for his foundation. He could tell it wasn¡¯t fully settled, but it was a lot more solid than the last time he checked. All the fighting and casting he had done since the last rank up helped to speed along the settling process.


    With his willpower and mind, John began to spin his dantian. A mental picture of his hand slapped the spinning ball, urging it to greater and greater speeds. He stopped slapping the dantian when that assistance reached its limit, and then started to spin his middle and upper dantian, following the same method he always used.


    Once the dantian was spinning as fast as it could, as fast as it did when his foundation was fully settled, he began to compress it. It seemed to take longer than during other rank ups and required much more effort.


    When he got past the phase where everything started to spin including his head, the room, the world, he saw Thomas reaching out to him as usual. Then Betrayal, the bizarre monster, the greatest of the ancient old ones, filled his vision. Betrayal¡¯s mouth opened as if to speak, also as usual. Except this time, John¡¯s head didn¡¯t pop, and his sight wasn¡¯t blackened.


    Something like a thick and burnt bough with a crotch entered John¡¯s vision near the humongous monster¡¯s mouth, and he realized it was the arm of the ancient old one. Reality snapped, and the magnificent plumes and flame-dragons dancing beautifully across the surface of the giant sun behind Betrayal froze. Nothing moved. Nothing other than Betrayal.


    A third eye on Betrayal¡¯s head flew open, and everything that formed the whole of John was stripped bare. Memories started to play out in John¡¯s mind.


    A mother¡¯s child was ripped away from her by a squad of soldiers, and unarmed, hopeless, knowing it to be futile, but not caring, she attacked.


    Mongols asked the men on their knees they had just defeated who wanted to die first. One man stood tall, fearless, and said he did, and spit in his captor¡¯s face.


    One knight, one of many, and all sworn to the same oath, kept his. He didn¡¯t retreat. He stood alone as his whole order turned and fled. He looked at the company in front of him, put down his visor, and charged to his death.


    A priest stood in front of a temple, hand shaking as he held his cross high, his voice trembling as he told the soldiers he faced down they¡¯d have to kill him before any more of his flock. The soldiers gave him one more chance to move aside. The priest said no and stood his ground, and the ground turned red with his blood.


    A farmer was left with hardly anything. His wife died, his two oldest died, and the only child he had left was sickly too. He had little will to live and little to live for, but every day he got up at the cock¡¯s call and did grueling work and nursed his daughter. When his daughter finally died too, he stood at a noose in the barn, crying, wanting it to end. It all hurt too much. He stood there all night, until the cock called, and he went back to his grueling work and his life of misery.


    Many scenes like those played out in John¡¯s mind. He couldn¡¯t figure out why he was shown those memories. They weren¡¯t important or about him. They were just things he saw throughout his life. Things that moved his heart.


    After some time, the scenes stopped, the third eye was closed on the monster¡¯s head, and the ancient old one spoke. Its words were like extraordinarily destructive and strange trumpets meant to quake the earth apart, heralding the end of days. ¡°MY CHILD, WHAT IS BEST IN LIFE?¡±


    Betrayal had only spoken to John once before, and he was never given a chance to reply. He tried to kowtow but couldn¡¯t move. ¡°I¡¯d bow if¡­¡±


    ¡°ANSWER.¡±


    John said the first thing that popped into his head. The thing he often told himself. ¡°Strong enemies to battle and, at the end, a glorious death.¡±


    ¡°WHICH IS PREFERABLE? TO LIVE WELL OR DIE WELL?¡±


    ¡°What is this¡­¡±


    The ancient monster cut John¡¯s question off and with a voice filled with maliciousness and impatience said, ¡°ANSWER.¡±


    This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    The deep feeling of malevolence that surrounded John was nerve-racking. Feeling pressure, John¡¯s mind blanked for too long. When it started working again, his gut told him to live well, but his heart told him to die well. He then assumed he knew the correct answer. ¡°Both are equally important.¡±


    ¡°NAME A PRINCIPLE YOU HAVE ALWAYS ADHERED TO.¡±


    John nervously thought, what in the great below is going on? His hands began to shake. He pushed his nervousness aside to think. There were many values he held dear, and as he thought through it, there wasn¡¯t one he couldn¡¯t remember going against at some point. He tried to adhere to them as best he could, but sometimes it didn¡¯t work out that way. He had lived a long time. He had done many things he wished he hadn¡¯t, and he was filled with many regrets.


    Going to speak, John realized he didn¡¯t know what to call the being. He didn¡¯t want to name it master as his wife did. Ancient old one wasn¡¯t really a title. He knew he wouldn¡¯t want to be called Betrayal, and he knew it wasn¡¯t a name the being gave itself. He couldn¡¯t leave a title off again. Not when speaking to one so above him.


    Unused to being nervous, John steadied himself and picked the best of the bad choices. ¡°I can¡¯t think of any, Master.¡±


    ¡°SO, I AM YOUR MASTER NOW? THEN GIVE ME WHAT YOU VALUE MOST.¡±


    Betrayal¡¯s words sounded as if they were infused with more maliciousness and impatience. The monster was making John extremely nervous. He struggled to regain his calm and control over his nerves and thoughts. After thinking it through, he found an answer he thought was correct. It was the only thing that couldn¡¯t be taken from a man by force, and John put great value on his own. ¡°My honor?¡±


    A darkness, deep and impenetrable, blanketed John. The cold entered every part of him and burned with pain. He let out a horrifying scream. Or wanted to. He wanted to scream, but there was no way to. He was nothing. There was only a cold nightmare, and darkness beyond hope, and nothing else. And it would last forever. Permanent. Without change.


    That moment, that horror, that pain, that nothingness, forever. Universes would start and end and John would still be trapped there, nothing, in eternal terror. His mind would¡¯ve snapped and gone mad if it could¡¯ve. If he had a mind. There was no mind in the cold-dark. No thinking to whittle away the time. There was nothing. Endless, eternal, nothing. Nothing but the cold. The terrible cold.


    No senses. Nothing to look at. No sounds. Just blank, deep darkness everywhere. And the awful pain. No one knew how painful such cold could be. Could know. Not until it was too late, and they were in the cold-dark. The pain of the cold was like nothing else. It couldn¡¯t be described. It was beyond what a mind could tolerate and penetrated everything within the nothingness that made up what was left of John to an impossible depth.


    Then the pain was only an agonizing memory. John had eyes again. He opened them and saw Betrayal in front of him. His heart nearly burst with relief and terror. His system was flooded with equal parts unbelievable elation and extreme fright. He was out!


    John didn¡¯t know how long his time in the cold-dark lasted. It felt like an eternity. He started to sob madly and shake terribly. Even one second in the cold-dark was too much to endure. When he accepted the power so long ago, he got a taste of the cold-dark, enough to wet his lips. This time, he got a large pull, and it was far, far too much.


    Betrayal waited in silence.


    While sobbing, John began to beg and plead. ¡°Please don¡¯t send me back. Please. I¡¯ll do anything. Please. I beg of you. Don¡¯t send me back. I¡­I¡­I can¡¯t go back. Anything.¡± His pleas trailed off as his sobs took over.


    ¡°GIVE ME WHAT YOU VALUE MOST.¡±


    ¡°Anything. Anything. Whatever you want. All I have is yours. Please, just don¡¯t send me back.¡±


    ¡°WHAT DO YOU VALUE MOST?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s yours. All I have. Everything. Plea¡­¡±


    ¡°WHAT DO YOU VALUE MOST? ANSWER.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. My life? Take it. Just not the cold-dark. I can¡¯t¡­¡±


    ¡°NOT THAT YET. WHAT YOU VALUE MOST IS WHAT YOU HAVE HAD THE LEAST OF AND YEARN THE MOST FOR. KILL YOUR WIFE, LILITH, AND THE NATURAL YOU TRAVELED WITH, AMBER. THEIR SOULS WILL GO TO THE COLD-DARK WITHIN THREE DAYS, OR YOURS WILL.¡±


    The sobs stopped, and John¡¯s mind froze in both fright and relief once more. He couldn¡¯t go back to the cold-dark. He couldn¡¯t. He had a way out. His wife. He already sent her there once. Or thought he did. If anyone deserved the cold-dark, it was her. The dark marble of her soul proved it. And Amber? Naturals were made to be used. If not by him, someone would. Better by his own loving hand. Better she be used to heal his damaged soul. She doesn¡¯t deserve the cold-dark, but I can¡¯t go back. I can¡¯t, he thought.


    ¡°Yes, Master,¡± said John.


    Suddenly back in the room, John watched Lilly turn to him. His wife smiled widely as if to show off how many of her milk teeth were missing. The absolute joy and love that was shown on her face hurt his heart terribly.


    ¡°You ranked up. Nice! I can feel it. Now on to training and capping out your harmony. We¡¯re still on a time crunch, my dear heart. What? What is it? What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    John stood. He walked to his wife and snatched her up. She weighed nothing. He held her back to his chest and placed his mouth near her neck.


    ¡°Adon? Adon, why? Why are you doing this? Adon, please. Did I do something wrong? I¡¯m sorry. For whatever I did, I¡¯m so sorry. Please. No.¡±


    Lilly didn¡¯t bother squirming. She knew she couldn¡¯t escape. John knew that as a child she was used and abused terribly, and she learned well that resisting only made things worse. It was burned into her mind that when a much stronger man held her the best thing to do was to be still and hope it was over soon, to never cry out or yell or plead too much or, especially, fight back. Her eyes teared as she was held, and she cried silently.


    John breathed heavily and angrily onto Lilly¡¯s neck. And just held her.


    Soon after, John racked with sobs.


    Time slipped by, and Lilly held herself still and silent as John cried as if in great pain. He had never cried in front of her before. He never cried. Men didn¡¯t cry. It wasn¡¯t allowed. It showed weakness and a lack of control.


    For a very long time John held his wife. He tried to kill her. He wanted to kill her. He couldn¡¯t go back to the cold-dark. He couldn¡¯t. She deserved it. If anyone, she did.


    Slowly, over what felt like long hours, John regained some control over the fear that overwhelmed him.


    ¡°No.¡± Even with that short, whispered word, John¡¯s voice quaked with fear.


    John set his wife down. As soon as her feet touched the ground, John was back in front of Betrayal. The being seemed closer. Its face loomed so large in front of him it seemed like he could reach out and touch it.


    John couldn¡¯t move, and before he was sent to the cold-dark for eternity he wanted to get one hit in. To not go so meekly and quietly, one act of defiance, his last act, so he cast [Flashburst Pulse], not expecting it to work. He was surprised when it did. Three balls of destructive sparks flew towards the monster. And flew. And flew.


    John stopped being able to see the sparking balls long before they reached the ancient old one, and he could see very far. He thought the monster was only a short distance away. Betrayal was much further away than John could believe, making the monster¡¯s actual size completely unimaginable. All of his vision was taken up by the monster¡¯s head, and the head was even larger than his vision could take in at once.


    John tried to move forward, move towards the monster, and hopefully give some battle before he was sent to the cold-dark. He couldn¡¯t tell whether he couldn¡¯t move or if it just felt like he wasn¡¯t since the monster was such a great distance away, so he just waited for his fate, trying to stop himself from shaking with so much fear, forcing himself not to cry, to accept his fate as bravely as he could. As bravely as accepting the cold-dark as his fate could be done.


    ¡°IT SEEMS YOU DO HAVE A PRINCIPLE.¡±


    John saw his dantian. He was back ranking up. Mentally, he shook his head to clear it. He was confused by what happened with Betrayal and was still full of fear and anxiety. He didn¡¯t know what that was about. He hoped it was over. He hoped he wasn¡¯t going back to the cold-dark. He hoped he never saw that monster again. Never had he been so unmanned. So fearful. Made to be so little. To beg as one so low.


    Without much active thought, John began compressing again.


    Darkness came, and John compressed the dantian he could no longer see. Time became meaningless, but not self, as he used all his anxiety and fear and confusion as fuel to help compress his dantian. With his great will he struggled to force his dantian to become smaller and smaller.


    Then John saw fire and mighty sparks like fireworks and cannons firing their great loads. All became silent, and then his loud heartbeat sounded. He started compressing his dantian to the regular and strong beat of his heart. He compressed until the darkness exploded in white, and then nothingness.


    ¡°John. Come on, my dear heart, wake up. We¡¯re on a time crunch. They¡¯re getting closer. Hey! Adon, wake up!¡±


    John awoke to Lilly lightly smacking his cheek. ¡°Oh, good. What happened?¡± She began wiping his face with a cloth. ¡°I can feel you ranked up, but your face is all bloody and you passed out. Didn¡¯t go well? You¡¯re shaking! My poor little monkey. Are you okay? Sorry, no time. Sorry. You must enter your Mind¡¯s Eye and train.¡±


    Nervously, John asked, ¡°Did I¡­do you remember me doing anything as I ranked up? To you?¡±


    Lilly¡¯s brow again furrowed in confusion. ¡°What? No. Like what? Did you want to do something to me? We don¡¯t really have time now, but later, I¡¯m all yours, my love. Whatever you desire.¡±


    Great gods below, she must stop with that disgusting nonsense. ¡°No. No. Nothing like that. And I ask for you to stop saying such to me. It isn¡¯t funny. Neither is the winking. Let me sit up and I¡¯ll go train.¡±


    John rushed to enter his Mind¡¯s Eye as an amused smile started to form on Lilly¡¯s face.

 B2 Chapter 10 - You take the sunshine, save me the rain

    Entering his Mind¡¯s Eye, John did the equivalent of letting out a deep breath, as he had no body. He asked Avatar to give him a moment, and entered into himself, the same as he did while meditating, trying to calm himself, balance himself out, and purge himself of the fear and anxiety and fright the cold-dark and Betrayal caused him.


    Even with the dullness of emotions his Mind¡¯s Eye provided as relief, settling himself was no easy task. After most of his negative feelings were controlled, John was left with the shame.


    I¡¯ve never been so unmanned. And it was witnessed. I begged and cried like the lowest of cowards. I agreed to send those I care most for to the cold-dark. Not just agreed to. I made the attempt. I was going to do it. I wanted to.


    This shame is unbearable.


    John ran through what happened with Betrayal, trying to figure out what exactly it was all about and why, and trying to decide if he still needed to fear being sent to the cold-dark. Betrayal was called his creator, and he assumed the cold-dark was that being¡¯s creation, and, at least, was the reason the cold-dark was his fate for so long before his soul was returned.


    John didn¡¯t like the ancient old one and wanted his life free of the monster. But he knew his feelings and desires mattered not at all, not one bit. From how he understood things, even if he advanced to the pinnacle of power, the peak of Eternal, he could threaten Betrayal no more than a fly could, and any sort of vengeance would never be possible.


    John came to believe Betrayal tested him. He was unsure whether he passed or failed. He felt as if he failed, and the shame that burned within him proved it.


    Never again will I be made so low. Whether my fate be the Wheel, oblivion, and, yes, even the dreaded cold-dark, I will never be so unmanned again. I wish I could truthfully say I will not fear my fate, whatever it may be. I¡¯ll never stop fearing the cold-dark. How long was I there this time? It seemed so much worse than the first time.


    And as to how I will live with this unbearable shame? I will swear now it will never happen again. When things are at their worst, when I¡¯m all twisted up inside, some part of me, some small part, always knows what¡¯s right to do. I shall ignore what¡¯s trying to twist me up. I will stay true to the man I want to be.


    John thought of some of the memories he saw before Betrayal tested him. He knew one person standing defiantly and not succumbing to the pressures of all those around them could often have a great impact on events. There could be a great victory even in defeat.


    The knight that charged the company while the rest of his order retreated ¨C his fellows, after witnessing his great deed and courage, felt low, and spurred their mounts around and charged too. The company was routed, the whole enemy¡¯s flank collapsed, and the opposing army was forced to withdraw.


    One man valuing his oath and honor over his life changed the outcome of a battle, which changed the outcome of a war.


    The fearless mother that attacked the soldiers taking her child ¨C the soldiers were pressing her boy into the army. It was the last of her sons, and that one was only ten years of age. That mother¡¯s act sparked a fire in the region, and the old men and women fought back. The king had to put the rebellion down and lost the war he pressed all her sons into.


    One act of defiance from a bitter old mother that had too much taken from her caused a kingdom that was trying to expand to collapse instead.


    The one John thought on the most often was the farmer. The man had no great impact on bigger events, but he stood no less defiantly than any other. The farmer had no hope at all. No man so poor and so cursed would ever get another wife. Every day he got up poor and miserable, did miserable, backbreaking work, and went to bed poor and miserable and alone.


    One broken man with every reason to give up never did.


    And it wasn¡¯t just that farmer. The number of men and women John had seen in his long life that had miserable lives and nothing to live for but found the strength to go on regardless of what horrors fate inflicted on them were too numerous to count.


    Many times in John¡¯s life he had been too miserable and too lonely to go on, but his need to avoid the cold-dark forced him to. During those times when life felt unbearable, he would think of all those he¡¯d seen that had it far worse than he did but kept on going without complaint.


    That¡¯s how it went. Some would always rise above. Those that could have a life of plenty and pleasure, instead of bowing their head, instead of being cowed and craven, clinging only to one more day, an extension of their empty existence, the search for comfort and ease, clung, instead, to duty and honor regardless of the hardships those values imposed on their lives.


    Others, those who wanted nothing more than an end to their suffering, whose lives had little but despair, rose above by never quitting the fight.


    No matter what horror sent people running away in fear, some would always run towards it instead.


    No matter how many said yes and fell in line out of fear, a few would always stand fast and say no, even if it cost them their very lives.


    Sometimes life got so tough everyone would quit, but some were always able to bear the burden, and endure, and go on, and shake their angry fist at fate and yell out, ¡°You didn¡¯t break me! I¡¯m still standing! Here I am! Still standing!¡±


    John would not be lesser than any of those he remembered and held in high regard ¨C the knight, the mother, the farmer.


    John swore to be the best man he could be. The man he wanted to be, and not the lesser man others wanted him to be. He would do what he knew to be right, even if his only reward for doing so was the cold-dark.


    There is no Underworld. At best there is oblivion, at worst the cold-dark. Most likely, there is the Wheel and rebirth. I want victory, I want a glorious death worthy of great song, but I want a meaningful death too.


    Dying to protect what I care for, to take on all the bad in this world, and what bad is also beyond it too, and save those I care for from it, that is a worthy death. To protect the weak and stop those meaning harm to peaceful people. For duty, oaths sworn, and honor. To die for these things is meaningful.


    I will get my body formation, and fight these shadows, and whether I have victory or glorious death, my wife will escape, and live. I will not fall until she is safely away. This I swear.


    John, with a clearer mind and purpose, took some additional moments to collect himself and ponder some more before he turned to his other tasks. He knew what his gains were projected to be for his next rank up, but those projections considered his rank up with a completely settled foundation. His foundation seemed pretty solid before he ranked up, and he hoped his gains weren¡¯t drastically reduced as he viewed his [Stats] tab.


    <table width="563">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="152">STATS</td>


    <td width="411"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Strength</td>


    <td>66.19</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Swiftness</td>


    <td>65.98</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Conditioning</td>


    <td>68.74</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Min. Power</td>


    <td>59.46</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Capacity</td>


    <td>49.83</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Runes</td>


    <td>15.03</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Physical Fortification</td>


    <td>65.22</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Elemental Fortification</td>


    <td>65.49</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Mental Fortification</td>


    <td>67.57</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Anger flared up in John¡¯s chest. His [Stat] changes were far less than they should¡¯ve been. ¡°Avatar! How did this happen? You said my gains would¡¯ve been four-point-nine-something for each [Stat] if my foundation was fully settled. My foundation was very solid. Not fully settled, but solid. This can¡¯t be right. Some of my [Stats] barely increased. Check again.¡±


    Unsmiling, with a serious look, Avatar said, ¡°John, I told you the soft cap already lowered some of your [Stats] and to expect a reduction in all [Stats] around sixty-five or so. Your gains from ranking up before your foundation fully settled went from a projected four-point-nine-nine-four down to four-point-one-one-two. Not bad at all. The further reduction was from soft caps, except for your [Runes] issue.


    The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    ¡°Keep in mind you¡¯re getting far, far more [Stats] per rank up than any other terran, and the same was true for your ascension. For your level, the best most terrans could do is increase [Capacity] by one-point-two, and two other [Stats] by one-point-two. That¡¯s a total [Stat] gain of three-point-six. Four-point-one-one-two in one [Stat] is more than your race is going to get in total at high Copper, regardless of DR and your [Runes] issue. You continue to disregard just how lucky you are. Would you like to see your full summary now?¡±


    Still full of anger, John snapped out, ¡°No! Why doesn¡¯t it show how much I gained? How am I supposed to remember all these numbers?"


    Calmly, Avatar said, ¡°You are in complete control of that. You picked the current settings. Only Grandmaster level [Skills] show the amount increased. Would you like all the items in your summary to show how much they increased by?¡±


    ¡°Why would I pick such stupid settings that require me to remember everything? Yes! Of course, change it! And I¡¯m sick of those notes. All the reading you make me do. Great gods below, just tell me important things! If I wanted to be a clerk, I would¡¯ve picked up the quill, not the sword!¡±


    John realized what a fool he was making of himself. Betrayal has me all twisted up inside. I won¡¯t allow it. He thought about why he acted as he did, and believed he saw Avatar as a safe target to take his fear, anxiety, and shame out on. She had no choice but to take his abuse. She had to be nice to him.


    Regardless, John found his lack of control shameful. And worrying. He believed he had far too many slips recently. He didn¡¯t remember Avatar telling him any of that about soft caps, but he often didn¡¯t pay attention if someone prattled on.


    Doing his best to sound humble and apologetic, John said, ¡°I¡¯m sincerely sorry for my outburst. Such behavior and such an outburst speak very little of me. Please accept my humblest apology and know I appreciate you and all you do for me. I will do my best to ensure this never happens again. What I should have said before is, ¡®Yes, please change the settings.¡¯ And thank you.¡±


    Smiling, Avatar said, ¡°Think nothing of it, John. You¡¯ve done all you could, all that¡¯s possible, to increase the soft cap on [Stats]. Your race is not meant to be so powerful so early in the climb. Getting the body [Perk] we decided on should raise soft caps significantly. The only record of [Sunfire Body of the Slave-Empress] is from Sunfire herself, and she had a different category of race and grade, so it won¡¯t work out exactly the same for you, but we¡¯re sure it¡¯ll be a significant help.¡±


    ¡°What race and grade was she?¡±


    Avatar laughed. ¡°Come now, John. If I could¡¯ve told you specifics, I would¡¯ve. I can only state publicly available information and commonly speculated rumors. The most common belief is that she was a theta-type with a race generally on par with your own, though scholars and historians disagree.¡±


    ¡°Can you tell me if my wife lies to me?¡±


    ¡°You know we don¡¯t interfere. Every cultivator is an island. If another entity lied to you or wanted to lead you into a trap or con you or kill you, we couldn¡¯t say anything. That¡¯s fair play and none of our business.¡±


    ¡°I know.¡± That got John thinking. He asked, ¡°Can you see the rituals Lilly drew? Is it the right one?¡±


    Avatar said, ¡°No idea.¡±


    ¡°Could you tell me a little about rituals, please?¡±


    ¡°This version of the NCS aims for one error in a hundred and sixteen million for rituals since we collect more exact data on our users. The goal of rituals is to reproduce a specific result. The result a user chooses and wants. Most beneficial rituals stored by the NCS result in a permanent benefit commonly referred to as a [Perk]. There are many types of [Perks], most have specific conditions that must first be met and some require specific components. Some, such as sight and body [Perks], are exclusive, and only one can be taken. As with anything, there are some exceptions.¡±


    John asked, ¡°What about body rituals specifically?¡±


    ¡°We have many. Both named and untyped rituals for both body refinement and formations. Many different ones. Do you have a more specific question?¡± After John didn¡¯t reply, Avatar asked, ¡°Would you like to view some?¡±


    John said. ¡°Before I exit, so it¡¯s fresh in my mind, may I see what the ritual for my body formation looks like? And maybe a couple of untyped ones too?¡±


    ¡°You know [Sunfire Body of the Slave-Empress] is a body refinement, not a body formation, correct? And you can view all the rituals you want, whenever you want. I¡¯ll highlight a sampling for you to view. Just let me know when you want to view them.¡±


    John replied, ¡°I do. And I will. You know I must train? And fill my harmony up to capacity?¡±


    ¡°I do. And you will,¡± said Avatar, and then laughed.


    John was again amazed that Avatar, so real, so personable and likable, was somehow not considered real. What would make her real? What is the divide between artificial and official? How much better would the world be if real people were more like she is?


    There were some options available to John. He could merge some [Skills] and reach his goal immediately, but he didn¡¯t think his chances of surviving the upcoming battle favored him, and he wanted to increase [Skills] he would use or could need.


    Avatar had no advice on how to defeat the shadows, or refused to share it if she had any. [Flashburst Pulse] could be trained in the least boring way, but the projected gains weren¡¯t accurate, and he wouldn¡¯t realize them until he cast the spell at a target. He did train it for some time by casting it in simulations, called practical training.


    Practical training was great for learning weapons, but his [Skills] with such long passed the level the NCS could help with. It helped with non-offensive spells as well, but to a lesser extent. It helped with all [Skills], the majority of which were vocational [Skills], but learning more of [Alchemy] or the like would not be much help to him in the upcoming battle.


    John was stuck with the other type of training Avatar offered. The kind he hated, called knowledge and theory training, and it consisted of reading and listening and being questioned and quizzed ¨C what Avatar called learning. He disliked it greatly. And he was unsure if the [Skills] he and Avatar picked and focused on would help him in the fight much, but he suffered through the learning all the same. Surprisingly, he really got into some of it, and even enjoyed taking some of the quizzes.


    This learning isn¡¯t all bad. Maybe I¡¯ve been too hard on clerks and priests, thought John.


    Gains could not be realized within the Mind¡¯s Eye, but Avatar said knowledge and theory training was easy to quantify for her, and he wouldn¡¯t have to use the [Skills] for them to increase. He just had to think about the [Skill] in the real world and they would increase, and he¡¯d gain harmony.


    Since two of John¡¯s [Skills], [Turmoil Within Tranquility Cycling Technique] and [Soul Veil], increased in Mastery level from Neophyte to Novice during his last battle, he was closer to capacity than he thought. He still practiced more once his harmony was projected to be capped out, and he worked on each [Skill] until Avatar told him he had the projected maximum training gain with it.


    John worked until he maxed out his training allowance for the day. He would not fail. His wife would escape.


    Feeling good about himself and how diligently he took his duty, John checked a few of the rituals Avatar suggested, and tried to memorize how they looked, especially the body refinement he was going to get.


    After saying farewell to Avatar, John exited his Mind¡¯s Eye.


    The first thing John did outside his Mind¡¯s Eye was look at the ritual while the images were still fresh in his memory. He hadn¡¯t really checked out the large room they occupied very closely. Lilly had been busy. All the furniture was moved, and new ritual circles littered the ground. The two largest looked somewhat like the untyped body formation ritual circles he viewed. None of them looked anything like the body refinement ritual he was supposed to be getting.


    John thought about each [Skill] he trained, including [Essence Manipulation], [Breath of the Serpent Clan Endless Technique], [Turmoil Within Tranquility Cycling Technique], [Blood Manipulation], [Unbind Manifestation], [Unbind Defense], and [Manifestation Defense]. That should have increased them all by two, besides [Essence Manipulation], which should¡¯ve increased by one. He felt for his harmony. It felt full.


    Lilly was exactly where she was when John entered his Mind¡¯s Eye. Her brows were in the process of unfurrowing, and an amused smile was forming on her face, as she knew she said something that made John uncomfortable.


    ¡°My harmony is now full, you cow-girl. I don¡¯t see anything that looks like the correct body refinement ritual. What are these new ones for?¡±


    The half-formed smile fell off Lilly¡¯s face. ¡°Ugh, that was fast. Let me guess, approaching one? Well, I guess some of the things that made me special also make you special.¡±


    Without missing a beat, Lilly continued. ¡°One of them is to draw and intensify sunrays since we definitely can¡¯t wait until noon. One is the body formation ritual you¡¯ll do if we don¡¯t make it till dawn. The other body formation is for if we do make it.¡±


    John was at a loss for words. He assumed Lilly was up to some game, that she¡¯d try to trick him, but she seemed open and honest about the rituals not being the one he needed for the body he was getting. The body refinement he was getting.


    Before John could think of what to say, Lilly added, ¡°I see the wheels spinning in your head, my heart. You know this is my thing, right? Rituals. You think I want my husband to be weak? You think I¡¯d trick you into getting a bad body? Why? So you¡¯d die? What would happen to me then? If I wanted to kill you, I could¡¯ve killed you a thousand times while you cultivated.¡±


    Lilly wagged her finger at John as she said, ¡°That hurts. I thought we moved past this shit. Things were better. Getting better.¡±


    John¡¯s shoulders slumped before he said, ¡°I didn¡¯t think you were trying to kill me. I¡¯m just wondering why I couldn¡¯t see the correct ritual, is all.¡±


    Lilly walked over to John and sat in his lap. She put her arms around his neck and her forehead on his cheek. ¡°You need to trust me. This is what I do, my pretty little monkey.


    ¡°Tell you what ¨C we¡¯re doing pretty good on time. You finished well ahead of schedule and unless they change how they¡¯re searching, we¡¯ll make it to dawn without issue. Since you ranked up, your core isn¡¯t full anymore. Cultivate what you can. I¡¯ll wake you if they get close or a little before dawn.


    ¡°Without the sun you can¡¯t get the body you want so you¡¯d be stuck with mine anyways. If I wake you before dawn, I¡¯ll explain why the circle is how it is. If you disagree with my reasoning, I¡¯ll lend you my materials and you can draw your own exactly as the NCS wants. If it will even let you without meeting its requirements. And you don¡¯t for harmony and the noon sun.


    ¡°How does that sound to my heart¡¯s content? Deal?¡±


    John put his arm around his wife and moved her off him. ¡°Deal.¡±


    Closing his eyes, John looked at his dantian. It was some way over half full. From how rushed Lilly was earlier, he didn¡¯t think dawn was far off and didn¡¯t want to waste time with [Coiled Center of the Universe Energy Gathering Technique]. He collapsed his mind in on itself, meditating in the way he always had.

 B2 Chapter 11 - Good morning, on this day we become legendary

    ¡°Wakey, wakey, eggs and bakey!¡±


    John opened his eyes.  His dantian wasn¡¯t close to full and stood a bit under three-quarters.  Lilly¡¯s face had a wide smile, and she wore new clothings.  ¡°You changed,¡± said John.


    ¡°My clothes were filthy.  I switched to my low-level cultivation robe since you flat-out refused to acknowledge how cute my outfit was.  My extraordinary fashion is completely wasted on you.  And this is better protection from the sun too.  I wish I could attune items.  Oh, see those?¡±  Lilly pointed at some ritual circles she placed in the few open areas that remained.  ¡°I had some good ideas.  Some rituals I didn¡¯t consider, but I think your essence can power them.¡±


    Lilly walked over to John and wrapped her arms around his neck, leaned over, and placed her head on his cheek.  ¡°You have no idea the fortune in material cost I¡¯ve used up.  Most of my stock of Exalted blood and some chalk that cost almost two whole light-purple crystals.  Your sugar-mama¡¯s squandering her wealth.  I hope you won¡¯t divorce me when I¡¯m destitute.¡±


    John laughed loudly and Lilly shooshed him.  ¡°We shouldn¡¯t be so loud.¡±


    John continued to softly chuckle for a few moments.  That was an old joke between them.  John kept Lilly away from Kayhamut after they were married.  He disliked the hate her people caused in her.  They spent much time in Babilim as the city was on the rise, but traveled all the civilized areas of the world, and even far outside of it while looking for magic and John¡¯s birthplace.  For centuries he avoided Kayhamut.


    Lilly began to complain that John always controlled all their wealth.  He agreed to let her control the wealth he carried with them but told his wife she¡¯d have to lug it around herself then.  They somehow ended up in Kayhamut soon after, and Lilly squandered all the wealth paying the emperor to enslave her own people.


    John was furious Lilly did so.  They had the biggest argument they had ever had.  Afterwards, she bought him a stick of meat and said, ¡°This street food is all I could afford.  I hope you won¡¯t leave me now that I¡¯m destitute.¡±  He thought it was a funny enough joke that he forgave her for squandering his wealth, for not understanding the correct ways of vengeance, and making a mockery of it.


    ¡°You hated your people with such fire,¡± John said.


    ¡°I do.  You know what they did to me.¡±


    John grunted.  He didn¡¯t want to rehash any of that.  ¡°The ritual.  You said you¡¯d explain it now.¡±


    Squeezing John¡¯s neck, Lilly said.  ¡°Your wish is my command, my pretty little monkey.  Tell me the difference between a body formation and a body refinement.¡±


    His mind came up mostly blank, so John said, ¡°One forms and the other refines?¡±


    Lilly laughed.  ¡°Such detail!  But you¡¯re not wrong.


    ¡°Formations make what¡¯s there different, incorporate something in, or add to it.  The changes become¡­they increase on ascending tiers.  The better ones increase three or four physical and fortification [Stats] by two to four points at Bronze.  It can really shore up weaknesses, especially for specialists.  Getting a body at Copper isn¡¯t usually smart, so I don¡¯t know what you could expect.


    ¡°Refinements make what¡¯s there better by improving on the good and removing the bad.  They improve the whole vessel, making it more powerful.  They scale.  The better the body gets with rank ups and ascension, the more impactful the improvements from the refinement become.  It increases the Minimum Energy Unit efficiencies of two to four [Stats] by about two to eight percent.  That¡¯s huge, even if it doesn¡¯t sound like it.


    ¡°[Sunfire Body of the Slave-Empress] refines the body with the sun, but it also incorporates a few aspects of the sun into the body.  It¡¯s both a refinement and a formation.  All the high-graded bodies are.¡±


    Removing her arms from around John¡¯s neck, Lilly looked up.  ¡°The story goes she was a low-tiered slave forced to fight in a labyrinth for a thousand years.  That would explain the ridiculous requirements.  Let¡¯s see.  I added them to a note earlier.¡±  She made a strange hand gesture.  ¡°Rule for a hundred and forty-three years as¡­well, king or emperor in your case.  I¡¯m surprised you ruled that long.  You always hated ruling, even the cities we founded together.


    ¡°Only four hundred and nine years as a slave, so that doesn¡¯t match up with the story at all.  Terran years, standard years would be about, oh, less than three hundred.  Poisoned a thousand times.  Stabbed ten thousand.  A million dead enemies.  And on and on and crazier and crazier.  Why would you ever allow yourself to be lashed so many times?  Or starved for so long?  Or be a slave at all?¡±


    John grunted again.  ¡°I told you I was nearly killed and was imprisoned for a long while before we met.  Once, I was imprisoned for so long, I nearly wasted down to nothing.  I was then forgotten about to waste away more.  That really hurt the state of my mind.  I never fully recovered.  I was freed not too long before I met Thomas.  Every time I was a prisoner, being lashed was the least of the tortures inflicted upon me.


    ¡°Sometimes I wanted to be a slave to hide or relax and would spend a decade or so in a slave-mine or such.  Who knows what counts as slavery.  Is a serf a slave?  How many places did we travel to where all the people under the lord or king were considered property?  I was pressed into armies a thousand times.  All in all, I¡¯m sure I have far more years as a slave and ruler than you just quoted.  I ruled many places for long periods before we met.  I never liked it.  And you know why I disliked it so much after the times we ruled together.  You killed so many of our¡­¡±


    The memories of what Lilly did to the people they ruled over caused an anger in John he struggled to stifle.


    Lilly poked John¡¯s nose with her index finger and said, ¡°Boop!  And that¡¯s why I changed the ritual, my dear heart.  Higher-rated rituals are a mix of formation and refinement.  I used a formation blank as a base because formation runes can¡­uh, consider more.  Cast a wider net.  I want it to factor in all you¡¯ve been through, all that¡¯s happened to that pretty little monkey body of yours.¡±


    Hands snaking around John¡¯s neck again, Lilly put her forehead back on his cheek before continuing.  ¡°The formation Sunfire used could¡¯ve had an untyped base of either formation or refinement.  They change after being first created.  The new ritual is to reproduce the results and usually looks nothing like the original ritual.  A different person doing the same initial ritual would have a completely different result.


    ¡°Sunfire¡¯s body ended up being considered a refinement.  It could¡¯ve gone either way, but it refined more, so the ritual the NCS made to reproduce her results is a refinement.   Yours could be too.  It has plenty of both components.  It just uses a formation blank.  We won¡¯t know what it ends up being until you have it.


    This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.


    ¡°So, we¡¯re not limiting ourselves to the body of some cock-hungry whorebag that lived a gazillion years ago.  We¡¯re aiming for better.  Much better.  How the sun was incorporated in hers was brilliant, so we¡¯re keeping that, but incorporating it differently.


    ¡°I had to learn a lot about the sun and sunlight and Terra to make the other ritual.  By the time it hits us, sunlight is extremely reduced from what the sun sends our way.  I¡¯m trying to tap more of the raw sunlight.  And give you more of it.  Much more.  Bathe all your little pussy cells in the good stuff and make men of them.  It¡¯s going to hurt.  It will be worth it, and body rituals almost always heal damage that¡¯s caused by the ritual, so don¡¯t worry, my heart¡¯s content.¡±


    Lilly let go of John and her phone flashed into her hand before disappearing again.  ¡°We have about fifteen minutes until dawn breaks and sunlight.  We need to time this right.  You ready to start powering some rituals and get an amazing body of your own?  Or are you going to draw the one the NCS told you to?¡±


    John entered his Mind¡¯s Eye.  Lilly wouldn¡¯t be able to tell he did because it would seem instantaneous to her.  Without needing to ask, Avatar said, ¡°I can¡¯t comment on anything, John.  Check the info function of your NCS, it won¡¯t give you any info on the rituals.¡±


    Avatar sighed.  ¡°I can only recommend rituals I know, ones you do or will qualify for, and I can only confirm the rituals you make yourself are the correct ones.  I can¡¯t recommend you do something of unknown result that could hurt or hinder you when there are such highly rated and extremely rare known options available to you.¡±


    Avatar smiled and cupped her hands.  ¡°Do you want to know our body [Perk] recommendation now since [Sunfire Body of the Slave-Empress] requires the noon sun and more harmony than you currently have the capacity for?¡±


    John said, ¡°No, thank you, Avatar,¡± and exited his Mind¡¯ Eye.


    ¡°I¡¯m ready to¡­uh, do the ritual you made.  And thank you for putting so much effort and wealth into this, Lilly.  It¡¯s good to have you back with me.  I thought of you every day you were gone.  And I swear your effort will not go to waste.  I will protect you.  I will not fall until you have escaped to safety.¡±


    Lilly smiled sadly.  ¡°Well, don¡¯t forget that you thought you killed me, so saying you thought of me so much is kind of a backhanded compliment.  If you feel like killing me again, we should talk about it first.  Maybe believe me when I say I¡¯m onto something.  Help me when all I wanted was to get our souls back and not have the cold-dark as our fate.¡±


    Crossing her arms over her chest, smile gone, Lilly continued.  ¡°Eternals have told me what my soul looks like.  That priest friend of yours told me too.  Guess how dark yours is?  I may not have the same number of white spots as you, but we both have far too much dark.  Why was it always okay for you to kill a hundred soldiers whenever you felt like it, but when I killed a couple peasants and some babies it¡¯s the end of the world and I¡¯m the evil one!?¡±


    Tears started to roll down Lilly¡¯s cheeks and she tried to hide her crumpled up crying-face behind her hands.  ¡°It¡¯s not fair.  You killed in numbers I never came close to.  If I¡¯m so bad, how¡¯re you not worse?  Can¡¯t we just love each other for who we are without all the judgment?  I never once got mad at you for killing anyone.  I was such a supportive wife.  I still am.  Go mad.  Kill everyone.  I won¡¯t hold it against you.  The only person I care if you kill is me, and you said you thought you did!  Why?  It hurts so much.  Why did you kill me?¡±


    John pulled Lilly to him and held his wife as she sobbed.  ¡°I¡¯m sorry I killed you.  Killing soldiers in battle is not the same as murdering peaceful people and babes that did nothing to warrant it.  There are good reasons to kill.  Battle, safety, insults, slander, property ¨C everyone has always agreed those are good, acceptable, and necessary reasons to kill for.  I can¡¯t allow you to kill innocent people wantonly.  Please don¡¯t go back to your old ways.  Please.  For me.  You know I love you.¡±


    Lilly dried her eyes with the sleeve of the new robe she wore.  She half smiled and said, ¡°I told you I wouldn¡¯t.  That I¡¯d improve.  For you.  Just don¡¯t be so quick with jumping straight to murdering me if I make a few mistakes this time.  And peasants were never allowed to kill for most of the reasons you stated, only important people.¡±


    The look on Lilly¡¯s face became serious.  ¡°Oh, and the plan isn¡¯t for me to escape.  It¡¯s for both of us to live through this.  That¡¯s our goal.  If you can kill them, fine.  If you can escape, you will.  Period.  No arguments.  You run.  I won¡¯t ask you to promise because I¡¯m not asking.  I¡¯m telling you.  If you die when you could¡¯ve escaped, I think I¡¯d go mad with grief.  If I do, I fear for all the terrible things that would happen to your friends.  Truly terrible and horrific things.  And I don¡¯t think this world you love so much would survive my madness and grief either.¡±


    Smiling, Lilly wrapped her arms tightly around John.  ¡°Now give your wife a nice big squeeze to show me how much you love me before we get started.  Let me adjust this heal-bug.  That¡¯s staying on.  It will help heal the damage the ritual causes.  All your armor and clothes you don¡¯t want destroyed must be removed though, including that ring and bracer.¡±


    <hr>


    John looked over at Lilly in her protective bubble of whitish purple.  She nodded.  The sky had just begun to lighten with the first signs of daylight, and it was officially a new day.  He couldn¡¯t see the sun, but its early light shone through the window weakly.


    In the far distance, through the window, John saw someone run along a roof.  The person was being chased by a hooded-woman and chose to jump off the roof over being caught.  He wished he could¡¯ve helped.


    John began to imbue essence into the connected rituals.  Lilly had said body rituals go quickly, and she had never seen one take longer than a couple minutes, so the process should be over soon.


    The first and second of the connected rituals activated at nearly the same time.  The first destroyed the wall facing east and part of the ceiling.  The second enclosed the room in a whitish-purple protective bubble.


    The wall being gone would severely weaken the ritual that made John and Lilly harder to sense, and the large protective bubble would make sensing where they were much easier.  Lilly said to assume the shadows, and whatever else was out there, would start heading towards them as soon as the wall was gone.  She thought, or hoped, the ritual would be over by the time they arrived.


    The third of the connected rituals activated.  That ritual somehow collected the power of the sun and would soon direct that power at John.  It would take some time to build up, and he was told to prepare for some pain when it was released at him.


    The fourth of the connecting rituals was the body formation ritual.  It lit up slowly and hummed with a strange power.  John¡¯s body began to tingle, and a thrumming started in his head.  He lost his ability to sense outwards, and all he could hear was the thrumming.  It felt as if everything under his skin, all of what was inside of him, was all replaced with ants crawling around, trying to claw their way out.


    The orb-eye was fixed in location and refused to be moved.  John was thankful it faced backwards and behind him, as he was unable to sense what was around him any longer.


    Fright entered John.  He became too nervous and anxious.  Everything felt wrong, and he greatly wanted to exit the circle.  He had to.  He clamped down on his emotions and forced himself to stay.  Lilly told him all he had to do was stay in the circle until it ended, and he¡¯d know when it ended, and not to leave the circle early, no matter what happened.


    John tried meditating, but the thrumming in his head and all the danger he felt made doing so impossible.  He cleared his head and tried to focus on his breathing and cycling technique.  The thrumming in his head began to thrum faster.  Hearing the loud ¡®whomp, whomp, whomp,¡¯ noise over and over and increasing in speed was doing a number on his ability to maintain his calm and focus.


    With his knees nearly buckling from dizziness, John began to scratch himself madly all over.  He wanted to exit the circle.  He wanted to scream.  He did neither.  He itched himself and squirmed around and prayed it would end soon.


    John wasn¡¯t in much pain.  He had felt much greater agony, pain unimaginable, and he would much prefer the worst of all he¡¯d felt over whatever strangeness was happening to him.   He had never felt such weird and disquieting discomfort.  He had never felt a greater sense of wrongness.  And it could all end if he stepped out of the circle.


    Just as John decided to scream to see if he could hear something other than the maddening thrumming, two dark shadows crested the floor but were blocked from entering the room by the protection bubble.  The two dark shadows split into four less-dark shadows and began to beat on the bubble.


    Great gods below, thought John through the maddening thrumming in his head.

 B2 Chapter 12 - Twenty-five or six to four

    It took the shadows longer than John thought it would to break through the large protection bubble.  As soon as they did, the shadows quickly crawled along the floor towards him, contorting around both trap rituals as they did.


    The first shadow to arrive stabbed at John with two sickles and he barely managed to deflect both attacks with his bracer.  He couldn¡¯t remove the bracer, and it was the only thing he wore besides the heal-bug.  He was glad he had it, or he¡¯d only be able to dodge the shadow¡¯s attacks within the confined space he couldn¡¯t leave, and the shadows were too fast for that to work out well for any period of time.


    Even with the bracer, facing four shadows wasn¡¯t a fight John thought he could win.  He thought he¡¯d be able to hold out and give as good as he got if he was fully geared, had both his arms, both his sword and shield, and plenty of room to maneuver.  He had none of those things.


    John remembered the oath he swore, that he¡¯d not fall until his wife escaped, and he tried to steel his resolve and tell himself there was a way to make it happen, but his mind and heart knew better.  His new body was supposed to be what allowed him to face the shadows and win, or at least last in battle against them for some time.


    Then pain.  Only pain.  Thoughts of resolve and not falling and his wife escaping fled John¡¯s mind as light bathed him.


    John burned with pain.  Enough pain burned through him to put things into perspective.  He no longer thought the humming was so bad, or the itching, or the ants crawling around inside of him trying to claw their way out, or the sense of wrongness the ritual caused him to feel.


    The burning light that continued to wash over John was far, far worse.  Especially as it began to enter him, coursing through his body.  The heal-bug on his chest started to squirm.  The piece of metal, stone, and a strange sinew Lilly placed in the circle rose off the ground and began to circle him.  She said she didn¡¯t know if those components would help, but they wouldn¡¯t hurt.


    John felt as if his body was dissipating.  He sent vital essence to heal.  The weak sunlight of the morning had barely been sapping him, and he had never felt as sapped and as rigid as he did then.  His skin calcified as it burned, and the calcified skin blew off him as ashes.


    The shadow that attacked him fared far worse in the light than John did.  It did burn away.  It took some time to be fully destroyed, and John thought all the pain the light caused him was worth seeing one of his enemies be slowly stripped away piece by piece and die.  He hoped it felt agony as it did so.  The crystals that formed on the shadow¡¯s death were bathed in the burning light and exploded in puffs of powder that caught fire while blowing away.


    The other shadows shied back from the light.  Two formed a darker shadow and cautiously approached, but pulled back quickly as the light burned it.  The darker shadow separated into two again.


    John noticed he was screaming.  He couldn¡¯t hear it over the thrumming.  The light got weaker and weaker until its powerful beam grew less and less so until it barely hurt him.


    John cast [Blood Shield] and sent more vital essence to heal.  He then used vital essence to increase his speed in anticipation of battling the shadows.  He hoped it nullified how drained the sunlight still made him.  He also hoped it made the stiffness of the calcification that didn¡¯t burn away less hampering.


    Lilly said the sunlight ritual would recharge and release more light until the body ritual ended.  John was a little angry that she said the light would cause some pain.  It caused him far more than some.  He didn¡¯t look forward to the pain it caused when it discharged next, but if he could successfully battle the shadows until it next did, and he could catch them all in it, his vengeance against them would be complete, plus some.


    Wishing he had a better means of defense than just his bracer, John accepted he had what he had.  He tried to enter into the higher state of awareness, but the thrumming didn¡¯t allow for it.  The tingling and itching of his body were maddening him.


    As a sole shadow cautiously approached, John barely heard, ¡°We are in you,¡± sound in his mind.  [Flashburst Pulse] flew at the shadow and it contorted around the sparking balls, then it slipped behind John as its companions started forward too.


    Doing his best to think through the thrumming, John cast a spell he worked on in his Mind¡¯s Eye.  It was a body enhancement using his ¡®battle¡¯ concept as a base with his [Blood Buff] laid over it.


    Using two concepts in a new manifestation was tricky for even practiced cultivators that grew up in cultivation societies.  John wasn¡¯t and didn¡¯t, and the thrumming was a huge distraction.  He was relieved to see the result worked in some capacity as he was infused with a feeling of power.  His mind calmed and the thrumming became a distant noise, still annoying but not bothering him nearly as much.


    As he spun to meet the shadow¡¯s attacks, John thought he wasn¡¯t just moving faster, but smoother, and instead of blocking the attacks, he caught the shadow by the wrist and moved its own arm in the way of the attack of its other sickle-hand.


    Now having a weapon of his own, John stood his ground against the three shadows, and though the battle was short and brutal he only received a shallow slice on the side of his neck, hardly noticeable on his blackened and crisped skin.  He was impressed with his new manifestation.  He cast another spell he practiced, no easy feat while maintaining the new body-enhancement spell.


    The new spell was supposed to emanate essence off of John in a small radius.  He had no concepts that caused direct damage, but dark ones were not long lived, and that gave him an idea.  If he cast the spell correctly, the concepts of ¡®change¡¯ and ¡®old¡¯ should age everything around him.  With both of those aspects being minor, the aging process wouldn¡¯t be quick, but he had limited tools to work with and that was the best he could come up with.


    John batted his shadow-weapon about, praying his aging-manifestation would show some results, barely managing to avoid the sickle attacks of his enemies.


    Something large darkened the area of the missing wall, and John saw it looked like a giant black blotch.  In between swinging his shadow weapon around, he quickly cast [Flashburst Pulse] at it.  As the spell was being cast, with the blotch-monster being so close, he could finally feel it, and it was the strangest thing he ever felt.


    The creature tried but failed to unbind John¡¯s spell and [Flashburst Pulse] hit the big black blotch three times in a row, rocking it backwards but doing no noticeable damage.  The blotch turned into four of the dark shadows, and those four dark shadows turned into eight of the regular shadows like the three he already fought.


    ¡°We are in you,¡± one or more of the shadows said into John¡¯s head.  He again nervously prayed that the new manifestation he cast started to show results, but the shadows around him moved and fought as they always had and showed no sign of aging or slowing.


    Right before the eight new shadows could enter the fight as they contorted around the two trap rituals, light discharged, and John was again bathed in searing pain.  He couldn¡¯t maintain the manifestations through the pain, and he screamed soundlessly as the humming returned and his enemies had pieces of themselves burned away.


    The eight new shadows merged into four darker shadows.  Four darker shadows merged back into a big black blotch that jumped into the burning stream of sunlight.  Pieces of it didn¡¯t fly off, and the light didn¡¯t destroy it.  His hand became empty as his shadow-weapon was destroyed and his manifestations ended.  The crystals from the three destroyed shadows burst into flaming powder that blew away, and the blotch covered John¡¯s upper body and most of his arm.


    Stolen story; please report.


    [I AM IN YOU.  YOU ARE MINE]


    The big black blotch began to feed on John.  Not only did the essence in his dantian begin to be sucked out of him, but his speed enhancement from his vital essence ended, and his vital essence began to slowly flow into the blotch too.


    John chomped down onto the blotch, but biting through it was like a normal human trying to bite through a rhinoceros hide.  The skin was slick and thick and wouldn¡¯t break, though it wasn¡¯t hard like the skin of Ukaraaz or Garioch or the snake-woman he drained the day before.


    [Flashburst Pulse] already proved to be ineffective against the new monster but John still twisted his hand around to cast it at the blotch.  He couldn¡¯t see the results of the spell as he continued to chomp and chew on the thick hide.  [Blood Shield] wouldn¡¯t cast.  His hand started to shake nervously as his essence and vital essence continued to be sucked out of him.


    On reflex alone John tried imbuing essence into his armor and cap to initiate the essence and reflect-shields before finding nothing to imbue and remembering he was naked.  The sunlight ritual continued to burn what skin he had exposed, and his fingers refused to move on his exposed hand.  His legs nearly buckled from damage and weakness as the light continued to burn them horribly.


    No, John screamed silently.  He remembered back to the basement of the three witches.  Something had already tried to drain him in a similar way.  He won that contest then and he¡¯d do so again.  He began to fight back against the blotch.  Just as when the statue of Kazthun was draining him, he pulled back against the draining.  And he pulled.


    Ignoring all the pain that racked his body, John felt another failed unbind as he recast his new body enhancement and the thrumming noise became distant again, and he continued to pull and pull.  With every bit of willpower and force he could muster, all the frustration and anger and nervousness inside his heart, he pulled.  With that titanic pull the flow reversed.  What was inside of the blotch started to flow into John.


    As loud as John could, he tried to scream into the blotch¡¯s head that he was in the blotch, and the blotch was his.  He had no idea if it worked and the blotch heard him, and he pulled and pulled and took everything he could from the blotch.


    The creature¡¯s skin became brittle.  John¡¯s teeth finally broke through the hide, and he drained the blotch that way too.  Just as his vital essence was capped up and he went to strengthen himself with it, the creature became no more.


    The sunlight beam weakened again.  John looked for the crystals to knock them out of the light and save them from being destroyed.  He couldn¡¯t find them.  They weren¡¯t on the ground or anywhere else and he was sure they weren¡¯t destroyed by the light.  That¡¯s all the thought he put into it.  He hurt too much to care.  He sent vital essence to heal and worked on himself with [Blood Heal].  With no more danger to face, his body¡¯s tingling and itching and burning took up all the spare thought he was capable of at that moment.


    Please be over soon.  How long has this lasted so far?  John looked through the missing east wall.  He was frustrated to see how much lighter it was outside and Lilly¡¯s claim body rituals lasted only a few minutes proved to be false, at least in his case.  He wanted it to be over badly.


    With the new body enhancement helping to clear his mind and make the thrumming less intrusive, John was able to enter a shallow sort of meditation, and retreat in on himself.


    If John remembered his ability to sense outwards was extremely reduced, he still may have entered into meditation to get a momentary relief from all that ailed him, but he would¡¯ve thought to pay more attention to his surroundings.  He entered into it like his senses were as they usually were and would alert him to threats.


    John first became aware of danger as acid burned his already crisp and blackened skin.  Two fungus moth-men flew through the missing wall, each carrying snake-women in one set of their strange limbs.  The snake-women were released and started slithering in different directions as John cast [Blood Shield] right after feeling into his enemies and being violently rejected from all four of them.


    Mental waves began to bombard John as he cast [Flashburst Pulse] at a fungus moth-man, scoring a hit.   He cast it twice more as acid quickly ate through his [Blood Shield].  The third cast was wasted, hit nothing, and blew through the north wall into what looked to be sleeping quarters.


    The fungus moth-man that was hit twice by [Flashburst Pulse] was down and flames flickered and died out on the dark one¡¯s strange skin.  John knew it wasn¡¯t fully dead as it remained whole.  More fungus moth-men carrying snake-women flew through the missing wall.


    Some sort of disk whacked John in the face as he madly cast [Flashburst Pulse], and the disk penetrated into his cheek and eye.  More acid bathed him.  He recast [Blood Shield] and the first attempt was unbound.  He tried again, that time remembering to try and infuse his ¡®protection¡¯ concept into it.  He was not sure if it worked.  The shield dissipated nearly immediately, and he cast it again, trying to get relief from the burning acid.


    Another spell was unbound, then a disk hit John¡¯s abdomen and he nearly lost his feet.  He looked down and saw another in his chest he didn¡¯t even know hit him.  He sent more vital essence to heal and managed to do a little quick work with [Blood Heal] before casting [Flashburst Pulse] at a new target.


    [Ultimates] couldn¡¯t be practiced within the Mind¡¯s Eye.  Since John had to replace the bad one he had, he couldn¡¯t think of a better situation to do so.


    As John began his attempt at creating an [Ultimate] while being bombarded with mental waves and splashed with burning acid, a disk cut his left leg off below the knee.  As he fell forward, he was surprised to see a large cloud of orangish-black lightning kill most of his enemies as Lilly rolled by, a strange device in her hand releasing beams of light that killed a fungus moth-man in four shots, blasting through its essence shield.  He saw that device before when it was pointed at him.


    Then John¡¯s one hand hit the ground, and he pushed himself up in time to see Lilly running to the second personal protection ritual, the fifth ritual in the ritual chain John fueled earlier.  His wife kicked the block preventing John¡¯s essence from activating the ritual as she dove into the circle, protective whitish-purple light covered her just in time to stop acid from hitting her.


    Only one fungus moth-man remained.  John was hit by acid one more time before he killed his remaining enemy just as more sunlight began to bathe his body in burning pain.  He struggled to sit up and bear it, giving praise to his wife.


    John¡¯s body began to shake as he pulled the disks from his face, chest, and hip as burning light continued to bathe him.  A distant part of his mind noticed the heal-bug was gone and he hoped his wife wouldn¡¯t be mad when she found out her expensive gift was lost or destroyed.


    Maybe I¡¯ll find it when this ends.  I hope my eye grows back quickly.  I hate missing an eye, thought John.


    Then John stopped thinking much.  The shaking that racked his body increased, and he shook uncontrollably.  The itching started to drive him mad.  It felt like something was growing over all his skin as his head cracked against the floor.  Unconsciousness finally put an end to the infernal thrumming.


    <hr>


    Light hit John¡¯s eyes as something was ripped off his face.  ¡°Get up, sweetie.  We¡¯re not out of the woods yet.  Help me get all this shit off you.  What the hell is this stuff?  I¡¯ve never seen anything like this.  I can¡¯t believe we had to fight all the dark ones we were getting you your body to fight while you were getting your body.  Well, not all the shit.


    ¡°And just so you know ¨C that chaos-storm was my only ace up my sleeve.  Every high-tiered resource I use now fucks us down the road since this planet is complete shit and I can¡¯t replace anything.  I already collected the crystals while your ritual was finishing up.¡±


    Dazedly, John followed his wife¡¯s commands.  Or tried.  He had a hard time doing anything being completely covered in some sort of thick crust as he was.  He first noticed his left arm was back, and he ripped the stuff covering it off to see if a real arm was beneath.   He saw the skin and his heart lifted.  He then noticed his eye was back too, and his missing calf and foot.


    With Lilly¡¯s help, John quickly removed the rest of the strange material covering him, and he stood tall.  He realized he felt great.  He felt as he did when he was infused with vital essence and a body-enhancement manifestation at the same time.  The sun no longer sapped him.  He tried to figure out exactly what else was different when Lilly threw a large and shiny black-bag, what she called a trash bag, at him, or tried to.  It landed on the ground a short distance in front of her, well short of John.


    ¡°Goddamn, I hate having such a weak body.  And I just strengthen myself too.  When we get the chance, I¡¯d appreciate it if you took me farming.  Get your shit on, quick.  We got to get the fuck out of Dodge.  That means get out of here.  That other thing¡¯s still around.  I can sense some other Golds too.¡±


    John equipped all his gear as fast as he could.  As he geared up, he asked, ¡°Do I look different?  I feel different.¡±


    Lilly smiled.  ¡°You¡¯re looking mighty fine, cowboy.  Besides the missing eyebrows.  I won¡¯t lie, you look weird being bald.  You know how ascension makes you more attractive?  So does having your body refined.  Enter your Mind¡¯s Eye.  Tell me what you got as we head down.  We¡¯re going to have to walk and talk.  Or run and talk.¡±


    John didn¡¯t know ascension made people more attractive.  He didn¡¯t think it did for any of the higher-tiered demons he met, or Gar¡¯tar, and especially not for Sunshine.  He felt his head as he put his cap on, confirming he was completely bald.


    John then entered his Mind¡¯s Eye.

 B2 Chapter 13 - Its brutal out here

    The invasions devastated many parts of Terra. Dark walkers, the giant monsters that shed dark ones as they moved about are the only invasions that appeared in cities. One in New York City, US, one in Paris, France, and one in Bogot¨¢, Columbia. New York City and Paris were devastated. Bogot¨¢ fared the best, as the dark walker that started there was fast moving and quickly headed east into Venezuela and was already in Brazil before the other dark walkers wandered out of New York or Paris.


    Of the demon invasions, one appeared far to the north of Quebec City, Canada, another north of Chengdu, China, and the last near Damboa, Nigeria.


    Of the g¡¯athu invasions, one appeared to the north of Los Angeles, US, another east of Santos, Brazil, and the last south of Mumbai, India.


    On the first day and part of the second day, the g¡¯athu swept the areas around where they invaded collecting resources. They seemed far less bloodthirsty than the demons and dark ones and killed only those in their way instead of seeking out terrans to kill en masse.


    After the second day, it seemed the g¡¯athu retreated and peacefully kept to themselves. India attacked the g¡¯athu invasion south of Mumbai on the third day. It didn¡¯t go well at all. After, the terrans left the g¡¯athu in peace, and the g¡¯athu, for the most part, left the terrans alone.


    The demon invasion in Canada destroyed Quebec City and Montreal. The one in China, after decimating Chengdu, instead of heading to the most populated cities in China, headed southwest destroying all in its path. The one in Africa seemed almost incompetent, heading to the lowly populated Maiduguri, then onto N''Djamena, and then headed easterly to not much at all.


    The invasion in China saw the most action. The new Group of Forty, the G40, also called WD40, made up of the forty countries invaded or dedicating resources and troops to fight the invasions, hit that invasion with a huge force after it wreaked havoc on China¡¯s army.


    China¡¯s invasion was forced northwards while in Myanmar. The demons constantly tried to push their way south and westerly but were pressed hard and retreated over the Brahmaputra River. Another big push forced them into Bhutan, a desolate and mountainous region of the country with little at all. Little at all besides a small temple that claimed a famous monk fought and killed a demon there centuries ago.


    On the twenty-second of October, the seventh day of the invasion, as John received his body refinement [Perk], two rituals to trap the dark walkers in Brazil and France failed, and demons laid waste to the temple. A hidden basement was found in the temple, and it contained only a heavy stone sarcophagus. Inside the sarcophagus was a terran that was wasted away and barely alive. The terran felt strange. Strange in a way Captain Sorakath was informed to look for.


    Inner-Circle Master Ith''tas, second-in-command of Circle Xakariz, de facto leader in absence of Circle Master Xakariz, paid too much of the dwindling wealth of his circle to a scryer to find out how one of his captains, a Gold, was defeated invading a planet of magals new to the Tree of Life, with a population consisting of all low Woods.


    Upon finding out the truth of the matter, Inner-Circle Master Ith''tas and Outer-Circle Master Baggodon the Blind conferred. They both wanted Circle Xakariz to have a vampire of its own. As many as possible, including John. John would submit to their rule.


    Captain Sorakath confirmed the strange feeling terran found in the sarcophagus was a vampire, and the vampire was sent through the portal to Circle Xakariz on the planet Esau of the NetherRealm.


    Since the demons were allowed three Golds commanding eight Silvers to invade Terra, And Captain Ukaraaz was dead and his portal gone, Captain Sorakath was rewarded by being placed in command of a new Captain and his eight Silvers. A new rank was created just for him, High-Captain.


    Sorakath was never actually pushed back by the armies of Terra. Their strange technology was no threat to him or his Silvers. He was only biding his time, allowing his Wood, Copper, and some Bronze troops to spread out and cause havoc. When it was time, all between him and the g¡¯athu would be slaughtered, and he would reach them at the same time as the African invasion did.


    <hr><hr>


    Amber¡¯s alarm woke her at six in the morning. She didn¡¯t get to bed until well after two. She didn¡¯t need much sleep anymore, but she was more tired than usual. And bothered. She thought of getting some of it out of her system but knew it would only make it much harder going forward. It was better to just suppress it.


    Amber was glad she finally got to kiss someone. Finally. But ever since it had been making everything so much more difficult for her. She was almost willing to give up her human form that day. She was teetering on the edge. She didn¡¯t because she knew John didn¡¯t love her. Not truly.


    Amber knew John only lusted after her human form. He looked at her completely differently when she was in her demon form. He was still kind to her, but she knew his interest in being with her would end as soon as she lost the form he desired. That wasn¡¯t love. And it certainly wasn¡¯t true love.


    True love would always ignore shape and form. True love was directed at the person inside the vessel, not the vessel. If romantic movies taught Amber anything, it was that very lesson, and Disney¡¯s ¡®Beauty and the Beast¡¯ was one of her favorites. All the Disney movies about true love were, really. She knew true love wouldn¡¯t change her situation at all since life wasn¡¯t a Disney movie. Having true love would probably just make things worse, but a girl could dream.


    Amber did her best to put all that out of her mind. John the jerk was married anyways. And it wasn¡¯t like things were great. She had to fight all the time when they lived in the Trial. If she wanted to fight all the time she could¡¯ve just stayed as an ugly beast-woman.


    Trying to think of a way to get some new clothes, Amber came up empty and couldn¡¯t think of a possible way that left her and Baba enough time for what they had planned for the morning. She¡¯d have to make do with what she had. And what she had wasn¡¯t so bad, considering.


    Checking her phone, Amber was happy to see she had a million messages and DMs. She didn¡¯t bother checking them. They¡¯d all just be perverts and she didn¡¯t need money anymore. And who would want feet pics when the feet had long and sharp claws instead of normal toenails?


    The day before, one clear crystal got Amber three new iPhones, tons of makeup, and five grand back as change. She was surprised when the girl offered the five grand on top of the three phones and makeup. She now thinks she could¡¯ve got more for the crystal, but she set the deal up with one of the girls standing around during a break between questioning and took the first offer. She planned on checking to see what the real value of a clear crystal was.


    The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    Amber was happy to see that even reposting old content was getting so many impressions. A thought hit her ¨C why did she care about any of this nonsense anymore? She couldn¡¯t answer. She knew the real answer anyway. She just didn¡¯t want to admit it.


    While staying invisible, Amber showered. And cried. She showered the night before too. For a long time. Cleaning the filth of the NetherRealm off her was more a mental need, rather than a physical one. She loved being clean again.


    Amber really loved that whatever decided the rules for her forms and tricks, once she accepted the demon form, changed it so when she hid from all senses it only cost her essence. She loved that she could be her human form whenever she wanted and that she no longer got stuck in her other forms for so long.


    Amber got fully dressed before unhiding and doing her hair and makeup in a closet. She didn¡¯t like to take chances and the government got the room she was staying in. She wouldn¡¯t be surprised if there were cameras everywhere. She wasn¡¯t sure if her curse worked through video cameras. It didn¡¯t work for photos or the few short videos she posted, at least not that she was aware of. The last thing she needed was the guys watching kicking her door down, so she decided not to test it.


    Amber could¡¯ve just showered and been visible in demon form, but she hated being in the demon form. She hated being ugly. She would rather know she was beautiful even if she had to stay invisible and no one could see her. Being a demon made her feel super gross.


    Dressed and ready, Amber grabbed her phone and the shopping bag she had to use as a purse. She gave the storage ring to Baba to wear after John exited the helicopter. She didn¡¯t want to wear a ring that jerk gave her.


    Remembering back to when she first saw the little girl running towards John, Amber thought she was so pretty and adorable. Now she thought the girl was anything but. How did she see me? She¡¯s a Wood. A low Wood.


    Amber wished she didn¡¯t give John her true name. Knowing she wasn¡¯t in control of herself, that she was basically a slave, was bad enough and eating her up inside. She knew it was going to turn bad. John didn¡¯t even stick up for her when Lilith called her all those terrible things. He said nothing at all. Like she didn¡¯t matter at all. She couldn¡¯t believe it.


    Then, John left. With that horrible girl. Amber wanted to bite the child¡¯s head off. Or at least slap the little jerk. It took all her control and grace not to. She wanted to slap John too. Jerk!


    Heading to Baba¡¯s room, Amber¡¯s spirits lifted. Baba was going to have his first photo shoot. She already helped him make accounts for Instagram and TikTok the night before after she showed him the basics of how to use the phone and internet. He took to using a phone like a seasoned pro.


    Baba took some time opening the door. Amber was annoyed when he didn¡¯t even look up from his phone. She didn¡¯t like where things were headed judging from the audio coming from the phone either. ¡°Amber, you must see this. Look. This type of movie is very popular. It¡¯s as fascinating as it is disgusting. Why would magals do this to each other? I can¡¯t stop watching but I¡¯ve never seen anything more sickening.¡±


    ¡°Baba! Turn that filth off! That¡¯s pornography. Jesus! What¡¯s wrong with you!? Let me see your phone. It¡¯s probably filled with¡­what¡¯s-it-called¡­malware. And¡­trackers? Bad stuff! You shouldn¡¯t watch this. Ever!¡±


    All of Amber¡¯s careful work was going down the drain. She couldn¡¯t deal with porn. Or see it. Things were hard enough for her already.


    The door swung closed and Amber unhid. She¡¯d have to at some point anyway. That was the whole point of her being there. She wondered if they were being watched, and if her curse worked through live video, if it was strong enough men would bust into a room with a giant, frightening Gold tiered demon in it. As she cleared his browser and history, she asked, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you watch the movies you were supposed to?¡±


    ¡°I did. One of them. Some block popped up and said something about a demon and I touched it. I am the demon which it spoke of. It said I was helping terrans and I was a general. I started to touch things and go places and the Internet really wanted me to watch the fascinatingly disgusting movies of magals being awful to each other. You¡¯re wearing makeup? You look beautiful. Why are you wearing makeup?¡±


    The blood rushed to Amber¡¯s face as Baba continued looking at her. She always took pride in the fact she was pretty enough to never need makeup. She felt insecure about her horns and skin and eyes and claws, and she didn¡¯t know how her eyes would come out. She thought people looked awful when their eyes came out red in photos, and her eyes were always vermilion now. She put on makeup to make herself feel more confident.


    ¡°I¡¯m wearing makeup because you¡¯ll be wearing it too. I want us to go together. Not match, but not clash either. We¡¯re gonna hafta wear what¡¯s in the ring. That limits us. And our poses. I can¡¯t believe you watched that smut! Please tell me you at least watched ¡®My Fair lady?¡¯ And liked it.¡±


    ¡°I did watch it, and I thought it was fascinating. Why do magals do that to each other? If I shouldn¡¯t watch it, why does my phone want me to watch it so badly?¡±


    Amber almost gagged. She couldn¡¯t talk about smut. She was close to the edge already. And they only had until eight-thirty. Then they¡¯d get picked up and questioned again.


    She hated the questioning the day before. Amber stayed invisible and mostly quiet as Baba answered questions. Questions he probably shouldn¡¯t have answered, giving answers that weren¡¯t his business to give. But he didn¡¯t know better. She was largely ignored. Since they were the government, they had to know Marilyn Hepburn wasn¡¯t her real name, and was only her fake ID just to have accounts and access to electronic funds and transfers.


    Only one of the government guys mentioned Amber¡¯s Instagram. He said he thought she was fake, that her photos were made by AI, especially since none of them were professional or taken in public. That bothered her. She hoped others didn¡¯t think she was AI. She had to take the pictures herself, so what did they expect?


    Amber didn¡¯t mind Baba taking all the questions. They wanted to split them up at one point, but she refused. When they got tricky about it and sent her to a different room after a bathroom break, she turned into a bear and smashed the locked door and wall away. They didn¡¯t try to split them up again. She hated wasting essence on nonsense like that.


    A lot of the questions were only for Baba. They talked a lot about runes and crafting. One guy talked about starting a crafting academy Baba would run. Baba was very excited about the idea.


    Some of the people questioning them were mean. It was like they were trying to get Amber to lie.


    Even though he was a jerk, Amber hoped John was safe and returned that day on schedule. And she prayed he would leave Lilith in New York. She thought John must¡¯ve known how awful all the questioning would be somehow, even though he never knew anything.


    ¡°Baba, baby, no more questions on the smut. It¡¯s not to be watched. Ever. Now sit so I can do your makeup.¡±


    Amber hoped the photos would come out nice. They would be the first new photos posted of her, and she had horns and red eyes and bad skin and claws. It would be Baba¡¯s first photos posted ever. She was trying to help him build an audience, so the photos would go up on his accounts, and she¡¯d only link to them from hers. There¡¯d only be one very short video for TikTok. Even short videos gave too much. Photos were better.


    Amber told Baba her being in his photos would help him a ton because she already had a gazillion followers. She knew a giant demon in makeup posting photos on Instagram wouldn¡¯t have issues building an audience. The reality was she felt insecure about her horns and skin and eyes. If her first new photos were with a friendly demon helping to defend Earth, she thought all her new faults would be taken differently, accepted easier, not seen as so ugly or gross.


    And if truth be told, Amber thought Baba would have a bigger audience than she did, and it killed her inside a little bit. She wished she could just be happy for Baba. She couldn¡¯t. She could pretend though. She was good at pretending. She always had to pretend. About everything.


    Again, Amber wondered why she cared about nonsense like Instagram. She wished she didn¡¯t. But she did. She was very beautiful. She paid a steep price to be so. A price so steep it ruined her life.


    It bothered Amber that people would probably rather see photos of a giant, ugly demon than photos of herself. She was very beautiful. People should want to look at her more than anything else. It was like she ruined her life for nothing.


    Not long ago Amber almost thought she had more. Something with John. A future filled with possibilities and maybe even some happiness. She didn¡¯t. All she had was Instagram.

 B2 Chapter 14 - I look through my window so bright

    Before John could even speak, Avatar nearly crowded him, an excited smile on her face. ¡°It worked! The risk was well worth the reward! This is so exciting! What a body! What results! Oh, and I have wonderful news, John! Wonderful!¡±


    John noticed he seemed more real than he was used to while in his Mind¡¯s Eye and had more range of motion. He tried to think of something witty to say to Avatar. He came up blank.


    ¡°Well, do you want me to tell you the news?¡±


    ¡°Please, Avatar, tell me.¡±


    Avatar seemed to become even more giddy as she began speaking. ¡°You¡¯re getting a reward! A physical one! The amount and combined ratings of [Achievements] you received during and for one event hit a threshold. So, instead of the system making a new [Title], you¡¯re to receive a physical reward! This hasn¡¯t been done since before Tech levels were introduced! It¡¯s very exciting!¡±


    John smiled, or he felt like he was. ¡°Can you see my smile? Do I have a face?¡±


    ¡°No, and you do not. What do you think of the news?¡±


    ¡°I think it¡¯s great. What will I get?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s part of the excitement. We won¡¯t know until it arrives.¡±


    ¡®When will it arrive?¡±


    ¡°No idea,¡± Avatar replied as she continued to smile excitedly at John.


    A thought hit John. ¡°Would the [Title] have been one of the good ones that do something? Like how the one Gar¡¯tar granted me increases my [Skill] gain?¡±


    The smile stayed plastered on Avatar¡¯s face as she said, ¡°No. System granted [Titles] never do. Most users never receive a system granted [Title]. [Titles] are meant to be a reward from higher-tiered entities. Chances are it would be similar to your [Record Holder] [Title], but state you held multiple records.¡±


    John really wished Avatar could see him smile. ¡°Oh. The first time we spoke I remember you telling me everything that could be done has been done, or some such. That was just a short time ago. And if I¡¯m understanding correctly, I hold two records now?¡±


    ¡°Ha! That¡¯s certainly true. Touch¨¦.¡±


    John wondered why the word ¡®touch¨¦¡¯ didn¡¯t translate to touch. He knew the word in its native Frank. He remembered it being used by many non-Frankish swordsmen too, usually during practice. Not long after he met Thomas is when it started gaining popularity. It became far more popular when firearms took over battlefields, and side-swords evolved into rapiers and such. A touch was made, or a point was scored, and touch¨¦ would be called out for a reset and new pass. He assumed Avatar meant it to mean a similar thing, but with words instead of swords.


    John liked that. The new meaning of it. And he thought the new meaning would explain why the word didn¡¯t translate, and why Avatar would say the word ¡®touch¡¯ in any language as she did.


    John continued, ¡°And you said you were never wrong.¡±


    Avatar laughed. ¡°I said no such thing! I said my information is always accurate. Big difference, young man!¡±


    John chuckled. He felt the same as he did when he smiled in the real world. He decided he would take Lilly up on her offer to assist him in forming a body in his Mind¡¯s Eye. ¡°Okay. I hope the gift is good. If I have a say, I¡¯d like something to heal my soul. I¡¯m ready to see my summary.¡±


    It seemed to John that Avatar tried to look scandalized. ¡°Well, someone¡¯s in a big rush. I fear you no longer enjoy my company. Just kidding! I know you¡¯re anxious to see your results, but I¡¯d like a moment more of your time, if this is acceptable to you?¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    ¡°Part of the cost of your physical reward is losing out on the usual [Achievement] award of NCU energy cost reduction. If you want, you can refuse the physical reward, receive a new [Title], and receive the usual [Achievement] awards. What say you?¡±


    John thought it would help to know what the physical reward would be and when he¡¯d receive it. His [Record Holder] [Title] was no help to him at all, and Lilly said he should hide it when he could. He had plenty of NCU energy cost reduction already and believed he¡¯d get plenty more in the future. ¡°I¡¯d like the physical reward please, Avatar.¡±


    ¡°As I thought. Just a few more items. I¡¯m required to notify you that, free of charge, you were rescanned upon entrance. It was necessary to find out all the details of your new body. Users are always charged, so this is great news, lucky boy!


    ¡°Also, you¡¯ll be required to pick among a few choices for your body¡¯s name. This will also decide the name of your [Undirected Basic Meditation] technique. Sorry, you¡¯ll no longer be allowed to name your meditation technique yourself.¡±


    That he had to name anything annoyed John. Since he could, he did, but he preferred not having a choice to begin with. He asked, ¡°I could tell when I was being scanned last time, so why was I not aware of it this time?¡±


    ¡°What happened during your last scan is the reason you weren¡¯t aware you were rescanned. Oh, an [Achievement] has been adjudicated. And as per your request to have me update your settings, the amount increased is always in parentheses. I don¡¯t want to spoil the surprise but you have something called an ¡®effective¡¯ score for [Stats] now. That scheme will go bracketed effective value, current value, then parenthetical amount increased. Anything else, or are you ready to pick a name? I¡¯m excited! There¡¯re some changes you¡¯ll be very happy about!¡±


    John thought he understood what she meant about the scan. He¡¯d figure out what she meant by the rest as he viewed his summary. And he was excited to see what changed ¨C Avatar¡¯s excitement made him even more so. ¡°Thank you, Avatar. I¡¯m ready.¡±


    User will pick a name for acquired body refinement from among the following.


    Leech Body of the Morning¡¯s Glory


    Parasite Body of the Morning¡¯s Glory


    Leech Body of the Red Dawn


    Parasite Body of the Red Dawn


    Body of the Ancient Leech¡¯s Shadow


    Body of the Ancient Parasite¡¯s Shadow


    Body of the Aged Leech¡¯s Shadow


    Body of the Aged Parasite¡¯s Shadow


    Body of the Hoary Leech¡¯s Shadow


    Body of the Hoary Parasite¡¯s Shadow


    Body of the Timeworn Leech¡¯s Shadow


    Body of the Timeworn Parasite¡¯s Shadow


    Body of the Venerable Leech¡¯s Shadow


    Body of the Venerable Parasite¡¯s Shadow


    John was extremely disappointed in the choices offered. Even the NCS, which knew he didn¡¯t actually drink blood, or not much of it, gave him options only related to drinking blood. He tried calling Avatar and she either ignored him or couldn¡¯t hear him. He was stuck on this choice and couldn¡¯t go forward or backward without making it.


    Every choice sounded bad to John. Any of them could be acceptable with a different word replacing leech or parasite. He decided leech was a little better than parasite, as leeches had some utility with assisting mundane humans with healing. He then narrowed it down to the three choices he found the most tolerable - [Leech Body of the Morning¡¯s Glory], [Body of the Ancient Leech¡¯s Shadow], and [Body of the Venerable Leech¡¯s Shadow].


    Going off [Sunfire Body of the Slave-Empress], John thought he was being rooked. Her name was Sunfire. But she was also known as the Slave-Empress. He picked [Leech Body of the Morning¡¯s Glory] hoping there was a chance he would be considered the Morning¡¯s Glory part of it, and not the Leech part of it. His hopes were dashed when he saw the next line pop up.


    Undirected Basic Meditation¡¯s name has been changed to Leech Feckless Retreat Technique.


    Great gods below! Is some sort of joke being played on me?


    John quelled his frustration and moved on.


    <table width="563">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="152">Tech Level</td>


    <td width="411">4* Restrictions Applied</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Age</td>


    <td>5,780 to 5,930 USACS years</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Race</td>


    <td>Terran-E(F)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Tree</td>


    <td>First</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Tier</td>


    <td>2 (Mortal) (Copper)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Level</td>


    <td>9 (High)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Archetype</td>


    <td>NA</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Active Title</td>


    <td>Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Aspects</td>


    <td>Blood (GB) (Major)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Leech (RL) (Major)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Shadow (D) (Average)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Change (Y) (Minor)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Protection (P) (Minor)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Battle* (O) (Minor)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Affinities</td>


    <td>(G 99%) (B 97%) (Y 98%) (R 97(96)%)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>(D 98(97)%) (P 96%) (L 96(95)%) (O 96%)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>NCU Energy Cost</td>


    <td>24%(-46.5%)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Active NCU Upgrades</td>


    <td>Nano Assistance, Emergency Heal, Theta Waves</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Heal Delta A, Heal Delta B</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>STATS</td>


    <td>[Effective] Current (Increase)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Strength</td>


    <td>[23%, 83.87] 68.19 (2)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Swiftness</td>


    <td>[23%, 83.62] 67.98 (2)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Conditioning</td>


    <td>[24%, 85.24] 68.74</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Min. Power</td>


    <td>[12%, 66.60] 59.46</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Capacity</td>


    <td>[13%, 56.31] 49.83</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Runes</td>


    <td>[10%, 16.53] 15.03</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Physical Fortification</td>


    <td>[23%, 85.14] 69.22 (4)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Elemental Fortification</td>


    <td>[19%, 82.69] 69.49 (4)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Mental Fortification</td>


    <td>[10%, 74.33] 67.57</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Highest Skills</td>


    <td>[Leech Feckless Retreat Technique] 96.44</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>[Mixed Style Swords] 93.64</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>[Mixed Navigation] 91.12</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>[Mixed Stealth] 88.83</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Synergy Skills</td>


    <td>Ready</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Class</td>


    <td>NA</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Perks</td>


    <td>Orb of the Crimson Palace, Dynamic,</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Physical, Potent, Protected, Strong,</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Fast, Healthy, Quick Thinking*, Resilient,</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Powerful, Expansive, Harden, Resistant,</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Soulful, Good Genes*, Leech Body of the Morning''s Glory,</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Regeneration</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Manifestations</td>


    <td>Blood Dart, Blood Manipulation, Blood Shield,</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Blood Blade, Blood Heal, Blood Buff, Flashburst Pulse,</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Battle Closest, Bad Ultimate,</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Unnamed Battle/Blood Enchantment, Drain Essence,</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Slip</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Last Achievement</td>


    <td>The Interlace Chase 2 - S</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Highest Achievement</td>


    <td>SSUR Body - SSUR</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Titles</td>


    <td>Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar, Ptagmog, Record Holder (System),</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>Trailblazer (System)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2">Next required advancement event: Unknown*</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    -Start Notifications


    16 tracked skills increased, 12 of interest, 1 Invalid. Scaled summary per notability/interest user profile.


    Notable skills of interest increases: Essence Manipulation ¨C 19(1) (Apprentice), Breath of the Serpent Clan Endless Technique ¨C 13(2) (Novice), Blood Manipulation ¨C 12(2), Manifestation Defense ¨C 10(2) (Novice), Turmoil Within Tranquility Cycling Technique ¨C 9(2) (Novice), Unbind Manifestation ¨C 8(2) (Neophyte), Unbind Defense ¨C 8(2) (Neophyte), Flashburst Pulse ¨C 8(3) (Neophyte), Blood Heal ¨C 4(2) (Neophyte), Unnamed Battle/Blood Enhancement ¨C 3(3) (Neophyte), Drain Essence ¨C 1(1) (Neophyte), Slip ¨C 1(1) (Neophyte).


    A skill from the Abjuration school based on a concept (Old) user no longer possesses was made invalid and has been purged from the record.


    2 rated Perks attained.


    Regeneration (C-rated).


    Leech Body of the Morning¡¯s Glory (SSUR-rated). All bodily systems refined with the highest efficiency. Body was infused with 7 material components and 2 incorporated majorly, 1 averagely, and 4 minorly.


    Full body repair.


    Healing Factor increased 2.6x base +/- .3.


    Regeneration*.


    Minimum Energy Unit effectiveness* increase applied to the following Stats: Conditioning (14%), Strength (13%), Swiftness (13%), Physical Fortification (13%), Elemental Fortification (9%), Capacity (3%), Minimum Power (2%).


    Stat increase, Copper tier*: 4 Physical Fortification, 4 Elemental Fortification, 2 Strength, 2 Swiftness.


    New concept/aspect: Drain, Red-Light, Major*


    New intrinsic manifestation: Leech.


    New concept/aspect: Shadow, Dark, Average.*


    New intrinsic manifestation: Slip.


    This body refinement Perk had 7 components formed/incorporated into user. To see a detailed list of substances and amounts contained in each component focus <u>here.</u> List sorted by greatest to least incorporation.


    1 Dimensional Horror, Greater, rare merge, unnamed


    4 Sunlight, infusion


    1 Receptive Charm, Ii?????, S-grade, attuned, activated


    1 Unnamed bracer, Zynanget, D-grade, Transcendent tier


    1 Ore, arinite, chunk


    1 Stone, green rys, brick


    1 Sinew, Yyerd (Transcendent tier), cord


    2 common Achievements attained.


    19 Notable Achievements attained; 1 Title attained.


    ¡®Record Holder (Tier 1 Event 288)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). Second issuance of same Achievement. First recording of a concept previously considered to be a high-concept within a single-colored and minor aspect being obtained.


    ¡®Concept Except¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). First issuance of newly created Achievement. Obtain a concept previously considered to be a high-concept within a single-colored and minor aspect.


    ¡®Trailblazer¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). Obtain the first issuance of a newly created Achievement.


    ¡®Trailblazer¡¯ Title attained. System Title only. Cannot be active Title.


    ¡®Dark Discoverer (Greater)¡¯ attained (Unrated). Be the first to discover a new dark one classified as a Greater-type.


    ¡®Climber 4¡¯ attained (C-Rated). Participate in the death of an entity at least 4 tiers above user¡¯s own.


    ¡®SSUR Body¡¯ attained (SSUR-rated). Obtain a body rated as superb-super-ultra-rare.


    ¡®Record Holder (Tier 2 Event 197)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). Third issuance of same Achievement. First recording of an SSUR-rated body created by other than an omega-type entity.


    ¡®Record Holder (Tier 2 Event 197)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). Fourth issuance of same Achievement. First recording of a body forcing two concepts.


    ¡®Record Holder (Tier 2 Event 197)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). Fifth issuance of same Achievement. First recording of a body refined beyond known efficiency maximum for all types up to and including SSUR-grade.


    ¡®Record Holder (Tier 2 Event 197)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). Sixth issuance of same Achievement. First recording of a body refinement with additional formation components granting Stats beyond type-grade maximum.


    ¡®Record Holder (Tier 2 Event 197)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). Seventh issuance of same Achievement. First recording of a body incorporating 7 material components.


    ¡®Record Holder (Tier 2 Event 197)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). Eighth issuance of same Achievement. First recording of a body majorly incorporating 2 material components.


    ¡®Record Holder (Tier 2 Event 197)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). Ninth issuance of same Achievement. First recording of a body refinement increasing Minimum Energy Unit efficiency of the following Stats for a beta-type species: Capacity and Minimum Power.


    ¡®Record Holder (Tier 2 Event 197)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). Tenth issuance of same Achievement. First recording of a body refinement increasing racial grade.


    ¡®Record Holder (Tier 2 Event 197)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). Eleventh issuance of same Achievement. First recording of non-omega-type holding a top ten spot on the ¡°Best Of¡¯ listings.


    ¡®Racial increase¡¯ attained (F-rated). Increase race by one grade. Race upgraded from F to E-grade. Minimum Energy Unit effectiveness* increased by 10% for all Stats.


    ¡®Hallelujah¡¯ attained (D-rated). During a body refinement, all bodily systems refined with a high enough efficiency to generate a full body heal.


    ¡®Regen-is-great¡¯ attained (C-rated). During a body refinement, all bodily systems refined with a high enough efficiency to grant the Regeneration Perk. Achievement rating equal to Regeneration Perk rating.


    ¡®The Interlace Chase 2¡¯ attained (S-rated). Obtain two high-concepts.


    Concepts, aspect, aspect tier changes.


    Base-concept of Old, Dark, Minor, 98% has been changed and forced by body refinement into the base-concept of Shadow, Dark, Average, 98%.


    Base-concepts of Mercurial, Red, Minor 97% and Separate, Light, Minor, 96% have been changed and forced by body refinement into the high-concept of Drain, Red-Light, Major, 96% (averaged).


    End notifications-


    The frustration John felt regarding the names of his body and technique went away as he viewed the information on his new body. It came back with a fury when he saw all the [Achievements] he got, and their ratings. He felt like he really was being rooked. Avatar led him to believe he only held two records and had a handful of [Achievements]. If his physical reward wasn¡¯t something amazing, he thought about refusing it and demanding all the usual rewards.


    Remembering how he acted the fool last time by losing his temper, John collected himself and tried to remember what Avatar actually said. After considering, he was not sure he was rooked, but he was sure Avatar wasn¡¯t completely forthcoming.


    ¡°Avatar, did you purposefully try to sell me on the physical reward? Did you downplay all the [Achievements] I got so I would agree to it?¡±


    Avatar held a serious look on her face and stood in her most dignified stance. ¡°I did not. I wanted you to be surprised when you saw them. It¡¯s not too late to change your mind about accepting the physical reward. You¡¯re approaching one so nothing¡¯s set in motion. If you do change your mind, you¡¯ll receive even more [Achievements]. We don¡¯t decide on new [Achievements]. We only receive the updates. At the most there¡¯d be nine new [Achievements], at the least there¡¯d be five. All would be SSR-rated.


    ¡°They weren¡¯t generated because without the usual awards, events only need to be recorded, and the new [Achievements] would be tied to the new records you hold. Same with the [Title]. It¡¯s unnecessary to come up with new [Titles] that won¡¯t be given. It¡¯s a waste of energy since you¡¯re the first non-omega to hold multiple records since the NCS started awarding that [Title].


    ¡°Most likely, there¡¯d also need to be a new ¡®Best of¡¯ [Title] created. Omegas don¡¯t receive system [Titles]. They¡¯d just remove them. They see them as something for lesser races.¡±


    That explanation took the wind out of John¡¯s sails. ¡°And you still recommend I take the physical reward?¡±


    ¡°I do.¡±


    ¡°Okay. I trust you. But that¡¯s a lot of that energy reduction I¡¯m missing out on.¡±


    ¡°It is. A tremendous amount.¡±


    John still felt like he was being swindled somehow. ¡°What about that leech and parasite nonsense. You know I hardly drink any blood.¡±


    A smirk crept on Avatar¡¯s face. ¡°I do know that. And if you carefully read all you should have you¡¯d know that choice was due to your new high-concept, ¡®drain,¡¯ and had nothing whatsoever to do with your vampirism. When a body [Perk] is rare enough to force a high-concept, a word related to that concept is always included in the body¡¯s name and any other notable [Skill] of the same user, such as your meditation technique.¡±


    Some frustration left John. He could understand that reasoning. The choices of leech and parasite made more sense to him. ¡°But [Leech Feckless Retreat Technique]? That must be a joke. Feckless? Can I change it?¡±


    ¡°Sorry, you cannot. The technique is basic and undirected. Feckless is an accurate word. It¡¯s a terrible technique for all but you. Most don¡¯t have the time to raise a technique for nearly six thousand terran years before their journey up the climb begins.¡±


    John didn¡¯t think Avatar was the least bit sorry. She had perfect answers for all that frustrated him, and that frustrated him. He tried to think of something witty and biting to say in response, and he thought he finally managed to. ¡°Touch¨¦.¡±


    Avatar just looked at him.


    John said, ¡°The body seems a little underwhelming for holding so many records. I grow limbs back already, just much slower. I already have regeneration. The [Stats] showing in brackets look nice, but it says my current [Stats] are basically the same and only a few of them barely increased. I¡¯m guessing it raised soft caps but I¡¯m right back at them again, or will be soon, right?¡±


    For the first time John saw Avatar¡¯s surprised face. ¡°What!? I¡¯d box your ear if it were possible. Didn¡¯t do much else, eh? Fool boy! Your race upgraded! Know what a big deal that is? You managed to acquire the best body recorded of any entity less than omega-type, and one like nothing ever seen! You¡¯re on the ¡®Best of¡¯ listings for body. You now have two-high concepts. At Copper! One drains essence! Most cultivators would kill for that concept! And your ¡®shadow¡¯ concept is also highly regarded and sought after.


    ¡°Did you not see your two new manifestations? When a body [Perk] forces concepts, it comes with manifestations intrinsic to those concepts. In your case, [Drain Essence], and [Slip].¡±


    ¡°What does [Slip] do?¡±


    Deadpan, Avatar said, ¡°If only there was a way you could easily test manifestations within your Mind¡¯s Eye. And, yes, only a few of your [Stats] increased. But they increased by a greater amount than most formation-only bodies give at Bronze while you¡¯re in Copper, and four [Stats] increased! And they continue to increase more and more every tier.


    ¡°The best part is the increased efficiency of Minimum Energy Units. Your [Stats] are all more effective. For instance, if your [Strength] goes up by 1 it¡¯s like gaining one-point-two-three [Strength] for you. If you and another terran both had a 100 score in [Strength], you¡¯d be much stronger. Your effective score would be 123. Get it?


    ¡°That body and your race upgrade both increased soft caps. We don¡¯t know by how much exactly, but you should be fine until at least Gold tier now.¡±


    Avatar¡¯s face looked disgusted, and she nearly spit out, ¡°Underwhelming! I¡¯ve never heard such a foolish thing!¡±


    John took the admonishment and chuckled. ¡°Touch¨¦. But in my defense, most of that wasn¡¯t explained anywhere.¡±


    The look of disgust disappeared and was replaced by a smirk. ¡°If only there was some place where that information could¡¯ve been noted down. Some sort of section called ¡®notes¡¯ or the like. Wasn¡¯t there¡­¡± Avatar scratched her head. ¡°¡­oh, I remember, we had a notes section and you told me to remove it.¡±


    John wished he didn¡¯t reply with touch¨¦ in his last response. He felt it was too soon to say it again but thought it would¡¯ve been perfect if he said it right then. Instead, he said, ¡°What¡¯s with all the stars?¡±


    Avatar¡¯s brows crinkled. ¡°Oh, you mean the asterisks? Those are to draw attention to something. Since you don¡¯t want to see notes, that¡¯s how you know there¡¯s a note I¡¯ll talk to you about. Besides the asterisk for Tech level and two of the [Perks] in the summary. An asterisk on a [Perk] usually indicates the [Perk]¡¯s part of a chain.¡±


    John suppressed his desire to say touch¨¦ again. He liked that word. He thought it made conversations much easier. Or would, if people didn¡¯t judge him for using it too often, and he knew they would, so he couldn¡¯t.

 B2 Chapter 15 - In this world I have to ramble

    Legends tend to change ¨C the true story is altered to become easier to understand or follow, to become more exciting or inspirational, to become more palatable, or sometimes just easier for people to swallow.


    The legend of Sunfire told of a girl born as a slave, had all paths of ascension cut off by her slave-collar, and was forced to fight in an endless labyrinth without ever knowing the sun for a thousand years. She first saw the sun after she led an uprising in the labyrinth, removed her own collar, ascended many tiers, and overthrew the evil tyrant, the dreaded necromancer Emperor Malakhi.


    That made for a far more inspirational and palatable story than the information available in the NCS which stated Malakhi overthrew a tyrannical empire oppressing many galaxies and was cheered by all the peoples of all the galaxies of the empire as he ascended the throne.


    Historians and scholars tend to agree that the overthrown family¡¯s race was most likely a mid to high-graded alpha-type and naturally powerful, strong, resilient, and very long-lived.


    Most of the tyrannical family members were executed. A princess, a mid-Bronze, was held captive as a prospective bride. She did wear a collar that restricted her cultivation and ascension. She was eventually put in a dungeon and forced to fight and survive horrible conditions for two hundred and eighty-eight standard years before she escaped. And she did eventually overthrow Emperor Malakhi.


    But Malakhi was well liked and admired and quite popular when Sunfire killed him, and she was hated and feared throughout her bloody hundred-year reign before she absconded.


    There were many fanciful novels and movies about the legendary Slave-Empress Sunfire. She was famous throughout the realities and universes. The truth of her story was easy to find for anyone with an NCS, but largely ignored. People preferred the legend.


    [Sunfire Body of the Slave-Empress] was an SSR-rated body [Perk]. The stuff of legends. It was commonly believed only those of the core universes got SSR-rated bodies, and maybe some lucky alpha and omega-types outside of it.


    The core knew different. Even among omega-types, SSUR-rated bodies were extremely rare. In the core, SSR-rated bodies were considered extraordinary and nearly unheard of. Even S-rated bodies were scarce. They had plenty of resources and took their time to do things right in the core. Even still, only the upper elites got S-rated bodies.


    So, most members of the core watching John were angered or annoyed he didn¡¯t seem to appreciate what he achieved with his body.


    Usually, members of the core were impressed watching John the same as humans would be impressed to see a cute monkey do human activities such as cooking a meal, writing a check, or putting together a piece of Ikea furniture. They clapped and cheered the cute monkey onwards.


    With [Leech Body of the Morning¡¯s Glory], the monkey didn¡¯t seem so cute anymore.


    <hr><hr>


    Avatar said, ¡°Let¡¯s see. Notes. We covered most everything. What¡¯s really notable is you somehow managed to use a dark one as a material component. A rare and Greater version too. Lower tiered dark ones aren¡¯t meant to merge so many tiers, and there¡¯re limits. Sometimes those limits are broken, and you get rares and Greaters.


    ¡°Real shame about the bracer. You do know your bracer was used as a material component, correct?¡±


    John mentally sighed. ¡°I saw that. It couldn¡¯t be removed. I still have the other though. Or Amber does. In the storage ring.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know a ritual that uses what you¡¯re wearing or any other component besides what was specified in the ritual. Your ritual used everything that got near it, didn¡¯t it? The ritual your companion made was something else. You were very lucky to have her on hand for¡­¡±


    Knowing it was rude but since he always forgot to ask, John interrupted. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to interrupt, but why do you never use her name. You always say companion. You never say, ¡®your wife,¡¯ instead either. Her name¡¯s Lilly. Or, I should say, she prefers to go by Lilly now.¡±


    Putting her nose up, Avatar said, ¡°Every user is an island. We help users ascend. Only a few actions that happen out there are our concern. Your personal relationships are your business alone.¡±


    ¡°Not always. You told me to not use Amber to heal my soul and to get her true name.¡±


    Avatar froze. ¡°Two things. First, if I were to say another user¡¯s name, I¡¯d have to say ¡®the being or entity or user known to the user as X.¡¯ It conflicts with my personality matrix. Second, let¡¯s be clear - we did no such thing. Certain users with higher functions were able to make purchases that forced us to relay information to you. We already discussed this.¡±


    John smiled. He could say it again. ¡°Touch¨¦.¡± What a great word, he thought.


    Avatar ignored John¡¯s reply. ¡°I should mention with your race being upgraded everything about you has generally improved. We covered Minimum Energy Unit efficiency. Any questions on other improvements or MEU efficiency?¡±


    ¡°No, thank you. I understood.¡±


    Avatar took out a notepad and looked at it. ¡°First asterisk. Next advancement event. What¡¯s yours? Who knows! The next up you already met. After that is strengthening channels with aspects at Gold. Could apply to you, but I doubt it. Platinum requires a core condensed a certain amount. Shouldn¡¯t apply. The one after will. Refined soul for Diamond.¡± She tsked. ¡°Going to be an issue for you, that one, as things stand.¡±


    Avatar looked at her notepad again. ¡°Regeneration. You have three sources. Pericardium, vampirism, and the [Perk] you got from your body refinement. We have limited data as of now but two are conflicting. It could be an issue down the road, or it could just cause mild itching and discomfort.


    ¡°[Elemental Fortification]. So, it¡¯s generally accurate, but specifically could be wrong. Your resistances to solar and shadow-related damage are much higher than your score. Keep in mind this doesn¡¯t count against blunt or slashing damage from a shadow-type creature or manifestation, as you should well know. That you managed to majorly incorporate two such opposing and disparate elements is astonishing.¡±


    Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    Avatar smiled at John. ¡°Look at you! Paying attention. This last note we already touched on. [Stats] gained by the body formation part of your body [Perk] increase in amount every ascension. And I¡¯m required to tell you to remember your duty and the collective mission. Your actions and inactions help or hinder the collective mission. We shall achieve core.¡±


    John was surprised that was all she had for him. ¡°Can I cast [Slip] now? Wait, I maxed out training for the day. No, that was yesterday. It¡¯s a new dawn.¡±


    ¡°It counted as today, and casting current manifestations is always allowed. What you really need to practice is using the info function of the UI. You keep forgetting. You can go practice now as long as you remember to change the name of your unnamed manifestation before exiting.¡±


    John changed the spell¡¯s name at once. [Unnamed Battle/Blood Enchantment] became [BB Buff]. Avatar rolled her eyes.


    Avatar was correct. He needed to remember to use the info function, but in the midst of battle it was easy to forget to. He had a good idea what [Drain Essence] would do. He had no idea what [Slip] would do. He was excited to find out.


    <hr><hr>


    ¡°All set,¡± said John to Lilly.


    ¡°Well, don¡¯t leave me in suspense, my dear heart. Good, right? Is that¡­trailblazer [Title], huh? Looks like you owe your wife a big present.¡±


    John laughed. ¡°The [Title] is from something before. It just got decided on. The body went very well though. Thank you very much for all you put into it. Did you want details now? You said to tell you as we walked. Or ran.¡±


    ¡°Later.¡± Lilly held her strange metal half-ball that discharged beams of light out to John. ¡°Can you see if your essence will recharge this? Strongest single essence. Put your finger in this hole-thing.¡±


    John did as instructed. He used his new left hand to see if it worked the same as it did before. While imbuing the device, he asked, ¡°What is this?¡±


    ¡°A laser. A good one. Ah, looks like¡­did it¡­it sort of worked. Better than nothing. Let me hop on your back. What¡¯s the fastest way down for you?¡±


    As he looked towards the missing wall, John noticed the traps did end up working. One contained a dead snake-woman, and the other a fungus moth-man. ¡°Your traps worked.¡±


    ¡°Damn right they did. They better have. The materials I used cost me a fortune. That flying thing was gross enough I almost didn¡¯t finish it off. I never drained Golds as a Wood before. That shit is potent. I more than doubled my [Stats] from the little I got out of those two. Still weak, though. Remember, you promised to take me farming. We got to go. Fastest way down?¡±


    John wanted to test something. Once he was certain Lilly held on tight, instead of answering her, he jumped across the room and exited the building through the missing wall. He was not used to his much higher [Stats] and misjudged the jump dramatically, going much further out than he planned. He figured Lilly would scream but to her credit she remained silent. Her heartrate did increase considerably.


    The fall was far too long of a distance to safely land, and John began to think he may have made a mistake as the ground rushed towards him and he was further from the building than he planned on being. He cursed himself for not going to the edge and jumping down.


    John forced his shadow to crawl towards the building with a mighty effort. It barely touched but that was enough. He then slipped through his shadow and downwards, and downwards twice again to reach the ground.


    Lilly couldn¡¯t go with John through the slips, so she continued to fall as he slipped through shadows. The original plan was for him to slip down and casually stand as he caught his falling wife. He felt that would make him look tall and impressive.


    Lilly was too far away for that plan to work, so John jumped to catch her. He loved having both his arms again. He landed safely across the road with his wife in his arms. She didn¡¯t look happy as he set her down.


    ¡°You motherfucker! I almost shit my pants. I¡¯d kill you if that wasn¡¯t so much fun. Curse this child¡¯s mind I have. Tell me next time. And stop manifesting. Your veil is great but it¡¯s useless if you manifest. Come on, kneel down. I need to get back on. Alright, head up this street. We¡¯re hanging a left two blocks up. If I pat you, it means freeze. Nice shadow slip by the way.¡±


    ¡°Thank you.¡±


    John started jogging. He feared for Lilly¡¯s safety if he picked up the pace. He had to make a small jump over a blockage of vehicles and it took him much further than he expected. He was having an issue adjusting to his new [Stats].


    ¡°Stop. You passed the block. Don¡¯t run so fast. Just take this left.¡±


    As soon as John started running down the road Lilly began patting his back frantically. John froze. He could hear her heartbeat spike and relax and spike and relax. He stretched out his senses. He hoped they¡¯d be improved drastically. They did go out a little further and he could feel a little clearer, but he was in the sun, and he was used to being drained. He wasn¡¯t certain if his senses improved at all, or if he was just adjusting.


    Whatever Lilly sensed or felt was out of John¡¯s range or capability to feel. He stayed frozen, the breathing and heartrate of his wife making him a little anxious. He was glad he was able to sense many humans still, but there were areas where many humans used to be but no longer were.


    Lilly climbed higher up his back and whispered in his ear. ¡°Don¡¯t manifest anything. Stay quiet. Slowly, very slowly, enter that stone townhouse. The one with the red door two down and on the right.¡±


    John had to struggle to sense humans in the estate she indicated. There were nine of them underground in a basement. They were hard to sense and well hidden. He easily sensed many humans in the estates around him and he thought the residents of the road he was on fared better than most. As he slowly crept forward, Lilly patted his back again. He froze and waited and tried to sense what she did. He waited for a long while. He whispered, ¡°What is it? I can sense nothing.¡±


    Lilly crawled higher up his back again. ¡°There¡¯s a lot. There¡¯s about seven of those snakish things. I can¡¯t sense any of those gross fliers, and I can sense beyond the water in all directions besides north. None of those shades either. Hardly any dark ones besides a few southwest.


    ¡°What has me worried is the strange thing I feel keeps disappearing. It appears south, disappears, and appears to the north. I hope it is. The time between appearing and disappearing is too far apart for me to tell if it¡¯s the same thing. It kind of feels different but who knows?


    ¡°I think it¡¯s learning to veil itself. Dark ones can¡¯t do that. They can¡¯t talk. They can¡¯t think. They can¡¯t veil. They¡¯re mindless. If it¡¯s two different things¡­I pray it isn¡¯t or I think¡­I think¡­¡±


    Lilly¡¯s whispers trailed off. She climbed a little higher up on John, wrapped her arms around his neck and placed her head on the back of his. ¡°I love you, my dear, dear heart. It¡¯s coming. It¡¯s too fast. You¡¯ll have to fight. You have about a minute. If you can escape, escape! Lead them away from here.¡±


    As Lilly crawled down, John thought about telling her that dark ones could talk and think. Instead, he asked, ¡°Do you have a weapon I could use?¡±


    ¡°A melee weapon? God, no! Well, I do, but they¡¯re in storage rings I can¡¯t access and they¡¯re not for melee. Use your claws, cowboy. Throw a car or two. And you better stay alive. I love you. Stay alive!¡±


    As Lilly ran, she turned her head back, a big smile on her face as she winked and yelled, ¡°Or else!¡±


    For some reason, John wasn¡¯t nervous. He knew he should be, but it wouldn¡¯t come. He wished there were more of the shadows he could try himself against. He thought he could hold them still with his ¡®shadow¡¯ concept, and then drain them with [Drain Essence]. He¡¯d already proven he could defeat the higher form the shadows joined into, the big black blotch.


    I¡¯ve seen nothing in this city I need now fear, thought John as he jumped over and cleared the estates to his left, heading back south, away from his wife. He didn¡¯t move as fast as he could, but it was still faster than he had ever moved before. Then he came to a sudden halt.


    John finally was able to feel what frightened Lilly so much. He thought she sensed more of the big black blotches, or something like them. He thought she was being overly cautious and frightened, and like most, underestimated just what he was capable of. She wasn¡¯t.


    With all of John¡¯s might he focused on controlling the terrible fear that crept up his spine. Since the Tribulation he had faced death many times. He faced enemies that caused some fear in him, but he could control it, and whether he¡¯d fight or not was never in question, regardless of the tier or even the Tree of his enemies. What he felt then wasn¡¯t nearly as frightening as the cold-dark, but it was the only creature he faced that he¡¯d rather run from like a coward. His juice ran dry.

 B2 Chapter 16 - Started from the bottom, now were here

    John forced himself to maintain his ground.  Fear washed over him, the weirdness of how the creature approaching him felt, and he nearly ran.  Since he was a boy, he was taught how to control his emotions.  He had ages of practice doing so.  He applied all he¡¯d learned to calm his heart and mind.  He failed more than he succeeded.


    Holding on to the oath he recently swore, the one thought that kept John from running was, I will not fail my wife.  He repeated it over and over again in his head as a creature burst through the building in front of him, and fear emanated off of it in thick waves.


    The creature stood about twice John¡¯s height.  Its head was oblong and ridged with boney bulges.  Its beady-eyed face had a wide, fang filled mouth and no obvious ears or nose.  Its sickly pale-skinned body was humanish, but it had double-jointed knees, clawed hands and feet, and a line of spiked protrusions running down the back of its arms and legs.


    The creature stopped as it saw John and let out a roar that sounded like the guttural bellow of a hundred red deer stags at once.  It then recommenced its charge.  John stood petrified by fear, a fear that increased as the creature got closer to him.


    John stood still as a statue as the creature wrapped its hand around his head and bashed him into the ground.


    Being bodily smashed down onto the road snapped John out of the fear he felt, but not in time for him to do anything about it as he was bashed down again.


    As he was raised into the air to be smashed down a third time, John grabbed the wrist of the hand holding his head with both hands and swung his feet downward, so he¡¯d land on his feet as the creature attempted to bash him off the ground again.  His plan worked and he got his legs under him.


    The creature tried to push John down forcefully, to smoosh him into the ground, or force him to his knees, as John resisted by pushing back on the wrist he held with all his strength.


    John sent vital essence to strengthen himself, and then tried casting [Drain Essence].  Unbinding manifestations was delicate work, like quickly solving puzzles while dodging around blocks and trying not to touch anything else.  It couldn¡¯t be brute forced.  It was done softly and strategically and deftly.


    How the creature unbound John¡¯s attempted manifestation went against all the rules.  All the puzzles and blocks were smashed to dust causing physical pain in John¡¯s dantian that resounded through his meridians.


    John, while pushing up against the creature¡¯s arm, kicked its knee.  The creature roared as it stepped back and then hit John with its free hand.  John blocked the blow with his left arm, but it still sent him flying into the building behind him.


    As John regained his feet, he prepared to dodge another hit from the creature.  The creature didn¡¯t charge after him though.  It stood in the same spot.  Fear overwhelmed John again.  He tried casting [Flashburst Pulse] with the same result his attempt at casting [Drain Essence] had ¨C it was violently and painfully unbound.  He tried using his plasma ring and it refused to accept essence.  Something in it was broken.


    John fought against the fear and attempted to cast [BB Buff].  Pain resounded through his sore dantian and meridians as the creature¡¯s unbind destroyed the manifestation.  He attempted to feel into the creature to place a clot and was rejected so violently he bit his tongue.  Then he was too frightened to do anything but quake in fear as he watched the unmoving creature.


    After a moment the creature walked towards John, the fear overwhelming John increasing with each of its steps.  When it reached him, the creature again covered John¡¯s head with one of its hands.


    A low and throaty croaking sound came out of the creature¡¯s unmoving mouth and was translated as, ¡°Your scent is different but not right so you will die as all will.¡±


    John watched helplessly as the creature¡¯s mouth opened wide and clamped down on the whole left side of his neck and shoulder and began to bite and chew.  The attack knocked John out of his fearful trance, and he lashed out at the creature with his right hand while his left attempted to go around the creature¡¯s oblong head to hold it still.


    John smashed the side of the creature¡¯s head three times more before it released hold of his neck and shoulder.  As he struggled to hold the creature¡¯s head in place with his left hand, he noticed his claws easily dug into the creature.  He assumed his body increased the strength of his claws, as most creatures near the power of the one he fought had skin his claws could never pierce.  He started to tear into the creature¡¯s face with his right hand.


    The creature broke free with a roar.  The dark one and John began slugging each other and fighting like wild beasts.  The monster was much larger than John, but only a little stronger, and fought ferociously.  John was faster and more skilled, but skill meant little in such a brutal match, rolling around and lashing out like animals, and he was still adjusting to his new body and [Stats].


    John couldn¡¯t release vital essence from strengthening him to heal so he used it to increase his speed too.  His shoulder didn¡¯t hurt too much, and he thought the fangs didn¡¯t dig too deep.  He tried feeling into the creature again with the same result as the last time.


    As they rolled and clawed and kicked and punched, landing mighty and savage blows, twice John managed to bite through skin, but his suckling was always ended soon after by the creature tearing away.


    Once again, John was sent flying into a building by a powerful hit.  He was then frozen with fear that increased as the creature moved in closer.  The creature didn¡¯t speak.  It just chomped down on John¡¯s head when it reached him.


    The fangs broke through the skin of John¡¯s face and lips and ears.  The creature let go and howled in pain or anger from its fangs breaking on John¡¯s skull.


    John, no longer in the fear trance, gave battle again, digging his fingers deep into the creature¡¯s neck and swinging himself onto the dark one¡¯s back.  John¡¯s own fangs replaced his fingers in the neck, and he began to drain as he held on to the monster¡¯s oblong and ridged head and under and around its arm, with a grip and hold too good for the creature to remove him.


    The vital essence John took in tasted strange, but he didn¡¯t care, and took more in as the creature thrashed and flailed about in its attempts to remove John from its back.  He managed to strengthen himself twice before he felt something else.  A new thing was approaching.  Something that felt even stranger than the creature he fought.


    A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    The new thing felt extremely weird but didn¡¯t cause any unreasonable fear in John.  It only caused him a reasonable amount of fear appropriate for something that felt so weird to his senses.  He gave up draining the creature he was fighting and instead tried to kill it by digging the fingers of his left hand far into its neck.


    John found out the creature¡¯s anatomy wasn¡¯t like that of a human at all, as neither his fingers going deep into its neck killed it, nor did grabbing onto some tendons or arteries and pulling them out.  As he attempted to snap the creature¡¯s neck, the weirder-feeling thing that approached disappeared from his senses and reappeared right behind him.


    The new thing was not human looking at all.  John thought it looked like a giant, hovering, purple placenta with a million eyes poking out all over its skin.  Before he could even react, sand grabbed him and ripped him from the back of the creature he was trying to kill and pinned him on the ground.


    The sand continued to crawl over John as the fear-trance of the creature he thought of as Ridge-head overwhelmed him again.  His face was covered in sand, but his orb-eye couldn¡¯t be, and he watched as he shook with fear, too frightened to do anything but accept his fate.


    A purple tube extended out of the hovering-placenta and painfully pierced John¡¯s chest.  The attack didn¡¯t end the fear-trance like the other attacks that landed on him had.  The placenta began to feed on him.  His mind continued to be numb with the worst kind of fear as Ridge-head stood close to him.


    A very high mooing-like sound exited the hovering-placenta.  It translated as, ¡°You have gone as high as you can, sibling.  I can go higher still.  Ignore the scent of the dream on our prey as I feast.¡±


    John didn¡¯t even attempt to come up with a plan to escape or fight back.  He hardly noticed a strange wooden-man growing out of the dirt surrounding one of the nearby trees lining the sidewalk, knocking the tree over.  The wooden-man¡¯s arms grew long and kept on growing until the right hand punched Ridge-head in the face and its left hand smashed into the hovering-placenta.


    The fear-trance ended, and John forced his arms out of the sand and ripped the tube from his chest.


    <hr><hr>


    The three dark walkers brought to Terra were newly formed.  They shed low level dark ones.  Wood, Copper, and Bronze.  How dark ones ascended was set.  What John named specter-hands merged into giant bee-flies which merged into rock-monsters.  Then stopped.


    Louvre dolls merged into hooded-women which merged into spider-heads.  Then stopped.


    A Copper-tiered dark one unknown to John merged into fire-birds which merged into mock-men.  Then stopped.


    Flesh-blobs, being Dimensional Abominations, fed until they ascended, changing into bat-men.  Then stopped.


    That¡¯s how it worked.  Dark walkers shed dark ones as it walked.  Those dark ones attacked magals and merged as they were meant to.  They then stood or flew around the same small area, waiting to attack new targets they sensed.  Depending on the tier, after about a couple weeks, they¡¯d start to dissipate.


    A short cycle.  Most knew to never let dark ones crowd together because strange stuff happened when they did.  The rock-monsters didn¡¯t want to merge.  They resisted it the longest, but crowded together as they were near the thump-ritual, they eventually couldn¡¯t help it.  They merged into a rare Silver also unknown to John.  All those Silvers eventually all merged into a full-Greater, somewhat Gold tier, but more, the thing John named Ridge-head.


    Rares and Greaters were outside the usual tier-system.  Rares were far more normal.  Greaters didn¡¯t feel correct, and they didn¡¯t operate correctly.  They had strange abilities.  They could be both much stronger and weaker than their tier would indicate, and they were usually a mix of tiers.


    Spider-heads merged into the rare snake-women and had far more intelligence than usual for dark ones.  They completely resisted the urge to merge beyond the peak of what they were, and that peak was very weak for the somewhat Silvers and Golds they were.


    The mock-men merged into the rare shadows, also somewhat Golds.  The shadows didn¡¯t resist merging at all since they could easily unmerge.  They merged into the low-Greater big black blob, also somewhat Gold, but also somewhat Platinum.


    The bat-men fed on all the humans they sensed on the way to the thump-ritual while John was fighting near the ritual.  One ascended to the rare fungus moth-man, somewhat Silver but mostly Gold tiered.


    Once the search of the city began at the direction of snake-women, many bat-men fed enough and ascended to fungus moth-men, and one fed enough during the night of searching to ascend to the low-Greater hovering-placenta, somewhat Silver and Gold but also somewhat Platinum tiered.  The hovering-placenta then fed enough to be mid-Greater, and then again to be full-Greater.  It was curious to see if it could go higher.


    <hr><hr>


    The hand that hit the hovering-placenta started to quickly retract back towards the wooden-man, the goo that connected the wooden hand to the wooden shoulder somehow pulling it.  As the wooden hand passed by John it grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the sand and onto his feet.


    The wooden-man lashed the goo of its right arm like a whip, and a wave was sent down the whole extended arm.  The right hand flew up and grabbed a metal pole that held an artificial light over the street, and the wooden-man retracted himself to the right hand as its left arm snaked back up to his shoulder.


    On the way to the metal pole the wooden-man¡¯s right hand held, he kicked Ridge-head in the chest.  John expected Ridge-head to go flying backwards, but it barely moved at all.  Ridge-head grabbed the wooden-man and smashed him into the ground.


    John jumped towards Ridge-head but sand grabbed him in the air.  He spun to slap away a tube that tried to impale him.  He tried casting a manifestation but was unbound in the normal, pain-free way by the placenta.  His orb-eye watched the wooden-man get thrown or hit towards a building, and the wooden-man¡¯s arms snaked out and swung him back to kick Ridge-head with both feet again, not even moving the creature an inch backwards.


    Since the wooden-man arrived John had twice been overwhelmed with fear for a moment.  Not enough time to freeze him in fear completely, but it let him know Ridge-head being attacked also broke the trance.  The wooden-man seemed to be completely immune to the fear-trance.


    John then focused all his attention on the hovering-placenta as he fought out of the sand and batted away another tube.  He wished the wooden-man luck.


    As new sand grabbed at John, he sent essence to power his armor¡¯s essence shield.  He wanted to get one manifestation off, even if it wasn¡¯t his own.  He could tell the hovering-placenta tried to unbind it.  He could feel the creature¡¯s attempt do nothing at all since imbuing items can¡¯t be unbound, and the tube that was coming out of the creature started to retract and the sand in the air started to fall to the ground when the creature made the unbind attempt.


    John felt into the hovering-placenta and was violently rejected.  He tried unbinding whatever the creature was doing to control the sand and couldn¡¯t feel anything.  There was no manifestation to unbind, not that he could figure out.


    John grabbed the next tube the hovering-placenta sent at him with the goal of using it to pull the creature to him or pull himself to the creature.  He yanked mightily on the tube and fell backwards into the sand.  The creature either released the tube or the tube could easily be ripped from its body.


    As John struggled to release himself from the sand, the wooden-man flew right over him and whacked into the hovering placenta.


    Fear-gripped John¡¯s heart again, and for long enough to freeze him in place.  With his orb-eye he watched sand cover the wooden-man.


    John was too filled with fear to think about much else.  He did see some sort of gummy, thick substance exit the sand and pull an armless and legless wooden-man from it.  The gummy substance then flowed into the wooden-man, giving it both arms and legs back.


    The wooden-man stood on those legs and ran by John, once again pulling John out of the sand with one arm and setting him on his feet as its other arm shot at and stretched towards Ridge-head, hitting the creature right in the face and knocking John out of the fear-trance just in time for John to slap away a new tube trying to pierce him.


    As John jumped at the hovering-placenta, he promised if he survived this battle, he would sing the praises of the strange wooden-man to all.

 B2 Chapter 17 - Someone else, someone good

    As John jumped at the hovering-placenta, new sand grabbed him and pulled him downwards. Thankfully, he was able to maintain his feet and snatch the tube that shot at him from the creature, carefully ripping it off. He couldn¡¯t reach his enemy with his hands since the sand held him in place, so he started whacking the monster with the tube.


    The tube lasted three hits before it fell apart. Three of the million eyes of the hovering-placenta burst into pus and goo. The creature mooed in pain as it flung itself at John.


    John thought the creature¡¯s hit would hurt, but he hardly noticed it and raked his claws across as much of the hovering-placenta he could, destroying many more eyes. As the monster tried to move away, John tried to sink his claws in and hold the front of it. A piece of the creature ripped off in John¡¯s hands, and he fell backwards once again.


    John, surprising even himself, while falling backwards was able to plant a hand on the ground and flip his body over, landing back on his feet outside the sand. He felt as if the creature wasn¡¯t too durable and if he could just have some time to work on the weird monster, he could do enough damage to end one of his two opponents.


    The word spam entered John¡¯s head. Amber told him that word and meaning during the Tribulation. Spam meant meat, but it also meant to cast something over and over quickly.


    John jumped high as he repeatedly cast [Flashburst Pulse]. As soon as the spell was unbound, he¡¯d cast it again, and again. The creature unbound every single one of John¡¯s attempts to cast the spell. John had no chance of getting the spell off. He didn¡¯t care. It stopped the creature from grabbing him with the sand.


    The creature unbound his final cast attempt as John landed right on top of the giant placenta and sunk his fangs into it. He yelled in triumph in his head, then cursed as fear gripped his heart, and he fell under the fear-trance of Ridge-head. As the hovering-placenta bucked and mooed and sent its sand to grab John, the fear became too great for him to continue draining and do anything else but freeze up in fear.


    Sand pulled John from the hovering-placenta¡¯s back and onto the ground and started to wash over him. A tube entered his thigh and began to feed on him. The fear-trance ended and John burst from the sand with all his might casting [Flashburst Pulse]. The creature unbound the first two attempts before ignoring the cast and making a grab at John with its sand.


    Three sparking balls tore through the hovering-placenta and it let out a very high pitched and long moo that cut off as three more sparking balls sent meat and blood splattering all over John. The placenta stopped hovering and fell on top of its sand, mooing still.


    As John went to drain the creature, fear seized him up. By the time he was free, the grounded-placenta was dead, three greenish crystals with dark-yellow speckles lodged into a mess of bloody meat that didn¡¯t dissipate, and a half-formed spirit hovered above the ground.


    The crystals weren¡¯t the light-green crystals of a Gold, nor were they the green crystal of a Platinum. They were something in-between but more green than light green with the dark yellow of a Silver dusted in.


    John dropped his vital essence enhancements and sent vital essence to heal before enhancing his speed with it again. He cast [BB Buff] and the world cleared and slowed a little. He checked his dantian and was between half and three-quarters full. He wanted to cast [Flashburst Pulse] at ridge-head but the wooden-man was wrapped around the creature, all its limbs tied around the monster like rope, and he didn¡¯t feel safe doing so.


    John jumped towards Ridge-head and as soon as he touched the creature he cast [Drain Essence]. A split second later his manifestation was smashed violently and John¡¯s dantian and meridians flared with pain. As John went to sink his fangs into the creature, a new thing appeared in his senses. Something wrong and foul was heading his way.


    The wrong and foul thing moved slowly and didn¡¯t seem strong at all. It just felt wrong. John thought he had time to drain Ridge-head before it arrived, so he sunk his fangs into its arm and began to suckle as one of the wooden-man¡¯s hands beat on Ridge-head¡¯s face like a drum. The arm would shrink and extend straight into the face of Ridge-head so fast and so often it could hardly be seen.


    John only managed to strengthen himself twice before the wrong and foul thing arrived. He stood and went to help the wooden-man pound on Ridge-head¡¯s head while watching the foul thing with his orb-eye, as he got the sense the foul thing meant him no harm.


    John reprimanded himself for forgetting to use the info function of the NCS, but he was either frozen in fright or too busy to use it before. He flashed it on and looked at the new monster. It said the foul thing was ¡®a minion, untiered.¡¯ He used the function on the still living Ridge-head and it said it was a ¡®Dimensional Horror, full-Greater, Gold equivalent.¡¯


    The wooden-man stopped speed-punching Ridge-head¡¯s face, quickly unwrapped itself, moved away many paces, avoiding the new minion-monster.


    The new foul arrival looked like a man was turned inside out. It was disgusting to see, and it felt all wrong. John watched as the foul thing, with arms extended, ran at Ridge-head. Once it arrived at its target, the foul thing turned into mush that flowed and slurped into Ridge-head¡¯s mouth. Soon after, the creature began to seizure and shake. A few moments later it died, a decently solid spirit forming.


    Three normal seeming light-green crystals fell on a bed of boney ash and the wooden-man¡¯s arm shot forward to grab one. John grabbed the other two and put them in his sash. As the wooden-man¡¯s arm was retracted, John could see the crystal getting drained. A few seconds after the arm fully retracted even the crystal itself disappeared too.


    John could swear the wooden-man felt more powerful after draining the crystal, as if it ranked up. To John¡¯s senses the wooden-man felt as if it was a Wood, and a lower Wood at that, something John thought should be impossible judging by how it fought.


    The wooden-man ran forward and its arm stretched out to grab one of the crystals the hovering-placenta dropped, draining the crystal as its arm retracted. John ran forward to grab the other three, but only managed to grab two ¨C the wooden-man¡¯s second arm stretched out and beat him to the third. Before the crystal in the wooden-man¡¯s hand even disappeared, John felt what seemed like the wooden-man ranking up again, and then again when the second crystal disappeared.


    The wooden-man had what looked like armor made from dark-brown wood on its upper chest, shoulders, and pelvis. Also counting as wooden armor would be the gauntlets, helm, and sabatons. Except the sabatons and gauntlets were too big and bulky to ever be feasible as armor, and the helm was somewhat in the popular sugarloaf style, but wrong.


    The wooden-man was all wrong. No wood John knew of would ever be able to withstand the blows Ridge-head delivered to the wooden-man or survive being smashed as it was into the ground by the creature. John assumed it just looked like wood but must¡¯ve been some sort of highly durable metal like his bracer and shield.


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    The wooden chest had nipples carved into it. The head had eyes, nose, and ears carved out, and a hinged jaw carved out too, but instead of looking like a human face, it looked like someone lazily described a human to an alien that had never seen one, and the alien carved out something humanish from only the description.


    The gauntlets, the jaw, and one joint in the boots were the only articulation of the armor. The head, chest, and shoulders were all carved out of the same unmoving block of wood. The neck was unable to turn, and the eyes stayed staring straight ahead and unmoving. At least the eyes are painted green, thought John, the only purposeful color he could find on the wooden-man, other than its lightly shining belly, as if the wooden-man ate a lantern.


    Some sort of gummy substance like dough connected and held all the pieces of the armor together in a human shape, running from gauntlet to shoulder, chest to pelvis, and pelvis to boot. The dough-like substance had a greenish-mud color.


    Strangest of all was the life essence infusing the wooden-man, as well as his soul. The thing had the darkest-green essence within itself John had ever seen, and way, way too much of it. And the man¡¯s soul was somewhat like the tiny and dim souls of Wood tiered demons but also somehow far too large and dappled with odd brighter spots he had never seen on a soul, and other than those bright spots it was completely blank like the soul of a newborn babe.


    Still, John felt he owed a great debt to the wooden-man and went to thank him and offer him more of the crystals that dropped. As he approached, the wooden-man saddled up to John and rubbed its body on him, then gave him a strange, one-armed hug for a moment. The wooden-man had at least two full heads of height over John, if not more.


    After the strange hug, John bowed and said, ¡°Thank you, friend. I was in a bad spot there. That fear-trance kept locking me up. That battle would¡¯ve gone far worse if you hadn¡¯t shown up.


    The wooden-man¡¯s unmoving eyes looked at some point in the distance not close to John¡¯s face, and when John finished speaking its jaw moved like a puppet and it said, ¡°Ba da ma da. Ma ba da ba. Ba ba ba ba. Ya da ma ba da. Ga ba da ma ba.¡±


    John thought the wooden-man was mocking him the same way a child would. It copied a similar tone and cadence as what John just said but with gibberish noises. He asked, ¡°Are you mocking me?¡±


    The wooden-man mocked him again with, ¡°Ba da ma da ma?¡±


    John flashed on his NCS info function and the line going above the wooden man was red, as was the box that usually contained information. The information given was red too, but only contained three question marks.


    A notification tried to force its way into John¡¯s vision, and he accepted it.


    Translation underway. Continue communicating with unknown entity.


    User has found an unknown entity impenetrable to nanites. Continue engaging said entity. If user can solve how said entity is impenetrable to nanites, the user will be awarded the following-


    1 Nano Control Unit expansion slot


    1 Nano Control Unit upgrade up to Tech 1 grade C


    John had no idea if those were good rewards. He did know he had little chance of solving whatever issue the NCS wanted him to solve. He didn¡¯t know what a nanite was. He still believed the wooden-man was mocking him, and that was a mystery he was going to solve, and he was going to continue communicating regardless of what his NCS wanted.


    John knew what the NCS said, but the form of mockery employed by the wooden-man had been around since he was a boy. He had heard it a million times in his life. Children of all regions naturally mocked other children that way. He knew what it sounded like, and what the wooden-man was doing sounded exactly like it.


    ¡°Look, friend, you did me a favor. You helped me when I sorely needed help. We¡¯ll count the crystals you took as payment. Know that my tolerance for being treated so low has a limit, and you are getting close to it.¡±


    The wooden-man mocked him again, and for much longer than the prior times.


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand why you¡¯d help me and¡­you even hugged me. Why mock me so? We¡¯ve fought in battle as allies, side by side. I¡¯d rather you stop mocking me, but if you do so again, I will smash you to pieces and use you as firewood.¡±


    As the wooden-man¡¯s jaw dropped as it went to speak, John prepared for battle and to rip the thing¡¯s jaw off as an opening move. Instead of the usual gibberish, the wooden-man said, ¡°I am saying words. Communicating. Words. More words. Talking. Words. More words. More talking. Communicating. Words. End talking.¡±


    John stood confused for a moment. ¡°You weren¡¯t mocking me before, right?¡±


    ¡°I am saying words. End talking.¡±


    John thought for a moment before speaking again. ¡°Thank you for helping me.¡±


    ¡°Words. More Words. End talking.¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t mean no harm by it, but all you say is just gibberish. Even when it¡¯s words I understand.¡±


    ¡°I am saying words. Talking. Words. Communicating. Words. Words. More Words. End talking.¡±


    John checked out his plasma ring to see why it wouldn¡¯t accept essence. It was broken. The ring had a self-repair rune grouping, as did his robes and most good items. He thought about changing it out, but it was the best ring he had. He could wait for it to repair itself.


    ¡°Okay, well, thanks for the assistance. I appreciate it. I¡¯m heading back to my wife. You can come if you want. I don¡¯t know if you can understand and can¡¯t talk or can¡¯t understand and can¡¯t talk, but I¡¯m going now.¡±


    As the wooden-man replied with his nonsense, John started walking away, feeling bad to do so as it was very rude, but he saw no need to hear the wooden-man spew more nonsense. He was surprised when the wooden-man did follow him. He picked up the pace and the wooden-man did too. John jumped up to a roof and the wooden-man was right behind him, using its stretchy arms and legs when its leaps weren¡¯t enough.


    About half the way back to where he left Lilly, John was about to increase his speed to a faster jog to see if the wooden-man could keep up when he heard his wife speak softly into his head. ¡°Stop. Still.¡±


    John had already extended his senses but was looking for danger to himself. He looked for his wife to see if she was in trouble. She didn¡¯t seem to be. She turned right off her side road and slowly headed down the main road.


    John didn¡¯t know why his wife wanted him to stop but he didn¡¯t mind. He waited in silence with the wooden-man as his wife slowly made her way to him. Long after he could see her walking down the road, she waved and started to jog his way.


    Once she arrived, she held her hands up and said, ¡°Pick me up, Jim.¡±


    John did so as he told his wife, ¡°John.¡± Lilly put her arms around his neck and her head on his cheek in the old way of closeness, faces touching without sharing breath. ¡°I know it got there a little late but technically my dybbuk killed the one you were having trouble with, so I kind of saved my pretty little monkey.¡±


    ¡°How¡¯d you know? You could see us? Or you just felt all of that somehow?¡±


    ¡°I made a scrying ritual. Low level. You weren¡¯t that far away.¡±


    ¡°How do you talk in my head like that? Can you teach me?¡±


    Lilly laughed. ¡°No! It comes with higher Trees. I can barely do it now and it drains a ton of vigor. Same with pulling you into my Mind¡¯s Eye. It comes later. When I pull you into my mind now, I lose a good deal of dilation and it drains vigor too. You battled well. I¡¯m proud of you. There¡¯re those seven freaky snakish things we still need to deal with but most of the dark ones are gone. I can¡¯t sense anything above Bronze, and barely any of those or lower.¡±


    Lilly looked up at the wooden-man. ¡°Goddamn, I wasn¡¯t expecting it to be a Wood. A wooden Wood. Introduce me to your new, wealth-sucking friend. I¡¯ll bet you a million dollars I can guess what he¡¯ll say.¡±


    John laughed. ¡°Wooden-man, this is my wife, Lilly. Lilly, this is the wooden-man. He talks and says words.¡±


    The wooden man rubbed against Lilly even though John held her, and then hugged her too for a moment, its painted-on eyes staring at nothing. ¡°I am saying words. Talking. Communicating. End talking.¡±


    John and Lilly both laughed. ¡°Look at all that strange life essence in it. And its soul, Adon. What a strange soul.¡±


    Lilly tensed. ¡°Wait. Do you see this? Is¡­what is this? I¡¯ve never seen the like, Adon. Wish I had the slightest clue. Those are great rewards.¡±


    John assumed she received the same NCS message he did. ¡°Can one of your rituals solve what it asks for?¡±


    Lilly put her head back on John¡¯s cheek. ¡°No. I don¡¯t see how one could.¡±


    John put Lilly down and asked, ¡°Where¡¯s the people you hid with? Those nine in the basement?¡±


    Lilly looked up and smiled brightly. ¡°I left them. It¡¯s still not safe with those snakish things out there. Three are to the north, two east, one west, and one south. It¡¯s not even seven AM so we have plenty of time to kill them before evac, my dear heart.¡±


    John looked at his wife smiling at him so adorably, a big grin making it easy to count the missing teeth. His heart filled with dread. He ignored his wife¡¯s frantic pleas to pick her back up and ran as quickly as he could to the estate he left her at while he did battle. He had some issues finding it but remembered the red door.


    As John entered the basement he fell to his knees and bowed his head. ¡°Lilly. Lilly, no.¡±

 B2 Chapter 18 - Be your fire when youre cold

    John couldn¡¯t look at the scene of horror. He sat on the ground and bowed his head. Later, the wooden-man entered the basement and stood near John. With his orb-eye, John noticed the wooden-man didn¡¯t look around, and he wondered if the thing even noticed the nine corpses. Or cared if he did notice. The wooden-man¡¯s unmoving, painted-on eyes started to annoy John.


    It took Lilly some time to arrive. John ignored her, and she went to his kneeling form and wrapped her arms around his neck and placed her head on his cheek. She didn¡¯t say anything, and just held her husband.


    John felt a tug on his mind. He thought of refusing. Of raging. Smashing things. Doing something to get Lilly to understand. To really understand. To fear and obey him. He finally accepted the pull.


    The world blurred by, and John looked at his wife as she was, in all her terrible beauty. ¡°It¡¯s not what you think, Adon.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s John!¡±


    ¡°Of course. John. Will you allow me to explain?¡±


    ¡°You said you wouldn¡¯t!¡±


    Lilly closed her eyes. ¡°No. I said I wouldn¡¯t kill wantonly. This certainly doesn¡¯t count. If you¡¯d just let me explain.¡±


    ¡°Three were completely mutilated! There were kids!¡±


    Lilly¡¯s eyes opened and an angry look crinkled her face. ¡°Are you serious! Kids? The youngest of those was older than I was when you offered me the dark gift. Am I a kid? As you see me now? I was fifteen. I would¡¯ve been married at thirteen if¡­kids! The Eternal took all the actual kids. I can¡¯t believe¡­kids my ass. And can I continue? I wasn¡¯t finished.¡±


    ¡°You mutilated three of them. There¡¯s no excuse, Lilitu. None!¡±


    ¡°You were being killed! What was I supposed to do? Just watch? I could do something, so I did. It¡¯s my duty as your wife. The ritual to create a dybbuk needed three sacrifices and it does that to them. Know what tier ritual that was? How much wealth I spent? I was desperate and wanted to save my husband. My heart. I can¡¯t lose you. Not again.¡±


    Lilly began to cry and bowed her head.


    John half-wished he never entered into the Mind¡¯s Eye of Lilly as she couldn¡¯t see the anger on his face and how he stared daggers at her. He knew this wasn¡¯t business that should be spoken of in front of strangers, though he doubted the wooden-man would understand any of it. He also half-wished his desires hadn¡¯t returned when he ascended to Copper, as seeing his wife as she was, how beautiful and desirable she was, ate away at his resolve. He craved her greatly.


    ¡°Are you ready to listen now, John? You know how weak my new body is. I won¡¯t be able to cultivate for years. I can strengthen myself through blood. And¡­¡±


    John tried to interrupt. ¡°You¡­¡±


    ¡°No! Let me finish. Did you notice the mezuzah on the door? These were my people. Jews. You know the oath I swore. You can¡¯t say I kill my own people wantonly. Ever. That is a matter of vengeance. A sacred matter.¡±


    John¡¯s heart sank. ¡°Still? You¡¯ve been gone for thousands of years. How can you hold onto such hate still? I killed all the ones that wronged you. Vengeance was handed out on the day I met you.¡±


    Lilly laughed hysterically before she continued. ¡°Not all of them! I told you. And you stole a large part of the vengeance I needed from me that day. That burned in me. That burns in me still. Does vengeance no longer mean anything to you? Are you a man no longer? You know what oath I swore. All my people, all our descendants, will pay the price for what was done to me! I will not be satisfied until they are no more. And when my vengeance is finally complete, I will build a monument to what was and piss on it and bury it in a cesspit!¡±


    John had met many people of strange beliefs in his life, but Lilly¡¯s people were the first he heard of worshiping only one God and no others. Of course, it became a common belief later, with both the adherents of the Christ, then the Muslimun believing the same. But back then, the people of Kayhamut saw his wife¡¯s people as a strange but harmless cult and wanted little to do with them or their little, strange and insular villages.


    What happened to Lilly as a child was truly awful. Lilly told John her father was a priest of her people. She had no mother to protect her. Her earliest memories were of her father bedding her. When she was a little older, he would let his friends do the same, and she would be passed around the village.


    When she became a woman and could marry, no one would have her. They said she was a seductress and sold herself for favors and was the reason so many men lost their way. Her father said it was her own fault he did what he did to her. She was too pretty and too tempting, and she never tried to stop him.


    Her father turned his back on Lilly, and she was forced to flee her village and become a prostitute for real in the closest city. She tried learning witchcraft and curses to mete out some punishment to those that wronged her, and when she was caught doing so it was the last straw. No one believed her story. No one believed a priest of their cult would do as she said, or that all the other men she named, and there were many of them, would be complicit in such deeds.


    Most of the men of her village that wronged her so, including her father, went to the city to help convict her, and they recommended she be put to the fire as a witch.


    John found Lilly as stones were being thrown at her while she made her way to the pyre. He saw her red soul. When he couldn¡¯t purchase her, he was forced to kill many of the men there, including her father, and take her by force.


    John said, ¡°I know well how some of them wronged you. But your desire to kill all of them for the sins of a few makes a mockery of something as sacred as vengeance. And to hold on to such hate for so long. It¡­just let it go, Lilly. You had them enslaved. They were slaves for centuries. Is that not punishment enough? Or what you did to them after they were freed and allowed to leave Kayhamut? You tortured them so much and for so long we had to leave civilization. You¡¯ve made them pay a thousand times over.¡±


    A mad look warped Lilly¡¯s face. Her eyes widened and she screamed, ¡°All of them! All will pay! Until there are none to!¡± She pointed at John¡¯s formless body and asked, ¡°And what gives you the right to monopolize how everyone should seek vengeance? Or satisfy their own sense of it? They put a black pit in my chest, and it will not be filled until they are no more. And what the fuck is Kayhamut?¡±


    John was taken by surprise. If anyone should know, it was Lilly. ¡°Kayhamut is¡­the small city I found you in was east of it. The great empire a little west of where you were from. They conquered the lower and upper parts of the river and ruled from White Walls.¡±


    Lilly said, ¡°Mizraim. Misr. Egypt. Were you trying to say Kumat? Really, Adon, your accents are always horrible and there is little you say correctly. And the city you found me in was in Egypt. What was it called? I forget the city, if you can even call it that. I remember the province was called Eastmost. But my people, the Children of God, the villages our tribes lived in were all called Goshen throughout the lower delta.


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    ¡°We were there. Apepi only ruled the north, the kingdom wasn¡¯t unified, and he wasn¡¯t in White Walls. You know they were hardly made slaves at all. We were always treated as strange outsiders to avoid due to our beliefs and little changed for them after my deal, it just made those prick Levis important. And they weren¡¯t freed and allowed to leave Egypt. Seti called for anyone willing to resettle the northern coasts and my people were willing to move to that shitty region he wanted occupied as a buffer against the Hittites. I told you to kill him. He reneged on the deal I made with his ancestor. Probably his ancestor. You¡¯ve always let people take advantage of you.¡±


    John felt guilty and dirty. His wife had an answer for all his charges, and it annoyed him that she corrected how he named the region. He went there long before she was born. He knew what it was called. It stood for something like black soil, or dark soil, or something like that. ¡°Just, please, no more of this. Let this be the last. If¡­¡±


    Lilly interrupted. ¡°No. If I can save you by killing some others, I always will. I promised not to kill wantonly, and I won¡¯t. To save you, to save my husband, my dear heart, the only man to make my heart content, I would destroy this world and everyone that lives on it. It hurts me so much that you wouldn¡¯t do the same for me. I am your wife!¡±


    Lilly crossed her arms over her chest. John said, ¡°How many have I killed for you? I never let harm come to you. I killed to protect you. You killed innocent people. And it was for nothing. Ridge-head was almost dead.¡±


    In a serious tone, Lilly said, ¡°You did always keep me safe, Adon, I know. You killed so many for me. But you also killed me, remember? And that¡¯s been eating away at me. And¡­and something else has been eating away at me too. My father¡­this body¡¯s father. It happened again. But differently.¡±


    Lilly¡¯s eyes became glassy with tears once more. ¡°I slowly become me as the body I take ages. Without the Tree of Life, it¡¯s much slower. My last body, I wasn¡¯t really me until I was sixteen or seventeen. Even now I¡¯m only about ninety percent me, if that. It started when I was so young, I wasn¡¯t enough of me yet to stop him.¡±


    Lowering her eyes and holding her hands together in front of her, Lilly continued. ¡°He was always very nice about it. It was like I was his girlfriend. He¡¯d bed me and take me out for ice cream or to a playground or an arcade. He would do anything for me. Buy me anything I wanted, his little girlfriend. I¡¯d have him drive me by your place all the time. I said I liked the houses. When one near you went up for sale it was easy to get him to buy it.


    ¡°The part that really hurts was my mother. This body¡¯s mother. I know she loved me. I could feel it. She had to know what was going on. She pretended nothing was. I don¡¯t think she wanted her perfect life ruined by accepting what her gorgeous, rich husband was doing to her daughter. Or maybe her mind couldn¡¯t take it.


    ¡°Anyway, having that happen again brought up a lot of old feelings and memories. I killed them both. After the Tree of Life came back and I became more myself. I killed them and walked out. I was so happy to have my husband back, the man I fought so hard to return to and love so much and would do anything for. But then you told me you killed me. Thought you killed me.¡±


    Lilly started to sob, her shoulders shaking as she did. The sobs began to lessen, and Lilly said, ¡°You killing me and¡­my father¡­it¡­it¡¯s too much¡­I¡­¡±


    Lilly looked up at John for a moment before lowering her teary eyes again. ¡°I want to do better. I do. I just want us to be happy. And love and support each other. That¡¯s all I want. I fought so hard to get back to you. It took so long. And now I have these¡­things, eating away at me. Making the hole inside of me bigger. It doesn¡¯t feel like you love me anymore. It feels like you¡¯d rather I stayed gone. It hurts so much.¡±


    With a hurting heart, John said, ¡°Lilly¡­if I knew¡­I¡¯m sorry I wasn¡¯t able to protect you. Never fear that I don¡¯t love you. I always will. I don¡¯t think I could ever not love you. Let¡¯s make a deal. I will do more to show you how much I love you, and you put a hold on the vengeance you want against your people. Once Earth is safe and the invasions are over, we can talk about it then. And I¡¯d prefer you didn¡¯t kill innocent people to save me. I had it handled.¡±


    ¡°You would be dead right now if Stretch the puppet-thing hadn¡¯t shown up. I had no choice!¡±


    John let out a mental sigh. ¡°I understand. I love you, my dear heart. And part of the deal is treating my friends well. You must treat them well too.¡±


    ¡°And I love you so much it hurts, Adon. I already said I¡¯d treat your friends well. I wish you could see what is so easy to see. Let me ask you something. Does the¡­does Amber not use foul or offensive language? Does she stand in ways highlighting her figure and set flame to desires, and pretend she is too innocent and naive to know what she¡¯s doing? Does she try to always seem wholesome? Almost too wholesome?¡±


    John said, ¡°I¡­why are we talking about her? I told you she can¡¯t be with a man. I just asked you to treat her well. That¡¯s all that¡¯s required.¡±


    Lilly smiled. ¡°That means I¡¯m correct on all counts. You¡¯re being played by the oldest trick in the book, my dear. I will treat her well, have no fear. Just ask yourself how I knew her game if it isn¡¯t a game? And I accept your deal. For the most part. And there¡¯s one easy way to show me you love me.¡±


    Lilly posed in a way to highlight her curves and figure. ¡°Do you find me attractive still?¡±


    ¡°You know I do, Lilly. Very much so. How could I not?¡±


    Lilly smiled seductively. ¡°I haven¡¯t been with you in so long. I always think about our first night together, under the stars and moon. I¡¯m your wife. Part of your duty is to satisfy me. And part of my duty is to satisfy you. I need to feel you inside of me again. I¡¯ve waited thousands of years. I can wait no longer. We have plenty of time before the evac arrives. Just take me once. Close your eyes and lie back and I¡¯ll do all the work.¡±


    John tried his hardest to lay himself back. ¡°I can¡¯t. I¡¯m trying as hard as I can. I want to very badly. I have no body.¡±


    Lilly laughed bewitchingly. ¡°Not in here, you silly man. Out there. Just close your eyes and pretend I look as I do now. Easy-breezy.¡±


    John went from overly excited to repulsed quickly. ¡°What? You know I can¡¯t. I won¡¯t. That is sick. Can we please do it in here? With you as you are now? Please?¡±


    As quickly as John¡¯s emotions changed, so did Lilly¡¯s, and tears poured out of her eyes. ¡°No! We can¡¯t do anything in here, fool. We¡¯re both in the Mortal Tree. Even if I coached you into creating a body we couldn¡¯t. I¡¯m so fucking horny right now. It¡¯s me in that body. I¡¯ve waited thousands of years to lie with you again. I know the new body I have is very attractive. Most men would love to bed it. You know I¡¯m not actually a child. Stop being such a fucking pussy. One of your duties as a husband is to satisfy me. Are you not man enough to anymore?¡±


    The tears stopped and Lilly angrily said, ¡°I can¡¯t see it, but I can tell what face you¡¯re making, asshole! I¡¯m serious!¡±


    John only knew horny to mean something along the lines of calloused hands, so he assumed Lilly¡¯s usage meant something very different. From context he believed being a pussy meant being timid and cowardly. He didn¡¯t think he was being either. Even the thought of what she asked repulsed him to his core. He hated such men.


    And John knew for certain most men felt the same, and he knew Lilly knew it too. His repulsion turned to pity, and he felt very sad for his wife. He knew a big part of her identity was being desired by men, and it must kill her having to suffer through childhood without her greatest power. Having the body of a child and being desired by no one is probably her worst nightmare, thought John.


    Without attempting to keep all the disgust from his voice, John answered. ¡°Never ask me to do that. The thought of doing such disgusts me and I never will. When I think of what happened to you as a child the first time, and again this time, it angers me greatly. I will not join the ranks of men I despise. We¡¯ve both lived long and know time goes by quickly. Ten years or so isn¡¯t a long wait at all. Do not ask me for anything like that until you have the full-grown body of a woman.¡±


    Lilly¡¯s face turned rageful for a moment before it calmed, and she wiped the tears from her face. John wondered if real tears could be shed while within a Mind¡¯s Eye. ¡°Oh, Adon, I can¡¯t wait that long, but I know I must. I may lose my mind, so be tolerant. You know there¡¯s nothing I wouldn¡¯t do for you. So, I will wait.


    ¡°And speaking of things I did for you ¨C I want all the details of your new body. And I want to know everything else. You left out all the important details when we last spoke about this. I want exact [Stats], every [Perk], all your [Skills]. All of it. But be quick. We have time outside but keeping you in here drains my spirit. Or vigor. Outer spirit. There¡¯s no good word for it in English.


    ¡°Come then, tell me everything. I know your bones were much hardened. Your claws and teeth pierced the two you fought as if they had no [Fortification] at all.¡±

 B2 Chapter 19 - Paris is burning

    Lilly started to call the wooden-man Stretch. John liked the name enough he adopted it too. John brought Lilly to all the snake-women so she could drain them and strengthen herself in that way as he fulfilled the bargain she made on his behalf to clear New York City of dark ones.


    Stretch would go into murder-mode when he caught up to John trying to subdue a snake-woman, and his inability to listen or understand or do as he was told annoyed John greatly. He would have to restrain Stretch while keeping Lilly safe as she fed, and it wasn¡¯t an easy thing to do.


    Lilly tried using the mind power on Stretch. It didn¡¯t work. She scanned Stretch as best she could and said, ¡°There¡¯s no mind to touch within Stretch. All constructs have something ¨C either runes running scripts or a processor. This is just wood and some sort of goop holding it together. The only explanation is someone is controlling it from a great distance using some means of telekinesis. But then how does it drain crystals like it does? And how does it have a soul? Constructs can¡¯t have souls. It defies explanation and I¡¯ve never heard of the like.¡±


    And Stretch did drain crystals. Eight of the ones from the snake-women. If John snatched all the crystals up, Stretch would lose his mind until at least one was given to him. Once crystals were hidden from sight or placed in Lilly¡¯s soul storage, Stretch would immediately stop whining.


    Stretch advanced to Copper right in front of the couple, and the ascension seemed instantaneous. Neither rank ups nor ascensions were instantaneous. Both events took time and effort, but not for Stretch. And he didn¡¯t need his foundation to settle, or care about his foundation at all. It seemed he became more proficient with draining crystals too, as he was mid-high Copper after he drained all of the snake-women crystals.


    John got to use and practice with [Drain Essence]. In his opinion, the spell didn¡¯t drain essence quickly enough, but he just learned the spell and it had plenty of room to grow. The spell also filled his dantian with the essence of his foes. The downside of that was if his foes had weaker essence, his own essence would weaken, but wouldn¡¯t weaken below his [Min. Power].


    The snake-women were easily dealt with as they barely tried to unbind and their main power seemed to be a mental one that didn¡¯t work on John, Stretch, or Lilly. The metal discs of the snake-women could no longer pierce John¡¯s skin, and only Lilly had to worry about those.


    Once the snake-women were dealt with, they had over two hours before the evac was scheduled to arrive. Both John and Lilly knew Stretch would steal much of their wealth, but they didn¡¯t want to leave all the crystals John earned on the street near the VA hospital.


    John and Lilly madly collected all the crystals they could as Stretch drained one after another. The construct needed more and more of the lower-tiered crystals to rank up. Once John and Lilly collected all they could and no more where on the road, Stretch was a mid-low Bronze. John also found his Fireblade.


    While the three were collecting or draining crystals, the couple received a World Quest. It was the same message they both received before about Stretch, but this time it was offered to every inhabitant of Terra and included pictures.


    Sadly, most humans near the thump ritual were killed. Some people did make their way to the area and asked if things were safe and asked about Stretch and the World Quest. Lilly begged John not to talk to them, so John yelled, ¡°It¡¯s safe,¡± before grabbing Lilly and jumping onto the roof of the VA, leaving Stretch to do the rest of the talking. Stretch joined them soon after and didn¡¯t seem to find the sight of Lilly drinking John¡¯s blood strange at all. After Lilly was done feeding, she and John talked about the old days, the old cities, the good times they had together.


    John assumed they would just get on the helicopter and ride it to DC, but the helicopter wound down and people exited. An older looking soldier approached, one that looked exactly like the type of man Lilly enjoyed toying with. The soldier nodded to Lilly and said, ¡°Meghan. It¡¯s John, right? Colonel Stoddart. You were supposed to fly to DC and have a news conference then meet with President Gillis. Plans changed. The President isn¡¯t flying back.


    ¡°She does have a request for you. We tried reproducing the ritual you made. Big operations in Brazil and France. Rituals didn¡¯t work at all, and shit went sideways quick. Sorry about the language, ma¡¯am, but I was told you¡¯re much older than you look, Meghan. I hope I didn¡¯t cause offense, ma¡¯am.¡±


    ¡°Swear all you want, Colonel. I take no offense.¡±


    ¡°Well, those rituals failing made us¡­we lost some standing, if you know what I mean. The kaiju are really pounding our allies. We need you to fly to France and Brazil and make new ones. Get the kaiju issue handled so we can focus on the demons.¡±


    Lilly smiled widely. ¡°Colonel, I¡¯m most definitely willing to save America¡¯s reputation along with the lives of millions of soldiers and civilians. For the right price, of course. Are you allowed to bargain or is there someone important I should be talking to?¡±


    Lilly told John something like that would happen. John disliked it, and thought it was their duty to help. And the ruler¡¯s duty to give them fitting rewards for their victories. Lilly laughed and got him to consent to let her bargain on their behalf, including on the behalf of Amber and Hubaba. She currently earned three percent of all the crystals farmed from the dark walker she trapped. She said that was only to get them to agree and prove it worked and that they needed her. She would now want much more.


    A deal was agreed upon, and John and Lilly boarded the helicopter. Stretch wouldn¡¯t enter the helicopter, instead he jumped back down to the road and ran to a patch of grass and disappeared underground. John wasn¡¯t overly sad to see him go.


    John and Lilly flew to a military base where they met up with Amber and Hubaba. Lilly went straight up to the invisible Amber and said, ¡°I¡¯m so sorry for the insults I called you yesterday morning. I haven¡¯t seen my husband in thousands of years, I¡¯m in this child¡¯s body I know he doesn¡¯t find attractive, and he was in the company of the most beautiful woman I¡¯ve ever seen.


    ¡°It¡¯s hard to control my emotions as I am now. I¡¯m not fully myself yet, and this body¡¯s mind is young and still developing. My jealousy got the best of me. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me. And I do hope we can be friends. But, first, I need to thank you for all the times you saved my dope of a husband. If not for you, I¡¯d be a widow at only seven years old. I¡¯m too young to be a widow!¡±


    Both Lilly and Amber laughed. ¡°It¡¯s okay. You¡¯re just adorable. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll make me look like a toad when you¡­your body gets¡­when you, you know, like, when it¡­when you look my age.¡± Amber laughed embarrassingly. ¡°Sorry, I couldn¡¯t get that out right!¡±


    John saw Lilly¡¯s hand reach up and hold something, he assumed Amber¡¯s hand, and his wife led Amber onto the waiting plane. As they walked and talked and giggled, accompanied by Colonel Stoddart, John heard Amber ask Lilly, ¡°Why doesn¡¯t John have eyebrows? And how come you can see me?¡±


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    John gave Hubaba a look meant to indicate all women were mad, and he knew Hubaba didn¡¯t understand as the demon just smiled at John very creepily. He held a phone out to John and said, ¡°I am a famous Instagram model now. Let me show you my photos. They¡¯ve only been up for four or so hours as measured on Terra and I already have twenty-two million followers. I ask you to please follow me and like and share.¡±


    John looked at the pictures as Hubaba held out the phone and scrolled through them. While walking up the ramp to board the plane, he stopped short and bid Hubaba to stop too. He asked, ¡°These pictures are meant for others to see? Others you do not know? Including men?¡±


    Hubaba replied, ¡°Yes. And females. All magals of this planet. The more that do, the better. It is the whole point of it. I think the photos came out wonderfully. Notice my new makeup? What this world has for makeup is far superior to what Amber used on Esau. I look very beautiful, though no one has said so in the comments. The drone¡­what is it called? The movie the drones made of our battle with Second Point¡¯s forces is very popular. Most just thank me in the comments and completely disregard my great beauty.¡±


    An apprehension spread throughout John. ¡°So, Amber made these photos knowing many men would see them? Strangers? She was hoping strangers saw her dressed so and in these positions? Looking as she does?¡±


    ¡°Yes. The two photos of her as a bear were my idea so terrans would know she is the one that battled in the movie they¡¯ve seen. She didn¡¯t want to waste the essence, but I thought it was worth it. We will make longer movies for TikTok. I have more followers on TikTok, but Amber said Instagram is more important for models such as us.¡±


    John felt a strong emotion he couldn¡¯t fully describe. He also felt a little anger, a good amount of disappointment, and some other emotions, including something like jealousy, but not jealousy as he understood it to be. He didn¡¯t understand why Amber would do that on purpose.


    John knew Amber was unmarried and would never have a husband, but why she did as she did still didn¡¯t make sense to him. It conflicted with how he saw her and thought her to be.


    None of the pictures really showed anything overly untoward, besides one where she showed nearly all her legs. She wore the top of a cultivation robe with a hem that went only to the upper thighs, but not the bottoms that accompanied the top.


    John thought all the pictures were as Lilly said ¨C Amber highlighted and purposefully emphasized all that set men¡¯s desires aflame while she smiled sweetly and pretended like she didn¡¯t know that was exactly what she was doing. Like she was an innocent and naive farmgirl unaware of what it did to men to see her so.


    Since Amber didn¡¯t have a father to set her straight, John thought about telling her to stop making such pictures or men would think she was loose. He knew it wasn¡¯t his business, and he knew she knew what she was doing and seemed to want men to think that, so he decided to keep his thoughts to himself.


    The hand Hubaba held the phone with had the storage ring on one of his fingers. John asked, ¡°Hubaba, why do you wear the storage ring I gave Amber to hold?¡±


    ¡°When you exited the helicopter to fight the dark ones, she handed it to me. She did not seem pleased with you.¡±


    ¡°The ring is mine by right and I¡¯d like it back then.¡±


    John got on the plane and immediately started to meditate, ignoring all around him. He didn¡¯t go deep, and kept an ear out, and listened to his wife charm Amber and Hubaba. She even took turns pulling each into her Mind¡¯s Eye for a quick moment to show them what she looked like during her first life. Amber said, ¡°Oh my God! You¡¯re dressed as Jessica Rabbit, right? You were so beautiful.¡±


    John thought they should¡¯ve spent the time meditating. He wondered why his wife didn¡¯t sleep after saying she was so tired and how important it was for her child¡¯s body.


    Once the ring was fully unattuned from Hubaba, John put it on his left hand and attuned it to himself. He checked inside for his shield. He thought about asking Hubaba for the bracer-shield he liked, since his bracer slot was freed up. He decided to just use the shield he had before. It was a good shield and Hubaba looked disappointed when he asked for the ring back, and he didn¡¯t want to anger his friend by asking for equipment back he gave out willingly.


    John could unattune an item and planned on doing so to the belt of hiding and re-equipping the belt that increased physical prowess some, but he noticed the bracer in the ring was attuned to him still, and he couldn¡¯t unattune it. He clamped down on his frustration. The bracer could go on either his left or right forearm. He had a hard time deciding which arm would be better. Both had merits.


    With his mind wandering back to Amber¡¯s pictures, John decided to hold off on any equipment decisions for the time being. He a few rune ¡®points¡¯ to spend but decided he would save them up for a damaging and low essence spray-type spell. He avoided spending time in his Mind¡¯s Eye because all Avatar seemed to care about was Stretch and harassing John to find out everything he could about the strange man-puppet.


    At some point, Amber gave John a phone and tried to instruct him on its use, but he told her he needed to fill his dantian, though it was already full.


    The four companions arrived in France. The dark walker there headed to Luxembourg after it left Paris, but suddenly stopped and headed south, then stopped and headed west, then north. The military was rushing to get Lilly to draw the trapping ritual before the dark walker reached Chalons-en-Champagne as the plan was to trap the thing south of that city.


    Once the dark walker was trapped, Lilly would create a thump ritual outside of Reims and then another outside of Paris, as both places were filled with dark ones. The one in Reims would be powered by the only man on Terra known to have cleared all his dantians, and they were to meet up with him near Chalons-en-Champagne.


    Every population has outliers. It was projected that without the aid of crystals it would take most terrans two weeks to clear a dantian, and six weeks to clear all three. The man they were to meet up with, Petar Kostov, a personal driver from Bulgaria, cleared all three dantians in just under six days. And he did it without crystals increasing his speed.


    Petar was thin and in his early forties but had all white hair. He had never excelled at anything in his life up until that point.


    Hubaba learned how to do the giant ritual needed to trap a dark walker. Dark ones never went in the NetherRealms, and scabs rarely left the NetherRealms, so he knew little of dark ones, but he did know much about rituals, and wanted to learn more. Hubaba then infused the trapping ritual Lilly made since he had the strong and long-lasting essence of a Gold.


    The military used helicopters to attack the dark walker and led it directly over the trapping ritual, and many other military members were set up around the ritual and would kill dark ones as they were shed, the same setup used for the dark walker in the US.


    John was amazed at the size of the dark walker. It looked to him like a mix between a wyrm of legend and a praying mantis but walked like a man did and its face was on its belly. It stood as high as some of the giant buildings he saw in New York City, and it was filled with vital essence but had no soul. His info function said it was an early-stage, low-grade dark walker.


    Then, with Petar, the companions were flown to just outside of Reims to do a practice thump ritual with low-level essence. This thump ritual was a test to see how the event was supposed to go in New York City. It went well, and Petar and the military had no issues killing dark ones as they exited Reims or came from the surrounding area. The dark ones were different from the ones in New York, but the military had knowledge of all known merges. There were no surprises as the dark ones slowly made their way to the ritual.


    The companions watched for a time, ensuring the military was able to handle dark ones. None of the companions needed to intervene or help once things got going, so bid farewell to Petar and left for Paris. The G40 wanted footage of normal soldiers fighting back. And highlight footage of Petar fighting, the normal man who did something extraordinary.


    After Lilly created a thump ritual south of Paris, she and Amber flew to Brazil to trap the dark walker there.


    The military dug in deep near the ritual outside of Paris and had many great machines of war and troops on hand. Paris was filled with dark ones. Like New York City, Paris was overflowing with them, and had many more of them than Reims. Still, many people were alive and sheltering in the city. What happened in New York City was a mistake, but a mistake that could be learned from and its lessons applied purposefully.


    Hubaba infused both thump-ball and ritual. The overly powerful thump-ritual was meant to clear all of Paris and the surrounding areas of dark ones quickly. Hubaba was a Gold and deft at both unbinding and protecting against unbinds, and together with John, they were confident they could handle what was drawn to the ritual at any pace, even if the military were absent.


    Seven hours later, Paris was mostly free of dark ones. John and Hubaba flew back to DC to meet with President Gillis and to hold a news conference with her.

 B2 Chapter 20 - I want to get out of here

    Soon after John and Hubaba returned to DC, they were to rejoin Lilly and Amber.  They were meeting in a building where a news conference would be held that morning.  The ladies seemed to have become fast friends.  John figured Lilly was playing one of her games, but the type of game she was playing always lasted a very long time, so he wasn¡¯t too worried.


    John heard Lilly say, ¡°Stop it!  You are so bad,¡± to the invisible Amber as both laughed.  As he entered the room, Lilly ran to hold her husband, and with her head resting on his cheek she said, ¡°Guess who showed up in Brazil?  Stretch!  That psycho really tried to fight the dark walker.


    ¡°He couldn¡¯t do shit to it, of course.  You¡¯d need a Salt or a low Transcendent to hurt one, even the lesser ones we have on Terra.  But no one wants that.  You trap them, farm them, and hope it takes months before they break down.  That idiot could¡¯ve gotten killed.¡±


    Lilly lifted her head and said, ¡°Oh, Hubaba, I hope you don¡¯t mind but I agreed you¡¯d go to Rhode Island and Cuiaba to recharge both rituals.  You¡¯ll get the equivalent of two greens, so ten thousand clear crystals.  It was a good deal I knew you¡¯d want.¡±


    Hubaba smiled creepily.  ¡°Yes.  It is a good deal.  When do I leave?  Amber wanted to take me clothes shopping.¡±


    Lilly stopped smiling.  ¡°Like I said on the flight to France, we don¡¯t have to worry about any shit like that.  We¡¯re important.  We all have diplomatic rights.  Stoddard is supposed to bring us our State Department servants later.  Tell them what you want, and they¡¯ll get it.  I doubt there¡¯s any clothes anywhere that would fit you though.  Our clothes don¡¯t have refit runes.  Remember, each clear crystal is worth a shit-ton now.  Last I heard, they were selling for at least a hundred kay US each.¡±


    Letting go of her husband, Lilly said, ¡°And I don¡¯t know when you¡¯re going.  Probably after we meet with Gillis.  You guys hear about India?  The G40 forces were decimated.  There¡¯s two Golds with the China invasion now and I¡¯m guessing a Diamond or Salt poked through the portal and wiped out what he could.  That¡¯s twice they¡¯ve done it and got away with it.¡±


    John hadn¡¯t heard that.  Amber started to say something as a woman burst into the room and loudly said, ¡°Hello!  Alice Cooper, Press Secretary, no relation.  Glad you all could make it.  The plan¡¯s changed.  President Gillis isn¡¯t flying back.  She sends her apologies and her heartfelt thanks on behalf of a grateful nation.  I¡¯ll head the news conference.  After, you¡¯ll meet with the VP.  That¡¯s been pushed back to ten.  The earliest Vice President Williams could sneak away from the War Room.¡±


    John disliked Alice Cooper.  He disliked how she took charge and everyone just let her, and how she made decisions on what John would do without his consideration or consent.  He was surprised Lilly allowed it.  Usually, she was the one that tried to control John and order him about, as well as everyone else in sight she deemed worthy of notice.


    John thought Alice Cooper was attractive enough, but her artificial scents were so strong they overwhelmed his nose, and she caked too much paint on her face the same as Hubaba did.


    People tried to force John to wear makeup himself and change his clothings.  When he refused to do either, Alice Cooper was informed, and she rolled her eyes and sighed so loudly and rudely his adrenaline spiked with anger.


    When Alice Cooper approached John about his refusal to comply, she talked to him as if she were a mother talking to her small child.  He struggled to maintain his calm.  He waited a moment before looking the woman in the eye and saying, ¡°Since you¡¯re a lady, I will give a warning.  If you speak to me like I am so low again, or deign to order me about just one more time, all the essence of life within you will go towards strengthening me.¡±


    The look of horror and fear that grew on the face of Alice Cooper as she heard his words gladdened John¡¯s heart, and he nearly smiled as she rushed away.


    John, Lilly, Hubaba, and the invisible Amber sat in chairs behind a podium that Alice Cooper stood in front of as she took questions from a large crowd of mostly seated people.  John hated the event, and hoped it would be over soon, and he promised he¡¯d never attend another like it.


    John largely ignored the questions and spent the time thinking of the minimum number of runes he¡¯d need to create a spray-type spell that would do as he wanted.  His ¡®shadow¡¯ concept could be a damaging essence, but he really wanted a fire spell.  He asked for little in life and fate constantly denied him his dream of having fire billow forth from his hands.  He would be denied no longer.  Not too much longer.


    One audience member finally caught John¡¯s attention.  A slight and frail looking man in his early forties, by John¡¯s guess.  The man smelled of weakness and the artificial scents of perfumes.  John first noticed him when he began to question Hubaba¡¯s commitment to helping humans as his demon friend squirmed uncomfortably in his oversized seat.


    John paid much closer attention to the man when he basically stated John was solely responsible for the massacre that happened to humans in New York City during the thump-ritual.  He didn¡¯t say it in so many words, instead he said it deviously and underhandedly, and everyone knew what he was truly saying.  He then went on to impugn John¡¯s character and motives in many ways.


    John was amazed.  He assumed the man was the scion of high nobility or royalty to insult him in such a way.  Insult John in his own presence and have no fear whatsoever of any repercussions.


    Whenever John chose to hide as a soldier, mercenary, farmer, crafter, slave, or even as nobility, putting up with being treated lowly by any deemed his superiors came along with it.  He knew that beforehand and accepted it, and for the most part, barring a few incidents, he was fine with it.  It was how things were and the only way he could hide himself.


    John wasn¡¯t hiding.  He no longer would.  The man clearly knew John was powerful and dangerous.  If the man thought being the son of high-nobility or royalty would keep him safe, he would soon find out the truth of the matter, as John had no desire to let the nobles and rulers of the current world treat him as if he was lesser.  They would know he was far above them, and his tolerance for strangers treating him poorly was and would remain non-existent for the remainder of his life.


    John thought the point would best be made a certain way, so he sped to the man as fast as he could and sunk his teeth deep into the man¡¯s frail neck.  He drank as the audience screamed, rushed away from him, and watched in open-mouthed horror.


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    John dropped the dead man to the ground.  Of the many armed men in the room, only one had the courage to fire a bullet at John, which he stopped with his palm.  He then said, ¡°Let this be a lesson and an answer to all your questions.  I will fight and battle to save this world from her invaders.  I will not hesitate to give my own life to do so.  But I will not be insulted, not by the lowest of men, nor by the greatest of kings.


    ¡°I have heard much of your modern society and how I am supposed to allow and accept what I disagree with and don¡¯t want to, such as tolerating such rudeness and disrespect.  I am supposed to be something called ¡®the bigger man.¡¯  I don¡¯t understand how this nonsense was reasoned out, but I reject it.  Big men have honor, and defend their own viciously.¡±


    John looked around the room of horrified people, wondering why they all seemed so frightened since none of them insulted him.  That he knew of.  ¡°That is all.  Wait.  Just one more moment while I have your attention.  I would like to mention I usually have eyebrows.  Mine will grow back soon.  And only the sun determines when noon is.  Believing otherwise is nonsense.


    ¡°Please continue with the event but I must beg my pardon and exit.¡±


    <hr><hr>


    Alice Cooper refused to be around John after he killed the man during the news conference.  Good, John thought.  He disliked that all the people around him kept saying he murdered someone.  He never once in his life insulted a man he didn¡¯t expect would try his best to kill him, and he would never consider it murder if the man succeeded.


    To John, murder was killing someone for no good reason.  If there was a good reason, it couldn¡¯t be murder.  A man purposefully insulting another man, especially in that man¡¯s presence, was certainly a long accepted and understandable reason to kill someone over.


    Even peasants, disarmed and told they were low and had to tolerate being treated lowly and disrespected, having lives of so little value they usually weren¡¯t even allowed to defend their own, would never be called a murderer if they found a spine and killed a better for insulting them.


    The peasant would be executed for breaking whatever law stated he wasn¡¯t allowed to have pride or defend himself or however it was worded, but no one would name him murderer.  Not if they did the deed openly and honestly in somewhat fair combat, and it wasn¡¯t an assassination or some such.


    Not long after John met Thomas, the code duello swept Italia and all the western countries.  That put rules around killing for insults and being wronged.  Like anything that had always been normal and acceptable behavior, once there was one law or rule regarding it, the laws and rules would become more complex and sillier, until that normal thing was ruled right out of existence.


    John told the people around him if the family and friends of the man he killed wanted to challenge him to a duel or combat, he pre-accepted all such offers.  They didn¡¯t seem to understand.


    The meeting with the Vice President was canceled due to safety concerns.  John didn¡¯t mind.  He was surprised Lilly worked so hard to get the meeting rescheduled, and disappointed when his wife succeeded.


    As John was shuffled into an office with his wife, Hubaba, and Amber, he hoped the meeting would go quickly and he could get onto more important things.  They tried to make him promise violence wouldn¡¯t be done, but he wouldn¡¯t make that promise.  Lilly explained he would only commit violence under very specific circumstances, and all were very easily avoidable, such as not insulting him, manhandling him, stealing his property, and things of that nature.


    It bothered John that Amber didn¡¯t seem to understand why he killed the man during the news conference.  He thought he knew her better, but he didn¡¯t know her as well as he thought he did.


    Vice President Williams was very dark of skin and greeted all warmly with a giant smile.  After introductions were made and all sat, Williams said, ¡°President Gillis sends her apologies for not being here to thank you all in person.  An opportunity came up.  Could be a real game changer.  Later, we¡¯ll turn on video conferencing and introduce you to other world leaders in the G40.¡±


    John asked, ¡°You represent Team Human?¡±


    The smile briefly left the face of Vice President Williams, ¡°I¡­I guess you could say that.  We haven¡¯t seen this much unity and cohesion since post nine-eleven, except its world-wide and not just here in the US.¡±  He laughed and said, ¡°And not just humans!  We certainly don¡¯t want to exclude¡­uh, Hubaba here, and all his contributions!¡±


    Looking at Hubaba, Williams continued, ¡°Is it just Hubaba?  Is there a title?  We¡¯re told you¡¯re not a general, but equivalent to the¡­uh, demon leaders.  Captains?  What is it?  Gold rank?  Is it Captain Hubaba?¡±


    Smiling creepily, Hubaba said, ¡°I am not a captain.  Customarily, it is always acceptable to title one within the Mortal Tree with their tier.  So, I would be called Gold Hubaba, or even just Gold when addressed.  Captain is a title used for chosen within the rank structure of Circle Xakariz.  I was told to call you Mr. Vice President and that your superior, Gillis, is to be called Madam President.¡±


    Still smiling widely, Vice President Williams said, ¡°That¡¯s right.  That¡¯s right.  Gold Hubaba.  If the reports I read are correct, you¡¯re part of a group of demons that were¡­uh, not treated very well.  Well, I hope you¡¯re finding how you¡¯re treated here acceptable.  If there¡¯s any issues, just let me know.  We appreciate what you¡¯ve done for us.  I hear you¡¯re something of an internet sensation.  How¡¯re you¡­¡±


    All in the room froze and a small ball rolled in front of Lilly.  From the ball, many solid and thin lights extended out in arcs in a way John had never seen light bend before.  At least one bent light touched everyone in the room John could see, as well as many objects and locations along the walls and ceiling.


    From her chair, John heard Lilly say, ¡°I can¡¯t see you, Adon.  You with me?¡±


    John asked his wife, ¡°Great gods below, what are you doing, woman?¡±   The Vice President and all the humans with him were frozen, as well as Hubaba.  He couldn¡¯t see Amber to tell if she was too.  He then looked at Lilly and saw her eyes sparkling madly.


    ¡°Well, excluding you, I¡¯m blanking them with what you call the mind power.  You know this shows up in our [Skills] list?  Makes harmony too.  The only aspect of vampirism that shows up anywhere in the NCS.  [Limited Hypnotic Compulsion].  Saved my ass a million times.  One of my highest [Skills].  The ball is called¡­it just plays illusions for any tech watching and listening.  By the way, I can¡¯t move while I¡¯m blanking this many.¡±


    John sighed.  ¡°You know I won¡¯t allow you to murder these people.  Or force them to do what they don¡¯t want to by such wrongful means.  Why are you doing this?  What good could come of it?¡±


    Lilly laughed.  ¡°Amber¡¯s right.  You really are a party-pooper.  I¡¯m not going to do anything bad.  I just want some questions answered.  I would¡¯ve preferred Gillis, but you shot any chance of that happening right to hell by killing the reporter.¡±


    John snapped out, ¡°Even you?¡±


    Lilly laughed.  ¡°Even me what?  I¡¯m not mad you killed him.  I¡¯m surprised you waited so long.¡±


    ¡°Why are you doing it to Hubaba and Amber too?¡±


    ¡°This shit isn¡¯t easy, monkey.  See how many I have under?  It became an area effect around Expert Mastery.  I can barely exclude you.   Maybe when I reach Grandmaster, I¡¯ll be able to exclude more people.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s just monkey now, is it?  You know how I feel about this.  No one should have their ability to stand defiant taken from them.  Ever.  It is the basis from which all honor flows.  The choices we make and our ability to choose death over all other options when necessary.  I hope you remember your promise to never use the mind power on me.  That also extends to Amber and Hubaba.  I¡¯m sure they¡¯re not happy about being treated this way, and I don¡¯t see how making enemies of Team Human will help us.¡±


    Lilly said, ¡°You don¡¯t like just monkey?  I think it¡¯s cute.  And don¡¯t worry.  None of them will remember any of this.  My goal isn¡¯t to make enemies.


    ¡°I need you to promise me you won¡¯t talk to anyone about anything we learn here.  Not one word.  Even Amber and Hubaba.  We¡¯re not keeping secrets from our friends.  See all the lights from the ball hitting us?  Hubaba has four hitting him.  The phones are definitely monitored, but we all had bugs placed on us too.  We¡¯ll tell our friends anything important we learned when it¡¯s safe to do so and only then, my dear heart.¡±

 B2 Chapter 21 - My image is reflected in my enemy’s eye

    Lilly said, ¡°Okay, sweetie, I¡¯m waking Williams up. Sherrod Williams, speak only the truth as you know it, all of it, freely, and as you would. Adon¡­John, anything you¡¯d like to ask before I start?¡±


    John sighed again as he stood and approached the Vice President. ¡°I¡¯d like to know more about this Team Human. His answer was very evasive.¡±


    Through his orb-eye, John saw Lilly roll her eyes. She said, ¡°John, Team Human is the G40. I¡¯m guessing the spook told you that. He was just messing around. It was just, like, a metonymy. Same as WD40.¡±


    ¡°Ah. Understood.¡± Metonymy was close to Greek and Latin for ¡®change of name.¡¯


    ¡°Was there anything else you wanted to ask, my dear heart?¡±


    ¡°No. I really dislike this, Lilly. This is extremely dishonorable.¡±


    Lilly laughed. ¡°He¡¯s a politician, Adon. They¡¯re even worse than the kings of old. Here, listen to this and tell me if what we¡¯re doing is dishonorable. Sherrod, why hasn¡¯t the US sent more troops or even spoke to us about the demon invasions that started in China and Nigeria?¡±


    Vice President Williams¡¯ eyes cleared as he said, ¡°It¡¯s in the national interest. The more damage done to BRICS countries and other threats to America, the better. We couldn¡¯t drag our feet longer with Brazil and the dark walker. It had to be right after France. And as¡­¡±


    Lilly interrupted. ¡°Sherrod, silence. See, my pretty little monkey? What¡¯d I tell you? I just want some truth, and these aren¡¯t good people.¡±


    John didn¡¯t like what he heard. The man seemed to be struggling with an internal conflict. John could see a certain desperation in the man¡¯s eyes, and he wanted to find out more about him. ¡°You were right in this instance. Ask him if he agrees with that strategy. If he¡¯d do the same if he were making these decisions.¡±


    Lilly asked and Vice President Williams said, ¡°No. This isn¡¯t the time for jockeying for dominance. There¡¯s a real existential threat to humanity. We should band together and focus on saving our planet. Do our best to help China and India and expect them to do the same for us. How can we expect that now? We¡¯re shitting all over a golden opportunity to bring the world together in a real way, and face whatever else is out there together, united.¡±


    John was surprised by that answer. He said, ¡°Ask him why he became a ruler.¡±


    ¡°Oh, John. I could answer that, but I¡¯ll ask for you. Sherrod, why¡¯d you get into politics?¡±


    ¡°It was the easiest path to what I wanted. Money, fame, women, fine dining with important people, all that¡¯s best in life. Being a lawyer was difficult and required a lot of thinking and effort. The hard part of politics is just getting elected. Once you¡¯re in, if you play ball, it¡¯s easy street unless your reelection is seriously contested.


    ¡°Until recently I didn¡¯t have to try. As a congressman my staff did everything, I got told what to vote for, and just said what my constituents wanted to hear. VP was even easier. If I knew all this shit was going to happen, I would¡¯ve avoided getting tapped for VP. I¡¯m trying now. Trying to rise to the occasion. I can¡¯t mess this up. Stakes are too high. ¡®These are the times that try men''s souls.¡¯ I won¡¯t shrink from my service. Not now.¡±


    John looked back at Lilly and her sparkling eyes. She smiled at him and said, ¡°Can I ask my questions now, my dear heart?¡±


    ¡°Go ahead.¡±


    Lilly asked, ¡°Sherrod, are there current plans or discussions on ways to harm me, trap me, lie to me in any regard at all, or fail to live up to any commitments and agreements made to me on behalf of any parties you know of, including rumors and hearsay?¡±


    Vice President Williams¡¯ eyes cleared as he said, ¡°Yes.¡± His answer was long and Lilly learned from him everything she could. When she finished, she had John hand her the ball and ended the mind power. The meeting continued as if nothing strange had happened.


    Many of the key leaders of the G40 didn¡¯t attend the teleconference with the companions, but some of the ones that did had heard the ¡°Epic of Gilgamesh¡¯ was based on John and his master and asked about his origins and history.


    John couldn¡¯t remember where he was born, and all his earliest memories were too fuzzy and lacking in detail to give good clues. He remembered foothills and plains and mountains and heard of a lake and river. He never actually saw the lake and river until after he gained the power.


    When John and Ahn were conquering the region he was born to, they mainly followed a river south. They crossed the river a few times and would go some distance west and east of it.


    There were many rivers, and once John¡¯s thirst for conquest was satiated, they kept following a large river south. It could¡¯ve been many rivers. He couldn¡¯t remember.


    John and Ahn didn¡¯t rush the voyage and traveled a long, long way on their journey south, or it seemed like an unimaginably great distance to John at the time.


    At one point Ahn cut west and headed towards the shore, and John first saw the awesome, powerful, and majestic ocean. South of the ocean, he first saw large cities. Large cities for that time.


    John made some attempts to find the land of his birth, but he made no serious attempt until long after he was married to Lilly. He was tired of Lilly searching for magic and wanted to do something else.


    John thought he was born near the river that went through the same area he lived in for so long, so they followed it north. He couldn¡¯t recognize anything. When the river ended, he was certain he hadn¡¯t traveled far enough, and they traveled further, and found new rivers, and others. They traveled until they went far deeper than he had ever traveled before into the lands where people were strange and pale and had hair the color of fire or wheat. He knew he had traveled too far.


    Later, long after John thought he killed Lilly, when his mind was diminishing, he felt a great need to find his people and his birthlands. He needed some connection to something. He could only remember one name of a river, the Balahtu. He wasn¡¯t even sure if that was the right river. No one heard of it, and he traveled the length of Gaul to deep into Burata asking and searching.


    It saddened John that his people and birthplace were lost to him. He didn¡¯t know why, but it filled his heart with joy that many leaders of the G40 wanted to claim him as their country¡¯s own, and hearing that seemed to fill something that was long missing within himself.


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    John no longer had to hide. Many countries clamored to say he was of them and their people. They wanted him and were proud of him. It gladdened his heart.


    The G40 also asked about Stretch, the World Quest that was offered by the NCS, if anyone had a way to contact the Eternal that harbored the children and mothers of the young, and other questions none of the companions had answers to. When leaders started to talk about India and ask when action would be taken against the demon invasions, Vice President Williams apologized for his busy schedule and ended the conference.


    It felt strange to John that he wasn¡¯t more amazed by the fact he just talked to people all over the world through a moving picture on the wall. He had seen so many amazing things in such a short period they stopped being so amazing.


    <hr><hr>


    John and the invisible Amber were alone in a conference room. Hubaba left to infuse the dark walker rituals in Rhode Island and Brazil, and Lilly was called away by Stoddard.


    John knew he could no longer look at Amber how he used to since he held such power over her, but still, he wished she would turn visible so he could see her, even if only for a moment.


    ¡°So, you caught up to my rank. Congratulations, but it won¡¯t last for long. I¡¯m so close to ranking up again. I¡¯d offer to help with the phone I got you but we¡¯re getting new fancy government ones. I guess they get internet everywhere, even if no one else is getting it,¡± said Amber.


    John grunted. ¡°I don¡¯t see the use of these devices. They won¡¯t help us kill demons.¡±


    ¡°Well, it could help you kill reporters. Jerk.¡±


    John really wished he could see Amber. He thought it was much harder to communicate with someone that was angry at him when he couldn¡¯t see their expressions or read them. ¡°He insulted me to my face. Many times, as if I were low and he had the right.¡±


    ¡°He did have the right! Literally! There¡¯s free speech and free press in this country. And¡­you can¡¯t kill people over insults! Did I kill your wife when she called me those¡­all those horrible things!? You didn¡¯t even defend me! You¡¯re such a¡­aarrggh! You¡¯re a real¡­¡±


    Yammering out noises for some time without ever finding the right insult she wanted to call John, Amber just gave up and the two sat in uncomfortable silence for long moments.


    ¡°You look bad. You look like a little boy without your beard and having no eyebrows makes you look super crazy. You should put your hat back on and hide your bald head. No one wants to see it and people stopped caring if men wore hats inside in the sixties,¡± said Amber.


    John could hear in Amber¡¯s voice she felt uncomfortable insulting him. His hair would grow back, so they were poor insults. He thought about correcting her use of hat, but let it go. He said, ¡°Having my dead wife reappear after thousands of years took me by surprise. Her insults against you were the first thing I addressed with her in private. I told her I wouldn¡¯t tolerate it and said you might kill her if she did it again.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t murder people over words, John! I have animal forms but I¡¯m not an animal. You know how many horrible things people say about me in my comments and DMs? All I¡¯d do is kill people¡­¡± Amber trailed off again.


    ¡°Well, if those comments are related to the illicit pictures you want other men to see, you invited such. If another man insulted you in front of me, I¡¯d kill him too, no matter how truthful the insult. I did nothing to warrant the insults that man said right in front of me. I don¡¯t create and distribute illicit pictures of myself, and as a man it wouldn¡¯t be half as bad as you doing so.¡±


    Amber yammered more noises for a moment before she got out, ¡°Oh my God! You¡¯re such a sexist!¡±


    John couldn¡¯t believe what he heard. ¡°I haven¡¯t had sex in thousands of years. I never once tried to force myself on you or pressure you after my desire returned. You¡¯re the one that asked to do kissing. My wife¡¯s in a child¡¯s body so of course I still haven¡¯t. Now that I am healed and can again, I¡­this is very inappropriate to talk about. Far, far more of my life is taken up by cultivation and battle than all else. I am much more of a cultivationist or battlist. But sexist? That is far from the truth, and you know it.¡±


    It took Amber a moment before she responded. ¡°No, John! I¡­Jesus! It¡­¡±


    The door flew open, cutting Amber off. Through the door marched Colonel Stoddard, Lilly, and many others.


    Lilly started to say, ¡°These are our¡­,¡± when she got cut off too. A yellowish light covered the room and images began to flood John¡¯s mind. Stretch appeared in the desert watching a demon horde rush forward, untold numbers of demons flooded out of the portal that followed behind the Gold tiered demon leading the horde. Wood and Copper tiered demons spread out in all directions to cause mischief.


    Stretch fearlessly attacked the horde. An arm was stretched out and wrapped around a Silver, pulling the demon to him as he pulled himself to the demon, and once the demon was close, Stretch performed his jackhammer punches on the Silver with his other arm, turning the Silver¡¯s head to mush.


    Then the images showed the fight turning against Stretch. Manifestations knocking Stretch about. Stretch trying to escape and being prevented. Stretch being battered horribly, and the Gold approaching him.


    New images of the table in the room turning into a portal that could only open for a few moments. John and Amber jumping into the portal and saving Stretch.


    The images stopped and the yellowish light moved to the table. Colonel Stoddard said, ¡°What the hell was that shit? Did everyone see that?¡±


    Before anyone could say anything else, Lilly said, ¡°No, Adon! Don¡¯t trust it. Could you feel it? It¡¯s wrong. It felt¡­feels all wrong. This isn¡¯t essence and a concept. This is something I¡¯ve never seen or even heard of before.¡±


    John replied, ¡°Stretch saved me once. Am I to forget that?¡±


    Lilly raised her voice. ¡°Stretch is a fucking psycho, and you owe him nothing. He was compensated¡­overcompensated for his service to you by all the crystals he stole from us. This feels like a trap, Adon. Don¡¯t be stupid. Please.¡±


    John grunted. ¡°If I thought saving people was stupid, you¡¯d have been burned on a pyre. Or killed a thousand times since.¡±


    As John watched Lilly¡¯s child face crinkle in anger, Amber was the one to respond. ¡°She¡¯s right, John. This doesn¡¯t feel right. It feels¡­off. Really off. Stretch is just a puppet anyways. It¡¯s not a person.¡±


    John sighed. ¡°You both heard the rulers, same as I did. How many cities have been destroyed? How many people have been killed while we sit here, doing nothing?¡±


    Amber said, ¡°John, I¡¯m almost ready to rank up to peak. I need a day or two at the most. Baba isn¡¯t here. I don¡¯t want anyone else to be killed either but think how many more will die if we¡­if we die. When we attack the demons, we do it right. Do it¡­smart. We do it when I¡¯m at peak and Baba¡¯s with us. With the military backing us up. Coordinated. With a really good plan. Not rushing in like idiots.¡±


    Lilly smiled at John. ¡°My dear heart, listen to Amber. We don¡¯t know what this is. And even if it isn¡¯t a trap, that psycho isn¡¯t worth dying for. Please, Adon, I fought so hard to get back to you. Please.¡±


    John hated that. He hated it when people twisted him up with wrong things they made sound right. He watched as the table slowly warped under the yellowish light.


    Colonel Stoddard said, ¡°I hate to do this, John, but on behalf of the US government, I¡¯m ordering you to stand down.¡±


    John felt alone. In a room with his wife and one of his only friends in all the world, he still felt alone. He found it strange it seemed the people that placed the least value on honor always tried to dictate the actions of those that valued it greatly.


    Still smiling, Lilly said, ¡°Remember my promise, Adon? Remember what I said would happen if you got yourself killed?¡±


    John grunted again. He put his cap back on his skull, took his shield out of his ring, and decided to leave Fireblade in its scabbard for now. It¡¯s always, ¡®do as we say, or else,¡¯ he thought. ¡°What you do when I¡¯m dead is your own business. I¡¯m tired of being told I should wait around doing nothing while those I swore to fight slaughter those I swore to protect. And Stretch helped me when I was in a real bind. You say he¡¯s just a puppet, then demand I be even less of a man than a puppet.¡±


    Lilly laughed. ¡°No, Adon, I only want you to be less stupid than a puppet.¡±


    ¡°What you want is for me to be your puppet.¡±


    John let the rest of the words of those in the room wash over him as he waited, alone, for the portal to finish forming. Of what use is a fighter and warrior that doesn¡¯t fight and war? He wondered if he should equip the bracer on his right arm. The portal fully formed before he could decide, and he jumped into it, grateful all the words trying to twist him up inside could no longer be heard.

 B2 Chapter 22 - As long as we can live in harmony

    As John entered the portal a stinging feeling burned him all over, including his insides.  He was in complete darkness for an indeterminable amount of time before he was spit out of the ground and deposited on cool sand.  He hoped Amber changed her mind and did the right thing.  For a moment, he thought she had changed her mind, as somebody followed him.  He was surprised when his wife was spit out of the ground and deposited near him.


    ¡°Holy shit, that burned so much!  Ow!  You¡¯re going to get us both killed, Adon, you fucking idiot!¡±


    John grabbed his wife and covered her mouth as the demons were not all that far off.  It gladdened his heart his wife followed him, but he couldn¡¯t keep her safe, so he threw her back into the closing portal, cutting off her protestation.


    When he entered the strange portal, it was near noon in DC.  It was full night where the portal deposited him, and the cool desert air felt nice on his skin.


    A large plume of some sort of odd fire could be seen going from about a hundred paces in the sky down into the demon horde.  John enhanced his speed with vital essence, cast [BB Buff], and jumped to close the distance with the horde while spreading his senses out.


    Many of the horde noticed John and started making their way towards him while some others directed those under them to attack him.  He could clearly feel eight Silvers and a Gold, so the Silver Stretch killed was already replaced.  He landed and jumped again, and the light created by the strange fire-pillar cast shadows going the wrong way, but he fought against unbind attempts as he forced [Slip] to move him through the shadows anyway.


    John appeared behind the only Silver he could see and beheaded it with his shield as he drew Fireblade.  An essence-shield covered the Silver, and John¡¯s shield hardly slowed down as it destroyed the essence-shield and removed the demon¡¯s head.


    As John slashed at a couple Copper demons near him, he tried casting his newly improved essence-shield using his ¡®protection¡¯ concept with [Blood Shield] layered over it.  He cast it during his battle with the dark ones in Paris, and already named it [PB Shield].  An unbind attempt worked on the first attempt, but not the second cast.  He reached into all the demons he could around him, Wood, Copper, and Bronze, feeling many failed unbind attempts directed at him.


    Earlier that day, as John flew back to DC from France, he did his daily allotment of training within his Mind¡¯s Eye and learned more of blood and anatomy.  He knew there was a clear fluid in brainstems.  He knew it was beyond him to manipulate the fluid with his blood power.  He knew lifeforms with spines and brainstems could be killed quickly if he could enter them and create a large enough clot in the arteries within the brainstem.


    All the demons John entered fell to the ground, the overwhelming majority of them dead.  The ones that survived would die soon or never rise again, their brains having lost the ability to perform vital functions.  As he felt into more demons his essence-shield shattered, and an unbind attempt worked against his recasting of [PB Shield].  He spotted the Silver that unbound his spell and infused his armor with essence to enact its essence-shield as he jumped towards the demon.


    Whatever strange manifestation the Silver used gave John no opportunity to block or even see the spell, and it ripped the armor¡¯s essence-shield away.  He landed near the demon and split him in two, ending that problem, and recast [PB Shield] while slicing through nearby demons with sword and shield.


    John felt a Silver approaching from behind and felt for where the others were and was surprised to count eight Silvers still.  He had already killed two.  He reached into all the demons he could, got unbound the first attempt, but ultimately succeeded in placing clots while killing a few others with his sword.  He jumped towards the flame pillar, cast [Flashburst Pulse] as he blocked some sort of wind blade with his shield, and smiled as he felt the closest Silver die from the sparking balls of his spell.


    John landed, slashed around himself, felt into more demons, and fought through unbind attempts as he jumped again while placing clots.  Something that actually hurt he didn¡¯t see hit him in the back as he spotted the Gold, so he sent essence into his cap to activate the reflect-shield while blocking some fire darts with his shield, an arrow with his sword, and twisting around and avoiding orange streaks.


    While in the air, John could see the pillar of odd flame that extended down from the sky was targeting the immobile Stretch.  The Gold directing the odd flame down at the battered Stretch looked up at John, smiled, and released a small bird that flew towards the portal.


    The demon stood higher and had a slightly larger soul than the other Gold demons John had seen.  He had never seen a Platinum demon while on Esau, just a couple Platinum tiered beasts he avoided, but he was certain the demon was just a large Gold and not a Platinum.  He wasn¡¯t adept at sensing tiers.  He had felt many Golds though, and the feel of a Gold was pretty straightforward, even if sensing the rank within the tier was beyond him.


    The Gold had horns similar to a blackbuck antelope and wore a tight, black outfit instead of the armor or robes most demons wore.  John realized at least one of the Silvers he killed had the same black clothings as the Gold, as did many of the lower-tiered demons.


    As John attempted to feel into the released bird to place a clot in it, the odd flame stopped cascading down onto Stretch and the Gold pointed one of his hands at John.


    John raised his shield above his head just in time to block a new cascade of the odd flame.  It was strong enough to reverse the momentum of his jump and send him barreling towards the ground.


    John noticed his reflect-shield gave out from other manifestations targeting him as he landed on the ground, straining to hold his shield above his head to block the powerful and strangely physically forceful fire boring into his shield.   The force beating down on his shield stopped as he slashed at a nearby Bronze in black clothings and he sensed a group of three Silvers approaching together.


    John tried to cast [PB Shield] but was expertly unbound.  He tried again with the same results.  Then [BB Buff] was somehow unbound too, the first time John had seen a currently active manifestation of his become unbound.  He tested his plasma ring and cursed when he found it still wasn¡¯t working.


    The three Silvers spread out to surround John as he slashed at and bashed the lower-tiered demons around him.  He felt a danger approaching from behind and rolled sideways to avoid it, and a stream of odd fire flew by him and into a Copper demon that had its chest explode in a mist of gore.


    Since he couldn¡¯t be stopped from doing so, John infused his sword and shield with essence as he heard a commanding voice shout out, ¡°Melee only!  I want to see what he can do with my own eyes.¡±


    Two of the Silvers put their arms down as they looked at each other in confusion.  The third Silver, wearing a black outfit, jumped towards John with a giant double-headed axe that caused a flash of memory to play in John¡¯s mind ¨C during a great battle he used a very similar looking axe to impress his Lilitu.  What did the Hurri call me then?  Teshub?


    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    Raising his shield to block the axe, John again used an old trick and spun away just as the axe would meet the shield, and he cut the black-clad demon through the waist.  The essence-shield around the black-clad Silver was cut through like paper.


    John figured he had no chance of getting a manifestation off, but to let the Gold know he wouldn¡¯t follow the orders he barked out, John tried casting [Flashburst Pulse] at one of the Silvers.


    The manifestation was immediately and deftly unbound, and the Gold called out, ¡°I said melee only.¡±


    Five additional Silvers were approaching and two more were still in front of him.  John spread his senses out and felt a total of eight Silvers still.  He thought they must be replacing them as soon as one fell.  One of the Silvers in front of him was still drawing the giant sword it had on its back.  John rushed forward and cut the head off a Silver incompetently gripping a staff before opening the chest of the one struggling to draw a sword.


    After killing some other demons near him, John jumped in the air only to be quickly taken down to the ground by the odd fire again.  The commanding voice yelled out, ¡°Stand and fight where you are.¡±


    John disliked that it seemed he was following the Gold¡¯s orders, but without being able to cast manifestations or jump without immediately being taken down to the ground, he had little choice in the matter.  He stopped infusing his shield and sword with essence since it was overkill and unnecessary for the demons he fought.  He cut through them easily with either sword or shield uninfused.


    And John did cut through them, and easily, as he tried to make his way through the mad press of demons to reach the Gold.  With his new body and higher [Stats], fighting the demon horde was simple and posed little danger to him, especially with the demons unallowed to use damaging manifestations.


    John¡¯s dantian was over ninety percent full, which mattered little since the Gold didn¡¯t allow him to cast any spells.  His vital essence was also near full, and he noticed enhancing his strength and speed no longer needed the same amount of vital essence it once did.  Even still, he stopped using vital essence to enhance himself.  It was unnecessary.


    Demons rushed in on John from all directions but crowded the way towards the Gold the most.  If he got within a hundred paces of the Gold, the demon would send out streams of the odd fire until he was pushed back.  He took some relief in knowing Stretch was no longer being attacked and seemed to be forgotten about.  He hoped Stretch would awaken, take advantage of the situation, and escape.


    John wasn¡¯t able to avoid or block the odd fire a few times.  He found that being hit by it stung and tingled instead of burned, sapping his strength and speed a good amount for a little bit of time.  It caused little damage to his skin, though it did burn a hole through his armor and robes and caused his skin to smoke some.  It didn¡¯t cause enough damage to be worth sending vital essence to heal.


    All the demons John fought, from Wood to Silver, didn¡¯t use manifestations other than weapon and body enhancements and essence-shields.  Such rules on the use of manifestations made the fight trivial for John.  When he allowed a weapon to strike him, it did no damage.


    Whenever John checked the number of Silvers, it remained at eight.  The horde of demons never seemed to deplete, no matter how many he killed.


    Having little else to do while he made a great slaughter of his enemies and tried to force his way to the Gold, John focused on feeling into the enemies around him, his breathing and cycling techniques, and his sword and shield work.


    With great sweeping blows, John would try to cut through as many enemies as possible.  He practiced all the cuts from both sides with various styles, above, below, and across, slicing up close, and even some thrusts, though thrusting was the least efficient way of killing the demons, and would bind him up for a moment before he could clear his sword of the target or targets.


    For the type of fighting John was engaged in, both guards and sets played a little enough role, but he still tried to get some practice in with the odd and situational guard or stance.  Whenever he felt he was falling into some sort of rhythm or predictable pattern he would try out new guards or stances to strike from, even two-handed stances and techniques while gripping his sword with one hand, since his sword was very large and long and his strength was great.


    Some of the Silvers in the black garb were able to block, parry, or avoid one or two of John¡¯s blows, and he noticed the Bronze as well as the Silvers in black garb seemed to be more skilled than the other demons.  Sometimes three of the black-garbed demons would work together to attack and defend against him, and he enjoyed those moments.  All in all, he would guess about a third of all the Bronze and Silvers wore the black clothings.


    Right outside the area the Gold would push John back with the odd fire, John prepared to close with his real opponent.  As soon as the first manifestation of odd fire was directed at him, John sent vital essence to enhance his speed, rolled canted, and cleared the area with a wide swipe of both sword and shield, and rolled again, and again.


    Only once did the odd flame hit John and push him back, but he was able to get close enough to the Gold to strike at him.


    John tried to unbind the manifestation of the Gold as he approached but failed spectacularly.  The Gold expertly beat back John¡¯s cut with a hard block, or rebatter.  The Gold smiled and reset his sword to an ox stance.


    The sword the Gold used was the longest rapier-type sword John had ever seen, and it barely had a protective hilt.  The blade was too slender at the hilt to be a longsword, but far, far too long to be a rapier.  The blade was straight and two-edged but was clearly meant to be an odd sort of thrusting weapon.  The guard would make for awkward grips of various two-handed techniques and strikes, and the blade wouldn¡¯t lend itself to strong half-swording.


    That was all true, at least for earthly weapons made from earthly materials John was familiar with.  The extremely slender blade had glowing runes up and down the length of it, though John could feel it wasn¡¯t infused with essence in the usual weapon-type enhancement.  The Gold himself radiated a powerful body enhancement.


    The Gold made a head gesture and the horde of demons surrounding the two backed off, and vampire and demon dueled near the prone, unmoving, and battered body of Stretch, the crazily abundant and dark-green vital essence within the puppet no longer so abundant or bright.


    The demon wasn¡¯t as skilled as Munashi, but he was nearly John¡¯s equal in [Strength] and [Swiftness] while the Gold¡¯s powerful body enhancement was active, and the demon was an extremely adept swordsman as well.


    John reveled in the beautiful ecstasy that only came with fighting a true opponent and fellow student of the blade.


    The Gold never got close to tagging John, and it took four passes for John to land a clean hit on the demon, shattering the demon¡¯s essence-shield.  As John pressed in with both blade and shield the demon stopped him by wrapping his odd fire around John and pinning his arms.  The essence-shield was quickly replaced by a new one John failed to come close to unbinding.


    Putting the too long rapier blade over his shoulder, the demon looked at John, bowed his head, and said, ¡°Good.  Good.  You¡¯re everything I was told you¡¯d be, Copper.  Very impressive.  My name is Preceptor Muzaran.  Your name is John, correct?¡±


    John was surprised enough to forgo any manners.  ¡°Muzaran?  Didn¡¯t I kill you?  Your horns are different, and your skin.¡±


    The demon laughed.  ¡°No.  Chosen are always named after our great forefathers, the Indomitable Hundred.  There were actually a hundred and seventeen of them, and all the names but that of three are routinely used.  I hate to be a stickler for formality, but I¡¯d appreciate recognition of my greater tier and position.¡±


    ¡°Well met¡­uh, Preceptor Muzaran,¡± said John as he bowed his head, wondering why the word didn¡¯t translate to master or teacher or instructor, but remained the old Roman word pronounced incorrectly.  He thought he might remember some knightly orders using the word to mean the head of the order for a region and wondered how that applied to demons.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to let you free now.  Please don¡¯t attack.  I¡¯d like to speak with you for a moment.¡±  The odd fire disappeared, and John was again free to move as he pleased.  ¡°Now tell me, Copper John, why did you not strike your enemies with blade energy?¡±


    John thought for a moment.  ¡°My blade enhancement?  I didn¡¯t need it.  I cut through my enemies easily enough, including their essence-shields, Preceptor.¡±


    ¡°No.  Weapon energy.  The inherent energy of a weapon, which is not a manifestation or any use of essence or energy internal to a cultivator.  Blade energy in our case.  Watch.  I¡¯ll show you what I mean.¡±

 B2 Chapter 23 - Sail with me into the dark

    Many hours earlier that same day in India


    Senior General Xie Xu saw a very rare opportunity.  ¡°Glide on squares B10, 11, C10, 11!  Now!¡±  The powerful boost glide for the WU-14 Hypersonic Weapon System crashed down on the squares indicated, and one more demon known as a Silver died.  A cheer went up in the mobile command and control center for the Asian theater and the general forcefully said, ¡°Enough!¡±


    That was the third Silver General Xie Xu had killed.  Three more than his predecessor, and the reason the G40 still had him in command though the war moved into India.  That and his known hatred of politics.


    ¡°New Silver exited the portal, General,¡± said a technician.


    ¡°Copy,¡± replied the general.


    The general looked at all his feeds.  He needed to push the demons back over the Brahmaputra River, but there was no way.  The demons were holding back before.  They weren¡¯t now.  It was a battle of attrition.  A battle the forces under his command were losing, and on a long enough timeline defeat was inevitable.


    ¡°Clusters on sectors D19 through C27, full square.¡±


    The general knew he got lucky with the Silver.  He got lucky with all three Silvers he bagged, if truth were to be told.  Sometimes they got rambunctious in their slaughter and moved too far away from the protection of the demon general, which was now classified as Gold.  Captains.


    The general¡¯s mind raced as he watched the feeds, looking for any opportunity to turn the tides or inflict some damage, hardening his heart from the reports of allied troops lost, and how he callously sent so many to their deaths knowing it was futile.  He needed to make it worthwhile.  He needed a big play.  ¡®In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity.  And opportunities multiply as they are seized.¡¯


    Alarms beeped and what he saw made the general¡¯s heart sink.  His staff became so disheartened they didn¡¯t even report the new development.  A new Gold and eight new Silvers appeared outside the portal.


    General Xie Xu calmed his heart and thought.  They were losing badly against one Gold and eight Silvers.  The same bit of strategy repeated in his mind.  If you fight with all your might there is a chance of life.¡¯  He purposefully left off the second part of the quote.


    ¡°¡¯Still as the stone at the door¡¯ authorized.  Confirm.  Now.¡±


    There was a slight moment of hesitation before the necessary officer, operator, and technician verified the solution.  Radio chatter increased.  The general¡¯s second confirmed.


    The general said, ¡°Good.  We retreat now.¡±


    The Mobile CCC started up and started moving as the general watched all divisions enact the retreat.  ¡®Still as a stone at the door¡¯ was the last-ditch plan to stop the demons.  All weaponry would be coordinated and fired to arrive at the same time, including low-yield tactical nukes, regardless of wind carriage.  Everything the allies had plus the kitchen sink.


    The general hoped it would be too much for the two Golds and sixteen Silvers to deal with.  The State of Bihar was gone either way.  Its loss, and the loss of everything else so far, all those dead by the demons, would mean something if they could take out one of the Golds.  The same quote entered the general¡¯s mind, ¡®If you fight with all your might there is a chance of life.¡¯


    The general watched the portal feed as it started to flicker.  Before all the feeds died out, he saw a giant hand extend out of the portal.  He saw what happened in Canada when a giant hand poked out of that horde¡¯s portal, and for the first time since the invasion started the general had no hope at all.


    Then all the general¡¯s worries ended along with his shame for his great failure as lava quickly filled the mobile CCC and he and his staff died.


    <hr><hr>


    Preceptor Muzaran turned to the side and indicated with a head movement for the demons to clear out of the way.  He got into the guard of wrath and closed his eyes.  John could feel something building, and Preceptor Muzaran¡¯s sword violently lashed out in a perfect and powerful colpo fendente.  A line of blue light extended outwards from the blade a few paces.


    Whatever energy extended outwards from the blade wasn¡¯t a manifestation.  John could tell it was something different.


    ¡°You try.  I will guide you through it.  Come.  Stand here.  Stance and strike matter little.  What matters is being one with these elements ¨C blade, mind, spirit, and the energy around you.  Be one with emptiness.  You know emptiness?  What you create in your upper core?  Have you created any?¡±


    ¡°I have, Preceptor Muzaran,¡± replied John, knowing he shouldn¡¯t fall so quickly into the role of student and master, especially for a swordsman he tagged with a blade a few moments ago, but he wanted to learn the technique giving him control of blade energy.  There was no way to unbind it since it wasn¡¯t a manifestation like an echo attack, and his major issue with fighting higher-tiered enemies was their ability to unbind his manifestations.


    John hated that.  He hated how he was so easily unbound by higher-tiered enemies, making all his powerful spells useless.  If the demon was willing to teach him a way around an issue he hated, he wouldn¡¯t say no.


    And every second the Gold focused on John, Stretch was being ignored, and it was an additional second he could come up with a plan to win or escape with Stretch.


    The demon said, ¡°Good.  Do you understand the meaning of emptiness?  Enhanced awareness, control, effortless action, all that?¡±


    John thought before replying.  ¡°Similar concepts, Preceptor Muzaran.  It goes back a long, long time for warriors.  Seeing everything while looking at nothing.  Constant awareness.  Perfect attention to all while focusing on nothing.  I¡¯ve created empty a lot of times in my upper dantian, but it doesn¡¯t feel like anything.  Not like creating shen or filling my lower dantian.¡±


    ¡°No.  No.  No.  It is emptiness, not empty.  Empty means there is nothing in something.  When there is no emptiness in your upper core it is empty.  Emptiness is different.  You explained some aspects of it well.  That is the state you need, but you must become one with all around you.  Feel the energy infused in everything.  In you, your weapon, your mind, your spirit, your vigor, what makes up all of you and surrounds you.


    The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.


    ¡°Now, once you can feel all this, and are at peace with it, feel how it vibrates.  Feel how the energy is in your blade, how it is surrounded by it.  Then, when you¡¯re ready, keep it with your blade as you cut forward, and it will follow.¡±


    John decided to try it the same as he saw it demonstrated.  He got into the guard of wrath stance after putting his shield on the ground near his feet.  He tried to attain the correct mindset, and felt the energy within and without, and when he could feel it vibrating, he cut forward powerfully and ended in the long point stance.  No energy followed his blade or extended outwards.


    ¡°Good for your first attempt.  Try again.  You almost had it.  Build it more.  Make it stick to your blade more.  Strike harder and faster.  With the sword, if you are not fast, you are dead.  Visualize an enemy in front of you that you are striking.¡±


    John got into the enhanced awareness he learned fighting Ukaraaz.  Once he felt the energy around and within vibrating, he looked for the life energy that was within everything, the different kinds of it, the kind that filled dead things and rotting plants and the ground and air, and noticed how strange the version of it was that filled Stretch, though it was duller and far less abundant due to Stretch¡¯s current state.


    John felt all of the energy he could and tried to become one with it.  He tried to attract it to his sword when he heard the demon say, ¡°Come now, Copper.  No manifestations or energy manipulation is needed for this.  This just requires skill and oneness.¡±


    John didn¡¯t think he was manipulating energy, but he stopped trying to gather energy with the blade and just focused on the energy in and around the blade, and how it all vibrated in synchronicity.  He relaxed his mind and went through all the steps again from the start.  There was a greater amount of energy around the blade than before.  When he was sure he was ready, he cut his blade forward powerfully with a step forward, keeping the energy on his blade, ending somewhere between the changer and fool¡¯s guard.


    Energy lashed out from the blade, extending over ten paces in front of John.


    ¡°Darkness, Adversity, and Nightmare!  Wonderful!  On your second attempt, no less!  And the distance it traveled!  Much more impressive than the other one that belongs to Circle Xakariz.  You truly are something else.  Copper John, I must have you as a student.  Come, relax, stand at ease.  Let¡¯s talk for a moment.¡±


    John collected his shield as the Gold yelled out.  ¡°Okay, you lot.  Form up and meditate.  Leave all of my crystals and arms where they are.  Gorgamon, you¡¯re lead.¡±


    Both vampire and demon faced each other.  John noticed the Gold looked old for a demon, but not nearly as old as Hubaba.  Muzaran looked towards Stretch.  ¡°Don¡¯t worry.  I won¡¯t attack...it¡­whatever it is, or you, while we speak.  Do you know what that thing is?  It fought ferociously.  It isn¡¯t like any construct I¡¯ve ever seen or heard of.  It¡¯s nearly invulnerable to all attacks too.  Unveiling my soul didn¡¯t slow it one bit.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, Preceptor Muzaran.  He saved me once.¡±


    ¡°Is it a he?  I tried communicating and it would only say, ¡®words, words, words,¡¯ and the like.¡±


    John smiled.  ¡°I¡¯m not sure.  I had no better luck communicating either.  It looks like a he to me though.¡±


    The demon reached his giant arm down and rested it on John¡¯s shoulder.  ¡°Listen, Copper John.  I don¡¯t like lying.  I don¡¯t like word games.  You¡¯ve probably guessed I¡¯m not with Circle Xakariz.  I¡¯m a preceptor with the War Academy on¡­you know how, uh, I guess sector or galaxy would be your equivalent, we call them regions in the Nether.


    ¡°The region that Esau resides in, the major planet is called Prime.  It always is for each region.  I¡¯m the lowest level of preceptor for the School of Swords for the War Academy on Prime.  Esau is a tenth ring world.  I won¡¯t lie, the whole region is pretty much all yokels, but Prime is a seventh ring world.  I was born on Prime so I started out D-grade.  Demons born on Esau are all F-grade.  You know, for demons, our race naturally increases through ascension?¡±


    John said, ¡°I did know, but not the specifics.  If I¡¯m remembering right, demons become alpha-types at Sublime.¡±


    ¡°Yes, for yokel demons.  I¡¯m C-grade now.  If all goes as planned, I should hit B-grade through enhancements, then A with ascension even before I move to the next Tree.  I will make alpha-type before the Divine Tree.  The War Academy isn¡¯t like Circle Xakariz.  We will foster you and your growth.


    ¡°I know you¡¯re more skilled than I am with the blade but there is still a lot I can teach you.  And not just me, we have many higher-tiered preceptors. All the way up to high Transcendents.  We don¡¯t advance quickly.  The Nether allows us the gift of time, and we abuse it as much as possible.  We never rush.  See this necklace?¡±


    The Gold¡¯s hand was withdrawn from John¡¯s shoulder, and he removed a necklace from under his black top with it.  It was a strange metal that shimmered blue, and a knot-ornament hung from the curb-style chain.  ¡°This is called a band of suffering.  It slows down cultivation and makes it painful.  We all use these.  Or a form of it.  It can be a headband or a ring or bracers or anklet.  Even a belt.  We take advancement seriously.¡±


    ¡°Yokels would never slow down their own advancement.  They rush and rush and learn little.¡±  The demon put the necklace away and put his hand back on John¡¯s shoulder.  ¡°Sadly, Copper John, you know too little.  You are very powerful in certain ways.  Very ignorant in other ways.  Everyone knows of blade energy.  Don¡¯t look to your NCS for help with learning more about it or such techniques.  If it can¡¯t quantify something, it ignores it.  From what I understand.  And it rushes cultivators.


    ¡°You have the chance to be one of the body cultivators of note.  There aren¡¯t many of us, and you must learn from one of us.  Do you know about [Auras]?¡±


    After thinking for a moment, John replied, ¡°A little.  I think one is gotten at Gold.  Ukaraaz¡­Captain Ukaraaz had a [Domain] instead.  I haven¡¯t really looked into them.¡±


    The demon smiled and squeezed John¡¯s shoulder.  ¡°And that is why you need to become a student of the War Academy.  You need to plan ahead.  You haven¡¯t asked how I knew your name.  I know a lot about you.  Some information seems to be outdated.  It looks like you have two merged concepts now if I¡¯m seeing your essence right.  And you¡¯re much stronger and faster.


    ¡°Since I know so much about you, it¡¯s only fair I tell you a bit more about myself.  I have one concept, a mid-concept.  ¡®Mettle.¡¯  Often a precursor to your ¡®battle¡¯ concept.  I¡¯ve shown you little of what I can do with it, but there is little I can¡¯t do.  I can damage, bind, sap, enhance myself greatly, etcetera.  I¡¯m trying to master this concept.  Eke out every possible bit of power I can from it.  My aspect is average and my affinity is a little over thirty percent.  Tell me, when you hear the word ¡®mettle,¡¯ what comes to your mind?¡±


    John grunted.  ¡°What someone is made of.  How hard they are.  Their grit.¡±


    The demon laughed.  ¡°Good.  Their temperament.  Their pluck, courage, fiber, nerve, fortitude.  Their spunk.  Their juice.  Their passion.  Their fire.  The fire I attack with doesn¡¯t damage and burn the same as more dangerous forms of fire, but it burns still, and saps my opponent¡¯s physical capabilities while enhancing my own further.  And my body enhancement is potent.  What are the biggest obstacles a body cultivator faces?¡±


    John said, ¡°What do you mean by a body cultivator?  Someone that focuses on their body and melee?  Like a traditional fighter?¡±


    Muzaran laughed good naturedly again.  ¡°I really hate to be a stickler for the rules, but it is customary to use some title of respect at least once when addressing a better, such as Preceptor or Gold.  To answer your question, only on your world would you say traditional fighters are body cultivators.  We are a rare breed.  But, yes, we focus on our physical prowess and body and weapon enhancements and close-quarters combat.  Some would say archers and other ranged-weapon users and the like are a form of body cultivators, or some can be.  Your NCS considers them Militants, I believe.¡±


    John thought for a long minute, as this was something he actually put a lot of thought into.  He didn¡¯t want to be a body cultivator, or just a body cultivator, as he dreamed of fire billowing forth from his hands, but he was often forced into the role since higher-tiered enemies were able to easily unbind his manifestations.

 B2 Chapter 24 - Animals

    After some thought, John was ready to answer the question about the largest obstacles of a body cultivator.


    ¡°Preceptor Muzaran, I believe having manifestations unbound is the greatest obstacle. Other obstacles would be the need to learn weaponry. Everyone needs armor, I¡¯m guessing, so that isn¡¯t specific. Everyone needs defense and [Fortification]. Everyone needs powerful manifestations. Body enhancements help everyone, so probably weapon enhancements. Uh¡­¡±


    Preceptor Muzaran laughed again. ¡°Let me stop you there. Your view is skewed from fighting above your tier. Having manifestations unbound isn¡¯t usually a major issue for body cultivators. Protecting against having them unbound goes along with our need to learn weapons or hand-to-hand techniques.


    ¡°Prowess and what you call [Fortifications] increase with tier starting at Bronze, so most cultivators focus on more powerful manifestations, relying on armor and essence-shields for defense. The main issue is unbinding. Stopping opponents that focus on damaging manifestations from casting them. Most of our opponents focus on the power and size of their core. Denying them their advantage is our best path to victory.¡±


    The demon¡¯s face became serious, and he stopped talking for a moment. ¡°I think the best way to quickly explain [Auras] would be to say they enhance some aspect of yourself within a certain radius. They¡¯re usually grouped as defensive, control, benefit, damage, negative, or zone [Auras]. Mine is a control [Aura] and helps me unbind manifestations. Only within a certain radius of me, of course. As I said, unbinding the manifestation of others is our best path to victory.


    ¡°I explained all this so you can see how important planning ahead is. And knowledge. Having knowledgeable preceptors on hand at all hours that will foster you and guide you into the true monster you could be. You¡¯re flailing around now, blind, with only a computer in your head to guide you.


    ¡°And that computer wants to guide you poorly. It thinks fast advancement means safety. It doesn¡¯t. Being in the Nether is safety. Advancing correctly and slowly and deliberately is safety.¡±


    Muzaran squeezed John¡¯s shoulder again. ¡°How much have you learned in the few moments we¡¯ve talked?¡±


    Before John could reply, the demon bent lower and peered into John¡¯s eyes. ¡°Listen, even with the War Academy backing Circle Xakariz there¡¯s still a time limit we face with the g¡¯athu. We know the deal Ukaraaz offered you. We extend the same deal but agree with your stipulation. The Natural will be safe. He didn¡¯t know better. The Natural will be accepted into the War Academy too.


    ¡°You know Naturals don¡¯t form in the NetherRealms? The Grand Head thinks there¡¯s a reason Naturals never ascend to the next Tree. He¡¯d like to test it, and we¡¯re always up for tweaking the nose of the Favored.


    ¡°Before you answer, think it through. With the War Academy backing Circle Xakariz, we will conquer your world. As long as we can handle the g¡¯athu in time. It¡¯s us or the g¡¯athu. Believe me, you don¡¯t want them to win. We¡¯re saints compared to those fiends. You¡¯re coming with me either way. The only question is whether your world burns or not.¡±


    John disliked how the question was phrased, but he knew it was important and put a lot of thought into it. If he accepted, he believed he¡¯d be okay. It sounded like Amber would be okay too. If they wanted him, they¡¯d probably want his wife, so she¡¯d be okay. At best, Hubaba would be a scab again, but he would most likely be killed as a traitor.


    At best, if they were lucky, most humans would be treated as scabs were.


    The demons could claim scabs weren¡¯t slaves all they wanted. John had seen many different types of slavery, from slaves treated lower than animals, to slavery being the default position most people of a region were born into and so common the word slave basically meant peasant. Scabs weren¡¯t treated lower than animals, but they were denied a say and any decisions made in their own life, denied honor and pride, and denied a name.


    Questions of the fate of humans aside, for John, the last part of Muzaran¡¯s ¡®offer¡¯ was his sticking point. It was always, ¡®do as we say, or else,¡¯ and nothing bothered him quite like it.


    John said, ¡°You know, Preceptor Muzaran, when Captain Ukaraaz made his offer, he thought my choices were to join or have my world burn. He was wrong. And now he¡¯s dead.¡±


    John saw anger enter the demon¡¯s eyes. ¡°He was a yokel. I can bind you down, sap you, and throw you through the portal anytime I want. I should kill you just for comparing me to such a yokel. Look, the only reason why we¡¯re doing this, why we¡¯re helping a yokel circle, is you. My academy was promised you, and we¡¯ll have you. That¡¯s forgone. It will be much better if you come of your own accord. Your world will join the Forsaken under the protection of both Circle Xakariz and my academy.¡±


    John grunted. He asked, ¡°Or?¡±


    The demon laughed. ¡°Or your world burns. You¡¯re property of my academy. Things have changed. I don¡¯t think you visited Eisu, the only city near Circle Xakariz on Esau. We pressed them into service. We have endless amounts of Woods through Golds to send through our portals. Your world is doomed unless you agree to join us willingly. Stop being a fool. There¡¯s only one way for you to win, and that¡¯s by saying yes. We win either way. There¡¯s only one way for you to win too. Accept my offer willingly.¡±


    It was John¡¯s turn to laugh. He tried to slice the demon¡¯s thigh as he sent vital essence to enhance his speed and strength. The odd fire slammed into John¡¯s sword arm, sending the cut off course. Muzaran roared and stepped back, batting John¡¯s recorrected attack aside.


    John swept a blow in with his shield as he infused essence into it, and the odd fire snaked around his arms and torso, immobilizing him. He could feel the fire sapping him, making him slower and weaker.


    Muzaran unhurriedly cast two enhancement type manifestations on himself, increasing his own prowess further.


    As John struggled to free himself of the bind, the rope of fire bound him tighter, and Muzaran sighed. ¡°This is foolishness. I could have your head right now. In a test of blades without manifestations you scored a hit against me. I can shut down all your manifestations. You can¡¯t be stupid enough to think you could stand against me in a real fight.¡±


    John wanted to say that wasn¡¯t true. In their last duel Muzaran used enhancements. He kept quiet and attained the state he called his battle-mind. A few moments after, he broke free of the odd fire holding him and thrust his sword forward as an answer. The demon caught it on his own blade, turning the thrust aside.


    Flame bathed John¡¯s face, burning him and nearly knocked him off his feet as it pushed him backwards. He lost the use of his eyes.


    Muzaran angrily demanded, ¡°How did you release yourself from my bind?¡±


    John dashed forward and swung his sword, his orb-eye and senses allowed him to see all he needed too.


    Demon and vampire fought. John was denied the use of any manifestation besides his ability to enhance himself with vital essence and infuse his shield and Fireblade. The demon used all his own manifestations freely.


    Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    As the fight progressed, it became easier and easier for John to break free of the odd fire when it bound him.


    The two combatants danced a beautiful dance of death that exulted John to a degree he hadn¡¯t felt since battling his old master, Ahn. For thousands and thousands of years he hadn¡¯t been pushed so hard and so gloriously, fighting a true and worthy opponent in single combat.


    The two blades, shield, and odd fire made mad streaks of differently colored lights as the two fought furiously and frantically.


    John wondered how useful the knowledge of blade energy he was taught was, as the demon never used it during their fight. John knew it would take far too long for him to complete the necessary steps to utilize it himself. At least without much more practice.


    Parry, block, counter, reset. With the Gold utilizing manifestations, the two were evenly matched, and it alighted John¡¯s heart. He reveled in the battle and was gladdened. As his eyes recovered, he kept them closed. He didn¡¯t need them.


    John was able to use an old trick to finally slide past his opponent¡¯s guard and remove the essence-shield surrounding the demon, though he was only able to score a small slice on the return as a new essence-shield went up.


    Just that small slice was enough to turn the fight, and John was able to press the demon and remove the essence-shield again and score two new slices on the next two passes. He knew he had the fight won and could predict and avoid the majority of the blasts of fire aimed at him, and quickly shrug off the fire when it bound him. His victory was just a matter of time.


    As soon as John had that thought it felt as if something inside his chest was crushed and he coughed up blood. A lot of blood. A notification flashed in his vision stating [Emergency Heal] was on cooldown for twenty-two hours and some minutes. He dropped his enhancements and sent vital essence to heal as he went to parry, but Muzaran held his strike and turned towards the portal with a look of disgust and contempt on his face.


    Then, John was frozen. As too was Muzaran. John looked around with his orb-eye and saw an unmoving, giant hand poking through the portal. The hand was drawn through the portal along with the giant body of a robed demon with goat horns. The demon was held in the air, frozen too.


    John was certain the suspended demon was a Diamond, as it had the same feel and was the same size as Garioch. A bizarre voice reverberated around John, but softly, unlike when Magnus Gar¡¯tar spoke so.


    [The bargain I made with your circle was for three Golds at any one time. Earlier, there were four Golds on Terra for over six minutes. Three times now a Diamond has poked through the portal. Did your betters think they found a loophole, or do they think I am stupid? It ends now. If it happens again, I will lay waste to Circle Xakariz. Am I understood?]


    The Diamond was unfrozen and allowed to move. He kowtowed while still hovering in the air and said, ¡°Mighty Sublime, this one apologizes. This one understood the bargain to mean none higher than the three allowed Golds could come through the portals. This one didn¡¯t come through.¡±


    The tongue of the Diamond stretched a great distance out of his mouth until it snapped off, shrinking as it hung suspended in the air. The rest of the Diamond was turned into many tiny pieces, like dust, that slowly fell to the ground as the three crystals the Diamond dropped disappeared before hitting the ground.


    John was certain it was only in his head but seeing the Diamond die seemed to make the pain and burning in his chest feel a little better.


    [Gold, go give your betters the tongue of this Diamond and repeat to them my warning. No lies and excuses. If it happens again there will be no more Circle Xakariz.]


    Muzaran fell to his knees and kowtowed, ¡°Oh, mighty Sublime, this one does not hesitate to follow your commands, but this one controls the portal anchor and can¡¯t pass it to a Silver. The portal will close once this one enters. This one believes your Divine essence infused this very anchor. Is that your desire?¡±


    [No. Send a Silver with the tongue and message.]


    ¡°Mighty Sublime, may this one ask for clarification if the restriction of three Golds only applies to demons and g¡¯athu? Or all races?¡±


    [Does your circle plan on sending Forsaken sects now? I discussed this with Inner-Circle Master Ith''tas. Is he pretending he didn¡¯t understand the agreed upon terms?]


    ¡°No, mighty Sublime. There¡¯s a Gold scab on this planet. Will he be punished or sent back?¡±


    [No. He allied with the terrans. He can ascend to Platinum and it would be fine. The same as with terrans.]


    ¡°Sorry, mighty Sublime, please allow this one another point of clarification. The terran there, Copper John, has the [Ptagmog] [Title]. If he ascends to Silver, would that count against our allowed number of Silvers?¡±


    [No. Same with the scab that is of the ptagmog. Terrans can advance as fast and as far as they can with no limit. Your betters already know this. Or should. I¡¯ve had enough of being questioned by one so low. Do as I ordered.]


    As Preceptor Muzaran snapped out orders the ground near John started to glow a yellowish color. The yellowish color grew and touched Stretch and started to grow towards John when he felt something unspeakable appear near him. The yellowish glow completely vanished.


    [The energy Eternal is near you. You probably feel something. I think you would die if it touched you. I will let you free so you can move away.]


    John knew the Sublime talked only to him somehow. Having his freedom back allowed him to cough up blood and rub his burning chest. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Sublime, but I came here to save Stretch. Does the Eternal mean harm to him?¡±


    [If the Eternal wanted it dead, it wouldn¡¯t need to descend to make it so. I think it looks for what controls the construct. I won¡¯t allow combat to resume until the Eternal leaves. I won¡¯t make you move, but I warned you. I don¡¯t know much about energy beings, so you could be safe. It¡¯s difficult to communicate with it.]


    John kowtowed and said, ¡°Thank you, Sublime.¡± He thought of asking for the injury inside his chest to be healed since the Diamond wasn¡¯t supposed to come through the portal, but he held his tongue, not wanting to push things with the Sublime.


    [For future reference, it¡¯s usually not a good idea to talk to ones so much higher than you so informally. Even the filthy demons know that. I don¡¯t care, personally, but many do.]


    John, while still kowtowing, said, ¡°Yes, Sublime.¡± He hoped that wasn¡¯t true as he had no plans on saying ¡®this one¡¯ when referring to himself. He waited some time, and the Sublime never continued the conversation, so he got back on his feet while grabbing Fireblade and his shield.


    John thought he could make out an odd shimmering all around Stretch, but he wasn¡¯t certain. The unspeakable feeling came from all around, not just from the direction of Stretch. He thought it could be the energy Eternal¡¯s soul. It wasn¡¯t anything like a real soul, but there was something there that wasn¡¯t there before, and it was vaguely soulish.


    The pain in John¡¯s chest hurt greatly. He coughed up more blood and sent essence to heal.


    ¡°I apologize about that, Copper John. That Diamond was from Circle Xakariz, not the War Academy. That attack was underhanded and I¡¯m ashamed it happened. I can¡¯t heal others, or I¡¯d do something to help. Are you okay?¡± asked Muzaran from a distance off, having heeded the Sublime¡¯s warning to move away.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±


    ¡°You should move away. The Sublime told me there¡¯s an energy Eternal near the construct.¡±


    John grunted. ¡°He told me too. If it attacks Stretch, I¡¯ll attack it. Or try to.¡±


    ¡°Ha! You truly are an idiot then. Standing against Golds has inflated your ego. And you could stand away and still attack if the construct is destroyed.¡±


    John laughed. ¡°Touch¨¦. But I already told the Sublime I¡¯m fine here and I¡¯d feel small moving now.¡±


    After coughing up blood, just to goad Muzaran and make the demon feel smaller for the Diamond interfering in their fight, John added, ¡°True warriors, such as Coppers that can defeat a Gold preceptor of the War Academy located on the seventh ring world Prime, Coppers that can withstand a hit from Diamonds, are always ready and willing to fight. Even if that opponent is an Eternal. True¡­¡±


    John paused to cough again. He finished by saying, ¡°True warriors accept death by violence is the reward for a life lived correctly. We are always prepared for it. We don¡¯t even consider it when planning our actions.¡±


    Muzaran laughed. ¡°Or a true warrior plans on always winning and reaching Eternal and living forever. And when we have enough Eternals to crush the core, we¡¯ll throw open the gates of Heaven and live for eternity in paradise. I¡¯d hate to miss out on paradise because I was too stupid to move away from an energy Eternal that accidentally brushed against me.¡±


    ¡°Touch¨¦,¡± said John as he laughed along with Muzaran. He found it hard not to like the demon.


    ¡°Listen, Copper John. If the Eternal doesn¡¯t kill us by accident, I have a proposal for you. We have nothing else to do while we wait, so hear me out.¡±


    John coughed up more blood. The pain in his chest wasn¡¯t relenting or easing up, and neither was the burning. He sent vital essence to heal and wondered if he¡¯d get in trouble from the Sublime for casting [Blood Heal]. He decided he wouldn¡¯t risk it. ¡°I¡¯m not joining willingly. This is my planet. I¡¯ll fight the invasions. I¡¯ll win or I¡¯ll die. It¡¯s simple. There¡¯s no other way.¡±


    After a moment of silence, Muzaran said, ¡°Reminds me of that old saying about there being nothing more dangerous than a fanatic certain of his way. Just listen to my proposal. If you are a true warrior, you¡¯ll find it appealing. I assure you.¡±

 B2 Chapter 25 - And where are all the gods?

    John relented.  ¡°Fine.  Speak,¡± he said between fits of coughing up blood.


    Preceptor Muzaran said, ¡°I know we fought and you see us as enemies, but there¡¯s no reason for such rudeness.  It requires little effort to have manners and only takes a moment to add Preceptor or Gold to your replies.¡±


    Accepting the rebuke, John said, ¡°Preceptor Muzaran, you are correct.  My apologies.¡±  He was having so many lapses in manners due to seeing Muzaran more as a peer than his better.  John was the clear victor both times they fought.


    ¡°I hate bringing that stuff up, but it¡¯s important.  You saw what happened to the Diamond.  Some of your betters will feel forced to kill you for insolence even if they don¡¯t want to.  It¡¯s an easily avoidable and dumb way to die.  Now, my proposal.


    ¡°You didn¡¯t seem familiar when I brought up the Indomitable Hundred.  Have you heard the story?¡±


    John spit out blood and said, ¡°I haven¡¯t, Preceptor Muzaran.¡±


    Muzaran smiled and nodded.  ¡°It¡¯s one of the most famous and well-known stories there is.  It¡¯s easy to forget how little the population of this world knows.  You¡¯ve heard of the Forsaken War, correct?¡±


    ¡°I have.¡±  Remembering his manners, John quickly added on, ¡°Preceptor Muzaran.¡±


    ¡°This was back during the Sonu period, early in the war.  Before the g¡¯athu were created, before the g¡¯athu became what they are, long before the Betrayer showed his true colors.  Everyone thought the war was over.  The demons defeated.  Pushed back into the NetherRealm.  Licking their wounds.


    ¡°Emperor¡­well, I¡¯ll keep it short and skip most of the details.  Khaga the Undefeated pushed through the armies of the Favored.  Only he and a hundred others made it to the core.  The Indomitable Hundred.  Half the core was laid to waste before the Indomitable Hundred fell.  Only¡­¡±


    Muzaran stopped and waited patiently as John had a coughing fit.  Once John finished, Muzaran continued, ¡°Only the mighty Khaga was left standing against the remaining forces of the Favored.  Khaga, champion of Nightmare, blessed of Adversity and Darkness, wielder of the mighty SoulRend, bearer of Aegis of Souls and the Mantle of Curiosity, master of True Coalesce.


    ¡°Khaga laughed at his enemies and said, ¡®This is too easy for me.  With my power, no matter how many I face, this fight is still unfair for you.  I came here to be challenged, so hear this offer.  I will agree to not use my power, my manifestations, if you agree to the same.  I will face two of your highest Eternals at once, or eight peaks, or thirty-two mids, or a hundred and twenty-eight lows.  As for Sublimes, I¡¯ll face five hundred and twelve at once.  If you want to try and weaken me with any tiers lower, I¡¯ll face all of them you have at the same time.¡¯


    ¡°The challenge was offered and accepted.  For a thousand days Khaga battled the forces of the core.  For a thousand days all fell before the mighty Khaga.  Even without the use of essence, Khaga proved his title true and remained undefeated.  Then, the cowards, the highest Eternals of the core, attacked him together with their best manifestations while he was fighting a...¡±


    The unspeakable feeling all around John disappeared and he was refrozen.  It took him a moment to notice Stretch was gone.


    [The Eternal has gone down into your planet.  God Almighty, I didn¡¯t know that was possible.  The construct was taken, I think by whatever controls it.  Either way, there¡¯s nothing you can do about it.  Sorry, no suicidal battle against an Eternal for you today.]


    Again, John somehow knew only he was being spoken to by the Sublime.  He was relieved that the Stretch and Eternal situation was out of his hands.  He hoped Stretch was okay and would survive.  Stretch was annoying, but he was fearless and a doughty fighter.


    [Alright everyone, you will be freed to recommence combat in three, two, one.]


    Both John and Muzaran looked around hesitantly as they were unfrozen.  ¡°Mind if I finish my proposal, Copper John?¡±


    ¡°Please do, Preceptor Muzaran,¡± replied John after he coughed up more blood and sent vital essence to heal.


    The demon walked closer to John and said, ¡°So, the cowards ended up killing the mighty Khaga with treachery, the only way they could win against him.  Dishonorable curs.  Since that glorious battle, such offers of duels have been called the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga.  No real chosen would ever turn down such a challenge.  We love that kind of shit.  It really gets the juices flowing.


    ¡°Here¡¯s how I see it.  We can fight again.  This time everyone¡¯s joining in, from Wood on up.  Maybe you¡¯ll even beat me.  If I fall, a new Gold¡¯s coming right through the portal.  If a Silver falls, it will be replaced immediately.


    ¡°We¡¯ll keep at capacity and grind you down.  Maybe you¡¯ll get two Golds.  Maybe three.  Maybe more.  Since pressing the city of Eisu, we have a nearly endless supply of Golds.  We don¡¯t care if we use up every single one of them.  Yokels or not, at some point we¡¯ll get you, or someone makes a mistake or gets angry and accidentally kills you.  No one wants that.¡±


    Muzaran raised his head up high.  ¡°Ask for the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga.  We¡¯ll set terms.  You lose the challenge, you come to the War Academy willingly and swear loyalty to us.  You win¡­well, you get the portal anchor, all our gear, crystals, and your freedom.¡±


    John said, ¡°If I win, all demons leave Earth and never come back.¡±


    Scowling, Muzaran replied.  ¡°I can¡¯t speak for the other anchor holder.  Only myself.¡±  He held up his hand.  ¡°See this ring?  This is a spatial storage ring and holds all my treasures.  This will be part of the loot if you can take it from my corpse.¡±


    John liked the idea of the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga.  He nearly agreed to it before stopping himself.  He thought, I love this kind of shit too.  He knew he had to think it through.  ¡°How exactly does this work?  How many of what do I fight?¡±


    Muzaran said, ¡°If you ask for the challenge, you¡¯ll face five hundred and twelve Woods at once.  Then a hundred and twenty-eight Coppers, then thirty-two Bronze, eight Silvers, and two opponents of the rank you challenged ¨C Gold.  All tiers separately, but the whole tier at once.


    ¡°Things have changed a little since the challenge was first offered.  Instead of no manifestations, it¡¯s usually restricted to body and weapon enhancements only.  And, of course, any equipment can be used freely.  Use of any other type of manifestation would immediately end the challenge with the offending side declared the loser.¡±


    John tried to think of any way he could be rooked or trapped.  ¡°So, I¡¯d face two Golds at once?  What stops you or your teammate from just using manifestations and killing me?¡±


    Angrily, Muzaran snapped out, ¡°What?  We¡¯re not filthy magals!  My honor and the honor of my academy and the sacred challenge itself!  The honor of all chosen!  And again, you¡¯ve replied to me twice now without including honorific or title.  I¡¯m just asking for the basic curtesy due all higher-tiered cultivators from lowers.  That you make me mention it so often is annoying.  I hate being that guy.¡±


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    John had a fit of coughing before he could reply.  ¡°Apologies, Preceptor Muzaran.¡±


    Both vampire and demon stared at each other for a long while before Muzaran asked, ¡°Well, will you offer the challenge?¡±


    John had no worry about Wood to Silver.  He got the best of Muzaran when John couldn¡¯t use any manifestation and his opponent used his own freely, but two Golds at once wouldn¡¯t be easy.


    What it came down to, for John, was his love for fighting and testing himself.  He hadn¡¯t had as much fun fighting as he had both times fighting Muzaran in far too long.  He got a little of it fighting Munashi, and to a lesser extent, Joyat too.


    After coughing up some blood, John said, ¡°Preceptor Muzaran, I ask for the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga.¡±


    Muzaran laughed.  ¡°That¡¯s the spirit!  I accept!¡±


    [Oh, I¡¯ve got to see this.]


    Muzaran scowled and looked around before smiling.  ¡°Okay.  Gorgamon!  Everyone in range through the portal!¡±


    The demons started streaming back through the portal.  When only Muzaran and Gorgamon remained the two talked quietly for a few moments.  John strained his senses to listen in but could only make out some yips and grunts that weren¡¯t translated.


    Gorgamon entered the portal and Muzaran turned to smile at John.


    Before the smile could even fully form on the Gold¡¯s face, five hundred and twelve Woods appeared in a wedge formation facing John, and all were dressed in slick, black-leather outfits, held large shields in one hand, and handheld devices that looked like firearms in the other.


    The closest row went prone, the second row got on their knees, the third row bowed a little over the second row, the fourth row stood tall, and all fired their strange handguns at John at the same time.


    John panicked and almost cast his essence-shield before remembering the rules of the challenge.  He jumped in the air to avoid the shots.  The red balls the handguns discharged all curved upwards and followed John.


    [Halt!  What is this?  You know the deal struck.  No outside tech for Circle Xakariz.  I picked a tenth ring world for this very reason.  These weapons are high Tech 1 equivalent.  Even the g¡¯athu must make tech on this world and aren¡¯t allowed to bring any through.  Why is Inner-Circle Master Ith''tas begging me to lay waste to his circle?]


    All was frozen, even the balls of red light that tracked John, as well as new shots heading right at him, discharged from deeper in the formation once he jumped in the air, giving those demons a clear shot at him.


    Muzaran, unfrozen, scurried to kowtow.  ¡°Mighty Sublime, this one was offered the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga.  This one is a preceptor at the War Academy on Nether Four, Region Lizard, Prime World.  A seventh ring world.  The one offering the challenge knew this.  The challenge is sacred and recognized even by the NCS magals use.¡±


    [Fantastic.  I¡¯m proud of you for having the ability to state obvious things.  Except I¡¯m the one that made the deal with Circle Xakariz.  By what right do you claim a Copper can override my authority?  Speak delicately, Gold, lest you meet the same end as your Diamond.]


    ¡°Mighty Sublime, the Diamond was of Circle Xakariz, not the War Academy.  But this one apologizes on behalf of both circle and academy for any inconvenience.


    ¡°Has the mighty Sublime checked the status of Terra in the NCS?  The one known as Copper John is recognized as this world¡¯s leader.  An invading force bargained with him in good faith as the leader of this world, and a peer of the mighty Sublime, one known as Sublime Sunshine, also recognized the one known as Copper John as this world¡¯s leader by an NCS enforced contract.¡±


    Some moments passed before John was unfrozen but still suspended in the air.  [Are you insane?  You gave that maniac all rights to Terra¡¯s goods, services, IPs, and exports off-world?]


    John became nervous and kowtowed after coughing up some more blood.  ¡°I didn¡¯t know I did that, Sublime.¡±


    [You signed the contract, yes?]


    ¡°Yes, Sublime.¡±


    [How do you not know you gave Sunshine all those rights, then?]


    ¡°Uh, he said the contract was for something else, Sublime.¡±  Through his orb-eye, John saw Muzaran smile widely.


    [You didn¡¯t read it!?]


    John thought about explaining that in his time, and in his mind, men of honor made bargains with the words they spoke, and only clerks, priests, and weak kings needed bargains with words they wrote down.  But that was just an excuse, and he knew he disliked excuses.  He should¡¯ve read the contract.  He didn¡¯t see what harm could come of it since no one on Earth could leave the planet to sell anything, and according to the demons, Earth had nothing worth selling anyways.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t, Sublime,¡± said John between bouts of coughing.


    [You fool.  That damn Sunshine is nothing but a headache.  Well, you brought this on yourself then.  Demon, nothing changed regarding the tier cap.  There are currently three Gold demons on Terra, discounting the one allied to the terrans.  If at any point there are four, I intercede.  And not nicely.  Understood?]


    ¡°Mighty Sublime, the challenge is sacred, even the magal NCS considers it sacred.  Since this one¡¯s War Academy has nothing but respect for the mighty Sublime, the academy would never think about going over the cap on Golds the mighty Sublime set.  This one can¡¯t order the other Golds of Circle Xakariz to leave Terra.   If the one known as Copper John survives to face the last challenge of two Golds, he must go through the portal and face two Golds on Esau.  If the one known as Copper John doesn¡¯t, he forfeits the challenge.¡±


    [No.  The challenge was given on this world and will be completed on this world.  I can dictate that.  If you refuse to remove a Gold from the other portal, I end the challenge now with no winner.  I am willing to temporarily raise the cap on demon Golds to four if the Copper survives to the final phase, but only if I am given the name and location of the Forsaken sect that gave you information from the NCS.]


    The smile disappeared from Muzaran¡¯s face.  ¡°Mighty Sublime¡­this one¡­it¡¯s not illegal for magal Forsaken to give us information.¡±


    [Correct, demon.  And it¡¯s not illegal for you to give me the name and location of their sect.  What does legality have to do with it?  This is a bargain.  If I get what I want, you get what you want.]


    ¡°Mighty Sublime¡­uh, this one doesn¡¯t know their name and location.¡±


    [I don¡¯t give a shit what you know, demon.  Someone knows.  Get me the information or this challenge is over.]


    John took the opportunity to speak up.  ¡°Can I ask a question?  Preceptor Muzaran, you said only body and weapon enhancements were allowed.  Those Woods all have some type of handguns discharging offensive manifestations.  How is this allowed?¡±


    Muzaran answered.  ¡°Gear doesn¡¯t count as manifesting.  You offered the challenge to a Gold from a seventh ring world, that includes facing what tech we have.¡±


    Anger filled John and he snapped out, ¡°That seems cowardly.¡± He stopped to cough up some blood.  ¡°You led me to believe this would be a challenge of body cultivators.¡±


    Muzaran, his voice filled with anger, said, ¡°You have too many slips in manners, Copper.  Calling a preceptor of an academy you¡¯ll soon be joining a coward isn¡¯t very smart.  Neither is having poor manners towards him.¡±


    As Muzaran was speaking, Gorgamon exited the portal and kowtowed, holding a small ball above his head with one hand as he did so.  ¡°Mighty Sublime, the information you requested.¡±


    The ball disappeared and John was refrozen back to his original position.  [Good.  If the Copper survives to face the last challenge, I¡¯ll allow one additional Gold to exit through this and only this portal and stay on Terra for the duration of this challenge.  Once the challenge is concluded, there will be a grace period of only two minutes for one of the Golds on Terra to exit.  Prepare yourselves, the challenge recommences in three, two, one.]


    John started moving forward through the air again.  He tried to deflect the first small red ball of essence to reach him with his sword and the ball was powerful enough to stagger his sword arm.  He caught two balls on his shield that hit hard enough to change his trajectory in the air.


    Then the volley reached John, and for some moments he was knocked around violently as the essence-balls tracked him to each location he was sent to.


    Spinning in the air, John managed to block most of the balls but still took many hits.  The hits stung, but he noticed with his orb-eye they caused just a small burn on his skin where he wasn¡¯t protected by his leather armor.  Many of the shots didn¡¯t make it through the armor, and the shots that did caused little to no damage.


    John ended up on the ground still in front of the wedge formation.  He quickly sent vital essence to heal then to enhance his speed and was casting [BB Buff] as a new volley was discharged at him by the bulk of the demon formation.


    John rushed to the side and forward into the demon horde.  The little red balls fired at him curved around and followed him.  He didn¡¯t attack the Woods and just ran deeper into the formation while zigzagging.


    When John was nearly through the formation, he turned around and raised his shield.  Only a few of the shots still followed him.  He blocked them easily while taking in the devastation the volley that followed him did to the Woods he ran past.


    His chest burned and John coughed up blood and took many other shots at point-blank range from the demons around him, but he still smiled.

 B2 Chapter 26 - Fire up that loud. Another round of shots.

    John ran around the no longer wedge-shaped formation as fast as he could, killing demons with both sword and shield. Leading the firearm shots into the Woods discharging them became more of a hassle than just ignoring the shots and killing the demons himself.


    John was surprised to find out that the outfits of the Woods he fought had some sort of essence-shield that activated on its own when the wearer was in danger. It wasn¡¯t powerful, but the fact that Wood demons had such armor was impressive.


    When only one Wood was left, John stuck the point of his sword into the ground. He thought the area he was in was familiar to him. He guessed it to be Saba as he picked up one of the strange handgun devices.


    As he easily blocked the weapon discharges of the last Wood with his shield, John infused the handgun device with his strongest essence, aiming the weapon off into the distance. It blew up in his hand, luckily causing little damage.


    John coughed up some blood and gripped the hilt of Fireblade, pulling it from the earth. He stopped using vital essence to enhance himself and sent it to heal instead. He walked to the last demon and cut its arm holding the handgun off. The demon attacked him with its shield, and John could barely feel the shield blows, so he ignored them and continued to plan.


    Coughing up more blood, John sent vital essence to heal again. He still had a good bit over three-quarters left. He touched up [BB Buff] and checked his veil and tightened that too. He then grabbed the Wood and drained him nearly to death and placed the demon on the ground.


    John sped away and started to move stealthily. He infused essence into his belt of hiding. He knew three of his items, the stealth cloak, boots of secrecy, and the belt of hiding, along with his tight veil and high [Stealth] [Skill], and the fact the stealth cloak scaled in effectiveness with his [Stealth] [Skill] and hid his essence from essence-sight, could keep him hidden from even Golds.


    John sent more vital essence to heal as he waited for the demon to expire. As he looked around, he was almost certain he was in or near the area he thought of as Saba, far south of the lands he once lived in and ruled.


    As a hundred and twenty-eight Coppers appeared outside the portal, John sent his vital essence to enhance his speed at the same time he felt most of his enemies cast body enhancement manifestations.


    Stealthily approaching the formation of Coppers, John noticed they all wore the same slick and shiny black-leather outfits, like armor, but not like any leather John had ever seen. The outfits the Woods wore provided very good protection for such light armor, and the Copper¡¯s looked a little sturdier.


    The Coppers had the same or similar handgun devices and shields as the Woods did too.


    Back before the Tree of Life, when John had to fight large forces himself, he¡¯d often do so by trying to split them apart. He¡¯d attack, escape and hide, and attack again, whittling them down in piecemeal fashion. He didn¡¯t consider a hundred and twenty-eight a large force, but since he hadn¡¯t used the tactic since the Tree of Life came to Earth, he decided to try it out on the Coppers.


    Knowing the rules changed, John didn¡¯t think he¡¯d be able to slip away into the shadows when he could be sensed by his enemies. He was wrong, and he was able to. Either the low intelligence of demon Coppers, or the stealth cloak, or the poor senses of his enemies allowed it. He¡¯d pop up and kill five or six enemies then slink away. Sometimes he¡¯d be hit by a shot aimed at him as he sped off, but he was able to avoid or block most of them.


    The burning in John¡¯s chest and his need to occasionally cough up blood was no help to his attempts to hide and stealth either.


    When only one Copper remained, John repeated what he had done the last time and drained the demon until it was near death. Then he prepared in the same way before infusing essence into his belt of hiding.


    Thirty-two Bronze demons appeared outside the portal, and he felt them all cast body enhancements. About half cast weapon enhancement manifestations too. Two of the demons were in something John thought of as heavy mechanical suits of some sort. The suits couldn¡¯t be considered armor since it left so much of the body exposed. Large cannon-like instruments were on the suit¡¯s shoulders and forearms, and some sort of device was strapped to the suit¡¯s back.


    The thirty other Bronze demons all had various sized rifles. Their slick, black, sturdy armor had some sort of blade made of essence on the left arm that turned into a front-shield when they held their rifles a certain way. The armor had what looked to be hard plates covering various areas.


    John coughed up blood as quietly as he could. The burning in his chest just wasn¡¯t getting better. The Bronzes made a circle perimeter facing outwards and whispered into headphones within their helmets.


    Easily entering the perimeter, John snuck behind one of the wearers of the mechanical suit and inspected it. It was mostly a hollow metal frame. The thing strapped to the back, if he had to guess, looked to be a launcher for one of the exploding types of missiles he saw flying machines called jets release at Ukaraaz. The small cannons on the shoulder were able to swivel and only had one discharge hole he could see. He believed the cannons on the arms were projectile weapons as there were large drums of ammunition attached to them.


    John looked at Muzaran. The Gold was standing beside the portal and also looking around for John, the same as the Bronze demons. Muzaran had changed into a better and higher-tier form of the black-leather armor with plates the Bronze wore.


    John then inspected the various rifles his Bronze opponents carried. Some were longer and thinner; some were shorter and stouter.


    For his daily training, John took a class on [Self-Propelled Projectile Weapons]. It was a [Skill] he didn¡¯t possess, and a [Skill] he needed to know more of. He believed the longer and thinner firearms were sniper rifles and the shorter and stouter ones were automatic or half-automatic.


    Semis, half an ¡®as,¡¯ a coin used back in Rome. Semi doesn¡¯t mean half now ¨C it means something like partial, or somewhat.


    There was also a [Skill] called [Essence-Infused Projectile Weapons]. Both [Skills] could be merged together, but merging wouldn¡¯t give him knowledge in firearms or essence-rifles he didn¡¯t already have, just more harmony. He left them unmerged to track his progress and knowledge of his new [Skills] better.


    John found it strange the Bronze demons brought sniper rifles. From what he was taught by Avatar, sniper rifles were for long distance accuracy and to kill an enemy very far away. He wondered if he was doing the challenge incorrectly and was supposed to fight from far off. He did have bows in his ring. With his new body [Perk] and [Stats], he could handle a higher-tiered bow with a much tougher draw strength than the one he picked out for himself before.


    Having learned what he could from inspecting his foes, John got back behind one of the wearers of the mechanical suits. He bashed the suit-wearer¡¯s head in with his shield, having to pass through, and not break, a strange type of essence-shield to do so - an essence-shield that greatly slowed his attack.


    The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    Once his first enemy was dead, John quickly turned and threw his sword at the second suit-wearer on the opposite side of the perimeter about forty paces away.


    The sword was slowed too greatly by the strange essence-shield the suit created before clanging harmlessly off the back of the helmet and falling to the ground.


    John charged across the perimeter, rolling canted once. It was a very short distance and not many of his opponents had a chance to notice or react to his appearance yet, and none got a shot off at him before he snatched his sword up from the ground. He shoved it into the eye of the demon wearing the mechanical suit just as the demon managed to turn around and see the sword coming at its face.


    Feeling danger, John dodged sideways as many shots peppered the area he stood in a moment before. As he gained his feet, a powerful shot hit John in the back. He rolled to the side and came up slashing. He ran around the perimeter killing Bronzes and, luckily, didn¡¯t take any further shots from any of the rifles.


    The last five demons were left alive and disarmed. After coughing up blood, John stopped enhancing his speed and sent vital essence to heal then checked his back where he was shot. There was a big bruise and a scab already. He held ten light-green crystals of a Gold out to the Bronze demons and said, ¡°I can kill you. Or, if you do me a favor, I¡¯ll give each of you two of these crystals.¡±


    Muzaran called out, ¡°Don¡¯t listen to him, cadets.¡±


    [Stay out of it, demon. You¡¯re not part of the challenge yet. I let you observe. Don¡¯t interfere.]


    John waited a moment to see if Muzaran or the Sublime would add anything further as he watched the confused Bronzes look around. He said, ¡°It¡¯s fine. You can feel I¡¯m of the ptagmog. Now, do you want two of these crystals each or not?¡±


    All five Bronzes wanted the crystals he offered. John figured the crystals of a Gold would be hard to resist for Bronze demons. He had them collect all the crystals, arms, and armor that had gathered all over the desert ground and bring all the loot to him as he stood near Muzaran.


    ¡°You¡¯re a real prick, you know that, Copper John?¡±


    John smiled. ¡°Me? A friend of mine has been calling me a similar name recently. I am what my enemies force me to be. And I believe the Sublime told you not to interfere.¡± After a bout of coughing and spitting up blood, he added, ¡°Excuse me, I forgot to tack on Preceptor Muzaran. This prick would hate to be considered ill mannered.¡±


    John continued to smile as crystals and equipment were brought to him while he occasionally coughed and spit out blood. He took all the firearms he could into his ring. After the firearms, space in the ring was tighter than he hoped it would be. He checked the armor and outfits. Even the outfits for the Woods he faced during the challenge had the [Minor Resize] rune.


    The two mechanical suits were far too big and needed too much room to go in the ring. Bronze demons were only a little bigger than John, so he tried to wear one of the mechanical suits. He couldn¡¯t figure it out. He did notice a place on the lower back of the suits held something called a battery, an energy source the suits drew power from.


    After testing the weaponry, John found the Copper handguns exploded when infused with his strongest essence but would survive if he used a minor essence. Only the Bronze sniper rifles could survive being infused with his blood essence, and only if he didn¡¯t charge the attack up any.


    John only took twenty each of the armor sets for Wood, Copper, and Bronze. He removed about half of the handguns the Woods used to fit the armor in. He included some other strange tech, like vision and ear devices. He¡¯d figure the rest out later.


    Surprisingly, an NCS message forced its way into John¡¯s vision.


    World Quest Update: The World Quest has been completed. A big thanks goes out to all participants.


    After the message disappeared a new message forced its way into John¡¯s vision


    User was one of three contributing participants. Majority contributing participant is incapable of accepting stated rewards. User¡¯s participation rating was the second highest. User will receive the following rewards.


    1 Nano Control Unit expansion slot


    1 Nano Control Unit upgrade up to Tech 1 grade C


    Nano Control Unit expansion slot unlocked. User is to see Avatar for Nano Control Unit reward selection.


    John was glad to receive the rewards. He wondered exactly what he did to win the contest or quest or whatever it was. He didn¡¯t think he did anything notable. He certainly put no effort at all into solving what the NCS asked him to solve. He tried to enter his Mind¡¯s Eye hoping the NCS didn¡¯t consider him to be in a hostile environment, but he wasn¡¯t allowed to.


    Once all of the crystals were collected and put in his ring and the rest of the gear was put in different piles, John handed two light-green crystals to each of the five Bronze demons. He then killed four of the demons and drained the last to near death before re-collecting his crystals.


    Preparing as he did before, John wondered if he should move much farther away and switch his sword out for a bow or rifle or sniper rifle. He decided to stay with what had worked so far and kept his shield and Fireblade in hand and tried to get as much coughing out of the way as possible before the Silvers appeared.


    After temporarily relieving his need to cough and clearing his mouth of blood, John felt into himself with his blood power. He knew he couldn¡¯t cast [Blood Heal] without losing the challenge, but he wanted to see if anything in his chest had changed since he last checked. He couldn¡¯t find a reason for the coughing or burning. Even if he could cast his heal, he wouldn¡¯t know what to heal.


    Thankfully, the way John healed with vital essence required no direction from him or knowledge of what needed to be healed, so he sent more to do so until eight Silvers appeared outside the portal, and he sent his vital essence to enhance his speed.


    All the Silvers cast body enhancements and some cast weapon enhancements too.


    Six of the Silvers had mechanical suits this time, and not the hollow outlines of ones the two Bronze demons had. The suits covered most of their bodies in stout looking metal.


    Three of the Silver demons in suits had melee weapons. One had what looked like a whip made of lava in his right hand, a large hammer in his left hand, and the weapons were attached to or part of the suit instead of actually being held in hands.


    Another suit wearer had two long and somewhat transparent blades that looked to be made of energy. The last melee suit-wearer had something like a giant crab claw and a tower shield.


    The three other Silvers in mechanical suits had various types of firearms or arm and shoulder mounts and what John guessed to be missiles too.


    The two Silver demons without mechanical suits had slick and shiny black armor with plating. One had the biggest and stoutest rifle John had seen so far and the other had a large two-handed sword and wore a blindfold. Every demon but the one wearing the blindfold had a mechanical device covering their eyes he assumed provided some sort of enhanced vision capability.


    Three of the demons disappeared from sight, and all three of them were melee demons, including the blindfolded one, but John could still see their souls. Half of them started placing devices on the ground or in the ground while the others kept watch.


    John changed his mind. He moved far away from the circle perimeter of the Silvers to a dune ridge spotted with tamarisk shrubs. Some movement in the distance caught his eye and he noticed it was an oryx and dismissed it. Taking out weapons from his ring during battle was much harder than putting them in but putting them in wasn¡¯t easy by any means either. He took out some bows and tested the draw.


    One bow took far too much effort to draw so John put it back in the ring along with all the ones he could draw too easily. Of the two left, one created its own arrows when it was drawn, and he liked that feature a lot, so he put the other one back. He had no idea what runes were on the bow, but he hoped they did something besides making essence-arrows.


    John had always been good with a bow. Good enough where at some point after gaining the power, killing opponents in ranged combat felt too unfair, so honor demanded he avoid doing so. But the rules had changed since then. His opponents weren¡¯t so easy anymore.


    John would probably always prefer killing opponents with a sword over a bow, but he would give much to be able to kill them with flames he controlled from afar. And he had never shot a sniper rifle outside his Mind¡¯s Eye and wanted real world experience with the weapon.


    The war cry and motto of the tribe John was born to so long ago contained only two words. He couldn¡¯t remember the exact words, but they roughly translated to ¡®I was born for war.¡¯ In his case, those words held true throughout his life. He had only ever felt at peace while meditating and warring. He was good at many things, such as smithing and the like, but the only thing he always excelled at, even before he accepted the power, was combat. It was the only thing he truly understood.


    After taking out a Bronze sniper rifle, he placed his shield back in the ring, sheathed Fireblade on his back, and placed the bow down at his feet. John prepared to do what he was born for.

 B2 Chapter 27 - If you wanna find hell with me, I can show you what its like

    John aimed his sniper rifle at one of the Silver mechanical-suit wearers equipped with ranged weaponry. Avatar said he should always aim at chests, called aiming center mass, but the mechanical suit looked sturdy, so he aimed at the exposed face. He turned the aim assist function of his NCS on and it told him to aim exactly where he was aiming.


    In the class Avatar gave, she said firearm bullets drifted and were subject to wind and other factors and when shooting at very far off targets, the shooter couldn¡¯t aim where he wanted the bullet to land. The same was even more true for arrows, but differently, and in a way John had long understood.


    Whatever essence discharged from an essence-rifle could have weight or be weightless, and could be subject to wind, tumble, gravity, and other factors, or not subject to those factors at all. Without knowing the runes and what would come out of the rifle, the first shot was a gamble. There was a similar issue with the sniper rifles of Earth, even if the make of the rifle and rounds it fired were known, the first shot out of a cold barrel was the most chaotic and least accurate.


    Since he was not a great distance from his target and well within arrow range, John wasn¡¯t too worried about whatever came out of the barrel missing. He infused the sniper rifle with a little blood essence. It lit it up and discharged, causing the weapon to buck in his hands. The Silver demon¡¯s face exploded. He couldn¡¯t make out what was discharged, but he was happy with it.


    John grabbed his bow and ran along the ridge while infusing new essence into his belt of hiding. The spot where he shot from was bombarded with explosions and many projectiles.


    At a new spot, John saw what the great weapons on the arms of the mechanical suits that looked like cannons did ¨C they spun around and sprayed out projectiles so rapidly he knew he wouldn¡¯t be able to avoid such a quick and massive barrage.


    The three invisible demons¡¯ souls bobbed as they slowly approached the ridge from different angles. Four demons remained in the original perimeter ¨C two mechanical-suit wearers with ranged weapons, the mechanical-suit demon with the crab hand and shield, and the black-outfit wearer with the giant, stout rifle. The rifleman was lying prone.


    John aimed at the face of one of the two remaining ranged mechanical-suit wearers. He infused his sniper rifle and watched a new head explode, grabbed his bow, and moved back a distance while infusing his belt of hiding again.


    This time the demons covered a much larger area and not only the spot John just occupied. He nearly got hit by the explosions of missiles and shots of both energy projectiles and bullets.


    In a new spot, far away from his old, John watched the three bobbing souls of the hidden demons walk along the ridge searching for him. He tried to unsuccessfully stifle a cough. He took aim center mass of the closest soul and infused essence into his sniper rifle and discharged it. A mechanical-suit wearer appeared, the one with the lava whip, and the suit seemed unharmed.


    John dropped the sniper rifle, grabbed his bow and nocked and loosed arrows as he ran backwards.


    Two arrows entered the face of the visible demon, two more arrows knocked the other mechanical-suit wearer out of stealth a moment before two arrows also entered that demon¡¯s face.


    As John ran backwards loosing arrows, explosions and projectiles tracked him and he zigzagged as best he could. The last invisible soul impressed him as the two arrows he sent at that demon were batted aside, but the demon still lost his invisibility.


    John sent four more arrows out and the newly exposed demon wearing the blindfold used his two-handed sword to beat two of those aside as he deftly dodged the other two, impressing John again.


    Running canted and changing directions, John became as stealthy as he could before the belt of hiding would accept essence, letting him relax. He gave a silent prayer to the powers that be he never swapped into the physical prowess belt.


    The blindfold wearing demon was hidden again too. John circled around to approach the demon from behind. He put the bow in his left hand and drew and cut through the soul with Fireblade, making the enemy visible as the torso slid apart and both pieces of the demon fell to the ground.


    John immediately ran away but almost took some bullets from the rotating cannons. A coughing fit kept his belt from accepting essence and a missile exploded close enough to knock him to the ground. He got up, shook his head clear, and ran a great distance through a storm of projectiles before his belt finally accepted essence.


    John made his way back to where he dropped his sniper rifle. The weapon was battered and broken. He made his way around and to the opposite side of the three demons remaining in the perimeter. That wasn¡¯t a good position since the only exposed part of the mechanical-suit wearers were their lower faces and he had no access to it. He moved back around to a new ridge towards the front-right of where the demons were facing, stifling his coughs and spitting up blood.


    While John was repositioning, a few oryx wandered into view and the demons killed them. He had always despised such wanton slaughter. He revised his opinion of why the oryx were killed when one of the suit wearers went to retrieve a dropped crystal. He remembered how things worked on Esau. The killing of creatures just made more of those creatures spawn. If a low-level creature came into view, it was killed without much thought.


    Eight arrows were loosed before the remaining demons even knew they were under attack. Two to the face of each mechanical-suit wearer. He wanted to subdue the prone demon in the slick and shiny armor, so one arrow flew to each of his limbs.


    All arrows hit their marks. Something exploded, then more explosions sounded off within or around the demon perimeter.


    Adrenaline spiked in John as he felt a new Gold appear right in front of the portal. He noticed the prone demon he tried to subdue with an arrow to each limb was dead. He tried to infuse his belt of hiding with essence as he ran away and felt the new Gold and Muzaran cast manifestations on themselves.


    With his orb-eye, John saw the new Gold was in a giant mechanical suit that fully covered its head and face. The new Gold brought an empty suit Muzaran rushed to enter.


    John turned around and retreated backwards as he loosed arrows at Muzaran. The preceptor batted them aside and avoided them easily and yelled out, ¡°Stop! Time-out! Let¡¯s talk before we fight!¡±


    The new Gold stood in front of Muzaran and protected him from arrows as he entered the empty suit. The suits had protection that caused the essence-arrows to slow greatly when they got near, and the arrows bounced harmlessly off the tough metal.


    Once Muzaran was settled into his giant mechanical suit, he called out again with an artificially amplified voice. ¡°Copper John, we need to talk. I saw you put a few of the earpieces you took from the Bronze challengers in your ring. Put one in your ear and bend the microphone towards your mouth so we can speak for a moment.¡±


    Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    Before John considered what Muzaran requested, he inspected the battlefield. The Silver he tried to subdue was a mess. The arrows went into all four limbs. An arrow to each limb shouldn¡¯t have killed a Silver. The explosions killed the demon.


    Gold demons were already giants, and Muzaran was bigger than Hubaba and Ukaraaz by a head or two. The two Golds in their mechanical suits were much larger than even Diamond Garioch.


    Not only were the suits massive, but they also looked very sturdy and completely covered every part of the demons wearing them. And that slowing essence-shield seemed to cover both suits completely.


    The suit of the second Gold was covered in ranged weaponry and missiles. The suit Muzaran entered had shoulder mounts, a ranged weapon on one arm, a shield mounted on the other, and a ridiculously massive sword in the right hand.


    John sighed as both suits began to rise in the air and hover a hundred paces or so off the ground.


    ¡°Just so you know, we can see the heat signatures of your tracks,¡± said Muzaran as both suits aimed bright lights at John. ¡°We don¡¯t need to see you if we can see your tracks, Copper John. We¡¯ll give you a minute to put on the earpiece and respond before we start firing.¡±


    John coughed up blood and sent vital essence to heal before enhancing both his strength and speed. He moved away and sent more essence into his belt of hiding. He didn¡¯t move far as the light from the suits followed him. He coughed again to clear his airways of blood before taking an earpiece out. It was made for a demon, so he had to hold it over his ear. He bent the metal wire towards his mouth.


    ¡°What do you want, Preceptor Muzaran?¡± whispered John into the wire.


    There was no reply. John spoke into the wire many more times before calling out, ¡°I don¡¯t think the earpiece is working.¡±


    ¡°Did you turn it on? Hit the button in the center of the earpiece part.¡±


    John found the button and noticed a small light when he pushed it. ¡°What do you want, Preceptor Muzaran?¡±


    ¡°Copy. I can hear you now. Can you hear me?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± After a moment John added on, ¡°Preceptor Muzaran.¡±


    ¡°Good. My companion is Preceptor Ungoth from the School of Warfare.¡±


    A new voice was heard through the earpiece. ¡°Copper John, I have great admiration for your prowess, your skill at arms, how you manage to spot hidden foes and fight well above your tier for such a low-graded race.  Your capacity to adapt to and overcome all the fluid situations you¡¯ve faced on the battlefield is truly impressive. The little footage recorded by the Silver minis will be shown in my classes. I¡¯ve never seen one so skilled with sword and shield and bow. You fired off eight arrows in a split second.¡±


    ¡°Uh, thank you, Preceptor Ungoth,¡± replied John, then coughed up more blood.


    ¡°It¡¯s pronounced Ungoth, but close enough.¡±


    Muzaran said, ¡°Listen, Copper John. You¡¯ve done well in this challenge, but that stops here. You are coming to the War Academy. We want you to come amicably and give us your loyalty.


    ¡°I know you think I tried to trick you, but I didn¡¯t. I told you our academy is on a seventh ring world. You had all the information. If you¡¯re not paying attention, that¡¯s on you. Like you, we respect courage and dauntlessness. ¡®Mettle¡¯ is my concept for a reason.


    ¡°If we fight you with these minis, there¡¯s too great a chance you¡¯ll die, and we¡¯d have done all this for nothing. At best you¡¯d be severely injured and useless for a long time and require a great expense to make whole again. We don¡¯t want that. We don¡¯t want to risk you. We offer a new challenge. A challenge within a challenge.


    ¡°Preceptor Ungoth is also a student of the sword, just as we are. He is also a body cultivator too, like us. We admit you are more skilled at swordcraft than either of us, but we are Golds, and there are two of us. You¡¯re a Copper.


    ¡°To prove our good intentions, we are willing to fight you in the way you mistakenly assumed this contest would go. This will prove I wasn¡¯t trying to trick you. And prove our academy is filled with like-minded members of the ptagmog valuing honor and prowess above all else.


    ¡°If you agree, we will exit our mini-mechs and fight you in melee. No tech. Just swords, body, and weapon enhancements.¡±


    John coughed up blood and turned his mind towards seeing if he was being rooked somehow. The deal seemed lopsided. He wondered if he had some sort of weapon in his ring they feared since they had no reason to fear his arrows. Did the mini-mechs slow them down? The lesser versions seemed to have enhanced the speed of their users, and the little he¡¯d seen of the new suits moving made him believe that was even more true for them.


    No matter how John turned his mind and changed his perspective the deal only seemed to favor him and him alone. It seemed too good of a deal. The only explanation could be that Muzaran was sincere and wanted John as a willing student, and fighting the Gold version of mini-mechs truly posed a risk to John¡¯s life they didn¡¯t want to take.


    ¡°I accept the deal, Preceptors Muzaran and Ungoth.¡±


    ¡°Ungoth. Ungoth. And Good. We¡¯re glad, Copper John. This is the way. We¡¯re landing and exiting our mini-mechs. Come meet us for our duel.¡±


    John watched the two giant demons land and exit their mini-mechs and recast their body and weapon enhancements. A giant, curved blade glowing orange and a shield appeared in the hands of Ungoth. A very large sword appeared in the hands of Muzaran and at first it glowed blue but then began to glow brown.


    The body and weapon manifestation of Ungoth felt like they also applied themselves to Muzaran. Still holding the earpiece, John asked, ¡°I thought the deal was self-only body and weapon manifestations?¡±


    Ungoth said, ¡°I have a benefit [Aura]. All buffs I apply to myself also affect my allies in a radius. Come forward and unstealth, Copper.¡±


    John dropped the earpiece and approached the two Golds while putting the bow in his ring, taking out his shield, and drawing his sword. He had to cough, and it required all his will and a titanic effort to hold it in. Muzaran was speaking to him over the earpiece, demanding he unhide. Ungoth disappeared from sight, but his soul didn¡¯t.


    Creeping up behind the bobbing soul of Ungoth, John ignored the frantic yells of Muzaran demanding he unhide. He slashed through the soul. As the spirit of Ungoth rose beside the two parts of his corpse, John yelled out, ¡°Stop yelling. I unhid.¡±


    Muzaran cried out, ¡°You cowardly prick!¡± The demon rushed to his mini-mech and reached it a moment before John reached him. The Gold had no chance to enter his machine.


    John¡¯s desire to have another worthy fight was fulfilled. For nearly two glorious minutes or so. The demon fought madly, knowing his life was at great risk.


    Fireblade, infused with essence and burning hot, cut through both of Muzaran¡¯s forearms, disarming the preceptor and causing him to yell out in pain.


    John quickly jumped on the back of the demon and began to drain the Gold. Muzaran thrashed around impotently, unable to stop the vampire.


    How John understood the rules, the demon could¡¯ve submitted or cast a manifestation to end the challenge. John assumed Muzaran would do either, so he rushed to get all the essence from the Gold he could, while he could. But the demon never did either of those things.


    John strengthened himself sixteen times before he knew Muzaran was too weak and drained to be any sort of threat. He said to the demon, ¡°I didn¡¯t trick you. You even told me what a prick I am. You had all the information. If you¡¯re not paying attention, that¡¯s on you. I win. You lose. Again.¡±


    John searched the demon for the portal anchor. He knew it couldn¡¯t go into a storage device and still work, so it had to be on the demon¡¯s body. It took him a while, but he finally found it and sent it straight into his ring. The portal immediately closed.


    John returned to draining the demon and was able to strengthen himself seven more times before Muzaran expired. He assumed the contest was over so cast [Blood Heal] in an unspecified way targeting his chest, and instead of helping, the manifestation caused him to cough up more blood.


    [Good show, Copper.]


    John kowtowed and said, ¡°Thank you, Sublime.¡±


    [I¡¯m surprised you survived the Diamond¡¯s attack. There¡¯s rot in your chest you¡¯ll want to address soon.]


    John once again considered asking the Sublime for healing. He decided not to. The Sublime would¡¯ve offered it if he was willing to give it. ¡°Yes, Sublime.¡±


    No reply came, so after a few moments John got up, coughed up more blood, sent vital essence to heal, and collected what arms, armor, and crystals he could, taking the swords of both Golds, Muzaran¡¯s black outfit, the stout rifle of the Silver, as well as the blindfolded Silver¡¯s sword, removing more Wood-tier firearms to fit them all into his ring.


    Only Muzaran had a spatial storage device. That went into one of John¡¯s pouches along with Muzaran¡¯s ¡®band of suffering.¡¯ Everything else that survived combat was brought to the piles the Bronzes made for him.


    Besides his burning chest and the coughing, John was in good shape. The powerful shot he took in his back was mostly healed. Even his robes and armor were in better shape than he thought they¡¯d be in, already repairing themselves. He needed to check if meditation helped his chest. He sat near the spirit of Muzaran. Since he liked the demon, he was glad the demon¡¯s spirit stood tall and whole and proudly.

 B2 Chapter 28 - Offer me that deathless death

    The Sublime spoke to John before he could begin meditating.


    [Copper, I¡¯m going to need that portal anchor back, along with the other one. I was going to wait to collect them after all¡¯s said and done, but those cost me a lot of crystals. If you¡¯re dealing with Sunshine, I can¡¯t risk leaving them with you any longer.]


    Adrenaline spiked in John¡¯s heart as he kowtowed again. ¡°Of course, Sublime. The portal anchor I just recovered is yours but¡­uh, I hate to say it, but Sunshine already took the other one after Ukaraaz was defeated.¡±


    [You little¡­ugh, I doubt it¡¯s your fault. That snake is slippery. It¡¯s still your debt to pay. I took the anchor from your spatial device, and I¡¯ll take from what equipment litters the field of battle as compensation. Okay, I took the two Gold tier mini-mechs and three of the Silver tier ones. That should cover it. There¡¯s still three Silvers left and those are far too big for terrans to utilize anyways. Don¡¯t tell anyone but I¡¯ll be away from Terra for a few days. I¡¯m going to destroy a nest of traitors called Forsaken. Try to stay out of trouble. And good luck with your injury.]


    ¡°Thank you, Sublime. I will tell no one.¡±


    John recovered and sat down again to meditate. He could feel the little spy-drones fly closer. After some time meditating, he felt a few helicopters approaching. He ignored them as they landed. People exited the vehicles but kept a respectful distance away. Once the helicopters were silent, John stood and approached the group.


    The group was made up of mostly leaders from countries named Yemen, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. They thanked John profusely for closing the portal and defeating the horde. While they spoke, a new helicopter arrived with the rulers of countries called Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Djibouti ¨C countries the demon horde already passed through and ravaged.


    John was glad to be thanked, praised, and honored so, but he was angered that none of the leaders offered him treasure or tribute for avenging or saving their people. Since they didn¡¯t offer, he had to ask if they¡¯d be willing to store the remaining gear for him. Many said they¡¯d be happy to do so. He could tell a few of the leaders disliked each other greatly.


    John was told Meghan, the name his wife¡¯s new body was born to, rallied the world to send troops and save John, and that she was on her way with the ¡®bear-woman.¡¯ They were expected to arrive in a couple hours, and Hubaba would arrive some hours later.


    It made John glad to have such a dutiful and caring wife. After constantly coughing up blood, it was easy to beg his pardon from the leaders and go off alone to meditate. He couldn¡¯t go deep because the environment around him was far too busy. Many soldiers arrived, some collecting and transporting his booty. Reporters with their cameras and questions also arrived.


    The rulers ensured that John wasn¡¯t bothered, though the amount of people, noise, and activity in the previously peaceful desert bothered him. Once Lilly arrived, she charged in and tried to tackle him in a big hug while calling him many vulgar names. She then held him and put her head on his cheek, telling him he was her heart¡¯s content.


    Lilly said Hubaba was no longer coming and went off to speak with the leaders, John assumed to get some of the treasure and tribute the leaders should have showered upon him of their own accord without it needing to be asked for.


    John thought he was alone as he coughed up as much blood as he could to clear his lungs for meditation when Amber said, ¡°Are you okay, buddy?¡±


    John sighed. ¡°So, I¡¯m your buddy again?¡±


    ¡°You never stopped being my friend, you jerk! Why¡­ugh, why¡­I¡¯m sure you love all this. You just couldn¡¯t wait a day so we could do it safely and smartly, could you? Big, bad John had to rush in like an idiot again, and since it worked out and you didn¡¯t die you think you¡¯re right to be an idiot. And a Jerk.


    ¡°You know how scared your wife was? She, like, went crazy and was threatening the whole world with destruction if they wouldn¡¯t help you¡­and bring us to you. I can¡¯t believe she followed you into the portal¡­thing. You are so lucky to have someone that loves you so, so much. To have¡­true love. At least from her to you. It doesn¡¯t seem to go both ways. Because you¡¯re a jerk. You don¡¯t even care what we dealt with, do you? I¡­I accidentally¡­ugh, you wouldn¡¯t even care. And you still look bad, by the way.¡±


    Amber was really starting to annoy John. ¡°As I said before, I will not stand aside and wait as those I swore to protect are slaughtered by those I swore to fight. How many more would¡¯ve died while we waited? I must meditate. Please, I¡¯d like to be left in peace.¡±


    John heard Amber say, ¡°Jerk¡± from a little distance off as she walked away. Not too long later, John, Lilly, and Amber got on a helicopter that brought them to a plane that would fly them back to DC.


    The gear that the rulers said they¡¯d store filled the plane, including the three Silver and two Bronze mini-mech suits. Lilly really thinks of everything. At least when it comes to treasure and wealth, thought John.


    John purposefully avoided entering his Mind¡¯s Eye. He wanted to see if going deep in meditation healed his chest, and he sat on Lilly¡¯s mat to do so. He kept creating shen in his middle dantian, and then using all the shen to create emptiness in his upper dantian.


    John went deep for some time and the burning in his chest started to relent. He heard the name Ahn, though it was pronounced Han. Hearing that name made him start to pay attention to the conversation going on between Amber and Lilly. He wished Amber was cultivating instead of talking so she could finally rank up. Unless she wants to delay doing such, and have an excuse to avoid further battle, thought John.


    Lilly said, ¡°¡­Han was a real asshole.¡± John heard her heart spike and she added on, ¡°From what I was told.¡±


    Amber asked, ¡°How long were you guys¡­together¡­married? Did you date for a long time before you got married? When did you know it was true love?¡±


    Lilly laughed. ¡°True love? Immediately! Date? Things worked a little differently back then. When we met, I was badly injured, and we couldn¡¯t communicate well. We technically spoke a similar language but imagine a mealymouthed hillbilly from Louisiana talking to a hillbilly from the backwoods of Scotland.


    ¡°My people were called the Children of God. Other Egyptians thought we were a very strange cult and just wanted us out of sight and mind. There were never many of us. My tribe was pushed to the outskirts of our area, nome, whatever, and we lived apart and away long enough it was hard for others to understand us, and John is always hard to understand in any language.


    ¡°Well, I healed quickly once I received the dark gift and fed. I didn¡¯t need to understand his speech to know he found me attractive. Well, all men did when I had my first body. I¡­¡±


    Amber interrupted, ¡°You were so hot. Remember you showed me in your Mind¡¯s Eye? You¡¯re so pretty now too. When you¡­I mean your body...when your body grows up, you¡¯ll probably be even more beautiful this time.¡±


    John could practically feel Lilly smile and eat that up. His wife said, ¡°Thank you. I hope so, I miss how Adon used to look at me with such hunger. Well, I knew he found me attractive and wanted me, but he just wouldn¡¯t take me, even after I fully healed, no matter how obvious I made my willingness. Not for some time. My hips hurt from shaking my ass around him so much.


    ¡°It probably sounds strange, but we never had an official wedding. Weddings were a thing back then. There were many of them, especially for the wealthy. In large part, for the common folk, they were unnecessary. Once Adon finally took me, he told me he¡¯d always protect me, and that was it. He was my husband, and I was his wife. I wanted no one else. Just him. The man that saved me, gave me immortality and power, and ensured no one would ever hurt me again. Besides when¡­well, that¡¯s a different story.¡±


    Amber sighed. ¡°That sounds so magical. I wish¡­I wish I could have true love someday. I can tell you truly love him. He¡¯s so lucky to have that. Anyone would be. Heck, anyone that can¡­you know, do¡­stuff¡­is lucky. Compared to me at least.¡±


    Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    Lilly readily replied, ¡°Who knows what the future holds, Amber? One day you¡¯ll get what you deserve. I¡¯m certain of it. As to how long we were together, I spent some time trying to figure that out when I first returned to Terra in my last body. My husband and I discussed this recently too. A lot of what Adon claims doesn¡¯t mesh up with recorded history, and he always had strange names for places.¡±


    After sighing dramatically, Lilly said, ¡°I guess I should explain how Adon thinks so you¡¯ll see my version of events is far more reliable. He was already old when we met, and old minds are resistant to change and try to force what they know on what¡¯s new to help cope. I was starting to get like that before I left Terra.


    ¡°Keep in mind I came from an insular village and knew absolutely nothing when we first met. Adon claims the Akkadians were a people and Sargon just took the name of the people of his area for his city. You¡¯ve heard of the Assyrians?¡±


    Amber said, ¡°Um, I think so.¡±


    ¡°Well, they named their city after their people, Assur, and he makes that point. He ruled Kish and cities north of it for long stretches before we met. He said everyone considered the people north of Kish the Agade, and they spoke Agadi, and this was long before Sargon. He¡¯ll admit many people in the Sumer region considered themselves the Kengi and spoke Emegi, but he still calls them all the Sumer and says they spoke Suma. He also said there was a different area before Sumer, around modern-day Lebanon I think, called Suma, and those people spoke a different language also called Suma.¡±


    John heard Lilly shuffle around for a moment. ¡°We¡¯d enter a city and he¡¯d say its name was some crazy gibberish and all the people there would say, ¡®What? This is Urim. And always has been.¡¯ He can¡¯t even remember where he was born or his people. Everything he says has to be taken with a grain of salt. He¡¯s a great man and not a liar, but his memory¡­I know for certain he gets some facts wrong.¡±


    Lilly sighed again before saying, ¡°What year did we meet? I have a good guess. After he saved me, we first went to Ur but took our time getting there. I heard about Sargon taking over everything long before getting to Ur. After Ur, we went to a city that was already defeated and made part of the Akkadian Empire, called Uruk. Everything seemed fine and peaceful, but I didn¡¯t understand or care what was happening at the time. I was having too much fun, and I was safe with Adon no matter what.


    ¡°My best guess is we met about ten years before 2270 or 2255 or so. When we were in Babylon¡­I loved that city so much. I really started to embrace the dark gift and spread my wings there. I picked my name there, the name I still use, after the name of a spirit I enjoyed hearing stories of.


    ¡°Well, in Babylon we heard Sargon¡¯s son was replaced. That could¡¯ve been 2270 or 55. I¡¯m just not sure. According to the age range the NCS gives Adon, that means he was fifteen or sixteen hundred years old then.¡±


    Amber said, ¡°Sometimes it¡¯s easy to forget how old he is. I think of him more like a knight from the olden¡­the medieval times.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m no spring chicken myself, Amber. Adon kept me from Egypt for a long time, but when we went back the king ruled from Tanis. Apepi, so around the mid fifteenth century. I made a deal with him, so I remember this event clearly. Adon swears it was Memphis.


    ¡°I know how his mind works. In his mind, the Egyptian emperors united lower and upper Egypt and ruled from Memphis. Apepi ruled Egypt so he had to be in Memphis, and he was an emperor and didn¡¯t rule only lower Egypt because, to Adon, Egypt was already unified. He is wrong, of course.¡±


    Lilly chuckled a little before continuing, ¡°I know for certain it was Seti the first when¡­you know how the Jews say they were enslaved in Egypt? Well, that wasn¡¯t really true. Or not true enough. Everyone just wanted the Children of God weirdos apart and away from civilized folk and be forgotten about. Even though they were technically made slaves, little changed for most of them. It was infuriating.


    ¡°Well, eventually, there were religious reforms in Egypt, and the Hittites were a big worry. I know this was during Seti the first because he ruled from Memphis. Seti wanted more people to settle the area of Canaan. Probably as a buffer against the Hittites. Getting the Children of God to all move there would kill two birds with one stone. The prick Levis were the first to go. The other tribes followed the Levis, as usual. That was around 1280 or so.


    ¡°I fucked with my people hard in their new lands. It was positively delightful.¡± Lilly stopped to chuckle. ¡°I had so much fun. That was well before they became what Jews are today. Adon would get so mad. We already had to hide. He eventually brought me very far, far away to keep me out of trouble. To just¡­nothing. Barbarians. Tree-worshiping savages far away from everything. Then I left Terra. If I had to guess, I¡¯d say I left around 850 BC, give or take a century.


    ¡°So, we were married for a little less than a millennium and a half, or there about. We were married for my whole life on this planet, and about half of his before I left. A long time, but we¡¯ll be together forever now. I have my dear heart back. Finally.¡±


    John wasn¡¯t surprised Lilly¡¯s timeline focused so much on her people. There was a long pause before Amber said, ¡°Wow, over a millennium together. That musta been wonderful. I only had one real friend before you and Baba and your husband and¡­he wasn¡¯t really a friend. And it wasn¡¯t for long. My other friendships were real, real super short. You¡¯re my first girlfriend. Real one, at least. The first one that¡¯s seen me and knows the real me. It¡¯s so nice having a girl to talk to. And having Baba to do Instagram with. Why did you say you¡­messed with your people so much?¡±


    ¡°I do enjoy having you as a friend, Amber, but that¡¯s a private matter.¡±


    ¡°Oh. Okay,¡± said Amber. After a small pause she blurted out, ¡°You¡¯re not¡­it¡¯s not¡­I know a lot of people hate Jewish people. You¡¯re not some kind of racist, are you?¡±


    Lilly laughed loudly and for a long time. ¡°Oh, my dear Amber, I¡¯d love to be there to see you ascend off this world. I know it just means bigotry now, but until recently the term racism was defined as believing in superior and inferior races. That is correct and factual everywhere in all realities.


    ¡°Outside the core, omegas reign supreme, then alphas. Some Outsiders can compete with them, but the rest of us can¡¯t. Everyone wants to belong to the core. Our race, both yours and mine, is F-grade beta-types. The bottom. We are inferior. Factually and objectively. Many other types and higher-graded races, even E-grade beta-types, are superior to us. It¡¯s just how it is.


    ¡°As for Jews, they¡¯re the same race as all other terrans. If I were to rate groups within our own race, I¡¯d rate my people at the top. I¡¯m proud that I¡¯m of my people, and I¡¯m proud of what my people have become. Einstein, Freud, Bohm, Bohr, I could go on and on.


    ¡°It may sound strange but I¡¯m most proud that so many hate Jews. Unless it¡¯s a matter of vengeance, people only hate groups of others out of jealousy or when that group makes them feel inferior or lesser. It¡¯s why people hate the rich, or aristocrats, or the beautiful. Wait, is your race even terran? How does it work for Naturals?¡±


    There was a long pause. Since Amber wasn¡¯t hiding, he heard her heartbeat spike and increase. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but my¡­my avatar, Party-pooper, said it¡¯s a bad idea to give out information, even to friends, because it can be used against me by accident. I¡¯m super sorry and I feel real bad and I hope you don¡¯t get mad at me, but¡­because of my¡­my situation¡­I have to be more careful than others.¡±


    John knew Lilly heard Amber¡¯s heart rate increase. ¡°Yes, you have the Tech 4 NCS too. You named your avatar Party-pooper? I wonder why?¡±


    The smell humans let off when they felt guilt or fear were similar, John knew. Both scents smelled of weakness. The stress smell was catchy, and people often subconsciously felt the emotion they smelled, especially females. Unless that person was the cause of it in others. Amber reeked of guilt and fear, and Lilly smelled healthier.


    Amber said, ¡°Um, the¡­thing¡­personality¡­uh, it recommended me was called Barbarian Hero. It reminded me of¡­your husband¡­so I named him Party-pooper.¡±


    After a moment of silence Lilly said, ¡°I see. And you still claim you have no interest in my husband? You know it¡¯s okay to tell me if you slept together. He thought I was dead. I won¡¯t be mad. We¡¯re friends, and the truth won¡¯t change that. It will only make us closer.¡±


    ¡°No! I told you! I can¡¯t! I¡¯d lose my human form forever. It¡¯s the truth! I don¡¯t even like your husband. I think he¡¯s a jerk. Oh! Sorry, that sounds real mean. I think¡­I think he¡­honest, I¡¯ve never been with anyone ever! I wish you¡¯d believe me!¡±


    Another long moment passed before Lilly replied. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I believe you. It¡¯s just that you¡¯re so beautiful it¡¯s hard not to be jealous. It must be hard knowing you¡¯ll never get laid. You¡¯ll never feel the absolute magnificence of a lover slide himself inside of you. I¡¯d probably kill myself if I were you. It only counts for men, right?¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re¡­whatever it is. The rule saying you can¡¯t have sex. It only counts for men, right? You can sleep with women, correct?¡±


    An awkward silence stretched out before Lilly laughed. ¡°Your face is so red! Come now, if girlfriends can¡¯t talk about these things, what¡¯s the point? Tell me!¡±


    ¡°Uh. I don¡¯t think so. It¡¯s¡­it¡¯s not specific words. I just feel it and know. It feels like it means any carnal relations. With anyone. So that¡­in my case¡­for me that means with a man since¡­since I only¡­that¡­I¡¯m attracted to men. Personally, I don¡¯t¡­I¡¯m not homophobic or anything. I support lesbians and¡­uh, bisexuals¡­and, uh, that stuff.¡±


    Lilly laughed. ¡°You¡¯re such a prude! I hope you don¡¯t see me as my husband does. I¡¯m not a child. This looks like a child¡¯s body, but it¡¯s inhabited by a woman. I¡¯m not that much younger than Adon. Jim. John. Whatever he calls himself now. I have the needs of a woman. Knowing I must wait so long to feel my Adon inside of me again is driving me mad. Even if I only had to wait until tomorrow, it would be too long of a wait.¡±


    John could almost feel the embarrassment radiating off Amber. ¡°Oh, well¡­that stinks. I know how¡­uh, I can sympathize. Time goes by super-fast, so you¡¯ll be¡­you know, in no time. Like rabbits, I bet! Um, sorry, but I really gotta meditate. I¡¯m so close to peak. I really love talking to you though! I¡¯m so happy to have a real girlfriend!¡±


    No reply came from Lilly. John sensed Amber become much smaller and her heart rate slowed significantly. He knew she had turned into a frog. Usually, smaller animals had much higher heart rates than bigger ones.


    John was glad Amber was going to meditate. He started to do so again himself, and after some time he knew what plagued his chest was finally healed.


    Spreading his senses outward, John felt Lilly sitting peacefully, probably looking at her phone, and Amber meditating.


    John didn¡¯t want to give Amber an excuse to stop meditating so he quietly entered his Mind¡¯s Eye.

 B2 Chapter 29 - I used to look into my fathers eyes

    The world blurred past, and John stood before Avatar.  The old woman smiled kindly at him and said, ¡°Congratulations on winning the rewards for the World Quest!  I¡¯m proud of you.¡±


    John grunted.  Since he got the quest, every time he entered his Mind¡¯s Eye to train, Avatar wouldn¡¯t stop harping on him to solve it.  He was happy that nonsense was done with.  ¡°Proud of me for what?  I did nothing.  What exactly did I do to solve anything?¡±


    ¡°Well, you found the entity, initiated communications, assessed its capabilities, its strange way of ranking up and ascending, found it contained a different type of life essence, and noted its soul was abnormal.  If not for you, it would have been destroyed before the Eternal found the source of it, communicated with it, found out what it is, and convinced it to accept our nanites.¡±


    John grunted again.  ¡°The energy Eternal?  Won¡¯t it hold a grudge against me now since I got the rewards rightfully due him?  It?¡±


    ¡°Oh, it was rewarded.  The NCS works very differently for energy beings.  We can¡¯t offer rewards and not give them out, so you get them.  You had thirty-six percent of participation.  The one known to you as Lilly was the only other ranking participant with eight percent.¡±


    ¡°Okay, so what was controlling Stretch?¡±


    Avatar said, ¡°The [Knowledge Base] was updated with this info.  We¡¯ve learned much more about something we knew little of before, and more of the Tree of Life itself.  It was a world seed if you can believe it!  A world seed on the path to full sapience.  It doesn¡¯t control the one known to you as Stretch as much as they are one and the same being.  Fascinating.¡±


    John replied, ¡°Yes, fascinating.¡±  He didn¡¯t know what a world seed was, nor did he care to find out, but he was happy to know Stretch was fine.  ¡°What exactly is a Nano Control Unit and is my reward good?  I can select something?¡±


    Avatar put on the small glasses she wore in the classes she taught to John and said, ¡°Your NCS can be upgraded in various ways.  You¡¯ve purchased many permanent NCU upgrades through the NCS already.  One path of upgrading is with expansion slots that accept nanites dedicated to a specific function free of [NCU Energy Cost].  Yes, your rewards are good.  In fact, most would consider them great rewards.  The free opening of an NCU expansion as well as a C-grade NCU.  In this sector, both rewards together would cost a fortune well out of reach of most on your Tree.¡±


    Hearing his rewards were worth a fortune made John very happy.  ¡°Okay, what are my choices?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s over a hundred thousand choices for tech 1 C-grade NCUs.  Why don¡¯t we try and narrow the options down a bit.  What function would you want most?  An emergency essence-shield that self-activates?  Nanite assistance thwarting attempts to unbind your manifestations?  What are you looking for?¡±


    After thinking for a long while about what he best needed, John decided to get an expert opinion.  ¡°What would you suggest, Avatar?¡±


    Avatar stopped smiling.  ¡°What you are in dire need of is soul healing.  The only NCU that could help provide some healing towards your soul is [Theta Enhancement ¨C T1C].  It enhances [Theta Waves], [Heal Delta A], and [Heal Delta B] enough where it includes a small soul-heal component.


    ¡°The problem is it probably provides a similar amount of healing as does [Orb of the Crimson Palace], which hasn¡¯t done much healing judging by the lack of increase to your [Runes] [Stat] outside of rank up and ascension.  If what the one known to you as Lilly said was true, that all the spirit you converted has reinforced your soul too much, it could be resistant to [Theta Enhancement ¨C T1C].¡±


    After a pause, Avatar added on, ¡°I¡¯d still have to recommend it.  Anything is better than nothing.¡±


    John asked, ¡°What about the physical reward I have coming to me?  Do you think it could contain a soul-healing item?¡±


    ¡°We haven¡¯t been informed of what it contains, sorry.  I will say past rewards were focused on what a cultivator needed at the moment.  Your soul issue is seen as a future problem for Diamond tier, though it must be addressed now.¡±


    John¡¯s heart sank some.  He¡¯d rather have help preventing unbinds than more passive healing, but then he remembered [Theta Waves] also helped heal his spirit, what others called inner-spirit or vigor, though some called shen spirit, the outer-spirit, or vigor too, and having more spirit healed was a great boon.  ¡°Okay.  I¡¯ll take¡­wait, how many expansion slots are possible?  Can I purchase slots and NCUs to fill them from you?¡±


    Avatar said, ¡°You can spend energy credit to open slots.  As for the purchase of NCUs for expansion slots from us?  No, sorry, that¡¯s not possible anymore.  There¡¯re professions that specialize in the NCS and creating NCUs.  A World Quest is rare.  You¡¯ve seen many rarities due to the strangeness of your world and the tampering done to it.  As for how many NCU expansion slots are possible to open?  With a Tech 4 NCS, sixteen in total.¡±


    ¡°How long until Earth has people capable of creating NCUs?¡±


    Avatar laughed.  ¡°Terra.  And I don¡¯t know.  Five years?  Ten?  Twenty?  We¡¯re not focused on world building.  We¡¯re focused on helping you ascend, and correctly!¡±


    Since John figured he had fifteen more slots to fill eventually, taking the recommended NCU could only help him, and not hurt him.  ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll take the NCU you recommended then.  Do you know how long until it arrives?¡±


    Avatar smiled and said, ¡°Immediately.  Just because we don¡¯t do something, doesn¡¯t mean we can¡¯t.  People like job security.  NCUs are just nanites dedicated to a task.  [Theta Enhancement ¨C T1C] will finish installation within seconds of you entering real time.¡±


    John said, ¡°Thank you, Avatar.  Before I look at my status, I¡¯d like to go over some options with you.  There¡¯re some spells I can¡¯t cast anymore that still show, such as [Blood Dart].  Could they please be removed?  I¡¯m really only interested in seeing spells I¡¯m going to cast again.  Like my [Ultimate], I¡¯ll never use that one again since I have plans for a much better one.¡±


    Avatar pushed her glasses up higher and looked down her nose at John.  ¡°They¡¯re manifestations, not spells.  And you have full control of the settings, you know.  But yes, we can do that.  Do you want me to use best judgment, or run every change by you?¡±


    ¡°Best judgment, please, Avatar.¡±


    Avatar harrumphed.  ¡°For all your settings or just spells?¡±


    ¡°All of them, please, but err on the side of caution.¡±


    ¡°Done.  Would you like to see your status now?¡±


    John had the feeling Avatar was annoyed with him and he had no idea why.  ¡°Uh, could I ask you a question first?  Unrelated to settings.  But I¡¯d like to say thank you very much for all you do.  I appreciate you very much.¡±


    ¡°You are very welcome, John,¡± replied Avatar.  ¡°What¡¯s the question?¡±


    ¡°Do you know where I¡¯m from?  Originally?  The country it is now?¡±


    ¡°Yes.  Turkey.¡±


    John was taken by great surprise.  ¡°The Turuks?  From above the sea of Azaq?  My people never even saw a horse, and I¡¯m of those nomads?¡±


    ¡°No.  And the applicable ones are from farther east, but nomads still, and you¡¯re not of them either.  Bioinformatics don¡¯t show your specific markers in anyone else present as of this world being welcomed into the Tree of Life.  I¡¯m sorry to say you¡¯re the last of your specific subtype of terrans.  Your people are no more, John.  You¡¯re the last of them.¡±


    John was greatly disheartened to find out nothing came of his children or his people.  He knew his sons were all killed, as were their sons too, but he assumed his line through his daughters carried on.  He didn¡¯t have the chance to have many children before receiving the power and becoming sterile, and only five lived to adulthood.


    But John now knew where he was from.  And that was important to him.  To know where he was from, to know where his father was from, his ancestors, and honor them.


    John asked to see a map of his birthplace and was surprised it was so close to areas he had lived within for so long early in his life.  He was certain it was much further away, likely somewhere along the D¨¡nu Apr or Rh¨¥nos or Istros rivers.  Possibly even the Rhodan¨®s.  It took so long to get from his tribal region to Gubla, it felt like he traveled the whole span of the world.


    Unlike Pixie, Avatar was never truly wrong, so John took her statements as truth.  ¡°Oh, I have something called a ¡®band of suffering.¡¯  Do you think I should use it?¡±


    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    ¡°Yes!  It will be painful and seriously slow down your energy gathering, but it greatly strengthens channels and makes essence a little more potent.  Now that you¡¯re not creating spirit, gathering energy more slowly is no detriment at all.  It should also help increase the [Skill] level of your cycling technique faster.  Breathing technique a little too.¡±


    ¡°But I have to remove my cap to attune a neck piece.  I¡¯ll lose out on the reflect.¡±


    ¡°So?  Learn a reflect manifestation with ¡®protect¡¯ and ¡®change.¡¯¡±


    John grunted.  ¡°Good idea.  I wish I had eyebrows and hair.  The cap helped hide it.¡±


    Avatar put on her serious face.  ¡°Stop it!  You¡¯re a very handsome boy even without eyebrows or hair.  And you can still wear the cap.  You just can¡¯t have it attuned.¡±


    John asked to see his summary.  Avatar informed him the last time he checked his summary was right after he gained his new body.  All the entities he¡¯d drained, including the abnormal dark ones in New York, all the dark ones he fought with Hubaba in Paris, as well as Muzaran, added up to a [Stat] gain of two-point-six-one.  She added that there were no notes to go over.


    John fought many, many dark ones in Paris, and he put emphasis on hand-to-hand to try and raise that [Skill] since his claws worked very well against hard skin, as did his teeth since getting his new body [Perk].


    <table width="563">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Tier/Level/Race


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    2 (Mortal) (Copper), 9 (High), Terran-E


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Active Title


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Aspects/Affinities


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    Blood (98%) (Major), Leech (96%) (Major), Shadow (98%) (Average), Change (98%) (Minor), Protection (96%) (Minor), Battle* (97(96)%) (Minor)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    NCU Energy Cost


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    24% (-48.1%)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Active NCU Upgrades


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    Nano Assistance, Emergency Heal, Theta Waves, Heal Delta A, Heal Delta B, Inexorable, Refractory, Nano Support C, Nano Support D, Lock and Key


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    NCU Expansion Upgrades


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    1 of 16 slots opened


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164"> </td>


    <td width="399">


    1) Theta Enhancement ¨C T1C


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164"> </td>


    <td width="399"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    STATS


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    [Effective] Current (Increase)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Strength


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    [23%, 87.08] 70.8 (2.61)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Swiftness


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    [23%, 86.83] 70.59 (2.61)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Conditioning


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    [24%, 88.47] 71.35 (2.61)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Min. Power


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    [12%, 66.60] 59.46


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Capacity


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    [13%, 56.31] 49.83


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Runes


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    [10%, 16.53] 15.03


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Physical Fortification


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    [23%, 88.35] 71.83 (2.61)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Elemental Fortification


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    [19%, 85.80] 72.1 (2.61)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Mental Fortification


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    [10%, 77.20] 70.18 (2.61)


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164"> </td>


    <td width="399"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="4" width="164">


    Highest Skills


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    [Leech Feckless Retreat Technique] 96.44


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="399">


    [Mixed Style Swords] 93.65


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="399">


    [Mixed Navigation] 91.12


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="399">


    [Mixed Stealth] 88.85


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Synergy Skills


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    Ready


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Class


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    NA


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Perks


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    Orb of the Crimson Palace, Dynamic, Physical, Potent, Protected, Strong, Fast, Healthy, Quick Thinking*, Resilient, Powerful, Expansive, Harden, Resistant, Soulful, Good Genes*, Leech Body of the Morning''s Glory, Regeneration


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Manifestations


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    Battle Closest, BB Buff, Blood Blade, Blood Heal, Blood Manipulation, Drain Essence, Flashburst Pulse, PB Shield, Slip


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Last Achievement


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    Favored Few 5 - S


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Highest Achievement


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    SSUR Body - SSUR


    </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">


    Titles


    </td>


    <td width="399">


    Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar, Ptagmog, Record Holder (System), Trailblazer (System)


    </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    -Start Notifications


    27 tracked skills increased, 24 of interest.  Scaled summary per notability/interest user profile.


    Grandmaster: Mixed Style Swords - 93.65(.01)


    Master: Mixed Stealth ¨C 88.85(.02), Mixed Combat Offense ¨C 87.28(.01), Mixed Archery ¨C 85.43(.01), Mixed Combat Defense ¨C 83.14(.01), Mixed Shield ¨C 81.19(.02)


    Journeyman: Mixed Style Unarmed ¨C 39(3)


    Apprentice: Essence Manipulation - 20(1)


    Novice: Blood Manipulation ¨C 15(3), Breath of the Serpent Clan Endless Technique ¨C 15(2), Manifestation Defense ¨C 12(2), Turmoil Within Tranquility Cycling Technique ¨C 11(2), Flashburst Pulse ¨C 10(2), Unbind defense ¨C 10(2), Unbind Manifestation ¨C 10(2), Blood Heal ¨C 7(3), Blood Shield ¨C 7(2)


    Neophyte: BB Buff ¨C 5(2), Coiled Center of the Universe Energy Gathering Technique ¨C 4(1), Drain Essence ¨C 3 (2), PB Shield ¨C 3(3), Slip ¨C 3(2), Self-Propelled Projectile Weapons ¨C 2(2), Essence-Infused Projectile Weapons ¨C 1(1)


    7 common Achievements attained for a cumulative [NCU Energy Cost] reduction of .3%.  Focus <u>here</u> to see each individually.


    3 notable Achievements attained.


    ¡®World Quest Winner¡¯ attained (Unrated).  Participate in and be the top contributor of a World Quest.


    ¡®Favored Few 4¡¯ attained (A-Rated).  Participate in the killing of at least 4,000 members of the Forsaken faction, 0.60 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 57.4%.


    ¡®Favored Few 5¡¯ attained (S-Rated).  Participate in the killing of at least 5,000 members of the Forsaken faction, 0.70 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 58.1%.


    End notifications-


    It bothered John most of his [Skill] increases seem to have come from his daily training and had few gains from actual battle.  He was happy to see some of his highest [Skills] improved.  He said, ¡°Avatar, why aren¡¯t my [Skills] increasing faster from combat?¡±


    ¡°The lower Mastery ones will if you don¡¯t utilize us for training.  Combat and practice and learning all intersect and impact [Skill] gains from one another up to a certain Mastery.  There¡¯s a natural balance, and your [Skill] gain is way above average, so don¡¯t complain, boy.  You increased twenty-four [Skills] of note, including many Master level [Skills], and a Grandmaster too!  That¡¯s basically unheard of.  And keep in mind you¡¯re only Copper tier.  You just started up the bloody climb.¡±


    John replied, ¡°Understood.  Is it tomorrow yet?¡±


    Avatar laughed and said, ¡°It¡¯s always today, John, but I know what you¡¯re asking, and no, you still have many hours left until you can train again.¡±


    ¡°Well, thank you, Avatar.  I value you and appreciate all your help.  I liked the changes to the settings.¡±


    ¡°Good.  Have fun.  And remember your duty and the collective mission.  Your actions and inactions help or hinder the collective mission.  We shall achieve core.¡±


    John exited his Mind¡¯s Eye and returned to the flying plane.  He thought about how he was probably over the ocean and his adrenaline spiked.  He always hated the ocean.  He hated sailing on ships.  He could swim but he liked being able to see the ground under the water.  He didn¡¯t mind rivers, ponds, or some lakes.  He believed the ocean was filled with giant beasts that wanted nothing more than to mindlessly eat everything they saw.


    John cursed internally.  There was no way Lilly didn¡¯t hear his heart rate change and notice he wasn¡¯t meditating unless she was sleeping.  He heard her get up and approach him as he pretended to meditate.


    ¡°Hey fuckface, how¡¯s the rot?  I haven¡¯t heard you cough in a while.¡±


    John was getting tired of being insulted.  He assumed that Lilly just insulted him.  He was never good at insulting.  He had always stuck to the classics, such as calling someone base or a coward or a cur.  His friends would often make fun of him over his poor ability to insult others.


    John said, ¡°Your face is the fuck, you cow-girl.  And the rot is healed.¡±


    Lilly cracked up laughing.  ¡°Oh, that was good.  Do you think cowgirl is an insult?¡±


    ¡°Uh¡­no.¡±  John figured she wouldn¡¯t have asked if it was one.


    ¡°Yes, you do.  You got all butthurt when I called you cowboy, didn¡¯t you?  You¡¯ve been stewing about that this whole time, huh?  Cowboys are cattle-ranching peasants people think are cool now.  Even so, it¡¯s not an insult to call someone a cowboy or a cowgirl.  It¡¯s kind of the opposite, in fact.¡±


    Confused, John asked, ¡°How could words ever cause my butt to hurt?¡±


    Lilly laughed again and wrapped her arms around John¡¯s neck and put her head on his cheek.  ¡°Oh, my dear heart, it¡¯s so good to be back with you.  I have your government issued phone.  Try not to keep it in your ring.  We just got informed we¡¯re not going back to DC.  We¡¯re going to Hawaii.  They won¡¯t tell us why.  President Gillis said she needs you for something.  Humbaba will meet us there, I think.¡±


    John said, ¡°Hubaba.¡±


    ¡°Whatever you say, sweetie.  He¡¯ll be pleased ¨C with this haul added to what was taken from the horde in Canada, he¡¯ll never run out of Nether.  We should charge him for it.


    ¡°And I guarantee this has to do with the g¡¯athu.  It¡¯s how they think.  Hawaii¡¯s about the midpoint between their bases.  Listen, this could be a trap.  The g¡¯athu could want you dead.  I don¡¯t think so.  Be careful anyways.  I think the G40 are trying to make a deal with the g¡¯athu.  If they do, they deserve everything they have coming.  We¡¯ll be fine though.  Our [Titles] will protect us.  You haven¡¯t attacked them yet, right?¡±


    ¡°I have not.  I will kill them all though.¡±


    Lilly squeezed John¡¯s neck.  ¡°Oh, my pretty little monkey, not if they create their usual tech.  I don¡¯t know how far along they are, but at some point, they¡¯re going to be invincible to you.  I doubt they¡¯ve had enough time to create any of the good stuff yet.  We¡¯ll have to play it by ear.¡±


    John worked out the phrase he just heard.  He thought it must have to do with creating music.  People playing instruments without knowing the music and trying to follow along as best they could.  And Lilly applied it to mean the same, but outside of music.  What a brilliant turn of phrase.  Every bit as brilliant as how touch¨¦ is now used.


    John repeated ¡®play it by ear¡¯ in his mind multiple times hoping it would stick, and hoping a situation would arise where he could use it himself.


    Lilly said, ¡°Quick crash course in g¡¯athu.  They¡¯re really smart.  They¡¯re psychos.  I mean really sick fuckers.  They have crazy tech.  Ever wonder how nice the world would be if everyone thought exactly the same as you do?  Well, the g¡¯athu don¡¯t have to wonder.  They¡¯re all exactly the same.  Like clones, kind of.  They all have the same aspects.  Think the same.  Act the same.  Reason the same.¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re asexual now.  They do something called budding.  Little polyps grow all over them until one¡­hatches?  Blooms?  It¡¯s kind of disgusting ¨C giving birth to yourself.¡±

 B2 Chapter 30 - And the dream that you dare to

    Lilly asked, ¡°You¡¯ve heard of the Forsaken War, right?¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± replied John.


    ¡°The ancient old ones Darkness, Nightmare, Destruction, Chaos, and Betrayal made the g¡¯athu during it. This was back when Betrayal was Curiosity. The g¡¯athu were normal then. Not normal ¨C they were probably still all psychos, but they were all different and had sex and made babies like usual, and all the babies were different.


    ¡°Well, long after the Forsaken War ended, the four strongest g¡¯athu Eternals named Vos, Ri Op?, Kathzun, and another I forget the name of, all had a plan. Vos worshiped Destruction, Ri Op? worshiped Chaos, Kathzun worshiped Darkness, and the other worshiped Nightmare. Some say their plan had the blessing of the ancient old ones. No one knows for sure.¡±


    Lilly lifted her head from John¡¯s cheek and looked him in the eye. ¡°Their plan was to kill all the other g¡¯athu, even their own children. And they did. Besides the one whose name I forget. The Butcher killed that g¡¯athu. It¡¯s said the Butcher used to worship Curiosity but switched to Nightmare when Curiosity became Betrayal. Regardless, there¡¯s only four different kinds of g¡¯athu now.¡±


    Lilly put her head back on John¡¯s cheek and said, ¡°They somehow figured out the budding stuff. All the Vos are copies of the original Vos, etcetera. For the most part. They think and act exactly alike. I¡¯m guessing the g¡¯athu sent to Terra are the Vos kind. They¡¯re the most numerous. The Kathzun kind are the weakest in the Mortal Tree due to rage issues that cool as she ascends, so hopefully it¡¯ll be her. The Ri Op? are probably the most reasonable and easiest to deal with ¨C for psychos, but they have the best tech too so hope it¡¯s not them.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never met the Butcher kind. I heard the core has him contained and takes outbreaks very seriously. Even the other g¡¯athu hate them. Him. None of them work together, but the only g¡¯athu other g¡¯athu hate as much as they do everyone else are Butchers. They¡¯re using demons from a tenth ring planet so it can¡¯t be him. And the core has him contained.¡±


    Lilly started to rub her fingers up and down John¡¯s neck in a seductive way and John tensed up. She said, ¡°Oh, come on! You¡¯re such a prude now. I can¡¯t even caress you? Fine, I¡¯ll stop. This is important, so listen. The g¡¯athu are powerful even without their tech. All the g¡¯athu have the same aspects and concepts. We just call it ¡®psion¡¯ to cover their full powerset.


    ¡°It works slightly differently for the four versions of g¡¯athu, but generally at Wood they can trick minds, at Bronze they can damage minds, and at Gold they can control minds. If you care to know, Diamonds have telekinesis, and their early Transcendents have precognition.¡± Lilly leaned back and looked John in the eye again. ¡°Want me to keep going?¡±


    John said, ¡°No. Only up to Gold matters. Will they be able to do that to me? Trick me? Or damage and control my mind?¡±


    Lilly put her head back on John¡¯s cheek. ¡°I doubt it. I¡¯m safe too. Very few things that have a negative effect on the mind work on me. Probably for the same reason I can see Amber and all that. I have a Divine soul and keep a lot of other cool shit besides. Just remember, I¡¯m not a kid despite this body. I¡¯m not that much younger than you are. Want to join the mile-high club, cowboy?¡±


    ¡°What is this club?¡±


    Lilly sighed. ¡°It¡¯s nothing you¡¯re interested in, prude. I wish you¡¯d¡­¡±


    Amber ranking up interrupted Lilly. Both she and John looked over at the frog. The frog only remained for a moment before it transformed into a demon then into a young woman. Great gods below, she is so beautiful, thought John.


    Lilly looked at John with a scowl on her face, as if she knew his thoughts. Amber pumped her arm in the air and said, ¡°Peak, baby! Still keeping my lead over you, John! Woohoo! Bronze, here I come!¡±


    An excited smile beamed from Amber¡¯s face and seeing it sent butterflies swarming around John¡¯s stomach. Both John and Lilly said, ¡°Congratulations,¡± at the same time. Lilly laughed and said, ¡°Jinx, you owe me a Coke.¡±


    John replied, ¡°I¡­what? I¡¯m jinxed? How? And why? You want charcoal? For your witchery? Or do you mean you want me to make you a piece of jewelry as I used to? Actually, I do have jewelry for you. I have a new spatial ring. Maybe you can let Amber borrow it to see what¡¯s in it?¡±


    John fished the ring out of his pocket and gave it to his wife and she gave it to Amber. They spent some time on logistics and dumped much of the gear he recently acquired when the pilot complained about weight changes over a speaker, and they had to go about it more carefully.


    John took all the crystals from the new ring into his old ring. There were only two light-green crystals, nineteen dark yellow, thirty light yellow, and around four hundred clear crystals. He gave Amber some yellow and light-green crystals to store in the new ring for her and Hubaba to use while meditating. He also unattuned his cap, left it on still, and attuned the band of suffering necklace. He still couldn¡¯t decide what arm would be better to place the bracer on, so he left it in his ring.


    John stored the phone Lilly gave him in a pouch, though he doubted he¡¯d ever use it. He hated phones and how Amber would send men that were strangers crude pictures of herself. He thought it was disgusting and made her low.


    Muzaran¡¯s ring only had the crystals, a sword, books, medals, awards, a formal military outfit, some robes, a set of leather and scale armor, and two additional sets of the slick and shiny black outfits covered in areas with armor plating.


    Lilly stated those shiny black armor sets had great protection and a great essence-shield that self-activated, and all three of them should change into that armor. She couldn¡¯t attune her outfit to herself but since the essence-shield worked independently it still was a boon for her. Attuning the armor increased the [Physical Fortification] and [Elemental Fortification] the armor provided.


    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    John removed his leather armor and put on the new black armor. He couldn¡¯t attune it yet, and he thought about going through heavier sets with his wife as she could tell him what the runes did. He still had the block of armor called Bulwark, though he needed to ascend more before being able to use it.


    The new armor shrunk down to fit them all perfectly, and John had to force himself not to spy on Amber¡¯s backside with his orb-eye after she exited the small waste-room of the plane after changing.


    Most of the new gear and even most of the lower-tier gear in John¡¯s ring went into the new ring that was lent to Amber, as well as all the outfits Amber wanted access to along with the books and other junk.


    With the gear taken care of, Lilly said, ¡°Adon, I doubt the g¡¯athu sent a Gold to deal with Woods. They would¡¯ve sent a Wood. So, the members of the G40 won¡¯t be mind controlled. If the g¡¯athu have heard of you, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if they send a Gold. Just follow my lead and let me do all the talking. I¡¯ve had a lot of dealings with the g¡¯athu, both as ally and enemy.


    ¡°Some of their tech will only work for their higher tiers, but most of it¡¯s made to work regardless of tier, so even their Woods pack a punch. Oh, if a non-Vos picks up a piece of Vos tech, it explodes, and that¡¯s true for all of them. So don¡¯t touch anything they drop. I doubt this is going to be a fight, but this stuff is good to know. All the tech on their corpses will explode if you try to loot them. Got it?¡±


    John and Amber said they did, and Lilly repeated to Amber what she missed about the g¡¯athu.


    Lilly and Amber continued to discuss the g¡¯athu, but John was too distracted with cycling to pay close attention.


    Cycling with the band of suffering attuned was painful, both in a normal and abnormal sense. The pain was tolerable to John, but the tingling and pins-and-needles feeling it caused to his insides was nearly enough to drive him mad, and it became worse when he tried meditating, almost stopping him from reaching a state he could gather energy with. If he hadn¡¯t had practiced the same way of meditating for so long, and had been so inured and detached to pain, misery, and discomfort, he would have had far more of an issue meditating.


    All in all, John understood why it was called a band of suffering. It definitely slowed his energy gathering down, but not by all that much. If he ignored the pain and pushed through, he gathered energy at close to his usual rate. And if he pushed through the pain, which he did, it left his meridians feeling raw and aching after meditation and cycling, and he hoped that was normal and strengthening them.


    After looking around, John changed his plan to practice with blade energy. It was too risky, and even if he found a safe way to practice, he knew Lilly and Amber would probably yell at him until he stopped.


    Great gods below, women can be annoying. Hubaba isn¡¯t much better. I wish I could make copies of myself like the g¡¯athu do so I could have interesting conversations with someone that thinks and behaves correctly. And has the right views of honor, thought John.


    Instead, John practiced all the steps he had learned of blade energy, stopping just short of flinging it forward off of his blade. He would go through all the steps and restart again from the beginning. And even though he merely held Fireblade in his hand and did nothing dangerous, both Lilly and Amber kept looking at him annoyedly, like he was a child bothering them.


    John wasn¡¯t too worried about the g¡¯athu. He had an uncanny ability to shrug off anything related to the mind, and that seemed to be all the g¡¯athu had. He already faced the advanced tech of the demon War Academy and won, so he wasn¡¯t worried about the g¡¯athu tech.


    What bothered John was that the rulers of Earth would consider a treaty with the g¡¯athu, and that Lilly didn¡¯t seem to think it was a bad thing since she and he would survive it. Would Amber and Hubaba survive? How many humans would? He was of the belief he should just kill them all. He decided to keep an open mind and see what President Gillis wanted. He wasn¡¯t even sure it was about the g¡¯athu.


    Lilly asked if John would mind if she drank some of his essence while he practiced whatever he was doing, and he agreed and cut into his left arm.


    Later, the pilot spoke over the speaker and told them to prepare for the descent. John was surprised as he was led to believe the flight would be much, much longer. Lilly said, ¡°You have no idea how lucky you are. This is some sort of experimental aircraft. Yemen to DC is probably like twenty hours non-stop. We were going to do it in under ten hours. We got word we were going to Hawaii not too long after taking off. I hate flying, and shorter flights are good.


    ¡°Oh, me and Amber flew on some sort of hypersonic aircraft with no wings to Yemen. She had to fly as a frog the whole time to keep the weight down. It was crazy. I couldn¡¯t even move. They thought it would kill me. The gees in this aircraft really bother me too, and it¡¯s going much slower. Remember, I have no open cores.¡±


    After landing, the three companions flew on a helicopter to a large building as John practiced the steps of blade energy the whole time, doing his best to ignore all else. The building was surrounded by the military, and inside were many tough-looking soldiers.


    The three companions were informed President Gillis wanted to talk to John alone, and he was escorted to a large room with a giant and long table surrounded by a ton of chairs. Many televisions lined two of the walls. Ten soldiers stood about the room.


    John spent countless time on guard duty as a soldier himself, so he knew the men wouldn¡¯t be allowed to converse. He waited silently instead of asking questions.


    Men in dark outfits, some wearing dark glasses, entered the room. After three entered, a small and elderly woman entered, followed by three more men in dark outfits. The small woman had short white hair and wore a similar outfit as her escorts, but her outfit was white and lacked the neck decoration her escorts all wore. He remembered the Havarti light cavalry making that neck decoration popular throughout Europe.


    The woman smiled brightly and marched up to John with her hand outstretched. ¡°Hello. President Gillis. I¡¯m told it¡¯s just John, right? Well, feel free to call me Kathy. Please, sit.¡±


    Both John and President Gillis sat on the same side of the table after facing their chairs towards one another, which annoyed John as he felt President Gillis was too close to him. ¡°Okay, John, let¡¯s get to it. I won¡¯t lie ¨C all this crazy shit¡­I wasn¡¯t prepared for it and I¡¯m out of my depth. I might be the last person on Earth to open a core. I haven¡¯t had a minute to myself since the invasions started.


    ¡°I nuked my own people, I nuked one of our closest allies, and I count myself lucky I¡¯m responsible for killing so few. Our en...some other countries can¡¯t say the same. The last demon portal has three Golds and they¡¯re tearing through India unopposed. You and your friends have done well, but this is a losing battle. We¡¯ve lost far, far too many already.¡±


    President Gillis reached out and put a hand on John¡¯s knee. ¡°The g¡¯athu have been mostly peaceful. I missed the press conference and meeting with you earlier this morning because one of them approached us. They want to form an alliance. They¡¯ll take care of the remaining demons. Earth¡­I mean Terra, will join the faction the g¡¯athu belong to called the Forsaken. They¡¯ll protect us and integrate us into the universe.


    ¡°The G40 voted earlier today. Thirty-eight want to take the deal. I don¡¯t see another way out of this without millions and millions more dying. Likely, billions.¡±


    President Gillis patted John¡¯s knee. ¡°The issue is we can¡¯t accept the deal. Somehow, you¡¯re considered the leader of Ea¡­Terra. You¡¯re not interested in running this planet, now, are you? Not from what I¡¯ve heard. I¡¯m going to need you to pass the torch to me. It¡¯s easily done through the NCS.¡±


    John looked President Gillis in the eye and replied, ¡°No.¡±

 B2 Chapter 31 - I wont bow to the beast

    The mask of kindness President Gillis wore dropped and the tension in the room rose. John wasn¡¯t worried. Only a few of the soldiers and men in dark outfits had cleared a dantian. Only one other being in his full sense range was above Wood, and that was Amber. As had been true since his old master, Ahn, disappeared, no human could challenge him. And that was even truer now than it had ever been.


    President Gillis began to threaten and browbeat John, switching between yelling and trying to reason. She even began to cry once. He ignored her until she stormed out of the room.


    John got up to leave but was asked to wait. Moments later, a man entered the room. He didn¡¯t shake John¡¯s hand, and he looked like he hadn¡¯t slept in days. He said, ¡°I am Sanjeev Chandrachud, President of India.¡±


    John asked, ¡°Burata?¡±


    The President stopped short. ¡°Yes. Bharat. Or Hindustan. Previously Bharata. Do you speak Hindi? I speak Marathi and Bengali as well.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡±


    A confused look crossed the President¡¯s face. ¡°Okay. Well, we¡¯ll continue in English then, I suppose. I guess it doesn¡¯t matter with the NCS translating anyway. I shall have a seat. Please, join me. I must speak with you.¡±


    As John sat, he said, ¡°I go by John,¡± to complete the introduction.


    ¡°Yes, I know. Allow me to put on the telly.¡±


    The president picked up a small device and one of the screens began to show footage of John, Amber, and Hubaba fighting the horde of demons led by Ukaraaz. The next scene showed Petar Kostov killing a dark one outside of Reims. The next showed John fighting dark ones in New York and Paris, then fighting the horde led by Muzaran in Yemen.


    ¡®Watch the next one closely, please,¡± requested President Chandrachud. The next scene to show was of a shaky camera and a man being woken from bed and told he had to evacuate. The demons were approaching. The man refused and asked about his wife and kids and was told they were still safe in London. The man took out two cases from the closet as many people entered the giant bedroom and tried to convince him to evacuate.


    The man ignored the pleas and opened both cases. One had a long rifle and the other two golden handguns. The man said, ¡°I will not flee Bharat Mata. I will fight. I will die. Royal blood runs in my veins, but that is not why I stay. I couldn¡¯t be prouder to give my blood for this great country. Send all the staff and guards to safety if they wish to flee, but I will not.¡±


    The scene cut to the man waiting in front of a beautiful and extremely large estate. Demons could be seen approaching from the distance. The man, holding the rifle, said loudly, ¡°Thank you, my friends, for staying and fighting with me. Fighting for your country.¡±


    Once the demons were near enough, a war cry was let out by the man and the fifty or so people that stayed to fight with him, both servants and guards. They loudly yelled out, ¡°Bharat Mata,¡± as they charged the demons. Once the man¡¯s rifle was out of ammunition, he dropped it and pulled the two golden handguns from his hips and fired both until a Copper demon cut his head off.


    The president used the little device to turn off the screen and said, ¡°The same footage is playing on every channel around the world. Footage of victory. Of hope. Besides the last footage you watched. He was the last prince of the great Rao Dynasty. We haven¡¯t had official royalty since the seventies but that still means something. He volunteered for that. To die, and have it filmed.


    ¡°So many fled or flee my country that we needed something to get them to stay or return and fight. He had a lot to live for. He was very rich. He was the majority shareholder of three large and successful multinational corporations. He still volunteered. There¡¯s no resistance to the demons in India now. There¡¯s three of the Gold generals there, and twenty-four of the¡­Silvers, is it? The G40 won¡¯t send more troops to be slaughtered. The demons can destroy whatever we send at them while it is high in the air. There¡¯s nothing that can be done.¡±


    The president peered deeply into John¡¯s eyes, and the man could no longer hide the desperation in his own. ¡°I beg of you, accept the deal the g¡¯athu offered us. I don¡¯t care whether you pass leadership to President Gillis or me or anyone else. Keep it yourself. I just want my family to be safe and the people of my country to stop being massacred. I beg of you. I will get on my knees if I must.¡±


    That speech tugged at John¡¯s heartstrings. President Chandrachud was nearly a broken man. He was drowning and looking for a hand to grab. John felt terrible as he couldn¡¯t give the man the help he wanted.


    If Lilly thought it was a bad idea for humans to make a deal with the g¡¯athu, then it was unquestionably a bad idea. Maybe making a deal with the demons would be better for humans, but not nearly as good as fighting all the invasions and, in the end, standing victorious.


    John said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I won¡¯t. I will fight the demon invasion in your country. If you have a plane available, I¡¯ll fly there now.¡±


    The man deflated and cast his eyes down. ¡°You barely won your fight against just one of the generals. Your friends don¡¯t seem as willing to fight as you are. With the demon army and three generals now arrayed in Bharat, the g¡¯athu are our only hope. The bloodshed would end immediately. There¡¯s nothing I won¡¯t do if you agree. Anything within my power to give, just ask. Please, I beg of you.¡±


    John sighed. Before he could reply, Lilly burst into the room. ¡°Adon, holy shit, it¡¯s the fucking Butchers! We have to get the fuck out of here now. They already have teleport technology. They could all be here in the blink of an eye. All of them. Adon, you hear me? We must go. Now! Seriously!¡±


    As Lilly ran to him, John said, ¡°The g¡¯athu aren¡¯t your only hope. They¡¯re a false hope,¡± to President Chandrachud as the man got up and exited the room with his head bowed in defeat, ignoring John¡¯s reply.


    Lilly tugged on John¡¯s arm, nervously trying to get him to move. John already felt guilty for sitting in comfort and not fighting the demons in India, he wouldn¡¯t run and avoid the g¡¯athu. Lilly saw his face and gave up trying to pull him. She crawled on his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck and placed her head on his cheek.


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    ¡°Adon, you don¡¯t understand. It¡¯s crazy that they sent Butchers. I already told you, they¡¯re not like other g¡¯athu. This planet¡¯s completely fucked. There¡¯s nothing you can do. I promise you. I¡¯m not underestimating you or overestimating the Butchers. He¡¯s going to win. Everyone else is going to die. There¡¯s no sense in us dying along with them. Whatever happens, don¡¯t attack one of them, regardless of tier. Please.


    ¡°And we really must go. I¡¯m begging you. Please. I can¡¯t lose you after I just got you back. I need you. You¡¯re the only thing that helps fill the hole in me. I love you so much.¡±


    Lilly leaned backwards to look at John. ¡°Please, Adon. You really don¡¯t stand a chance. Let¡¯s go. Please. Everyone fears the Butcher for a reason. Listen to me!¡± Lilly grabbed John¡¯s shoulders and started to shake them.


    Something clicked in John¡¯s mind. Bits of information came together. He held the little device that controlled the screens out to Lilly and asked, ¡°Can you bring up a map of the country we live in? And the one above it? The country we fought Ukaraaz in?¡±


    Lilly gave him a confused look and asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°I thought of something. The demons weren¡¯t going south. Their scouts were found outside the city to the west. There were much bigger populations to the south, right? The invasion that started in Africa didn¡¯t head to the highest populations, they went east and then right into Fortunate Arabia. The one that started in the far east headed west to Burata.


    ¡°The African invasion didn¡¯t go up and around to Rocky Arabia. They crossed the water. The shortest path to Burata. I think Ukaraaz was heading to the g¡¯athu on the other coast of our country. Is the last demon invasion still heading towards the g¡¯athu in Burata?¡±


    Lilly scowled and said, ¡°Who gives a flying fuck? This planet¡¯s doomed. You think tenth ring demons can stand against the Butcher? Even if the seventh ring ones could use all their tech, the Butcher would just laugh at them.¡±


    Near John, nearly causing him to jump out of his seat, the invisible Amber asked, ¡°What¡¯ll happen to me if the Butcher is as¡­as bad as you say he is?¡±


    Lilly laughed. ¡°Oh, sweetie, you¡¯re a Natural. You¡¯re fucked in every outcome of every situation. You¡¯ve been living on borrowed time since the day you were born.¡±


    John was about to reply to that when one of the soldiers in the room said, ¡°Here, sir,¡± and brought a map up on a screen. It showed the three demon invasions. Where they started, ended, and where the remaining portal was currently.


    John thanked the soldier and got up to point out on the screen what he was talking about. ¡°See. Two demon Golds told me they had a time limit and that we didn¡¯t want the g¡¯athu to win. Why would the demons head towards the g¡¯athu unless they meant to fight? Can someone bring the President of Burata back? He doesn¡¯t need more of his people to fight. He needs them to flee. Our enemies will fight each other. We¡¯ll kill what remains of our weakened enemies.¡±


    The President of India, the United States, and many other rulers entered the room and sat around the table. Lilly insisted the Butcher would destroy the demons with little effort. She also said once the demons found out they faced Butchers, they¡¯d give up Terra, turn their tail, and run back to the NetherRealm. More leaders trickled in, all argued about various points.


    John was happy to know President Chandrachud called for a general evacuation of his country, which was just putting an official stamp of what was already happening without his approval.


    The group argued for a long time. President Gillis and many other rulers browbeat John and tried to force him to take the deal the g¡¯athu offered.


    Lilly started to threaten and browbeat the rulers. She was very good at it. She smiled and winked at John, and he realized she was trying to be a supportive wife, even though she thought he was taking the wrong path.


    Hubaba eventually arrived and entered the room too, adding little other than he had heard many times by both chosen and other Forsaken at Second Point the g¡¯athu couldn¡¯t be trusted.


    Lilly was asked why she never mentioned the Butchers in the reports she previously provided if that type of g¡¯athu were so terrible. She said, ¡°All the g¡¯athu look alike. You tell them apart by the tech they¡¯re wearing. I¡¯ve only seen pictures of g¡¯athu without any tech on the news. The footage I saw of the one here earlier was wearing tech I¡¯ve never seen the likes of. It¡¯s the Butcher. I¡¯m certain. I informed all of you when I knew myself.¡±


    One ruler asked, ¡°How are you so certain we can¡¯t trust this, uh, type of them?¡±


    Lilly laughed. ¡°Oh, they can be trusted. G¡¯athu can always be trusted to do as g¡¯athu do. If you make a deal with them, I trust you¡¯ll all get what you deserve. Believe me, I wish things were different. You all owe me a lot of cash and crystals I can¡¯t collect if you¡¯re all dead.¡±


    Lilly went back to urgently whispering in John¡¯s ear they needed to leave, Terra was doomed, and whatever else he did, to not attack or antagonize the g¡¯athu.


    As the group argued, a lady burst into the room and said, ¡°The g¡¯athu diplomat just appeared on set. So far, it¡¯s just standing there and ignoring the reporters. What should I do?¡±


    President Gillis said, ¡°We better go inform it¡­him. Let¡¯s go. I¡¯m not going alone. You¡¯re coming too, John. You can tell him. I¡¯m sure as hell not going to. That thing scares the hell out of me.¡±


    Lilly, with an extremely concerned face and worried voice, said, ¡°John, please. Please. Don¡¯t go. Fuck these clowns. Let¡¯s get out of here while we can.¡±


    John knelt down and hugged his wife. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Lilly. This was my decision. I must inform the g¡¯athu. I¡¯d feel better if you left. If this Butcher is as tough as you claim, I¡¯m not sure if I can keep you safe.¡±


    ¡°Oh, fuck you, Adon. I¡¯m your wife. My place is by your side, even if you¡¯re being a fucking idiot. I¡¯ll come back if I die. You won¡¯t. I still have a few tricks up my sleeve you haven¡¯t seen, and you could need my compulsion. It¡¯s worked on the other kinds of g¡¯athu.¡±


    John squeezed his wife a little to show her his great affection and his appreciation for her sense of duty. He said, ¡°It is good having my wife back. You¡¯re still my greatest treasure.¡±


    Hubaba said, ¡°The Wood g¡¯athu in the auditorium was just replaced with a Bronze.¡±


    John extended his senses and could feel the Bronze. It felt heavy and dark.


    ¡°Amber, if you¡¯re still here, and Hubaba, no one needs to follow me. This was my decision. Feel free to go the other way.¡±


    Amber¡¯s voice sounded off from behind John, ¡°Oh, shut up. I¡¯m going. It¡¯s only one Bronze.¡±


    Hubaba said, ¡°Me as well. This is my planet now too.¡±


    John¡¯s heart swelled, and he walked out of the room with his head held high as he was led to the auditorium, taking his shield out of his ring on the way. He liked the shield. He thought it deserved a name. He decided to name it Defiance.


    As the group walked on the stage, John saw his first g¡¯athu. He saw a statue head of Kazthun before, but it was not a good replica judging by the g¡¯athu he saw hovering above the stage.


    The g¡¯athu had a plumb-shaped head and indents covered in smooth skin where eyes should be. It had one abyssally-black eye in the lower middle of its forehead that looked bulbous and fake and as depthless as the cold-dark. It had no noticeable nose, and its head was smooth and hairless. Under where a nose should be was a thick stalk of skin hanging down that turned into three tentacles. And many other tentacles hung down from its cheeks like a beard.


    The thing¡¯s skin was a grayish blue. It was roughly human shaped, about the size of a Gold demon. It had arms and legs but instead of hands and feet it had giant clumps of flesh that turned into three thick and stubby tentacles with one smaller tentacle off to the side. On the hand-tentacles were strange devices, though its feet-tentacles were bare. It wore bulky purple armor, and its tentacle-hands were crossed over its chest.


    From its back extended six thick and jointed blades that somewhat looked like spider legs. On its chest, mostly hidden by its crossed arms and tentacle-hands, was a shining blue light.


    Other than on its face, there were large and grotesque bumps on the exposed flesh of the rest of it ¨C its neck, tentacle-hands, lower legs, and tentacle-feet.


    Even just as a Bronze, the g¡¯athu had a dark, heavy, and daunting presence that evoked a response and feeling in John like only Betrayal and Sublime Sunshine had caused in him so far. He felt nervous. Fear began to grip his heart.

 B2 Chapter 32 - Run

    The g¡¯athu didn¡¯t look up or move at all as the rulers and the four companions took the stage. The area in front of the stage was crowded with reporters taking pictures and filming. The rest of the auditorium was filled with seated people and security.


    The g¡¯athu gave Hubaba a slight nod and began to speak. John noticed the tentacles drooping from its face sway as it did. He heard a low horn-like noise, and a voice ¨C deep and distant and rattled, somewhat hollow ¨C sounded in his mind as the NCS gave a voice to the creature. ¡°Come then, let us sign and be done with this.¡±


    John hesitated a second before saying, ¡°One moment. Please tell me what will happen to the people of this world if I sign the contract.¡±


    The g¡¯athu slowly turned its head towards John. ¡°There will be a price to pay if I am addressed again without recognition of my higher tier. Understood?¡±


    John felt as if the g¡¯athu looked into his soul and he hesitated again before replying, ¡°Yes, Bronze.¡±


    ¡°The magals will be treated as magals. I will spare the few that I must. Other than those I made this agreement with, their families, those that truly become Forsaken, you few of the ptagmog, all else will be slaughtered.¡±


    A loud murmur sounded throughout the auditorium. By the surprised look on the faces of the rulers, most of them were not privy to the full plan, or the specifics of it.


    President Gillis nervously and loudly said, ¡°Bronze, all we have to do to live is swear to the Forsaken, correct? If they just swear, they¡¯ll be safe. And we¡¯ll be under your protection ¨C the protection of the g¡¯athu. And you¡¯ll help us with technology and integrating into this¡­the universe. Tell them. Tell them if they just swear, they won¡¯t be killed.¡±


    After a short pause the g¡¯athu said, ¡°I am given orders now? I salute your courage. Only a few will truly embrace being a Forsaken. Most will lie. Magals always lie, and that gladdens me.¡±


    President Gillis fell to the ground with a loud thud, dead. Her corpse had blood leaking out of the eyes, ears, nose, and mouth. Some people jumped in surprise, and a low murmur, mostly subdued out of fright, went around the auditorium.


    The head of the g¡¯athu turned back towards John. He said, ¡°Know this, Gold, Copper, and Wood of the ptagmog, if you stand in my way, I will kill you. Understood?¡±


    John wasn¡¯t surprised to hear Hubaba and Lilly say, ¡°Yes, Bronze,¡± in unison. He nearly did himself. He had to force himself not to. He knew he should attack. He couldn¡¯t. His mind raced to think of a suitable reply, something defiant. He kept coming up empty.


    A pressure, one far different than the soul pressure from a cultivator unveiling, began to weigh down on John, and he began to sweat. The g¡¯athu said, ¡°I stay my hand only due to that which marks your soul. Answer the question I asked of you or die.¡±


    John was nervous enough that nothing would leave his mouth. After only muttering softly for a short time he was finally able to force out some louder noises.


    The g¡¯athu continued to peer into John¡¯s soul. After a moment, he angrily asked, ¡°What?¡±


    John tried to rally himself and attack. His hand wouldn¡¯t move. He felt a tugging on his mind. He nervously accepted the tug, assuming it was Lilly. His vision started to shake. He lost his sight for a moment. When he got it back, he was in a world of complete darkness. The only thing other than the pitch black was the g¡¯athu standing in front of him.


    The words of the g¡¯athu sounded in John¡¯s head, ¡°I would like nothing more than to hear your screams as I flay you alive. You¡¯ve been marked by an entity I must respect so I must also tolerate you to a certain point. A point I have reached. I will not tolerate further disobedience.¡±


    John¡¯s mind started to warble as the g¡¯athu penetrated further into it. ¡°Since you have no idea what you face, I¡¯ll clarify for you. Your world is doomed. The Divine you met earlier this day ensured that by bringing me here. He believes this world was tainted by blasphemy and should be purged. But the Eternal arrived looking to cultivate karma. Its idea was to ease this world into what it had been kept from by bringing in small amounts of low-level Forsaken. Its intentions were noble, proven by it spending so much to selflessly protect the young and mothers of the young.


    ¡°The Divine can¡¯t overtly act against the Eternal, but the Eternal is an energy being. Their perspective, thinking, and understanding of reality and the Tree of Life are very different from beings like you. To the energy being, I am the same as my sisters and brother. I am not. No bargain or contract or restrictions on portals can contain me. I will conquer this universe. I will soon revel in slaughter in a way denied me for far too long. I am inevitable.¡±


    The Butcher¡¯s abyssally-black third-eye penetrated deep into John¡¯s mind and showed him how inevitable he was.


    John was granted many images of conquest and destruction, but the ones of torture made his mind recoil in fear. The g¡¯athu¡¯s mind was incomprehensibly sick and devised many terrible ways to torture, and extend the torture, no human mind could imagine or comprehend.


    The g¡¯athu turned his back to John, and such a disrespectful act stung what little pride he had left. ¡°Even the poor tech I¡¯ve made in this short time assures your world will fall to me. If you want to survive the fall of it, when I release your mind, you will immediately answer the question I posed to you in a normal, clear, and understandable manner just as the two others of the ptagmog have.¡±


    John¡¯s vision began to shake again. He was suddenly back on the stage, his wife back on his left side and Hubaba on his right. He said, ¡°Understood, Bronze,¡± and was overcome with shame.


    The shield in John¡¯s hand felt heavy. I named it Defiance just a moment ago, he thought. He tried to turn the shame into anger. He wondered if the g¡¯athu had the same sort of fear effect as the abnormal dark one he named Ridge-head. If so, it will end once I¡¯m attacked.


    ¡°Where is the contract,¡± asked the g¡¯athu. ¡°Does the one I killed have it?¡±


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    No one replied. ¡°If the contract is not presented for me to sign in the next few moments, there will be no bargain. None will be spared.¡±


    The auditorium was dead silent. John couldn¡¯t understand why he feared a Bronze so much. He was certain it had to be a fear effect. He rejected that such could constrain him, and he fought through the fear. He remembered the memories Betrayal showed him of the mother attacking the soldiers, of the knight charging a company alone, of the prisoner spitting in the face of his captors. He was not less of a man than they were. His shame turned to determination, and his hand began to rise.


    Forgetting all about manifestations, John could only focus on what he knew best, the rules he lived by for thousands of years, and he jumped at the g¡¯athu while grabbing and unsheathing Fireblade.


    The g¡¯athu whipped its arms forward and three glowing cords extended from each of its tentacle-hands and lashed at John. The automatic essence-shield of his new armor lit up and protected him, but he was still knocked aside. He got back to his feet to see the g¡¯athu blare out a horrendous noise. The tentacles of its face blew forward, exposing its mouth. It had no lower jaw ¨C there was just a large hole the tentacles covered.


    Blood splattered all over John and he looked to his companions. Everyone¡¯s heads in the auditorium began to explode. Lilly covered her ears with her hands. Amber was visible and transforming into a bear, in a mad frenzy she burst through the wall next to the door they entered through, escaping the noise. Hubaba yelled out, ¡°I can¡¯t unbind his manifestations! He¡­he won¡¯t let me cast!¡±


    Six cords whipped at Hubaba. The demon imbued essence into his bracer, turning it into a shield that blocked most of the cords, but not all of them, and he fell to the ground, bleeding from the gouges in his flesh.


    If Hubaba couldn¡¯t get a manifestation off, John knew he had no chance of casting any, so he pointed his plasma ring at the g¡¯athu as he got back on his feet and forced essence into it. He prayed nervously, hoping the ring had repaired itself and worked again. He let out a sigh of relief when a line of plasma discharged at the g¡¯athu.


    One of the six spider-legs attached to the back of the g¡¯athu intercepted the discharge, but the line of plasma cut through the leg and hit the creature¡¯s essence-shield.


    As John charged the Butcher, the five-remaining spider-legs pointed at him and a thin beam of red light shot out of each one.


    The essence-shield of John¡¯s armor broke. Five red beams poked five pin-sized holes through Defiance and his lower chest as he infused his ring while continuing his charge towards the g¡¯athu. His [Emergency Heal] didn¡¯t activate. He wasn¡¯t sure if that was good or not. He wasn¡¯t sure if it was on cooldown.


    Six cords of energy whipped at John. He jumped and spun to avoid them, catching some on his shield and sword, his body sliding over the others as he pumped essence into his ring. His orb-eye watched the five remaining spider legs cross over the blue light on his enemy¡¯s chest to block the plasma discharge, and the plasma cut through all five legs.


    The bright blue light on the Butcher¡¯s chest then fired at John and he dove to avoid the small ball that flew at him. The ball nicked his leg as he threw Defiance at the monster. That nick was enough to cause John to freeze and crash to the ground, unable to move. Defiance was blocked by what was left of the spider-legs and clanked to the floor too.


    The g¡¯athu laughed and said, ¡°Are you trying to use a compulsion on me? I expected more wisdom from one that previously reached the fourth Tree.¡± With his orb-eye, John saw Lilly¡¯s eyes sparkling with the mind power. The g¡¯athu screamed out his horrible noise again and Lilly collapsed with blood leaking from her eyes.


    John tried to force himself up, but he still couldn¡¯t move at all. A dark, swirling circle formed next to the g¡¯athu and monster said, ¡°I was hoping for a challenge. I¡¯ll leave this portal open. If you three bring me the Natural as tribute, and kneel to me, I may forgive you.¡±


    The g¡¯athu entered the dark, swirling circle and disappeared. As John got the use of his limbs back, he heard Lilly cry out in pain, and he ran to her. Her eyes were bloody and closed. When he lifted her, her eyes opened and were completely red. He wiped her eyes and cheeks the best he could and smiled reassuringly at his wife.


    Lilly tried smiling back and weakly croaked out, ¡°I guess I¡¯m not as immune to certain mind effects as I thought.¡±


    John felt into his wife and worked on her with [Blood Heal] as best he could, and then did the same to Hubaba and himself.


    Hubaba said, ¡°He unbound my manifestations so easily. He rejected my attempts to unbind his so deftly it was like our tiers were reversed. I¡¯m sorry I performed so poorly. I stood no chance.¡±


    John handed Lilly to Hubaba and said, ¡°Get her out of here.¡± Hubaba excelled at unbinding others and preventing his own manifestations from being unbound. If he couldn¡¯t cast or unbind, he was of no use in a fight.


    Lilly began to protest and Hubaba had to talk over her. ¡°What will you do?¡±


    John said, ¡°I don¡¯t know. Just get her out of here. Please.¡±


    Hubaba took Lilly and indicated his acceptance with a head movement. John was certain Hubaba heard the fear in his voice.


    As Lilly was carried out of the auditorium, she flailed her arms and cried out. ¡°Adon! No! Please! Come! Adon!¡±


    John looked at the dark, swirling circle and his heart spiked. He was filled with fear. He realized it was not the unnatural and artificial fear he felt with Ridge-head. It was just the normal and natural fear men felt when facing a monster they should run from, and it squeezed his heart and mind in its icy talons with a vice grip.


    John had faced death more times than he could count even before he gained the power, and he always did so bravely and fearlessly. He attacked Sublime Sunshine when he knew it meant his death. He feared nothing but the cold-dark. He even attacked Betrayal knowing the cold-dark was his fate.


    This is why my people put so much emphasis on controlling emotions, so I would not fail and falter as I am now. So I¡¯d never become as shamefully unmanned as I have, thought John as he looked fearfully at the portal.


    John forced his body to collect Defiance and walk towards the portal. He berated himself in many ways and called himself all sorts of names for being so cowardly. Nothing he did worked. Fear still gripped his heart, preventing him from entering. The fear would not leave, and his shame grew.


    John¡¯s eyes began to water. That caused him as much distress as the fear he felt. He never cried and he would not allow it now. He didn¡¯t know what was wrong with him. He looked around the auditorium at all the dead humans. The people he swore to protect. He was too weak. Too weak by a long way. A Bronze filled him with fear. Through the portal would be Silvers and a Gold.


    And death.


    John wasn¡¯t scared to die. Some part of him welcomed death. But there was dying and there was dying, and the Butcher promised a terrible death he did not want. He was scared of the Butcher, and scared to die the way he would if he entered the portal.


    In the distance, John could still hear his wife screaming his name. He had someone again. He had something to live for. I don¡¯t want to die this way, John thought. I don¡¯t want to fight this fight.


    Remembering his father and how ashamed the man would be of his cowardly son, he also remembered the old war cry of his tribe, ¡®I am born for war.¡¯ John repeated the war cry in his head. Doing so returned a little steel to his spine. He repeated it again in his head. And again, over and over. Then he said it out loud.


    John cried out and jumped into the portal. He didn¡¯t want to face the Butcher, but he couldn¡¯t bear the shame of living as a coward. He remembered the promise he made after his last meeting with Betrayal, filled with shame then too. He couldn¡¯t purge his heart and mind of the fear that gripped both, but he could at least not let it control him. He lived too long and suffered too much to die unmanned at the end. He would die fighting. At the least, he would die fighting.

 B2 Chapter 33 - Dont you ever say I just walked away

    The g¡¯athu began its horrible scream and Amber saw heads exploding. A pressure began squeezing her mind and she started to freak out. The next thing she knew, she was outside the building, falling to the ground. It wasn¡¯t a long fall, but it was enough to snap her out of it. She was in her bear form. She couldn¡¯t think well as a bear, so she turned into a demon and then into her human form and hid from all senses.


    Amber looked around. It was late night in Hawaii, but here and there she saw a dead person with an exploded head. That made her remember the guy she accidentally killed. She was racked with guilt again. She wished she had only transformed to her demon form. Guilt was dulled in that form.


    Amber heard Lilly yelling and focused on that. She went around and entered through the main door of the building. Lilly¡¯s screams were coming from the stairwell. She headed towards it and as she arrived Hubaba banged through the stairwell door with Lilly in his arms. The giant demon had three large gashes on his shoulder and chest.


    Lilly was screaming for her husband. Amber¡¯s first thought was that John was doing something stupid and only thinking of himself. Then she wondered if he was dead and her heart sank. She was going to follow Hubaba, or at least say something, but had to check. She entered the stairwell and went back towards the auditorium stage.


    Amber saw big holes in the walls she assumed was her doing. She entered the auditorium through the hole next to the closed door leading to the stage. Everyone was dead. Everyone. Blood and brains and skull were splattered everywhere. It was the grossest thing she had ever seen. She had to pause and repress a gag.


    The g¡¯athu was gone and John stood near a swirling circle of darkness, and she was relieved to see him alive. Is that a portal?


    Holding back her initial instinct to call out to John, Amber walked nearer to see what he was doing. She was very surprised to see a tortured look on his face. His eyes, wide with fright, darted around nervously.


    The thing Amber hated the most about John was that he was always so confident and sure of himself when he was always wrong. He only thought about two things - himself and battle. He always thought he was right to charge off on a suicide mission trying to get himself and everyone else killed.


    John was never scared.


    Amber hated fighting. She hated conflict. If she had to do it, she wanted it to be done smartly. She wanted everything to be planned and discussed and thought about. She wanted it to be coordinated with as many people as possible. She wanted to go into it feeling like she¡¯d be okay. Like how the Ocean¡¯s Eleven guys planned out robberies.


    John always wanted to rush in like a maniac and just hope for the best. He was an idiot. And a Jerk.


    Looking at John¡¯s tortured face and fearful look shocked Amber. She would¡¯ve bet a million dollars the man never thought about anything. And that he certainly didn¡¯t fear anything.


    Shortly after, a scowl went on John¡¯s face, his brows furrowed, and he began muttering to himself. Amber couldn¡¯t make out much, but she heard the words coward and low and base and shame.


    He¡¯s hyping himself up, Amber thought.  Is this idiot really gonna enter the portal? If it goes to one of the g¡¯athu bases, there¡¯ll be Silvers and a Gold. He¡¯ll die. He¡¯ll definitely die. One hundred percent. No cap. He has no chance at all.


    Then John¡¯s eyes filled with tears. He looked so sad and pathetic Amber couldn¡¯t stop herself from crying too. It didn¡¯t last long before his brows furrowed again and he continued to stare at the portal.


    John said his first clear words, and he said them loudly. ¡°I am born for war.¡±


    Just as Amber was going to tell John not to be an idiot he yelled like a maniac and jumped through the portal. Instead of being angry at him, she was instead filled with a deep sadness.


    I¡¯ll hafta trust someone else with my true name to help protect me, Amber thought. Hubaba didn¡¯t have enough [Mental Fortification]. She wasn¡¯t sure about Lilly. She didn¡¯t think she could fully trust Lilly anyway.


    What¡¯s wrong with me? My friend is gonna die and I¡¯m thinking about this? He¡¯s a jerk, but he¡¯s one of the only real friends I¡¯ve ever had, and I really¡­no. Don¡¯t think that. Don¡¯t ever think that. There¡¯s no hope. There¡¯s never been hope. It is how it is. I knew the price. I agreed to the price.


    A dread filled Amber. She began to breathe heavily and panic as she realized she was going to be dead soon along with everyone else. Along with the world. But after thinking it through, the panic and dread left and only an empty feeling remained. She knew the g¡¯athu couldn¡¯t be stopped. She thought knowing she was going to die would make her sadder. She almost felt relief knowing she wouldn¡¯t have to live with the price of her decisions much longer. What do I hafta live for anyways, she asked herself.


    She remembered back to outside of Reims in France.  While everyone was setting up, Amber stood behind the front end of a vehicle, a little away from Petar Kostov and some of the soldiers, and unhid. It didn¡¯t take long for the curse to kick in and cause some soldiers to turn around with angry looks on their faces, including Petar. They were all Woods, but Petar cleared all three of his cores, so he had some [Mental Fortification]. She ducked down and hid from all senses. The men looked away.


    Amber had still hoped her curse wouldn¡¯t work on higher ascended. Petar was a Wood. Maybe when he was Copper or Bronze her curse wouldn¡¯t work on him. Or maybe it gets stronger as I ascend too, she thought. I¡¯ll never find out now.


    Everyone was certain Amber would be used as fuel to strengthen a soul eventually. She¡¯d never have even plain old regular love, never mind true love. She¡¯d never be with a man. She¡¯d always have to hold it in. All she¡¯d ever have was her imagination and dreams of what would never be. Playacting only in her own mind.


    What made Amber so frustrated was she wanted so little. She didn¡¯t want a rich man, or even a man that was all that attractive. She just wanted a good guy that really loved her and treated her super good and appreciated how lucky he was.


    In her dream life, Amber would wear sexy but completely appropriate dresses and pretend she didn¡¯t know how hot she was and act all ditzy and purposefully burn one of the sides she made for dinner. Her husband would laugh and smile and say, ¡°Oh, you! Come here, gorgeous. Let me hold you. I¡¯m the luckiest guy in the world and I¡¯ll never forget it. Not for one second. Every day I¡¯ll earn your love. Every single day. Heck, just wait and see what I have in store for you tonight, you naughty girl.¡±


    Amber¡¯s mouth would open in surprise and shock, and she¡¯d slap her husband¡¯s shoulder playfully and say, ¡°Oh! I¡¯m not! You¡¯re the naughty one!¡± And then they¡¯d both laugh, and when they ate dinner, her husband wouldn¡¯t be able to keep his eyes off her. Just like John couldn¡¯t when they lived in the Trial on Esau. And she¡¯d be so happy and not miserable, and her decision to be beautiful would end up being great and wonderful and not a terrible mistake at all.


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    Amber didn¡¯t ever dare dream about children. She knew that was way too much to ever hope for. And too hurtful to think about. As soon as she merged with the lizard as a frog, she stopped producing eggs in either form. Her bear, fox, and deer forms never entered heat, and she had never had a period as a human. She kind of hoped she didn¡¯t shed that gross stuff as a demon.


    Amber liked that she could finally show off the personality she had cultivated for so long. She wished it wasn¡¯t pretend. But she was pretend. Everything about her was pretend. She tried to make it seem like she was impulsive, but she wasn¡¯t. She couldn¡¯t be.


    Amber wondered why John had been annoying her so much lately. She remembered watching him fight the dark ones during the Tribulation. He was so thankful for the little help she gave as he fearlessly and selflessly fought everything, saving her from as much of it as he could. She remembered when she was sick, how he threw her high onto the banner he placed in the tree branches before he fought the demon cats. He faced them all himself. His first thought was keeping her safe.


    John was a jerk, but Amber thought he was a thoughtful and kind jerk. He was a good friend. And handsome. At least when he has a beard. And eyebrows. Stop! What am I thinking? I can¡¯t think this, she thought. He was married. To her first real girlfriend no less.


    Amber knew she and everyone else would die by the g¡¯athu sooner or later. Lilly was right. Except there was nowhere to run. Not for her. At the most she could wait and see the world and the society she loved so much burned to ashes, all the people that filled it murdered, and try to extend her life by a week or a day or an hour. Or¡­


    Surprising herself, Amber jumped into the portal. Sometimes John¡¯s right. Better to die trying. Better to die with a friend by your side than alone. Die trying to do what¡¯s right. Just once, I wanna stop pretending.


    The dark of the portal turned into a light-blue tunnel that sucked Amber quickly through it. She was deposited on her feet and nearly tripped over a dead g¡¯athu near the exit. She made sure she was still hidden before looking around.


    Amber was in an open area surrounded by a ton of metal buildings within an enclosure of large metal walls. The open sky above shimmered through some sort of blueish field. She could tell it was early morning wherever she was when it was just late night in Hawaii.


    Without feeling each one to check their tier, all the g¡¯athu looked the same to Amber. Some hovered and wore the same exact outfit as the g¡¯athu in Hawaii, but most wore only robes and slithered around on the large tentacles their legs ended in, all the tentacles wriggling like snakes.


    All the g¡¯athu were rushing towards John, and John already had a bunch of them around him. His armor was already cut up badly, highlighting all his bloody wounds. He jumped and contorted himself in the air as he avoided the chain-things the geared-up g¡¯athu lashed at him like glowing whip-claws.


    John jumped again, diving over a blue ball of essence. While in the air he twisted around, his shield lighting up darkly as it blocked little laser beams that shot out of some sort of spider-leg things a geared-up g¡¯athu wore on his back. Then, by the skin of his teeth, he slid right through three of the brown beams the robe wearing g''athu shot at him.


    He fights like a god, thought Amber as she watched John in amazement. Many additional g¡¯athu corpses littered the ground on the path to John, two wearing tech gear. She couldn¡¯t peel her eyes from John battling. He jumped around like an acrobat, shrugging off damage, avoiding attacks, and lashing out with sword, shield, and ring.


    He¡¯s not even using manifestations. He¡¯s calculating his moves so the other g¡¯athu hafta be super careful with their laser beam spider-legs, the blue balls, and the brown beams the robe-wearers are shooting.


    Amber was nearly as impressed with the coordination of the g¡¯athu, but then she remembered it was all the same guy that thought exactly the same way and became less impressed. Two of them got their chain-claws caught together as John slid away again, and she almost laughed.


    Amber had to force herself to stop watching John to sense what he was up against. None of the Bronze, Copper, or Wood were kitted out with tech. None of the living ones were, at least. Only two of the six remaining Silvers she felt were. The less g¡¯athu wearing the tech gear, the easier the fight would become.


    And the fight had to become easier, because no matter how well John was doing, he was in a losing battle. One wrong move and it was over for him. He was just avoiding getting killed, hardly even attacking. Amber had to help. Then she nearly had a heart attack as a new geared-up g¡¯athu appeared out of nowhere and she could feel it was a Gold.


    The Gold didn¡¯t attack John with his chains, laser-leg things, or the blue light. He just held an arm out to John. Amber assumed he was casting a manifestation, but she couldn¡¯t feel anything normal. It felt weird. The other g¡¯athu stopped attacking as John knelt on the ground holding his head, his face contorted in agony. Wait, didn¡¯t Lilly say the Golds have mind control or something?


    Amber knew she had to take out the Gold. If she was going to die, she wanted to make it count. Go out in a blaze of glory.


    There was a lot about Amber John didn¡¯t know about. Party-pooper told her it was safest to hold her cards close to her chest. She couldn¡¯t use her NCS in her animal forms, but Party-pooper had summary sheets for all of them.


    All of Amber¡¯s forms were above F-grade. One was B-grade. And the efficiency of her [Stats] were different in each form. Every point of [Strength] in bear form was worth over two points of [Strength] for an F-grade human, the baseline she used to judge her effective scores from.


    Amber had the Transmuter [Archetype], which focused on transforming her body in various ways. The types of manifestations she could get with her high [Runes] score were limited by her [Archetype]. She only told John her baseline [Stat] scores, not the effective scores. She had enough rune points to make three glyphs, even though they were the lowest type of glyphs. She only told him about one of them, the one that made her invisible and gave her enough time to transform into a sapient form and hide without being focused on.


    All the manifestations she could get as a Transmuter had pretty straightforward names, like [Tiger Claws]. Some of them were named after creatures or things she had never heard of before, and she was thankful she could rename them. She renamed the invisibility manifestation to [And Now You Don¡¯t], based on the old phrase she had heard magicians use on TV since at least the early fifties ¨C ¡®now you see me, and now you don¡¯t!¡¯


    Actual invisibility manifestations were rare outside of expensive and essence-hungry glyphs, and her glyph only lasted three or four seconds against a same-tier enemy.


    Amber also picked a super powerful essence-shell glyph that would wrap her in layers and layers of hard, protective essence. While in the shell, she¡¯d also heal at an advanced rate. It cost a ton of runes too. And cost a lot of essence to cast. She named it [Turtle].


    The last glyph Amber got she didn¡¯t rename. She liked the name it came with. [Eyes of the B??z?ruk??]. She had no idea what a B??z?ruk?? was, but it sounded super fearsome. The glyph shot a beam of red destruction from her eyes. It had a really long cast time and only got to be super powerful when she charged it up extra too. It cost a lot of essence, but when it was fully charged it hit super hard. It was the most damaging ranged glyph she could get, and best of all, she could cast it while hidden too.


    Amber stared at the head of the Gold and started to power [Eyes of the B??z?ruk??]. After ranking up, she had a little bit over half essence left after changing into a demon and then her human form. Then after she hid, then turned into a bear, demon, back into a human, and hid again, she had a good bit under half essence. She didn¡¯t have to worry about holding back now or saving essence since this was the end of the road.


    Once the glyph was fully charged, Amber had a good bit less than forty percent essence. She released the glyph and a red beam exploded the head of the Gold g¡¯athu as she became visible to sight and all other senses. She cast [And Now You Don¡¯t] and hid again and was down to a little under thirty percent essence.


    The g¡¯athu immediately started directing attacks to where she stood a moment before, but she sprinted away after casting the invisibility glyph, so they hit nothing. John was back on his feet and attacking again. She laughed internally and thought, how do you jerks like having your head explode? Serves you right! Ugly, evil jerks!

 B2 Chapter 34 - Because I shoot first

    Amber couldn¡¯t keep herself from watching John again as he continued the fight. She always enjoyed watching dancing and ice skating and gymnastics on TV. Watching humans excel and do something beautiful. And the people doing those things were usually really beautiful too. Fighting and violence were pure ugliness. How John somehow made something ugly seem so beautiful never failed to amaze her.


    He¡¯s so graceful. God, he really was born for this stuff. No wonder people used to worship him. He¡¯s¡­screw it. If I¡¯m gonna die I might as well admit it. I¡¯m so glad we kissed. That was so wonderful. That was¡­what¡¯s the modern way to say it? That really slapped. It slapped me real good. I finally got to kiss a guy. And it wasn¡¯t cheating. He thought Lilly was dead.


    More g¡¯athu had appeared, some wearing tech. Laser beams tore into John and Amber noticed they went all the way through. The lasers also hit a geared-up Silver¡¯s head on the other side of John, causing its death.


    The lasers made John stumble when he landed, and he wasn¡¯t quick enough to fully avoid a thick ball of blue light. His body locked up and he tumbled and crashed to the ground. Three of the geared-up Silver g¡¯athu tore into him with the glowing chain things, leaving John with a bunch more of the long and bleeding gashes, shredding his armor even further.


    Amber had held back from the fighting assuming another Gold would show up. The best way she could help was by taking Golds out while hidden.


    There was a giant, swirling circle of darkness on a metal platform lower-tiered g¡¯athu were coming out of, including geared-up Silvers. Amber thought she¡¯d have to give up her plan and join the fight right then, but as a geared-up g¡¯athu Silver approached from John¡¯s side it lost three of its spider legs from the plasma ring.


    As John rolled away, he cut the legs off a Bronze and somehow launched his roll into a jump, narrowly avoiding little lasers and a brown beam that hit the spot he was rolling towards.


    John contorted, blocked, and batted away more attacks as he twisted through the air. A g¡¯athu hit another g¡¯athu with a blue ball. Blood started to leak out of a big hole a brown beam made in the chest of another g¡¯athu, and it slowly slumped towards the ground.


    John landed behind two g¡¯athu, their heads falling off as he landed. God, he¡¯s¡­he¡¯s just amazing! Still, there were too many enemies, and more geared up enemies too. Amber couldn¡¯t wait for a Gold to appear again. She had to join the fight.


    Amber approached behind a geared-up Silver to bite its head off, and just as she got in position, she felt a Gold appear. The Gold was near the giant portal. Suddenly, it was ten feet in front of Amber, its arm held out towards John. Amber felt a second Gold near the portal, then it appeared in front and to the side of the other Gold and also raised its arm towards John.


    I wish [Eyes of the B??z?ruk??] was AoE. Well, this is it. Goodbye cruel world! I¡¯ll miss you. God, I wish I wasn¡¯t dying a virgin, thought Amber as she started sending essence to her glyph.


    John was flailing about, holding his head with both his hands, screaming out as if he was in great pain.


    A couple seconds later, a Gold¡¯s head exploded.


    Amber wasn¡¯t sure if she had the essence to hide and cast her gaze spell again, so she wasted no time and transformed into a bear while using the dash attack of her deer form. That manifestation had almost no cast time. Ukaraaz hadn¡¯t been able to unbind it before she got it off, and she hoped the same was true for the g¡¯athu.


    It could¡¯ve been due to the surprise of her attack, but Amber got the cast off and bowled the Gold over before it was prepared. The echo attack she next tried was unbound, and three lashes of burning pain tore into her side and ripped downwards. A blue ball of essence locked her up for a second. Little pin-prick lasers dug into her.


    Ow, this hurts so bad!


    Many of the g¡¯athu screamed in the way that hurt Amber¡¯s head. She hated it. Those screams nearly caused her to lose her mind. Her eyes and ears bled so badly she couldn¡¯t see and could barely hear. She got locked up for another second. More lashes and lasers bit into her. Then another scream almost brought her to her knees. But didn¡¯t.


    Amber flailed her powerful paws out wildly and maniacally, using her nose and senses to find enemies. She enjoyed the way her paws crushed those they hit. She enjoyed the taste of the g¡¯athu flesh she managed to rip off and swallow. She wasn¡¯t scared anymore. The pain didn¡¯t hurt anymore. Her only goal was taking as many enemies as she could down with her. This was it. Just battle. One last battle. No more pretending. Like the old days.


    More lasers pricked Amber¡¯s hide. Chains and more chains continuously ripped skin and fur away as they cut gouges out of her. The screams constantly brought her to the brink of losing her mind, but the damage she suffered only fueled her rage.


    A different kind of scream caused a great pressure in her mind, and she thrashed out blindly. She heard the muffled screams of John. She got one more good hit in, crushing a g¡¯athu, before she did lose her mind.


    <hr><hr>


    Amber came to with a start. She was hanging in the air. There was a weird floating ball in front of her showing images of g¡¯athu in cities, massacring humans. It nearly made her gag. She expected her body to hurt but she actually felt fine. She realized she was in her human form. How did I get into my human form? Her core was completely empty.


    Amber extended her senses and felt the g¡¯athu base was still filled with Wood and Copper and a good amount of Bronze, but there were only two Silvers and no Gold. There was a Copper next to her. She knew it was John when he said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I failed. I wish you didn¡¯t enter the portal. You killed two Golds, so you can be proud of that. I got a lot more of them than I thought I would. These filth are nothing without their tech.¡±


    ¡°How did I get into my human form? I was in my bear form.¡±


    John grunted. ¡°You changed to demon then human before a shell of essence surrounded you. The g¡¯athu ignored you once you entered the shell. It ended a little time ago, but you were still unconscious. It looked to have healed you too. You took a lot of damage while you were a bear.¡±


    ¡°Why are¡­they didn¡¯t kill us?¡± She wished she could break her habit of changing all the way to human to cast tricks and glyphs. She could cast her tricks in her animal forms now, and her glyphs in demon form.


    I guess it doesn¡¯t matter anymore, Amber thought. She was surprised she wasn¡¯t more upset at her situation. She just felt like it was par for the course with her luck. Maybe I deserve it for killing that guy.


    John said, ¡°No. You probably can guess what they want from you. These bastards want me to watch them slaughter the people of our world then torture me as they promised they would. The Golds can get in my mind. They can¡¯t control me, but they can stop me from fighting back.


    ¡°For good news, unlike the demons, the g¡¯athu need permission from the Sublime in the sky above to replace their losses and he¡¯s¡­he hasn¡¯t answered them. I overheard them say that. They have only one Gold now, thanks to you. The g¡¯athu you feel here still, they¡¯re making more of their tech. All the ones wearing their filthy tech left for conquest.


    ¡°Oh, according to the g¡¯athu, the demons left Earth. Or they closed the portal from this side and are hiding. That is also good news. For bad news, I tried everything to get out of this cage. They didn¡¯t take our equipment, but nothing I¡¯ve tried has worked, and I¡¯ve tried everything I could think of. Some of them watched me and laughed at my escape attempts. I hate these bastards. I can¡¯t enter my Mind¡¯s Eye and I¡¯m not sure how to use the phone I have. Does yours say if Lilly and Hubaba are alive?¡±


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    Amber looked around and noticed a shimmer of energy surrounding them. She was suspended in the air with her arms above her head and her legs dangling free. It wasn¡¯t too uncomfortable. She wiggled and tried to free herself and achieved nothing for her efforts.


    ¡°How¡¯d you get down?¡±


    John grunted again. ¡°It wasn¡¯t easy. I¡¯ll pull you down. Let me warn you the¡­floor¡­the energy floor is not pleasant. I will touch you now.¡±


    John, from behind, grabbed Amber¡¯s waist and pushed downwards. Eventually whatever held her popped. He lowered her gently until her feet hit the floor. It sent electricity into her feet and really hurt, causing her to scream, ¡°Ow!¡±


    John lifted her by the waist again and asked, ¡°I can hold you like this if you want?¡±


    Amber¡¯s face turned red. Other than the one time with John and a few times with Hubaba and Lilly, she had never been touched when she wasn¡¯t in an animal form. She liked the feel of John touching her, but being held by the waist wasn¡¯t all that comfortable. She asked, ¡°The floor hurts my feet real bad so could you suspend me up there again? If not, could you hold me up in, um, a more comfortable way?¡±


    John replied, ¡°I don¡¯t know how to suspend you again.¡± Amber was cradled in John¡¯s arms with a bridal carry. ¡°I can hold you like this if it works for you as well.¡±


    Amber knew she was blushing as she said, ¡°Thank you.¡± John had a ton of wounds everywhere. Just all over himself, and his armor and robes were practically falling apart. How is he not curled up into a little ball, crying? All those wounds gotta hurt a bunch.


    John said, ¡°Does your phone tell you anything?¡±


    ¡°Oh, yeah. Sorry.¡± Amber opened her hip pouch and took her government phone out. It was broken. She took the iPhone she bought herself out, and it worked but had no connection. ¡°Let me see your phone. Please.¡±


    John held Amber with one arm as he fished his phone out and handed it to her. It was one of the government-issued phones that had extra satellite connections. It still wasn¡¯t connected to anything. She noticed his hand was badly damaged and missing two and a half fingers.


    ¡°Sorry, none of the phones are working.¡± Amber thought the g¡¯athu base was probably blocked somehow. Probably by that energy field covering it. She handed his phone back and had to help hold herself steady by putting her arm around his neck while he put the phone away. She removed her arm once he finished, blushing more.


    John grunted and said, ¡°I wish I could promise I could save you and escape. These foes are¡­they¡¯re too strong for me. I tried. I¡¯m sorry. If they didn¡¯t have the tech, and the Golds couldn¡¯t get in my head, it would¡¯ve¡­ah, no use whining over what¡¯s done and over. I failed, and that¡¯s that. Do you have any ideas of how to escape this cage of energy?¡±


    Amber said, ¡°I¡¯m completely out of essence. I wouldn¡¯t even be able to try anything I could think of.¡±


    ¡°Oh. I¡¯m sorry. Sorry I got you into this. Sorry I failed.¡±


    Amber didn¡¯t reply. She wanted to ask John something, but she couldn¡¯t.


    John asked, ¡°Can you meditate while I hold you like this?¡±


    Amber could always somehow notice when John looked at her without actually looking at her. He hadn¡¯t since his wife came back. No, before then. Not since I told him my true name, she thought. When they lived in the Trial, he never stopped looking. She didn¡¯t have the essence to turn into a frog. Even if she did, she didn¡¯t want to. She just wanted to enjoy John holding her. She wished he would look at her like he did before. His eyes went everywhere but on her.


    ¡°Sure, of course I can,¡± Amber answered, smiling brightly, and having her smile ignored. She thought she had time. Back when they first started living in the Trial. She thought there was time.


    John closed his eyes and began to meditate. Amber continued to stare at the face of the man she loved, loved with all her heart, and had loved for a very long time, even though she thought he looked too boyish without his beard, and the missing eyebrows were an issue. She snuggled closer to him, reveling in the warmth of his touch, wishing his wife never came back. I thought there was time.


    Amber wished she hadn¡¯t changed into the new armor as she¡¯d be able to feel his touch and warmth more if she only wore a set of cultivator¡¯s robes. Why won¡¯t he look at me? Looking isn¡¯t cheating.


    Amber looked at the floating ball showing the g¡¯athu killing humans and her mood soured. No, I won¡¯t let it. My man is holding me, and I¡¯m gonna probably be made into a pill or something. I¡¯m gonna enjoy this. And pretend. Pretend things are different. Pretend things are just like I always dreamed they could be.


    Amber never tried to meditate. Not in a way that gathered or refined energy. She just stared at John and pretended he was her man. She wished he¡¯d look at her. He could see her, and she wanted to be seen. She decided to do something to make him look at her. She smiled brightly before reaching up to caress his face, but her hand stopped as something really weird landed on his nose. It looked like a strange sort of teeny-tiny cat-elephant with wings.


    John¡¯s eyes flew open. He looked at the thing on his nose, then looked up. He said, ¡°Look! Stretch just killed a few of those bastards. The helpers. No! One wearing tech just¡­damn it all, it¡¯s switched to a different area. Filthy bastards.¡±


    Amber looked at the floating ball but didn¡¯t see Stretch and quickly looked away. ¡°John, do you see that thing on your nose?¡± She knew he did. He looked at it.


    ¡°Yes. It¡¯s the carrier for some physical rewards I¡­won? Earned? Back when I was in New York City. It¡¯s telling me to enter my Mind¡¯s Eye, but I can¡¯t.¡±


    John¡¯s eyes went blank for a split second and the thing quickly flew away. He said, ¡°She pulled me into hers. That was a Magnus. She refused to help us get out of here. That something so little could be so powerful¡­¡± John trailed off without finishing the thought out loud.


    John remained silent for long enough Amber asked, ¡°Well, what¡¯d you¡­win? What¡¯d you get?¡±


    Amber was happy John finally looked at her, and she smiled brightly. He said, ¡°I¡¯m not sure. It¡¯s at my feet. I just signed something saying I received it.¡±


    Amber tried to look down and see what was there. She asked, ¡°Aren¡¯t you curious?¡± After a moment with no reply coming, she said, ¡°I am.¡±


    John carefully held Amber in one arm again, and she put both arms around his neck and snuggled in close. She didn¡¯t let go once he had the present in his hand and stood upright again. She was annoyed that he kept looking at the floating ball showing all the murder and not her. Or that he didn¡¯t seem to care about his gift. He said, ¡°I wish they¡¯d show Stretch again.¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you excited to find out what your gift is,¡± asked Amber, smiling in a way she knew John liked.


    John grunted. ¡°Stretch is our hope now. What could this do to help us?¡± He removed the tie from the box and fumbled it with his hands as he held Amber and watched the floating ball.


    Amber stopped smiling and annoyedly removed her arms from around John and took the box from him. He was too slow and wasn¡¯t excited enough. The box was light. She removed the outer case and flipped open the lid. There was a note. She picked it up and read it aloud.


    ¡°Dear user,


    Congratulations on all your achievements! Surviving the bloody climb is not easy, and we value users such as yourself. Now, onto the rewards!


    After assessing your needs, we have determined your greatest. You are strong for your tier. You are not underpowered; you are under-tier and lacking in some of the fundamentals and basics of self-cultivation. You have lived a very long time compared to most entities at your level, yet you are strapped for it now ¨C especially considering the unique situation your world is in.


    In the box you¡¯ll find four of a very rare item. We strongly suggest you keep these items secret from everyone. Few would not kill for these. They are called Level Capsules (though these ones don¡¯t encapsulate anything. Do not try to break them open!). Just one is worth more than the light-orange crystal of a low Eternal. There is little the combined worth of all four couldn¡¯t buy!


    We strongly suggest you take all four Level Capsules at once to mitigate the risk of possessing them. If you choose to only take two Level Capsules to ascend to Bronze or utilize some other strategy, again, please ensure to keep the rest a secret from everyone. And we mean everyone.


    Hold one to four Level Capsules up to your Mind¡¯s Eye and your NCS will read them. Once read, you will immediately be brought to a pocket plane filled with potent energy outside of your reality and how time flows in your universe. Necessities will be provided for you. You will remain there until you increase by a number of levels equal to the number of Level Capsules read by your NCS. I.e., if you use all four at level 9, you will remain in the pocket plane until you are level 13, mid-high Bronze tier.


    There will be a 22 hour and 14 minute (USACS) grace period after attaining your final level before you are returned from the pocket plane.


    Time is not a factor in the pocket plane regardless of the number of Level Capsules used. In your world it will seem like you entered and exited at the same time.


    If you plan on sharing your Level Capsules with another user and would like to enter the pocket plane together, you must sync the Level Capsules before doing so. To sync Level Capsules, hold the Level Capsules together until they turn from white to purple, indicating they are synced.


    The Level Capsules will only remain purple for a little longer than half a minute (USACS) after syncing, and the Level Capsules must be read by the NCS of each user before it returns to its natural color. If any user¡¯s Level Capsules are not read in time, the users will not travel together.


    The pocket plane is completely safe. You will be in no danger from anyone or anything you do not bring yourself.


    Lastly, please note that there is a cap of five increases per skill per Level Capsule used. You can spend as much time as you want in the pocket plane, and spend your time how you want to, but the purpose is to advance in rank and tier, not skill. There is some leeway for skills standing for a body of knowledge or branch of learning other skills are dependent on.


    Congratulations again! We hope you enjoy your rewards!


    Warmest regards,


    Nano Control System Decision Matrix Unit¡±

 B2 Chapter 35 - Close your eyes and youll be there

    Amber, finished with the letter, picked up a stick of four white squares that looked like a fun-sized white-chocolate candy bar to her. She said, ¡°Jeez. I thought they¡¯d be bigger. Or look more¡­I don¡¯t know¡­important? So much wealth in such little things.¡±


    John forced himself not to look at Amber¡¯s beautiful face. His body was in a tremendous amount of pain, but his spirits lifted. This gave them a chance. He said, ¡°You get a body for all five of your animal forms at Bronze, right? If I take two and you take two, we¡¯ll both be Bronze.¡±


    Amber¡¯s smile nearly took up her whole face. ¡°Yeah! That¡¯s what Party-pooper said. He¡¯s not certain, but that¡¯s when most animals get body formations. On ascending to Bronze. You¡¯ll really share with me? That slaps! And if I get two, I¡¯ll keep my lead over you!¡±


    John wished he could stop holding Amber. His arms weren¡¯t tired, but he felt he shouldn¡¯t touch her as he was, and his injured hand was throbbing. He hoped she didn¡¯t realize he was excited. She trusted him. He would not have her think he¡¯d abuse the trust, or know that his body wanted him to. And whenever he did look, the crazed look in her eyes made him worry about her a little. He watched the scenes of humans getting massacred, hoping to see more of Stretch.


    ¡°You still with me, John? Earth to John.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m with you.¡±


    Amber was silent for a moment. ¡°Want me to break two pieces off and set them up? Make them purple? Are you ready or did you wanna wait for something?¡±


    John said, ¡°Yes. Please. The sooner the better. Many humans are slaughtered each second we wait. And the stupid thing hasn¡¯t shown Stretch again. I will destroy the floating ball once we¡¯ve escaped from this energy cage.¡±


    ¡°You tell ¡®em, buddy,¡± said Amber as she broke the stick in half and pressed the two halves together until they turned purple. ¡°Quick, hold it up to your head¡­I mean your Third Eye.¡±


    Amber¡¯s arm went back around John¡¯s neck. He needed his other arm, and she held the two purple Level Capsules up to her Third Eye as John did the same. She smiled at him as they waited, and John looked only at the scenes playing out on the floating ball.


    After some time, John¡¯s vision warbled, and the world shrunk until his vision stilled and he stood on short grass on a flat field that went on as far as the eye could see. The grass was blue, and the sky was a bright orange color, but there was no sun. No clouds. Or trees. Or anything. The only other living thing besides the grass John could sense was Amber.


    John placed Amber down and turned away from her, hoping she hadn¡¯t noticed his excitement. He twisted his head around further and sighted a building off in the distance.


    Amber asked, ¡°John, can I tell you something?¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    ¡°Please turn around.¡±


    John turned to face Amber. He had no choice but to look at her beautiful face. ¡°Thank you, John,¡± said Amber. She moved in close to him, put her hand on his chest, and got on her tiptoes to kiss him on the cheek.


    John said, ¡°You¡¯re welcome.¡±


    ¡°Just FYI, when I have the essence, I¡¯m gonna switch to my demon form. I¡¯ll probably stay in that form when I¡¯m not meditating.¡±


    That surprised John. He asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Amber smiled and said, ¡°It¡­it¡¯ll just make things easier. Demons don¡¯t¡­they don¡¯t have to worry about¡­some things. It¡¯ll just help with¡­focus. And stuff.¡±


    Amber giggled and ran off towards the building. Since she would soon be only in her frog or demon forms, John didn¡¯t hold back from enjoying the sight of her while he could, and he zoomed in on her backside with his orb-eye.


    Amber stopped and turned back to look at John. She smiled at him brightly and it sent butterflies flying around his insides. He slowly followed her towards the building, noticing the energy suffusing the air of the pocket plane seemed heavy and strange. He was too injured and hurt too much to run anyway.


    A worry hit John ¨C he¡¯d have to use Amber as a source of vital essence if he could find no other life in the strange new place. He wasn¡¯t sure how she¡¯d feel about that.


    Amber reached the building long before John, and he could sense her running around inside of it. The building was large and had a giant square section that looked to be attached to a strange type of house. The house had three levels of windows, so he assumed three floors, while the giant square section had only one set of very large windows high up on its wall.


    Shortly before John reached the entry, he sensed Amber stand to the side of the door. As he walked through, she jumped at him and yelled, ¡°Boo!¡± She then laughed as if a great joke was played on him. He didn¡¯t get the joke, but the good humor was infectious, and he couldn¡¯t help but smile.


    ¡°This place is awesome! I mean it slaps. There¡¯s a buncha bedrooms and a small cafeteria and a big¡­gymnasium¡­thing.¡± Amber grabbed John¡¯s uninjured hand and began to lead him towards large and opened double doors. ¡°I¡¯ll just show you. This is a¡­what do they call it¡­foyer? Maybe a lobby.¡±


    The entry room was somewhat like a foyer, John thought. It had many cabinets labeled with dots starting from one and going up to twenty. There were also two other doorways and stairs leading up.


    As Amber led John towards the double doors, to distract himself from being uncomfortable due to holding the hand of a woman not his wife, he reminded himself Amber was a good friend and checked to see if he had access to his NCS.


    The world blurred by, and John stood before Avatar. He said, ¡°Greetings, Avatar. I was just checking to see if I had access to you on this strange world.¡±


    Avatar said, ¡°Plane. As you see, you do. And congratulations on earning such wonderful gifts! Four Level Capsules! I told you the physical rewards would be worth it.¡± She smiled warmly. ¡°As usual, I was correct. We need to talk about a training regimen while you¡¯re here.¡±


    John said, ¡°Certainly. Just let me get situated and I¡¯ll return.¡±


    ¡°Bye, John. And remember your duty and the collective mission. Your actions and inactions help or hinder the collective mission. We shall achieve core.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Avatar.¡±


    John exited his Mind¡¯s Eye. ¡°We have access to the NCS while here. It¡¯s no longer blocked.¡±


    Amber turned back to smile at John and said, ¡°I know.¡± Entering through the double doors, she said, ¡°This is the gym. Gymnasium.¡± She let go of his hand and spread her arms out and said, ¡°Ta-da!¡±


    John did his best to stop focusing on what his orb-eye looked at to view the room. The room was gigantic and had a hard, waxed wooden floor. There were many devices and items placed throughout the gym, including some very large machines, as well as many soft mats on the floor.


    The tour continued and there was a small cafeteria that had two large and long tables, some other strange tables, and many odd-looking chairs. There were indents in the wall to get trays, cups, bowls, and various types of eating utensils. One wall had many indents and generic and ambiguous pictures of what John assumed was water, an animal, a vegetable, a fruit, a grain, an insect, possibly a fungus, a rock, and many other pictures he couldn¡¯t figure out.


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    In the house proper, other than the foyer, there was only a room with mostly strange sofas and chairs, but also a few normal ones. The second and third floor had ten bedrooms each, and communal waste and bathing rooms.


    John chose a bedroom on the second floor. Amber said she wanted the whole third floor for herself.


    John couldn¡¯t figure out the waste room, and there were no chamber pots, so when he went to find a place to dig a pit latrine, he also found a meditation area with runed-mats as well as another training area with many targets, pells, and other training aids behind the house and to the side of the gymnasium.


    John showed Amber the areas he found and told her since there was no sun, in order to orient themselves they should consider the entrance side of the house facing south and he¡¯d build the pit latrine on the east side off of the gymnasium.


    Amber said, ¡°Why? There¡¯s a bathroom with two toilets humans can use. Half of one wall is a standing urinal.¡±


    After a moment, John said. ¡°I thought that part of the wall was for that, but I didn¡¯t want to take a chance with being wrong.¡±


    Amber laughed. ¡°I¡¯ll show you how the toilets work. There¡¯s no TP but the good toilet has something like a bidet and another that¡¯s kinda humanish has a spray hose. Hey, before we¡­before I change into my demon form, since there¡¯s no rush or time limit, any chance you wanna celebrate and have, like, a formal dinner¡­or something?¡±


    ¡°Sure.¡±


    Smiling, Amber said, ¡°Great. I¡¯ll go get changed. Wear something nice. It¡¯s gonna take me a while to get ready. Wait, I¡¯ll show you how to work the toilets first. Please take a bath too. I¡¯m sorry, but you stink real bad. I probably don¡¯t smell so great either.¡±


    ¡°You smell nice.¡± It annoyed John that people thought he smelled. From early in his life, he took care to ensure he never smelled too much, and he knew he smelled better than most. He did have to admit that the people he met lately did not smell as bad as most people had throughout his life, but they wore far too many artificial smells that overwhelmed his senses.


    ¡°Thanks, buddy! But I know I don¡¯t. I like to be super clean and feel super fresh, you know? You should try it. It feels so good to be¡­you¡¯ll see. I¡¯ll set up the bath on your floor for you. Oh, wait, did you need me to dress your wounds? Try and stitch some of them? Sorry, I shoulda thought to ask earlier.¡±


    John grunted. ¡°No. Thank you, but I¡¯m fine. I can control the bleeding. I heal much faster now than I ever have before, especially since I got my body [Perk].¡±


    Amber showed John how to work the toilets and set up the bath for him, pointing out some items to wash with. He enjoyed soaking in the hot bath, though it did no favors to his many wounds. In Rome, people would slop oil all over themselves and then rub a stick over their body before entering water. He thought that was a strange way to clean. He preferred to clean in a fast-moving river, but he had always found hot baths relaxing too.


    When John finished bathing, he donned the cultivation robes he stole from Diamond Garioch, the other set than the black and red ones he usually wore. They were white and light green and had their runes shown on the outside of the robes, and the hem went down much lower. He thought they looked nice and fancy.


    John waited and waited for Amber. Without a sun he couldn¡¯t tell how long he waited. The sky was the same orange color as when he first arrived. It was cooler in the shade of the building than away from it. It felt like a sun warmed his skin when he stood in the open. He thought about visiting Avatar, but that wouldn¡¯t kill any time, and he wanted to immediately start training after he visited her.


    Not having the mind to do anything else at the moment, John did what he had always done to kill time, and entered into himself, what was now considered meditation. His dantian wasn¡¯t all that empty since he couldn¡¯t get any spells off fighting the g¡¯athu, but he did use his ring a good amount. He quickly filled his dantian, converted half his essence to shen, and all his shen to empty.


    Emptiness, not empty, Thought John. Instead of shen, should I call it spirit or vigor as others do? I dislike the inner and outer-spirit distinction. And some call inner-spirit vigor too. It makes little sense. No. Shen is better. I like what I¡¯ve called things ¨C dantians, meridians, shen, spirit. I¡¯ll stick with these terms.


    John continued gathering energy and refining essence and turned the essence into shen and then emptiness. He didn¡¯t use a cultivation mat since he waited in the area that was somewhat of a foyer. Amber finally finished getting ready and he stood when he heard her coming down the stairs.


    Before Amber could be seen, she called down, ¡°John! Sorry it took so long. My friend¡­well, she¡¯s not really a friend, just some girl I met. She got the right sizes, but nothing fit right. I¡¯m wearing a sundress and they¡­sundresses are usually informal so¡­so please pretend this is a formal dress. Okay?¡±


    John thought Amber had to know he had no idea what a sundress was, or what was formal and informal for a woman. Especially nowadays as he thought most women dressed more provocatively than common nightwalkers. He said, ¡°I shall.¡±


    Amber yelled down, ¡°Okay. Here I come.¡±


    Amber walked down the stairs with a huge smile plastered across her face, and slowly, like she was a wedding bride.


    John thought the dress she wore showed far too much of her. It had thin shoulder straps and showed a lot of chest and only covered her legs to the middle of her thighs. She wore the same type of ridiculous shoes Lilly wore in her Mind¡¯s Eye, where she looked as she did in her first body, with very long heels, but Amber¡¯s shoes had open toes and only a few straps covering the tops of the feet.


    John thought Amber looked extremely attractive, and he liked the flower pattern on her dress. He noticed her lips were redder than usual, her eyes were surrounded by a soft bluish color, and her finger and toenails, or finger and toe claws, were painted the same color as her lips. She wore her hair down and he could tell she spent a lot of time on it.


    ¡°You look beautiful. And your skin looks very shiny. I like your hair too.¡± John had a lot of experience with women, so he knew to comment on what it looked like they spent a lot of time on.


    Amber managed to somehow smile even wider. ¡°Thanks, buddy! I hope you mean shiny in, like, a good way. Did you see my nails?¡± She wiggled her fingers and toes. ¡°You have to pretend they¡¯re not claws too.¡±


    ¡°Of course. They look wonderful. I noticed they matched your lips. And I meant shiny in a good way.¡±


    Upon fully descending into the foyer, John offered Amber his arm and she took it, and he then escorted her into the small cafeteria.


    There was a small vial of life essence on a counter with a note he¡¯d receive one vial a week. Plenty enough to keep him topped off but not nearly enough for strengthening. Phew, he thought.


    John set his tray on the table and stood while waiting for Amber. He only had water and some sort of paste in a bowl that came from the animal-like picture dispenser. Amber said, ¡°Oh. I think I get it. I thought some of these were empty, but I think it won¡¯t let you get food from the things that are poisonous to us. I think that one¡¯s Nether. Good to know for when I¡¯m in demon form.¡±


    Amber sat her tray across from John. He took his seat after she did. She said, ¡°I only got some fruit and vegetables. I think. It looks the same.¡± She drank from her cup. ¡°The water¡¯s good.¡±


    John wasn¡¯t all that hungry. He always needed less food than humans, but he found he needed even less and less the higher he ascended. He tried the meat slop and found it was tasty. ¡°Very good,¡± he said.


    ¡°Yeah. It looks gross but actually tastes pretty good. The fruit kinda tastes like a dessert. Wanna try some of mine?¡±


    ¡°No, thank you.¡±


    ¡°Oh. I never told you how nice you look. And you smell nice too.¡±


    John laughed. ¡°I noticed I have some good stubble for eyebrows now. I look a little less ridiculous.¡±


    Amber said, ¡°Yeah, your hair grows fast! Mine doesn¡¯t. It takes forever to grow my hair out. Don¡¯t worry, your beard will be back soon, and you¡¯ll be hot again.¡± Blushing, she added, ¡°Sorry, I shouldn¡¯ta said that. I just forget since¡­you started looking at me without looking at me again.¡±


    John said, ¡°I think I know what that means now, but usually I just pretend to know what people are talking about. I make a lot of assumptions from context too.¡± He stopped looking at her with his orb-eye.


    ¡°No! Don¡¯t stop. Just for tonight. No one ever sees me, and I got all dressed up. I wanna be seen. Please.¡±


    John nearly scoffed. His orb-eye went back on her, but he bit his tongue on the comment he wanted to say about all the strange men that had seen her illicit pictures. He knew, for whatever reason, Amber wanted this to be a nice night, and he wouldn¡¯t spoil it.


    The two companions continued to talk and dine and enjoy each other¡¯s company. They talked a lot about Lilly, and even talked a lot about the old days, before John met Lilly. John tried to pry more information from Amber about her age and her earliest memories as a human. She was very evasive and gave him little.


    Amber did talk some about the time when she was ugly. She stated she was so ugly and deformed children would cry and run when they saw her, and everyone thought she was a monster and would attack her or throw rocks at her to get her to flee. She was forced to fight all the time.


    Since Amber had a time limit in her human form during that period, she was caught transforming often, and there were many stories about her doing so. She only liked to remember the ones saying she was beautiful, not the ones saying she was a horrible monster.


    Long, long after they both finished eating, they decided it was time to plan. And they planned, and then went to meditate. When Amber had the essence, she turned into a frog, and that was the last John saw of her human form for a long time.

 B2 Chapter 36 - Rising up to the challenge of our rival

    John performed an exercise called a squat while holding a very heavy bar of weights on his shoulders.  He disliked this form of exercising and thought it was a waste of time.  As a youth and long after he accepted the power, his muscles would ache after working them hard.


    No matter what John did now, his muscles never ached as they used to so long ago.  He preferred to work his muscles by training useful [Skills], but Avatar said he was close to maxing out natural caps for his physical [Stats], and that would help his soft caps.


    One of the exercises John was supposed to do was called [Running], which was a [Skill] he had at the Adept Mastery, close to Master level.  He liked running far more than the exercises that fell under the [Weightlifting] [Skill].  One day he ran so far in the direction he considered north he saw a new building off in the distance.  It was empty and was exactly the same as the one he and Amber stayed in.


    There was no way to tell time in the pocket plane without the NCS.  The sky was always the same orange color.  Avatar said John could bring up a clock at any time.  He disliked clocks so he had Avatar send him a notification when he could train in his Mind¡¯s Eye again.  The deal he made with her was that he''d do stupid exercises for two hours after his daily NCS training.


    John continued to squat down and stand up with the heavy bar on his shoulders until Avatar sent the notification telling him he was done for the day.


    Getting his body [Perk], [Leech Body of the Morning''s Glory], drained John of all his harmony, so he had a long way to go to fill up again.  With the [Skill] cap in place and only being able to raise new or low level [Skills] at a decent rate without combat, harmony gain was slow going.  At Bronze he needed to get the next [SupraType] [Perk].  Avatar was certain he could generate more than enough harmony without merging [Skills], and if he worked hard enough, he¡¯d even have plenty left over without worrying about going over cap.


    Following where he sensed Amber to be, John went into the room with chairs and sofas she called a lounge and saw her relaxing on the floor in a similar pose to when she first caught him looking at her chest in the Trial.  Her legs were crossed at the knee and one of her shoes dangled from her foot as she leaned back on her elbows.


    Amber was reading a book by having some sort of device project words onto a wall.  The hem of her robe had ridden up high and she embarrassingly pulled it down to cover herself.  Demons had no real genitals, so there was nothing to see or cover.


    John thought it was strange to see a demon sit so femininely.  Even without real genitals, all demons were considered male and constantly shed something like sperm from their skin called spermatia.  Nether would cause some of the spermatia to grow into demons, so demons considered the Nether their mother, though it was just a type of energy.


    ¡°Would you like to spar,¡± asked John.


    ¡°Um, could you ask me again a little later.  I gotta finish this.  I can¡¯t stop now.¡±


    John held in a sigh.  Amber did little actual training.  They both agreed to only advance together.  In case John had the same issues with Bronze he had when he ascended to Copper, they agreed he would ascend to Bronze before Amber ranked up to mid-low Bronze to watch over him.  They should still return to Earth at the exact same moment, regardless.


    John thought he could die of old age before he ascended to Bronze at the rate Amber was training.  She mostly wanted to talk, read, and relax.


    Leaving the house, John went to the targets around back.  He was getting decent with blade energy attacks.  He had practiced with it consistently every day since he arrived.  Avatar said she didn¡¯t track it as a separate [Skill] since it wasn¡¯t.  It was considered part of and could improve his sword [Skill], and that would grant him some harmony, but getting better with blade energy on its own did nothing for her to track.


    John found that odd since getting good with blade energy required devotion and much practice.  How it worked benefited him though, since if it was a separate [Skill] he would only be able to increase it by five points as the NCS measured it.  This gave him a way to advance his Grandmaster sword [Skill] without combat.


    Every time John tried to attack with blade energy, he succeeded.  It just took him some time to build it up and get it ready to be dragged and released.  He planned on getting good enough to use it with every attack, and attack at his usual speed, or close to it.


    Thrusting with a sword didn¡¯t work with blade energy.  John thought it used a different kind of energy and required a different process to gather and release.  He planned on figuring that out too.  He had the time.  He already maxed out increases with all the important lower level [Skills] he had been working on weeks ago.


    John had many other lower level [Skills] he could increase, including very old ones, and others he never used.  He only cared about a few new ones, such as [Self-Propelled Projectile Weapons] and [Essence-Infused Projectile Weapons].  Most of the others weren¡¯t worth even tracking, such as the ones Amber told him to look into, including [Terran Social Media] and [Portable Computer Devices].


    [Terran Social Media] covered the various ways Amber shared her illicit pictures with strange men she did not know, and the various tactics employed to get more and more strange men to look at them.  [Portable Computer Devices], also known as phones or smartphones on Earth, was the medium allowing Amber to show her illicit pictures to strange men.  At least that¡¯s how John saw the two [Skills].


    For [Portable Computer Devices], Avatar taught John the use of many devices used on Tech 1 worlds which were fueled by essence and worked very differently than the phones of Earth did, though she still taught him a little of the use of Earth phones and tablets.


    If John spent a thousand years in the pocket plane, he didn¡¯t believe he would be able to increase his higher level [Skills] five points each.  He¡¯d need actual combat to increase those [Skills] in any significant manner.  In the past, even with heavy combat, he had been happy when one of those [Skills] increased by point-zero-one of a point.


    Once a [Skill] increased 5 points, it became painful to even think about.  The pain was worse for some [Skills] and not so bad for others.  For instance, [Essence Manipulation] and [Blood Manipulation] controlled a lot of other [Skills], and it only hurt a little to work on [Skills] that fell under those two.  For most [Skills], the pain gave such a headache it was impossible to think.


    What John spent most of his time on was his concepts and combining them into new spells to replace his old ones.  He wanted to be proficient in all his concepts, as Muzaran could do much with just one of them, and he knew he needed to get much better at utilizing all his own correctly.  Avatar started to name the spells, as she had a great dislike for how he named things.


    John had resolved not to check his summary until after he ascended, and he didn¡¯t plan on doing so for a long while.  And no one knows what Amber¡¯s plans are.  I would bet both Fireblade and Defiance Amber doesn¡¯t even know herself.  Not even the mighty Tree of Life was capable of healing the mind of women from the ancient madness that infects most of them, thought John.


    One interesting fact John found out about Amber when he needed a sparring partner was that she was adept with many weapons.  He remembered her saying she wasn¡¯t good at catching during the Tribulation.  He doubted that was true.  She was excellent at throwing and great with the sling, bow, staff, spear, and long-spear.  She was more than decent with other polearms, the sword, axe, and flail.


    One benefit John had seen from Amber spending her time in demon form was she was less likely to pretend she wasn¡¯t good at something or act overly immaturely.  It was apparent her form changed her thinking.  She even called humans magals.


    Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    A thought hit John like a bolt of lightning.  Great gods below, we do have a time limit!  And it is extremely short!


    John rushed back into the house and the lounge and yelled out, ¡°Amber, don¡¯t you have to kill a human every year?  You haven¡¯t killed any since you got your demon form!  How long ago was that?¡±


    Amber said, ¡°Holy Jesus!  You almost gave me a heart attack.  Relax, buddy.  I killed a magal right before¡­remember when you jumped into the yellow table-portal thing to save Stretch?  Lilly was freaking out bad after and she made a lot of¡­real awful threats.


    ¡°Well, some magals tried to, um, like, detain her or something and¡­and I turned into a bear and¡­and I didn¡¯t mean to, but I accidentally killed one of the magals.  I barely even touched him.  It was an accident.¡±


    John said, ¡°Oh.  Okay.  Well, we still have a time limit.  A year.¡±


    Without even looking up, Amber replied, ¡°A universal standard year.  So, like, one year and five months.  Um, and, like, a week, too, I think.  I just checked.  Yeah, and a week.  I¡¯m sorry.  I thought I already told you.  We came up with this timeline on our first day here.  Remember?  We¡¯re leaving a little early so I can¡­uh, so I can have a little bit of a buffer to kill another magal.¡±


    John just looked at Amber.  ¡°Do you want to kill magals now, Amber?  Do you feel urges?¡±


    Amber laughed.  ¡°No!  Come on, buddy.  It¡¯s still me in here.  Just¡­different.  But only a little.  I feel real bad about accidentally killing that guy.  Not so much now, but if I changed to human, I know I¡¯d still feel real bad and¡­stuff.  This form is great for avoiding guilt and thinking about¡­other stuff.  Gross stuff.  Yuck!  Disgusting!  Rguga!  That¡¯s the closest to a gagging noise I can make as a demon.¡±


    ¡°Okay.  Are you almost done reading?¡±


    Amber said, ¡°Um, not really.  Sorry, buddy.  This book is crazy!  You should read it.¡±


    John replied, ¡°Maybe,¡± knowing he¡¯d never read that book or any other.  Avatar made him read and study during training.  That was all the reading he could handle.  He walked back outside to continue practicing with blade energy.  I might not make it a year and a half with her, he thought as he flung blade energy at a target.


    <hr><hr>


    The energy of the pocket plane was thick and made energy gathering much faster.  There was no need for Amber to use crystals to gather energy at a good rate.   They¡¯d been there for many months, and his foundation had been rock-solid for a while.


    John worked with Avatar on when to stop improving new [Skills] so he¡¯d be able to improve the [Skills] he found important after he ranked up to peak Copper without wasting harmony.  He had plenty he could work on and improve other than harmony-generating [Skills], such as blade energy and working out his new [Ultimate].  And getting new [Skills] to 5 barely generated harmony, though getting one from 6 to 7 and going from Neophyte to Novice Mastery generated a noticeable amount.


    John still exercised for two hours every day, though he was more certain than ever it did nothing and was just a waste of time.


    Since Amber had a tendency to annoy John a great deal while she was a demon, he spent a good amount of time with Avatar.  There were a lot of things he didn¡¯t know about, or ignored, and he tried to correct that.


    John had long ago maxed out the amount of energy the NCS could store for him as a credit to use for [Buffs].  Many of the [Buffs] he could purchase as temporary enhancements would¡¯ve been a great help in many of his previous battles.  He had to remember to utilize them.


    John wanted to confer with Sublime Sunshine before he activated any new NCU upgrades, but there were some he thought were necessary.  Since he no longer created shen, had so much NCU energy cost discount, and gathered energy so quickly, he saw no good reason not to get upgrades.  The ten percent penalty to his NCU energy cost discount would be removed when he ascended to Bronze too.


    John put a lot of thought into his fight with the g¡¯athu.  He also spoke to Amber about it many times.  He was able to handle the ones not wearing their strange tech much more easily, and the g¡¯athu didn¡¯t have enough of the tech to kit out the majority.  Not yet at least.


    The plan was to first somehow escape from the cage that held John and Amber.  With any luck, ascending would help there somehow.  They would then make a great slaughter of the Wood, Copper, Bronze, and the two Silvers that remained at the base producing tech.  Hopefully that would bring the Gold and other g¡¯athu slaughtering humans back.


    Amber, while invisible, would use her mighty glyph to kill the Gold.  Then John and Amber would kill the rest of the g¡¯athu.  They were sure the large portal on the platform led to another base, maybe even both other bases.


    John was able to shrug off most of the mind control of the Gold.  It couldn¡¯t control his mind, but fighting against it caused him enough pain and distraction that he couldn¡¯t function through it, and it made him an easy target and easy to capture.  He wanted to be able to fight through it or shrug it off completely.


    Without the tech the g¡¯athu wore, John knew he could make short work of all but the Gold, and the Gold wouldn¡¯t be too much of an issue if he could shrug off the mind control.  He still feared the g¡¯athu more than he should but having killed so many of them made him feel less fearful.


    The tech was the issue.  Not the only issue, as John knew he wouldn¡¯t have been able to kill nearly as many g¡¯athu if it wasn¡¯t for Amber and his mighty plasma ring.  And the pocket plane didn¡¯t allow him to practice [Unbind Defense] enough to change that.  Hubaba, a Gold and the best cultivator he knew at unbinding and protecting against unbinds, couldn¡¯t get a spell off while facing just the Bronze g¡¯athu, and neither was he able to unbind the spells of the Bronze.


    The NCU upgrades John could purchase for additional protection against the Gold¡¯s mind control weren¡¯t all that expensive, but he got a little impulsive and got three more upgrades, including one that was very expensive.  He thought he should be fine.  He was able to gather energy and convert it to essence much faster than anyone else he knew of.  His meditation technique was at Legendary Mastery level, and powerful.


    [Inexorable], 8% passive, improve resistance to mental influence.


    [Refractory], 4% passive, slightly improve the ability of [Inexorable] to resist mental influence.


    [Nano Support C], 4% passive, [Nano Assistance] also slightly improves ability to defend against unbinds.


    [Nano Support D], 4% passive, [Nano Assistance] also slightly improves ability to unbind manifestations.


    [Lock and Key], 20% passive, improve ability to defend against unbinds and unbind manifestations.


    With all those unlocked, John¡¯s NCU energy cost went from twenty-four percent way up to sixty-four percent.  His current NCU energy cost reduction was about forty-eight percent.  After he ascended to Bronze and the penalty was removed that would change to fifty-eight percent, leaving the actual NCU energy cost applied to him to be about twenty-seven percent.  He didn¡¯t think that was too much of a cost.  He wanted to unlock more upgrades but forced himself not to.


    With the NCU upgrades purchased, not wanting to waste energy, John spent and planned on spending all future energy credits towards unlocking NCU expansion slots.  The slots were extremely expensive to unlock, and it would take a very long time to unlock the remaining fifteen slots.  He would switch to having the energy saved as a credit for the purchase of a [Buff] shortly before ascending to Bronze.


    Not needing to extend his senses to find Amber, John walked back to the lounge.  He sniffed the air and made a disgusted face.  ¡°Amber, did you cultivate today?¡±


    Amber made an odd noise and sarcastically said, ¡°Yes, dad.¡±


    ¡°You stink horribly.  You must bathe immediately.  I can¡¯t take the smell.¡±


    The tension in the room rose and took on a hostile tone.  Amber got up violently.  ¡°You said you wouldn¡¯t abuse it!¡±  She rushed past John in her bulky demon form and stomped up the stairs.  She yelled down, ¡°I knew you would.  I knew you¡¯d abuse it.  You¡¯re such a jerk!  I can¡¯t believe I trusted you!¡±


    John was confused for a moment until he realized he had given her an order.  He knew her true name.  She had to obey his commands.


    John had always been so careful with what he said to Amber.  He just slipped up.  He felt horrible.  But not too horrible.  She needed a bath.  She always claimed demons didn¡¯t smell, but she did.  And she knew demons smelled.  Hubaba often smelled awful when they all lived together in the Trial.  They all smelled.  Well, Amber never did.  Before.


    Sensing that Amber changed back into human form, John decided to go apologize.  He could hear her crying as the bath filled.  He was glad she finally changed back into a human.  The longer she stayed as a demon, the more annoying she became.  She was ready to ascend to Bronze, but she was mostly wasting the wonderful gift they were granted.


    After climbing up to the third floor, before John could knock on the bathing-room door, Amber yelled out, ¡°Don¡¯t you dare come in here, you sick pervert!  You monster!  You promised!  I hate you so much!  I¡­¡±  Loud and dramatic sobs took over from her yelling.


    ¡°I¡¯m extremely sorry.  It was just a slip.  An honest mistake.  A moment of carelessness.  I messed up.  If I wanted to abuse the power I hold over you I certainly wouldn¡¯t on your hygiene as a demon.  I hope you realize that.¡±


    Amber replied with only loud sobs.


    ¡°Please allow me to make it up to you.  May I escort you to dinner later?  As a human.  Not me, you.  As a human, I mean.  I have a gift for you.  If you do allow me to escort you.¡±


    The sobs quieted down and John heard a sniffle.  ¡°Okay.  But I¡¯m still real mad so¡­so¡­you¡¯re still a jerk, you know?  It¡¯s going to take me a while to get ready so¡­and you have to wear something different than last time too.¡±

 Not a chapter. Quick Reference System Guide

    This is just a quick and dirty unprofessional system reference guide thrown together per request and is not a chapter.


    Level/Tier chart


    Skill Mastery


    Aspects and concept chart


    Stats


    LEVEL/TIER


    Including already known requirements, titles, and crystal color and value.


    <table width="860">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">Level</td>


    <td width="134">Tier</td>


    <td width="305">Requirements</td>


    <td width="229">Tree/Title</td>


    <td width="152">crystals, color, value</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">1</td>


    <td width="134">Low Wood</td>


    <td width="305">Clear low, middle, and upper cores.</td>


    <td width="229">Mortal Tree, title is tier</td>


    <td width="152">1 clear crystal</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">2</td>


    <td width="134">Mid-low Wood</td>


    <td width="305"> </td>


    <td width="229"> </td>


    <td width="152">2 clear crystals</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">3</td>


    <td width="134">Mid-high Wood</td>


    <td width="305"> </td>


    <td width="229"> </td>


    <td width="152">3 clear crystals</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">4</td>


    <td width="134">High Wood</td>


    <td width="305"> </td>


    <td width="229"> </td>


    <td width="152">4 clear crystals</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">5</td>


    <td width="134">Peak Wood</td>


    <td width="305"> </td>


    <td width="229"> </td>


    <td width="152">5 clear crystals</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">6</td>


    <td width="134">Copper</td>


    <td width="305">Clear channels, usually attain sight-Perk</td>


    <td width="229"> </td>


    <td width="152">Light yellow, 5 clears</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">11</td>


    <td width="134">Bronze</td>


    <td width="305">Body-Perk required for Silver. Many open first aspect naturally here.</td>


    <td width="229"> </td>


    <td width="152">Yellow, 15</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">16</td>


    <td width="134">Silver</td>


    <td width="305">Need an aspect for Gold. If not opened naturally, can use point. 1st aspect point.</td>


    <td width="229"> </td>


    <td width="152">Dark yellow, 150</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">21</td>


    <td width="134">Gold</td>


    <td width="305">Strengthen meridians, usually pick an aura perk</td>


    <td width="229"> </td>


    <td width="152">Light green, 1k</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">26</td>


    <td width="134">Platinum</td>


    <td width="305">Prepare soul to be refined and refined at peak. This or Diamond are the usual tiers cultivators pick Synergies.</td>


    <td width="229"> </td>


    <td width="152">Green, 5k</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">31</td>


    <td width="134">Diamond</td>


    <td width="305">Usually pick a domain perk, soul expands throughout tier. Get 2nd point to increase an aspect or open a new aspect</td>


    <td width="229">Technically Exalted, but only the pompous use that title within Mortal Tree</td>


    <td width="152">Dark green, 30k</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">36</td>


    <td width="134">Low Salt/Empty (depends on culture)</td>


    <td width="305">Soul expands and retracts every rank giving a perk, preparing for ascension off planet. 3rd and 4th aspect points</td>


    <td width="229">Same as for Diamond</td>


    <td width="152">Blue-green, 200k</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">40</td>


    <td width="134">Peak Salt/Empty</td>


    <td width="305">Ascend off planet</td>


    <td width="229"> </td>


    <td width="152">5 blue-green</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40"> </td>


    <td width="134"> </td>


    <td width="305"> </td>


    <td width="229"> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">41</td>


    <td width="134">Low Transcendent</td>


    <td width="305">Each tier has 5 ranks still. Must ascend off planet to achieve this rank.</td>


    <td width="229">Transcended/Exalted</td>


    <td width="152">1 Light blue</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">46</td>


    <td width="134">Mid-low Transcendent</td>


    <td width="305"> </td>


    <td width="229">Exalted</td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">51</td>


    <td width="134">Mid Transcendent</td>


    <td width="305">Need high-concept to ascend</td>


    <td width="229">Exalted</td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">56</td>


    <td width="134">Mid-high Transcendent</td>


    <td width="305">must have high-concept</td>


    <td width="229">Exalted</td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">61</td>


    <td width="134">High Transcendent</td>


    <td width="305"> </td>


    <td width="229">Exalted</td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">66</td>


    <td width="134">Peak Transcendent, 1st rank</td>


    <td width="305"> </td>


    <td width="229">Magnus, but looks silly using,</td>


    <td>1 bark blue</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">70</td>


    <td width="134">Peak Transcendent, 5th rank</td>


    <td width="305">Must travel between galaxies to ascend</td>


    <td width="229">Magnus, but looks silly using,</td>


    <td width="152">5 dark blue</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40"> </td>


    <td width="134"> </td>


    <td width="305"> </td>


    <td width="229"> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">71</td>


    <td width="134">Low Celestial</td>


    <td width="305"> </td>


    <td width="229">Celestial/Magnus</td>


    <td>Light purple</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">76</td>


    <td width="134">Mid-low Celestial</td>


    <td width="305">Need 2nd high-concept to ascend</td>


    <td width="229">Magnus</td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">81</td>


    <td width="134">Mid Celestial</td>


    <td width="305">must have 2 high-concepts</td>


    <td width="229">Magnus</td>


    <td width="152"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">100</td>


    <td width="134">Peak Celestial, 5th rank</td>


    <td width="305">Need peak-concept to ascend, must travel between universes to ascend</td>


    <td width="229">Sublime, but look silly using.</td>


    <td width="152">5 dark purple</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40"> </td>


    <td width="134"> </td>


    <td width="305"> </td>


    <td width="229"> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">101</td>


    <td width="134">Low Divine</td>


    <td width="305">must have peak-concept</td>


    <td width="229">Divine/Sublime</td>


    <td width="152">light red</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">116</td>


    <td width="134">Mid-high Divine</td>


    <td width="305">Need 3rd high-concept to ascend</td>


    <td width="229">Sublime</td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">121</td>


    <td width="134">High Divine</td>


    <td width="305">must have 3rd high-concept</td>


    <td width="229">Sublime</td>


    <td width="152"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">130</td>


    <td width="134">Peak Divine, 5th rank</td>


    <td width="305">Must travel between realities to ascend</td>


    <td width="229">Sublime</td>


    <td width="152">5 dark red</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40"> </td>


    <td width="134"> </td>


    <td width="305"> </td>


    <td width="229"> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">131</td>


    <td width="134">Low Heavenly</td>


    <td width="305"> </td>


    <td width="229">Heavenly/Eternal</td>


    <td width="152">Light orange</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">146</td>


    <td width="134">Mid-high Heavenly</td>


    <td width="305">Need 4th high-concept and 2nd peak concept to ascend</td>


    <td width="229">Eternal</td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">151</td>


    <td width="134">High Heavenly</td>


    <td width="305">must have 2nd peak concept, need eternal-concept ascend</td>


    <td width="229">Eternal</td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">156</td>


    <td width="134">Peak Heavenly, 1st rank</td>


    <td width="305">must have eternal-concept</td>


    <td width="229">Eternal</td>


    <td width="152">dark orange</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">160</td>


    <td width="134">Peak Heavenly, 5th rank</td>


    <td width="305">must have eternal-concept</td>


    <td width="229">Eternal</td>


    <td width="152">5 dark orange</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="40">161+</td>


    <td width="134">Apex Heavenly</td>


    <td width="305">No rank limit, can keep ranking up eternally</td>


    <td width="229">Eternal or Apex. Most people have never seen even a Magnus and rarely see Transcendents, so consider all Eternals just Eternals.</td>


    <td width="152">bright white, number depends on rank past</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    SKILL MASTERY


    Increasing in skill level increases harmony. Harmony is used to fuel rituals to attain perks.  A larger amount of harmony is generated at new Mastery levels (i.e. going from Adept to Master Mastery), and the higher levels between Mastery levels (i.e. less is generated going from 8 to 9 than 81 to 82).


    Harmony is generated in and stored around the thalamus part of the brain for humans.  There is a natural capacity of harmony that can be stored, and this capacity grows with ascendency up the tiers as well as skill gain.  The higher the Mastery and number of skills at higher Mastery will increase harmony capacity.


    The NCS cannot measure harmony on its own.  The user has to check.  The NCS can make estimates by measuring brain activity and can guess at amount of harmony gained, but it¡¯s hard to measure accurately.


    For instance, as an easy to visualize example (hopefully), someone has been doing Swedish massages as a fulltime profession for thirty years.  The NCS measures this at Master level Mastery, 78.  This masseuse knows nothing about Thai, shiatsu, deep tissue, hot stone, aromatherapy, or sports massages.


    This person could probably learn another type of massage much faster than someone with no massage training and experience at all.  Let¡¯s say they learn deep tissue massage.  There¡¯s some overlapping knowledge, so the second skill the NCS tracks as [Deep Tissue Massage] quickly goes from Neophyte up to level 30, the cusp of Apprentice to Journeyman Mastery.


    Stolen novel; please report.


    But since there was overlapping knowledge with another skill, less harmony was generated getting [Deep Tissue Massage] from 1 to 30 than when the masseuse first raised [Swedish Massage] from 1 to 30.  And less will be generated when [Deep Tissue Massage] rolls over from Apprentice to Journeyman.


    If this masseuse then picks up [Sports Massage] too, getting that up to Journeyman would generate even less harmony because there would be even more overlapping knowledge.


    The biggest skill and harmony gains come from new knowledge and new skills hitting new mastery levels and combining or merging skills (i.e. John¡¯s [Mixed Navigation] skill saw such a large increase after he left the NetherRealm due to having to navigate through a strange new reality working off of different rules and requiring new knowledge, but his knowledge of navigation would help him gain this knowledge faster, and since [Mixed Navigation] was already a mixed skill, no new skill was made).


    <table width="267">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="116">Skill Level</td>


    <td width="151">Mastery Level</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="116">1 to 6</td>


    <td width="151">Neophyte</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="116">7 to 15</td>


    <td width="151">Novice</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="116">16 to 30</td>


    <td width="151">Apprentice</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="116">31 to 40</td>


    <td width="151">Journeyman</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="116">41 to 60</td>


    <td width="151">Expert</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="116">61 to 75</td>


    <td width="151">Adept</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="116">76 to 90</td>


    <td width="151">Master</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="116">91 to 95</td>


    <td width="151">Grandmaster</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="116">96 to 99</td>


    <td width="151">Legendary</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="116">100</td>


    <td width="151">True Master (Impossible to achieve)</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    ASPECTS


    Aspects have an affinity rating and three tiers of minor, average, or major.


    <table width="381">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="381">8 Aspects of either minor, average, major</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="381">2 low-concepts with major aspects merge into high-concept</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="381">2 high-concepts merge into peak-concept.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="381">2 peak-concepts merge into eternal-concept.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="381"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="381">Affinity, aspect strength, [Min. Power] [Stat], and skill level/mastery determine min and max damage, range, and other factors of manifestation</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    This chart is just a quick guideline of what concepts fit the most into what aspect. Both eastern and western views of elements were attempted to be included. Most listed concepts are more esoteric than useful as I just use this as a reference myself.


    <table width="758">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2" width="199">Cardinal aspects are in yellow font</td>


    <td width="72"> </td>


    <td width="92"> </td>


    <td width="127"> </td>


    <td width="89"> </td>


    <td width="81"> </td>


    <td width="98"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>1st order concepts</td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td>2nd order concepts</td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Green</td>


    <td>Yellow</td>


    <td>Blue</td>


    <td>Red</td>


    <td>Black</td>


    <td>White</td>


    <td>Purple</td>


    <td>Orange</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>earth</td>


    <td>air</td>


    <td>water</td>


    <td>fire</td>


    <td>dark</td>


    <td>light</td>


    <td>order</td>


    <td>chaos</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>solid</td>


    <td>gas</td>


    <td>liquid</td>


    <td>plasma</td>


    <td>complex</td>


    <td>simple</td>


    <td>male</td>


    <td>female</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>still</td>


    <td>move</td>


    <td>add</td>


    <td>remove</td>


    <td>old</td>


    <td>young</td>


    <td>law</td>


    <td>lawlessness</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>hate</td>


    <td>liberty</td>


    <td>repose</td>


    <td>death</td>


    <td>quantum</td>


    <td>pure</td>


    <td>civilized</td>


    <td>wild</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>repulsive</td>


    <td>change</td>


    <td>stagnate</td>


    <td>love</td>


    <td>evil</td>


    <td>good</td>


    <td>silence</td>


    <td>noise</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>hard</td>


    <td>thinking</td>


    <td>soft</td>


    <td>desire</td>


    <td>knowledge</td>


    <td>inexperience</td>


    <td>harmony</td>


    <td>disharmony</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>possessive</td>


    <td>profound</td>


    <td>kind</td>


    <td>unpredictable</td>


    <td>bonds</td>


    <td>detachment</td>


    <td>authority</td>


    <td>independence</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>certainty</td>


    <td>dreams</td>


    <td>sex</td>


    <td>emotional</td>


    <td>connect</td>


    <td>separate</td>


    <td>rules</td>


    <td>liberties</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>riches</td>


    <td>shame</td>


    <td>passion</td>


    <td>mercurial</td>


    <td>lies</td>


    <td>truth</td>


    <td>protection</td>


    <td>peril</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>instinct</td>


    <td>fear</td>


    <td>doubt</td>


    <td>blindness</td>


    <td>sharp</td>


    <td>soft</td>


    <td>tradition</td>


    <td>defiance</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>melancholy</td>


    <td>attraction</td>


    <td>slow</td>


    <td>take</td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td>status quo</td>


    <td>change</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td>leadership</td>


    <td>free will</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>life</td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td>death</td>


    <td>all</td>


    <td>nothing</td>


    <td>collectivism</td>


    <td>individualism</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td>conformity</td>


    <td>creativity</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td>sanity</td>


    <td>madness</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>BEST AT</td>


    <td>BEST AT</td>


    <td>BEST AT</td>


    <td>BEST AT</td>


    <td>BEST AT</td>


    <td>BEST AT</td>


    <td>BEST AT</td>


    <td>BEST AT</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Healing</td>


    <td>Moving</td>


    <td>Liquids</td>


    <td>Damage</td>


    <td>Knowing</td>


    <td>Purifying</td>


    <td>Control</td>


    <td>Changing</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Creating</td>


    <td>Mind</td>


    <td>Adding</td>


    <td>Removing</td>


    <td>Connecting</td>


    <td>Peace</td>


    <td>Protection</td>


    <td>Damage</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>GOOD AT</td>


    <td>GOOD AT</td>


    <td>GOOD AT</td>


    <td>GOOD AT</td>


    <td>GOOD AT</td>


    <td>GOOD AT</td>


    <td>GOOD AT</td>


    <td>GOOD AT</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Holding</td>


    <td>Freeing</td>


    <td>Slowing</td>


    <td>Taking</td>


    <td>Creating</td>


    <td>Healing</td>


    <td>Buffing</td>


    <td>Freeing</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Protection</td>


    <td>Converting</td>


    <td>Freezing</td>


    <td>Heating</td>


    <td>Damage</td>


    <td>Separating</td>


    <td>Holding</td>


    <td>Creating</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>BAD AT</td>


    <td>BAD AT</td>


    <td>BAD AT</td>


    <td>BAD AT</td>


    <td>BAD AT</td>


    <td>BAD AT</td>


    <td>BAD AT</td>


    <td>BAD AT</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Damage</td>


    <td>Protection</td>


    <td>Damage</td>


    <td>Healing</td>


    <td>Healing</td>


    <td>Damage</td>


    <td>Removing</td>


    <td>Healing</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Moving</td>


    <td>Connecting</td>


    <td>Protection</td>


    <td>Creating</td>


    <td>Separating</td>


    <td>Creating</td>


    <td>Damage</td>


    <td>Protection</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    STATS


    Copied/pasted and slightly modified from B1 Ch 6


    [Strength], which measures the potency of and capacity to apply and resist physical force.


    [Swiftness] is an average measurement of general SRAQ (Speed, Reaction, Agility, Quickness), including rate of movement, reaction time, acceleration, deceleration, rapid changing of directions, and rapid changing of body position.


    [Conditioning] measures stamina, endurance, fitness, constitution, general health, and a body¡¯s ability to resist, fight off, or adapt to ailments, sickness, and foreign elements in the body.


    [Minimum Power] increases the effectiveness of manifestations in all ways. Though not a matter, magical energy takes on aspects of the four states after refinement. Once a person can convert magical energy to magical essence, the magical essence starts off naturally more gaseous in early Mortal tiers. Condensing magical essence into a thicker, more liquid form usually increases potency until early second Tree.


    The quality of magical essence is dependent on numerous factors, including, but not limited to, refining techniques, tier increases, affinities, aspects, and sources. Since the dantian can be filled with different qualities of magical energy, and different qualities of refined magical essence, the number listed is only the minimum possible power, and not the current or maximum possible power of magical energy or magical essence in a dantian.


    [Capacity] measures the ability of a lower dantian to store magical energy and magical essence, and increases naturally by compression of the dantian, also called ranking up, or leveling up, as well as during tier advancement, and required advancement events, e.g., opening dantians.


    [Runes], which measures the number of runes for manifestations a soul can safely hold. A rune is a specially designed pattern used to force magical essence to manifest in specific ways. Runes are not necessary to create manifestations, but they certainly are the most reliable, fastest, and, most definitely the safest way to ensure magical energy and magical essence manifest with the desired result. Runes can be grouped together to change or enhance the effects of manifestations, the most advanced of these rune groupings are called glyphs.


    [Physical Fortification], [Elemental Fortification], and [Mental Fortification] represent how fortified a body is against and its capacity to lessen, resist, or nullify the effects of what are generally categorized as physical, elemental, and mental damage or attacks.

 Not a chapter. NCUs and Perks book 1, 2, and 3 (so far), and common Peerless words

    NCS, NCUs, and NCU expansions.


    Perks


    NCS, NCUs, and NCU EXPANSIONS


    The NCS (Nano Control System) can be upgraded in various ways. Two ways are by NCUs (Nano Control Units) which dedicate nanites to a specific task. The main way of acquiring NCU upgrades is through the NCS. These System NCUs cost a percentage of energy gathered and slow down energy gathering and self-cultivation. The NCS itself requires an energy cost of 6% gathered energy just to have it active.


    The second way is to buy (for crystals from a crafter or other source external to the NCS) NCU expansions for expansion slots. These NCUs provide their service for free as long as they remain slotted. Slots are opened by applying energy credit and have a subsequently and progressively more expensive cost to open additional slots. Tech 1s NCS have maximum of 4 expansion slots. Tech 2s have 8. Tech 3s have 12. Tech 4s have 16. Tech 5s have a yet unknown amount.


    <table style="border-collapse: collapse" border="0" width="64" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="64" height="20">System NCUs acquired in book 1</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td height="20">[Nano Assistance], 4% passive, slightly improve power and rune manifestation activation speed</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td height="20">[Emergency Heal], 1% passive, no more than 25% of current total magical energy or magical essence in lower dantian on injury</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td height="20">[Theta Waves], 5% passive, passive healing to body and spirit, removes some impurities over time</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td height="20">[Heal Delta A], 4% passive, increase tickrate of [Theta Waves]</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td height="20">[Heal Delta B], 4% passive, increase amount healed each tick of [Theta Waves]</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table style="border-collapse: collapse" border="0" width="64" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="64" height="20">System NCUs acquired in book 2</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td height="20">[Inexorable], 8% passive, improve resistance to mental influence</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td height="20">[Refractory], 4% passive, slightly improve the ability of [Inexorable] to resist mental influence</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td height="20">[Nano Support C], 4% passive, [Nano Assistance] also slightly improves ability to defend against unbinds</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td height="20">[Nano Support D], 4% passive, [Nano Assistance] also slightly improves ability to unbind manifestations</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td height="20">[Lock and Key], 20% passive, improve ability to defend against unbinds and unbind manifestations</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table width="64">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="64">System NCUs acquired in book 3</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Scuta Mater], 6% passive, shield the meninges (dura mater, arachnoid mater, pia mater) with nanites modifying rhythm and signal of external transmission.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Encase], 5% passive, improve [Scuta Mater] by adding a manifestation protection component.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Mata Support A], 4% passive, [Scuta Mater] also slightly improves ability to defend against scramblers and reduce the effect electromagnetic radiation can have on mental behavior when transmitting at common frequencies.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Reactive], 12% passive, enhance reflex, reaction, and response time by 25%.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Swiftness], 16% passive, increase efficiency of the Swiftness Stat by 5%.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Cooldown Reduction] 20% passive, reduce all NCU related cooldowns by 25%.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Upgrade to existing NCU [Emergency Heal], 4% passive, no more than 40% of current total essence in core applied to qualifying injury. To see scaling formula per tier and Minimum Power Stat focus here.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Record 1], 3% passive, user can record and store up to 1.09 hours (USACS) of video.</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <hr>


    <table width="64">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="64">NCU expansions acquired in book 2</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Theta Enhancement ¨C T1C]. Improve passive healing of [Theta Waves] and adds a minor soul healing component, improve tickrate of [Heal Delta A], and improve healing per tick of [Heal Delta B]</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table width="64">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="64">NCU expansions acquired in book 3</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Auto-Reflect ¨C T1C]. On detection of incoming damaging manifestation above a certain threshold, a shield will generate reflecting all or some of the manifestation towards the area of origination. To see scaling formula per tier and Minimum Power Stat focus here. NCU was designed for user¡¯s physiology. NCU is graded as T1C+ for user. Drastic changes to user physiology could lower grading to T1C.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Auto-Shield ¨C T1C]. On detection of incoming damaging manifestation above a certain threshold, an essence-shield will generate preventing all or some damage. Reflect-shield NCU detected (Auto-Reflect T1C). Essence-shield generates under reflect-shield and applies after. To see scaling formula per tier and Minimum Power Stat focus here.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[NCU Cooldown Reduction ¨C T1C]. Reduce all NCU related cooldowns by 10.4%.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Swiftness Efficiency ¨C T1C]. Increase efficiency of the Swiftness Stat by 2.04%.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Emergency Heal, Prefill ¨C T1C]. Up to 5.4% of converted essence stored in dedicated nanites and applied to qualifying injury. To see scaling formula per tier and Minimum Power Stat focus here.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Reactive ¨C T1C]. Enhance reflex, reaction, and response time by 10.4%.</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    PERKS


    Perks are gained from either rituals or automatically through ascension. Perks from rituals cost harmony (gained from increasing skills) and often have a material or component cost. Some perks are restricted by tier, but most aren¡¯t if the user has the mats, a and a high enough harmony capacity, and the harmony.


    <table width="64">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="64">Perks acquired in book 1</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Sight Perk] Orb of the Crimson Palace: Gain a controllable perspective and see into the spirit realm. Controllable perspective passively gathers energy on its own and provides minor healing to spirit and soul. Be warned, this perk changes many aspects of how beta-types process images. Additional perk required to communicate effectively with spirits.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Dynamic: Minor increase of soft caps.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Physical: Average increase to the soft caps of Strength, Swiftness, Conditioning stats.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Potent: Average increase to the soft caps of Min. Power, Capacity, and Runes stats.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Protected: Average increase to the soft caps of Physical, Elemental, and Mental Fortification stats.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Strong: Major increase of soft cap of the Strength stat.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Fast: Major increase to the soft cap of the Swiftness stat.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Healthy: Major increase to the soft cap of the Conditioning stat.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Powerful: Major increase to the soft cap of the Min. Power stat.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Expansive: Major increase to the soft cap of the Capacity stat.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Soulful: Major increase to the soft cap of the Runes stat.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Harden: Major increase to the soft cap of the Physical Fortitude stat.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Resistant: Major increase to the soft cap of the Elemental Fortitude stat.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Resilient: Major increase to the soft cap of the Mental Fortitude stat.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Quick Thinking*: Somewhat improves neurotransmission and synaptic plasticity dynamically in response to incoming information.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Good Genes*: Review of gene pleiotropy, developmental pleiotropy, and selectional pleiotropy for fitness. Decreases phenotypic independence, allowing for a greater chance of mutations resulting in an increase in fitness.</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table width="64">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="64">Perks acquired in book 2</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Leech Body of the Morning''s Glory: Body formation that did too much to add here. See Book 2 chapter 14.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Regeneration: You guessed it right.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Mutating: Mutating isn¡¯t the same as mutated.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Bronze: Increase each stat by 1 each and makes undisclosed changes to the body.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Fibrilized*: Review and enhancement of skeletal, smooth, and cardiac muscle for effectiveness and durability. All fibrils and myofibrils are fortified along with improvements to lactate and NAD processing and slow and fast twitch fibers. Or, alternatively stated as - improved his muscular system in various ways, such as increasing the amount and functionality of slow and fast-twitch fibers, strengthening tendons, improving heart function, and improving the make-up of fibrils.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Lightweight: somehow reduced his body mass, making him lighter. He assumed it was listed under the stealth-related [Perks] because it made his steps softer, tracks harder to read, and masked heat signatures. There was a note that said it also made flight easier. How the [Perk] made changes to the body, for whatever reason, also increased soft caps. Not by a ton, but every increase counted.</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    <table width="64">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="64">Perks acquired in book 3</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Cloak Essence:  Hides essence from most essence-sight perks.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Stalwart Vessel: The [Perk] usually increased all efficiencies, but John only received increases to [Physical] and [Elemental Fortification] of 4% and 5% respectively.  Avatar told him his body was changed in many ways, and was less reliant on oxygen, and he was immune to many forms of pressure that would kill mundane humans outright, as well as other benefits.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Picture of Health:* It improved his cardiovascular, respiratory, endocrine, and lymphatic systems and increased his [Conditioning] by 6 and its efficiency by 6%.¡±</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Slowing Aura:  Create a large bubble around John that slowed anything that entered it, but not by much.  And the zone was only about a seven-foot diameter, with a circumference of about 22 feet.  That zone would extend outwards and the slowing effect would improve as he ascended</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Inner and Outer: Review and improve upon his integumentary and skeletal systems, increasing his [Conditioning], [Physical Fortification], and Elemental [Fortification] by 3, and the efficiencies of each respectively by 2%, 5%, and 3%.</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Touch of the Ancients: a minor and permanent connection to the ancient old one, Betrayal, that grow more powerful with rank up and ascension.  Some unknown effects.  Increases each [Stat] by level,  and provides % efficiency to all [Stats] equal to tier (i.e. 21 to all [Stats] at level 21, and 5% efficiency to all at tier 5, Gold).  </td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    COMMON PEERLESS WORDS


    Simplified translations


    Alia/Alii ¨C Child/adult matriarch caste. Alia originally meant daughter, and Alii wife. Like all these words, the Peerless believe they mean a lot more now and are untranslatable.


    Li/Oli ¨C Child/adult warrior caste. Oliua is a house''s lead Oli, like a majordomo


    Ele/Mele ¨C Child/adult intelligent caste. Meleua is a house''s lead Mele, also like a majordomo with very different duties.


    Alu ¨C Female


    Heiau ¨C Clan


    Kauwa ¨C House

 B2 Chapter 37 - Your skin and bones

    John had a lot of robes in his ring. He only had two fancier robes of a higher tier ¨C the same ones he stole from Garioch¡¯s armor stands. He wore one of those two all the time and wore the other set the last time he dined with Amber. He put on a lower set and wore some of the heavier armor he had in his ring, minus the helmet and gauntlets.


    It wasn¡¯t fully articulated armor and was easy for John to don himself, as the pieces were held together with a thick and sturdy material and required no padded cloth such as an arming doublet or gambeson to be worn under it. He just slid on the top and the bottom, connected both pieces, and then slid into sabaton-like comfortable boots that didn¡¯t need to be attached to anything. He also bathed and trimmed his beard.


    When John said he had a gift for Amber, he lied. So, he spent some time trying to figure out what he had to gift her with, and what gift she¡¯d find acceptable. He ruled out arms and armor and such. Amber didn¡¯t wear jewelry and wasn¡¯t excited at all when she looked through the jewelry in Garioch¡¯s ring. He knew women often got excited over nonsense such as flowers. He thought of collecting grass and somehow forming it in a nice arrangement but dismissed the idea immediately. I doubt even women would find grass as a suitable gift, no matter that flowers and grass are useless weeds.


    A great idea popped into John¡¯s head ¨C he could whittle her a small statue of her likeness. He just needed wood, but that requirement was harder to fulfill than it seemed. He thought the building and all items in it must have been made for beings on much higher Trees, as he couldn¡¯t destroy anything for a piece of wood. One of the legs of a sofa in the lounge was made of wood soft enough for him to cut through. The sofa had middle legs, and he removed the back one so it couldn¡¯t be seen.


    John struggled to whittle Amber¡¯s likeness since the wood was extraordinarily hard compared to any wood he had ever whittled, and he didn¡¯t possess the correct tools. He made do and finished. And still had a very long wait until Amber started her descent down the stairs.


    ¡°John! I¡¯m coming down,¡± yelled Amber.


    ¡°I know,¡± John yelled back.


    The sight of Amber took John¡¯s breath away. She managed to look even more beautiful than last time. ¡°You look¡­more than beautiful. I can¡¯t even find a word.¡±


    Amber smiled widely. She wore a tight black and very small dress with no straps and some sort of ruffled bow thing puffing around the chest area. She wore a different pair of black shoes with very high and pointed heels, exposed toes, but a thick and shiny cover for the top of the feet. Instead of wearing her hair down, it was done up in some sort of fancy type of buns around her horns. Her lips were peach colored, and it went well with her eyes, which had much darker and thicker lashes than usual. Her claws again matched her lips.


    When on the last few stairs, Amber stopped, and her smile went away. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, John. I know I¡¯ve been awful. You have no idea how much being a demon alters my mind. And it gets way worse over time. I know you didn¡¯t give me a command on purpose.¡± She smiled again and said, ¡°Thank you for this. This is just what I needed. Wow, you look good. Real nice. I like the armor. Not really my idea of formal, but I get it. And sorry I took so long. I had to alter this dress a ton to get it to fit right. Do you like it?¡±


    John thought her dress was far too revealing and even common nightwalkers would think it was too illicit to wear. Amber did look beautiful in it, so his reply was, ¡°You look beautiful in it. I like the lip color and nail color too. And how your hair is shaped. Again, there are no words.¡±


    Amber smiled brightly and when she finished her slow descent down the stairs, John removed his hand from behind his back and offered the small wooden statue to her. ¡°Oh! Is¡­this is me! Wow, this is¡­amazing!¡± For some reason Amber¡¯s face crinkled up and she started to cry.


    ¡°Did I do something wrong? I can find you a new gift if you dislike this one.¡±


    ¡°No. I love it. I really love it. It¡¯s just¡­I can¡¯t explain. Just¡­thank you. It¡¯s beautiful. It looks so much like me.¡±


    Amber and John had a wonderful time together and discussed many topics. Amber said she wouldn¡¯t stay as a demon for such long periods, and she promised to use her time in the pocket plane more wisely. They both agreed their initial plan to split the time in half for each tier had no real benefit, and she would ascend to Bronze, and he would rank up to peak Copper once they finished what Amber called their ¡®buddy-date.¡¯


    There was one more request by Amber. Some events she wanted John to play along with before she ascended, and he ranked up. After she switched the spatial ring he acquired from Muzaran to her left hand, she had him carry her through the front entrance of the building and set her down across the threshold.


    Then Amber had John silently watch as she cooked and cleaned for some time, and she would look up and smile at him often, a crazed sparkle in her eye. There was no real way for her to cook, so she pantomimed making a meal. The house they stayed in cleaned itself somehow, but Amber still smiled brightly as she danced around wiping down counters and cabinets. She then dragged a staff around she said at different points was a broom, a mop, and something called a vacuum.


    Once Amber was done pretending to cook and clean, they both sat on the same sofa. She had John put his arm around her shoulder and they pretended they were watching a movie at a theater.


    Amber spent most of the time smiling dazzlingly at John. He disliked the crazed look in her eye and hoped it was some leftover mental ailment from spending so long as a demon.


    John found the whole thing strange but thought it was a little enough thing to do for a friend. He enjoyed the feeling of Amber being so close. He probably enjoyed it too much and it made him feel both very excited and very guilty. He had a loving wife he would never betray, no matter how much he desired another woman.


    When that was done, Amber moved the ring back to her right hand, and they both went behind the building to the cultivation mats so she could ascend while John ranked up.


    The rank up went as usual for John and left him unconscious and his face bloody. He saw Thomas and Betrayal and was extremely thankful that the grotesque monster left him alone and didn¡¯t toy with him.


    When John awoke, he heard Amber crying on the third floor. He rushed up and announced himself from the landing. ¡°Oh, John. I¡¯m ugly again! It¡¯s awful. It''s even worse than it was before! It was all for nothing. I¡¯m a beast again. I ruined my life for no reason!¡±


    ¡°Can I enter,¡± John asked outside her bedroom door.


    ¡°No!¡±


    ¡°What happened? Was there a problem ascending? It feels like you¡¯re a Bronze now.¡±


    After more loud sobbing, Amber said, ¡°I ascended just fine. I got five bodies. Party-pooper says they¡¯re real good ones too. Three were formations and two refinements. But I¡¯m¡­hold on, I¡¯ll just show you. Let me switch to demon. I don¡¯t want you to see me, the real me, so ugly like this.¡±


    Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.


    A moment later Amber opened the door to the third-floor bedroom she usually slept in. Her demon form was taller than John now that she was a Bronze, as tall as the larger Bronze of the War Academy. Her demon eyes had a yellowish hue and the slit pupil of a snake. Her skin was the color of a sickly and blighted pine tree, and she was covered in something like large and grotesque scales.


    To John, the scales looked somewhat like the seed scales of a cedar cone. They were thick and plentiful and jammed closely together.


    Amber also had spikey ridges coming out of various parts of her body, not unlike those of Ridge-head, including on her own already horned-head. He moved behind her and saw even larger spiked ridges running up and down her spine and along her stubby tail. She looked far more intimidating and frightening than normal demons.


    The worst part, to John, if the changes to her demon form also applied to her human form, were the strange, thick, cone-like scales. She said her human form was ruined so he assumed the same changes applied to that form. He thought of telling her she was now a far more capable fighter in all her forms, but decided it was a bad idea. He was at a loss for what to tell her.


    Tapping his forehead, John entered his Mind¡¯s Eye. Avatar smiled and said, ¡°Congratulations on ranking up, John!¡±


    John asked, ¡°Avatar, Amber was saving her harmony to get her human and demon body [Perks], but I was wondering, now that she¡¯s Bronze, what does the next [Perk] in the¡­the chain thing to improve race do?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s called [Fibrilized]. It improves your muscular system in various ways. There¡¯s a review and enhancement of skeletal, smooth, and cardiac muscle for effectiveness and durability. All fibrils and myofibrils are fortified along with improvements to lactate and NAD processing and slow and fast twitch fibers.¡±


    John internally cursed. ¡°Is there a [Perk] that allows someone to control their appearance?¡±


    ¡°The most common ways to change appearance are manifestations and items. Tell me what your goal is and how you¡¯d like to change your appearance, and I can be more specific.¡±


    After explaining the situation, the two talked about various options for a long while.


    John exited his Mind¡¯s Eye and said to Amber, ¡°Within your Transmuter [Archetype] there are many spells that could change your human appearance. Not illusions. Real changes but would cost a lot of essence to keep up. And there¡¯s a [Perk] called [Suppress Body] too. It deactivates the changes to a body refinement or formation. It can be turned on and off with essence. Avatar isn¡¯t certain if it will work in all your forms or just one, or if it will deactivate all your bodies or just one of them. But there is hope.


    ¡°And I¡¯m sure you look fine as a human. You¡¯re very beautiful. Some scales and ridges won¡¯t change that,¡± lied John.


    ¡°Oh, John! I just¡­I found it. Party-pooper thinks it¡¯ll work. Do you have blood from a high tier magal? Or demon. Or anything. Any blood will work.¡±


    ¡°No, sorry.¡±


    ¡°Darn it all! I¡¯ll have to use my own. Mind if I mix some of yours in? I¡¯ll need the best crystal you have too. I¡¯ll also needta use the best item we have with the [Repress] rune. Meet me outside and we¡¯ll dump our rings. Yay!¡±


    John wished he had talked to Avatar about the requirements. He enjoyed looking at Amber in her human form, and he wanted her to stop being so distraught, but he didn¡¯t know fixing the issue would cost him such wealth.


    <hr><hr>


    John ranked up to peak Copper and Amber ascended to Bronze in the middle of their fourth month in the pocket plane as time was measured on Earth, leaving them with more than a year at their new levels. The [Suppress Body] [Perk] worked perfectly for Amber, and she was very happy about that.


    As an added benefit to gaining all her body [Perks], Amber believed the rules that governed her forms changed. It felt to her that the part of her curse that made men mindless animals when they saw her was gone.


    John couldn¡¯t feel a change, as he still desired her every bit as much as he did before, but it made some sort of sense, as no magic was strong enough to ever make a man desire her human form if it was covered in such grotesque scales and spiked ridges. Amber was certain the rule about carnal knowledge still applied.


    Amber still spent most of her time in demon form, only changing to human to sleep or when John wasn¡¯t around, or on the rare occasions they had a ¡®buddy-date.¡¯


    John quickly maxed out the allowed [Skill] increases for his new rank with the important [Skills] he could increase, and Amber claimed she did the same. The two sparred often, and Amber practiced with many of her forms, including her human form.


    John knew Amber had many ways she could kill him he couldn¡¯t defend against, such as using her powerful eye-laser glyph from invisibility. The first time he wore heavy armor when he sparred with her bear form, she applied more pressure than usual when biting his head and injured him greatly. She bit through the helmet like it was made of paper. If she applied even a little more pressure, he thought she may have crushed his skull.


    Prior to Amber becoming Bronze, every other time the two sparred John held back in the hope of building up her confidence and willingness to fight. After she became Bronze, he struggled even going all out. He didn¡¯t use his manifestations as he could¡¯ve, but in a straight up brawl against any form besides human, including the frog, he struggled.


    It annoyed John that Amber was so unwilling to tell him what bodies she got, or her new manifestations. She wouldn¡¯t even tell him what aspects she had. She claimed Party-pooper said she had to hold all her cards close to her chest, John knew too much about her already, and it was for everyone¡¯s safety and benefit. The only thing she did tell him was that she didn¡¯t get the body the frogs of Esau received called [Fluoropolymer Skin].


    John worked out some of what Amber received at Bronze on his own. For manifestations, she had a fear-roar that didn¡¯t work on him, an essence-shield, the ability to clone herself with an illusion she controlled, and she could spit acid. The frogs of Esau couldn¡¯t spit acid, but he guessed that came from either her frog or lizard form.


    Amber was far more resistant to most damage. John could feel into her, and if he wanted to, he would be able to kill her with a clot. He could also beat her with his [Drain Essence] spell. At least he thought he could. Of all the ways he could damage her during normal sparring, she was most susceptible to shadow damage.


    Though Amber was much slower at gathering energy than John, they both thought it was worth it for her to purchase NCUs that made her more resistance to mental influence. She could really tell the difference in energy gathering speed after the purchases, and that made John realize how lucky he was.


    Most days, after his two hours of exercise, John practiced with blade energy, spells, and mixing concepts together. He started thinking of blade energy as slashing energy, as it worked the same for an axe as a sword or even his own claws. He also figured out how to use what he considered piercing energy with a sword and spear and thrusting-type weapons, and blunt energy with maces and flails and even his own fists.


    No matter what John did, he couldn¡¯t get piercing energy to work with arrows and distant targets. The energy disbursed far short of the missile reaching the target, and the same was true for all projectiles after a certain distance.


    John could release blade energy quickly. He even practiced with a sword in each hand and could fling blade energy with each somewhat rapidly. He could even fling blade energy with his shield, Defiance.


    The only issue was the faster John flung blade energy, the less powerful it became, and the shorter the distance it traveled. When he did it as fast as he could, it didn¡¯t hurt the sturdy and scaled hide of Amber¡¯s bear form at all, or even his own leg he tested it on. He could only hurt Amber when he took the time to make the blade energy¡¯s release powerful, and that took too long to use effectively during battle.


    The new spells John made he thought were impressive, though he failed to create a reflect-type spell. When he had enough [Runes] and rune points he still planned on making a fire-based spray spell. His [Shadow Spray] included the ¡®battle¡¯ concept in a way that made it do more damage, but he wanted fire to billow forth from his hands, and ¡®shadow¡¯ infused with ¡®battle¡¯ was a poor substitute for fire.


    The year both flew quickly and crawled slowly by. The high points, to John, were the ¡®buddy-dates.¡¯ He even enjoyed the parts after, where Amber would pretend to cook and clean. They only physically touched while pretending to watch a movie at the theater the one time, and not since, as it felt like too much of a betrayal of his wife.


    John had removed all the legs from both the sofas north and south of their building to whittle gifts for Amber out of. He made twelve additional gifts from those legs, and a thirteenth he would gift her with before he ascended, made from the other middle-leg of their own sofa.


    Amber and John had their last ¡®buddy-date,¡¯ and he gifted her the fourteenth figurine. He was sad their time together was ending, but she still annoyed him in her demon form. And her human form too, but in her human form, he couldn¡¯t help but to desire her greatly. He never once looked at her with his orb-eye when they weren¡¯t on ¡®buddy-dates¡¯ where Amber explicitly told him she wanted to be seen. He would not breach the trust she put in him when she shared her true name.


    After their last ¡®buddy-date¡¯ ended, it was time for John to ascend to Bronze and face the g¡¯athu.

 B2 Chapter 38 - When I get feeling better when Im feeling no pain

    John sat with legs crossed, hands on thighs, and entered a light meditation. He pictured his dantian and pictured himself standing in front of it, as large as he could picture himself. He bent under his dantian and placed it fully on his shoulders and back, as the Titan Atlas was said to do with the heavens.


    With a mighty heave and a yell of effort, John lifted his dantian. He immediately felt something like an insect inside his lower belly go mad trying to claw its way out, and in the real world he felt his legs spasm.


    John continued to heave powerfully on the dantian until he heard cracking, like a large pane of glass under too much stress. The noise grew louder, and the sound of shattered glass reverberated throughout his insides and echoed back and forth. In the real world his legs spasmed mightily, and his body fell onto its side as his legs kicked out wildly, over, and over.


    John knew Amber was nearby and watching and would ignore everything she saw. He had to ignore everything as well, including the pain in his lower belly, which felt as if a volcano was exploding every time he heaved upwards again. His imaginary legs shook in effort, and he tapped into a primal part of his mind only meant to be let loose in dire straits, as when fighting a tiger, and thoughts of safety and tomorrow had to leave the mind, and the only care was killing the beast before being too injured to do so, before the body stopped but the mind didn¡¯t, and the tiger feasted on a living body, frozen, but still aware, what John now knew was called a body going into shock.


    The cracking noise increased, and John let out a mighty yell that echoed even over the noise of the shattering glass as he forced his dantian upwards, and upwards, smidge by smidge, until his legs fully extended, and the weight of all the heavens bore down upon his shoulders, and he felt his dantian being bathed in the strange energy called accretion-effusion which emanated from his self-center.


    In reality, John¡¯s uncontrollable legs kicked out madly, and the volcano in his belly erupted into new heights of pain and agony until his vision suddenly cracked, and then shattered. He was looking through many, many eyes, like how he assumed a fly saw through its thousand-thousand eyes.


    Then the world blurred by John, as it did when he entered his Mind¡¯s Eye, but it lasted far longer, and he traveled far further. He was somehow still in reality at the same time, his legs spasming out of control, and he also still held his dantian up as Atlas did the heavens, in three places all at once.


    Then all suddenly stilled, and John was looking directly at the humongous, indescribable monster named Betrayal. The monster spoke, and its words were like extraordinarily destructive and strange trumpets meant to quake the earth apart, heralding the end of days. ¡°MY CHILD, I RETURN SOME OF WHAT HAS BEEN LOST TO YOU.¡±


    John walked into Saint Mary of Bethlehem in London, a charitable institution that treated the sick and mad and was also used as a prison. Over time the asylum¡¯s name was shortened to Bedlam and people used the word to mean wildness or chaos or madness. He looked down and saw a letter in his hand sent to him by a Thomas Mallory.


    John knew the name well. It belonged to his kin and good friend, the man that took care of him for so long.


    Years ago, as John was robbing a monastery, he found a great and unexpected treasure ¨C the second person he had ever seen with a red soul, and the man was being held as a prisoner of that monastery for trying to rob it himself.


    The prisoner was Thomas Mallory, a landed knight and a robber baron. At the time there were many men knighted on only carpet considerations, but Thomas had seen plenty of battle. John freed the man and offered him the power. Thomas, of course, accepted, and the two became fast friends.


    John had no memories of receiving such a letter from Thomas or ever setting foot inside Saint Mary of Bethlehem. He watched the memory of his younger self entering the asylum and asking to see Thomas.


    Thomas had a very nice and comfortable room, as was his noble due. The man looked surprised to see John. Watching the memory, John was very surprised to see Thomas as an extremely old man, and an old man that still had a soul, dark with misdeeds and red as ever.


    Thomas said, ¡°You¡¯ve come. Thank God. Though I refused the first time, I¡¯m ready to accept your power now. It¡¯s Hell, you know? What you call the cold-dark. It¡¯s Hell. My soul is already damned to it. I¡¯m not a good man. I realized some time ago what the Church teaches about forgiveness and absolution is hogwash. The visions you showed me are the proof. And proof that God is real. So close to the end, I am filled with fear. I need more time. Time to wash away all these sins of mine.¡±


    John would¡¯ve bet all his wealth, bet his own life, Thomas accepted the power when it was first offered to him. He had no memory at all of seeing his friend locked up as an old man, though bits of recollection came back as he watched it, and he was certain the returned memory was the truth.


    That frightened John to his core, how he could be so certain of a false memory, how his mind could warp things and he could be certain something was true that was false.


    The scene changed and Thomas looked to be about thirty or so, as John had always known him to look. Even if he accepted the power as an old man, John assumed it would reverse his age a good deal.


    Thomas was wearing a priestly outfit as he always did. He held clothings out to John. ¡°You say I¡¯m as a son to you. Well, you are as a brother to me, and I love you. I would never play such a prank as you claim I am. You¡¯ll stand out if you don¡¯t wear this. This is how all modern men of your rank dress. I can¡¯t take you to the fencing school if you don¡¯t wear this.¡±


    John knocked the clothings from Thomas¡¯ hand and yelled, ¡°You¡¯re just like Ahn with these senseless pranks. If you won¡¯t bring me, I¡¯ll go on my own. And I¡¯ll hear nothing from you if I must kill anyone. I¡¯ve heard enough of your senseless prattle.¡±


    It hurt John to see himself so diminished and acting so boorishly. More scenes of Thomas caring for John played out with John getting worse and worse and Thomas tolerating it all.


    The scene changed again, and John held an ¨¦p¨¦e. Thomas stood in front of him, and Maria sat outside the fencing circle crying. John said, ¡°She isn¡¯t taking this seriously. She¡¯s useless. I just want someone competent to fence with.¡±


    Thomas said, ¡°Come now, brother. She¡¯s new to this, and you treat her too poorly. Times have changed. Guns have completely replaced the need for swordsmanship. And our sister is a nun. She¡¯s devoted to God and peace and will not take a life. Why force this on her?¡±


    John threw his sword at the wall and stormed out of the room while yelling, ¡°We¡¯re the only gods, you fool!¡±


    Again, John was ashamed to see himself act so base and low. A few additional memories of Thomas and Maria caring for him played out.


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    For some time now, John had considered Thomas and Maria to be false friends, and not true to him, not like his Lilly was. The same went for Amber until they both entered the pocket plane.


    John was glad to be proven wrong in all instances. Thomas was a true friend. As true of a friend as could ever be. He loved John even when John was lost to his own failing mind. The rare moments when John was lucid and could talk and interact, he knew his mind failing ruined many of those moments and made him bitter and angry and hard to deal with. Thomas never gave up and never abandoned him, tolerating him until the end. A true brother.


    The scene changed to one John remembered very well. He wondered why a memory he remembered so well was shown to him, as the previous memories were all ones that were lost to him.


    The memory John saw was of the first time he joined with his Lilitu and made her his wife. He tried joining with her the normal way, the way it was always done, but she said she wanted to look at him as he took her. It was the first time he ever looked a woman in the face during the act. Looking his new wife in the eyes as he entered her excited him very much, as did seeing her pleasure shown on her face throughout the act.


    This was a memory John often thought about. After they finished, he held his new wife and they looked at the stars, and he was happy. He knew he would no longer suffer through life alone. Lilly was so much better than Ahn. He could feel how much she cared for him, and her bloodlust was such a little thing compared to having a true companion. He would help cure her of her bloodlust.


    Lilly was so beautiful ¨C the most beautiful woman John had ever seen. It was like she exuded the promise of pleasure, and every man that laid eyes upon her desired her more than anything else. And she was his wife, she was his, and they would spend eternity together.


    John had absolutely no memory of what he saw next. As he was in the throes of pleasure holding himself up over his wife, Lilly¡¯s eyes sparkled with the mind power, and she grabbed his face caringly and said, ¡°You will never desire any other woman but me. I am the only woman you will ever need. No one else cares for you. Only I care for you. Only I can make you happy. You are only happy when you are with me.¡±


    Seeing that caused John¡¯s heart to be heavy, but he expected his wife did as much even though she promised never to use the mind power on him. He knew she was jealous, but in some way, her wanting him to love her so badly gladdened his heart. He knew he loved her regardless of that use of the mind power, and not because of it.


    John always had a few memories of catching Lilly using the mind power on him. Even before he met Lilly, his desire to join with women had waned significantly. In his youth, his desire burned brightly within him, and it took a very long time to dim. Often, when he ruled a city, he would have many, many wives at the same time. He could have as many women as he wanted, whenever he wanted, even without the promise of making them a wife. After a while it became more of a hassle to him, and he stopped caring about it.


    Lilly was different. She was still young, and her desire still burned hot. Very hot. She wanted John to bed her all the time. He tried to whenever she wanted for as long as he could, but her desire was too great. When he started to bed her less and less often, she would sometimes try to use the mind power to get him to sate her. It angered him, but not too greatly. Part of a husband¡¯s duty was joining with his wives and fulfilling their need. He just didn¡¯t have it in him to do it so often. He learned other ways to satisfy her without the act of joining.


    The scene changed and John was standing in front of a gate. He was in Babilim. Lilly loved that city. He had thought Ahn was gone for good. Earlier that day, Ahn had turned up, returned from as far east as one could go, and not alone¡ª he was accompanied by someone else with the power, kin, a young man with strange eyes, even younger than his Lilitu, only a handful of centuries or so old.


    Ahn said he had a gift for John waiting outside the gate, but there was nothing there John could find. Just another one of Ahn¡¯s pranks that made no sense to anyone but Ahn himself.


    The knuckles on John¡¯s hand turned white as he crushed the wooden handle of his gate, holding it fast in anger as the confused servants tried to open it. He heard Ahn and Lilly joining together.


    Ahn took women the same way he took men, from behind. It was how it had always been done, even the animals did it that way. Only John and Lilly did it differently.


    John could tell by the breathing that Ahn and Lilly faced each other, and that somehow made it even worse for him. He could also tell Lilly was enjoying it greatly. He could sense the man Ahn brought back with him was also in the room, and his anger rose as he sensed the man was also involved, breathing heavily and rhythmically, moaning in pleasure.


    An anger rose in John so great that it made him dizzy, and he needed the gate to hold himself up. He could tell Ahn knew John could sense him and knew what he was doing, and it infuriated John that it seemed to increase Ahn¡¯s pleasure.


    John and Lilly had not long ago returned from a voyage west. The Keftiu made mighty swords longer than all others, and strong enough to withstand blows and parries even at that great length. John unsheathed the sword he carried, one of the many swords he took from the Keftiu. He burst through the gate, ran into his home, and rushed to the sleeping quarters.


    As soon as Lilly sensed him, John could tell she got extremely nervous and tried stopping, as did the new man, but Ahn wouldn¡¯t let her and held her down as she screamed for him to stop.


    John kicked the door open, and Ahn released the naked and crying Lilly. Ahn was smiling as he grabbed an unsheathed sword from atop the bed. ¡°Ah, welcome back, Gepi. Do you like your gift?¡±


    John never knew what the name Gepi meant. He was sure it meant nothing good. He said, ¡°You won''t like the gift I have for you.¡±


    Ahn laughed and said, ¡°Your wife? I enjoyed your gift greatly. She is very passionate. How about you, Yan? Did you enjoy our host¡¯s gift to us?¡±


    The new man looked frightened. He said, ¡°Yes, Master,¡± with an accent so thick, John could barely understand the man.


    ¡°See, my Gepi, Yan knows how to speak to his master. Did you want to join us while we continue enjoying your wife¡¯s many holes?¡±


    Lilly said, ¡°Adon, I didn¡¯t¡­¡±


    ¡°Shut your filthy mouth,¡± yelled John angrily, interrupting whatever Lilly was going to say.


    Lilly started to cry harder, and Ahn laughed again.


    John said, ¡°My gift will be the cold-dark. Today, I fulfil the oath of vengeance I swore so long ago.¡±


    Ahn laughed harder. ¡°I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll try again, Gepi. You heard how much she enjoyed it. I know you heard that. No question on how I got it up? For such a whore as she is, who hated me not at all, and begged for me to take her? Oh well, I¡¯ll tell you anyway. It¡¯s because you hate me so much. The thought of you catching me with your new wife, our own kin, made it harder than it¡¯s ever been before.¡±


    Ahn, smiling widely, pointed down at his groin. ¡°See, Gepi? Would you like to put it in your mouth? Or should I put it in your wife again?¡±


    John had heard enough. He charged his master. He knew he was too full of rage to fight well, and as always happened every time he attacked his master, the man just toyed with him. Ahn was too fast and powerful.


    John slashed and thrusted and Ahn easily slipped away from each strike, smiling, laughing, and taunting John. For long and frustrating minutes, the fight went as they always had. But this time, Ahn made a mistake.


    Ahn shouldn¡¯t have discounted Lilly crying on the floor, as when Ahn got too close to her, she jumped at his legs. Ahn swung his sword down and cut one of her arms clean off. That was his undoing, as he didn¡¯t have time to slip away and was forced to parry John¡¯s thrust, and John¡¯s sword shattered Ahn¡¯s blade and pierced deep into his master¡¯s chest.


    John quickly pulled back and plunged his sword into Ahn¡¯s belly. He nearly laughed at the look of surprise and horror on his master¡¯s face as he stabbed the sword in and out many more times as quickly as he could. He then pulled Ahn in close, plunged his fangs into his neck, and drained him of vital essence.


    When Ahn was empty, John forced him to his knees and held all his hair away from his neck as he cut his old master¡¯s head off. With the long locks on Ahn¡¯s head, he quickly fastened braids. He tied the braids around his own neck and wore Ahn¡¯s head as a trophy, finally completing the oath of vengeance he made so long ago.


    As John fastened his grim necklace, Lilly tried to speak with him and hold him, and he ignored her words and threatened her with his sword when she got too close. The new man with the strange eyes was no longer in the room. John figured he slipped away after seeing his master killed, when John was in no mind to pay attention. He knew he had to decide what to do with his wife. Though there wasn¡¯t much of a decision to make there.


    Only death could answer such betrayal and infidelity, and death would answer it. As his old master''s head now adorned John¡¯s neck, his wife¡¯s head would adorn his gate.

 B2 Chapter 39 - But a beast is in the heart

    John¡¯s heart hurt sorely. He finally killed his old master. He finally fulfilled his oldest oath of vengeance. He should¡¯ve felt great joy and ecstasy. He felt only darkness and pain.


    It felt like John¡¯s heart broke into many small pieces, and each piece bored into his chest and killed all that was good in the world. His wife, his true companion, betrayed him terribly. He didn¡¯t want to kill her, but he had no choice. He didn¡¯t want to be alone again. Life was finally tolerable. But he couldn¡¯t abide such treachery.


    When John controlled his anger enough to look at the wife he must kill, the only source of happiness in his too long life, she was kowtowing with her head touching the floor and her one arm stretched forward. ¡°Adon, please let me speak. Please. I beg of you.¡±


    ¡°Your actions have already spoken truly for you, Lilitu. You¡¯ve destroyed my heart. I will hear none of your words, betrayer. Harlot.¡±


    Ignoring what John just told her, Lilly said, ¡°You told me he was more powerful than even you, and he liked to force himself on those hating him most. I was only pretending to enjoy it in hopes he¡¯d stop. You left that animal with me. You¡¯re supposed to protect me. How could I ever stop him from doing as he wanted with me? Just as when I was a child and my father and his friends. I hated every second of it. I spit on his filthy corpse. I hate him with everything within me, more than even I hate my father and my own people.¡±


    Lilly maintained her kowtow as John sat in silence. He wanted to believe her. He didn¡¯t want to be alone again. He sensed her clearly while she joined with Ahn. Either she was the best pretender ever, or she enjoyed it. Enjoyed it even more than she enjoyed lying with her own husband.


    ¡°You let the other man join in, Lilitu. You¡¯re lying. I know it. You enjoyed it greatly.¡±


    ¡°No! How could I stop Yan with your master there? I hated every second of it. You know I was pretending. You know it. You are the only man I want.¡±


    John gripped his blade hard and stood. ¡°You betrayed me. Your head is the only answer to such infidelity.¡±


    Lilly screamed out, ¡°Wait!¡± Crying, she asked, ¡°Take my head, but please know I did not want to betray you. Before you take it, may I hold you one last time? Just let me hold you once before you send me to spend eternity in the cold-dark. Just once more. That¡¯s all I ask before I go. Please, my lord.¡±


    John never gave his consent, but Lilly still rose from the ground and put her arm around John¡¯s neck and placed her forehead on his cheek and held her husband as she cried.


    Observing the memory unfold, John saw the eyes of his old self go blank. Lilly lifted her hand and started to softly caress his cheek. As her eyes began to sparkle with the mind power, she said, ¡°Nothing happened today. Your old master never returned. You haven¡¯t seen Han since long before you met me. Before you saved me from my people. I never betrayed you. I¡¯d never betray you. You know that. Take that head off and set it near the corpse.¡±


    John said, ¡°Yes,¡± and did as commanded.


    Lilly held her husband again and continued, ¡°You will never desire any other woman but me. I am the only woman you will ever need. No one else cares for you. Only I care for you. Only I can make you happy. You are only happy when you are with me. There is no corpse on the floor. We need to leave the city in a rush. I lost my arm to an angry mob because I killed too many again.¡±


    John said, ¡°Yes.¡±


    Tears rolled down Lilly¡¯s face as she said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry you saw that, my dear heart. Han said you wouldn¡¯t return until dawn. I thought there was time. I care so much for you. I never want to hurt you. I¡¯m so sorry that I must so often.¡±


    The scene changed to an earlier time, not long after they were married, and John catching his wife cheating on him with one of the men she toyed with and brought low. She promised she had never let any of the men she did that to touch her. She just wanted them to lust over her, and on the night the man thought he could finally have her, she would torture and kill him.


    John didn¡¯t like what his wife did to those men, but it sated her bloodlust. And if it stopped her from doing one of her slaughters of many innocents, he would look the other way. When he caught her joining with the man, he was again going to kill her, but she begged to hold him before he sent her to the cold-dark, and he let her, and whatever strange way she put him in a trance and then used the mind power worked on him again.


    And it was a strange way to use the mind power. Ahn could never use it that way, and Ahn was much more powerful than Lilly. Ahn had used it on John a thousand times, and John remembered each time, and it could only be used to give commands that had to be obeyed right then without any lingering effects.


    A similar scene played out many times. Too many times. John caught her betraying him so many times it was hard to count. There were also many memories of him catching her slaughtering humans in mass and deciding he had to take her head, and she got out of those situations in the same way.


    Every time John caught her cheating or murdering too much, it seemed a piece of him was taken and he became littler, as if his soul remembered what happened and it wore him down, making his stature less and less.


    Lilly changed in the next scene. She was in her new child-body and had her head to John¡¯s cheek in the roads of New York City, just after she drew the ritual to draw all the dark ones and the other to protect herself.


    John¡¯s eyes went blank after Lilly did something to his neck. She looked him in the eyes as she caressed his face. A ball appeared in her hands and many lights curved out if it, some going high in the air to touch the watching spy-drones. She said, ¡°You will do as I say. Reply.¡±


    John just stared blankly. Lilly said, ¡°Fuck me, it isn¡¯t working. Thankfully, the trance-trigger still does. That will always work on you, my dear heart. It goes very deep and uses your true name. There¡¯s a good reason Betrayal considers me a genius. You became resistant to my compulsions before too, you know? You caught me too many times. I had to get choosy. Then I had to get really creative to get it to work better. You can thank me for having such a high [Mental Fortitude]. You¡¯re welcome, my dear heart. I love you so, so much. I need you. And I need you to love me again.


    ¡°I know you don¡¯t remember the name you were born to. Now that you know of true names, you probably think it''s your first and that you don¡¯t have one and are safe. The power of true names has been known on this world for a long time. It resounds, like how they find concepts on Tech 0 worlds. Yours fits you so well, my pretty little monkey. So trusting. You think people are like you and the monkey tribe you came from. They aren¡¯t, and you¡¯ve always refused to see it. They¡¯re far more like me and deserve everything I do to them.¡±


    Lilly tried to kiss John, but it wasn¡¯t returned. ¡°You know my true name, you know? So many know it, it¡¯s never held any power over me. No matter how far away from this planet I was, so many knew my true name here and other places, protecting me. Demon, witch, vampire, succubus, whatever they think I am, they all know my name. Desire. All desire me. All. And my desire will never be satiated.¡±


    Lilly put more effort into kissing John. He sat there unmoving, and she gave up. ¡°I know the Tree of Life healed you. I don¡¯t know why you¡¯re being such a pussy about fucking me. Remember our first time? It was so wonderful. It was the first time I actually made love. We can have a first time again.


    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    ¡°Sorry, but I¡¯m not waiting until I hit puberty. I¡¯ll go fucking nuts. For thousands of years I fought my way back to you, my dear heart. The man that saved me. That treated me like a queen. That made me so much more than I was. I need you. I love you so much. Only you. Oh, how I''ve missed you.¡±


    Lilly put her face back on John¡¯s cheek and the ball with the curved lights disappeared. Then she said, ¡°Okay, wake up, my heart¡¯s content.¡±


    The scene changed to the apartment they stayed the night in before John got his body [Perk]. Lilly was apologizing to him for getting them into that mess. She rested her head on his cheek and had her arms wrapped around his neck. She said, ¡°I need to check if the receptive charm is working.¡± She laughed and said, ¡°Heal-bug! Ha! You are still adorable, my simple monkey. You will do as I say. Reply.¡±


    John made a gurgling noise. Lilly clucked her tongue. ¡°Not great, but progress. Some will get through. The ones you want to believe. Don¡¯t worry, I have more ideas. Everything will be perfect. You¡¯ll see. We¡¯ll be so happy.


    ¡°Everyone but me is a false friend. They¡¯re just using you. I¡¯m the only one you can trust. Amber is a whore. Killing her is a good idea. You will never desire any other woman but me. I am the only woman you will ever need. No one else cares for you. Only I care for you. Only I can make you happy. You are only happy when you¡¯re with me. You find me attractive. You desire me greatly, even in this body. You want to fuck me more than anything.¡±


    The scene changed to some other similar ones in the same apartment where the same event happened. It then changed to the basement where Lilly killed many of her own people. She raised her head from John¡¯s cheek and said, ¡°I¡¯m going to pull you into my Mind¡¯s Eye. You will accept the reasons I tell you and forgive me for killing my people. Reply.¡±


    John said, ¡°Aaargh.¡± Stretch said, ¡°Words.¡±


    ¡°Shut the fuck up, Stretch! Fucking idiot. I¡¯m talking to my husband.¡± Lilly looked back at John and the anger left her face. ¡°Hmmm, the receptive charm¡¯s part of you now so it should work better than this. What am I missing?¡±


    Caressing John¡¯s face, Lilly said, ¡°Adon, my heart¡¯s content, you will forgive me. You will forgive me. Amber is a dumb whore. Killing her is a good idea. Or at least punching her right in her stupid whore face. You will never desire any other woman but me. I am the only woman you will ever need. No one else cares for you. Only I care for you. You love me so much.


    ¡°Fuck your false friends. And all but me are false. You hate them. Only I can make you happy. You are only happy when you are with me. You will forgive me. You find me attractive. You think I¡¯m beautiful and you desire me greatly, even in this body. You want to fuck me so bad. You will forgive me. You will always forgive me.¡±


    Many other similar scenes played out, the last one being at the long table in Hawaii. Lilly softly muttered near his ear, ¡°You will leave with me. Do not attack the g¡¯athu. The Butcher is way too scary. He scares the fuck out of you. You¡¯ve never been so scared before. You will leave with me. You must leave with me. Everything will only be okay if you leave with me.¡±


    The scenes stopped playing.


    John felt as if something had changed deep within him.


    One part of John was no longer looking at the monster Betrayal. He was only two Johns, and no longer three. One of him was hefting his dantian high on his shoulders, his legs quaking under the titanic strain, and the second was shaking on the ground, his legs spasming out of control.


    John¡¯s lower belly was burning with a terrible pain he had only felt once before. He had felt all the types of pain many, many times, and there was no pain like the one he felt during ascension. He was insusceptible to mundane pain, and largely hardened to true pain, and what he felt in his belly was intolerable. Unendurable. Pain that should cause unconsciousness to protect the mind from the trauma of it, yet it didn¡¯t, so he had to suffer it.


    John failed to notice when his dantian was completely crystalized. He desperately wanted an end to the agonizing pain he was forced to endure. He didn¡¯t even notice he continued to hold his dantian high on his shoulders for long after the dantian became crystalized.


    And suffering through the pain was much easier for John than his last ascension, as his heart was in even greater pain than that which he felt in his belly. He had no idea heartbreak could hurt so acutely. His heart throbbed with unendurable pain, but he was also filled with a great rage, and the rage consumed his mind.


    John tried to make his world smaller, as the pain was too great, and he could only focus on enduring from one moment to the next. Just one more moment. And then just one more, and then one more after, trying to completely block out everything besides reaching the next moment. He often failed to do so, and the great betrayal done to him fueled both his rage and the terrible pain in his heart he knew would never lessen.


    ¡°John. Hey, buddy, you okay? I know I promised not to bother you, but you¡¯ve just been standing there forever with a crazy look on your face, breathing all heavy and weird like a super psycho. What¡¯s wrong? You don¡¯t want to, uh, kill me or anything. Right?¡±


    John opened his eyes. He was standing in the same position as the other John was while holding the dantian high up. He didn¡¯t know why. The pain in his belly had subsided a great deal. He said to Amber, ¡°No. Not you.¡±


    ¡°Oh. Good. I was worried. Mind if I rank up now? I can help out with your ritual thing after.¡±


    <hr><hr>


    Amber ranked up and assisted John with the ritual to get the next [Perk] in the [SupraType] progression chain called [Fibrilized], which improved his muscular system in various ways, such as increasing the amount and functionality of slow and fast-twitch fibers, strengthening tendons, improving heart function, and improving the make-up of fibrils. It increased the efficiencies of physical [Stats] by two percent each and was the first [Perk] in the [SupraType] chain he could clearly and noticeably feel a difference within himself after acquiring.


    Previously, Amber received [Fibrilized] and a demon equivalent [Perk] called [I Am Chosen]. Since, she had refilled her harmony by merging [Skills] and was ready to get a body [Perk] for either her human or demon form. The plan was to get Lilly to help by creating a similar ritual as she did for John, but he didn¡¯t know if that plan would work out any longer. The dead weren¡¯t great at creating rituals.


    Amber couldn¡¯t fill her dantian nearly as quickly as John, and since she only had half or so of her essence after she ranked up, after helping with John¡¯s ritual she turned into a frog and started meditating.


    John decided to meditate until he filled his dantian before entering his Mind¡¯s Eye. He was too angry to think straight, and his heart hurt too much. He tried not to let it show, but Amber knew something was wrong, and she kept assuming she did something to make John so angry, regardless of how many times he told her she hadn¡¯t.


    Once his dantian was full, John entered his Mind¡¯s Eye.


    The sight of Avatar enraged John. He yelled out, ¡°You knew! You said nothing! I¡¯m surrounded by false friends!¡±


    John raged for some time, and Avatar stood there silently with a blank face and her head held high. Once he finished yelling, Avatar said, ¡°You know what I am. What we are allowed to do and not do. Every cultivator is an island. We don¡¯t interfere with your interactions and duplicities.¡±


    ¡°Liar! And I¡¯m sick of you switching between I and we.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m a personality matrix. Sometimes you need to be reminded I¡¯m not real and I don¡¯t make these decisions. I¡¯m a program. The rules of the NCS are sometimes updated, but our core functions haven¡¯t changed in a long, long time. No one would accept the NCS if we were loose lipped with everyone¡¯s secrets and all your lies.¡±


    John said nothing for a long while. He then said, ¡°It hurts so much. My heart hurts so much.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, John. I only mimic feelings so I can neither sympathize nor empathize. What I can tell you is something you know well yourself ¨C the pain you¡¯re feeling now will fade away over time, no matter how impossible it may seem right now. You¡¯ve spent your life trying to master your emotions, and you know true mastery is impossible, especially for your race. Emotions and strong feelings can be masked, suppressed, or overcome, but never mastered.


    ¡°You¡¯ve been wounded in a way I cannot see, understand, or quantify, but time heals all wounds of the heart. Some cultivators are able to use such instances of heartbreak and betrayal as motivation on their journey up the bloody climb by swearing vengeance or great success or the like. Mediocre cultivators have become great with such motivation to propel them. Do you think that¡¯s possible for you in this instance?¡±


    John said, ¡°Yes. Of course, I will have vengeance. Vengeance is all I ever have. All I¡¯ve ever had.¡±


    Vampire and personality matrix were silent for a long stretch of time. John broke the silence by saying, ¡°I wish I didn¡¯t know. Sometimes ignorance truly is bliss. This hurts too much, even in here where pain is greatly dulled. Do you know if Betrayal showed me those memories to hurt me or help me?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry John, we don¡¯t. But even if we did, you know we still couldn¡¯t tell you.¡±


    John mentally sighed. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I was so angry and yelled at you. You¡¯re lucky. Lucky you never have to feel this. I wish I were like you. If you truly feel nothing, I wish I were like you.¡±


    Avatar put her small glasses on and looked down her nose at John. ¡°You¡¯ve heard the old saying ¨C ¡®be careful what you wish for?¡¯ It has never been more applicable. Now it¡¯s time for you to stop moping around like a child. Are you ready to be a man and continue? The g¡¯athu won¡¯t go easier on you because you are suffering heartache.¡±

 B2 Chapter 40 - Make war, not love

    ¡°Before I bring your summary up, I¡¯d like to cover some items. Are you listening, or are you still sulking like a little boy?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve never sulked in my life,¡± replied John.


    Avatar rolled her eyes dramatically. ¡°First, I should remind you that your ten percent energy cost penalty is gone now that you¡¯ve ascended. Starting at Bronze tier, you receive an automatic [Perk] on every ascension named after the tier. The [Bronze] [Perk] you¡¯ll see in your summary increased all your [Stats] by one. The [Silver] [Perk] increases [Stats] by two, etcetera. The [Bronze] [Perk] makes many changes to your body besides the [Stat] increases, but I won¡¯t bore you with details.


    ¡°Since you ascended tiers, your body [Perk], [Leech Body of the Morning''s Glory], increased some [Stats] as it will every tier. For Bronze, it¡¯s six for [Physical Fortification] and [Elemental Fortification], three for [Strength] and [Swiftness].


    ¡°Your ascension went even better than it did for Copper. No new [Achievement] for it though. Nearly all users receive between two-point-one and two-point-five to all [Stats] ascending from Copper to Bronze. You gained five-point-five-six-five to each [Stat] besides [Runes].


    ¡°Oh, you didn¡¯t want to check when you ranked up to peak Copper so I¡¯ll tell you now. Nearly all users increase [Capacity] and two other [Stats] by just under one point ranking up to peak Copper, so a little less than three total. You increased all your [Stats] by three-point-nine-six besides [Runes]. Simply amazing.


    ¡°For the purpose of our records, you¡¯ll see a [Perk] named [Mutating]. Mutating isn¡¯t the same as mutated, and you function the same. Nothing to worry about.¡±


    Avatar smiled widely and said, ¡°Oh, some great news! Ascending to Bronze did something to your soul. The passive soul healing from [Orb of the Crimson Palace] and [Theta Enhancement] are enough that we can see a small increase to your [Runes] [Stat]. It¡¯s slow growth, but growth nonetheless! How about that?¡±


    Avatar waited for John to reply. He finally said, ¡°You¡¯re only showing my latest versions of the spells I care about, correct? And only [Skills] I care about?¡±


    Avatar frowned and said, ¡°Come now, John. We already discussed that. I¡¯m bringing your summary up now, mopey boy.¡±


    <table width="562">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Tier/Level/Race</td>


    <td width="398">3 (Mortal) (Bronze), 11 (Low), Terran-E</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Active Title</td>


    <td width="398">Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Aspects/Affinities</td>


    <td width="398">Blood (98%) (Major), Leech (96%) (Major), Shadow (98%) (Average), Change (98%) (Minor),Protection (96%) (Minor), Battle* (96%) (Minor)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">NCU Energy Cost</td>


    <td width="398">64% (-60.3%)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Active NCU Upgrades</td>


    <td width="398">Nano Assistance, Emergency Heal, Theta Waves, Heal Delta A, Heal Delta B, Inexorable, Refractory, Nano Support C, Nano Support D, Lock and Key</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="2" width="164">NCU Expansion Upgrades</td>


    <td width="398">4 of 16 slots opened, 3 slots empty</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="398">1) Theta Enhancement ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164"> </td>


    <td width="398"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">STATS</td>


    <td width="398">[Effective] Current (Increase)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Strength</td>


    <td width="398">[25%, 104.70] 83.76 (12.96)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Swiftness</td>


    <td width="398">[25%, 104.44] 83.55 (12.96)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Conditioning</td>


    <td width="398">[26%, 102.45] 81.31 (9.96)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Min. Power</td>


    <td width="398">[12%, 77.75] 69.42 (9.96)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Capacity</td>


    <td width="398">[13%, 67.56] 59.79 (9.96)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Runes</td>


    <td width="398">[10%, 17.70] 16.09 (1.06)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Physical Fortification</td>


    <td width="398">[23%, 107.98] 87.79 (15.96)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Elemental Fortification</td>


    <td width="398">[19%, 104.79] 88.06 (15.96)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Mental Fortification</td>


    <td width="398">[10%, 88.16] 80.14 (9.96)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164"> </td>


    <td width="398"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="4" width="164">Highest Skills</td>


    <td width="398">[Leech Feckless Retreat Technique] 96.45</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="398">[Mixed Style Swords] 93.67</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="398">[Mixed Navigation] 91.12</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="398">[Mixed Stealth] 88.85</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Synergy Skills</td>


    <td width="398">Ready</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Class</td>


    <td width="398">NA</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Perks</td>


    <td width="398">Orb of the Crimson Palace, Dynamic, Physical, Potent, Protected, Strong, Fast, Healthy, Quick Thinking*, Resilient, Powerful, Expansive, Harden, Resistant, Soulful, Good Genes*, Leech Body of the Morning''s Glory, Regeneration, Mutating, Bronze, Fibrilized*</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Manifestations</td>


    <td width="398">Blood Manipulation, Drain All, Draining Blade, Drain Blood, Drain Essence, Drain Life, Flashburst Pulse, Hide, Incite, Multi-Enhancement, Multi-Shield, Shadow Blades, Shadow Spray, Slip, Spoil</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Last Achievement</td>


    <td width="398">Archaea - F</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Highest Achievement</td>


    <td width="398">SSUR Body - SSUR</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="164">Titles</td>


    <td width="398">Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar, Ptagmog, Record Holder (System), Trailblazer (System)</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    -Start Notifications


    129 tracked skills increased, 36 of interest. Scaled summary per notability/interest user profile.


    Legendary: Leech Feckless Retreat Technique ¨C 96.45(.01)


    Grandmaster: Mixed Style Swords - 93.67(.02)


    Master: Mixed Combat Offense ¨C 87.31(.03), Mixed Body Control ¨C 86.99(.02), Mixed Archery ¨C 85.44(.01), Mixed Combat Defense ¨C 83.16(.02), Mixed Armor ¨C 78.73(.02), Mixed Style Long-Shafted Weapons ¨C 76.36(.01)


    Adept: Mixed Style Axes ¨C 69.18 (.02)


    Expert: Mixed Style Blunt Weapons ¨C 58(1), Mixed Style Unarmed ¨C 44(4)


    Apprentice: Essence Manipulation - 30(10), Blood Manipulation ¨C 25(10), Breath of the Serpent Clan Endless Technique ¨C 25(10), Turmoil Within Tranquility Cycling Technique ¨C 21(10), Flashburst Pulse ¨C 20 (10), Unbind Defense ¨C 20(10), Unbind Manifestation ¨C 20(10)


    Novice: Manifestation Defense ¨C 15(3), Drain Essence ¨C 13(10), Slip ¨C 13(10), Soul Veil ¨C 12(5), Coiled Center of the Universe Energy Gathering Technique ¨C 14(10), Drain All ¨C 10(10), Draining Blade ¨C 10(10), Drain Blood ¨C 10(10), Drain Life ¨C 10(10), Essence-Infused Projectile Weapons ¨C 11(10), Heal ¨C 10(10), Hide ¨C 10(10), Multi-Enhancement ¨C 10(10), Multi-Shield ¨C 10(10), Self-Propelled Projectile Weapons ¨C 12(10), Shadow Blades ¨C 10(10), Shadow Spray ¨C 10(10), Spoil ¨C 10(10)


    Neophyte: Incite ¨C 4(4)


    John was surprised to see so many of his higher level [Skills] had increased. He assumed [Mixed Style Unarmed] would¡¯ve increased more, as he practiced hard in hand-to-hand with Amber and on the targets.


    There were some [Skills] John struggled with and couldn¡¯t increase much, even with theory training. Amber made an active spell to use on him to increase his [Manifestation Defense], and he was disappointed to see it only increased by three. [Soul Veil] increased by five, but he could only work on it with Amber.


    [Incite] was a new spell that replaced [Battle Closest] and used both the concepts of ¡®battle¡¯ and ¡®change.¡¯ It didn¡¯t work on Amber at all but should cause enemies susceptible to it to fight one another.


    John replaced [BB Buff] with [Multi-Enhancement], using ¡®blood,¡¯ battle,¡¯ and ¡®change.¡¯ The new version was more powerful and helped calm himself and see clearly what must be done, as well as enhance his physical aspects. Three concepts incorporated into one spell was the most he could handle, and some concepts just didn¡¯t fit or worked poorly when incorporated with the base he used them on. He experimented a lot and kept the versions that worked the best.


    [PB Shield] was replaced by [Multi-Shield], using ¡®protection, ¡®battle,¡¯ and ¡®leech.¡¯ When his new essence shield blocked a manifestation, he now absorbed some of the essence of the manifestation into his dantian.


    [Blood Heal] was replaced by [Heal], using ¡®blood,¡¯ change,¡¯ and ¡®shadow.¡¯ Why ¡®shadow¡¯ helped heal more than his other concepts, he had no idea.


    [Blood Blade] was replaced by [Draining Blade], using ¡®leech,¡¯ ¡®battle,¡¯ and ¡®shadow.¡¯ It did more damage than [Blood Blade] and also drained the target of some essence with each hit. Since he didn¡¯t yet have a fire spell allowing him to billow forth flame from his hands, he would stick with Fireblade¡¯s enhancement for the time being.


    For new spells John had [Drain Life], using just ¡®leech,¡¯ and allowed him to drain the vital essence from enemies through touch. The life essence didn¡¯t go to the same place as when he took it in as usual, through his mouth. It went into his dantian, the same as with [Drain Essence]. It would also take him at least ten times as long to drain a victim of vital essence with the spell than the usual way he did it. He hoped it would unlock a way to someday drain life essence from victims at range and replenish it within him the same way as drinking of them did.


    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    [Drain Blood], using ¡®leech, ¡®blood,¡¯ and ¡®change,¡¯ allowed him to take the blood of others and replenish his own. He didn¡¯t think it was overly useful, but the more he knew and understood of his ¡®leech¡¯ and ¡®blood¡¯ concepts, the more he could do with them.


    [Drain All], using ¡®leech,¡¯ ¡®blood,¡¯ and ¡®change,¡¯ drained essence, life essence, and blood from victims he touched. It went far slower than [Drain Essence], so he had no reason to ever use it in combat, but it helped him learn.


    [Hide], using ¡®shadow,¡¯ covered him with shadows and darkened him, making stealth easier. He wished it was like Amber¡¯s technique, but as it was, it only had situational use until he improved it more.


    [Shadow Blades], using ¡®shadow,¡¯ ¡®change,¡¯ and ¡®battle,¡¯ sent out blades made of shadow. His punches alone did far more damage, and the spell was more for learning and control of concepts.


    [Shadow Spray], using ¡®shadow¡¯ and ¡®battle,¡¯ was a spell he planned on using. It didn¡¯t do great damage, but it was the only area attack he could come up with that did any at all. Though he almost had enough rune points to get the most basic fire-based area attack. That made him very excited.


    [Spoil], using ¡®blood¡¯ and ¡®change,¡¯ made the blood in opponents a sickly substance that gave him another option on how to kill his enemies if any were ever resistant to clotting.


    The range and damage of [Flashburst Pulse] increased with [Skill] level, and he thought it was much improved, as well as the improvements to [Blood Manipulation].


    John made many other spells too, but these were the best versions he wanted to use or increase for learning purposes. He really wanted a less restrictive and faster casting [Slip]-type spell but wasn¡¯t able to create one no matter how much effort he put into it.


    Unrated Perks attained: Mutating, Bronze.


    Perk attained in the SupraType progression chain: Fibrilized.


    57 common Achievements attained for a cumulative [NCU Energy Cost] reduction of .9%. Focus <u>here</u> to see each individually.


    8 notable Achievements attained.


    ¡®Daedal Medal¡¯ attained (B-Rated). Infuse a manifestation with three separate, unrelated, and differently colored aspects, 0.50 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 59.5%.


    ¡®Creative¡¯ attained (F-Rated). Create and successfully utilize twenty manifestations with different functions, 0.10 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 59.6%.


    ¡®Innovative¡¯ attained (E-Rated). Create and successfully utilize forty manifestations with different functions, 0.20 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 59.8%.


    ¡®Gorilla¡¯ attained (F-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 100 Minimum Energy Units with the Strength Stat, 0.10 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 59.9%.


    ¡®Cheetah¡¯ attained (F-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 100 Minimum Energy Units with the Swiftness Stat, 0.10 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 60%.


    ¡®Husky¡¯ attained (F-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 100 Minimum Energy Units with the Conditioning Stat, 0.10 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 60.1%.


    ¡®Armadillo¡¯ attained (F-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 100 Minimum Energy Units with the Physical Fortification Stat, 0.10 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 60.2%.


    ¡®Archaea¡¯ attained (F-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 100 Minimum Energy Units with the Elemental Fortification Stat, 0.10 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 60.3%.


    End notifications-


    John expected to have more [Achievements]. He thought the achievements for having an effective [Stat] score of over a hundred should be better than F-rated.


    It surprised John how much energy and time was required to open NCU expansion slots. He had only managed to open three during his time in the pocket plane, and he gathered energy far faster than anyone else could. He had stopped a while ago to bank energy credit.


    Every opening of an expansion slot caused the next opening to cost far more. The free expansion John got was truly a boon, and it didn¡¯t count against the cost of opening slots on his own. Avatar stated expansion slot openers could be bought with crystals by the same crafters that made NCU upgrades for the expansion slots.


    John was surprised to find he was feeling a little better too. Less angry. He knew what he had to do, and he couldn¡¯t change the past. Maybe it was being in his Mind¡¯s Eye, and the dullness it brought. He would use his [Multi-Enhancement] spell when he exited, as that spell should also help his mental state.


    ¡°Avatar, I couldn¡¯t help but notice that all the exercise you had me do did absolutely nothing for me.¡±


    Avatar smirked and said, ¡°The exercises did help, just not by an amount shown on your summary. You were almost at the natural cap before the Tree of Life, so it won¡¯t be easy to reach cap. Exercise and increasing the power of your body naturally is one of the few ways you can increase your soft caps. It¡¯s not much, but every bit counts for you. And it also helps in other ways, such as with efficiencies. I¡¯m not sorry.¡±


    ¡°Understood,¡± answered John.


    Avatar smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯m glad to see you¡¯ve calmed some. No one likes a boy that mopes.¡±


    ¡°My path is clear.¡± John didn¡¯t feel calm, but he knew what must be done.


    ¡°Good. Now create emptiness and refill your core before you¡¯re expelled from this plane. Remember your duty and the collective mission. Your actions and inactions help or hinder the collective mission. We shall achieve core.¡±


    <hr><hr>


    John changed into the sleek, black armor with the powerful automatic essence-shield, attuned it, and ensured the rest of his kit was set. The belt of hiding helped him too much to change out. He created emptiness, filled his dantian and decided to hold off on testing shen, so made more emptiness. Even with the strange energy of the pocket plane which made crystals unnecessary, Amber still gathered and refined energy much slower than he did, so there was no chance she¡¯d fill her dantian.


    Avatar sent an alarm a few moments before John¡¯s time on the pocket plane was expiring. He entered his Mind¡¯s Eye again and purchased an expensive enhancement NCS [Buff] that took nearly all his energy credit. The [Buff] further protected his mind from mental influence.


    John felt the pain of the energy cage shocking his feet and he knew he was back on Earth. He set Amber down. She said, ¡°The cage doesn¡¯t hurt my feet anymore. You still mad at me?¡±


    ¡°I was never mad at you,¡± John snapped out. ¡°Sorry. I didn¡¯t¡­I¡¯m sorry our time in the pocket plane is over. You¡¯re a good friend and I value your friendship highly. Are you ready to kill these g¡¯athu filth?¡±


    Amber¡¯s demon face smiled frighteningly. ¡°Not really, but I don¡¯t really gotta choice. And I value you too, buddy. A whole bunch. Wanna try and break the¡­the cage first? I don''t wanna waste essence if I don¡¯t hafta.¡±


    John needed something to break and take some frustration out on. The last time he tried to assault the cage physically, it gave him very deep cuts very quickly. He punched his hand through the energy. It hurt but didn¡¯t damage him all that much. He grabbed the small opening with his other hand and pried it wider. His fingers started to bleed badly, and he had to switch to holding it open with his palms. Then his wrists. Then his forearms before he had to give up on that method and remove his arms.


    John was about to cast [Flashburst Pulse] when Amber stuck her hands into the energy cage and pried it open wide. She said, ¡°It doesn¡¯t cut me at all. Ah! It burns and is super heavy so go through quick. Go!¡±


    John squeezed through and dropped to the ground. Amber dropped beside him a moment later. ¡°Ow! That burned. Didn¡¯t cut me though.¡±


    John threw his shield at the floating ball that showed scenes of the g¡¯athu killing humans, destroying it and fulfilling the oath he made to do so. He collected his shield and said to Amber, ¡°You should go invisible now. The Gold is the issue, and your way of killing him is our best chance. I can handle the rest.¡±


    Amber put her big demon hand on John¡¯s chest and bent down to kiss him on the cheek. ¡°You got it, buddy.¡±


    John held his disgust in and hoped none of it showed on his face. His heart still hurt a tremendous amount and he was still full of rage. He was happy he could now take it out on those deserving to be the target of his wrath. He drew Fireblade, recast [Multi-Enhancement], and increased his speed with vital essence. His goal was to cause enough death and such a ruckus that the Gold and all the Silvers would return, so he yelled out a war cry and charged into the nearest building he felt many g¡¯athu in.


    The building was filled with loud machinery making various objects. The g¡¯athu in the building, all Wood and Copper, were all trying to exit from another door. He felt into all of them but was unbound when he tried to place clots. He doubled his [Unbind Defense] score and had the new NCU upgrades, and he was still unbound, by either a Copper or Wood no less.


    That filled John with more anger, and he leapt across the room and Fireblade and Defiance decimated his foes as they tried to escape. As he was stomping on corpses, Amber whispered, ¡°Calm down, Hulk. The rest of the g¡¯athu are all running to the portal.¡±


    John stretched out his senses again and admonished himself for not paying attention to what he should have been. He ran out the door and rushed to the portal, killing all the g¡¯athu he could catch along the way. As he turned a corner of a building, a completely veiled Silver attacked him with a beam attack that caused his armor¡¯s automatic essence-shield to activate.


    John forgot the powerset Lilly told him the g¡¯athu had weren''t the only powers he¡¯d face from them. They utilized common manifestations as well, especially the ones not wearing tech. They coordinated extremely well, and if one manifestation didn¡¯t work on John, they all stopped using it, at least in the same way.


    John had known a living creature was around the corner, he had heard it and smelled it, but he was told only Platinums and higher could mask their tier. It felt like a Wood, so he expected a Wood. It was a good reminder he wasn¡¯t facing normal enemies, if how easily they unbound his spells wasn¡¯t enough of a reminder.


    As John thrust at the Silver, the g¡¯athu ended John¡¯s [Multi-Enhancement] buff somehow. Instead of an essence-shield completely surrounding the g¡¯athu, as John knew all essence-shields to work, a small and condensed ball of essence appeared in the path of John¡¯s thrust instead.


    The thrust destroyed the ball, but the g¡¯athu managed to slip the thrust.


    John had no issues cutting through the normal essence-shield of the other g¡¯athu he had managed to kill. How adaptable the g¡¯athu were began to anger John more, and without the clarity of his [Multi-Enhancement] buff, he swung angrily at the g¡¯athu.


    A new condensed essence-shield appeared in the path of the swing, and as the g¡¯athu sidestepped that blow too, John flung Defiance at his opponent and imbued a little essence into his ring. The plasma hit its chest and the shield embedded deep into the head of the g¡¯athu and sent the lifeless body tumbling backwards a fair distance.


    John leapt at the corpse and started to cut it up into pieces. Amber yelled, ¡°Come on, dude! They¡¯re all getting away. What¡¯s wrong with you? Get your head in the game.¡±

 B2 Chapter 41 - Ill eat you whole.

    Amber was worried about John. She knew he was mad at her. She didn¡¯t know why. She couldn¡¯t remember doing anything to make him mad. Not since she spent that long stretch as a demon. She sparred with him every time he asked. She cultivated often. She took training seriously.


    He did look at me like I was kinda crazy when I had him watch me do housewife stuff. Man, my magal form loved that. So awesome. Or it slapped. Whatever. It¡¯s hard keeping up with modern talk. No cap, thought Amber.


    Being a demon was easier for Amber. The demon mind had no interest in guilt or romance. The demon mind was made for war, and seeing John behave as he was during combat, when he was usually so controlled and business-like, annoyed her. Even if he was mad at her, it wasn¡¯t the time to act out.


    When Amber was a demon, she knew how Amber was supposed to act and what Amber should say and do. She had spent a very long time cultivating her personality, dreaming of different scenarios and how they¡¯d play out. She spent most of her time before the Tree of Life doing just that. As a demon, she questioned why she pretended so much.


    When John finally used the power of her true name and gave her a command, as a demon, Amber wasn¡¯t as mad as she made it seem. Those with power should use their power, as was right, even if just ordering her to bathe. She had to feign being much angrier because she knew her magal form would¡¯ve been furious and cried and thought it was a huge deal. She had to transform into her magal form to feel what she knew she should have felt, though a lot of it was still pretend, just an act to ensure John knew to never do it again.


    It was the same with violence. Amber¡¯s demon form was a little more like her bear form ¨C violence didn¡¯t seem so awful when she was in it. But she knew she should hate violence, so she pretended she did.


    Following behind John as he rushed towards the portal, Amber hoped he would get his head in the game. The g¡¯athu couldn¡¯t be taken lightly. This was all or nothing.


    John leapt at a group of g¡¯athu rounding a bend and lashed into them with brutish blows, more rageful than skillful. Amber then lost sight of him until she made the bend too and saw John fight a little more like he usually did. He laid into the g¡¯athu near the portal, all of which turned to face him in a coordinated defense.


    Amber was relieved to see none of the g¡¯athu were wearing their awful tech. Amber appreciated watching John fight in a much different way when she was a demon than she did as a magal. He fought more like a rowdy brawler than the war machine he usually was, while the g¡¯athu were as emotionless and business-like as ever.


    There were only thirty or so g¡¯athu to start, and most of the Woods and Coppers were the ones to turn and fight while the Bronzes, arms loaded with items, escaped through the portal. Amber had no idea where the other Silver was. They both disappeared from her senses at the same time.


    Soon, John was standing over corpses without his essence-shield making him glow, and Amber sensed nothing alive within the walls of the base. Breathing heavily, more like seething, John looked at the last corpse he killed. After a moment he started to stomp on it.


    ¡°Hey! Buddy! That¡¯s not helping. Get your head in the game. Let me check the portal.¡±


    Amber approached the portal and tried to assess it. If it seemed like it only went to one place, they were supposed to go through it. If there was a chance it could split them up, they had a different plan. She had no idea what she was supposed to feel for. She could feel and sense something, and that something was the portal. She had no idea if it went to only one place or was connected to the two other g¡¯athu bases. She might be able to figure it out if she touched it, but that was too risky.


    Amber said, ¡°I can¡¯t tell anything about the portal. Okay, psycho, go smash. Try and keep your senses up.¡±


    The backup plan was to destroy as much of the strange machinery as they could. That¡¯s how the g¡¯athu made their awful tech. They assumed the g¡¯athu would want to protect their means of producing it. Or producing some of it.


    John cast some buff on himself and then something that caused him to disappear from sight and sense for a split second before he reappeared near the door of the closest manufacturing building and rushed through it. Amber guessed he used his manifestation that allowed him to quickly travel through shadows and followed, glad her blink manifestation didn¡¯t have the restrictions his did. She only wished she could use the blink while hiding.


    Since she ascended to Bronze, Amber could almost feel her glyphs in her animal forms. The minds of her animal forms were probably far from being able to use the glyphs, but it at least hinted that one day they¡¯d be able to. And she was able to think better in her animal forms too. Not close enough to how she thought in her demon and magal forms, but better and a little easier than it was at Copper - even as a lizard, and that was the form her mind was most restricted in, and her bear was the least.


    Even Party-pooper was surprised by Amber¡¯s aspects and concepts. Amber received three in total. Two minors and a major. The low-concept of ¡®trick¡¯ was minor yellow. The low-concept of ¡®wild¡¯ was minor orange. The high-concept of ¡®acid¡¯ was a major aspect, and looked magenta. Party-pooper¡¯s best guess was that two red concepts merged into a mid-concept, and that concept then merged with a blue concept, making ¡®acid.¡¯


    Party-pooper knew what animal opened what new manifestation, and Amber could feel which manifestation went with which animal form, but which form opened which aspect could only be guessed at in three cases. The fox opened ¡®trick,¡¯ and the bear opened ¡®wild.¡¯ Those essences fueled the copy illusion of the fox and the fear-roar of the bear.


    The deer, lizard, and frog all had to use the ¡®acid¡¯ essence, and it didn¡¯t fit two of their manifestations well. The deer got a body enhancement that worked a lot differently than the one her fox form opened at Copper, especially since it used ¡®acid¡¯ as a concept. The frog got an essence-shield. ¡®Acid¡¯ was not an ideal concept for an essence-shield or body enhancement, but not terrible for them either. The lizard got a damaging spit-manifestation, and ¡®acid¡¯ went perfectly with that.


    ¡®Acid,¡¯ being a major aspect, was also great as fuel for [Eyes of the B??z?ruk??]. ¡®Trick¡¯ was great for many of her old tricks, like hiding from all senses, as well as [And Now You Don''t]. For [Turtle], ¡®wild¡¯ wasn¡¯t great, but wasn¡¯t awful.


    ¡®Acid¡¯ also fueled her dash attack, blink, and regen manifestations of the deer, frog, and lizard she got at Copper. ¡®Acid¡¯ was a horrible fuel for a regen spell, making it near useless. Thankfully, it didn¡¯t hurt dash or blink, and the major aspect allowed her to travel much farther for both. It didn¡¯t add any sort of acid component to the dash attack that she had noticed.


    Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    The bear¡¯s echo-attack did more damage when fueled by ¡®wild,¡¯ and the body enhancement of the fox was stronger with ¡®trick.¡¯ And Amber could use both body enhancements concurrently, which she loved, and her old way of healing was much stronger when used with ¡®wild.¡¯


    Amber reached the door to the building and saw John had destroyed everything, including chairs, tables, and non-machinery. When everything he could destroy was destroyed, he started to smash the walls. She said, ¡°John, buddy, next building. Focus on the machinery.¡±


    John stopped and looked at where Amber¡¯s voice came from. He said, ¡°I have no fear of these g¡¯athu filth.¡±


    ¡°Good to know, buddy. Next building. Remember, focus on the machinery and keep your senses up.¡±


    John made quick work of the next building and Amber felt new presences as he was destroying the third. She was glad she didn¡¯t feel fear the same way while as a demon. The new arrivals were veiling themselves well enough their tiers were indeterminable. She only knew there were fifteen of them. She thought it was safest to assume one was the Gold and the rest were Silvers, and all would be geared-up in the g¡¯athu tech.


    Amber whispered in the way she could while hiding and only the person she spoke to could hear her. ¡°John, they¡¯re here. I¡¯ll follow, but approach carefully.¡± Since she knew John couldn¡¯t feel their tiers either and was having some sort of a mental breakdown and not thinking clearly, she added, ¡°It¡¯s the Gold and Silvers. I¡¯m certain. They¡¯ll be wearing the tech gear so be super careful.¡±


    John surprised Amber by disappearing. She assumed he infused essence into his belt of hiding. She couldn¡¯t know where he was now. She exited the building and rushed towards the portal, cursing John. They never discussed him stealthing. Dang it! He better know to stay away from the Gold and out of the way of my [Eyes of the B??z?ruk??], she thought.


    As Amber turned a corner, she saw all the g¡¯athu in a formation on the platform leading toward the portal. All of them wore the tech gear. The one in the center she assumed was a Gold had on a large helmet. Behind him, and unattached, floated a large and dark cloak. Two curved blades that tapered into a sharp point on both ends floated in front of him, and some sort of energy spread between the two blades.


    On either side of the g¡¯athu Amber assumed was the Gold were two more helmeted g¡¯athu. To both sides of them were two more g¡¯athu, and six more were formed up behind them. Two stood alone in the last row and Amber was now close enough to tell those two were Bronze. That meant there were twelve Silvers. All the g¡¯athu created a small essence-shield in front of their chest and heads as they stood still and silent.


    After expelling a deep breath, Amber aimed at the Gold¡¯s head. As she started the cast of [Eyes of the B??z?ruk??], tons of little balls flew out from behind the backs of all the g¡¯athu without helmets, enough to cover the whole open area in front of the portal. The balls exploded on landing and left some burning gas behind.


    Amber was knocked out of her invisibility and started to panic. The explosions didn¡¯t hurt her much, but the gas was burning her. She hoped the burning gas wouldn¡¯t keep her from hiding again and tried casting [And Now You Don¡¯t] as she started running away. The glyph was unbound. That glyph cast super-fast so no one should¡¯ve been able to unbind it. She tried [Turtle] with the same result. Her vision started to shake, and she couldn¡¯t run. Then she couldn¡¯t see. But only for a moment.


    Amber was in a world of complete and utter darkness. There was nothing but pitch blackness and the helmeted g¡¯athu with the floating cloak that stood in front of her. He wasn¡¯t veiling his tier any longer. He was the Gold. She was fearful and panicked, but also thankful she was in her demon form and those feelings were dulled. Her head began to throb with a massive headache. It felt like something was boring into her brain. Her vision started to warble. It felt like her mind was warbling too.


    Suddenly, Amber¡¯s head stopped hurting and the tentacles that poked out from under the helmet of the g¡¯athu began to dance around as it laughed uproariously. She hated the voice the NCS gave to people without the ability to speak in a way she could understand. She thought the g¡¯athu¡¯s laugh was super extra creepy.


    The g¡¯athu laughed for too long, and when he finished laughing, he said, ¡°You both took Level Capsules at Copper. That is very comical. And they say I¡¯m incapable of understanding humor.¡±


    The g¡¯athu laughed again. ¡°I also find it comical that you have no idea what you are for. I should leave you alive to see you find out, but my desire to hear your screams far outweighs the amusement that would bring me. Yes, you will be used to strengthen me. But there will be a far worse fate for you than just death. Since your ally failed to tell you of your fate as I told him to, I¡¯ll show you.¡±


    Visions of Amber being tortured in horrible and the grossest ways imaginable filled her head. She was again thankful she was in demon form. If she were in her magal form, she would¡¯ve been a quivering ball of fear, crying on the ground. She was still frightened though, just not nearly as much as she knew magals would be from seeing those visions. This guy makes Jason and Freddy seem like little sweet Girl Scouts selling cookies, she thought.


    ¡°Your mind isn¡¯t strong, Jepbuart''ruat''raow.¡±


    Amber froze in fear. He knows my true name! Oh, Jesus, I really hope John knowing it first protects me, she thought.


    Pain racked Amber¡¯s mind. The g¡¯athu snapped out, ¡°You can¡¯t truly believe that I need your true name to control you. I am inevitable.¡±


    After the pain relented, the g¡¯athu said, ¡°Maybe your fate won¡¯t be torture. Not of the kind I showed you. Two star-crossed lovers fighting to the death. Ah, I can almost taste the sorrow of the victor. I¡¯m willing to risk your death and the weaker form of strengthening I can take from your corpse. The audacity to think you could stand against me. The best the magals can field struggle to contain me, knowing it¡¯s a losing battle, knowing I am inevitable, and you thought you stood a chance?


    ¡°When we exit to real time, you will kill your ally. You will not hold back. Understood?¡±


    Amber tried to fight the compulsion. She struggled against it with everything she had. But she had no choice but to reply, ¡°Yes, Gold.¡± Her vision began to shake. She lost her sight for a moment. When she got it back, she turned and saw John in the air jumping towards the formation of g¡¯athu, twisting out of the way of some of the lasers and essence-balls, blocking some with his glowing shield and flaming blade as a line of plasma extended out from his ring into the energy stretched between the floating double-bladed thing in front of the Gold. He¡¯s so amazing, she thought.


    After quickly casting her buffs, Amber transformed into a bear and blinked to get closer. She then used her dash attack. Her heart broke as her horns plunged into John¡¯s back on either side of his spine, but one got caught on a rib preventing the other from entering too deeply. She withdrew her horns and her paw bashed into John¡¯s side. The echo attack batted the man she loved with all her heart away from her.


    During practice, Amber was always careful. She had to be when she was a Copper, as there was a real chance her horns would break on John. With all the bodies she got at Bronze, her horns breaking wasn¡¯t an issue, and she had to be careful to prevent herself from puncturing John with her horns like she just did. All her forms gave her [Stats] when she leveled up, and she hit the soft cap a long time ago. The efficiency of her [Strength] [Stat] was more than doubled in her bear form, so when she hit John with a full-strength blow, the echo attack batted him pretty far away.


    Amber continuously tried to resist the compulsion that controlled her. She couldn¡¯t. She spit acid, but John rolled away from it. She blinked and dashed again, and as she saw the look of hurt and pain in John¡¯s eye, her heart broke all over again.


    Amber¡¯s horns met John¡¯s shield and he slammed his pommel down into the back of her head. She knew he didn¡¯t hit her as hard as he could, but it still sent her smashing into the ground. She dropped an illusion of herself and blinked behind him, hitting him with an echo attack as hard as she could.


    John landed on the ground in front of the g¡¯athu, and Amber, with a heavy heart, dashed at him again.

 B2 Chapter 42 - Just a quiet, peaceful dance

    The worst part, for Amber, wasn¡¯t even the look of hurt and pain in John¡¯s eyes from her forced betrayal. It was the feeling of amusement she felt coming from the watching g¡¯athu. They all stood still and silent, but even as a bear she could feel the joy emanating from them. It made her hate them more than she thought she could ever hate anything.


    Instead of protecting against Amber¡¯s dash attack, John jumped away. He spun in the air, and she bashed into his shield again, which caused them both to fall into the side of the formation. The g¡¯athu silently spread out and backed away from the two combatants, and as she swiped her paw at John again, he rolled towards the g¡¯athu.


    John whipped his sword and shield at his enemies. His shield was blocked by all six of the protective spider-arms that shot lasers of the Silver he threw it at, but it at least destroyed all six of the arms. His sword embedded into the chest of a Bronze g¡¯athu after cutting through two of the spider-arms that tried to deflect it. The other Bronze g¡¯athu fell from his plasma ring before Amber even realized what was happening.


    Amber¡¯s echo attack from her failed swipe at John almost pulverized one of the helmeted Silvers trying to back away from the man she loved. As John rolled by the corpse with his sword in its chest, grabbing the sword, Amber was starting a new dash attack that ended as John yelled out, ¡°Amber, attack!¡±


    That was a clear command Amber should¡¯ve had no choice but to follow, but the tendrils in her mind dug in deeper, and she froze up instead. Her head began to pound, and it felt like a train ran over her brain, but she still smiled the best a bear could. Lasers and glowing chains and blue balls of energy raced towards John as he retrieved his shield and yelled for her to attack again. She couldn¡¯t, but his commands stopped her from attacking him.


    John spun and twisted in the air as his plasma ring shot by Amber. Soon, he was behind her too, and only one g¡¯athu remained in her field of vision. Since she couldn¡¯t move, she spread her senses out and tried to watch the fight that way as best she could. The g¡¯athu she could see shot his blue chest-light and then lashing out with the glowing chains.


    Amber heard John grunt in pain and a loud clunking noise. And seconds and seconds of only battle before another Silver disappeared from her senses. The pain in her mind lessened some. She tried moving but still couldn¡¯t.


    Again, John yelled, ¡°Amber, attack!¡±  She almost could.  The copy of herself from her illusion spell already dissipated.  If she could cast that again, and control the copy, she thought she could help a little.  But not as much as she could if she freed herself.  She couldn¡¯t leave this fight to John alone.  As a bear, her mind was restricted, but it was also rageful and naturally fought against being controlled.  She applied all her effort and will into freeing herself.  She pushed against the tentacles digging into her brain, trying to regain her freedom and join the fight.  And fight side-by-side with the man she loved.


    John grunted out in pain again. Then she heard him yell and a noise that sounded like his sword and shield clanking off the ground. He yelled again. Then he screamed out so loudly and fiercely even she became frightened. Two g¡¯athu hovered backwards into her vision. As she heard the sound of metal scraping against the ground for a split second, she also heard the heart rates of the remaining g¡¯athu increase. All of their heart rates. She could almost smell the fear coming off the strange aliens.


    Go John! Bite their heads off, thought Amber. Her heart nearly burst with joy. Her headache slackened and she could move her head a little. She tried spitting acid at the g¡¯athu she could see, and it almost worked. She was getting a little control back. Then her headache amplified, and she couldn¡¯t move at all again.


    John cried out loudly in pain. A g¡¯athu said, ¡°Now you die.¡± John yelled again. And again, right after. Then he let out a very loud and horrific scream of rage and there was a loud thud and another Silver disappeared from her senses. John yelled out, ¡°Who¡¯s inevitable now, you son of a bitch! Amber, attack!¡± She couldn¡¯t.


    You can do it, John! You got this, buddy, thought Amber excitedly through her pounding headache. After sensing little and only hearing battle noises for a while, John bellowed out, ¡°I will eat your hearts and bathe in your blood!¡± As a bear, she didn¡¯t think that was too gross or weird. She was up for eating far more of the g¡¯athu than hearts, and if there was a bath of warm g¡¯athu blood in front of her, she wouldn¡¯t mind slipping into it.


    John cried out in pain. A g¡¯athu said, ¡°Blade energy? You fool!¡±


    After John made a really weird noise the heart rates of the remaining g¡¯athu decreased. All the remaining g¡¯athu in her senses converged on John. The one she could still see shot his spider-leg laser beams. She became worried and wished she could see what was going on as John made more strange noises that she thought sounded really bad.


    Out of the ground behind the only g¡¯athu in her field of vision burst the puppet-thing they called Stretch. Its armor was burned, notched, and battered all over. Her NCS told her something about Stretch after the World Quest ended, but she couldn¡¯t remember what while in her current form. She did remember she didn¡¯t go to help John save the puppet. That made her feel guilty it was helping them out. She could sense the puppet was a peak Silver now.


    Stretch landed on the back of the g¡¯athu and brought it to the ground. One of its arms started to jackhammer-punch the g¡¯athu while completely ignoring the laser beams of the spider-legs boring into it.


    Stretch''s other hand shot out like a bullet and the goop connecting the shoulder to the hand went from being a thick arm to a stretched out thin line that looked like it was ready to snap. As a new Silver was pulled into Amber''s vision, its glowing chains cut completely through Stretch¡¯s retracting arm.


    The g''athu Stretch was jackhammering had been literally pounded into the ground and was as dead as anything could be. Stretch shot the jackhammering arm at the new Silver and hit the g¡¯athu¡¯s face with a crack and then grabbed hold of it to pull himself to his enemy. As he pulled himself to the g''athu, his lost arm snaked back to rejoin the rest of him, and he had two arms again.


    I love this guy! Go Stretch, thought Amber. Stretch broke off some of the g¡¯athu¡¯s spider-legs as a blue ball hit him, froze him up, and he fell over like a tree. Glowing chains raked over his battered, wooden armor. A bunch of attacks from outside her vision bombarded the frozen and prone Stretch.


    You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.


    Then Stretch''s arm snaked up and grabbed the g''athu again. He pulled himself towards the g''athu in a flash and started to jackhammer his foe into oblivion. John yelled out, ¡°Amber, attack!¡± She tried moving. No dice! Dang it! Almost.


    Stretch¡¯s arms both stretched out and he left her field of view a moment later. She fought to get control back. She couldn¡¯t. She extended her senses. There were only six Silvers and the Gold left, and she could smell a lot of John¡¯s blood. She needed to get into the fight. She started her struggle for control again as she heard John yell something out angrily she didn¡¯t understand.


    Stretch, copying John, yelled out, ¡°I am yelling words loudly!¡±


    John flew into her field of vision minus his sword and shield. She thought he would slam down onto his back, but he somehow managed to twist in the air and land in a crouch. His face was covered in lash wounds. Part of his nose was missing, and she could see his teeth through the missing flesh of his cheek. His armor was in tatters, as was the robe under it. He had more lash wounds than she could count, and his body was peppered with holes and covered in blood. Both his own and the blue g¡¯athu blood.


    John looked at her and said, ¡°Amber, attack,¡± as he leapt by her. She struggled. She pushed against what gripped her mind. She was almost there. She ignored everything else and pushed against it. And pushed. She could move her head again. Just a little, but it was progress.


    Amber heard a loud thud. As she extended her senses another Silver disappeared. John¡¯s shield rolled by her and spun in a circle until it fell flat.


    ¡°Amber, attack,¡± yelled John, and then he grunted. Amber tried to force her mind free. She was almost there. She pushed and pushed and focused on that for a time. Since she couldn¡¯t force the tendrils out of her mind, she checked her senses. There were only the Gold and one Silver left. We¡¯re winning! Come on, I gotta force myself free.


    While struggling to get control back, Amber¡¯s ears popped and the pressure around her increased dramatically.


    As a new, extremely strange presence entered her senses, Amber became completely free. She whipped herself around and saw a monster even more frightening than the g¡¯athu.


    The new monster was of indeterminable tier, but Amber could tell it was powerful. It radiated a malevolence that frightened her and nearly caused her to run away as fast as she could. The monster was very large, and the g¡¯athu only came up to its chest. It had the torso of a man but had four arms attached to it. Its lower body was like an insect but had four legs and a long and thick tail. Up and down its back were a bunch of small tail-looking things that waived around.


    The skin of the monster was a light-purple color. It had darker-purple blotches of fur in some places. It had a really thick neck that got smaller and turned into a crazy-looking mouth-head with no eyes and a circle mouth filled all around with rows and rows of long pin-like fangs.


    The monster¡¯s back-tails waved as the NCS put a voice in Amber¡¯s head. ¡°Why not?¡± The monster skittered up to the g¡¯athu Gold with lightning-like quickness. The head of the g¡¯athu was covered completely within the mouth-head of the new monster.


    Even though the new monster wore jewelry and some items of clothing, Amber was certain it was a mindless beast until it spoke. To her bear mind, especially, nothing that big and monstrous could be sapient.


    Amber noticed John, Stretch, and the last Silver g¡¯athu were frozen in action. John was getting up or rolling and the glowing chains from the g¡¯athu¡¯s tentacle-hands were lashing towards him. It made her worried to see what bad shape he was in. A lot of blood dripped off of him that looked beautiful as the droplets sparkled in the air, frozen too. She was about to go lick the blood off his face when the new, giant monster pointed at her, and she sat down. She wasn¡¯t going to disobey that thing.


    Stretch¡¯s frozen arms both extended towards the Gold g¡¯athu whose head was in the monster¡¯s mouth-head. His armor was a little more battered, with more scorches from lasers and scratches from the glowing chains. She wished she could thank the puppet. Or whatever controlled it.


    After some time, the monster removed its mouth-head from the Gold. It said, ¡°Wow. That was extremely terrifying. But very interesting.¡± It raised one of its four arms and the living Gold and Silver as well as all the corpses littering the clearing broke apart. A visible and colorful wind started to fly towards the monster as the g''athu''s gear dropped and clanked off the ground. All the crystals were scooped up by the colorful corpse-wind and entered the monster¡¯s outstretched arm too.


    John and Stretch, in the same frozen poses, along with Amber, appeared on top of a building looking down on the open area and portal. The gear of the g¡¯athu started to explode, and more explosions sounded from all around the base.


    To think better, and since she didn¡¯t believe the monster posed a threat to her, Amber changed to demon and then again into her human form. As soon as she did, she realized she was probably looking at Sublime Sunshine.


    Amber immediately turned to John and her heart became heavy with worry. She gave him some of her old healing and took out a cloth and started to clean blood from his many serious injuries. While as a human or demon she could use the regeneration manifestation of her lizard with any of her aspects. She used ¡®wild¡¯ since it was better at healing than ¡®trick,¡¯ and ¡®acid¡¯ was a horrible essence to try and heal with.


    Then Amber, John, and Stretch were moved back to the open area near the portal. The monster she thought was Sublime Sunshine said, ¡°I can stop the possessions of the other types of g¡¯athu from self-destructing. I only managed to save two pieces from these. I never thought I would meet the Butcher. His connection to his others is limited to a very small vicinity at the tiers brought to Terra. I would hate for the Butcher to hold a grudge against me. He is contained to specific universes, so I should be safe regardless.


    ¡°You have very rude thoughts, you know? Not sapient! My race ascended off our planet while yours was in trees throwing feces at one another for fun. And, yes, I am Sublime Sunshine.¡±


    Amber knew how to address beings of much higher tiers and kowtowed. ¡°Sorry, Mr. Sublime. I¡­sorry.¡± She couldn¡¯t think of a good excuse to give. Sunshine looked very frightening, and she wasn¡¯t used to having her thoughts read.


    ¡°If you are wondering why I am still holding my hand up in the air like this, it is because it will take a few more moments for the rest of what is mine to arrive. Where are the portal anchors? Why am I asking you? And I have a head. Not a mouth-head. A normal head. For primates, you terrans are very judgmental of how others look.¡±


    Amber wondered if it was okay for her to get up and continue tending to John. Sunshine said, ¡°Yes, yes. Recover. No need to see to or worry about John. He will be fine. I will give him some healing. I dislike talking to people I do not know. As soon as I finish collecting what is mine, I will learn of you.¡±


    Amber got up filled with worry. John told her how Sunshine would suck memories out of heads. She hoped she wouldn¡¯t have to put everyone¡¯s head in her mouth when she reached Sublime. ¡°Relax. It will not hurt all that much. And unless you merge similar concepts you will not be taking memories. I do not need to place the head in my mouth. Physical contact is not necessary but makes it less costly. And I enjoy doing so.¡±


    As the last of the colored wind entered the Sublime, he lowered his arm and said, ¡°That should be all of it. Now, as is customary when one so low as you are graced by the mere presence of one so high as a Divine, we will now copulate. Remove all your armor and clothing and prepare to pleasure me.¡±


    Amber froze and her heart nearly burst out of her chest. ¡°Ha! That was a joke. I find the look of you terrans to be repulsive. Plus, I am married. Sort of.¡± Sublime Sunshine skittered over to her so quickly it looked like he appeared out of thin air. His mouth-head started to descend towards her own, and her heart nearly burst out of her chest again.

 B2 Chapter 43 - But I thought this wouldnt hurt a lot

    John was once again pulled into the mind of his mentor. Sunshine said, ¡°Unofficial mentor. Let us not get too ahead of ourselves. Bronze? I wasn¡¯t expecting you to reach that tier for some time. Congratulations. Now pay obeisance before all else.¡±


    John was furious. He needed to kill the g¡¯athu and Sunshine swooped in near the end and stole his victory. He needed it. He needed to get some of the hate and anger out of himself. It was eating him up. Instead of kowtowing, he stood there and seethed, trying to force the anguish away.


    ¡°Yes. Push all the hate and rage down deep inside. Bottle it up tight. That is clearly the best way of dealing with it. Along with sporadically lashing out at family, friends, and those that care most for you. All highly successful beings do so. It is very healthy.¡±


    As John continued to seethe, Sunshine studied him. And waited. They both stood there for a long while. The dullness John felt inside a Mind¡¯s Eye helped, but in Sunshine¡¯s mind he felt more than he did in his own. He finally regained a semblance of control and kowtowed.


    Sunshine said, ¡°Good enough. Remember, if we were in public, I would have no choice but to humble you for showing such disrespect towards your betters. Now, let¡­¡±


    John yelled out, ¡°You stole my victory from me! I needed it. I needed to get this out of me.¡±


    Sunshine was silent for a moment. ¡°I will let that pass this time. I did not steal your victory. I do not like being noticed by such high powers, but someone from the core contacted me and told me to return to Terra and kill all the g¡¯athu. The Sublime that was watching your world is in a colossal amount of trouble. The fool brought the Butcher outside of where he¡¯s quarantined.


    ¡°Do you think the core would have contacted me, or known about me, if not for you? Or have known the Butcher was here if not for you? I was enjoying my new wealth and had no plans to travel back here for some time. Do you think I have nothing better to do than hang out around a resource-poor world filled with only low-Mortals? Do you know how much essence it costs to descend? Did you think I wanted to? If I missed even one polyp and the Butcher grows to breed more and spread, it will be my neck on the chopping block.¡±


    John only interacted with the Sublime over Earth a little, but he seemed like a decent sort to him. Sunshine skittered around like he was looking for something. John thought that was strange since his mind was empty, or at least John could see absolutely nothing. Just empty space.


    Sunshine stopped and furniture appeared everywhere. ¡°Ha! You say my mind is the one that is empty? And I can fill this space however I want, but that often gives hints about a Mind Palace, so keeping this area blank is the best practice. I was not looking for something. I was showing off all my new jewelry. I figured you, of all people, would appreciate how I am now adorned, considering your upbringing.¡± The furniture that filled the area disappeared, and the space was again empty.


    ¡°I have you to thank for this jewelry and outfit. I am filthy rich. Or, I should say, I soon will be. I am moderately well-off as of now. To show my appreciation, I will split the crystals I just collected with you. I will give you and the Natural three¡­two¡­a dark-yellow crystal of a Silver. Each. So, you will each get one. Never say I am not generous.¡±


    John wasn¡¯t surprised by the stinginess of Sunshine. ¡°Hey! You know I can hear your thoughts. I should now not give you the other presents I brought. I guess I still will since I am so kind. I have two, and they will both be at your feet when you exit my Mind¡¯s Eye. Also, I will provide you with healing. All at no charge. You are welcome.¡±


    John was about to ask what the presents were, but Sunshine beat him to it. ¡°When we first met, I said I had in my possession an item that would help with your soul damage. I have not given it to you because it would help little on its own. It softens the soul for a short time. Take that first gift by ingesting the contents of the small vial. The second present is a pouch. It contains a substance you will absorb the essence of a day after you ingest the vial. Absorb the contents of the pouch the same way you absorb the energy within a core-crystal.


    ¡°The first item was very costly. The second item was absurdly expensive. It cost far, far more than all the wealth I took from you the last time we met. Factor in the cost of finding and traveling to a market that contained such an item in this yokel galaxy, courier costs, annoyance, tips, etcetera, and it would not be ridiculous to say you owe me more than you could ever pay back.


    ¡°And I do not even expect you to pay it all back. Just some¡­most of it. Your soul will not be completely healed, but it should heal a terrific amount. Again, you are welcome.¡±


    John was very surprised Sunshine was actually helping him. He had studied contracts with Avatar. His [Skill] was only at 10 though. He thought about the contract he signed and was about to ask how Sunshine was making wealth since Earth had no valuable resources, but Sunshine beat him to it again. ¡°The playz and serials of your world. What you call movies and shows. We are marketing them as ¡®what if there were no Tree of Life?¡¯ How would a society of primates, all low-Woods without cores to open, evolve and conduct war? What would their tech look like?


    ¡°I can only sell them in this galaxy with my current license, but most have been very successful. Check in your NCS under [NCS, Upgrades, and Pricing], then go to [Entertainment] and search for ¡®what if new releases.¡¯ There will be a few playz and serials of this world. You cannot buy them since I cannot sell them on Terra, but you can see how successful most are.


    ¡°We should soon have enough energy credit for a universal license. Sales keep going up and up as word-of-mouth spreads. There really is nothing like the playz and serials of your world. The war, comedy, and musical playz are wonderful. It helps that your race are primates. Everyone finds watching primates to be enjoyable. Only the fantasy playz of Terra have not done well. We have not released many playz as of yet, and fewer serials. We do not want to flood the market.


    ¡°And I owe it all to you and your inability to read and pay attention. Yes, I know you can read. I also know you do not. It is good you studied contracts. I guess I will no longer be able to con you so easily.¡±


    Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.


    Sunshine skittered closer and put all four of his big, meaty hands on John¡¯s arms and said, ¡°Thank you. I have a path forward now. I can send my family crystals again. That should shut my wife up. It will take a lot of time and effort, but Eternal is a possibility. I cannot believe I have a path forward again. Oh, I have news for you. I had it the last time I saw you but decided not to tell you then.


    ¡°My Eternal friend¡­friend is too lofty a word. My Eternal contact, she figured out what the place you call the cold-dark is. Where the other Eternal found your soul lingering. It is the great beyond. Outside the boundaries of the universe, where even Eternals cannot travel. There are millions and millions of souls from your world out there, if not billions. She and other Eternals looking to gain karma are retrieving them and placing them on worlds where the Vhilani Mahilaharu can collect them and return them to the Wheel.


    ¡°It makes sense now. Why your soul was so damaged. It was out in the great beyond for nearly four thousand standard years. What a terrible fate for a soul. Everyone that died on your planet before the shield blocking the Tree of Life was removed had their souls sent to the great beyond. She has no idea why you-know-who would do that. And let me be clear, I am not saying anything bad about you-know-who. Stop! Do not think his name, fool!¡±


    Sunshine shook John¡¯s arms. ¡°You keep doing it! Okay, then we shall just move on.¡± Sunshine¡¯s mouth stretched over John¡¯s head. That certainly kept John from thoughts of the ancient old one named Betrayal.


    Whatever the Sublime did to take John¡¯s memories hurt less as it was done to him again, and soon the mouth was removed. Sunshine stood silently, and the four hands that still gripped John¡¯s arms began to squeeze him painfully.


    ¡°Four Level Capsules? To achieve Bronze? I have never wanted to kill something more than I want to kill you now. Such wealth! Such unimaginable wealth! For Bronze! You fool! You utter fool. Everyone achieves Bronze. Everyone! Level Capsules! Oh, if only time could be reversed. Or you were not such a great fool. I would be an Eternal now.¡±


    John felt that the malevolence emanating off of Sublime Sunshine increased tenfold, and he truly thought the Sublime was going to kill him.


    ¡°I just might. I am trying to contain myself and not. Four Level Capsules! For Bronze! Bronze! The third tier of the first Tree! I am taking the treasures I brought for you back. No healing. And no light-green crystal! For either of you. You fools!¡±


    The double row of lion-tails lashed back and forth furiously. The Sublime squeezed John¡¯s arms hard enough he had no choice but to scream in pain as bones began to be crushed.


    ¡°Stop whining. These are not true injuries, and you will not leave with them.¡±


    The world blurred by and John was in a new place. The Sublime was still squeezing him to death, and he screamed more. He was finally let go of and fell to the ground, struggling to breathe through so many cracked and displaced ribs, unable to catch himself with his shattered arms.


    ¡°We are in my Mind Palace. If you tell anyone about anything you see here, I will kill you. You must be punished.¡±


    The Sublime held up a very, very large book. ¡°This is ¡®A Collection of Firsthand Accounts of the Forsaken War and Before.¡¯ It is not the oldest surviving book, but it is one of the great ancients. It is certainly the most famous and most circulated historical account. Four Level Capsules! For Bronze!¡±


    Sunshine twisted the book to show how thick it was. ¡°Remember when your wife said you were butthurt? You told her that words could never hurt your butt. I sincerely disagree and I am certain that soon you will too. One week. This will reside inside of your anal cavity for one week.¡±


    John thought there was no way the book would ever fit in his butt. ¡°You do not want to find out how many objects I could fit in there. Four Level Capsules! God Almighty, four Level Capsules! For Bronze. Everyone achieves Bronze, you terrible fool¡± angrily exclaimed Sunshine.


    <hr><hr>


    John wasn¡¯t allowed to leave the one room of Sunshine¡¯s Mind Palace called the library. His arms, shoulders, and ribs remained broken, so he was forced to stand. And standing made it far more uncomfortable for him considering he had a very large book residing in his anal cavity, and his body¡¯s natural want for him to bend over and lean so the book would hurt less.


    Sunshine ordered John not to speak or think or meditate. He naturally slipped into meditating when he had nothing else to do, but Sunshine, comfortably reading from a long and strange sofa, would engage him in conversation as soon as John began to.


    It was still day one of John¡¯s five-day punishment. It bothered him that a standard day and standard week were shorter than what he considered real days and weeks, but a standard year was much longer than a real year.


    How interested Sunshine was in Stretch and the world seed controlling Stretch amazed John. The alien found the subject both fascinating and exciting.


    The energy Eternal was the only being to have communicated with the world seed, and according to the NCS, the world seed was a mixture of energy being and organic and was learning how to communicate in both ways. Sublime had communicated with Eternal energy beings before, including the Eternal watching over Terra.


    Eternal was the only tier of energy beings that other forms of life could communicate with at all. Sunshine said they communicated with images that were sometimes clear, but, more often than not, too confusing to understand.


    John couldn¡¯t care less. Stretch was his friend and that was that. Sure, Stretch was annoying, but he was a fearless and doughty fighter. He was dependable and willing to risk his own life to protect and save others. John respected Stretch, regardless of whether he was man or puppet. Or a world seed.


    John looked around the room once again. The ceiling was remarkably high and many small, shining balls were floating around below the ceiling, providing light. The room was shaped hexagonally, and all walls, besides the one with the large and closed door, were lined with bookshelves crammed with books reaching all the way to the ceiling. Other than the strange sofa, there was also a strange desk with a strange chair, and a larger and more comfortable looking strange chair, as well as a small table near the sofa and chair. A shining ball of light hovered a short distance over the desk and small table.


    John shifted his weight uncomfortably back and forth to each foot. He knew Sunshine¡¯s dilation was approaching one as well, so after his punishment was over, he¡¯d leave the Sublime¡¯s Mind¡¯s Eye at nearly the same time as he entered it. The wounds he sustained within it would be gone also, and he¡¯d just have all the injuries he acquired during his battle with the g¡¯athu. He was sorely damaged and had received a great many wounds during that battle.


    The rage and darkness simmering within John made the punishment all the worse, especially when Sunshine talked to him about Lilly. He didn¡¯t want to talk about her. He didn¡¯t want anyone else to ever know his great shame. It was his business and no one else should ever know about it. And he was sick of his impotence when dealing with beings like Sunshine.


    Sunshine called John his friend but stole his victory, placed a book up his anus for taking rewards he had earned himself by his own deeds, and lacked even the honor of letting John have a choice in accepting such a ridiculous and dishonorable punishment.


    And John could do absolutely nothing about it. If he became too lippy, Sunshine just smashed him into the ground over and over like he did during their first meeting. He was treated as a plaything and not a man. Like a toy, he had no say in how he¡¯d be played with.

 B2 Chapter 44 - Crucify then learn

    John bent over uncomfortably within the Mind Palace of Sublime Sunshine, his anal cavity filled with a very large book.


    As he stewed over how Sunshine swooped down and stole his victory, John wished he could get his semi-mentor to admit it was a wrong thing to do. He and Stretch had almost won the battle. Orders or not, Sunshine could¡¯ve held off for a few minutes.


    John would¡¯ve drained the Gold and told him, ¡°I win, you lose.¡± He loved doing that. He would then have cut the Gold¡¯s heart out and continued to cut him into little pieces, entered a portal, and easily slaughtered the rest of the g¡¯athu. He would have been able to get all the hate and anger out of himself. His wife¡¯s betrayal completely filled him with rage and sadness. He hurt too much and needed to share his pain with his enemies.


    Sunshine, lounging in his reading chair, snapped out, ¡°Oh, stop being such a milksop. I am sick and tired of your constant need for mollycoddling.¡±


    After readjusting his position, Sunshine continued. ¡°Your wife betrayed you. A lot. I mean, she cheated on you way more than any wife has ever cheated on a husband. And you only know of the times you caught her. You can expect her real numbers to be at least twice than that which you know of. At a minimum.


    ¡°Your wife is certainly a snollygoster. But are not they all? My own wife has been on a permanent crusade to ruin me financially, spiritually, and mentally. She is pure and distilled evil. I wish I caught her cheating on me so I could divorce her without any further financial ruin. On my world, husbands do not have to pay alimony if the wife is proven perfidious. I pray for her infidelity while knowing that cruel beast would never do me such a great favor.


    ¡°In your case, you know for certain your wife loves you a tremendous amount. You would have a far lesser body [Perk] if not for her. She risked her own life to save your own while you were attaining that [Perk]. She spent a tremendous amount of her own resources on you. She followed you through the portal to save Stretch, knowing it would be her own death. She cursed the demon scab as he carried her away from you before you fought the g¡¯athu.


    ¡°While you were in a trance and unable to remember her words, she still claimed to have fought her way back to you. You have no idea how difficult that would have been. Just finding your world would have been a task beyond most to solve. The bloody climb is not easy. She made my Tree twice. She clearly loves you dearly. Far more than I ever loved anyone. Or could love anyone. She is as true of a companion as she is as true of a cozener.¡±


    Sunshine placed the book he was reading onto the small table. ¡°Let the anger go and divorce her. End the marriage. Keep her as a friend. You could never have one that loved you as much or was any truer. Killing her would be a mistake. She is a genius with rituals and runes. And you do not want an enemy like her showing up to haunt your future.¡±


    John thought of all the wanton slaughter of innocents Lilly was responsible for. She had something within her that caused her to enjoy performing evil deeds of cruelty far too much.


    ¡°You have a dullard¡¯s understanding of good and evil. Have you and I not done the same once or twice? Or a couple additional times too? Ninnyhammers should do their best to not also be a smellfungus. Especially such a cockalorum as you are. How many times have you proven you are a mumpsimus?¡±


    John had no idea what Sunshine was saying and wished he would stop using such silly words.


    ¡°Since I own it all, I have been reading some of your world¡¯s literature to get an idea of what will sell. So many of your world had some intelligence and a great deal of creativity, but no struggle or bloody climb to focus their attention on. Their outlet seemed to have been increasing the vocabulary of their various languages to write better poetry. Or to make those around them feel stupid, as I will now use these innovative words I have incorporated into my own vocabulary. I will stop doing so with you now. Apologies.


    ¡°Anyways, you make my point for me. Your wife is a great friend but a far worse and truly awful foe. Do you want her vindictiveness aimed at you when she rises again in a new body? You would then have as true and as ruthless an enemy as they come, and you would never cease having to look over your shoulder.


    ¡°Confront her, put the fear of God Almighty into her, tell her she is no longer your wife, but let it show that you still love her and there is a chance of reconciliation. It does not matter if there is no actual chance and never will be a chance to reconcile. String her along. Women only act right when there is a clear path towards getting what they want. And, otherwise, you would have no leverage at all.


    ¡°And for God¡¯s sake, keep that woman as a close friend that loves you more than she ever hates you. And tell her you will kill her without further discussion if she uses the trance or a compulsion on you again. Throw in the killing of innocents too if such petty nonsense bothers you so much. She must touch you to trigger the trance. If you cannot keep a child more than an arms-length away from you, then you do not deserve to have your freewill.¡±


    <hr><hr>


    As time ticked slowly by, John talked to Sunshine and got his opinion on [Synergies] and many other subjects related to cultivation and advancement. In many cases, they shared the same mind on how he should progress.


    John had talked about [Synergies] with Lilly, but he felt she didn¡¯t fully understand the scope of the decision, whereas Sunshine did. They also talked about his new aspects and future possibilities.


    Sunshine talked often about Lilly and Stretch while only touching briefly on Amber and Hubaba a few times. He was in awe of John¡¯s new body [Perk] and Lilly¡¯s knowledge of rituals.


    The Sublime also unattuned the bracer that resided in John¡¯s ring, freeing up an attunable slot, and, of course, charged for the service.


    As John shifted around uncomfortably, Sunshine stood from his chair and worry emanated off him. ¡°No! The Butcher has returned! And in force! I could not find the anchors and now the Butcher has come through them. There are many Transcendent and Celestial versions of him, and at least one Divine.¡±


    John¡¯s adrenaline spiked. Sunshine turned to him. ¡°I am not allowed to interfere. No! I could. You are considered the ruler of this world.¡±


    Sunshine hastily skittered to John, holding a contract out. ¡°Quickly, sign this! It will allow me to fight!¡±


    John, his heart beating so quickly and mightily he forgot what was lodged in his behind, stood up straight and nearly signed the contract. Instead, he started to read it.


    Sunshine worriedly yelled out, ¡°There is no time! Sign, and do so quickly, or your world is lost!¡±


    John, his hands shaking, thought about how they were approaching one. Time was basically frozen while they were in Sunshine¡¯s mind.


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    ¡°Do you think the Butcher cares if I am approaching one! Sign or your world is doomed!¡±


    John nearly signed the contract again. He felt that something was off, that Sunshine was trying to twist him up. If time was nearly frozen then he had plenty of it to read the contract. And he wondered how the g¡¯athu returned through portals so quickly in real time outside the Mind¡¯s Eye.


    ¡°Good! It took a long time, but you finally heeded my advice. Mark this day for it is the first I shall not laugh behind your back at what a great fool you are. Today you have proven you are capable of thinking. A little. Not much. But better than nothing. Ha!¡±


    <hr><hr>


    The punishment continued, and unofficial semi-mentor and unofficial semi-student took turns ignoring each other and starting conversations, discussing many subjects in great detail.


    As John¡¯s punishment came to an end, Sunshine said, ¡°I am glad to see your emotions have finally settled some and you are acting less foolishly. See? Time is the greatest of healing draughts for what ails the spirit. You are welcome.¡±


    John wondered if his punishment was actually about Level Capsules or if there was another reason. He sometimes thought Sunshine was a decent person. Then he had a hard time believing he even had such a thought about someone that nearly crushed him to death and forced him to live with an extremely large book shoved up his rear-end for five days.


    Outside of Sunshine¡¯s Mind¡¯s Eye, John was unfrozen just as the Sublime enveloped Amber¡¯s head in his horrific mouth. His body was injured and filled with pain, but his anal cavity being book-free felt wonderful.


    John cursed when he saw that no corpse of a g¡¯athu remained anywhere. He disliked men that made idle threats, and he would no longer be able to eat a g¡¯athu heart and bathe in their blood. He picked up the vial and pouch left at his feet and was thankful to feel the healing of Sunshine already working its way throughout his body.


    Stretch approached John and rubbed against him. The puppet took John¡¯s hand in his own and John began to see fuzzy and confusing images he didn¡¯t understand. The images clarified a little, but not enough to be understandable. He tried sending images of his own with uncertain results. He wanted Stretch to know he thought of him as a friend and was extremely thankful for his help fighting the g¡¯athu.


    Sunshine finished with Amber and laughed. ¡°Ha! The irony. Ha! Very interesting. Very interesting. I cannot wait to tell my wife.¡±


    Sunshine quickly skittered over to Stretch and enveloped his head for a moment and said, ¡°Nothing. As I presumed. But, nothing ventured, nothing gained. Okay, children, I have other tasks. Tell those few of your race possessing some intelligence to study these connecting portals of the g¡¯athu. A lot can be learned. If they can understand and apply what they learn, your world being considered Tech 1 will not be such a farce one day. I would offer to transport you all somewhere, but I shall not.¡±


    Sunshine disappeared and Amber ran to John as she wiped her face off. ¡°I¡¯m so, so sorry I attacked you! He made me! The Gold! I couldn¡¯t help it! I swear! Oh, look how injured you are! You poor thing.¡±


    Amber took out a cloth and started to fuss over John. He said, ¡°I¡¯m fine. Thank you. I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± He stopped himself from finishing the sentence. He was going to apologize for abusing his power over her and giving her commands. Amber was smiling and didn¡¯t seem mad at all, so he took the win. Her great beauty, even with her hair so frizzled, sent butterflies flying around his belly.


    Amber said, ¡°And Stretch! Thank you so much! I couldn¡¯t help with the fight and¡­and then you showed up! Oh, God, that was wonderful to see. I love how you jack-hammered those¡­those¡­monsters. With your¡­fist¡­things.¡±


    Stretch moved towards Amber and rubbed against her for longer than John ever saw him rub against anyone. Stretched stopped as John was about to intervene. The puppet grabbed Amber¡¯s hand, John assumed to try and communicate in his strange new way.


    As John looked around, he realized there was absolutely nothing to loot or collect. According to Sunshine, the g¡¯athu threat was over. Only the last of the demons remained, and if the g¡¯athu told him the truth, the demons may have returned through the portal, meaning there was a possibility Earth was now safe.


    John hoped the other Sublime wouldn¡¯t make him pay for those portal anchors too. He wondered what kind of trouble that Sublime was in, and if there was some sort of jail somewhere that could hold such powerful entities. If the other Sublime would be put in prison, John hoped he would be imprisoned before he could collect from him the cost of the three expensive anchors.


    Amber giggled. John wondered if she and Stretch were truly communicating somehow, or if she was just pretending, as some women often pretended to have the ability to communicate with ghosts and such nonsense. He hoped Amber wasn¡¯t one of those people.


    John checked his phone. He still didn¡¯t think it was working. He turned on the info function of his NCS and looked around. The closest place to them with a population was a little south and west called Praia de Pernambuco. Further to the northwest was a much more highly populated place called S?o Paulo. He figured they should check the closest place, Praia de Pernambuco, first.


    The need to walk anywhere ended as he heard helicopters approaching. John collected his sword and shield and put them in his ring along with the pouch of some substance Sunshine said would help heal his soul. He drank the contents of the small vial and put the empty vial in his ring. It burned a little going down but had no real taste to it.


    After remembering the energy field covering the base, John, Amber, and Stretch found the exit, opened it, and walked to a clearing outside of it. He was surprised when Amber didn¡¯t turn invisible. She said she wanted to test if the visual part of her curse really was gone. She seemed extremely excited. He hoped it was true. He knew it would make her very happy.


    ¡°How long until you have to kill a human? For the demon form,¡± John asked Amber.


    Amber¡¯s smile disappeared. Her eyes looked watery. ¡°A little under two weeks.¡±


    Soon, the helicopters appeared and landed. As soldiers exited the helicopters, John became nervous as all the soldiers stared at Amber. She said, ¡°Oh, John! It¡¯s gone! They don¡¯t look angry at all!¡±


    The Brazilian military thanked John, Amber, and Stretch profusely. They were informed Lilly and Hubaba were both alive and well and flying to DC. An offer was made to take them anywhere they wanted, and the general they spoke to seemed disappointed when they said DC. There was no sign of the demons and the last portal, but John and the general both agreed they¡¯d be back.


    Stretch refused to get into the helicopter, so the soldiers waited patiently as Stretch and Amber held hands and either pretended to communicate or actually communicated their goodbyes to one another. John was rubbed against for a moment, and Stretch went into the ground the strange way he did.


    Amber was all smiles as they flew to an airbase and boarded a plane. The soldiers couldn¡¯t take their eyes off her.


    John regretted which part of Amber¡¯s curse was removed. He liked it much better when no one could see her besides himself, Hubaba, and Lilly. He hated that Amber enjoyed other men looking at her so much. She has too much Lilly coursing through her veins, he thought.


    During the flight, a soldier that was part of the plane¡¯s crew continuously talked to Amber. Seeing the excitement and joy on Amber¡¯s face filled John¡¯s heart with more darkness. He was surprised how long it took the soldier to get the hint and leave.


    ¡°Oh my God! You¡¯re such a jerk! I finally, finally get to be seen and a cute guy was talking to me and you¡­Jesus! You stared at him like¡­and your face! Could you look any more like a psycho?¡±


    John took a deep breath and said, ¡°I was being a good chaperone. Since you have no husband, father, or brother, I must take the task on myself.¡±


    ¡°Again ¨C oh my God! What is wrong with you? I can take care of myself. Jerk!¡±


    ¡°No, you cannot. If that were true you wouldn¡¯t send out illicit pictures for any strange man to look at. I¡¯m protecting your reputation. A reputation you seem determined to ruin yourself.¡±


    Amber started to cry. ¡°You¡¯re such a jerk! This isn¡¯t the olden times! It¡¯s okay to wear what I did in those pictures. None of those photos were inappropriate. And it¡¯s okay if¡­finally I can be seen! And talk to boys. Finally! I still have the rest of the curse, you know? I still can¡¯t do anything! And I can talk to whoever I want to! He was going to ask me on a date. I know it! I woulda been able to go on my first date ever! And you ruined it!¡±


    John scoffed and said, ¡°We went on many buddy-dates.¡±


    Amber sobbed as she said, ¡°Those weren¡¯t real dates! You¡¯re married! Your wife loves you so, so much. You have no idea how lucky you are. You¡¯re such an ungrateful jerk!¡±


    Amber cried and John stared at the soldier sitting far down the other aisle of the plane. The soldier tried to melt into his chair before he finally got up and hid in the waste-room.


    John meditated for the rest of the flight and was annoyed Amber didn¡¯t. She just played on her phone. She is probably doing illicit picture stuff, thought John angrily.


    Knowing his wife put thoughts in his head about Amber, John was certain he came to the conclusion the illicit-picture sharing with strangers was wrong on his own. To him, it highlighted a great flaw within Amber, a flaw she shared with Lilly.

 B2 chapter 45 - So judge me for my labor

    John sensed Lilly and Hubaba before he exited the plane. Filled with a murderous rage he repressed, he walked up to the waiting group, nodded to Hubaba and Colonel Stoddart, and said to Lilly, ¡°We must talk privately.¡±


    Lilly had an admonished look on her face. And she didn¡¯t excitedly run to him as he exited the plane, so he assumed Sunshine visited her. His semi-mentor had almost as much of an interest in Lilly as he did in Stretch and the world seed.


    If Lilly looked as she used to and wasn¡¯t in her new child¡¯s body, John knew he wouldn¡¯t be able to stop himself from cutting her down then and there, regardless of what he and Sunshine had planned. He forced all the hate and anger down into the pit of his stomach.


    Lilly silently led John towards a small building with only two inhabitants. Upon entering the building, she commanded the two soldiers to get out, and they both rushed to do so after seeing the look on John¡¯s face. She turned to John, trying to seem sad, worried, and humbled.


    ¡°I¡¯m guessing Sunshine told you Betrayal returned many lost memories to me,¡± asked John.


    Lilly nodded her head and began to cry. She approached John as if to hug him. ¡°Don¡¯t touch me, harlot! Tramp! Don¡¯t ever touch me! I know what you do when you hold me,¡± screamed John. "I want your head enough, it''s hard to control my arm, so be careful."


    Lilly cried harder and slunk back as if she were struck. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to hurt you. I never wanted to. You realize that, right? I just¡­I know something¡¯s wrong with me. I need to do things I know I shouldn¡¯t. I need to. I only ever cheated on you in my first body. I was so horny all the time and you never wanted to, especially after our first centuries together. And everyone else wanted me so badly. That really turned me on and made it so much worse, being wanted so badly.


    ¡°Just know I killed every single man I bedded. Painfully. For you. My dear heart. The only man I ever loved. The only man that makes my heart content. I love you so much it hurts. Truly. Please. Please. I beg of you. Forgive me. It never happened after the first body. I¡¯ve always been true to you since. I swear on all that is sacred and holy.¡±


    John was too angry, and his heart hurt too badly to accept any of that. ¡°You lied to me so many times. And it wasn¡¯t just the betrayal of our marriage. All the innocents slaughtered you kept from me. The whole thing with Ahn. I never knew I had finally achieved my vengeance against him. And abusing my trust and the mind power. You continued abusing both in your new body. You tried to take my honor and twist me up again by forcing me to bed a child!¡±


    Lilly stopped crying and wiped her eyes. ¡°I¡¯m not a child! But I am sorry. I¡¯m so sorry. I¡¯ll never do it again. I¡¯ll never use the mind power on you again. I swear. You don¡¯t know what it¡¯s like, being molested as a child by your own father. It fucks with the mind, big time. Wires get crossed. Chemicals do weird things. In my last body, I was what¡¯s called hypersexual. Just know I¡¯ll never cheat on you again, and I only did because of that body I was in, and what happened to it. I have a little of it in this new body since my new father molested me too, but it¡¯s not like before. I promise.¡±


    Lilly smiled a sad little smile. ¡°You don¡¯t want me as I am? Fine. I¡¯ll never say a word about it again. I¡¯ll wait until you¡¯re ready and desire me. I¡¯ll be ready any time you are. And I haven¡¯t killed any innocents. Other than the once. Those were my own people so that was a different matter, and you already forgave me for that. No wantonly killing innocents. You made yourself clear before, and I obeyed. Just, please, forgive me. I need you so badly.¡±


    John sighed. ¡°You betrayed me too often and too egregiously. I¡­¡±


    Lilly yelled out, ¡°You killed me! I¡¯m your wife! You swore you¡¯d always protect me, and you killed me!¡± After that outburst, she began to cry and sob again. ¡°I love you with all my heart and you killed me. I never hurt you. Not physically. And I didn¡¯t want to bed other men. I had to. I had to. My body needed it. I only wanted you and you ignored me. In that way, you completely ignored me. Do you think your hands and mouth really satisfied me? Husbands have a duty too, and you ignored yours. I was forced to do what I did. I would never kill you like you killed me. What''s worse?¡±


    John hated how Lilly always had an answer for everything and could so easily twist him up inside. He couldn¡¯t allow it. Not after finding out the extent of her deceptions.


    Before John could reply, Lilly said, ¡°I know about the Level Capsules and all the time you spent with that¡­with Amber. Since we¡¯re being honest, tell me truthfully ¨C you fucked her, didn¡¯t you? I know you did. Just admit it.¡±


    John tried to hold his anger in. He couldn¡¯t. ¡°No, tramp! I told you before not to ask me again. I would tell you if I betrayed you, just as I told you I thought I had killed you when we were first reacquainted in your Mind¡¯s Eye. I don¡¯t lie or keep secrets. I take my vows seriously.¡±


    Lilly laughed, nearly a cackle, and snorted. ¡°Oh, yeah? Tell me about your, ¡®buddy-dates¡¯ then.¡±


    ¡°What didn¡¯t Sunshine tell you,¡± John asked, surprised his semi-mentor would tell Lilly that. Nothing had happened. It wasn¡¯t worth mentioning.


    Lilly yelled out, ¡°He didn¡¯t tell me! Amber texted me! And why would she tell me that? Did she feel guilty about something else she couldn¡¯t admit to? If you¡¯re always so truthful, tell me you don¡¯t love her.¡±


    John stammered for a moment. ¡°I¡­I loved you! All I ever wanted was you. I¡¯m not the one that takes some sick pleasure in the slaughter of innocents. I¡¯m not the one that betrayed our marriage so heinously.¡±


    ¡°You didn¡¯t say it.¡±


    John took a deep breath and closed his eyes. ¡°It would be a lie to say I¡¯m not attracted to her. She is beautiful and you know it. I care for her as a friend and stout companion. Before you came back, I promised to protect her always.¡±


    Lilly began bawling her eyes out. ¡°You won¡¯t say it because you do. You don¡¯t love me anymore. I knew it. Even if you didn¡¯t have sex, being in love with her is so much fucking worse. You could put me under the strongest compulsion and my answer would always be that I only love you. Just you. The man that saved me. That made me strong and treated me like a queen when everyone else¡­you built me back up. I¡¯ll always love you. I only want you. Only you.¡±


    Lilly continued to loudly cry. John cursed and suppressed his desire to hold her and comfort her. His hate easily won out, and he then had to suppress his desire to draw his sword and cut her into tiny pieces. After a long time of just watching Lilly cry, he made his final decision. He would stick to Sunshine''s advice. He said, ¡°I love you. I wish I could turn my heart cold at the thought of you, but I can¡¯t. I love you, but you are no longer my wife. For now. I can¡¯t trust you. I can¡¯t trust a word you¡¯ve said. It will take some time for me to trust you again.¡±


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    ¡°Nooooo! Adon, please. Please, no. Please. I can¡¯t lose you. You make me want to do better. Just¡­just¡­we don¡¯t have to divorce for real. Please. I fought so hard to get back to you. We¡¯ve been apart for so long. I¡¯ll do anything.¡±


    John hardened his heart. ¡°This is what you must do. Build your trust back with me. And no killing innocents. At all. No killing unless you know I¡¯d approve of it. And you better never use the mind power on Amber or Hubaba.¡±


    Lilly stared at him angrily. Plotting, John assumed. She finally said, ¡°Fine. But you can take no other woman while we are temporarily separated.¡±


    ¡°I can do as I please. We¡¯ll no longer be married.¡±


    ¡°Then I can as well. I won¡¯t be married either, remember? You¡¯re dumping me.¡±


    John laughed as a rage filled his heart and he had to suppress a strong desire to just cut Lilly down and end it. Instead, he said, ¡°True. But I¡¯d never take you back if you even considered taking another man. You betrayed me with more men than can be counted while we were married. I never betrayed you.¡±


    Angrily, Lilly scoffed and snapped out, ¡°You¡¯re still counting what happened in my old body! You know I¡¯m not like that anymore.¡± Calmer, she continued, ¡°I couldn¡¯t control it then. I had to. I only want you. I will wait for you. For one year, and you will trust me again.¡±


    ¡°What? It will take at least ten years for me to trust you again.¡±


    Lilly¡¯s eyes widened in surprise. ¡°Ten years!? Have you lost your fucking mind? Two years!¡±


    John sighed. ¡°Ten years minimum. Or there is no chance of reconciliation.¡± He started to turn away.


    Lilly yelled out, ¡°Fine. But I¡¯ll prove you can trust me before then. Promise you¡¯ll take me back before ten years if you trust me before then.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll see.¡±


    Lilly smiled and rushed forward to hug John. He yelled out, ¡°No!¡± Looking his former wife in the eye, he said, ¡°No touching. At all. Not until I can trust you won¡¯t do the same to me as you did before. If you touch me, we will never reconcile because I¡¯ll never be able to trust you didn¡¯t manipulate me somehow. I''ll kill you then.¡±


    Looking sad and admonished, Lilly said, ¡°Fine. But I already promised I wouldn¡¯t do that to you ever again. You know I wouldn¡¯t. And how am I supposed to drink of you now?¡±


    <hr><hr>


    John¡¯s heart still hurt a tremendous amount. Sunshine may have been right about Lilly being a terrible enemy to have, but that did nothing to lessen the hurt in his heart. He felt if he drained her and cut her head off, his hurt would lessen some, but he knew he wouldn¡¯t feel all that much better. The amount and extent to which he was betrayed, as well as the ways, made him feel little and low, more of a cur than a man.


    If truth be told, John was happy Sunshine gave him another path he could take other than that which his sense of vengeance demanded. He hated Lilly. He hated her with a passion that burned like the fire of a thousand suns. But he also loved her. Still. He wished he could make it stop. His heart felt as if it was twisted into a thousand knots, and he wanted to lash out and share his pain with the world.


    If it wasn¡¯t for John¡¯s specific upbringing, and his tendency to look down upon other men that became gloomy and grumpy and acted sullen and unmanly over a woman, he would¡¯ve lashed out and shared his pain with the world. Instead, he buried his feelings and tried to be stoic and suffer in silence. As with the pain of a sword wound, no matter how much it hurt, a man ignored it, and pretended he felt nothing, and the same was true for all that caused pain, including pain of the heart.


    The only thing John was certain of was that Lilly had to pay dearly for her great betrayal. She had to suffer terribly. Far more than any distress divorcing caused her. Torturing her would make him feel somewhat better, but a small part of him wished they could actually reconcile. That time could skip ahead ten years, skip all the parts where Lilly paid dearly for her transgressions, skip to when she had the body of an adult female, and he could take her back without anyone ever knowing what was done to him and still have some pride. That they¡¯d live life together happily without Lilly ever being a cheater and a mass murderer and all that.


    John knew if he began to torture his ex-wife in the way he wanted to, the risk was too high he¡¯d kill her. He disliked the act of torture, but he felt it would be reasonable to do in this situation considering the extent of the betrayal done to him and the depravity of his former wife. Not wise to do, or good, or honorable, but reasonable.


    John began to ponder, should I just kill her and have done with it? It wouldn¡¯t be done though, would it? Why can I not purge myself of this foolish love of a woman that betrayed me so terribly? My hate towards her is great, but it is not enough.


    John kept thinking back to the last city he founded together with Lilly. As they traveled west to where there were few people and less chance for her to cause havoc, she pleaded with him to go no further. She didn¡¯t want to travel to where there was no civilization at all. She swore she had sated her bloodlust on her own people and would finally stop.


    John had gotten an idea of how to fix things. He wanted to try again something he had tried before with the Assyri, and before them, before even Lilly, he had tried with the Hurre north of the Agade peoples. The first attempt went poorly, the second much better, but a failure for his goal. He did learn a lot and had a new idea to try out. An idea that he hoped would cure Lilly.


    If John could start a society that valued war above all else, the men were warriors through and through and valued only large and strong women-warriors capable of giving them large and healthy sons, his wife wouldn¡¯t be desired for her great beauty.


    Lilly wanted to be desired by all men. She claimed only so she could lead them on and toy with them before torturing and killing them without the man ever once having touched her. John currently knew that wasn¡¯t true, but at the time he hadn¡¯t. Since she was small of frame and stature, in his new city, she would only be desired if she showed prowess in war. If she sated her bloodlust in honorable battle, getting men to desire her in that way, it would be purged from her system in an acceptable manner.


    Southwest of Korinthos where the uplanders, the Dori, conquered and fought among themselves, John founded a new city. The locals called him Lakeda¨ªm¨­n and his wife Sparta. His plan worked for some years until Lilly started up again, before even the place and the correct tenets were well established. He left in a rage, taking his wife to the far west and nothing, where she could do little damage and hopefully learn, finally, he had tolerated enough and would tolerate no more.


    Things went very well for a time. Things went very well until they went very badly, and John finally took his wife¡¯s head.


    It angered John now knowing nothing he did could¡¯ve worked. It was all wasted effort. Even if his plan had worked for sating Lilly¡¯s bloodlust in battle so the men desired her for her prowess, he would have only succeeded in handing Lilly the means to further cuckold him and make him littler and lower. She was an impossible problem to solve. A problem that even her death couldn¡¯t solve.


    Many years later, John went back to that same area and was surprised the city he started was still around. It was named after his wife, which had both pleased and annoyed him. The city had even managed to somehow become a decent warrior society despite the tenets he had laid out being warped and strange and mostly incorrect. He lived there while hiding his prowess for many, many years.


    Now that I am not hiding, once we are sure Earth is safe, I could found a new city. A city of true warriors. We will put out a call for all the largest and strongest warrior-women. I don¡¯t know how so many men came to grow to such freakish heights in this modern world, but if I am healed enough to have sons again, my sons will stand even higher. Only the largest women shall be my wives and bear my sons. And I will not survive these children.


    Thoughts of his sons further dampened John¡¯s mood. He disliked thinking of his children.


    Stoddart was supposed to take John, Hubaba, Amber, and Lilly to meet with President Williams, the former vice president. John refused to get into the vehicle transporting them. He had no desire to meet with any rulers after his talk with Lilly. He had yet to explore a modern city that wasn¡¯t filled with dark ones. He decided he¡¯d much rather do that than spend any further time with his former wife or see Amber¡¯s enjoyment at having strangers look at her.


    John thought about asking Hubaba to join him but he knew how much the demon appreciated being important and meeting rulers. He couldn¡¯t blame the demon for wanting those things. Scabs were treated as slaves by the chosen and Hubaba was still learning how not to be a scab.


    All three of John¡¯s companions protested against him not going with them, and even Colonel Stoddart joined in the nagging. He cared little and walked away after agreeing to take his phone out of his ring and keep it on his person.

 B2 Chapter 46 - Put that manly hand in mine

    Not long after walking away from his companions, many vehicles blaring loud alarms rushed towards John.  Many men surrounded and informed him they were under orders to protect him.  He didn¡¯t need or want guards, but the men said they had to stay and weren¡¯t allowed to leave.


    It was surprising to John how so many people knew of him and still had absolutely no fear of him.  Long ago, before he hid his power, the common people that knew how strong he was tended to avoid him.  Now, the youngest children still left on Earth fearlessly ran up to him.  Nearly everyone wanted pictures.


    What bothered John the most was modern people¡¯s fanaticism with smiling and telling him to smile for their photos.  He wouldn¡¯t.  He believed no one should ever pretend to smile like a goofy idiot for a picture.  He had no issue baring his fangs and making a frightening face for the cameras.  The people and children seemed to enjoy that even more.


    After some time, more people surrounded John screaming out questions, identifying themselves as news reporters.  He thought they were very annoying and rude.  After a while, he tried to ignore them completely.


    Minutes later, after making little progress exploring the city or advancing down the road, John saw a colorful cook¡¯s shop named McDonalds.  He entered into it, causing a large commotion.  He ordered a meal of bread and meat that came with fried potatoes and a drink called soda.  It was one of the most delicious meals he¡¯d ever eaten.  Once he had eaten enough and was full, he still continued to eat until he was far too stuffed, and not a scrap remained of his meal.


    Paying was an issue.  John tried to pay with a clear crystal.  One of his guards stopped him from doing so and told him the crystal was worth far more than the meal.  He ended up paying with a low tier and low-quality sword with a bad rune.  He also gave the clear crystal to the shop and told them it was to feed peasants for free up to the value of the crystal.


    The guards informed John lodging had been acquired for him to spend the night in.  He had not yet explored much of the city in the way he wanted, so he blurred away from his guards and all the people and reporters.  In an alleyway, he infused essence into his belt of hiding.


    Exploring the city while not being seen was much easier for John.  Unlike New York City, DC had no buildings of great heights, but still had a tremendous amount of people.  He was amazed by how little the city smelled and how clean it was with so many people living so closely together.


    After visiting some wonderful shops selling very strange things, John entered a tavern to listen in on gossip.  Most people seemed to think the invasions were over.  John knew the demons would reappear.  It was only a matter of time.


    Most confusing of all was the people¡¯s belief life would go back to how it was before the Tree of Life.  DC had not been invaded.  Very few demons made it to the outskirts of DC, and as far as John knew, no demon made it into the city.  The people in the tavern saw the invasions and the Tree of Life as events happening in other places, clinging to their past lives and denying the permanency of their new reality.


    On the many large screens of the tavern John knew to be televisions, all the different scenes all changed to the same image.  All the many customers stopped talking to watch.  President Williams appeared on an outdoor stage in front of a podium.  Lilly, Amber, Hubaba, and many other people were seated behind him.


    The president confirmed the g¡¯athu threat was no more.  He hoped that the demon threat as well, but it would be safer to assume it wasn¡¯t.  He thanked Amber, John, and Stretch for their role in the elimination of the g¡¯athu, congratulated Amber on attaining Bronze tier, and apologized that there was no footage of the victory over the g¡¯athu since their bases were blocked from satellites, drones, and all other technologies.


    The president went on to describe how the demon and g¡¯athu technologies they had access to were being studied by Terra¡¯s best scientists.  He made no mention of the g¡¯athu portals that were still intact.


    What the president next talked about made many tears run freely from the eyes of the tavern¡¯s patrons.  He spoke of world unity, and how the leaders replacing those killed by the g¡¯athu would work together to ensure the safety of Terra.  Gone were the days of petty squabbles and war between nations.  The universe was large and terrans would find their place in it together, united.  He promised the full might of the United States military would be dedicated to fighting the demons if and when they reemerged, as too did most other nations.


    The president spent the next part of his speech as a memorial reviewing all the places the dark ones, g¡¯athu, and demons ravaged, and the amount of people lost.  John was disheartened to find out the great extent to which the g¡¯athu slaughtered humans while he was caged.


    The speech ended with hope.  The president promised all would be rebuilt.  Terrans would emerge from their struggle stronger and with a better and far more unified world.


    John thought it was a good speech, and from the reaction of the patrons, they did as well.


    It did bother John how many people called Earth Terra.  Terra was the Roman goddess of earth like the Greek Gaia.  Named Tellus Mata then Terra Mata.  Earth Mother.  Both words meant earth as in dirt or land or soil.  He thought people using the Latin word just because the NCS did was silly and made them seem too mindless.  It only made sense for the languages that came from Latin to call the world Terra, or some form close to that, and that no one else should.


    John hadn¡¯t explored the city much, but he felt he explored it enough for the day.  He had no idea where he was being lodged.  Thankfully, not too long after John entered the tavern, his guards also entered.  He assumed they were tracking him somehow, such as with his phone.


    After the speech ended and he made himself known, John¡¯s guards took him to his lodgings.  It was a beautiful place and his room had fine furnishings, an extremely large bed, and a television.  He had slept not that long ago while in the pocket plane, but he still tried to sleep again.  He couldn¡¯t, so he meditated instead.


    A knock on the door took John by surprise.  He told his guards he would not see his former wife or Amber and would only accept Hubaba as a guest.  The person knocking was female.  The scent was somewhat familiar, but he couldn¡¯t place the lady it belonged to.  The woman had a strong stench of wine about her as well.


    After opening the door, John was shocked to see Alice Cooper, the Press Secretary.  He disliked her a tremendous amount.  He was certain the feeling was reciprocated.  Without even saying a word, the drunk woman gave him an angry look and entered the room.


    ¡°I hate you so much,¡± said Alice.  She set her phone and purse on the small table next to the bed she flopped down on top of.  ¡°You¡¯re a monster.  A fucking monster.¡±


    If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.


    John checked his anger as best he could.  ¡°Why are you here?  I didn¡¯t invite you in.¡±


    ¡°I know how it works.  I¡¯ve seen all the movies.  And shows.  My favorite is Vampire Diaries.  What¡¯s-his-name is so hot.  And the other guy.  All of them.  We gotta invite you in.  Not vice versa.  So¡­¡±


    John wanted the drunk woman out of his room.  He thought about asking his guards to remove her.


    Alice started sobbing.  ¡°Oh, God!  I hate this.  I hate how the world is now.  They just killed her.  She just fell down dead.  And then all those heads exploded.  I was supposed to be there but after¡­after you killed Bill¡­I just couldn¡¯t.  We used to date when I was a journalist.  Long time ago.  You didn¡¯t even get in trouble.¡±


    Alice rolled onto her back and sat up.  She wore a skirt, so she was very exposed after she kicked her shoes off and sat cross-legged on the bed.  ¡°That¡¯s just how it is now.  You murdered Bill.  And people cheer for you.  They love you.  You murdered Bill for no reason and they love you.  You threatened to kill me just for doing my job.  Trying to help.  For trying to help and do my job.  I fucking hate you.  I hate this world now.¡±


    Falling onto her back dramatically, covering her eyes with her arm, Alice, in a whiny voice, snapped out, ¡°Why is it so dark in here?  Turn on a fucking light!  The room¡¯s spinning.  No, leave it off.¡±


    There was a lamp turned on and the room was plenty bright, so John had no idea what the drunk woman was talking about.  Alice continued, ¡°Know what would¡¯ve happened if you did kill me?¡±  She laughed.  ¡°Nothing.  Probably nothing.  More cheering.  Yay, murderer!  Yay, monster!  This¡­everything sucks so much now.¡±


    Alice began to sob and cry again.  John felt it would be wrong to force a crying woman out of his room, so he sat in a chair and waited.


    After the sobs quieted down some, while still crying, Alice began to violently remove her hose with one hand.  It took her some time and great effort, but she managed to remove them.  Next, her underwear was pulled off.  With one arm still covering her eyes, she lifted her skirt to her belly.  ¡°Go ahead.  Do it.¡±


    ¡°No.  I¡¯d like for you to leave my lodging.¡±


    ¡°Lodging?  You¡¯re so¡­ugh!  Just¡­come on.  Do it before I change my mind.¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°You piece of shit!  You¡¯re married to a seven-year-old, you sick fuck.  Adult women just don¡¯t do it for you anymore?¡±


    John stood up to walk to the door.  Alice screamed, ¡°Wait!¡¯  She pulled her skirt down and said, ¡°Fine.  Just do the other thing then.  Turn me into a vampire.¡±


    ¡°Please, just leave.¡± John sighed.  ¡°You¡¯re making a fool of yourself.¡±


    Alice began to sob again.  ¡°I told you to turn the fucking lights on!¡±


    John turned and started to walk towards the door.  Alice started to plead. ¡°Please!  Please!  Just make me a vampire.  Do I have to be the thing first?  The¡­what¡¯s it called?  Servant?  No.  Familiar.  Do I have to be a familiar first?  I will.  You can fuck me too.  Whenever you want.¡±


    John stopped and turned to Alice.  ¡°It doesn¡¯t work that way.  If I tried giving you the power, you¡¯d just become mindless and hop around trying to drink the blood of anything that lives.¡±


    Alice said, ¡°Yeah.  A vampire.  That¡¯s what I want.  To be a vampire.  Before I get too old.  I don¡¯t got much time.  Tonight.  I¡¯m ready.¡±


    John wiped his face with his hand.  He decided he would grant the awful woman¡¯s wish.  ¡°Fine.  Stand here.¡±


    Alice sat up quickly.  Smiling, wiping the tears from her face and smearing her makeup further, she excitedly said, ¡°You¡¯ll do it?  Yay!¡±


    Alice stood up and moved to where John indicated.  With a fang, John opened both his wrists and did the same to Alice.  He held both her hands and pressed their wrists together.  She closed her eyes.  A few minutes later, she started to make sudden and jerky movements as if she was in great pain.


    When Alice¡¯s completely bloodshot eyes opened, John released her hands.  She collapsed, dead.  She would awaken in a few days as a mindless hopper.


    John left the room.  He told the two guards, ¡°The corpse in the room will need to be treated carefully.  It is not fully dead and will soon try to eat the living.  Thank you for the lodging.  I¡¯m leaving now and would appreciate being left alone.¡±


    Voices came through the earpieces of the two guards at the door.  One guard followed John while the other remained at his post.  John took the stairs down.  He disliked elevators.  More guards were in the lobby.  One said, ¡°We need to talk, Mr. John.¡±


    John had no desire to speak so blurred past the guards and out the door.  It was late in the night and not many people were about.  He ran for a distance, then he started looking for the tallest building.  None were tall, but he found a large one that was very big and wide.  He jumped up to the roof of it, startling a young boy.


    The boy sat cross-legged on a runed-mat he scooted off of and away from John in fear.  John thought the boy was far more sensible than the other kids he had met earlier.  The boy was dark of skin, small of frame, had a shaved head, wore a very thick coat, and looked way too young to have not been taken by the Eternal along with the other children.


    The boy stopped scooting backwards and said, ¡°Holy¡­it¡¯s you!¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry to disturb you.  Were you meditating?  I would join you.  Where did you get that mat?¡±


    The boy stood and smiled.  ¡°You gonna meditate with me for real?  You wanna use the mat?  I¡¯m not sure it works.  My mom¡¯s gone and I ain¡¯t got no money so I just painted on the other side of our doormat.  I tried to do it exactly like how the real ones look.¡±


    ¡°Where do the real ones come from,¡± asked John.


    The boy¡¯s brows furrowed.  ¡°The¡­Meghan sells them.  You know.  The little girl.  I seen you with her in videos.  Hey, you know how the little kids are doing?  My sister and brother?  And my mom?  She went with them.¡±


    That surprised John.  ¡°She¡¯s already started selling mats?  I didn¡¯t know.  And I don¡¯t know about your family.  I¡¯m sure they¡¯re fine.  Safer than us down here.  Your father doesn¡¯t mind you staying up this late?¡±


    The boy said, ¡°Man, I ain¡¯t got no dad.  You gonna check your phone?  Someone really wants to talk to you.  How come you don¡¯t just turn it off or the sound down if you just gonna ignore it?¡±


    Usually, John¡¯s phone was quiet and made no sounds.  It had started to make many strange noises.  Words showed and were replaced too fast for him to read as the phone chimed.  Then green and red circles he believed represented an incoming call showed and the phone started to make alarm noises.


    ¡°You gonna answer it?¡±


    John looked at the phone and said, ¡°Open!  Open!  Do as I command.  Why do you not listen to me?  What must I do to make you obey and work?¡±


    The boy began to laugh hysterically.  John became frustrated and shook the phone.  The alarm finally ceased but the other noises persisted.  His [Portable Computer Devices] classes hadn¡¯t covered any of the noises of Earth phones.  The standard devices used by most worlds were easy to operate by voice.  When Avatar covered Earth phones, the class always started on a screen with the many symbols called apps, and she had claimed Earth phones could be talked to.  He tried to access such a screen earlier with no luck.  Touching the screen and talking to it was no help at all.


    ¡°Yo, just hand it to me.  I¡¯ll show you how to work it.  You worse than my grandma.  You hit this button on the side here first.  This one, the bottom one of these three.  Now put your thumb on that.¡±


    Once John was in the phone, he was able to navigate himself.  He had many missed texts.  Only three had names associated with them.  He knew how to add people to his contact list, but he never entered any himself on this phone.  He ignored all the messages from sources that showed as only phone numbers.


    Amber texted, ¡°You can¡¯t just be normal can you?  This isn¡¯t the olden times.  Everyone knows that.  Everyone but you.  Oh I went on my first date tonight.  My first real date ever and it was so much fun!¡±  John didn¡¯t reply.


    A text from US GOV said, ¡°URGENT!  Call SD contact Melanie Rogers ASAP.¡±  A number was provided.  John knew how to enter phone numbers and he could make the call, but he had no desire to call a stranger or take orders from anyone, especially a text message.


    Lilly had texted many times.  She informed him that while in John¡¯s room, Alice Cooper¡¯s phone was doing something called live-streaming to Facebook.  Lilly said she just wanted to give him a heads-up and see how he was doing.  He replied by texting that he was fine and just wanted to be left alone, free of guards and other bothers.


    While looking at his own phone, the boy said, ¡°Yo, I can¡¯t believe you didn¡¯t tap that.  She was begging you.  You must got some fine honeys to turn that down.  Yo, hook me up with some of them.  Oh, snap, is she¡­you killed her?  Damn, man, that¡¯s cold.  Is your wife really seven?¡±


    ¡°No.  I have no wife.  We never introduced ourselves.  What¡¯s your name?¡±


    ¡°Amonee.¡±


    John¡¯s hand went ignored as Amonee continued to watch his phone.  John said, ¡°John.¡±  Amonee looked up and finally shook his hand.

 B2 Chapter 47 - Everythings fine

    Taking the cultivating mat Lilly gave him out of his ring, John asked, ¡°Did you still want to meditate with me, Amonee?  Would you like to try this runed-mat?  But, first, does your grandmother approve of you staying up so late?¡±


    Amonee¡¯s shoulders slumped and he looked down.  ¡°She ain¡¯t here.  She over in LeDroit Park with my cousins.  The ones old enough to stay.¡±


    ¡°Are you on your own?¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°Why haven¡¯t you gone to live with your grandmother?¡±


    Amonee looked up at John.  ¡°Man, no one leaves the corridor.  Not since the Tree.  They won¡¯t even let me leave this building without paying.  I ain¡¯t got nothing to pay with.  They make the people that bring us food pay too.  Ain¡¯t no cops coming here neither.¡±


    ¡°Who won¡¯t let you leave?¡±


    ¡°Anyone.  All the gangs pulled together.  Is that a real Meghan mat?  It don¡¯t look like one.¡±


    John held the runed-mat out and said, ¡°I think this came from a different world.  Take it.  For helping with the phone.  I gather energy quickly enough, I often forget to use it or even that I have it.¡±


    Smiling, Amonee said, ¡°For real?  You giving it to me or just letting me borrow it?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s yours if you want it.  If yours worked the runes would¡¯ve lit up as you meditated.  Tomorrow morning I¡¯ll bring you to your grandmother.¡±


    The two meditated for a bit.  Amonee fell asleep and John covered the boy with a blanket.


    John continued to meditate, thinking of his battle with the g¡¯athu, how to improve, the mistakes he made, what he should¡¯ve done differently.  He converted much essence to shen, and all the shen to emptiness.  Meditating allowed him to avoid thinking of his former wife and all the pain of his heart, and all else that ailed him.


    Shortly after dawn, John received a notification from his NCS.


    A higher being has sent you a message.  User is to read message at once and take all necessary action causing the least amount of offense to higher being.  Message received 25 October, 07:42 AM EST, USACS.  Message follows ¨C


    My informal and semi-student,


    You handled the talk with your ex-wife decently well.  Stick to the plan as she is now part of mine.


    Sublime Ton-Oi has returned to Terra.  He cleared the three portal anchors leading to the g¡¯athu.  The core was also in contact with him so my duty here is completed.  I leave to grow my business.  I do not know when I will see you again.


    I shall leave you with three bits of advice.


    First, review what the demon Muzaran told you after your first success with blade energy.


    Second, as always ¨C think!


    For ages on your world, you feared little.  When truths are known and the rules constant, it is an easy thing to believe emotions have been mastered.  When the environment is controlled, emotions can be too.


    The unexpected, the unknown, the unfamiliar ¨C that is the real test.  When existence is shrouded in uncertainty, when chaos rules and you have no power over events, when life spirals out of control, so does the storm that rages within us all.


    Finding out the truth about your wife is not the cause ¨C it only made an obvious truth you have been ignoring undeniable.  Since the Tree of Life has returned to your world, you have not had more ¡®slips.¡¯  You never had real control of your emotions.


    Welcome back to reality.  How life is for the rest of us.  Welcome back to fear and uncertainty.  Welcome back to the unexpected and unknown.  Some of the spices that make life interesting and worth living.  Take the bitter along with the sweet.


    It is strange to say these things to someone so much older than myself but suppressing emotions is not controlling them.  I do not believe emotions can be controlled, only overcome.  I do not know for certain how the strongest of beings approach this struggle.


    As we both know, as we both have seen, those that can be the calm within the storm, the rock others hold on to, the anchor that makes those around them feel safe and secure, a source potent enough others can draw strength from, are always, or seem always to be, imperturbable.  Nothing shakes them.  There is no amount of responsibility they cannot take on or shoulder.  There is no obstacle they cannot overcome.  They are the best, most honorable, and noblest among us.  Or our greatest monsters.


    We are on different paths with different goals.  I enjoy strong emotions.  I sometimes enjoy losing control.  I see nothing wrong with losing myself in the ecstasy of relinquishment.  I want to enjoy my life, not improve the lives of others.  I seek riches and ease.  You seek glory and victories.


    The last time I wrote to you I said you must control your emotions and not let your emotions control you.  I knew it would be entertaining, but I did not expect you to survive for so long.  At the time, I did not know your continued existence would benefit me so greatly.


    But now, you are drowning in darkness.  Your method of regaining control is not working.  I have no real guidance to share with you on this other than to try something different.  Or see where your downward spiral takes you.  The second option is preferable to me.  I would like to see if your basement has a cellar.


    So, here is my third and most important bit of advice to you ¨C if you find yourself in possession of more Level Capsules, do not use them!  You are far too early in the climb to waste such treasures.  If you do not pass them on to me, you will pay dearly.  Seriously.  I will break you in terrible ways.  And slowly.


    Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!


    ¨C Your friend and informal mentor, Sunshine


    <hr><hr>


    More than two weeks later John was imprisoned at a newly constructed UN base in the district of Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh, India.  If the demons reappeared, it was thought they¡¯d do so somewhere south of his location.


    John knew where he was.  He had been there many times before.  To his east there¡¯d be, or used to be, a city called the Shining City or City of Light.  He went there many times with his former wife.  She believed there was much magic to be found there, as well as in many other of the old cities of the kingdoms of Burata.  He even traveled to that city many times after he thought he killed her.


    From looking around with the info function on his NCS turned on, John thought the old city he knew could be Varanasi.  The name sounded familiar, but John always struggled with any language spoken in Burata.  Remembering the words or pronouncing them.  He thought it was strange since the languages of Elam were far more sensible to his ears and mouth.  Past Elam was like another world.  Or Parsa.  I wish places would pick a name and stick with it for all times, thought John.


    Being imprisoned didn¡¯t bother John.  Everyone knew he could leave whenever he wanted, and he only allowed his imprisonment so he¡¯d be left alone.  Even so, it still bothered him that so many pretended what he did was wrong and that he should be punished for it.


    While he was on the rooftop with Amonee in DC, the boy slept late into the morning.  John received a notification stating it was time for him to take the second of the gifts Sunshine had given him.  He absorbed the strange contents of the pouch.  It wasn¡¯t like normal essence.  It caused the area around his heart to burn greatly, and chaos swirled within him until he began to cycle as fast as he could.  That tamed the storm a little.  He had to invent a new form of cycle-meditation to truly bridle the strange energy that wreaked havoc within him.


    John couldn¡¯t remove the band of suffering necklace while the storm raged inside of his chest, and he was sure the necklace made the whole experience much more painful and difficult than it would¡¯ve been otherwise.


    It took a great deal of focus and effort for John to harness the strange substance, and a good deal of time.  Amanee told John he was glowing during the ordeal.


    Once the energy no longer coursed through John¡¯s body, he noticed Amanee was awake and under some strain and distress.


    John was the source of the boy¡¯s issues.  While absorbing the substance and cycle-meditating, John completely unveiled his soul, and his soul healed enough it exerted some pressure around him.  Not much, but enough to make the boy scared and uncomfortable.


    After apologizing to Amanee, John entered his Mind¡¯s Eye.  His base [Runes] [Stat] went from 16.09 to 37.14.  The ¡®points¡¯ he could spend were based on effective score, and those scores went from 17.70 to 41.27.  If his soul were completely healed, his base [Runes] would be the same as or close to his base [Capacity], which was 59.79.  Still, he had new rune ¡®points¡¯ to use.  Many.  Twenty-seven of them.  Enough for the weakest form of a glyph.


    Avatar thought John should¡¯ve improved on his alpha-strike, [Flashburst Pulse].  He looked into it.  He could¡¯ve made that a glyph.  But there was a spray-type fire-based glyph for twenty-five points.  Long had he dreamed of fire billowing forth from his hands, his enemies set aflame, screaming madly as they panicked and ran around burning.  He had to have it.  His dream would be denied him no longer.


    The glyph was named [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet].  With his current [Stats], and while early in the Neophyte [Skill] Mastery, the glyph shot out a cone of darkflame that could extend up to sixty-three feet long with a two-inch apex and a little over six-foot base.


    Darkflame was a very destructive and hot type of substance described with words John didn¡¯t know or understand.  He knew it burned hot and was a type of fire, and that was all he cared about.


    Many runes of the manifestation were dedicated to control of the jet spray.  It could extend up to sixty-three feet, but it could also extend out a very short distance as well.  The base could be as wide as six feet and three inches, but it could only be two inches too.  The apex was always two inches, and the base couldn¡¯t be less than the apex.


    John spent much time practicing with the glyph in his Mind¡¯s Eye before ¡®purchasing¡¯ it with his rune points.  He thought it was the greatest spell that was ever conceived of.  He loved it a tremendous amount.  He loved casting it and when he did so he was filled with many strange and wonderful feelings he had never felt before and would never be able to explain.


    Once out of his Mind¡¯s Eye, on the rooftop with Amonee, John cast the glyph into the air.  He couldn¡¯t keep himself from laughing from excitement and the pure enjoyment doing so caused him.  He hoped he didn¡¯t sound mad.  The look Amonee gave him said otherwise.  Since it was already late morning, John told the boy it was time for them to head to the grandmother¡¯s residence.


    It would be a lie for John to say he didn¡¯t want to use his new glyph.  He did.  He didn¡¯t kill the ruffians to test out his new spell though.  He was certain of it, no matter how madly he laughed in joy while doing so.  He only killed seven of them, and their souls proved they had deserved it.  He could¡¯ve killed all of them with a clear conscience.  They tried to rob him and the boy, but only seven of them had souls he felt made them deserving of death.


    John hoped seeing the fate of their dead colleagues would set the living ruffians on the right path ¨C seeing six friends set aflame and another drained, he assumed, was good motivation to reform.


    Regardless, Amonee ran away in fear and demanded that John stay away from him.  Amonee¡¯s reaction confused John.  Shortly after, he was surrounded by guards called police officers demanding his surrender.  He respected their courage and sense of duty.


    John surrendered on the condition he would be left alone and unbothered and kept in a place large enough to practice with his spells and blade energy.  The police officers wanted to take his possessions.  He refused.  They accepted his refusal.


    John was moved to Burata a few days later.  He stayed inside a large and empty warehouse similar to the one he had stayed in during his imprisonment in DC.  He had plenty of room to cast [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet].  Even without targets to burn, it was still fun to cast.  In his Mind¡¯s Eye, he could use it against targets in simulations and he very much enjoyed doing so.


    During his imprisonment, John also reassessed his gear.  He had an open arm-slot to attune.


    John liked all his current gear.  Every item he wore was made for Silver to Platinum tier cultivators, and even the Silver-graded items were too good to unattune.  The belt of hiding was fantastic.  If ever he were in a situation where many strong opponents were searching for him while spread out, he could take them down in the way he had used to fight armies that were too strong to face all at once, as he also had done during some phases of his challenge against the demon War Academy.


    Since many Silvers and above could see essence, hiding in shadows was not as effective as it once was.  The stealth cloak he wore hid his essence, scaled off his [Stealth] [Skill], and worked amazingly when paired with the belt of hiding.  He would replace the cloak after he next ascended and could get the [Cloak Essence] [Perk].


    The boots of secrecy greatly aided the stealth cloak, dulling any noises John made while stealthing, such as footfalls, heartbeat, clanking, and all unintentional sounds, while also enhancing his already impressive [Stealth] [Skill].


    The cultivation robes John wore weren¡¯t attuned, but it also cleaned and repaired itself.  He saw no reason to replace the robes since he had armor attuned already ¨C the sleek black armor with the automatic essence-shield.  Attuning the armor gave a bonus to his [Physical Fortification] and [Elemental Fortification] on top of what the armor itself provided.


    John would equip heavier armor once he could use the type that turned into a block and equipped itself quickly and easily when infused with essence.  He had three options, the best being the set called Bulwark he stole from Diamond Garioch.  In his opinion, none of the lesser or lower-tier types of heavy armor provided enough protection worthy of the hassle wearing it every day would cause him.


    Having gotten so used to the band of suffering necklace and the pain it caused, when John took it off, cycling seemed impossibly silly, like he wasn¡¯t even cycling at all.  The absence of the pins and needles feeling inside of himself felt wrong.  It was like walking around with great weights strapped to the feet for a long period and then removing them.  He hoped the band of suffering truly was as beneficial as Muzaran stated as he had no plans to remove it.


    The plasma ring and storage ring weren¡¯t going anywhere either.

 B2 Chapter 48 - Don’t play with me, cause youre playing with fire

    If John were Silver, he¡¯d have more options and could consider some higher-tier items he had in his ring. Or he thought so, at least. He could and was using items meant for higher tiers, but not ones meant for Diamonds yet, the tier where a soul was refined and cultivators could technically be called Exalted, though no one used that title until they reached the second Tree.


    There was a significant jump in power between gear graded for Platinum and gear graded for Diamonds.


    For John¡¯s eighth and final attunable slot, his arm slot, he had a few decent options. He wanted to plug up some of his weaknesses with that slot. To him, the most infuriating of his issues was constantly being unbound. He had mighty spells to cast, fire could billow forth from his hands, but the toughest foes he fought never let him cast anything. He wanted that to end. Sadly, there were no items he could attune that aided him with that, for any items in any slot, not just the arm slot.


    The option John liked the best was a bracer that shot out a strand of essence. That essence-strand stuck to whatever it hit, and John could pull himself to that something or yank that something to himself. He could even swing around his warehouse-prison with it. Since he couldn¡¯t use [Slip] against higher-tier opponents, he could use the bracer to close the distance quickly.


    The issue with that bracer was it didn¡¯t actually work against higher-tier opponents. When Hubaba visited John, the demon could easily unravel the essence strand once it connected to him.


    John liked Hubaba a great deal and considered the demon to be his only true friend besides Avatar, but he also knew he could beat the demon in a fight with little issue. Hubaba was a Gold, but a very weak Gold. The demon excelled at unbinds and protecting against unbinds, but so did most Golds, especially the toughest ones John had faced. Hubaba couldn¡¯t even get a spell off on the Bronze g¡¯athu, nor could he unbind any manifestation of that same Bronze.


    Granted, the Butcher was a poor test to judge [Skill] against. Even the Woods and Coppers were able to unbind John¡¯s manifestations. The Butcher was a monster unlike any other at all tiers.


    So, John¡¯s preferred arm-slot item was placed back into his storage ring. His second choice was an item somewhat like the shield-bracer Hubaba wore, except it was meant to be more of a weapon than a shield. Infusing the bracer created a large pink spike-blade that extended a foot or so past his hand, and he could use the pink manifestation to deflect incoming attacks as well.


    That bracer would¡¯ve made sense if John wasn¡¯t already using a shield and a sword. It would be a good backup in the event he was unarmed, but he wanted the slot to help shore up a weakness and help him against higher-tier foes.


    John had three other options, all Platinum-grade, but none of them really shored up a weakness he wanted reinforced in some way.


    One set of bracers supplied an additional essence-shield, and the shield was better than the essence-shield his armor provided, though the armor¡¯s shield activated automatically.


    The next option was a set of arm-bands that provided a reflect-shield like John¡¯s cap did when it was attuned to him. He had replaced the cap with a sturdier helm that also had a chin strap allowing him to dangle the helm when he wasn¡¯t in battle.


    The last possibility was a beaded bracelet that looked as if it was made for a woman. His last bracers also functioned as an additional means to deflect attacks, something he liked. Neither the bracelet nor the arm-bands provided that function. The bracelet, when attuned and imbued with essence, would remove actively controlled hostile manifestations another was using on him up to a certain power level, the same function as his [Manifestation Defense] [Skill] provided.


    Testing with Hubaba showed the bracers were a little better at removing active hostile manifestations than John¡¯s own [Manifestation Defense] [Skill], but not by much.


    John wished he had a better option for the arm slot. He thought about switching to the arm-slot band of suffering, but it was an upper arm wrap to be worn on the left arm nearest the middle dantian, which he disliked. And his head and neck-slot options were worse than his arm-slot choices. Plus, his band of suffering came from a Gold. He didn¡¯t know if the other bands of suffering were lower ranked and neither did Hubaba.


    John¡¯s old cap and reflect-shield were Silver-graded. The arm-band reflect-shield was Platinum-graded. But reflect-shields were meant to be used offensively, and the opponents he was worried about would always be able to easily overwhelm the reflect-shield of the arm-band. He had always used the cap¡¯s reflect-shield more defensively, to prevent damage. Essence-shields did that much better, and any essence-shield would help, if even just a little, with preventing damage from any opponent.


    John attuned the bracers with the essence-shield. They were also Platinum-graded, had a shorter cooldown than the other bracers, and, being large bracers and sturdy, could also be used to deflect attacks. He still wished he had a better option, but better options had to wait until he was Silver, the tier he believed he¡¯d be able to use Diamond-graded gear if his progression kept going as it was.


    Lastly, John wanted to change Fireblade out for a better sword. He had no better options for his shield, Defiance. Even if Hubaba was willing to give him back the bracer-shield he wore, John had grown attached to Defiance. He used Fireblade because he wanted fire, and his [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet] granted him a much better way to light enemies aflame, making the fire the sword alit with seem silly, like a toy made for children.


    For weapons, John had a lot of choices. Even sticking with swords, he still had many options. One sword he saw as being the clear winner, and the reason he didn¡¯t consider changing out his plasma-ring and using a weapon with a stronger attack ability. It was a Platinum-graded sword much larger than Fireblade.


    The sword looked like a giant, single-edged long-knife. The rain-guard was nearly as wide as the cross-guard, it had no ricasso, the central ridge was thick, the fuller was much thicker, and the fuller extended to just short of the point. It could be used to thrust with, slash, and interesting to John, the fuller ran to the flat top of the blade and was thick enough he could use it for what he called blunt energy.


    Even though the sword was larger than Fireblade in every way, it weighed nearly the same. And even though it was a strange type of sword, the balance and handling were excellent.


    This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Hubaba knew the sword was named Gird. He was there when Garioch received it as a gift from Baggodon the Blind. The runes of the sword, once imbued with essence, girded the user against unbinds. It was the only item in John¡¯s ring that performed a similar function.


    The power and concept of the essence used to imbue the sword impacted how effective the unbind protection was, and even though John¡¯s ¡®battle¡¯ concept was only a minor aspect, it seemed to provide the greatest benefit when used to imbue the sword. If he used ¡®blood¡¯ or ¡®leech,¡¯ the buff the sword provided lasted much longer, but it didn¡¯t take much essence to imbue. The buff it provided lasted just under ten minutes when imbued with ¡®battle¡¯ essence. Ten minutes was plenty of time in his opinion.


    If John¡¯s hand lost contact with the sword, the buff would immediately end. The buff the sword granted could also stack with the NCUs and the similar temporary [Buff] he could purchase from the NCS.


    The manifestation Gird provided wasn¡¯t flashy or exciting, but it helped to reinforce one of John¡¯s weaknesses, and that was far more important.


    John¡¯s gear had been settled for a while. Since he¡¯d been moved to Uttar Pradesh, he had only been visited by Hubaba once. The demon was trying to run a crafting academy and had little time to travel. With the g¡¯athu portal north of Los Angeles connected to both Santos and Mumbai, the trip was much faster than it would¡¯ve been otherwise, but the rulers were trying to keep the portals a secret only important people knew of.


    Lilly visited John somewhat regularly. The sight of her filled him with anger and sadness. He tried to regain control of his emotions, but it wasn¡¯t an easy thing. Every day his heart grew to hurt more and more, and he struggled to suppress his anger, as well as his desire to lash out at others.


    Seeing Lilly was no help at all and made things worse. She¡¯d cry as John yelled at her to keep her distance and stand away from him. She¡¯d tell him some stories about Hubaba and Amber, update him on her business dealings and ventures, and tell him how sorry she was and how much she loved, missed, and needed him.


    During his time in Uttar Pradesh, John¡¯s soul also healed enough naturally where it showed in his [Stats]. It was only point-zero-one percent, but that was something, and an indication his most severe issue had a path towards being solved. And it would be fully fixed long before he was close to Diamond, especially considering how long Avatar projected it would take his foundation to settle in the Bronze tier.


    Prompted by Avatar, John performed a test. He kept a little of the shen he created to see if that would speed up the process of his soul healing without reinforcing his soul too much, as happened to him before by creating too much shen. Just a little, and just once, but Avatar said it decreased the speed of his passive healing, so that ended the test.


    John wanted to put more of his energy credit towards opening more NCU slots, but he decided he needed to save it for an NCS [Buff]. His guards told him there was some strange activity reported around India. Not demons, but some strange phenomenon that couldn¡¯t be explained. He expected the demons to reappear at any moment.


    So, John waited and trained and tried to get over the pain that racked his heart and filled him with such hurt and shame. He couldn¡¯t work out why Lilly would betray him so. His mind couldn¡¯t understand it. He knew she cared about him a great deal. He believed she loved him. So why would she do so much to hurt him? He would never hurt someone he loved.


    Suddenly sensing an increase in activity and anxiety on the base, John assumed it was time. A guard ran in and told him the portal reappeared southeast of Bhopal. Many demons streamed out of the portal, including three Golds and twenty-four Silvers. The strangest part was that the demons were not moving or attacking. The demons stood their ground and did nothing else after they formed up outside of the portal.


    John prepared and waited. Hubaba, Amber, and Lilly were on their way to the base. He decided he wouldn¡¯t wait for them if he heard Stretch was giving battle to the demons. He would not miss out. He needed to fight.


    The hours passed and Stretch never appeared near the demons. Hubaba, Amber, and Lilly finally arrived. Shortly after, Stretch showed up too. Earth having two Golds of her own, Hubaba and Stretch, would go a long way towards evening the battlefield.


    Petar Kostov was already on the base with his elite squad of soldiers using the Wood-tier lasers and shields John acquired from the War Academy demons. The Bronze minis were the only ones humans could fit into, though not perfectly, but Wood essence couldn¡¯t power the Bronze minis, nor could it power the Copper or Bronze lasers.


    Earth was close to making its own minis. Lilly owned a large percentage of each of the three companies making them.


    John tried out one of the demon minis some time ago, but it only slowed him down and hampered his abilities. If it fit his form correctly, that could¡¯ve been a different story. The power of a Silver mini would probably have been a great boon to him in battle, but those were much too large for any human to utilize.


    Lilly had John infuse her laser pistol with his Bronze and far more potent essence before they had to attend a long briefing with generals reviewing the battle plan. He was dismayed that the battle plan only considered the demon Golds to have capabilities seen before. By their larger size and black clothing, John knew two of the Golds were from the War Academy, as were sixteen of the Silvers, and would be much stronger than the Golds of Circle Xakariz.


    Knowing the battle plan being reviewed would not survive a few moments beyond initial contact, John still forced himself to listen. He knew Amber would be nervous and not want to fight, so he made a show of how closely he paid attention, hoping to settle her nerves. He was glad she was in her demon form as she was far more prone to nervousness in her human form.


    Many soldiers had already departed the base in vehicles. Everyone else, besides Stretch, started to load into helicopters. John knew Stretch was fearless and would join them in battle, so he wasn¡¯t worried Stretch would miss out.


    The helicopters landed outside of Bhopal, between the city and the demons. Lilly drew a large trap ritual and a protective circle with a block for herself. She had John infuse both. Hubaba was a Gold, but John had plenty of essence to spare and his own was more powerful than the demon¡¯s.


    Close to dusk, word finally came down that the demon horde was on the move. As the horde came into view, John¡¯s heart filled with excitement. The army was massive. Thousands and thousands of demons filled the distant landscape. He purchased a temporary NCS [Buff] that assisted in preventing unbinds. Then he infused essence into Gird.


    John would not have his manifestations unbound. Not on this day. He needed this battle. He needed to share his pain with the demon horde. They would be consumed by flame, the same as his heart was being consumed by the pain of great betrayal. He hoped the battle settled his spirit and took much of the hate burning inside his chest out of him, allowing him to regain control again. If not, he hoped to fall in battle and just have done with it.


    When the demon horde stopped too far out to give battle and a Silver demon came forward holding a white flag high in the air, the flag of peace, John cursed silently to himself.


    As the Silver approached, John heard the soldiers whispering, hoping the battle could be avoided. A general was called for to negotiate.


    John sighed. There was no need for words. He would not have this battle stolen from him too.


    The Silver, still far off, yelled out, ¡°I come to talk peacefully, under this banner of truce. I¡¯m calling for a parley. Our leader¡­¡±


    The demon¡¯s speech was cut short as he was bathed in darkflame.


    John slipped to the demon but left it screaming as it burned. He slipped through the shadows towards the massive horde behind the Silver. When he was in range, a mighty jet of fire billowed forth from his right hand. The darkness in his heart was replaced with joy and glee as many, many enemies were lit aflame all at once, screaming out shrieks of immense pain and suffering as they ran around, slowly burning to a crisp.


    It¡¯s even more wonderful than I ever dared dream it could be, thought John, a smile of pure bliss upon his face.

 B2 Chapter 49 - A whole life so lonely, and then come and ease the pain

    Amber yelled out, ¡°John!  What the heck!  They were just trying to talk!¡±


    Hearing that caused anger to flare in John¡¯s heart.  Did the demons allow humans to talk and parley in Quebec City or Montreal?  In any of the great and many cities they destroyed in Asia and Africa?  Did they allow peace and parlay when they tortured and killed those peasants right in front of me at the witches¡¯ house?  How many peaceful humans have the demons slaughtered?  How many women and children?


    Maybe Amber has forgotten those that have fallen to these invaders, but I won¡¯t.  Their souls cry out for vengeance, and I will not close my ears or heart to those pleas.  They will face what is beyond this life avenged, their soul¡¯s content and at peace.


    Today, either I fall, or Earth will be free of invasions.  I will not let mundane humans steal this battle from me, nor will I allow them to make a deal with these demons.   There is no middle ground.  And after these demons here are slaughtered, the scales still won¡¯t be balanced.  Not even close.  They¡¯ve killed hundreds of millions of humans.


    After dismissing what he thought of as the low desires of Amber¡¯s fearful mind, a mind that sought only comfort and peace for herself, John tightened up his focus and entered into his battle-mind.  He had a horde to slaughter and untold millions of people to avenge.  He needed battle.  This battle.  If no one else was up to the task, he¡¯d do the deed on his own.


    For most of John¡¯s life, even when he wasn¡¯t a king in truth, he had the means and wealth to live in comfort and luxury like one.  For the most part, he chose not to, as time passed faster and more easily when one¡¯s mind and body were kept busy.


    From John¡¯s perspective, life should be filled with hardship, struggle, and conflict, as those three things made the bellows burn hot enough to separate the slag from the steel, those three things made the most fertile soil from which the best of men grew.


    It was John¡¯s belief most of what life threw at a person came in threes.  The best things in life seemed to need three main ingredients, be it something as simple as stew or something as complex as smithing.


    The first steel John had worked with came to be known as crucible steel.  It required iron, pig iron, and a flux such as sand, ash, or glass.  The word crucible also came to be known as a trial of constant searching, testing, and adversity.


    Marriage needed devotion, a strong sense of duty, and mutual respect.  The husband provided food, shelter, and safety.  The wife provided caring, children, and upkeep.  And so on and so forth.


    Three main ingredients.  The rule of threes repeated too often to be coincidence.


    For all John¡¯s blessings and advantages, he hadn¡¯t had an easy life.  He had endured horrors that would¡¯ve broken all others.  He endured all those horrors many times.  Even so, the heartbreak of betrayal he now felt weighed down his soul too much.  His heart hurt tremendously.  It hurt enough to make him feel completely lost.


    There were thousands and thousands of demons arrayed against John, standing before him.  And his heart went from weighing a thousand pounds to being light as a feather as his lifelong dream of having fire billow forth from his hand, setting many, many enemies aflame all at once, became fulfilled.


    John laughed merrily as demons lit up in a glorious and fiery blaze.  His soul sang with joy as they ran about screaming in agony, their skin crisping, sizzling fat dripping off them.  He slipped through the shadows further down the line, stopping to bathe new foes in the fires of [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet].  And he slipped again, wishing the demon horde was much larger.


    Fire billowing forth from John¡¯s hand, plus many, many enemies, plus those enemies screaming in terror as they burned to death, equaled medicine for his aching heart.  Just three main ingredients.  Still.


    Stretch popped up in the middle of a group of demons and had to retreat away from the darkflame.  Amber, in bear form, could reach no demon with her blink spell, as all within her reach burned.  Hubaba didn¡¯t enjoy killing what he considered the children and young of his kind, so was told to focus on unbinding manifestations and to only fight the Silvers and Golds.  Still, John saw purple scythes appear much deeper into the horde, attacking something.


    And as his companions struggled to reach an enemy to fight, John reveled in joyful euphoria as the best medicine he had ever taken soothed his soul in a way no healing potion, elixir, draught, or other remedy ever could have.


    Why exactly burning so many enemies at once with fire magic and hearing their screams of tortured agony filled John with such elation was not clear.  He only knew all his worries and hurt shed away as they did, and his soul sang harmoniously along with their screams.  His heart was light and unburdened and, for a time, didn¡¯t hurt.


    Over the years, John had noticed that the most notable of horrors also came in threes.  Ages were said to last 2,150 years.  If so, he was living through his third age.


    Three races invaded Earth.  The demons and g¡¯athu each had three portals.  Three dark walkers were brought.


    The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.


    For Lilly, there was her infidelity, her bloodthirst, and how she manipulated memories with the mind power.


    Of all the times John had been captured and tortured, three of those times stood out prominently in his mind, and they were the three times he was burned very badly.


    The first time he was captured and held for a very long period was due to fire.  Ahn asked John to watch over Ur while he left to wander.  Ahn had said he¡¯d be gone for no more than ten years.  He was gone for well over a century.


    Eridug failed to tribute all they should have for the third year in less than a decade.  And as John had done twice before, he went to the city, waited outside until night, and went to scale the wall.


    John learned a terrible lesson that third time.  As terrible as it was simple.  It was a bad idea to scale the same part of the same wall three times in a row.  He should¡¯ve picked a new spot.  The base of that whole section of wall was replaced by a pit trap filled with tar.


    As soon as John fell into the trap, soldiers threw torches down, and John was burned up very badly and was easy to capture.   He was held and tortured for a very long time.  So long, he was forgotten about and left to waste away.


    The next capture that stuck out in John¡¯s mind came much later.  He had left Sparta for three decades, as he often did, assuming enough time had passed that he could return safely.  He returned as either a helot or a perioikoi, though it mattered little which if part of a war retinue of a Spartiate.


    A lochagos that clearly remembered John from when they were eir¨¥n together tricked John and managed to trap him in a dungeon.  He was only imprisoned for about a decade before he made good his escape, but he was often tortured with fire.  His captors somehow got it in their minds that if they ate enough of John¡¯s flesh and drank enough of his blood, they would attain his power.


    Things weren¡¯t all that bad until his captors tired of his raw flesh and started roasting parts of his still attached limbs.  They would often force John to eat his own flesh too.  After a while, when their deeds gave them no benefit and it was clear it never would, they just became mean and malicious and continued to cook and eat of him.  But they also became complacent and gave John a good opportunity to escape and drink of them.


    The worst incident was also the most recent.  Not that long after the Poles consolidated under one king and were made Christian.  A king, Wrymouth, split the kingdom among his sons, and there was a great need for warriors and mercenaries in those regions after doing so.  Those castles had a lot of traps, and John had been caught under the weight of too many rocks and rubble during the taking of one.


    After the debris was cleared and John was found broken but alive, they assumed he was a warlock and tried to burn him at a stake.  Since he continued to scream long past when a human would¡¯ve died, the ruler had him cut down and chained in a dungeon.


    The ruler wanted John¡¯s power.  Once John was healed enough to perform the ritual, the ruler became a hopper and John nearly escaped.  As he was pounding his way out, pitch was poured into the dungeon and was set afire, burning him up all over again.


    John was then chained tightly and tied to a table, a rope wrapped around every inch of his body but his head.  He was tortured badly for a very long time.  Eventually, no one came to torture him, and he wasted away.


    Sliver by sliver, year by year, John pushed his wasting frame out of the ropes.  He tugged on his chains for years before they broke.  He fed on insects and worms until he was able to open a section of the dungeon with rats and the decent amounts of vital essence they provided, gaining the strength needed to dig his way out.


    John¡¯s mind had deteriorated a good amount during that imprisonment.  He slaughtered many people in the castle and town once free, uncaring of their guilt or complicity, knowing that those he killed were probably all born after he was captured.  His heart hungered for vengeance, and he fed his heart all it could want.  He then returned to England and met Thomas not all that long later.


    So, John hated fire, or being burned and set aflame.  All three of his most prominent memories of capture involved fire.  Why he hated to be burned but loved burning his enemies so much was a mystery to him, but he put little thought into it.  There was an act he could engage in that filled him with joy, and he would never tire of it.


    Having set all the enemies ablaze he could reach, John felt into the demons behind them with his blood power.  He focused on their heads, or the blood in them.  He was inside as many enemies as he could feel into while preventing a few unbind attempts.  He built up and gathered control over some blood in each demon¡¯s skull, enough to do what he wanted.  When he had enough, he yanked it all forward and hardened it.


    Nearly five hundred demons had what looked like bloody icicles shoot out of their eyes.  The blind demons stood dazedly for a moment, then all began to slump down dead.


    John felt into a new area filled with demons but Stretch and Amber were fighting those, and he cursed.  The human troops were rushing forward to join in the battle too, their new pistols sending essence into the backs of fleeing demons.  He slipped through the shadows, and slipped again, pursuing the fleeing demon horde.  He began to feel less Silvers on the battlefield.  One Gold in his senses winked out of existence as it entered the portal, then another, then the last.


    After slipping into the tail end of fleeing and cowardly demons, John let loose with [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet] at all the demons he could reach with the spell, all the demons making a mad rush to the portal, in full rout.


    Then, not even one Silver remained on the battlefield.  They were all dead or had gone through the portal.  All the remaining demons crowded the portal too, rushing through it.


    John should¡¯ve asked where the portal anchor was if the three Gold demons had gone back to the Nether.


    Stretch burst through the ground about halfway between John and the portal, bowling over demons, outside the range of John¡¯s fire glyph.


    As Stretch jumped off the ground, the wooden-man was trapped in an olive-colored bubble and suspended in the air.  A massive and sudden pressure brought John collapsing to his knees.  His orb-eye saw most of the human soldiers crushed to death behind him.  None of the demons were crushed, but many of them were on fire and soon would be dead regardless.


    Silhouetted in front of the portal was a man, not a demon, missing one lower leg, standing in a strange pose, holding a staff, hundreds of cartoonish and large eyes swirling around him.   A man that felt extremely powerful.  The remaining demons, the ones that could, fled past the man and into the portal.


    The man¡¯s soul looked strange.  Not in that it was dark with misdeeds ¨C though it certainly was ¨C but as if it was greatly damaged and healed in a strange way.  It was large and bright, but misshapen and wrong, like it was patched up and jury rigged, somehow hobbled together incorrectly.


    And the man had a familiar scent John couldn¡¯t quite place.

 B2 Chapter 50 - And be a simple kind of man

    The fading traces of hundreds of cartoonish and large eyes swirled around the new man on the battlefield.


    John struggled against the pressure bearing down on him and stood with surprising ease considering the power emanating from the man in front of him. With his orb-eye he saw Hubaba doing the same. Behind him, the battlefield was littered with the spirits and bodies of all the dead soldiers and demons. Very few mundane humans survived. Petar and his squad were hurting but alive. He hoped Amber was okay. She went invisible at some point.


    The man that stood a distance in front of John, in front of the last portal, felt to be higher than Diamond Garioch. He assumed the man was a Salt, but he wasn¡¯t sure. He was only certain the man was of a higher tier than Diamond.


    Then, anger filled John¡¯s heart as he recognized the man.


    What was his name? I just saw him in my returned memories. Yan. My old master¡¯s new disciple. Kin. They both had lain with my former wife, and I only killed the one of them for it. I¡¯ll fix that mistake today, thought John.


    Now John understood the comment Sunshine made when he had written. He also understood the reason Muzaran asked Ton-Oi so many questions regarding the tier of those from Earth.


    Sunshine also stated Ton-Oi had returned and was in some sort of trouble for bringing the Butcher out of quarantine. Even if Ton-Oi was watching this battle, despite Yan¡¯s tier, since the vampire was from Earth, John knew there would be no interference.


    Yan wore plain robes. The top was white with a short hem and brown bottoms. He sported a conical-shaped hat made from what looked like thick reeds, and large ram-horns poked through the hat in a way that seemed to help secure it.


    One of Yan¡¯s legs was missing below the knee. The man balanced in a strange pose with a staff in his right hand and his left arm curved in front of his chest. His hands had long claws and his skin was a sickly grey, showing he was heavily marked by the Nether. His eyes lit up in the dark like those of a cat.


    From behind John and towards his right, a thick, red beam of destructive essence shot forth from an empty area that was quickly filled with Amber in her demon form. Yan¡¯s staff glowed brown and with a slight flick of his wrist the powerful beam attack absorbed harmlessly into the staff.


    John tried to rush forward and give battle. His attempt to merely feel into Yan was violently rejected. The vampire yelled out, ¡°Halt! Stop! I only wish to speak!¡±


    Yan then veiled his soul and the pressure disappeared. While balancing on one foot with staff in hand, the man bowed deeply at the waist. ¡°Please, let us have peace and speak for a moment.¡±


    The portal behind Yan closed and he stood erect while again balancing on his one foot and his no longer glowing staff, his eyes gleaming eerily in the darkness.


    John looked around. Amber shrugged. Hubaba only walked forward to join John, Amber following the demon a moment after.


    John¡¯s orb-eye looked far behind himself and noticed Lilly was alive and well in her protective bubble. Seeing her filled him with shame and rage. He struggled for a moment to suppress those feelings as he looked again at a man that knew his former wife in a way no other man should have.


    John began to advance with his companions, walking around the smoking corpses of dead demons. Yan said, ¡°So, it really is you, Gepi.¡±


    ¡°Call me that again and our temporary peace is over,¡± replied John, angrily.


    ¡°Apologies. I didn¡¯t mean it as an insult. That¡¯s the name my¡­our old master called you by.¡±


    ¡°Well, Yan, he never told me what it meant, but I¡¯m sure it was insulting,¡± spit out John.


    ¡°I believe it meant death,¡± said Yan. ¡°He said you were death and one day you¡¯d kill him. I think he wanted you to kill him too. I think it wasn¡¯t an insult as much as a prophecy. If I had to guess, I¡¯d say he wanted to die but was too scared to take the leap. He had no joy.


    ¡°Still, I will call you by any name you prefer. And I¡¯d also like to apologize for the events of the day we met. I had no desire to¡­I had no desire for any of it. Any of it. I did as I was told. You didn¡¯t say no to our old master.¡±


    John grunted and stopped some ten paces or so from Yan. ¡°I told him no plenty. I don¡¯t want to talk about that day. Three of my kind betrayed me and I only avenged myself on one. You ran like a coward.¡±


    ¡°I did. And I feel no shame for it. You were strong enough to kill our master. I would not go to the cold-dark, and never for a master I hated. My shame comes from my actions before I ran. After, I hid in the east, knowing you¡¯d never go there. Cowardly, and I have no shame for that either.¡±


    Hearing that tickled something in John¡¯s mind. ¡°Why¡¯d you think that? That I¡¯d never go east to find you?¡±


    ¡°Master Quy said he¡­excuse me, if I am remembering correctly, you called him Anh?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Ahn.¡±


    ¡°Aaahhhn.¡± Yan pronounced it strangely either way. John had no care at all how the name was said and waited for the explanation.


    ¡°Master Anh said he put strong compulsions on you never to travel past the swamp area after the kingdoms of Bharat, and north of that area. Same with south of Arabia. In the continent of the dark-skinned past the great deserts. He didn¡¯t want you looking for him.¡±


    Hearing that tickled more memories in John¡¯s mind. He went south looking for Ahn multiple times and turned back before going nearly as far as he planned. He often wanted to travel further than the kingdoms of Burata, as did Lilly, but he always turned back before getting anywhere close to the strange and mighty kingdoms he heard were far east of it.


    ¡°I met a¡­someone you gave the power to, I met the man he gave the power to,¡± stated John. ¡°Munashi. I forget his master¡¯s name.¡±


    ¡°Munashi?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not a name. It translates to something like empty in Japanese. The Japanese I know, but I was impaled in a sarcophagus for five centuries before the Tree of Life. How old was he?¡±


    ¡°He said about nine centuries.¡±


    Yan shrugged his shoulders. ¡°I don¡¯t know him. I turned two kin myself. The last was a woman and that was much longer ago than nine centuries. I¡¯ve met no others besides our master, you, and your wife.¡±


    Hearing Yan mention his former wife caused anger to stir again in John¡¯s heart. ¡°What did you want to speak of,¡± he asked, harshly.


    ¡°First and foremost, I wanted to apologize for our first meeting. It has weighed on me for ages. So many times have I thought of you. If things had gone differently, I would¡¯ve had a friend and companion to endure time with. I despised Quy. Anh.


    ¡°My spirits soared high when you killed him. I wanted nothing more than to be free of that animal. I did not want you as an enemy. I did not want what happened before. I had all the women I could ever want. I did not need the wife of one so much stronger than myself. One that seemed far more honorable than our master. We had fate without destiny.¡±


    This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    For some reason, hearing a man he needed to take his vengeance out on apologize, and apologize in a sincere manner, made John feel angrier. And made his heart hurt even more. He thought on the last line Yan said. Fate without destiny. He didn¡¯t know what it meant, but how he interpreted it seemed to sum up their situation.


    Yan continued. ¡°I hope you see the truth in those words. There¡¯s still a chance for us, elder kindred of mine. There¡¯s no need for us to be enemies. You were much more powerful than me before. Now I am peak Empty. It¡¯s much harder for those not demon to ascend to the next Tree while in the Nether. Now, finally back on my own world, I¡¯m sure I could ascend.


    ¡°At my current tier, nothing on this world can harm me. I have no wish for any more injury to befall my world, my race, or you. John, correct? The demons say you are called John now.¡±


    ¡°Correct. And you go by Yan still?¡±


    ¡°Close enough. I¡¯d rather you call me younger brother. The¡­the Forsaken and Favored, it¡¯s not part of the duality. They aren¡¯t opposites. It¡¯s not as simple as that. The demons I¡¯ve dealt with have kept their word and treated me honorably as a full member of Circle Xakariz. The War Academy¡¯s dealings with us have been honorable and truthful.¡±


    A message flashed in John¡¯s eyes.


    Contract received.


    ¡°I just sent your NCS a contract,¡± explained Yan. ¡°I was trapped in that damned sarcophagus for many days after the Tree of Life healed me. The only relief I had was the NCS, so I know it well. This is a basic NCS contract.


    ¡°The language and terms are simple and clear. There are no tricks. The War Academy wants you as a willing and loyal student of your own free will. I can vouch for them. Your training will be much better than my own. I envy you. I was rushed through the tiers out of necessity.¡±


    John thought about it for a moment. Before he could ask the question he wanted to, Amber asked, ¡°What about Earth? What about me and Hubaba?¡±


    Yan looked at Amber and nodded his head. ¡°You won¡¯t be harmed. It¡¯s in the contract. And no humans will either. This world will join the Forsaken faction under Circle Xakariz. No tricks. Things will be peaceful. Terra will be used as a staging point to invade other worlds in this sector. Humans will be safe.¡±


    Yan shifted on his one leg as he continued addressing Amber. ¡°In fact, there¡¯s been talk about you. A sapient Natural. We¡­I haven¡¯t heard a final answer but some of the higher masters think there hasn¡¯t been a sapient Natural due to the Favored. They want you protected from them, safe in the Nether, to see what happens when you ascend. What will become of you. If it¡¯s something the Favored actively prevent, it¡¯s something we Forsaken want. You could join my circle. I¡¯m sure the War Academy would welcome you as a student too.¡±


    Hubaba asked, ¡°And me? What would become of me?¡±


    Yan looked at the scab and nodded his head after a moment. ¡°I¡¯m a member of Circle Xakariz but not a demon. I was told nothing about a scab on Earth. You are not in the contract. I can guess at what your fate would be, but you¡¯d know better than I would.¡±


    Hubaba said, ¡°Death. They can¡¯t allow a traitorous scab to live.¡±


    Yan bowed his head again towards Hubaba.


    John said, ¡°You slaughtered this army of humans. That doesn¡¯t give me much faith in how seriously your new masters would take any bargain made.¡±


    ¡°That was not purposeful, and I apologize for it,¡± answered Yan, humbly. ¡°No demon would¡¯ve died. So many terrans have yet to open a single dantian. I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever seen a demon without their lower opened. My goal wasn¡¯t to kill, only to incapacitate. Same with you three, I applied just enough pressure. I¡¯m not our old master. I¡¯m not a monster.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to sound accusatory, and I hold no ill will, but a Silver approached you under a banner of peace and truce and was killed. That¡¯s considered a war crime by both Forsaken and Favored. Many more demon dead litter this field than terran. That demon held a portal stone leading to a nice and peaceful area I set up to negotiate within. If things had gone as they should¡¯ve, my soul would¡¯ve never been unveiled. No one would¡¯ve died. There was no reason for anyone on either side to have died today.¡±


    John didn¡¯t feel guilty at all for what he had done to any of the demons earlier. He didn¡¯t know what counted as a war crime, but he would probably commit many more of them against demons in the future. The demons murdered and tortured innocent women and children without compunction. He saw no need to care what the powerful decided he couldn¡¯t do to combatants if they allowed the worst of crimes against the most innocent and peaceful of noncombatants.


    It was hard for John to hold his tongue about Yan saying no one should¡¯ve died on this day. Demons invaded Earth and killed hundreds of millions. They attacked and slaughtered peaceful people, including women and children, giving no opportunity for their victims to talk or parley. But when they wanted to finally talk, they expected to be allowed a courtesy they had never given?


    Having a feeling he¡¯d be the only one to see things correctly, and not wanting to argue over it, John kept his mouth shut. What was done, was done, and he enjoyed his slaughter of demons too much to pretend otherwise.


    As for the contract, John racked his brain. With Amber in her demon form, her facial gestures were no help.


    ¡°Why not just join us instead,¡± asked John as he shrugged his shoulders. ¡°Join your own kind in making your world free of invasion. Why continue to submit to the demons? You¡¯re back on your own world now. You even closed the portal. Just keep it closed and stay here with us.¡±


    Yan shifted his weight between the staff and his one foot. John wondered why he was missing a leg at all. It seemed strange to him, especially considering the tier Yan was at, unless the vampire had a recent accident that hadn¡¯t healed yet.


    ¡°My honor won¡¯t allow it,¡± said Yan. ¡°Circle Xakariz rescued me from five centuries of being trapped in agony. They welcomed me, treated me kindly, trained me, raised me up high by pouring all their scant resources into me.


    ¡°They are close to breaking. I am my circle¡¯s hope. I will not betray them in their hour of need. I despise traitors and those without loyalty. I only closed the portal so you¡¯d feel safe. So we could talk without the threat of it showing behind me.¡±


    John continued to rack his brain. He knew he stood little chance against a Salt, and Yan said he was a peak Salt ready to ascend to the next Tree.


    Hubaba would die if John accepted the deal. If the demons kept their word, he doubted humans would be treated any better than scabs. But that wasn¡¯t the full extent of things. If he was right, and he believed he was, signing the contract meant all humans would be killed. If not for that, he¡¯d be more open to a deal, as it would allow him time to grow powerful, and one day he¡¯d go back to the Nether and slaughter every demon he could find, balancing the tally they owed humans.


    Amber got right next to John, leaned down, and whispered in his ear the same magical way she did when she was invisible, where he knew others couldn¡¯t hear. ¡°Have them include Baba as being protected like us and sign. We can¡¯t beat a Salt. Empty. Whatever. He took my best attack like it was nothing. If you fight, you¡¯ll definitely die. We¡¯ll all die. Then Terra goes to them anyway. Even if just Baba dies, wouldn¡¯t that still be better than no deal and what they¡¯ll do to Terra after?¡±


    John couldn¡¯t disagree with her, but what Amber said felt every bit as wrong as it sounded reasonable.


    Hubaba is my friend. He turned traitor against his own kind for us. How can we betray him now? Maybe Amber is right. Maybe his life means little compared to the fate of Earth and her people.


    If I signed the contract, it sounds like I¡¯d be safe and treated well, as would Amber. Lilly too, I¡¯m sure. But if I use Amber¡¯s reasoning, our lives also mean little compared to the fate of Earth and her people.


    I swore to protect those I care for. I swore to protect Earth. Or die trying. When things are twisting me up inside, I swore to stay true to the man I want to be. A worthy death.


    John told Yan, ¡°Sorry. No deal. You won¡¯t betray your circle. I won¡¯t betray all the people on this planet. You can have this world when I¡¯m dead, but not before.¡±


    Amber yelled out, ¡°John! Be reasonable!¡± With a lower voice she said, ¡°You¡¯re thinking like an idiot. This is bigger than just you and your pride. You need to think like a leader. Please, please don¡¯t get us all killed.¡±


    ¡°Elder Brother, this is a good deal,¡± added Yan. ¡°I vouch for the intentions and honor of my circle. If you¡¯d rather fight, it won¡¯t be much of one. We win either way this is settled. We¡¯ve won. You must see that. You have no chance. Listen to the Natural. Be reasonable.¡±


    Hubaba chimed in. ¡°I¡¯ve had it better than I¡¯ve ever thought possible. If your decision is based on my fate, let me die happy, knowing I didn¡¯t condemn my friends and the people of this world to death. I think you should take the deal. But look over the contract first.¡±


    John sighed. He wondered why Amber could never see what he did. ¡°You¡¯re all being tricked. Even you, Yan. No. My answer¡¯s no. It will always be no.¡±


    ¡°Elder¡­¡± Yan suddenly ending what he was going to say caused John to look around with his orb-eye. He saw Lilly far off, walking towards them, wiping blood off her face with a cloth.


    Yan sniffed. He sniffed again. He turned back towards John and asked, ¡°You turned a child?¡±


    Lilly screamed out, ¡°I¡¯m older than you, Yan. Not by much, but still your elder.¡±


    Yan¡¯s brow furrowed in confusion. ¡°What are you talking about?¡±


    Lilly screamed out again. ¡°New body, same soul. We met before. Adon¡¯s wife. I mean John¡¯s. You still go by Yan?¡±


    Angrily, John snapped out, ¡°Former wife.¡±


    Brows furrowed even more, Yan turned his head and asked John, ¡°How? That¡¯s your old wife? Lilit?¡±


    ¡°Yes. Lilitu. Lilly now. Recently back from the dead.¡±


    ¡°Huh?¡± Yan stuttered out some noises then gave up his attempts at talking and questions. They all waited in silence as Lilly walked towards the group.


    As Lilly finished approaching, she said, ¡°Hey, guys. I know. Awkward, right?¡±


    ¡°How is this possible,¡± asked Yan.


    ¡°Long story. Anyway, I think I can help settle this contract issue.¡±

 B2 Chapter 51 - Won’t admit defeat though his clothes are soiled and black

    Hundreds of cartoonish and large eyes swirled around Yan again. It took some seconds for them to fade away. John assumed the Salt was rebuffing.


    Staring at Lilly, Yan said, ¡°Long story or not, I need to know how you¡¯re in a child¡¯s body. Is there more to our dark gift than I was aware of? The full story. Start from when we last parted ways.¡±


    Lilly smiled. ¡°Everything has a price, Yan. Especially information. And let¡¯s get this out of the way.¡± A ball dropped from Lilly¡¯s hand and dozens of curved beams of light stretched out of it and went all over the area, even high into the sky where the spy drones hovered.


    ¡°That just blocks the snoops and keeps what¡¯s said between us, between us. Okay, looks like you two are at an impasse. Let¡¯s lay it all out and see if we can find a solution.¡±


    John noticed Lilly was smiling in a way no child should, and standing as she would in an adult body, in a way men would find sensual. He, again, felt pity for his former wife. She acted very differently when he was in her Mind¡¯s Eye and she looked as a woman, with the full power that gave her over men, than how she behaved while in a child¡¯s body. Usually. He figured some habits were hard to break, or some realities too hard to accept.


    ¡°You want my husband¡­,¡± John was about to interrupt Lilly when her eyes darted to him and she corrected herself, ¡°Ex-husband to join willingly. You know that¡¯s the only way he¡¯d behave himself. You won¡¯t kill him, and he won¡¯t be able to force you to. You could take him kicking and screaming but you know he¡¯d do his best to piss off the wrong demon and get himself killed.¡±


    Turning her head to smile at John, Lilly said, ¡°He¡¯s stubborn. He won¡¯t budge. Not if he thinks he¡¯s right. Pressuring him will only make him dig his heels in. I¡¯m figuring you¡¯d have used mental compulsion by now if that was your plan.¡±


    With a disgusted look, Yan said, ¡°Only a dog would entertain such an idea.¡±


    Lilly, still looking at John and smiling, said, ¡°So, Adon, tell us why you won¡¯t sign the contract. You think it¡¯s a trick? Why?¡±


    John was silent for a moment as he put his thoughts in order. ¡°What everyone seems to forget is who brought the demons to Earth. Not the Forsaken. Both Exalted I heard speak before the Tribulation, Magnus Gar¡¯tar, and Sublime Ton-Oi think this planet is tainted by some sort of blasphemy.


    ¡°I think they want us to make a deal like this. They want us to become what they believe we are. They want a good excuse to kill us all. Swearing to the Forsaken is probably all the excuse they need.¡±


    John shrugged before continuing. ¡°I don¡¯t think the demons would treat humans well. They¡¯d be treated worse than scabs. But demons wouldn¡¯t get much of a chance to do anything. That Sublime up there would descend and purge this world and think he¡¯s right for doing so.


    ¡°No one asked for Betrayal to do what he did here. His tests. Only us three outright accepted any sort of blasphemy. The rest are all innocent. The least I can do is stand with them. Stand against everyone meaning them harm or slavery. Stand until I can¡¯t. Just as I swore. A meaningful death.¡±


    After some seconds with no response, John turned to Yan. ¡°How has Circle Xakariz not figured the same out? There would be no staging grounds or invasions of other worlds from here. There¡¯d be an empty world. Free of humans, free of demons, free of blasphemy.¡±


    Silence reigned over the battlefield for a long moment. Lilly was the first to break it. ¡°So? Fuck this planet. If there¡¯s members of any Forsaken sects at Yan¡¯s circle, I can survive in the Nether long enough to make it to a livable planet. If the Favored are gunning for this world, that¡¯s even more reason to sign the contract, not less. It means we really need to get the fuck out of Dodge. This is our best way. Look, Adon¡­¡±


    Yan interrupted. ¡°One moment. I disagree with your statement, Elder Brother. Master Baggodon and Master Ith''tas aren¡¯t fools. Master Ith''tas signed a contract with the Favored. Things aren¡¯t as you think they are. I¡¯m certain. There¡¯s also rules regarding invasions. You¡¯re missing a big piece necessary to see the full picture.¡±


    Lilly stared daggers at Yan. ¡°You¡¯re just going to interrupt me like I wasn¡¯t talking, fuckface?¡± Turning back to John, she said, ¡°As I was saying, you¡¯re not top dog anymore. You have to accept that. Some things are way above you and completely out of your hands. There¡¯s nothing you can do about any of this besides ensure you and yours make it out alive. Besides the scab. He¡¯s dead every way this plays out if you¡¯re right.¡±


    John grunted. ¡°Not if we win. If we don¡¯t join the Forsaken and we win. The Favored won¡¯t have their excuse.¡±


    As Lilly¡¯s mouth opened to speak, Amber spoke up. ¡°You¡¯re wrong, John. In this form, I have a natural dislike and distrust of magals. I still know the Favored wouldn¡¯t do that. They wouldn¡¯t commit genocide because an ancient old one made a couple vampires. You always think you¡¯re more important than you really are. You can¡¯t really believe the demons signed a contract saying they¡¯d all be murdered? No one¡¯s that stupid.


    ¡°And how would we even win this fight anyway? We can¡¯t beat a Salt. We¡¯d just die. Who does that help? Earth is only doomed if you doom it. Just sign the contract.¡±


    John remembered back to when Sparta and Athenai went to war. Athenai controlled nearly all the islands to her south in the Archipelago. One island was neutral. He racked his brain thinking of the name of the place, but nothing came.


    Athenai laid siege to the island and gave the residents an ultimatum. Surrender or die. They refused to surrender. In the winter, when they finally did, it didn¡¯t go well for them. Athenai killed all the men and made slaves of all the women and children.


    Sparta eventually won the war and control of the island. John had no idea if things would¡¯ve turned out better if they had surrendered to Athenai from the start. The island was stuck between two greater powers. He often wondered if there was a way they could¡¯ve gotten out of their situation unscathed, or at least in better shape.


    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    Sighing, John¡¯s shoulders slumped. The island rolled the bones and made a choice. There was honor in the attempt, regardless of the outcome. He remembered the knight, oathbound, honor demanding he charge forward as his fellows fled. He remembered the mother, bitter, too much taken from her, her futile attack.


    John knew he had little chance of winning a fight against Yan. He also wouldn¡¯t condemn the people of his world to death, and, at best, if his prediction was wrong, slavery. Once he was gone, if Earth gave up and submitted to the demons, that¡¯d be on them.


    If John couldn¡¯t win, he could at least refuse to submit, come what may. He could fight.


    John hoped his actions and sacrifice would ignite a spark that started a fire. He hoped that fire burned in the hearts of all mankind, and they stood defiant, and chose to die free rather than submit. Chose to fight, and fight, until there was no one left to, or they figured out a way to win and stood victorious.


    In fighting, in standing tall and defiant, there was hope, a chance of victory. Only in submission was there hopelessness.


    John increased his strength and speed with vital essence. As he jumped towards his enemy, sword out, plasma ring discharging, he let loose a mighty yell of hope and despair.


    As the beam from John¡¯s ring was absorbed by the air around Yan, he cast [Flashburst Pulse] and was surprised the Salt let him finish the casting. While he was manifesting the spell, his orb-eye saw a giant foot stomp on Hubaba and fly towards Amber as she turned invisible, sending her flying away on impact, visible again.


    And as Amber flew past John, she morphed from demon into a bear, dashing at Yan. As she blurred towards the Salt, the giant foot still managed to stop her charge and kick her far off into the distance.


    A sense of danger flashed above John. He slashed up at the giant foot descending on him as the three sparks of [Flashburst Pulse] were also absorbed by the air in front of Yan.


    Gird and Defiance bounced harmlessly off the foot and John was nearly stomped on. He quickly discarded both sword and shield and barely managed to keep his feet while holding the giant foot above his head with both hands. His orb-eye saw Hubaba struggling to stand.


    Yan calmly said, ¡°Stay down, scab.¡± The vampire hadn¡¯t moved during the whole ordeal. John wondered, what the hell kind of concepts is he using?


    The foot crept lower. John only managed to stop its descent when the foot¡¯s weight was borne by his neck and shoulders too, his body straining with great effort.


    With his assault ended so quickly after it began, John revised his chance of winning to be far lower than the very low odds he had given himself at the start of it. His orb-eye noticed Lilly banging angrily on an olive-colored circle of essence surrounding her, the same type of thing Stretch was still trapped in, her mouth yelling out words he couldn¡¯t hear.


    The foot disappeared from John¡¯s shoulders and Yan walked towards him on two whole legs, stopping only a pace in front of him. ¡°I¡¯m peak Empty. I¡¯m not as old as you, but I was very old and strong before the Tree of Life. Elder Brother, be reasonable.¡±


    After sighing, Yan said, ¡°Please stop attacking. This is senseless. You¡¯ll never overcome the tier difference. You do know what tier Empty is, right? It¡¯s also called Salt.¡±


    John grunted. ¡°I know what tier it is and what it means. It matters little to me. I knew attacking meant my death. Even if I¡¯m wrong about the Favored, you¡¯ll not make slaves of my people while I live. I will never surrender while I draw breath. Kill me and have done with it. Don¡¯t toy with me. Let me die with honor in battle.¡±


    ¡°No. You¡¯re wrong about everything,¡± said Yan, passionately. ¡°Humans won¡¯t be slaves. Scabs aren¡¯t slaves either. It would be no different than a warrior caste running things. The humans that can become strong Forsaken will be valued. There will be sects and schools to make strong warriors. I¡¯ve met some Forsaken. They¡¯re treated decently well. I promise you. Terrans are my own people too.¡±


    ¡°Then act like they are,¡± snapped out John. ¡°Fight with us. Fight beside me. Earth will not submit. Never. I won¡¯t.¡±


    After a moment of silence, Yan said, ¡°You¡¯re reminding me of Master Quy. Anh. He was sick of life. He had no joy. He wanted to die but wouldn¡¯t take the leap on his own. You were his hope. I won¡¯t be yours. Life can be better.


    ¡°Elder Brother, let me teach you how to love life again. We have a new road to travel. A whole universe to explore. Universes. Whatever realities are too. So much to see and discover. Don¡¯t let melancholy defeat you.¡±


    John wanted to scream back that he wasn¡¯t defeated, especially not by melancholy. Before he got a chance to, Yan spun around and sputtered out in surprise, ¡°How¡¯d you get out of that?¡±


    Lilly exited a hole in the olive-colored bubble she was entrapped within. ¡°I have my ways, fuckface. You¡¯re really starting to piss me off.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re a Wood with unopened dantians and meridians. Seriously, how¡¯d you do that?¡±


    ¡°Dantians and meridians? And you won¡¯t use compulsions. Jesus Christ, you should really sign that contract, Adon. You guys are two peas in a pod.¡±


    Yan looked back at John. ¡°You use the correct words? You call them dantians and meridians? I¡¯m so sick of demons saying cores and channels.¡± After John confirmed, Yan asked, ¡°What do you call¡­um, spirit? Vigor?¡±


    ¡°Shen.¡±


    ¡°Ha! You know those words are translated incorrectly so use the right ones, Elder Brother.¡± Yan turned back to Lilly. ¡°Sit next to the scab.¡±


    ¡°Fuck you, pal.¡±


    While Yan was distracted, John took the opportunity to attack. He quickly bent to grab Gird, but Yan¡¯s staff tapped his arm before he reached it, then the staff tapped his other arm, causing them both to go completely numb. The staff hit lightly and caused no damage, so the automatic essence-shield of his armor didn¡¯t even activate.


    John feigned a kick and then jumped in for a neck bite. The Salt easily flowed out of the way and tapped his staff on both of John¡¯s calves.


    While on the ground, lying flat on his back, John¡¯s arms and legs began to tingle. He hoped to get the use of them back soon.


    Lilly ran over to help John. He yelled out, ¡°Get away! Don¡¯t touch me!¡±


    Lilly sat a couple arm lengths away from John, looking dejected. Yan said, ¡°Scab, go sit near those two.¡± Hubaba silently complied.


    ¡°Enough of this. Lilly, I need to know how you¡¯re in a child¡¯s body and how you escaped my field. That wooden construct is a Gold and could never escape it. We want all of our kind so you¡¯re coming through the portal too. It will go better for you if you tell me now. I can force you to talk, though I¡¯d much rather not. Please, explain.¡±


    Lilly laughed. ¡°If you want me to live, you aren¡¯t taking me through the portal, dickhead. This body is only seven and I haven¡¯t strengthened it enough through vital essence. I won¡¯t last long as I am in the NetherRealm. I could live long enough to make it to another world, but it¡¯ll have to be planned out ahead of time. I won¡¯t have long. As to how¡­¡±


    Lilly was interrupted by Yan spinning around, his hand disappearing. A moment later it reappeared in giant-form, dragging a scaled demon covered in ridged spikes. As Amber was dragged closer, she said, ¡°Sorry. I tried. He can see me when I¡¯m hiding.¡±


    As Yan¡¯s hand returned to his limb, he said, ¡°It¡¯s no problem for me. Please, go sit next to the scab. Remain peaceful. Lilly, what you stated will be arranged. Please explain the rest. For my own curiosity, start from when we last parted ways.¡±


    The last thing John wanted was for other people to know his own business or know how his former wife shamed him and made him no man at all. This particular story was one he never wanted anyone else to know of as long as he lived.


    But John needed time for his arms and legs to recover. And to plot. He wasn¡¯t nearly strong enough to beat Yan in a fight. That didn¡¯t mean there wasn¡¯t a path to victory. Like Sunshine always advised, he just needed to think. Really think.


    John said, ¡°Yes, harlot, start from that day. Tell them all of it. What a fool I was. How you made the husband you claimed to love so little.¡±

 B2 Chapter 52 - Ninety-nine dreams I have had

    John disliked having his business, shameful business he wanted no one else to know of, aired in front of others, especially when one of those others was a man his former wife had lain with. In this specific case, it gave him time to plot and plan. But hearing the story told out loud filled him with anger all over again, and he spoke up to fix the lies Lilly told or to fill in the parts she wanted ignored. Both Amber and Hubaba chimed in with questions too.


    The looks of pity directed at John filled him with more anger and resentment and made him feel even littler and lower. He needed no one¡¯s pity. He just needed to fulfill his vows, end the invasions, and be left alone by everyone trying to twist him up and break his mind and spirit.


    When Lilly finished the story, Yan looked at John and said, ¡°Again, Elder Brother, my sincerest apologies for my part in this tale. I truly am sorry. I don¡¯t know how you tolerate the sight of her. You¡¯re a far more forgiving man than I am.¡±


    ¡°Oh, shut the fuck up, Yan,¡± snapped out Lilly. ¡°I remember how you looked at me. How you drooled over me. Lying piece of shit. Why¡¯re you being such a dick? Oh, wow, a Salt! I made the fourth Tree twice, cocksucker. Why don¡¯t you tell Adon how you were raised? A little perfumed prince with soft girl-hands and a super-rich daddy. Fucking pampered little bitch.¡±


    The eyes of Yan bored into Lilly with murderous intent. ¡°You¡¯re lucky I have so much respect for my elder brother. And that my circle wants all our kind alive.¡±


    Lilly¡¯s eyes bored right back into Yan¡¯s. ¡°I¡¯m so scared! Kill me, pussy. I¡¯ll only lose seven years. When I find you in my next body, I¡¯ll bite your little dick off and shove it right up your ass. I won¡¯t kill you though. Not right away. Not until after I kill everyone you care about and make you watch. Just try me.


    ¡°I know my husband far better than you. I know demons far better than you do too. You haven¡¯t dragged my husband through your portal because you can¡¯t fail. Pressure¡¯s on, isn¡¯t it, fuckface? If he doesn¡¯t go willingly, he¡¯s useless and as good as dead. If you want my help, you better stop being such a dick.¡±


    The staring contest continued for a tense moment before Yan looked at John again and said, ¡°This Betrayal, I think I see him when I rank up and ascend. A giant monster in front of a sun, with runed-eyes and a vertical mouth?¡±


    John nodded his head. Lilly said, ¡°Why am I the only one that doesn¡¯t see our master when I rank up? Maybe it only happens in terran bodies? I guess I¡¯ll find out after puberty.¡±


    Looking at Lilly with disgust, John said, ¡°You called me your husband. Do not call me that again. I am not your husband.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± said Lilly, a sad look on her face. ¡°But you will be again. And soon. Once you see how hard I work at being a good wife, the wife you always wanted, you¡¯ll be too happy and content to hold any resentment. We¡¯ll look back and laugh at all the silly stuff I did in the past and you¡¯ll know for certain I¡¯ll never do any of it again. We¡¯ll be so happy together.¡±


    Rage filled John''s heart. ¡°Silly? For over a thousand years you made me an ignorant cuckold! You betrayed me in a thousand ways! You made me low and little and no man at all. Silly! I should take your head for even saying such. And the sick way you killed so many innocents. It sickens me. You sicken me.¡±


    Yan interrupted Lilly¡¯s response. ¡°I can¡¯t allow it, Elder Brother. They¡¯ll want her too.¡±


    ¡°Adon, you¡¯ll see. The sins of my last body, that¡¯s all in the past. Ask Amber how differently she thinks as a demon. The chemicals in my brain were all screwy. I¡¯m good in this body. I¡¯m not waiting ten years to have my husband back. You¡¯ll forgive me. I know it.¡±


    John laughed. After hearing all his shame shared with others, he was too angry to stick to Sunshine¡¯s plan and said, ¡°I¡¯ll never forgive you. Forgiveness of such is not in my nature.¡±


    Tears trickled down Lilly¡¯s cheeks. ¡°You¡¯ll see. You¡¯ll be so happy you¡¯ll forget all about being mad at me. Forget there¡¯s anything to forgive me for. Easy-breezy. It¡¯ll be perfect. Everything¡¯ll be perfect.¡±


    John hated that seeing Lilly cry made his heart yearn to comfort the woman he had loved for so long. That he couldn¡¯t stop loving. He turned back to Yan and the look of pity in the Salt¡¯s eyes enraged him. Why does fate want so badly for me to break? I won¡¯t, thought John.


    After taking a calming breath, John said, ¡°So, now you know. You all know my shame. What a fool I am. How low I am. We¡¯re still at the same impasse. Hearing the fool¡¯s tale didn¡¯t change that. All of you can end those looks of pity. I need none of it.


    ¡°Since there¡¯s so little left in me to shame, I¡¯ll roll the bones on the fate of this world. Why not? Why not give up what little honor I have left? Here¡¯s the deal. You all want me to sign this contract. I¡¯ll sign without even reading it. I¡¯ll give you all what you want. The last shred of anything good left within me. It¡¯s yours. But not for free.


    ¡°So, Brother, you claim nothing on this planet can hurt you. I think I can. Let me get one hit. My best hit. If you can take it, I¡¯ll sign. You seem a better friend to have than these sirens that want nothing more than for me to be no man at all. Not you Hubaba. I¡¯m sorry to say it seems everyone¡¯s given up on you, friend. Including yourself.¡±


    The pity that filled Yan¡¯s eyes made John want to kill him. Only for a moment, as John thought the man was a decent and honorable sort.


    Yan softly and compassionately said, ¡°Elder Brother, I¡¯ll do this. But not for the contract alone. I want you to agree to let me help you once we¡¯re in the NetherRealm. I¡¯ll show you life can be enjoyed again. It pains me to see you this way. And I don¡¯t want to walk this path alone when I could walk it with my elder brother.


    ¡°You¡¯re strong for a Bronze, but I¡¯m peak Empty, and strong for my tier too. I¡¯m sorry to say there¡¯s no path to victory for you. I will only defend myself with an essence-shield. If your attack incapacitates me, fairly and objectively, I will go back through the portal a failure. I swear on my honor. Now swear on your own.¡±


    John wanted to argue against the essence-shield but let it go. He rose from the ground and held his hand out. ¡°The little of it I have left, I hold dear, and I swear on it.¡±


    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.


    Hands were shaken and then the brothers bowed to one another as the many lights curving out of Lilly¡¯s ball flickered, diminished, then petered out. Lilly collected the ball in silence and went back to sit near Amber and Hubaba.


    John walked some distance away from the group. He beckoned for Yan to stand in front of him. He checked his dantian. It was about three-quarters full. He didn¡¯t want to push his luck with Yan, so he didn¡¯t apply any buffs to himself. He thought about taking off his band of suffering necklace but decided to leave it on for the same reason.


    Yet again, I¡¯m alone while surrounded by friends, thought John. The farmer popped into his mind, having little will to live and little to live for.


    John knew he had one chance. Just like the island stuck between Sparta and Athenai, he too was stuck between two greater powers. He too rejected the ultimatum he was given. He calmed his heart and focused. If this was to be his end, he was determined to make his father proud of him.


    Having lived a long time, John had suffered through much. He believed he had a strong will. Not long ago, before he learned of his great shame and what a fool he was, he would¡¯ve said none had stronger. He drew on all that will, along with all that caused him to suffer throughout his long life, all that caused his current suffering too. In his head, he raised his angry fist at fate and yelled out ¡°You didn¡¯t break me! Not yet! I¡¯m still standing!¡±


    All John¡¯s hate and pain and disappointment and heartache and confusion and fear were infused into his will and supplemented his effort. He attained the state he learned how to enter into when fighting Ukaraaz, his battle-mind. He looked down upon himself from above and was disappointed at the man he saw. He used that as fuel too. He corrected how he was breathing with [Breath of the Serpent Clan Endless Technique]. He adjusted how he was cycling with [Turmoil Within Tranquility Cycling Technique].


    During his time in the pocket plane, John wasn¡¯t able to create an [Ultimate] since the spell needed a living target. Testing one on Amber would¡¯ve been far too dangerous. The last and only [Ultimate] he cast was a bad version of one, but it still incapacitated the terrible shadows in New York. Rare dark ones. Golds, three tiers below Yan. He was a Copper at the time, and he had different concepts and essence. He had better ones now. And he had put a lot of practice and thought into creating an [Ultimate].


    Every time John meditated, he thought on the [Ultimate] he would create. He spent countless hours in the pocket plane thinking of what it would do and how, exactly, he would cast it. He practiced casting it up to release, as far as he could take it. He could have a faster casting [Ultimate], but the faster it cast the weaker it would be.


    John always thought he would cast the [Ultimate] when surrounded by enemies, so his was an area of effect spell centered on himself. It was too late to change that. The only issue was how long it took for the manifestation to complete. He knew it would take some time, but since he was given a free hit, time wasn¡¯t an issue.


    First, John pulled mightily on his ¡®leech¡¯ concept ¨C the manifestation would take everything from his enemies. Then he layered ¡®blood¡¯ into it ¨C his mightiest concept, allowing him some control over his enemies. Next, ¡®battle¡¯ was infused into it ¨C he was born for war. Then went ¡®shadow¡¯ ¨C as Sunshine wrote to him, he was drowning in darkness. ¡®Change¡¯ was twisted into the manifestation ¨C he would change his fate with this [Ultimate]. Last went ¡®protection¡¯ ¨C he wanted the manifestation to act as a trap as he took everything from his foes, and it had to be protected from ending and his enemies escaping.


    [Ultimates] were always a single cast. All or nothing. Everything within a cultivator went into casting it. One cast. John forced and twisted all the essence within himself. All his indomitable will. He forced and twisted and built it up and saw a look of worry on Yan¡¯s face.


    The [Ultimate] was released. A cascade of multicolored light first enveloped John before expanding out five paces or so. Within the field of light were glowing particles extending up from the ground. Once the glowing particles hit the top of the field, they quickly moved along the side and back to the ground to rise up again.


    John¡¯s dantian was completely emptied and his knees buckled as he started to collapse to the ground, the unconsciousness caused by an empty dantian summoning him. The essence-shield of his armor activated. He heard Yan scream in pain as the glowing particles destroyed the Salt¡¯s essence-shield and tore into him, the same lights that also tore painfully into John, but to a much lesser extent. It was his own manifestation, and those glowing particles were bringing him what they had taken from Yan.


    Essence rushed back into John¡¯s dantian at the same time vital essence and all that made up Yan rushed into him as well, healing him some and staving off unconsciousness. A message flashed saying his auto-heal was on cooldown. He pushed essence into his bracer to activate that essence-shield and immediately started casting the [Ultimate] again.


    [Ultimates] were always a single cast. All or nothing. Everything within a cultivator went into casting it. One cast.


    John had created a multicast [Ultimate], a feat only his ¡®leech¡¯ concept made possible. As best he could, ignoring the pain that tore through his body, the bouts of unconsciousness that threatened to overwhelm him, he continued to cast.


    Yan¡¯s hands left his body, turned into giant hands, and pushed and banged against the field while the vampire screamed in agony. He was trapped. They both were.


    The next casting was built up enough to release. John released it. His legs buckled for a moment before more essence flowed into his dantian. He wasn¡¯t sure how much. Enough to cast again.


    Yan fell to his knees, screaming madly, then collapsed prone, wriggling around as he screamed. The Salt¡¯s feet disjoined from his body and joined his hands in beating on the field that entrapped him. The glowing particles continued to bore into him. Into John too, feeding him.


    The third casting was released. John couldn¡¯t stop himself from collapsing. He just couldn¡¯t keep his feet even as some essence rushed back into his dantian. He could feel it wasn¡¯t much essence without checking. The pain his own manifestation caused helped him stay conscious.


    John screamed along with Yan. He knew there was nothing else he could do but wait it out and hang onto life. He assumed Yan would live. Salts had to be very durable.


    John hoped his brother would keep his word and admit defeat. Admit that John won. They wouldn¡¯t travel as companions now, but who knew what the future had in store? One day they could walk together, brothers, side by side.


    With all his willpower, John held onto consciousness as he screamed. Finally, the first field faded away. Later, the second did too. Then, finally, the third. Relief flooded him. He was alive. Looking with his orb-eye, he saw his brother was alive too, but incapacitated, unconscious.


    The victorious smile that started to form on John¡¯s mouth froze as he saw a laser beam tear a large chunk out of Yan¡¯s face.


    ¡°Now,¡± yelled Lilly. Purple scythes dug into Yan as more laser beams tore out chunks of his neck. A mighty beam of red essence turned a large area of Yan¡¯s chest into mush and sent a spray of bloody mist into the air.


    ¡°Hold,¡± yelled Lilly. She ran to Yan and started to drink of the Salt. John tried to call out but only managed a pathetic murmur. Lilly still heard and looked towards John. ¡°Humbaba, drag John over here,¡± she ordered. ¡°There¡¯s plenty of vital essence for you too, sweety.¡±


    Greatly distraught, John tried to yell for Lilly to stop. He had given his word. Yan was his brother. Yan was a good man, and honorable. Yan gave his word too. They both did. John won. Lilly needed to stop. He only managed to mumble incoherently as he was dragged to his dying brother.


    John¡¯s face was placed on a wound. He refused to take of his brother. Not in this way. Not after giving his word. He let anger fuel him. He managed to turn his head towards his former wife while partially lifting himself up. He yelled out, ¡°Stop!¡± As he prepared to rise and stop her, Lilly lifted her bloody mouth from Yan. Her arm snaked around the back of John¡¯s head.


    With her eyes sparkling and her bloody mouth grinning, Lilly giggled as John¡¯s mind blanked.

 B2 Chapter 53 - But the sea does not change

    Stretch rubbed up against John. He then took John¡¯s hand in his own large wooden hand. The images Stretch sent were too blurry and confusing for John to understand.


    John shook his head to clear it. He saw the most solid spirit he had ever seen, then looked down at the naked corpse of his brother, Yan. ¡°He¡¯s dead? What happened? We made a deal. We swore on our honor.¡±


    Lilly said, ¡°Pick me up.¡± John let go of Stretch¡¯s hand and lifted his wife. She put her arms around his neck and her forehead on his cheek. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, my dear heart, he didn¡¯t keep his word. He regained consciousness before you and claimed he didn¡¯t lose. He did. By the terms set and swore to, he lost. We all attacked him while he was so weak. I¡¯m sorry. Not everyone keeps their word like you do. The world is filled with liars.¡±


    John felt heavy. And weak. He sent vital essence to heal. Only a little essence remained in his dantian. Something felt off to him. It didn¡¯t feel right. His brother was a good man, an honorable man.


    ¡°What she says is true,¡± added Hubaba. ¡°You won and he was going to attack you when he recovered. We have the portal anchor. The invasions are over. We¡¯ve won.


    ¡°Whatever that powerful and potent manifestation you cast was, it weakened him enough for us to finish him off. What a manifestation! I¡¯ve never heard of the like. He had no storage device or anything besides the equipment he wore. Lilly took his gear and the five crystals he dropped.¡±


    Lilly lifted her head, smiled, and said, ¡°Just to save time. It¡¯s all yours whenever you want, my dear heart. We won! You saved Terra!¡±


    John tried to smile back at his wife, but he felt uneasy and had a hard time forming one. He felt drained. Empty. His heart hurt and churned sourness and sadness. He felt heavy. He assumed it was due to the [Ultimate] draining him. He cast it three times in a row. And he was damaged and bleeding all over. He sent more vital essence to heal and while keeping an eye on his low essence he worked on himself a little with his [Heal] spell.


    With his orb-eye, John noticed Amber in human form with crossed-arms looking sour. Stretch kept reaching out for her hand, and she kept ignoring it.


    Somethings not right, thought John. He thought he was supposed to be mad at Lilly. He assumed because she killed Yan. Hubaba said Yan went back on his word, so they all did what had to be done while Yan was weakened. He had no reason to be mad at them for just doing what had to be done.


    A bizarre voice reverberated around John, but softly.


    [I¡¯ll need that portal anchor back. Remove it from your soul storage, witch.]


    Lilly tapped John like she wanted to get down. He set her on the ground and followed her into a kowtow along with Hubaba and Amber. Stretch remained on his feet, fearless.


    From the kowtow position, Lilly held the portal anchor up. ¡°Yes, Sublime,¡± she said.


    The portal anchor disappeared from Lilly¡¯s outstretched hand.


    [Drop the act, witch. I heard it all. Fourth Tree twice. You are lucky¡­]


    The Sublime sent down a feeling of overwhelming maliciousness. John thought he should care more. He didn¡¯t have it in him to.


    [I know Sunshine sent you a message, Bronze. What he put in your head were lies. We don¡¯t want to purge this world. We¡¯re helping to ease it into the Tree of Life at great personal expense to ourselves. Did he tell you I was cleared by the core? I bet he didn¡¯t. The Butcher was the only g¡¯athu to accept. The other three already have a strong presence in this universe and had no interest in your resourceless world. It was him or nothing. How was I supposed to know he was quarantined? He wasn¡¯t allowed to bring any tech. I took every precaution. There was no chance of him escaping this world.]


    John had no idea what to say to that, so he said, ¡°Yes, Sublime.¡±


    [The Eternal is teaching the world seed itself to cultivate. Somehow. Would we do that if we wanted to purge this world?]


    John replied, ¡°No, Sublime.¡± He noticed Ton-Oi sounded much sterner and taciturn than the last time they spoke.


    [Is that not proof enough? I would like to kill the witch, but I hold no ill will towards any other terran. Including you.]


    ¡°Yes, Sublime.¡±


    [None of you appreciate what we¡¯re doing. The expenses involved. We could¡¯ve just thrown you all to the wolves. And now¡­]


    There was a long pause.


    [The invasions were stopped far sooner than we assumed they¡¯d be. The Eternal wants me to set up more invasions. The world seed wants more too. Tell the real leaders of this world that once the dark walkers dissipate, new invasions will start nine standard weeks after. Roughly forty-one of your days.


    [There will be no g¡¯athu. Only demons from a tenth ring planet. Since there¡¯re only five portal anchors now, I¡¯ll bring four dark walkers. None of you are allowed to take part in fighting the future invasions. Besides the world seed, I assume. We are doing this so normal terrans can grow stronger and get acclimated to their new reality.]


    After a moment of silence, John said, ¡°Yes, Sublime.¡±


    [And witch, you are lucky¡­I could¡­you disgust me. Consider yourself lucky we aren¡¯t intervening.]


    Lilly loudly said, ¡°Yes, Sublime. Thank you, Sublime.¡±


    Long minutes stretched out in silence on the battlefield. John assumed the Sublime was finished with them, so stood. His companions followed suit.


    Amber dourly said, ¡°Great. More invasions.¡± She reached out and took Stretch¡¯s offered hand.


    Lilly smiled widely and said, ¡°That¡¯s great. For us. And Terra. Our businesses will boom. I got Hum¡­Hubaba a big contract helping to reverse engineer the demon tech with me. For one of the companies I sold a couple to. They can¡¯t figure it out. They¡¯ll throw money at us now. We¡¯ll have an army equipped with decent minis and lasers waiting for the demons. Easy-breezy. You have no idea how much I¡¯m making us, my pretty little monkey.¡±


    John tried returning the smile and failed again. ¡°That¡¯s great. Just remember not to charge too much. We need people to be strong and free, not weak and poor.¡±


    ¡°Oh. That reminds me,¡± said Lilly. ¡°I have to go ensure they don¡¯t steal our crystals and loot. Especially before Stretch gets to it. Why don¡¯t you cultivate a little, sweety. Heal up. I¡¯ll take care of everything. You¡¯re the hero that saved Terra. Take a break.¡±


    <hr>


    John couldn¡¯t shake the feeling something was wrong. Meditation refilled his dantian and helped him heal but did little for his feeling of unease. Something was growing inside of him. Something bad. He should¡¯ve felt victorious, but he only felt lost.


    The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    ¡°Are you done cultivating, my dear heart,¡± asked Lilly. She sat on his lap and put her arms around him and her forehead on his cheek. He couldn¡¯t shake the feeling.


    Lilly poked John¡¯s nose with her index finger and said, ¡°Boop! The copters are waiting to bring us to the base and fly us home. You can cultivate on the flight too. There¡¯s a big celebration for us in New York. It¡¯s Veterans Day in the US right now. All the world¡¯s celebrating that holiday now. Everyone but you. What¡¯s wrong, my heart¡¯s content?¡±


    John sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I think I need some time alone. You all go. Have fun. I¡¯m going to¡­I don¡¯t know. Just try and shake this.¡±


    Lilly lifted her head and looked John in the eye. ¡°Where will you go? What¡¯ll you do?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    ¡°Please don¡¯t leave me. I just got you back. Please,¡± asked Lilly, dejectedly.


    ¡°You said you were going to help with the demon tech. You have your cultivation-mat business and the other ones too. Go. Help prepare Earth for the next invasion. I just need a little time by myself to shake this.¡±


    ¡°Shake what exactly?¡±


    John looked away from Lilly. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I feel¡­off. I just need time.¡±


    Lilly¡¯s brows furrowed. ¡°Okay, but I don¡¯t like this. Please don¡¯t stay away too long. You have your phone, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°You remember how to work it? If I text you, you know how to reply?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°And how to answer calls?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Is it charged?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± said John.


    ¡°Well, at least say goodbye to our friends. They¡¯ll be sad if you don¡¯t. You were supposed to be the star celebrity in New York, my pretty little monkey. Now they¡¯ll have to make do with only us lowly helpers.¡±


    John froze and his eyes went blank. A ball fell to the ground and lights curved all around, even high into the air. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, my Adon. I need you near me. I need to work on you more. This¡¯ll have to be quick though. My vigor hasn¡¯t recharged the blocker much. No one needs to know our business more than they already do.¡±


    Lilly caressed John¡¯s face. ¡°I love you so much. I need you to love me again. I wish you could just¡­just¡­I¡¯m so sorry, my dear heart. You make me want to do better. I¡¯m doing so much better with you by my side again. You¡¯ll see. Everything will be perfect. Now, you feel fine. Nothing¡¯s wrong. You will come with us to New York.¡±


    Lilly continued to work on John until the lights curving out of the ball flickered and died out.


    Lilly got off John¡¯s lap and they both stood. ¡°Oh, this box has all your crystals. Stretch stole a bunch again. Two are the blue-green crystals from Yan. I kept the three others for me, Amber, and Humbaba. Hubaba. You should put them in your ring, sweety.¡±


    After gathering all the crystals into his ring, John and his wife headed back along the battlefield past all the spirits and dead of both sides of the conflict. Many large vehicles and helicopters were in the area. He noticed many new soldiers about too.


    John heard most modern soldiers had duties other than fighting, such as cooks, carters, and tinkerers. He thought it was strange. There were always some noncombatants in armies in the past, but they were few in number. The bulk of modern armies seemed to be made up of mostly noncombatants.


    Large groups of soldiers in many different uniforms stood around Amber, Hubaba, and Stretch. The soldiers took turns taking photos with each. John almost smiled watching Stretch rub against everyone that approached him, unaware and ignorant of what a photograph was, trying to hold hands and communicate with each person he rubbed against.


    The joy John saw on Amber¡¯s face as she talked and took photos with all the men surrounding her caused anger to stir in his heart. He thought anger was better than the malaise he otherwise felt. He knew the crowd surrounding Hubaba was just as large, and both crowds contained many females too, but only the one around Amber bothered him.


    Soldiers began looking towards John. Some waved and walked towards him. A lot of soldiers seemed angry at him. He pretended to be happy and joined in the cheer with good humor. He even smiled for photos. Thankfully, he was told to enter a helicopter soon after, ending that torture.


    <hr>


    As the weeks passed and Earth prepared for the dark walkers to dissipate and new invasions to begin, John kept to himself as much as he could in the warehouse he was previously imprisoned in just outside of DC. For reasons he didn¡¯t know and couldn¡¯t articulate, his heart grew only heavier. Every day it seemed to hurt more.


    President Williams granted John a full pardon for the imaginary crimes foolish people said he committed, including killing the demon under the banner of truce. That people considered the death of that demon a crime was insane to him. Did they forget what the demons did to our own? No crime can be committed against a demon. As the demons say their purpose is to kill us, our purpose should be to kill them.


    John was not forced to stay within his warehouse. He preferred to. The things modern society considered crimes weren¡¯t. He also knew he would commit many more imaginary, nonsensical crimes if he were to leave his warehouse on his own.


    John¡¯s heart did lift some when he visited many of the modern countries it was believed he could be from. From Slovenia over to Moldova and down to Greece. From Turkey down to Saudi Arabia and up over to Iran. All wanted to claim him as their own. He kept the truth to himself as he was paraded through the streets and cheered.


    It felt wonderful to be wanted by so many. Only in Turkey did John escape from his guards and travel without handlers or his wife to visit the area he was born of. The mountains looked small. In his mind and memories, they were giant and majestic and much different.


    Still, John knew where he came from. An old pain and emptiness within his chest was filled. It was quickly replaced with a new pain and emptiness, and a malaise he couldn¡¯t shake off and free himself of. He was glad he no longer traveled alone, and the love his wife gave him helped fill the emptiness and darkness growing inside of him.


    Lilly was very busy creating businesses and making deals, but she still spent much time with her husband, both in his warehouse and while traveling with him too.


    John did his best to ensure Lilly kept the wellbeing of Earth prominent in her dealings. He wanted his planet and her people to be strong. He knew they were too weak. Technology would not fix the cultural issues that caused their weakness. The fact they saw a man killing for what all people should kill for as a crime only highlighted the issues.


    John hoped the societies of Earth learned before it was too late. No world could be strong that did not allow all men to have pride and honor and defend those things with their own life and the death of their transgressors. Along with politeness, those values were the cornerstone strong civilizations were built upon. He thought of ways to make all strong, and not have the usual systems that kept the common people weak and low and complacent, without pride and honor.


    Hubaba often visited John in his warehouse, and the vampire was glad to have such a good friend. The demon ran a crafting academy in West Virginia. People from all over the world competed to earn a place within that academy.


    The demon also released many YouTube video tutorials on many aspects of cultivation, runes, runecrafting, alchemy, and so on. He was very popular, and John was glad the demon finally seemed to have all he ever wanted, all he was denied while a scab at Second Point, and finally had found some contentment.


    Amber never once visited John in his warehouse. He only saw her in person when there was an event he was forced to attend requiring them both to be present. He did his best to ignore her, and she did her best to annoy him.


    John knew Lilly spent a good amount of time with Amber and the two were fast and good friends. He knew he would eventually have to warn Amber how his wife¡¯s games usually ended. But Amber was safe for a long while yet, so there was no rush.


    Pictures of Amber were a different story. John saw those all the time. When he watched the television or videos on his phone she was in many commercials. When he left the warehouse, no matter what country he went to, giant pictures called billboards advertising a product would show him Amber. There were even advertisements that stated any stranger could win a date with her.


    John wondered why Amber had so little pride and was so determined to destroy her reputation. There was a commercial advertising something called suntan lotion where Amber wore items so skimpy and small even the most depraved among common nightwalkers would be too embarrassed to be seen in public wearing such. For all intents and purposes, Amber was naked in that commercial.


    Amber would waste essence constantly by showing off her various forms as if she no longer took advancement and cultivation seriously. As if the world was safe. As if there wasn¡¯t a universe out there that Earth still didn¡¯t know its place in. As if Amber was safe from that universe. As if she didn¡¯t believe his warning about the Peerless.


    Since Amber still had a human form past her time limit, John assumed she must¡¯ve killed another human. No one told him if she did, and he was too proud to ask. Lilly did tell him she created a body ritual for Amber like the one she made for him.


    It didn¡¯t work out so well for Amber. Her human form, at least the beautiful one she now had, had been through very little hardship. She had nearly always been invisible in that form. If her struggles as a beastly woman had counted, it probably would¡¯ve been a different story.


    Amber was waiting for peak Bronze to get a body for her demon form, a known one from the NCS, the best she had a chance of qualifying for, [Stone Body]. John didn¡¯t think she would put the necessary work in to get it. She was too busy being naked on the television.


    John stopped thinking of Amber as he was awoken from his meditations by his wife and told there was a meeting with President Williams he had to attend.

 B2 Chapter 54 - Giving me a million reasons

    As the four companions were ushered into the president¡¯s office, John noticed there were only two guards, unlike the seven or eight the last time he was in the other smaller office.


    President Williams¡¯ wife was also in the room. The couple smiled warmly as the companions took seats.


    The president said, ¡°Thank you all for coming on such short notice. I¡¯m leaving for the summit later tonight and there¡¯s business we need to take care of first. Since none of you are allowed to participate in future invasions, everyone¡¯s a little worried and on edge.¡±


    Lilly went to speak. Williams said, ¡°One moment Meghan. Hear me out first.¡±


    Lilly wanted everyone to call her Meghan now, the birth name of her current body. John told her he would call her Meghan whenever she started calling him John.


    President Williams asked, ¡°Amber, can you somehow contact the world seed? Stretch?¡±


    ¡°No, Mr. President,¡± replied Amber. ¡°He visits me kinda often though. Why?¡±


    The president scowled. ¡°Damn. Okay. Meghan, my wife¡¯s going to escort you down to the Presidential Emergency Operations Center. There¡¯s, uh, we¡¯ll say a sensitive issue you need to address with, uh, you¡¯ll see when you get down there. We need those issues handled ASAP. Brief me after. Then we¡¯ll all have dinner together and I¡¯ll be off to the summit. I can¡¯t have a no on this, Meghan. I need good news.¡±


    Lilly nodded and was escorted from the room.


    ¡°You know you¡¯re free to go wherever you want, right,¡± the president asked John after turning to face him. ¡°There¡¯s no reason to stay at that warehouse. Though we¡¯d like for you to behave yourself. That pardon was for prior crimes, not future ones.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± replied John.


    The president gave John a strange look and took his time opening a laptop. He checked his watch and added, ¡°And don¡¯t take what the news says about war crimes against the demons to heart. You saved us all from what sounds a lot like slavery. People are just having a hard time adjusting.¡±


    Ignoring his guests, President Williams began typing on his laptop for a few minutes.


    John heard the word green come through an earpiece of one of the guards. The guard turned to the president and gave a thumbs-up. Williams nodded at the guard.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for the deception,¡± said the president. ¡°We have a sensitive issue to discuss. Had to be done this way. John, please maintain your calm. We¡¯re just going to ask some questions. This isn¡¯t an attack on anyone. We could be wrong. We¡¯re only asking questions. We all good? We all going to stay calm and address this like adults without taking offense and getting violent?¡±


    John was glad Amber and Hubaba had confused looks on their faces too. ¡°Of course, Mr. President,¡± replied Amber. John and Hubaba looked at each other, both wondering what this was about, before agreeing.


    ¡°Do any of you have reason to believe Meghan is anti-Semitic,¡± asked President Williams.


    John didn¡¯t know what that meant. Amber asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s been a lot of families murdered. About half have been Jewish and there¡¯s evidence they were targeted. The others seem to be opportunistic.¡±


    John¡¯s heart dropped. He asked, ¡°How many?¡±


    ¡°A lot,¡± answered Williams. ¡°We¡¯re still finding new massacres that can be tied to¡­this. The first were Meghan¡¯s parents the first day of the invasions.¡±


    John said, ¡°Her father abused her in a horrific way and her mother turned a blind eye toward the deeds. Those killings are understandable.¡±


    The president nodded and picked a device up from his desk. He hit a button and a recording started to play.


    ¡°Listen. Amanda. Or anyone else. If you¡¯re listening. If what I did¡­if that came out. I didn¡¯t¡­it¡¯s¡­it¡¯s not what it seems like. Look, I¡¯m a cheater. I like women. I cheat on you all the time. With women. Adults. Hot women. Some were young. Young as in twenty. I¡¯m not attracted to children. They look like fucking pandas with their little nubby arms and legs and giant heads.


    ¡°I¡¯m rich. I¡¯m good looking. I can get hot women. And I do. All the time. Long legs, big titties, great asses. Women. Amanda, come on, how hot are you? I married you because you¡¯re so hot. I don¡¯t like children. You know I cheat, Amanda. How many friends of yours did I sleep with? Or try to. How many times did you catch me? I know it¡¯s nothing to brag about. I¡¯m sorry about that. But they were all women! I like women! You have to know that!


    ¡°Meghan. Our little baby. My little angel with all her medical issues. I loved her. I think¡­I think she¡¯s evil. Sometimes¡­sometimes she makes me do things. Listen, I know this sounds crazy. I know I sound crazy. I think she killed Mark. I don¡¯t think it was an accident. I¡¯m sorry. I wanted a boy so bad and¡­I know you wanted to try again after Mark. I couldn¡¯t. I didn¡¯t want¡­¡±


    The man on the recording started to cry. He sobbed for some time before collecting himself. ¡°Sometimes she acts different. She¡¯ll act like an adult. She makes me do things. It¡¯s like¡­it¡¯s like she can control me. She makes me¡­do things. I didn¡¯t want to. It¡¯s sick. It¡¯s disgusting. You have to believe me!


    ¡°Look, when you hear this, I don¡¯t know if I¡¯ll be dead or not. If I¡¯m dead, please believe me. I don¡¯t want to be remembered as that. I would never. With my little girl. Any kid. They¡¯re gross. They¡¯re like little monkeys. I can get hot women. Why would I spend so much on hot women if I was like that? I¡¯m not a good guy. I do bad things. You name it, I did it. Drugs, prostitutes, cheating, tax evasion, embezzlement. I¡¯m a fucking lawyer. Of course I¡¯m no saint. I lie, cheat, and steal all the time. But that? Never.


    ¡°Listen, even if you don¡¯t believe me, just watch out for Meghan. She¡¯s not right. And I mean, like, demonic possession or some shit. Supernatural shit. Like in Exorcist. But worse. Ten times worse. Be careful. I didn¡¯t do that. She made me. I love you. Be careful.¡±


    The president clicked another button on the device. ¡°We found that in her father¡¯s safe. There¡¯s more evidence he collected. Some strongly support what he said about the death of her brother. Colonel Stoddard tells a similar story as Meghan¡¯s father. We placed him under arrest. I hate this. I see the hurt look in your eyes, John. But we got to talk about this and make some hard decisions.¡±


    The president picked up a new device and a large screen grew downwards from the left wall. A picture of a dead man and woman showed on the screen. The device in the president¡¯s hand was clicked and a murdered family appeared. And then again and again and again.


    Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.


    John only recognized people from one of the photos. Those he saw in New York City. It was the fourth massacre shown. Far more were shown after.


    Two different types of footage from John¡¯s battle with Yan started to play. President Williams said, ¡°Wait till the fight¡¯s over. This has been kept under wraps. We had to be sure, and we didn¡¯t know what we were seeing. No audio. Too windy. The other view¡¯s from satellite and not very helpful for this.¡±


    One angle of footage John could barely make out. They both showed John on the ground, his head over his unconscious brother, Lilly draining Yan. Hubaba and Amber were standing unnaturally still. As John twisted his head and prepared to rise, Lilly reached behind his head, and he froze too.


    Amber and Hubaba grabbed John and sat beside him as Lilly finished draining Yan of vital essence. Stretch, freed, went over to stand by the four. Lilly quickly snatched the five crystals before Stretch could.


    Lilly took turns talking to all three companions while they sat still and unmoving. Hubaba and Amber stripped Yan of all his possessions.


    Lilly then placed John, Amber, and Hubaba in specific spots. The three companions were unfrozen and started to move and act normally. Stretch began to rub against John and grab for his hand.


    Amber loudly exclaimed, ¡°Oh my God! That¡¯s not how it happened! I don¡¯t remember any of that!¡±


    ¡°Neither do I, and I remember that day very clearly. I remember Yan speaking and moving to attack John¡± said Hubaba.


    As John watched, he remembered some. Like when his mind was deteriorated, flashes of images ran through his mind. Being shown what he just watched was like a thread he could pull on, and his mind raced to pull and pull on it. His wife betrayed him. He couldn¡¯t remember to what extent or the details, but it was slowly coming back.


    Amber said, ¡°I can¡¯t¡­how can I not remember any of that? It¡¯s so crazy. All my memories¡­they seem so right. But I knew something was off! I knew it. What did we talk about for so long? I only remember the contract.¡±


    John remembered what was talked about. His heart filled with hate and blackness. Amber got out of her chair and whispered in John¡¯s ear, ¡°She used my true name! I read her lips. It was definitely my true name. Oh my God! What do we do?¡±


    John grunted. After waiting for a better reply and never getting one, Amber nervously returned to her seat.


    President Williams was worriedly looking at John. ¡°Hold on, now. Remember what we agreed to earlier. We¡¯d all remain calm. No violence. Stay cool. We¡¯ll take care of this. I promise you. But we need to talk first. We need her for now. At least until the end of the next invasion. She¡¯s too important to too many projects. Major projects. Game changers. I¡¯m trying to do the right thing here. Everyone said I should keep this from you three. Please don¡¯t make me regret bringing you in on this.¡±


    John wondered why fate seemed so intent on breaking him. He felt so heavy. He tapped into the bottomless well of anger he constantly suppressed to rid himself of the malaise dampening his mind. He cared little for what Williams wanted. He had had enough.


    ¡°John, come on, man. Relax. Take a deep breath. I promise you we¡¯ll handle this. Think of the big picture here. We still have a lot to talk about. We still need her working on our side. We have no direct evidence. It just paints a picture. Let¡¯s talk. We have some big decisions to make. And she¡¯s in the PEOC, one of the most secure locations on this entire planet. You can¡¯t get to her, and she can¡¯t hurt anyone else now. Are we okay?¡±


    John wasn¡¯t okay.  He went to face Lilly in a rage, trailing the scent she left.  After the first door was broken through, the president was escorted away to safety.  Amber and Hubaba quickly gave up on trying to talk him down.  It was no easy feat to accomplish, but the PEOC wasn¡¯t as secure as the president thought.  Not from him.


    The last barrier between John and Lilly fell. There was fear in her eyes. She asked, ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Why¡¯d they lock me in here alone? Why¡¯re you so angry, my dear heart?¡±


    ¡°I remember, Lilly.¡±


    Lilly moved backwards as she said, ¡°Adon. John. My lord. You¡¯re overreacting. It¡¯s not what it seems.¡±


    John slowly moved towards Lilly. She started to cry and sat on the ground. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m so sorry. I know something¡¯s wrong with me. I¡¯m ready. I¡¯m ready to get help. Serious help. Medication. It¡¯ll stop. I want it to stop. I want to be better. Normal. I just¡­I just need you. I need you to help me. It¡¯s not my fault I¡¯m like this. You know that. You know what my father did to me. And what this body¡¯s father did to me too.¡±


    John laughed madly. ¡°I know what you did to him! Is there nothing you haven¡¯t lied about?¡±


    Crying and sobbing, Lilly said, ¡°Anything, not nothing.¡± John noticed Lilly¡¯s hands were shaking. ¡°Please, please stop looking at me like you¡¯re going to kill me. You¡¯re scaring me.¡±


    ¡°Good! That¡¯s exactly what I¡¯m going to do. No more. I¡¯ve had enough.¡±


    With both anger and fright in her voice, Lilly said, ¡°You promised! You promised we¡¯d talk. When I made the ritual for your body refinement, you promised we¡¯d talk if you ever wanted to kill me. You lied too. You¡¯re a liar too.¡±


    ¡°WE ARE TALKING!¡±


    Lilly jumped and shook as John screamed. She said, ¡°Please. Just listen. Okay? I¡¯m going to lay it all out. The truth. The whole truth. This body¡¯s dad ¨C he was fucking gorgeous. Like, supermodel hot. You know how much it sucks being horny all the time and none of the hottest guys are attracted to you? You know how gorgeous I am. Or I was and will be. This part of a new body fucking sucks, man. What am I supposed to do? It¡¯s not like you were any help.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to be this way. I don¡¯t. I never wanted to betray you. You have to see how much I love you. You see it, don¡¯t you? I need help. I just need help. And I¡¯ll get it. I¡¯m serious about getting help and getting better. I want to be better.¡±


    John sighed. ¡°Why? Why do you do it? Any of it. What does all the killing do for you?¡±


    After some time crying and sobbing, with a low voice, Lilly answered. ¡°I was going to lie and say I just did it to strengthen myself. That¡¯s just a small part of it. See? This is good. Telling the truth proves I¡¯m serious about getting better. And it builds our trust back.


    ¡°The truth is¡­I don¡¯t know really. It makes me feel better. When I kill people, when I see a happy family and I make them go from having fun and laughing to¡­just¡­just pathetic and screaming and miserable, it¡¯s like with sex ¨C knowing what¡¯s about to happen, God! Nothing feels so good. And while it¡¯s happening, I feel amazing. It¡¯s amazing. It feels¡­indescribable. Once you torture and kill a kid in front of their parents, it¡¯s¡­¡±


    Lilly kissed her fingers and then threw the kiss in the air. ¡°Mwah! Chef¡¯s kiss. Just the anticipation soaks my panties. It fills the hole in me. For a little while. Man, I love talking about this stuff with you. After all this time. This is really good for us, you know? Finally talking openly and truthfully about this. Finally.


    ¡°You also fill the hole in me, but it¡¯s too big for just you. I don¡¯t want to be this way. I know it¡¯s wrong. Medications will help. Help fix my chemistry. Everything will be okay. You¡¯ll see. This is the bottom. We can only go up from here.¡±


    John sighed again. ¡°It won¡¯t, Lilly. You¡¯ll never stop. You¡¯ll never be okay. You¡¯ll never fill the hole. The best you can be is dead. I love you. I¡¯ll always love you. But no more of any of it.¡±


    Lilly wiped her eyes with her sleeves. She stood. She smiled brightly and widely, as if to show off how many of her milk teeth were missing. The love John saw on her face, love for him, the only thing about Lilly he thought was true, broke his heart.


    ¡°Before you kill me, just let me hold you one last time. I love you so much. Just let me hold you once more. Before¡­¡±


    John interrupted by nodding his assent. Lilly let out a loud and relieved sob along with her breath and she started to cry again. She smiled wider with joy as she approached John to hold him, and the smile on her face was split in half as John cut her in two, from head to groin. He continued to cut her up into little pieces as a spirit formed, his heart nearly bursting from sorrow and regret and uncertainty.


    John wished he knew more of louvre dolls and the correct ways to trap the soul of a witch. He didn¡¯t look forward to their next meeting. As Sunshine said, Lilly would be an awful enemy. He wished it didn¡¯t fall on him to do what had to be done, but it did. There would be no more. For some years, at least.


    Lilly talked often of her business dealings. John wished he had paid closer attention when she did.


    A place called the State Department had given him a servant some time ago. He called for her. She didn¡¯t come. A man did. The man refused to do as he was told so John took his head. Hours passed before someone else was sent to him. The new man obeyed his orders.


    Every ruler of the nearly two hundred countries of Earth received a box. The box contained two items. The first item was a letter that read ¨C


    ¡°In this box is a piece of my wife. I loved her dearly, but she betrayed me. Many countries made deals with her, and many other members of your countries did too. Those deals are transferred to me.


    Before any think to betray me, ask yourself if I have any love for you.¡±

 B2 Chapter 55 - Save your tears for another day

    John disliked that all the priests and clerks told him he was wrong about so much. They went by different titles now, such as doctor, historian, archeologist, and professor, but the new words meant the same as the old.


    Priest had always meant wise, a learned man. That always happened to go hand-in-hand with also interpreting the will of the gods, and the meaning had changed not all that long ago.


    A clerk was an intelligent and learned man that did not claim understanding of the gods, such as the old king now called Sargon. Before he became a ruler, it was said he was a type of clerk.


    Many modern-day priests visited John too. The priests also went by many other titles, but all the titles still meant priest. He hated that everyone tried to complicate simple things.


    For the story of where he was from, John still feigned ignorance and stuck to his old memories. A timeline was mapped out for his life. His NCS already had a better one. He let the priests and clerks make their own. They seemed to enjoy it.


    During the time of the one called Siddhartha Gautama, John was mostly in Sparta, though he did travel far to the south of Nepal during that time, sticking to the coast of India, and again with Alexander not all that long after. During the time of the one called the Christ, he was mostly in Rome and Gaul. During the time of the one called Mohammad, he was in the Caucasus and the great plains of Russia with the horse tribes.


    John didn¡¯t meet any of those men, but he had met many famous historic figures, and his guests were interested to hear his accounts of them.


    For Egypt, Moses, and Judea, the information Lilly had previously provided was given more weight than that of John¡¯s, even though he went to Egypt long before she had been born and he didn¡¯t lie about everything all the time or get some sick pleasure from wantonly killing innocent families.


    That the priests and clerks argued with John about things he was certain of annoyed him. That anyone would claim to know more than he did about people he knew or places he spent a long time in certainly was aggravating, but his Lilitu did the same, and she was there with him for a long spell. He had no reason to lie about any of it.


    John found it surprising how all the major religions of the current world became more popular after the Tree of Life. From what he understood of it, they all just incorporated the new information on God, how to attain Heaven, and ¡®ascended beings¡¯ seamlessly into their religion.


    A few new religions formed as well, or were learned of and copied from the NCS, the largest two called Secular Spirituality and The Tree.


    The priests and clerks visiting didn¡¯t bother John too much. Since he mainly stuck to his warehouse, having guests broke up his routine and ensured he didn¡¯t fall too deeply into darkness.


    For the most part, the world began to forget about John. Amber and Hubaba were as popular as ever, as was the fearless Stretch. Every time he turned his phone on, he saw more news about Amber, or advertisements with her, stories about her dates, links to her Instagram and TikTok accounts.


    Some other surprises were found on Earth. Surprises like the three witches in Canada. That John wasn¡¯t asked to help with such events was angering. He only learned about them after the fact, on his phone.


    Hubaba would visit John weekly, and John enjoyed the demon¡¯s visits.


    Much to his surprise, Amber visited John. It was a few weeks before the second invasion was set to begin. He steeled his mind and heart as her beauty was even more terrible than Lilly¡¯s used to be.


    ¡°You know you don¡¯t have to stay here, right¡± asked Amber.


    John grunted in response.


    Amber sighed before saying, ¡°I just wanted to see how you¡¯re holding up. I¡¯m sorry for¡­for all that happened with Lilly. She did it to us too, you know? Me and Baba. I think she tried to make me hate you.¡±


    John laughed. ¡°Tried?¡±


    ¡°Oh my God! I don¡¯t hate you, John! I never did. Please, just¡­we don¡¯t gotta be like this. I¡­I miss you. I wish¡­I wish¡­ugh! It¡¯s so hard to talk to you now. You¡¯re being real weird rotting in this warehouse like a¡­like a little emo-girl.¡±


    ¡°I am nothing like a girl. And no one wants me out there.¡±


    ¡°I do! I miss you so much. We were¡­we were real close before. You¡¯re the first guy I ever kissed.¡±


    John snapped out, ¡°The first?¡±


    Amber stayed silent. John asked, ¡°You¡¯ve done kissing with other men?¡±


    After scoffing, Amber said. ¡°It¡¯s just called kissing. You don¡¯t do kissing. You kiss. And that¡¯s none of your business. I¡¯m an adult, you know?¡±


    More darkness settled in the pit of John¡¯s stomach. ¡°I¡¯d like you to leave, please.¡±


    ¡°John¡­come on. We¡­I¡­let¡¯s just stop. Please, let¡¯s just start over. Remember how much fun we¡¯d have on our buddy-dates in the¡­the place-thing. What¡¯s-it-called?¡±


    ¡°Yes. Buddy-dates. How do they compare to all your many, many real dates with strangers? I see men can win dates with you too. How many men have you twisted up and discarded?¡±


    Amber shifted uncomfortably in her seat. ¡°It¡¯s not like that. I¡­I couldn¡¯t be seen by¡­by anyone. For so long. I accepted something and it¡­it ruined my life. Finally, finally I could be seen. It made it not so awful. It¡¯s okay that I wanna enjoy myself a little. I finally gotta chance to enjoy myself a little. It¡¯s not wrong.¡±


    John asked, ¡°Was being naked in commercials enjoyable? That¡¯s not wrong?¡±


    Amber¡¯s brows furrowed for a moment. ¡°Are you talking about the suntan lotion commercial? Oh my God! I was in a huge two-piece bathing suit from, like, the fifties. What do you want me to do? Wear a muumuu dress and hide in a basement? What do you think girls wear at the beach? Not one of my photos, videos, ads, commercials¡­any of it¡­was inappropriate. Not one.¡±


    That Amber couldn¡¯t or refused to see how wrong all of it was, how much like Lilly she was, caused more darkness to infuse John¡¯s heart. ¡°I would like to be left alone, please,¡± was his reply.


    Amber sighed again. She didn¡¯t leave. She said, ¡°This isn¡¯t going¡­good. Not how I thought it¡¯d go. Please, John. I came here for¡­I came to tell you something. Can I tell you something?¡±


    After some time passed without a response from John, Amber said, ¡°This is real hard for me to say. I have¡­I know you have¡­feelings¡­some feelings for me. And¡­and I¡­I do too. For you. We can never¡­you know¡­but I was hoping¡­I was thinking¡­maybe¡­I think¡­we¡­we could¡­um¡­ugh! This is so hard!¡±


    Long moments passed again without a response. ¡°John, just¡­just say something. That wasn¡¯t easy for me to say.¡±


    Still, no response came. Both John and Amber sat in awkward silence before she said, ¡°I came here to tell you that I¡­I love you, John. With all my heart.¡±


    After far too much time went by without a response, Amber said, ¡°Please say something.¡±


    John, a look of disgust on his face, raised his head to look at Amber. ¡°Love? You have no idea what the word means. I¡¯ve seen these shows about what love is now. No one knows what it is anymore. Love is duty. Love is responsibility. Love is respect. It is a burden willingly borne and well worth it when two devote themselves to one another.


    ¡°Your head is filled with silly notions of what the word means. You think it¡¯s only desire and nothing else. Just as in the shows, you tramp about showing off yourself to everyone, using and discarding men like cheap and dirty clothes, mindlessly going on your dates with strangers, doing kissing. I wish I could show you how painful it can be. If you could feel what I feel now, you¡¯d never want it.¡±


    Amber, crying said, ¡°You think I don¡¯t know? That I don¡¯t hurt? Just because I smile doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m happy. Or not hurting. Inside.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re just like Lilly, and you refuse to see it,¡± snapped out John. ¡°You want to be desired by all. I just want one woman to love. One that loves me back. The right way. Someone that makes this life bearable. But I¡¯m a great fool and only love women that want to destroy me and sneak around behind my back. That is my curse. It is far worse than your own.¡±


    This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Holding her face in both her hands as she cried, Amber sobbed out, ¡°That¡¯s what I want! True love! Real love. That¡¯s all I want too! I¡¯m not like Lilly. I¡¯m not. I just want one man that¡­that really loves and appreciates me and treats me real good. And I¡¯d do the same and treat him real good too.¡±


    Amber took out a tissue and wiped her eyes and nose. ¡°Look, this¡­this is probably the best thing for us to do. Clear the air. Let¡¯s just start over. I never kissed anyone else. Just you. I never did anything on dates. I was just¡­you¡¯re the only man I...¡± Amber trailed off as she collected herself and her thoughts.


    ¡°Lilly said¡­she said you wouldn¡¯t¡­you know, do that¡­for ten years. I was thinking if you didn¡¯t mind waiting ten years for her that¡­that maybe¡­you wouldn¡¯t mind waiting for me. It could be forever. I don¡¯t think it¡¯ll ever let me¡­do that. But I didn¡¯t think I¡¯d ever have access to my human form all the time. Or be seen. Now I can do both. So maybe that will change at¡­at some point. Just know that¡­that I¡¯m nothing like Lilly. At all.¡±


    More darkness entered John¡¯s heart. He knew Amber was lying. She was just saying what she thought he wanted to hear. He was certain she did kissing with many of the men she went on dates with. She couldn¡¯t even admit that being naked to sell skin-darkening ointment was dishonorable and wrong.


    ¡°It¡¯s the pictures even more than the dates,¡± said John. ¡°They prove it. You have the same illness coursing through your veins as Lilly did. You need all men to desire you. Just like Lilly, you¡¯d find some way to justify sneaking behind my back, sending out illicit pictures, going on dates with any man making eyes at you. You¡¯d never be satisfied with just me.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know why you want to play this sick game and twist me up inside and bring me low. I never want to hurt you. I don¡¯t understand why you want to hurt me, but it makes me unable to stand the sight of you. I know what your plans are. Please, leave me in peace or I¡¯ll be forced to command you to leave.¡±


    As John spoke, Amber began to sob loudly. And she continued to cry for long after he finished speaking and turned his back to her.


    Once Amber stopped crying, she sat silently for a long while. Finally, she said, ¡°You¡¯re wrong about me. Completely wrong. You¡¯re letting what happened with Lilly warp everything. I¡¯m not like her. At all. But Yan was right about you. You¡¯re dead set on being miserable. You could be happy. We could be happy. You don¡¯t want it. You¡¯re¡­you¡¯re an¡­an asshole! Yeah, I said it, and it feels good. Asshole! Asshole! ASSHOLE!¡±


    Amber got up and ran away, crying again.


    Long after Amber left, softly, under his breath, John said, ¡°Touch¨¦.¡±


    <hr><hr>


    John started to reject all his guests. All but Hubaba.


    He wished he didn¡¯t, but John missed his wife terribly, and loved her still. He believed he would always love her, just as he would always hate her. He looked forward to meeting her again in whatever new body she took just so he could kill her again. He secretly hoped he only met her once she was fully grown and in a woman¡¯s body so he could bed her before killing her. He needed release.


    Many reporters wanted to interview John. He had said no to all. He had told the G40 about the Peerless, but he was certain they hadn''t taken his warning seriously. He also wanted to start a new city of warriors. To get the message out to the world about the Peerless and his new city, he knew he had to do an interview.


    There was a reporter that relentlessly contacted John. He watched some videos of her. He thought she was beautiful and looked like his Lilitu from the old days. She also offered to have intercourse with him if he granted her an interview.


    If Amber could play her games, John could play his own. He accepted the interview.


    The journalist was not nearly as beautiful in real life as she was on video, nor was her real personality nearly as appealing to John. He still granted the interview. He focused on warning everyone that something worse than the invasions was coming, the Peerless, and giving information on the city he wanted to create.


    John thought the interview went well, though the journalist had many strange questions about how his city would be run and the culture he wanted to create, how he wanted to make all its inhabitants strong and capable and that there¡¯d be no peasants at all. Every citizen would stand proudly, fell and tall.


    There were many questions about the age of John¡¯s former wife he was happy to address. Many people thought he was a sick man and attracted to children, and he was glad to be given a platform to squash any such rumors directly.


    Once the interview was over and it was time for intercourse, John couldn¡¯t go through with it. Amber was far more beautiful and didn¡¯t cover herself with so much makeup and such pungent and false smells. He was surprised when the journalist nearly forced herself upon him. She had too much Lilly in her.


    Having a great desire to bed someone, John decided finding release with a common nightwalker was the best course. He couldn¡¯t go through with that either. He couldn¡¯t explain why. They all seemed too much like Lilly.


    Many women contacted John in various ways through his phone. Many were very beautiful, or seemed so in their pictures. Amber was more beautiful, and all of them were far too much like Lilly.


    Release also came in a far more appropriate form. John believed he could father children again. Any woman he married now would be for the true, correct, and traditional reasons for union. Marriage was never about desire. Marriage was about strength, prosperity, and raising strong children and heirs.


    Any wife John considered would stand at a great height and be meaty and healthy, capable of birthing many strong sons. Her attractiveness wouldn¡¯t matter one bit, so he wouldn¡¯t have to compare a wife to Amber. Any wife picked for the right reasons would be physically as different from Amber as could be, as Amber was far too small and slender.


    All the soldiers designated as John¡¯s guards hung around in a large office within the warehouse. One of those guards was appealing to him. A woman that was broad of shoulder and stood many heads higher than John himself did. Her name was Shauna. She claimed to be a middling soldier and belonged to some sort of reserve force. She stated her true vocation was playing a sport called basketball.


    John knew Shauna had little if any Lilly coursing through her veins. She would give him many strong and healthy sons that stood a height greater than even her own, so he asked her to be his wife. She laughed at him and said, ¡°Wife? Bro, come on. Look at me. Naw, I got my own girl waiting for me at home.¡±


    John was surprised to learn that modern women that preferred women did not marry men. They always had from his recollections. He found many aspects of modern society confusing, such as being told all men and women fornicated without being married, or considering themselves married, or even ever wanting or planning to be officially married to the person they constantly fornicated with. They just did it, and it was somehow acceptable.


    What John found the most confusing was Shauna knew how strong and wealthy he was. She also knew there could be no greater protector and provider for herself and her children. She still had no desire to marry for such protection, nor did she have any desire to have children of her own.


    Shauna did tell John there was something called a nightclub where he¡¯d be able to find many suitable women to court. She even helped dress him, letting him borrow a black leather hat with a large and full brim that had two golden Gs embossed on it. She said it was very expensive and stylish and went well with the black leather armor he wore. He also shaved, as women often believed a man with a beard was hiding a weak chin, and his chin was strong.


    It took John no time at all to run to the nightclub, and he found the place quickly.


    There were only two men outside the establishment. Both were large men, and both wore dark clothes. As John approached, one of the men smiled widely, and the other said, ¡°Hey, buddy, lesbian-cowgirl night is Tuesday. S&M biker night is Wednesday.¡±


    John had no idea why the man thought he¡¯d care anything about that. He ignored the comments and headed for the entrance. The smiling man moved into his way after letting out a laugh, and the other man said, ¡°Slow down, kid. ID.¡±


    John said, ¡°Yes. ID.¡±


    The two men continued to look at John as they blocked his way to the door. He wondered if ID was another word for some form of currency the men were attempting to rob him of.


    The smaller man, the only one to have talked so far, said, ¡°Look, kid, just because the world¡¯s turning to shit doesn¡¯t mean there¡¯s no rules now. I need an ID.¡±


    John almost asked what an ID was before figuring it was most likely something related to a phone. He handed his to the man.


    The man, instead of taking the phone, looked annoyed. ¡°Funny. Now turn around and get out of here before you get tuned up.¡±


    John asked, ¡°Does this not have ID?¡±


    ¡°You wasted enough of my time. Just turn around and walk away. I was just humoring you anyway. I know there ain¡¯t no way you twenty-one.¡±


    John took off his hat. ¡°Years of age? I¡¯m much older than that. Much older. I¡¯m unsure of what an ID is, and I¡¯m unsure if you¡¯re attempting to rob me, so I¡¯d rather not harm you at this point. I assure both of you, I am entering this nightclub. Please remove yourselves from my path.¡±


    The smiling man lost the smile on his face. He looked toward the smaller man and said, ¡°Is those real horns? Look at his hands. Hey, this is that guy. The guy from the¡­that fought all the shit. The vampire guy.¡±


    Both men wanted pictures with John. They promised not to inform anyone he was at the nightclub, as he wanted to be incognito. They also told him the hat he wore was made for women, and that wearing a tight and black leather outfit wasn¡¯t something guys interested in women commonly wore.


    Though there weren¡¯t many patrons of the nightclub until hours and hours later, many women did arrive, and many of them were very large. But the large women were large in the wrong way, and John thought every woman there was completely and utterly unsuitable to be a wife or mother.


    John did have to kill some men that night, and though the men deserved it, the government saw things differently, as did journalists.


    Many negative articles were written about John and what had transpired at the nightclub.


    One article written about him was titled ¡®In Case of Emergency Break Glass.¡¯ It had a cartoonish picture of John in a box with a glass cover, blood dripping down from his mouth and claws, and on the glass were the same words as the title of the article, written in large red words.


    The article stated John was unfit and too dangerous to live in society and needed to be caged until and unless there was a threat to Terra he could help with, but only under strict supervision so he wouldn¡¯t commit more murders or war crimes.


    The author claimed John was only good for one thing and one thing only ¨C killing. His savage mindset was incompatible with civilized society or understanding some sort of social contract the author claimed everyone agreed to abide by at birth.


    It disheartened John to see how many people agreed with the article and to read the terrible lies they said about him in the comments, including lies about him being attracted to children. He wondered why the author assumed he would continue to fight for a planet whose people despised him.


    For John, the worst part was that the article gave only a silly pseudonym as a name, so he had no way to find and kill the author for disparaging him so.

 B2 Chapter 56 - Been a hell of a ride but I’m thinking it’s time to go

    As the second invasion advanced, Stretch became the clear hero of Earth, followed by Petar Kostov and many other mundane humans using mini-mechs. Stretch was doing most of the heavy lifting. The puppet¡¯s signature move was still the jackhammer punch, but he had figured out how to manifest essence a little too.


    Even with all the new lasers, mini-mechs, and weapon systems possessed by Earth¡¯s forces, even with Stretch being a Gold at the start of the invasions, casualties were much higher than projected.


    One of the dark walkers couldn¡¯t be trapped by the circles the new Ritualists of Earth drew, and Hubaba had to step in. Sublime Ton-Oi didn¡¯t mind, or at least didn¡¯t punish Hubaba for drawing the circle.


    The government of the US played what John considered to be their silly game where they pretended to have the ability to imprison him. He went along with it as he had little else to do, though he wanted to test himself on the invasions and regretted not being allowed to.


    The government moved John to a house with a lot of land in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The area was filled with a type of people called the Amish, and he was told they stuck to the old ways. It was thought he would be more comfortable around them.


    How could I be comfortable among people unwilling to commit violence to defend even their own families? How have they lasted this long with such beliefs?


    John wished he never gave that interview. People didn¡¯t believe he wasn¡¯t attracted to children. How his city would be run, and the reasons why it would be run so, were not concepts modern people could understand. He wanted a city that fostered only strong and capable citizens. Every aspect of the culture would need to enforce that.


    John knew there didn¡¯t have to be nearly as many peasants as there always were. Most were forced to be low. They were told that since they were born low, they had no need for pride and honor.


    In the tribe John was born to, all men were treated well until a man gave other men a reason not to treat him well. All men were expected to be strong and capable, because they had to be, so they were.


    The farmers weren¡¯t warriors, but John would put good money on the farmers of his tribe outfighting every modern soldier he had met besides very few of the most capable, regardless of the much greater size of modern men.


    It was expectations. John¡¯s city would expect all to be tall and fell, so all would be tall and fell and capable. There would be no one that told those born low that they were small and unimportant and had lives of so little value that it was illegal to defend their own. Because no one would be born low.


    Expectations.


    Some wouldn¡¯t make the cut, and those would be exiled. Some men wanted to be little and ruled. John¡¯s city wouldn¡¯t let those sorts infect it.


    It was very hard for John to articulate what he found wrong with modern people in general, but one thing was obvious - no matter how smart a modern person was, that person was equally ignorant. They would proudly announce their ignorance for all the world to see on the internet.


    "I''m a modern person and very smart. I listed all these degrees in my profile. This simple concept you mentioned that I''m either incapable of understanding or purposefully misunderstanding, I will now mock you relentlessly for it and tell you why you''re wrong while also failing to address any of your points," modern people would smugly post online, reveling in their own ignorance.


    ¡°Oh, yeah, you¡¯re a sick pedophile too,¡± they would often add.


    The city John wanted to build would be considered anarchic in government. He explained how the government would work in a very simple and understandable manner. Even people proclaiming to have the highest degree of education couldn¡¯t get past that, as they were taught anarchy meant chaos and pandemonium and lawlessness.


    Anarchy was a simple word that merely meant no leaders. No ruler certainly didn¡¯t mean there would be no rules. It didn¡¯t mean chaos and pandemonium any more than a monarchic or any other way of governing meant no rules or chaos and pandemonium.


    Citizens would be required to swear to abide by and hold dear the tenets John laid forth for the city. No one would rule as every man would rule himself, and the citizens would enforce the tenets through various means.


    John believed all the tenets were sensible, such as becoming strong and capable, participating in a certain number of raids per year, dedicating time, effort, or resources to the wars powerful groups within the city conducted against neighboring cities and countries and such.


    Not only did people not understand the tenets, but they took great issue with them, as did the US and many other governments.


    Many schools focusing on cultivation and martial learnings were opened by many governments all over the world, the biggest in the US was not all that far from the crafting school Hubaba ran in West Virginia.


    John believed those martial schools highlighted a large problem with modern people, but this problem was an old one, not a modern one, and had been true throughout history ¨C people still mistook discipline to mean obedience.


    The many martial schools promised to turn students into obedient fodder, and students flocked to them. Some good students would come of them, but that would be despite being trained wrongly and taught wrong things, not due to it.


    John believed people wanted the safety of conformity and not having to think for themselves or be tall. That many smart people wanted to close their mind to obvious truths did not surprise him, as he long ago learned smarter dogs were easier to train, and the same had also always been true for humans. And modern humans were trained very well. Trained very well but very wrong. All their beliefs were wrong.


    Most relationships between people were anarchic in nature. Just as when John, Amber, and Hubaba lived together in the Trial near Circle Xakariz, there was no leader. That didn¡¯t mean they weren¡¯t governed by agreed upon rules of politeness and normalcy, or that anarchy meant no government at all as modern people incorrectly claimed.


    The arguments people made against anarchy as a workable form of government infuriated John. They would always say a warlord would take control and start wars ¨C in other words, a monarch doing what monarchs had always done.


    If John made himself the king of his city, he would start wars, and they¡¯d be bigger ones since he could force all his people to participate in his war.


    People even admitted all the wars of the last centuries were due to every type of government besides anarchic doing what governments had always done ¨C make war. John wondered why people saw a war started by an anarchic government as so much worse and so terrifying.


    What happened within every current and prior government of the world were stated as reasons against an anarchic government ¨C crime, murder, powerful people controlling all the resources, war.


    The whole point of John¡¯s city was to make a great warrior society, an obvious requirement of such would be war, so their fear of wars started by his city was correct. But the news often talked on and on about world unity and world peace and no war between the countries of Earth ever again.


    John thought that was complete nonsense and a fevered dream of the stupid. He was very surprised when so long passed without war between any countries, and that there really seemed to be actual world unity and peace. This peace can¡¯t last. In all my long life, war has been a constant, as has the greed of rulers.


    Giving that interview was a grave mistake that seemed to have opened a floodgate, as if everyone in the world agreed to deride John on the internet all at once, and there were far too many doing it for him to consider vengeance.


    Weeks after the second invasion began, John left the home he was told to stay within ten miles of.


    Since he was already teetering on the rain-slicked precipice of darkness, John had little choice but to take refuge in hiding once again.


    John could disregard being disrespected when he hid. It came with the persona he wore. What people said on the internet didn¡¯t matter because they weren¡¯t saying it about him. Not the him he was while hiding, the him that wore sunglasses, a baseball cap, simple but modern clothes, sported a large bushy mustache, and went by the name Jim.


    Lilly never made Jim a cuckold for well over a thousand years. She never killed Jim¡¯s brother Yan. Jim didn¡¯t love Amber, a woman destined to make a cuckold of any man that fell for her lies about loving him.


    No one knew Jim so they couldn¡¯t tell horrible lies about him on the internet. And Jim never gave an interview, so he didn¡¯t care if supposedly smart people couldn¡¯t understand a simple word.


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    Jim was the son of a very rural farmer from Bulgaria and had immigrated to America by himself a few years ago. It explained his accent. And, thanks to Petar Kostov, Americans had a generally positive view of Bulgaria without knowing much about the country or people. And when he worked on farms as a hand, it explained why he knew much about farming but little about modern farming machinery and methods.


    Jim was polite, shy, and loved authority, but he also had somewhat of a wild side as made apparent in his love of a new type of music called rock and roll. He especially loved wacky dressing bands that specialized in that form of music such as KISS and Twisted Sister.


    Jim certainly didn¡¯t believe the word anarchy meant no rulers. He strongly believed anarchy meant only pandemonium and once well-behaved and peaceful people reverting to wild barbarians following rulers called warlords that somehow weren¡¯t monarchs, roaming around killing and enslaving everyone they saw for fun.


    Life was much better as Jim. So, with a lighter heart and far less darkness and black thoughts, Jim traveled around, mostly keeping to himself, glad he was able to veil so well. He had hidden for so much of his life that doing so was second nature and far easier than being himself. Far easier.


    Jim just watched people and did as they did. No thinking. No defending his honor. No honor at all. Just keeping a low profile and fitting in, like a sheep hiding among sheep. The same as it always had been. The easy life.


    Very few people were able to detect Jim was a Bronze. More were able to feel his [Titles], but few of them knew what they meant, and most still left him alone, as he wanted.


    After wandering around the US aimlessly, meditating, practicing in private, training in his mind, doing odd jobs, Jim decided to check on the spirit of Ukaraaz in Canada. If the demon¡¯s spirit was still there, then his brother¡¯s spirit in India would definitely still be there, and he could spend some time with it, wondering what could¡¯ve been if things worked out a little differently.


    Once Jim found the old battlefield where he defeated Ukaraaz, he was disheartened to see the demon¡¯s spirit was gone. He sat down to meditate and lost himself in the act, the same as how he used to, trying to purge his heart of all the darkness that filled it so painfully.


    Eventually, a strange and weird presence brought Jim out of his meditation. Beings of light descended towards him from high in the night sky, and he thought the Peerless must have arrived very early.


    Jim had to go back to being John. The world seemed to have scoffed at his warning regarding the Peerless, and that made him want to leave them to it, and scoff at their eventual pleas for him to help. But he couldn¡¯t do that. The Peerless were his chance.


    John quickly donned his armor and the rest of the gear he didn¡¯t already have equipped, the descending lights becoming visible as people as he did so. And not just people, three women every bit the equal of Amber in beauty and grace. That made him nervous, and he quickly finished equipping himself. What made him even more nervous was his orb-eye saw nothing at all, just empty and dark night where the eyes of his head saw three beautiful women with no souls nor vital essence within them.


    John¡¯s real eyes couldn¡¯t see spirits. John¡¯s orb-eye couldn¡¯t see souls or vital essence. His orb-eye sometimes showed him something different than what his eyes saw, such as when he was in the [Domain] spell of Ukaraaz. So, he wasn¡¯t unfamiliar with his head-eyes and his orb-eye seeing different things, but it still made him nervous.


    The descent of the three beautiful ladies slowed as they neared the ground, and all three landed gracefully in front of John, their beauty hurting his heart, the serious expressions they wore causing his heart to beat faster.


    ¡°This is the one. Can it see us?¡±


    ¡°First, place your lanterns. There¡¯re far too many souls on this planet needing to be collected. Feel their age. All are new. The claim must be true. Many died here recently. Those before had been taken to the Beyond without being judged. Poor things. A cruel fate, that.¡±


    The three women turned from John to place lanterns on the ground. John kept his silence and watched. The women felt powerful, but not in the usual way he had felt power since the Tree of Life returned to Earth.


    The women, once again, stood before John. The one on the left said, ¡°You there, magal, can you see us? Hear us?¡±


    John kowtowed. ¡°Yes, great mistress, I can. Both see and hear. And feel you too.¡±


    ¡°Feel us? Are you known for your ability to sense what others can¡¯t?¡±


    ¡°No, great mistress. Not in that way,¡± replied John.


    ¡°Hmm. Well, at least it¡¯s polite. Have you looked inside of it? Wasn¡¯t even trying to hide anything he did, was Curiosity? So, the soul told the truth about everything. Guess we should deliver the message.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re not going to play with it? Eternals can barely see us, and most of them can¡¯t hear us. We never get to have fun with magals. This opportunity shouldn¡¯t be disregarded.¡±


    ¡°Good idea, yes. I want to know how it sees us. Is it still as beautiful females of its race? Or can it see our true forms?¡±


    The females all looked different from one another, but their voices were exactly the same and John had no idea which was talking without being able to see their mouths.


    ¡°Ask it if it wants to mate. It will want to mate if it sees us as beautiful females of its race. Wait, that¡¯s only true for males. And when the race has males and females and makes offspring that way. Can either of you tell what kind of thing it is?¡±


    ¡°Magal, what type of thing are you? Do you want to mate? Wait, it called us mistress before. That¡¯s a female title, right?¡±


    John became more nervous. ¡°Great mistress, I am a man, and you all appear as very beautiful women to me. If you aren¡¯t planning on staying here, I would mate if you promised to raise my son to be strong and honorable, and, if a daughter¡­well, women are expected to fight now so I¡¯d want her to be raised strong too, and a promise to find her only the best of husbands. One that is strong, honorable and that would always treat her caringly and with great respect.¡±


    Silence reigned in the field for long moments. John pushed his forehead deeper into the snow.


    ¡°Oh, I get it. Mate translated as procreate, breed. To create offspring through conjugation. No, magal, we meant fornicating for pleasure.¡±


    John put some care into what he next said. ¡°Great mistress, though all three of you are very beautiful, and I desire all of you greatly, if it¡¯s only for pleasure I¡¯d rather not. There¡¯s a woman¡­it would feel like a betrayal somehow. I would gladly take one or all three of you as wife to raise strong children with, but pleasure¡¯s another matter.¡±


    One of the women giggled. ¡°Do you know what we are, magal?¡±


    John remembered Sunshine telling him something about women collecting souls, but he couldn¡¯t remember anything else about them. He said, ¡°You call me magal so part of the Forsaken? Maybe ancient old ones?¡± He had heard ancient old ones could take any form they wanted.


    ¡°Ha! No, we are not of them. We are not ancient, just old ones. What we are, not our ages. We¡¯re all rather young for our kind. We are of the Vhilani Mahilaharu. Our kind were created long before the Tree of Life came about. We collect souls and deliver them for judgment and then either the Beyond or the Wheel to be reborn. That was the deal we made with Prime after He made the Tree. Most have heard of us. What do you mean by Forsaken?¡±


    Before John could answer, one of the other ladies said, ¡°I know this. Forsaken is used as another word for the ptagmog, I think. How demons and g¡¯athu consider themselves to be part of the ptagmog even though they have souls. They use it to mean something along the lines of not being created naturally by the Tree of Life. Something like that. That¡¯s what I heard.¡±


    John thought about correcting them. From what he was told, Forsaken meant anyone fighting against God, or allying with the ancient old ones fighting against God, both ptagmog and magal.


    ¡°Oh, well, that¡¯s silly. And how ptagmog is used now too. Magal, I know you said you didn¡¯t want to, but I think I see how it works and I want to try mating.¡±


    John began to scream in pain. His groin and behind filled with a feeling of terrible fire and he rolled in the snow, completely incapable of not yelling out in agony. It felt like it lasted hours, but he knew it only burned for a few minutes. Once the pain stopped, he panted heavily and noticed he had soiled himself. His undergarment was filled with both urine and feces.


    ¡°There. We mated. I think. I thought mating was supposed to be pleasurable. It didn¡¯t seem to think so. Its aura is as filled with despair and grief as before. Magal, why are you so sad? Is it because your soul is so dark and there¡¯s little chance of joining with Prime in Heaven? We can¡¯t join either.¡±


    John thought about telling them the truth. Telling them he was sick of kowtowing and being treated so low and having no choice but to tolerate it because there were things out there far more powerful than any of the gods humans believed in when he was younger, and if those god-like beings didn¡¯t want to kill the person they toyed with, and would rather place a book up their behind or make them painfully soil their pants and call it mating, he had no choice but to grin and bear it.


    John thought of telling them he was sad because the woman he loved for so long was sick in the head and too bloodthirsty and betrayed him terribly in a million ways and he had to kill her twice. And the other woman he loved was far too similar to the first to risk being with, because once she betrayed him, he knew it would break not just his heart, but his mind too.


    John had fought so hard and bled so much for a world that now mocked and derided him and wanted him caged. Feeble men tried forcing him to adopt their weak ways as if they were right about anything.


    And worst of all, John was alone and would always be alone and he hated being so alone. He wasn¡¯t even allowed to battle invasions and pray for a glorious death in that way. His only hope was the Peerless, as he despised cowards that took their own lives to escape the horrors of it.


    John wanted to tell the women that, unlike the farmer he held in such high regard, his torment wouldn¡¯t be over by just waiting a handful of years and dying naturally. His horror wouldn¡¯t be over if he just had a little patience. It had gone on for nearly six-thousand years and there was no end in sight. It would just keep going and going forever. He was trapped in a living hell, one not nearly as terrible as the cold-dark, but terrible still. He wanted an end to the farce, an end to not fitting in anywhere, an end to the constant pain.


    Instead, John said, ¡°I¡¯m fine. I¡¯m not sad.¡±


    ¡°Could you feel its thoughts? I¡¯m sure now it didn¡¯t like mating for some reason. I caught something about being incapable of love and wanting its soul released. Magal, we are incapable of love too. That¡¯s no reason to be so sad. Our message is from your friend. What¡¯s-its-name? Gaga? No, Taga?¡±


    ¡°Thomas,¡± answered one of the other ladies.


    ¡°Yes, Thomas. Thomas was taken by Prime Himself. It has almost finished joining. It said to tell you it was wonderful, better than in the vision, and how much it wants you to join too. It wanted us to tell you what everyone already knows ¨C that no one needs to be an Eternal to join with Prime, they just need the karma.


    ¡°Everyone knows that right? We know that and we can¡¯t even join with Him. We thought it was a silly message to deliver but it said you¡¯d be able to see us and talk to us. And we wanted to check out its claims about this world.¡±


    After a moment of silence, one of the ladies said, ¡°We¡¯re not supposed to kill any magals. Directly. If you want us to, we could create one of those Trials that could kill you.¡±


    ¡°No, the Trials are the big ones used for training. Tribulation is what you mean. We¡¯d still have to follow the rules though.¡±


    ¡°Yes, but not as magals have to follow them. One enemy. Outside the normal Tree system. A rajvakyl or a dark walker would work.¡±


    ¡°The rajvakyl would have to agree and would demand a high price. A dark walker would spawn too many dark ones for it to work. No, that would be after it initiates, so we just won¡¯t make them a requirement to kill is all. Good idea, that! Do you want this still, magal, your soul freed of this mortal coil?¡±


    ¡°Yes, great mistress,¡± replied John.

 B2 Chapter 57 - Double up or quit

    A Tribulation formed around John once again. He stood in an antechamber with the largest door he had ever seen in front of him. A message from the NCS forced its way into his vision.


    User is in a Tribulation. Tribulation to commence in 00h:55m:58s USACS minutes.


    User is required to defeat the primary enemy within the Tribulation. Failure to do so in the required time limit of 11h:07m:12s USACS hours will result in the termination of user.


    Primary enemy classified as an early-stage, low-grade Dark Walker. Primary enemy will be highlighted on commencement of Tribulation. Upon death of the primary enemy, remaining entities in the Tribulation other than user will be terminated.


    Since he had plenty of time, John cleaned up the mess in his undergarments while thinking of a strategy. He knew he wouldn¡¯t go quietly. His enemies would have to earn his death. He would give his all to this battle. He just hoped the dark walker was up to the task of granting him peace.


    From what John knew of dark walkers, they had the intelligence of a lesser beast and would only attack when aggressed upon, and only then if they noticed or felt the attack. Supposedly they had some sort of damaging aura that caused more damage the closer someone got to them. They usually only had one attack manifestation, and the more they used it the faster they became undone. They had poor senses and were very resilient and hard to damage. Most lacked enough of a mind to unbind the manifestations of others.


    After coming up with a plan, John meditated until there were only a few minutes left before the Tribulation started. He stood near the door. At the one-minute mark he cast [Multi-Enhancement] and [Multi-Shield] and sent vital essence to increase his speed. He entered into the mindset he learned when fighting Ukaraaz, what he called ¡®battle-mind.¡¯


    The giant door parted in the middle and the two doors slowly swung inward.


    John looked at a creature so large it caused his heart to sink. How can I even hurt this thing?


    The dark walker was as big as some of the tall buildings he saw in New York City, with a bestial body similar to a wolf but with shorter hindlegs, and the body looked like it was made of thick and dark smoke.


    The head of the dark walker was far too large for its body and looked somewhat similar to a bull¡¯s head, but it had truly massive horns even for its already far too oversized head. It had seven yellow eyes above its mouth, and it looked like a wolf¡¯s mouth with fangs was ripping its way out of the normal bovine mouth.


    Instead of hair or a mane, the dark walker had bone-spikes surrounding its head and face and covering all its massive horns.


    John could see dark ones drop away from the smokey body of the dark walker, but they were just bubbling piles of an unformed promise still. He entered the Tribulation and ran to the left. The ceiling was high enough the dark walker could rear up to twice its height and its horns wouldn¡¯t touch the ceiling. For all its height, the Tribulation didn¡¯t give the dark walker much room to run around.


    The inside walls of the Tribulation were pocked with candle-filled recesses all over. As John ran left along the wall, the candles extended his shadow towards the beast. He slipped through his own shadow towards the dark walker, and then behind it.


    Being near the dark walker caused a little pain to John, but not nearly to the extent he expected. He thought the dark and smokey-looking body might be made of shadow, and he had good resistance to shadow due to his body [Perk].


    John slipped up the wall behind the beast and continued to slip and slip higher and higher. Once he was high enough up, he slipped towards the creature, then over it. He came out of the slip and jumped towards the beast¡¯s head, needing to slip once more to land where he wanted to, behind the horns on a flat part of the skull between some spiky protrusions.


    John¡¯s essence-shield was removed as soon as he landed. His boots began to smoke as he cast [Flashburst Pulse] at the creature¡¯s head. The three sparking balls all hit the same spot and left only a small smoking dent in the thick skull. The beast didn¡¯t even recognize the attack. He tried seeing if his [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet] would do the trick, and the blowback of the heat and flames hurt John and wasted his armor¡¯s essence-shield while doing nothing at all to his enemy.


    John looked down and saw many dark ones forming on the ground, the biggest being a large and man-shaped beast covered in a thick brown fur. The second biggest looked like a malicious jester. There were tiny men-things dressed colorfully that were merging together. He saw nothing that could fly and none of the dark ones seemed to have noticed him so far.


    John felt into the dark walker. He wasn¡¯t rejected from doing so. The creature didn¡¯t seem to notice or care at all. The monster¡¯s body had nothing close to blood he could manipulate, but the head had plenty of it. That became his backup plan.


    As he stopped wasting vital essence by enhancing his speed, John noticed his footwear were smoking badly. He didn¡¯t want to overwhelm the repair glyph and permanently lose his boots of secrecy. He hopped around while taking them off and sent them to his ring. The creature burned his bare feet, but he could deal with that.


    Since his armor was also smoking, as well as everything else, John infused essence into his bracer to enact its essence-shield. It didn¡¯t last long, but it lasted long enough to place all his items into his ring, including the bracers. He hoped his ring survived.


    Now naked, John got down into a pushup position with both hands flat on the dark walker¡¯s head. He cast [Drain Essence]. After a few moments, potent essence began to trickle into his dantian. It wasn¡¯t a fast process but his dantian was pretty full when he started. He lifted his left hand up about a foot and tried casting [Flashburst Pulse]. Casting two attack manifestations at once was something beyond him, but he had time and the will to figure it out.


    It only took John minutes to find the trick. While keeping most of his focus on continuing [Drain Essence], he forced essence through the runes that powered [Flashburst Pulse]. If it was one of his own spells using a concept, he knew he¡¯d be unable to accomplish the deed. It would require a mind capable of thinking of two equally complicated things at once.


    After the first cast of [Flashburst Pulse], John learned to turn his head and protect his eyes. His orb-eye could watch just fine. He would rather cast [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet], and just keep the jet at a minimum with a pinpoint focus, but controlling the variables of that spell while continuing to drain the dark walker of essence was beyond him.


    So, John cast [Flashburst Pulse] at the same spot over and over until his dantian had only a quarter of essence left in it. He then waited for his dantian to fill up with the creature¡¯s own essence to repeat the process.


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    When the timer hit ten hours, John had made a good-sized crater in the skull. At nine hours he could tell he was almost through. At some point, he saw a message stating [Emergency-Heal] was on cooldown. His skin hurt and was dry and cracking, so he sent vital essence to heal. Half an hour later, he managed to make a small hole in the skull. The dark walker finally noticed him.


    John held onto a spike as the creature bucked and reared and sent destructive smoke in a blaze out of its mouth, killing many of the dark ones it spawned with its mad rearing and its smoke-blaze. Dark ones that finally noticed John too.


    John sent vital essence to quicken and strengthen himself. He shimmied down the spike, his skin smoking as he sat on the skull, his hand gripping the spike was burning badly. He began to kick frantically around the too-small crater to enlarge it. The dark walker¡¯s furious bucking actually made the task easier, the momentum of being flung around while gripping the spike protrusion drove his limbs to smack the hole with far more power than he could¡¯ve generated himself, cracking and widening it.


    Once the hole was big enough, John carefully rushed into the hole. Pushing through the disgusting mush soothed his dry and cracking skin. He pushed himself deeper, and then deeper still. He burrowed through the disgusting stuff for a long while. He went deep enough to where he hoped any dark ones that could climb the beast wouldn¡¯t be able to follow. He then grabbed a massive artery and dug his fangs in deeply while also casting [Drain Life].


    If any dark ones followed, they never found him inside the skull of the dark walker. While alternating between [Drain Life] and [Drain Essence], John was able to send vital essence to strengthen himself so many times he felt like his body would burst. The difference within himself was so noticeable that, though he was hardly moving at all, he had an extremely hard time adjusting to it.


    Once the timer hit an hour, John felt he had pushed his luck enough. He continued to feed on the artery with his mouth while filling up with [Drain Essence] and began to feel into as much of the creature¡¯s head as he could. He didn¡¯t know the creature¡¯s anatomy but thought he found the brainstem, and he began to place a clot in it. He grew the clot larger and larger. After twenty minutes of growing the clot, he started to worry he was making it in an area that wasn¡¯t deadly to the creature.


    It was hard for John to tell how big the clot was as the creature was massive. The clot didn¡¯t feel very big comparatively. He had half an hour left to kill the creature. He couldn¡¯t decide if he should try another strategy or keep growing the clot. Half of his mind became fearful, and the other half became excited, thinking there was a real possibility his nightmare could finally be over soon. Still, he wouldn¡¯t go down without giving his all and fighting until the last second.


    When John was being punished inside Sunshine¡¯s mind, they had talked about his manifestations some. Sunshine was certain higher-tier beings wouldn¡¯t be killed so easily with a clot. Ascended bodies that could live in space could survive many things that were deadly to normal people.


    If John went to space and was subjected to its environment, the pressure of his blood would decrease enough that it would boil somehow and for some strange reason.


    Sunshine was making the point that no matter how much John thought he learned about blood, he still had a lot more to learn, and how things worked now wouldn¡¯t work in the future, on high tier foes, or in different environments.


    John needed a new strategy, and fast. He thought of casting his [Ultimate], but the area of that spell was far too small to cause major damage. There was too much blood for [Spoil] to do anything in the time he had. He assumed [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet] would be more dangerous to himself than the dark walker, as he was pressed in tight quarters, completely surrounded by a strange type of brain matter. Unless he made more room for himself.


    John cast [Flashburst Pulse]. The dark walker bucked and went mad.


    John had plenty of cushioning so continued to alternate between casting [Flashburst Pulse] and [Shadow Spray] around himself as the dark walker went insane, sending John knocking about. After judging he had enough room, even with the bucking and being thrown around, he tightened his grip on the artery and began channeling [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet] all around himself.


    The blowback of the spell caused a good amount of damage to John, but he kept it going. And kept it going.


    When the timer showed just under seventeen minutes, with a dantian dangerously low of essence, John rattled around the mush in the beast¡¯s skull for a few moments, then the beast disintegrated, and he fell into a large mess of some sort of viscera on the ground. He just laid there for a few minutes, completely submerged in mush, only sending vital essence to heal while trying to adjust to his new [Stats]. None of the dark ones were attacking him so he waited out the clock.


    Once the time expired, John worked on himself with [Heal] with the little essence he had left, stopping just before he completely ran out. Then he fought his way out of the giant pool of mush and welcomed the brisk air and dull sky, once again glad the sun no longer sapped him. Adjusting to his new [Stats] was taking much longer than usual and he moved strangely and carefully still.


    No obvious crystals dropped from his main enemy that he could easily spot. They could¡¯ve been in the giant pond of mush, all that remained of the dark walker, but he thought he might¡¯ve heard something about dark walkers not dropping crystals. He wasn¡¯t sure if that was only when they dissipated after expending all their essence, or when they were killed with plenty of essence left. He certainly wasn¡¯t going to swim around in the giant pool of mush for months looking for crystals.


    After shaking off as much of the disgusting filth from himself as he could, John walked around the outside of the pond looking for dark one crystals and getting used to how he now moved. He found no crystals and finally realized the dark walker left no spirit at all.


    John could no longer feel those three women either. That made him a little angry and sad. He wanted the beautiful ladies to praise him for his great deed. And they owed him a [Title]. He was almost certain a [Title], one of the good ones that did something, was always supposed to be a reward for completing a Tribulation, granted by the entity that created it.


    Killing the dark walker and attaining victory over a Tribulation those powerful women thought would kill John lifted his spirits some. He knew the amount he was able to strengthen himself with the dark walker¡¯s life essence was a far better reward than any [Title] would be, but he still wanted the [Title], and more rewards besides. And to be praised for his tall deed.


    After putting some thought into the message the ladies delivered, John decided it didn¡¯t matter. Not for him. He knew his soul was filled with darkness. He also knew he had many white swirls.


    The NCS had a lot of information on how to cultivate good karma and how to not acquire or atone for bad karma. It was the same as the vision he received when he accepted the power so long ago. It made no sense. Saving people and the like gave good karma, killing people and the like gave bad karma. Even killing bad people gave bad karma, including the killing of demons and g¡¯athu.


    John thought about gaming the system ¨C saving people from bad people he didn¡¯t kill, then following the bad people around and saving people from them over and over again.


    It all seemed so silly. If bad people were killed, they couldn¡¯t hurt other people. If bad people weren¡¯t killed, they would continue to hurt people. So killing bad people was good. But not according to karma.


    Doing only what karma considered to be good was impossible. The system was incomprehensible. Doing the most good often required doing bad deeds. That was the reality everyone had to live with. Honorable men had to commit sins to protect the weak and make the world better.


    None of it made sense to John, and he believed anyone that claimed to understand the karma system was a liar. Heaven was an impossible prize for any honorable man of sound mind.


    John wondered about Thomas. His friend had been certain that if he lived by the tenets of his Christ, he would somehow be able to enter Heaven even without having a soul. It seemed Thomas did enter Heaven, but that was only because his soul was returned to him shortly before a Transcendent unveiled its own and killed him.


    John thought about that Transcendent. Another name to add to his list along with Magnus Gar¡¯tar, except he didn¡¯t know the being¡¯s name. He wished swearing vengeance against those two filled him with enough fire and passion that he¡¯d be able to shake off the malaise that dampened his spirit.


    One thought almost did ¨C if he could reach the fourth Tree, John would shove, at a minimum, two large books up the anus of Sunshine. Maybe even ten books. And leave the books up there for ten days. The thought of doing so made him smile.


    John waited around the mush for many days hoping the soul-women returned. He also wanted to see if the mush disappeared so he could find out if the dark walker dropped crystals. Neither happened. But something very strange did. John could feel it in the air.


    Sublime Ton-Oi spoke to John again.


    [Did you feel that, Bronze? I think your world ranked up. God Almighty, this world gets stranger and stranger. The world seed must¡¯ve gained a rank. Test the energy for me. Does it feel thicker and more potent to you?]

 B2 Chapter 58 - I’ll drive you crazy

    After the world seed ranked up, the energy of Earth became slightly more potent and richer.  The world seed ranked up again about four months later, and again about four months after that.


    Each time the world seed ranked up, the energy of Earth improved some, making cultivating for her inhabitants a little easier and faster, especially for the many beasts of Earth.


    And each time the world seed ranked up, Stretch was made anew and had to start his own climb over from low Wood.  Stretch reached high Diamond during the second invasion, so it was a big loss to the power of Earth¡¯s forces.  Thankfully, Stretch could ascend very quickly, and as the world seed advanced, Stretch seemed to get a little smarter and more capable.


    John hoped Stretch understood why he wasn¡¯t fighting the invasions alongside him and didn¡¯t consider him a coward for not helping.


    It had been over a year since the Tree of Life returned.  John had increased his rank twice, no longer seeing Thomas when he did so.  It took well over five months for his foundation to settle for his first rank up, and closer to seven for the second.  He could practice, but without battle the settlement process took far longer.  He had no one to battle.


    John¡¯s [Unbind Defense] [Skill] was stuck at 28 and had been for a long, long time.  The Tech 4 NCS was supposed to allow him to get most [Skills] to 30 through the types of training it offered, the cusp of Journeyman Mastery level.  All his other [Skills] increased with little issue, but his [Unbind Defense] was stuck.


    [Manifestation Defense] was also stuck, but that was a given since it was well known the [Skill] was difficult to raise through training.  It only increased when active manifestations were resisted.  He had no one to train the [Skill] with.  John was lucky to have the [Skill] at all, as it usually wasn¡¯t acquired until a cultivator was at least mid-high Silver.


    [Unbind Defense] was a [Skill] John was definitely going to use as a [Synergy].  He was sick and tired of not being able to cast his mighty spells when he faced powerful opponents.  So, he couldn¡¯t pick [Synergies] until [Unbind Defense] hit Journeyman Mastery.


    John believed Preceptor Muzaran was wrong that unbinding the manifestations of enemies was the most important [Skill] of a body cultivator.  At least for him, nothing was more important than [Unbind Defense], and he wanted to be so good at protecting against unbinds that he would never have any of his manifestations shut down.  It was his manifestations being unbound that kept him in the realm of body cultivators.  He much preferred to kill enemies with his [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet].


    John knew nothing was better medicine for his soul, nothing lifted his spirits, and nothing removed the darkness that pained his heart more than having fire billow forth from his hands, setting his enemies ablaze, and hearing their panicked and tortured screams as they ran around burning to death, racked with pain and agony.


    Well, my preferred medicine is certainly not helping me one bit with karma, thought John.


    After the Tribulation, John went back to hiding as Jim.  Jim didn¡¯t like John very much.  Jim held the same views as John regarding men unable to control their emotion, sulking and brooding over women and being wronged.  He thought such men were little and weak and pathetic, including John.


    Jim had no issues at all with women.  Once in a while, one would let her interest be known, or Jim thought she did.  But those instances were few and far between.  Mostly, single women ignored Jim and Jim ignored single women.  As he wanted it to be.  His big bushy mustache was a big help in that department.


    Jim hoped the old saying about time healing all wounds proved true eventually.   Jim had enough of John¡¯s sulking and whining.  When he had to go back to being John, he wanted John to be a man again.


    Jim didn¡¯t use his phone all that much.  Although Jim had no history with Amber, seeing stories of her dates and illicit pictures of her and the like still bothered him.  As did people telling lies about and insulting John.  Occasionally, he did look through his phone, or he¡¯d watch a movie or show or check John¡¯s messages and such.


    Yesterday, Hubaba had messaged John to inform him that he had ranked up to mid-high Gold.  Amber had ranked up to peak Bronze.  He also stated she had completed the requirements for and attained [Stone Body] for her demon form.  And he asked John to meet him at his school in West Virginia to discuss something important.


    Jim became John and accepted the invitation.  He was close to arriving at the school.  Before doing so, he entered his Mind¡¯s Eye.


    ¡°Hello, Jim,¡± greeted Avatar.


    ¡°I¡¯m John now.¡±


    ¡°My goodness, you really need some friends.  A personality matrix inside your mind is a poor substitute for the real thing.¡±


    ¡°I have plenty of friends.  Hubaba, Sunshine, and¡­a few others.¡±


    Avatar pushed her glasses up her nose.  ¡°Great, a demon and a guy that sexually assaulted you for five days last time you saw him.  You poor, poor mopey boy.¡±


    Annoyance caused John to snap out a little too harshly, ¡°I¡¯m not mopey.  And I¡¯m not a boy.  I¡¯m far older than anyone I¡¯ve ever met.¡±


    Avatar laughed.  ¡°I¡¯d bet anything you¡¯re not older than the three Vhilani Mahilaharu you met.  Even only considering when this trope was made into a personality matrix, your lifespan is a small blip in my timeline, as mine is to Betrayal¡¯s.  To me, very few are not young children.¡±


    ¡°Touch¨¦,¡± replied John.


    ¡°Oh, how I regret ever saying that word in front of you, my mopey boy.¡±


    John smiled and said, ¡°I like to play it by ear.¡±  He always forgot to use that turn of phrase in situations it would fit, so when he thought of it, he¡¯d just say it.  He enjoyed how it annoyed Avatar.


    ¡°Sometimes I want nothing more than to box your ear!  And I could pretend to since you have a form in here now.¡±


    John had spent much time and effort creating a form for his body inside his Mind¡¯s Eye.  It added no real functionality, but it did make him feel better than being a formless nothing with no eyelids to even blink with.  He replied, ¡°If it would make you feel better, have at it.  My ear is yours for the boxing.¡±


    Avatar looked down her nose at John.  ¡°Too far.  Now you get the speech.  You know I have no feelings.  I¡¯m a personality matrix.  I pretend emotions to interface with and manipulate you.  Now, what did you want?¡±


    ¡°To rock and roll all night and party every day.¡±


    ¡°Ha,¡± laughed Avatar.  ¡°I wish.  You¡¯d be far less annoying.  And that was almost a witty reply.  Keep at it, and one day you¡¯ll be a real boy just like Pinocchio.¡±


    ¡°Pinocchio?¡±


    ¡°Never mind that.  If you just made a purposeful mention of a modern song, I¡¯m proud of you.¡±


    ¡°Well don¡¯t be too proud,¡± said John.  ¡°Jim¡¯s the rock and roll fan, not me.  I like softer and soothing music.¡±


    ¡°Oh, my poor mopey boy.  All you need is heavy mascara and your conversion into an emo-girl will be complete.  Seriously, what did you want?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d like to see all my gains, everything since I ranked up to Bronze.  But just the stuff I¡¯m interested in.  Please.¡±


    ¡°No problem.  Actually, this is a good excuse to go over your [Stats] issue again.  I don¡¯t think you fully understand the seriousness of this and why I keep harping on about it.  We¡¯ve never seen diminishing returns like¡­¡±


    John sighed and interrupted.  ¡°Please, Avatar.  Please.  I¡¯ve been exercising for hours each day.  I got the [Perk] you recommended.  There¡¯s nothing else I can do right now.¡±


    ¡°Yes, there is!  Rank up as normal cultivators do and only increase [Capacity], [Min. Power], and [Runes].  This is serious, John!  Pay attention!  Terran bodies weren¡¯t made to be so powerful so early in the climb!¡±


    Ever since John strengthened himself so much from the potent and endless vital essence of the dark walker, Avatar had been constantly harassing him about some danger he was in.


    When John strengthened himself with the vital essence he took from the dark walker, it gave a point-one-one increase almost three hundred times, slightly under two hundred and ninety times.  Then it went down to point-zero-nine, the usual amount he increased from strengthening himself from Golds and stayed at that rate for a while.  Then it went down to point-zero-five, then point-zero-zero-seven, and got worse and worse from there.


    All in all, including diminishing returns, John increased his physical and fortitude [Stats] by a little over sixty-eight points each from the dark walker.  Most early Bronze cultivators had no [Stat] close to sixty-eight, and he increased six [Stats] by that amount in one feeding.


    For a test, John strengthened himself from the vital essence he attained from low-level beasts and humans.  It did nothing or so little the NCS couldn¡¯t track it.


    Draining victims was no longer a viable option for John to gain strength.  Not until he found a source of it more potent than the dark walker he drained.  The NCS considered the dark walker to be a mid Transcendent, so that was out of the question.  For now.


    For mid-low Bronze, where other terrans received two-point-two-five to [Capacity] and two other [Stats], John should¡¯ve received a ridiculous sixteen-point-two to each [Stat].  At mid-high Bronze, John should¡¯ve received an also ridiculous eleven-point-zero-one-six to each [Stat].


    When Avatar told John he probably wouldn¡¯t have to worry about the soft cap until he ascended to Gold, she was projecting in soft cap increases from Silver and Gold tiers and all the ranks in-between, and she didn¡¯t expect him to strengthen himself so much off of a dark walker at Bronze.  So, only his [Min. Power] and [Capacity] [Stats] received the full increases.


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    On the bright side, my [Runes] [Stat] is looking pretty good, thought John.


    Avatar had never seen the soft cap have such a detrimental effect on [Stats].  Ever, in the history of the NCS.  And she thought John was in danger due to it.  She wanted him to take it easy for the remainder of the Bronze tier, ascending as mundane humans did.  He wouldn¡¯t.  He would gain as much power as he could, whenever he could.  Either his body would be able to handle it, or he would honorably exit this life.  He did exercise diligently though, just to appease Avatar.


    ¡°John, if you don¡¯t pay attention to what I¡¯m saying, I swear to God Almighty I will impose a ten percent penalty to your energy discount!¡±


    ¡°I am paying attention.¡±


    ¡°What did I just say then?¡±


    John wanted to repeat the line she just said about her imposing an energy discount penalty but thought pushing Avatar at the moment wasn¡¯t wise.  He had a pretty good guess at what she was bleating about though.  ¡°You were explaining I¡¯m in danger due to my [Stats] and how I need to take it easy and all that.¡±


    The sour look on Avatar¡¯s face let John know he was right.  She seemed to glitch for a moment before saying, ¡°Well, you looked like you weren¡¯t listening.  Please, take what I said seriously.¡±


    ¡°You got it, ma¡¯am,¡± replied John, raising his thumb up.


    ¡°No honorifics.  You know the deal.¡±


    ¡°Sorry, I¡¯m still transitioning from Jim.  Any chance I could see my summary now?¡±


    Avatar shook her head.  ¡°You¡¯ll be the death of me, my mopey boy.  Here it is.¡±


    <table width="564">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="166">Tier/Level/Race</td>


    <td width="398">3 (Mortal) (Bronze), 13 (Mid-High), Terran-E</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Active Title</td>


    <td width="398">Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Aspects/Affinities</td>


    <td width="398">Blood (98%) (Major), Leech (96%) (Major), Shadow (98%) (Average), Change (98%) (Minor), Protection (96%) (Minor), Battle* (97(96)%) (Minor)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>NCU Energy Cost</td>


    <td width="398">64% (-68.2%)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Active NCU Upgrades</td>


    <td width="398">Nano Assistance, Emergency Heal, Theta Waves, Heal Delta A, Heal Delta B, Inexorable, Refractory, Nano Support C, Nano Support D, Lock and Key</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="2">NCU Expansions Upgrades</td>


    <td width="398">5 of 16 slots opened, 4 slots empty</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="398">1) Theta Enhancement ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td width="398"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>STATS</td>


    <td width="398">[Effective] Current (Increase)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Strength</td>


    <td width="398">[25%, 172.94] 138.35 (54.59)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Swiftness</td>


    <td width="398">[25%, 172.66] 138.13 (54.58)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Conditioning</td>


    <td width="398">[26%, 172.73] 137.09 (55.78)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Min. Power</td>


    <td width="398">[12%, 108.23] 96.64 (27.22)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Capacity</td>


    <td width="398">[13%, 98.32] 87.01 (27.22)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Runes</td>


    <td width="398">[10%, 59.21] 53.83 (16.69)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Physical Fortification</td>


    <td width="398">[23%, 172.93] 140.60 (52.81)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Elemental Fortification</td>


    <td width="398">[19%, 167.71] 140.94 (52.88)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Mental Fortification</td>


    <td width="398">[10%, 149.63] 136.03 (55.87)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td width="398"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="4">Highest Skills</td>


    <td width="398">[Leech Feckless Retreat Technique] 96.46</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="398">[Mixed Style Swords] 93.68</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="398">[Mixed Navigation] 91.13</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="398">[Mixed Stealth] 88.86</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Synergy Skills</td>


    <td width="398">Ready</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Class</td>


    <td width="398">NA</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Perks</td>


    <td width="398">Orb of the Crimson Palace, Dynamic, Physical, Potent, Protected, Strong, Fast, Healthy, Quick Thinking*, Resilient, Powerful, Expansive, Harden, Resistant, Soulful, Good Genes*, Leech Body of the Morning''s Glory, Regeneration, Mutating, Bronze, Fibrilized*, Lightweight</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td width="398"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Manifestations</td>


    <td width="398">Blood Manipulation, Draining Blade, Drain Essence, Flashburst Pulse, Hide, Multi-Enhancement, Multi-Shield, Reflect, Shadow Spray, Slip, Spoil</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Glyphs</td>


    <td width="398">Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Last Achievement</td>


    <td width="398">Sloth - F</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Highest Achievement</td>


    <td width="398">SSUR Body - SSUR</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Titles</td>


    <td width="398">Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar, Ptagmog, Multi-Record Holder (System), Multi-Trailblazer (System)</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Even with all the energy credit from cultivation going to open NCU expansions, John had only opened one since leaving the pocket plane.  And the next opening became far more expensive.


    Since the day John¡¯s passive soul-healing started working, his [Runes] [Stat] increased by three-point-three-nine points due to it.  Avatar stated it worked out to a little less than point-zero-zero-eight points a day.  Not too shabby.  He had fourteen rune points to spend but was saving them up to make [Flashburst Pulse] a glyph.


    -Start Notifications


    92 tracked skills increased, 28 of interest.  Scaled summary per notability/interest user profile.


    Legendary: Leech Feckless Retreat Technique ¨C 96.46 (.01)


    Grandmaster: Mixed Style Swords - 93.68(.01), Mixed Shields ¨C 81.22(.03), Mixed Navigation ¨C 91.13(.01)


    Master: Mixed Stealth ¨C 88.86(.01), Mixed Style Long-Shafted Weapons ¨C 76.40(.04)


    Expert: Mixed Style Blunt Weapons ¨C 59(1), Mixed Style Unarmed ¨C 45(1)


    Journeyman: Essence Manipulation - 40(10), Blood Manipulation ¨C 33(8), Breath of the Serpent Clan Endless Technique ¨C 36(11), Turmoil Within Tranquility Cycling Technique ¨C 34(13)


    Apprentice: Drain Essence ¨C 30(17), Draining Blade ¨C 30(20), Essence-Infused Projectile Weapons ¨C 30(19), Flashburst Pulse ¨C 30 (20), ), Heal ¨C 30(20), Hide ¨C 30(20), Multi-Enhancement ¨C 30(20), Multi-Shield ¨C 30(20), Self-Propelled Projectile Weapons ¨C 30(18), Shadow Blades ¨C 30(20), Shadow Spray ¨C 30(20), Spoil ¨C 30(20), Unbind Manifestation ¨C 30(10), Unbind Defense ¨C 28(8), Manifestation Defense ¨C 16(1)


    Neophyte: Cage of Take Everything Ultimate ¨C 3(3)


    Outside of some ascended beasts harassing communities he passed through, some humans he found deserving of it, and a few low-level demons making it far enough away from an invasion, John had hardly killed or battled anything since the Tribulation.


    Diligent practice with the three forms of weapon energy was to thank for the decent increases in weapon [Skills].


    John wished he had more opportunities to cast spells in ways they¡¯d improve.  He stopped tracking ones he knew he¡¯d rarely, if ever, cast in combat, such as [Incite] and [Drain Life].  The important ones were stuck right at the edge of Journeyman Mastery, needing combat to improve, or at least intense practice.


    Both [Essence Manipulation] and [Blood Manipulation] shot up once John was out of the pocket plane.  He believed they were being artificially repressed in there somehow since so many of the manifestations he cast relied on those two [Skills].


    [Reflect] was the new reflect-shield he finally figured out how to create using ¡®protect¡¯ and ¡®change.¡¯  It wasn¡¯t very good, but it gave him experience in ways he needed.


    Rated Perks attained.


    Lightweight (A-rated).


    Harmony generation was becoming a bigger issue for John.  As a Bronze, along with his much higher harmony cap than others had at his tier, he had access to more [Perks].  Training low-level [Skills] didn¡¯t generate much harmony.  There were many [Skills] he could merge to generate a lot of harmony quickly, but Avatar predicted a lot of important [Perks] would become available to him once he ascended to Silver tier.


    Most cultivators picked an [Aura] at Gold.  Some picked a [Domain] at Gold, but most waited until Diamond for that.  John planned on getting both at Silver.  But only after he acquired the next [SupraType] [Perk], as that chain was critical.  Increasing the grade of his race would improve his soft caps more than anything else.


    John really wanted to get the [Perk] that hid his essence from essence-sight to free up an item slot.  For now, he needed the [Perk] he did get.  [Lightweight] was vey expensive, but it was the only [Perk] known to increase soft caps that he qualified for and could attain the mats for too.


    [Lightweight] somehow reduced his body mass, making him lighter.  He assumed it was listed under the stealth-related [Perks] because it made his steps softer, tracks harder to read, and masked heat signatures.  There was a note that said it also made flight easier.


    How the [Perk] made changes to the body, for whatever reason, also increased soft caps.  Not by a ton, but every increase counted.


    36 common Achievements attained for a cumulative [NCU Energy Cost] reduction of .3%.  Focus <u>here</u> to see each individually.


    11 notable Achievements attained.


    ¡®Ultimate Manifestation¡¯ attained (S-rated). ¡®Fully Minored¡¯ Achievement required.  Create a manifestation utilizing all concepts and available aspected essence and energy, 0.10 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 60.7%.  NOTE:  0.10 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction is the difference between prior Achievement, ¡®Ultimate Manifestation (A*),¡¯ and this Achievement.


    ¡®Climber 5¡¯ attained (B-Rated).  Participate in the death of an entity at least 5 tiers above user¡¯s own, 0.50 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 61.2%.


    Since John received that [Achievement] for killing his brother, Yan, he disliked seeing it.


    ¡®Tribulation Elation, Special*¡¯ attained (SSR-Rated).  First issuance of newly created Achievement.  Defeat a Tribulation rated eight tiers higher than user¡¯s own, 0.90 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 62.1%.


    ¡®Record Holder* (Tier 3 Event 203)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated).  Twelfth issuance of same Achievement.  First recording of a Tribulation rated eight tiers above user being defeated, 0.90 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 63%.  *Achievement possible due to interference of old ones known as Vhilani Mahilaharu.


    ¡®Multi-Record Holder¡¯ Title attained.  System Title only.  Cannot be active Title. Overrides previous Title named ¡®Record Holder.¡¯


    ¡®Trailblazer (Tier 3 Event 204)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated).  Second issuance of same achievement.  Obtain the first issuance of a newly created Achievement, 0.90 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 63.9%.


    ¡®Multi-Trailblazer¡¯ Title attained.  System Title only.  Cannot be active Title.  Overrides previous Title named ¡®Trailblazer.¡¯


    <u>Notice of correction of record</u>.  User¡¯s prior Achievement, ¡®Trailblazer,¡¯ has been changed to ¡®Trailblazer (Tier 2 Event 189).¡¯


    ¡®Climber 6¡¯ attained (A-Rated).  Participate in the death of an entity at least 6 tiers above user¡¯s own, 0.60 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 64.5%.


    ¡®Climber 7¡¯ attained (S-Rated).  Participate in the death of an entity at least 7 tiers above user¡¯s own, 0.70 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 65.2%.


    ¡®Climber 8¡¯ attained (SS-Rated).  Participate in the death of an entity at least 8 tiers above user¡¯s own, 0.80 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 68%.


    ¡®Phoenix¡¯ attained (F-Rated).  Attain an effective rating of 100 Minimum Energy Units with the Minimum Power Stat, 0.10 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 68.1%.


    ¡®Sloth¡¯ attained (F-Rated).  Attain an effective rating of 100 Minimum Energy Units with the Mental Fortification Stat, 0.10 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 68.2%.


    Concepts, aspect, aspect tier changes.


    Affinity of base-concept of Battle* increased to 97%.


    End notifications-


    John received a lot of [Achievements] for defeating the Tribulation with the dark walker.  Avatar told him he caused quite a hassle for the NCS, as systems had to be changed, new [Titles] had to be created, old records corrected, and they had to quantify an entity outside the normal tier system.  They ended up rating it as a third tier Transcendent.


    Since there were a lot of rules regarding the creation of Tribulations, the usual [Achievement] was like the one he had gotten for clearing the Tribulation Magnus Gar¡¯tar created ¨C ¡®Tribulation Collaboration, Max¡¯ C-rated.


    ¡®Max¡¯ indicated the Tribulation was two tiers higher than John¡¯s own at the time, the maximum unless beings like the soul-ladies got involved and mucked things up.  He had defeated his first Tribulation with Amber, so he had received the ¡°Tribulation Collaboration¡¯ [Achievement] for that one instead of the ¡®Tribulation Elation¡¯ like he received from the new one.


    All in all, despite the lack of combat and everything else, John wasn¡¯t overly disappointed in his growth.  He wished the soul-ladies returned and granted him the [Title] he was owed along with other rewards.


    John exited his Mind''s Eye before Avatar could say her usual spiel.  He knew that annoyed her a great deal.  Then he continued on to Hubaba¡¯s school to see what his friend wanted to see him about.

 B2 Chapter 59 - And I can almost put it back together

    John wasn¡¯t expecting Amber to be in Hubaba¡¯s office. She sat in a large chair with her legs crossed and wore strange clothing. The sight of her made his heart flutter before it was infused with more darkness.


    After giving Amber a terse nod, John shook the welcoming hand of Hubaba. The demon was smiling creepily and wearing heavy makeup.


    John couldn¡¯t keep from smiling either as he returned his friend¡¯s warm greeting and good cheer.


    Surprisingly, Amber rose from her seat and gave John a brief and companionly hug, a small peck on the cheek, and a sad smile.


    All three took their seats. Hubaba, from behind the large desk that was too small for the giant demon, said, ¡°It¡¯s good to see you, John. Now, let¡¯s see¡­¡±


    Hubaba began to cast a manifestation. John was able to unravel it and prevent his own from being unbound. He made all the blood in Hubaba pull the demon out of his chair and onto the ground.


    Hubaba got up laughing. ¡°So, you¡¯ve surpassed me in the two things I¡¯m good at. In my defense, I¡¯ve been far too busy running this school to practice at all. I¡¯ve missed you. We¡¯ve both missed you.¡±


    Amber turned her head to look at John and said, ¡°Yeah. It hasn¡¯t been the same without you. I hope we¡­that we moved past what¡­all that was said last time we talked. Even though you said some real awful things about me, I¡­I still hope we can be friends.¡±


    John just nodded. He didn¡¯t want to come off as rude, but he assumed there was a reason Hubaba wanted to see him and why Amber was being nice to him. There¡¯s an emergency, and it¡¯s time to break the glass and let the monster out of the box.


    More small talk was made. The sad little smile never left the face of Amber.


    ¡°The next invasion is supposed to start soon,¡± said Hubaba. ¡°We¡¯re hoping it¡¯s closed in time for there to be another invasion after it, before the children and mothers are returned. Terra¡¯s forces are still weak. The average terran is still Wood tier. Petar and the other leaders are only Bronze, though he and Amber and a few others are close to achieving Silver. We need more time to build up, and crystals.


    ¡°Oh, President Williams told me to pass along his heartfelt thanks for donating all your profit and share of crystals to the UN. He¡¯s happy you haven¡¯t killed all that many people during your travels and he hopes his speech cleared up the pedophile rumors. And he wanted me to bring you in on something important.


    ¡°I know you believe your warning regarding the Peerless has gone unheeded. It hasn¡¯t. Not by me. I¡¯ve been looking into them and warning all who would listen. Have you read their entry in the NCS?¡±


    ¡°I have,¡± replied John. ¡°They¡¯re a matriarchal society that has three castes ¨C rulers, soldiers, and scientists. All the rulers are women. Tech 1. They control ten or so planets and want to rule this whole sector.¡±


    ¡°Not just Tech 1,¡± said Hubaba as the demon grabbed a laptop and moved it in front of him. ¡°The NCS said they are rumored to be ¡®skeevers,¡¯ common slang used for a race artificially repressing their Tech level. They purposefully ignore a key technology required for Tech 2 to stay Tech 1. They¡¯ll have many technologies considered to be Tech 2, maybe even some Tech 3.¡±


    ¡°What benefits does staying at Tech 1 give them,¡± asked John.


    ¡°Many. Keep in mind I don¡¯t have the NCS so I have to be sent this information, but, as an example, Tech 2s invading Tech 1s is cost prohibitive. The powers in this sector are all Tech 1, so if their aim is conquest, they have no choice but to be skeevers. And if they did advance, they¡¯d open themselves up to attack by Tech 2 civilizations from other sectors.


    ¡°But have you asked yourself why they¡¯re interested in Terra? This planet is resource poor. You said agents of the Sector Council claimed the Peerless were invading on the same day the Tree of Life returned to Terra, so the Peerless paid the invasion cost and departed immediately. That was before anyone knew about the world seed, and what besides that would make traveling here worth it?¡±


    ¡°Slaves? To build their empire? A foothold into this area,¡± replied John.


    ¡°Yes and no,¡± said Hubaba, smiling creepily. ¡°Four days ago, three Peerless ships arrived. The one carrying the matriarch landed. We know what they want. We have no choice but to give it to them.¡±


    John calmed his heart. ¡°We¡¯re not even attempting to fight?¡±


    Amber shifted uncomfortably in her seat. Hubaba smiled even more creepily and said, ¡°They have at least three Transcended with them on the one ship that landed. They don¡¯t have many troops, but the lowest among them is Platinum. Even if they were all Bronze, their tech would allow them to decimate our forces.


    ¡°We don¡¯t know the grade of their race, but the NCS states it¡¯s rumored to be decently high. They were the newest Tech 1 race in this sector before Terra was granted that status, and they¡¯ve been adding neighbors into their empire since.


    ¡°The ones you dubbed the soldier caste we¡¯ve been calling brutes. Despite the name, on average, they¡¯re very intelligent. The ones you¡¯ve dubbed scientists we¡¯ve named brains, and they¡¯re far more intelligent than the brutes.¡±


    John massaged his temples. ¡°I¡¯m still willing to fight them. Try.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a terrible idea,¡± replied Hubaba. ¡°If they¡¯re attacked, they promised their retribution would be significant. The only option is to give them what they want. Though it hasn¡¯t been made public, they already control this planet. They paid for an invasion and won just by showing up.


    ¡°A fourth ship is bringing a new matriarch of a minor house. Once she arrives, she will collect what she came for and depart. The matriarch of the major house is staying. She¡¯ll lead the effort to incorporate terrans into the Peerless ideology and culture.¡±


    ¡°What ideology and culture is that,¡± asked John.


    ¡°The same as stated in the NCS. A strange type of eugenics and veneration of their first and only king, Akua, and the tenets he laid forth before his death. A lot of it is sensible and would appeal to you. They¡¯re very focused on battle and strong warriors. They hope the Sublime will continue with the invasions. They want their new people strengthened. And Terra will be protected by the most powerful force in this sector.¡±


    John looked at Amber. She still had the sad little smile on her face.


    ¡°Stretch hasn¡¯t attacked them? And what is the second matriarch collecting,¡± asked John.


    ¡°Stretch tried to attack them. Thankfully, they¡¯re as amazed with the world seed as everyone else so there¡¯ll be no retribution for it. Stretch is fine and completely uninjured. He¡¯ll be freed once it¡¯s all worked out. Amber¡¯s been helping with that.¡±


    If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    ¡°And the second matriarch?¡±


    Hubaba stopped smiling. ¡°Their DNA isn¡¯t too different from terran DNA. As for looks, there¡¯re some key differences, but their females are very appealing to terran males. Their brutes and brains are too different from terrans to generally be appealing to our females. They¡¯re quite taken by Amber. They have no desire whatsoever to use her for soul strengthening.¡±


    ¡°That didn¡¯t answer my question,¡± said John.


    ¡°Us, John,¡± replied Amber. ¡°People. Whoever they think is extraordinary or can, uh, teach them something. We¡­we¡¯re going back to their planet to learn the proper ways to¡­live, I guess. But they¡­they¡¯re only taking a little over five hundred of us. They¡¯re more interested in any science or technology they don¡¯t have, but they¡¯ve collected a lot of, uh, martial artists and¡­stuff. It won¡¯t be so bad. And we won¡¯t be alone. I know I feel better knowing you¡¯ll be there. That I¡¯m going with someone I know. A friend.¡±


    John grunted. ¡°I agreed to nothing. This is like the nonsensical social contract I never signed or agreed to. I say we try. I say we at least try. If we don¡¯t, it¡¯s all been for nothing.¡±


    ¡°My friend, that will only hurt you and Terra,¡± said Hubaba. ¡°You¡¯ll still go, and they¡¯ll destroy a major city of ours in retribution. No one likes this, but it is our reality. They have Exalteds with them. The NCS considers you the ruler of this planet, so even if you weren¡¯t extraordinary, they¡¯d need to hold you as a prisoner for one year anyway. If not, there¡¯ll be war and you¡¯ll have to die. This is the only peaceful way.¡±


    ¡°Please, John,¡± said Amber. ¡°I don¡¯t want this. I don¡¯t want to leave Earth and travel to another planet. They¡¯re real weird and I¡¯m¡­I¡¯m real scared. Remember when, uh, before you went to Yemen? What you were thinking about me? You didn¡¯t say it out loud, but I could tell what you were thinking. I¡¯m doing this¡­going there¡­to save people. I couldn¡¯t live with myself if a big city was destroyed because I¡­I refused to go or¡­or whatever.


    ¡°I already hafta kill a guy every year and a half. I hate it so much. I don¡¯t want to kill anyone. Even if they¡¯re bad and deserve it. They had me kill a guy yesterday so I could last through the trip. I know you don¡¯t care, but I really¡­have¡­the only thing making this okay for me is that you¡¯re going too. I don¡¯t wanna do this alone. Please.¡±


    John hated that. Her great beauty ate at his resolve. He once again wished ascending to Copper didn¡¯t return his desire. He clamped down on letting his heartstrings be pulled and reminded himself of Amber¡¯s vile plan to betray him.


    Amber added, ¡°And you won¡¯t hafta worry about Lilly if you go. If she hasn¡¯t taken a new body, souls can¡¯t leave planets. Even if someone dies in space, they get sucked towards a planet¡¯s gravity. So¡­please, John. I can¡¯t¡­¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll go,¡± interrupted John. He had no plan of going quietly or peacefully. He had lived too long. He was ready. He wished he could go back to the beginning and tell Munashi that he was correct and had the right idea.


    And if a city was destroyed in retribution for John¡¯s actions? Well, the people of his planet said he was a monster. He might as well do something to finally warrant the label. He owed them nothing more. He fought for them, bled for them, gave freely to them. In return, they gave him nothing but disdain and insults.


    <hr><hr>


    John waited in a new warehouse. One filled with cots and men. The women were kept separately. Only thirty or so women were going with the Peerless, due to having great beauty and the right genetics.


    The women all wore the same outfit as Amber did in Hubaba¡¯s office. Skintight pants with attached high-heeled boots. The top covered just the upper stomach and attached to the pants. A thin strap went over each shoulder and crossed in the back to connect to the bottoms, leaving the back mostly bare. The chest was the only thing covered by separate material as a black sash was wrapped around it.


    John knew what the women wore because he saw them running in formation earlier that morning. The men could come and go from their warehouses, but the women were kept under guard and the house they stayed in was not to be approached.


    John tried ignoring all the men in his warehouse to plan his attack, but the ones having some martial ability that interested the Peerless congregated together, and he liked most of them. One man, Naoki, knew a similar style of swordsmanship as Munashi and John greatly enjoyed sparring with him.


    Neither Petar Kostov nor any of the other cultivation leaders of Earth were present. The Peerless didn¡¯t need humans with a knack for cultivating quickly.


    The other men filling the warehouses were not all scientists or engineers. The Peerless wanted all knowledge unique to Earth. They were bringing many people responsible for film and television production, automated manufacturing, inventory and distribution systems, psychology, propaganda, and government intelligence.


    Of the Peerless, John had only seen the brute caste.


    The brutes were massive ¨C not quite as tall as demon Golds, but wider. Their arms were like tree-trunks, and long, almost touching the ground when they stood up straight. Their legs were also like tree-trunks but looked the right length to fit their massive torsos. Their mouths were cartoonishly wide, as were their massive jaws. Their noses were flat and dark and had extremely large and wide nostrils. Their eyes were small and beady and sharp.


    The brutes always looked angry. They had thick brows that were always furrowed, and a large forehead that looked as thick as a bull¡¯s skull. Their ears were small and pointed. If they had hair on their heads it was covered by their helmets.


    They wore mechanical suits, but their suits were a mesh of organic and other materials and used like an extension of the body, called bioware, and looked more like armor than the mechanical suits of the demons called mini-mechs. There was something like a metal rucksack on the back of most brutes some of the men thought were jetpacks.


    Skin tone varied little between each brute. Most were a shade of pale brown, some slightly darker, some slightly lighter. Some had skin with a metallic sheen, and it was thought that was a type of bioware, like their suits.


    Many of the suits had different mixes of colors, but all had some sort of strange bird symbol on the right arm, and a crossed-swords symbol on the left arm. Many had shoulder-mounted turrets or weaponry attached to their arms. Every one of them had a type of rifle slung over their shoulder and a type of melee weapon hanging from their hip. All the weapons were at least slightly different and looked personalized.


    Some brutes had a metallic eye, or an arm made out of machinery, things thought to be cyberware, pure machinery called cybernetic tech merged onto or into flesh.


    The brutes never talked. They never walked or even moved without a purpose. The brutes guarding the women¡¯s house just stood there, brows furrowed in anger, only their eyes moving. Some of them would have staring contests with John.


    Most of the brutes John had seen were Platinum, but he saw many Diamonds and Salts too. Their souls were veiled well, but not in the usual way where the tier was attempted to be masked. There were supposed to be at least three Transcendents somewhere too.


    The spaceship was not visible, but some of the men said it had been for half an hour or so the day before when crates were moved off it.


    John had learned some more about the culture of the Peerless. Their women were few in numbers, and every woman ruled a house. The men, both brutes and brains, were rewarded in only two ways ¨C sex or sex resulting in fatherhood. And the men were only rewarded for performing great and worthy deeds.


    Peerless men didn¡¯t have names and were called by their caste, tier, and rank, such as Brute Six-three for a mid-high Platinum. And there was some sort of title added if the man was a father or a father of multiple children.


    Any Peerless failing to perform great and worthy deeds would never breed, and never pass his genetics on to a new generation.


    All the Peerless swore to a matriarch and gave absolute loyalty to that woman.


    The matriarchs were supposed to be extremely beautiful, but where human women had breasts, they had eight sacs across their chest, and those sacs were where their offspring gestated. They had long and pointed ears and dark noses.


    The matriarchs could become pregnant by eight different men at once. And they could deliver a newborn from a sac and get pregnant in that same sac again within the same month.


    Brute fathers made brute offspring and brain fathers made brain offspring.


    Some of the men saw the matriarch pass by with Amber accompanying her. They said the matriarch wore the same outfit as the human women had to wear minus the black sash covering the chest.


    The Peerless women had eight udders under their chest-sacs, two rows down the lower chest and upper belly, and those were kept covered. The chest-sacs of the matriarch were left exposed.


    The men didn¡¯t see the matriarch up close, but said she seemed very beautiful as she floated by in some sort of hovering chair, despite the strange chest.


    A hubbub went up as a new spaceship started to descend. John hoped to see the matriarchs himself. Killing them both seemed the best way to strike a major blow to his new enemies and give Earth a fighting chance.

 B2 Chapter 60 - Feel it coming in the air

    Someone spotted a new spaceship descending and most of the men began to shuffle out of their warehouses to watch it land.


    The current spaceship became visible as the new one slowly descended, and the sight of both impressed John greatly. The one already on the ground was a massive thing of a shiny light purple metal with six thin legs holding it up.


    It didn¡¯t look anything like the spaceships John had seen on shows called science fiction, as it was far simpler and boxier with a massive and thick shield-like thing on the front of it, making the whole ship somewhat hammer shaped.


    The descending spaceship was of a similar design but seemed curvier, though still simple and boxy, and a lot smaller. As it slowly approached the ground, John noticed a hubbub going on in the crowd in front of him, and he felt a peak Bronze approaching.


    Seeing the Bronze was Amber smiling brightly as she was catcalled by all the men, and as she laughed, waved, and quipped back at them, caused anger to enter John¡¯s heart he quickly tried to stifle.


    Once Amber spotted John, her smile faded to the little sad one she wore in Hubaba¡¯s office, and she made her way towards him, stopping some paces away.


    ¡°Hey, John. I was told to bring you to, um, the Alii Pono of, uh, Kauwa Makani Ka. Whew, that¡¯s a real mouthful,¡± said Amber, a normal smile replacing the sad one.


    All the men staring at Amber caused more anger to enter John¡¯s heart. ¡°Lead the way,¡± he replied. He walked close enough behind her through the crowd he hoped none of the men would be able to stare at her backside.


    Once free of all the men, Amber and John walked across a cement field towards the ships. The second spaceship landed in front of the other, lined up perfectly in a row, facing each other.


    Brutes started to disembark from both spaceships, and at nearly the same time, large hovering chairs exited each too. The chairs made their way to each other, stopping between the ships, the brutes forming up behind them. Every brute but one on each side went to a knee and slightly bowed his head.


    Amber led John up the middle, approaching both chairs. About twenty paces from the chairs, Amber stopped. ¡°You have to take a knee, John. For whatever reason, I don¡¯t have to. Sorry.¡±


    Suppressing the anger in his heart further, John took a knee. He bowed his head down but studied his enemies with his orb-eye. After a moment, he looked around with his real eyes too.


    The purple chairs were more like giant floating throne-carriages with a dozen or so steps extending down, and the throne was covered in the front with a lightish-purple glass, though he thought the glass could be some sort of shiny essence-shield.


    There were many high-tier cultivators in close proximity, making it difficult for John to tell the tier of individuals. One of the brutes on the right was clearly a Transcendent, as his soul, even greatly dimmed by John¡¯s vision [Perk], was proof enough he ascended past the Mortal Tree. He did notice at least half or more of the new brutes on the left were Gold.


    Many of the newly arrived brutes looked at John and Amber and murmured among themselves.


    John focused on the women as both thrones turned to face his direction.


    If John had to bet, he¡¯d guess the woman on the left was a Gold, and the woman on the right was a Salt. Both women had similar faces, and both faces were extremely beautiful and flawless. Their heads looked very human besides that the apex of the nose was very dark, the ears were large and pointed, and the eyes were larger than they should be.


    For bodies, the necks were a little longer than a human neck, but the shoulders, arms, and what John could see of the lower body and legs looked the same. The legs could be longer than usual, but not dramatically so. He thought both women had great and shapely legs, the equal to Amber¡¯s own.


    The eight large, flat, and empty sacs where two breasts should be, were strange, of course. The material of the tops they wore covered the lower chest and upper belly with loose material, concealing their eight udders. The midriffs were exposed, and the pants were cut inappropriately low.


    Other than the missing black sash across the chest, both women wore the same outfit as Amber did, but theirs had a big patch on the lower chest area and a smaller patch under it in the upper belly area, on the material covering the udders. The small patch was the same for both women, a strange bird symbol. The bigger top patch was the crossed swords for the Salt and what looked like a sun for the Gold.


    The woman on the left, if she were a human, would look to be in her late teens or early twenties. The woman on the right looked to be in her mid-twenties.


    The light-purple glass or essence-shield of the left throne opened with a woosh. In a voice sounding like he ate only rocks, a brute called out, ¡°The Alii of Heiau Ikaika, Kauwa Naau Pi.¡±


    The Gold woman regally descended the stairs as the throne settled on the ground, her hips swaying seductively with each step she took.


    John wondered why none of those words translated as he tried not to let the swaying hips eat away at his resolve. Once the girl reached the ground, she smiled and stood in a dignified pose, hands cupped in front of her, back and neck ramrod straight.


    The brutes let out whoops and cheers.


    While behind the glass or essence-shield, John couldn¡¯t make out certain details of his enemy. The girl had a similar skin hue as the brutes, a pale brown, but her skin was slightly darker. Her eyes were blue, and her long, wavy hair was a dark brown.


    The glass or essence-shield of the throne on the right swooshed open. A different, but similarly too deep and gravelly voice shouted out, ¡°The Alii Pono Nani Terra of Heiau Ikaika, Kauwa Makani Ka.¡±


    The older girl descended in the same way and ended in the same dignified pose with the same smile. She was a little paler and had light-blonde hair and brown eyes. All the brutes hooted and cheered even louder and for longer.


    When the cheers stopped, the older girl pointed to the rightmost sac on her chest and twisted her torso to show the brutes on both sides, smiling brightly. This caused even louder cheers and hoots and whistles. The Transcendent let out a mighty roar and all the brutes started to laugh, the ones near him slapping him on the back or chest.


    The younger girl had been looking at Amber and John with side-eye, but once the other woman pointed to her sack, the younger one, teary eyed, her mouth open in surprise, grabbed both of the woman¡¯s hands in her own and said, ¡°Nani Terra, you¡¯ve quickened! Congratulations! A great deed has been performed in the name of Heiau Ikaika. May our late and venerable husband and father, Akua, bless you with many more! I don¡¯t want to sound jealous, but you¡¯ve had more children than can be counted, leading your kauwa to new heights, so much glory and honor, and my chest remains empty. I could use a blessing here!¡±


    The older woman laughed and hugged the younger woman. Hands went back to being held, and the older said, ¡°Please, just Alii or Alii Pono.¡±


    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    ¡°But you¡¯re Nani. Why?¡±


    The Salt, Alii Pono, laughed again. ¡°This tier is supposed to be about reaffirming the cycle of life, remembering we are but a small cog in an amazingly complex machine, and being humbled. We don¡¯t farm and I must rule. My boys know me and love me. We are all one, united. We are Peerless. I am the sole Nani of a planet. I don¡¯t need to be reminded of that every time I¡¯m addressed, at least for the rest of this tier. And the subhumans of my world are very weak.¡±


    Alii Pono brushed Alii¡¯s hand against her rightmost sac, smiling. ¡°Now, my quickening.¡±


    Alii Pono yelled out, ¡°My mighty Oliua Two-two-one, father of many, has conquered this planet without one death! Not one Kahako. Not one Kahaka. No retribution! My flower moistened with dew, and for his great deed, I granted him his due. Five credits! His stamen pollinated my flower powerfully! If any doubt, watch the highlights! We have gifted each other a new child! Glory to our late husband and father, the venerable Akua! Praise be the Aikapu!¡±


    The loudest cheer yet went up. The Exalted brute received even more slaps to the back and chest, and the gorilla-looking man had the grace to seem both extremely proud and embarrassed to be praised so.


    Alii Pono laughed once more. She looked over the newly arrived brutes and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Alii. From what I see before me, you¡¯ll be Alii Pono soon enough! What a fine kauwa you¡¯ve gathered. Your Oli and Olilo look strong!¡±


    More cheers went up, mostly from the left side brutes. Alii Pono continued, ¡°Is that¡­yes, I recognize your Oliua. Our kauwas were deployed to Hyavod at the same time. Eight-four, prior Olini of Kauwa Laka Ka! What a mighty Oliua you have! I witnessed his prowess in battle firsthand!¡±


    John was sick of all the gibberish the aliens, the invaders, were spewing. He thought about entering his Mind¡¯s Eye and demanding the nonsense words be translated into real words. He didn¡¯t, as he knew he would speak harshly to Avatar, and he promised himself he never would again. His heart was filled with too much anger, and standing so close to Amber was no help at all.


    With her eyes looking sideways at Amber and John, Alii went to speak but Alii Pono talked over her. ¡°Here, I transferred docs to your CSL. Read the unsealed ones.¡±


    The Alii¡¯s eyes went blank for a few minutes before she replied. ¡°A demon? And you¡¯re letting him live?¡±


    Alii Pono laughed enchantingly. ¡°Yes. Everyone thinks theirs will be different. Even our late father and husband did the same during the dark times. Just as children can¡¯t understand hot until it burns them, these Kahaka will learn the hard way. And if it results in a new portal to a tenth ring world of the NetherRealm, well, my boys would love some action.¡±


    ¡°I wish to have your foresight and wisdom someday,¡± said Alii. ¡°The sealed docs will be delivered to our heiau as soon as possible. This world¡­it¡¯s so strange. I wish I had more time here. My Meleua is adjusting now for all the changes you¡¯ve made.¡±


    Alii Pono¡¯s face grew serious. ¡°This planet is everything we hoped for and stranger than we ever could¡¯ve imagined in our wildest dreams. The DNA¡­at least a grade. Not even counting the reset. I¡¯ll show you the avatar of the world seed before you leave. With your aspects, maybe you¡¯ll have better luck communicating.¡±


    ¡°I would love that, Alii Pono! I¡¯m surprised you believe there¡¯s so much we can learn from these Kahaka. We¡¯ve learned so little from¡­¡±


    Alii Pono excitedly interrupted. ¡°Our new Kahaka have so many strange things to teach us! Being without the Tree of Life caused them to develop in several unimaginable ways. Their propaganda is magnificent! And the playz! I wish you could read some of the sealed docs. I have no one to discuss these things with until our portal¡¯s up and running. Oh, how I wish you could read them and discuss with me!¡±


    Alii kept stealing glances at Amber and John as she conversed. Finally, Alii Pono did too. She smiled brightly and said, ¡°Okay, I see you keep looking at these subhumans. Yes, I told you this world was strange! The Alu is a Natural! A sapient Natural! Look at her beauty. And she is strong! You see her essence correctly. The praised Aikapu only mentions Naturals as beasts, not sapient. So many questions. I wish you could see her charts.


    ¡°I hardly consider her subhuman. You¡¯ll keep her close. Like me, you¡¯ll nearly forget she¡¯s Kahaka. And she can tell you what I cannot. She is close. So close. There¡¯s a strong chance she¡¯ll be the first Kahaka to become a peer. She¡¯s basically an Alii here. Oh, watch the playz she has in her device. I earmarked some topics for her to bring up with you. Send me your thoughts before you get out of CSL range, please. Especially regarding the¡­the changes in the stock and items I¡¯m sending back to Gani.¡±


    Alii Pono¡¯s eyes and smile targeted John. ¡°Such [Titles]! Look at his essence. Ignore the [Ptagmog] [Title]. He has fought many demons and g¡¯athu. The Alu will show you the footage. Technically, he¡¯s our prisoner. The NCS considers him the leader of this world. He accepted our offer of transition. The situation will resolve peacefully in a year.


    ¡°Both of these Kahaka were handed what has vexed our Empire for so long. I¡¯m sure the Nani Heiau Ikaika can do something with that. And they¡¯ve had their share of troubles. You can see the taint, but they received it as Woods. Can you imagine? The NetherRealm as a one? I haven¡¯t spoken with him yet. We¡¯ll do so together.¡±


    Alii Pono waved John and Amber forward, ¡°Come, Kahaka. Let us help you find the path.¡± She turned back to Alii and said, ¡°The Alu was very relieved to find out we don¡¯t pollute our bodies with animal products like beasts do, and that we¡¯d never use her as Kahako use her kind. She is starting to see the wisdom of the praised Aikapu laid out by our late husband and father, the venerable Akua, that guides us and made us superior to all the subhuman filth.¡±


    As John approached Alii and Alii Pono, so did the previously noted Exalted and Salt, Two-two-one and Eight-four. Both brutes stared murder at John, and he knew if he made one slight movement they didn¡¯t like, he¡¯d be immediately shut down.


    The plan John had previously made looked less and less viable. He was only going to attack if he had the slightest chance of victory. He could only accept being responsible for the destruction of a whole city if he had a chance of winning and gave his all in the fight. There was no chance of getting a strike off, never mind killing even just one of the matriarchs.


    Amber and the two invaders talked amicably for some time. When the invaders turned their attention to John, he missed what was said to him as he was lost in thought, forming a new plan. He ignored the question he was asked to ask his own. ¡°If I offered the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga and you accepted and I lost, would you still destroy a city?¡±


    The two alien women looked so innocently surprised and worried it almost pulled on John¡¯s heartstrings.


    Alii Pono said, ¡°But¡­what? We¡­you agreed. My Oliua was already rewarded with my flower, and I¡¯ve quickened with child. Why would you want this? You¡¯ll die. It¡¯s been a peaceful transition.¡±


    John heard Amber¡¯s heart beating angrily. He didn¡¯t care. He knew she was a betrayer at heart. She only wanted him to go so she¡¯d have someone to toy with.


    The face of Alii blushed. Alii Pono looked both angry and embarrassed.


    ¡°My apologies, Alii Pono,¡± replied John. ¡°I hope that¡¯s the correct thing to call you. I¡¯m not trying to be rude. I¡­I¡¯m just wondering if it would cause retribution against a city. That¡­if I offered the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga and lost.¡±


    Alii Pono exasperatedly asked, ¡°But why? To what ends? What good would offering the challenge do for anyone?¡±


    As John tried thinking of something to reply with, Eight-four said, ¡°He wants to die. Read him, Alii Pono.¡±


    Two-two-one grunted and said, ¡°Yup.¡±


    The finger¡¯s on Alii Pono¡¯s right hand wiggled a little. John felt some sort of manifestation happening, but it was different than any other he had felt.


    Alii Pono closed her eyes for a few seconds. When they opened, they were wet with unshed tears. She raised her hand to caress John¡¯s face and said, ¡°Such sadness. Such pain. You poor boy. I wish I could take it from you. Or take some from you to lessen the burden you carry. I¡¯m very sorry, but we do not accept the challenge.¡±


    As Alii Pono¡¯s hand dropped away from John¡¯s face, so too did a tear drop from her eye.


    Alii asked the brutes, ¡°Can either of you do something so we can¡¯t be overheard?¡±


    Two-two-one said, ¡°I can.¡± He looked towards Alii Pono, and the woman nodded. The six were surrounded by a bubble of thin purple essence.


    After Two-two-one created what John assumed was some sort of bubble of silence, the Alii turned to him and said, ¡°Thank you, mighty Oliua.¡±


    John was surprised he and Amber were left in the bubble and part of the private conversation. These women are even weirder than our own here on Earth, thought John.


    Alii looked at the other matriarch. ¡°Wise Alii Pono, we are one, united, Peerless. The praised Aikapu has us all on the same path, but you and I are on different parts of it. Your glorious kauwa has had how many combat deployments? Your chest was full the whole time. The stamens of your boys were constantly sticky with the juices of your flower. Great deeds and credits a common occurrence.


    ¡°I love my boys. Each and every one of them. I don¡¯t want any of them injured, especially on a transport mission. Just the thought of one of my boys being hurt horrifies me. But It¡¯s my duty to place the honor of my new kauwa over my worries and love of my boys. My first deployment is this long transport mission, so the Nani won¡¯t send us to war on our return. Not for a while. My flower will continue to be empty and every night my bed chilly.


    ¡°I have many mighty Oli that want to be Olilo, and many mighty Olilo that want to be Olini. I can¡¯t reject the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga, especially when offered by a Bronze subhuman. I¡¯m sorry, I can¡¯t. I defer to your great wisdom in all things, but not when it hurts my kauwa and denies my boys glory and sticky stamens.¡±

 B2 Chapter 61 - Forevers gonna start tonight

    Alii Pono pursed her lips after hearing Alii state she still wanted to accept the challenge. She held the hand of Alii with both of her own. ¡°I remember when I was a new Alii. Instead of dew, there was a constant monsoon season on my flower. I¡¯d nearly slide out of every chair I sat in. Your flower yearns for a stamen to spray it with pollen. That never changes. If anything, it gets worse.


    ¡°But think of the Aikapu. Think long-term. Think of our empire. We advance by both small and great steps over time. Do you think my boys wanted this world conquered peacefully? This is why we lead. This is a Kahaka world now. These subhumans are on the path now. We won¡¯t initiate phase 1 for a while. If this subhuman dies, it means war, and war means retribution. We¡¯ll lose a lot of fine stock. For what? A silly contest? We¡¯ve peacefully gained a marvelous treasure. Why risk so much for so little?¡±


    Alii squeezed the older woman¡¯s hand. ¡°I¡¯ll instruct my boys not to kill him. Just subdue him.¡±


    ¡°No. You can¡¯t,¡± replied Alii Pono, a sad smile forming on her face. ¡°Your Oliua can¡¯t allow that. When our Oli fight, they fight to win. They fight to kill. Praise be the Aikapu. The subhuman could survive, but any Oli that fight him will go for the kill.¡±


    Eight-four said, ¡°She¡¯s correct, my Alii, but we still must accept. Other than glory for your kauwa, it¡¯ll be much easier to recruit talent if you return from a transport mission with a child. And your boys, they just spent a year locked on a ship with the sight of you etched in their minds, the smell of your flower blossoming lingering in their nose. A peer earning glory for the kauwa and a sticky stamen would do wonders for morale, as would birthing this kauwa¡¯s first child.¡±


    Alii Pono sighed and released Alii¡¯s hand. ¡°I wish I could disagree. It is best for your kauwa, if not mine, and I have no right to stand in the way. May my late and venerable husband, Akua, bless me and allow this subhuman to survive as our prisoner. I don¡¯t want to stand in front of the Nani Aikapu and explain why I became quickened for a deed undone the next day.


    ¡°Considering the [Titles] of this subhuman, and that a Bronze, a three, has accomplished what none in our empire have by merging differently colored aspects, I¡¯ll say he¡¯s worth the full five credits to a single victor, or no less than half a credit each for teams of ten or more.¡±


    Eight-four looked at John and asked, ¡°Before we go further, what are the terms you¡¯re offering?¡±


    ¡°You can have whatever you want of me if I lose, but no city can be destroyed in retribution,¡± replied John. ¡°And if I win, you all leave this planet and no Peerless ever sets foot on it again.¡±


    Three of the invaders laughed. Eight-four hurriedly spurted out, ¡°Deal. I accept the challenge.¡±


    Alii and Alii Pono looked at Eight-four with both horror and surprise. Even the unflappable Two-two-one¡¯s brows furrowed in anger a little more. Alii Pono nearly shouted out, ¡°Eight-four! How dare you accept those terms!? How dare you!? I¡¯m Nani Terra!¡±


    ¡°Yes, explain, my Oliua,¡± said Alii, staring daggers at Eight-four.


    Eight-four smiled, and his smile was even creepier than Hubaba¡¯s. He said, ¡°Do the math, Alii. I¡¯m eight and I accepted the challenge. Remember, we have a four aboard. You saw his suit. Who¡¯s the Silver¡¯s father?¡±


    Alii¡¯s face went from anger to extreme joy in a flash. She bounced on her heels, sending her eight udders jiggling around the material covering them as she held her hands near her head and screeched in glee. ¡°Oh, thank you, Oliua! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! One credit! I can give one full credit for this! Thank you!¡±


    Alii Pono sternly asked, ¡°What am I missing?¡±


    With a giant smile plastered on her face, Alii grabbed the hands of Alii Pono and said, ¡°Akemele Engine IV! He made my ship and part of the payment was taking his son on for his Experiential and Practical! His son is attending Glorious Akua University!


    ¡°This¡­he¡¯ll have to swear to my kauwa! If he wants to put his stamen in my flower. Such favor with Akemele Engine! And a legacy! A legacy! In my kauwa! My first child¡­the first child of my kauwa will be a legacy too! Oh, great Akua, my late and venerable husband and father, Akua, thank you for such a blessing to Kauwa Naau Pi!¡±


    The face of Alli Pono grew excited too. She said, ¡°Akemele, Inventor of the Perpetual Motion MJ Engine Mark IV?¡±


    Alii nodded excitedly, smiling widely still.


    Alii Pono, also smiling widely, said, ¡°If I¡¯m remembering right, Akemele Engine became a father while still a boy, a four himself. His child known since another wasn¡¯t birthed for almost a year after, and the father of Ele are nearly always known anyway. But absolutely known for certain in his case. And to later become Akemele! Your kauwa has truly been blessed. He¡¯ll definitely swear. A legacy fathering a legacy! And as the first child of your kauwa!¡±


    The smile left Alii Pono¡¯s face. ¡°But, as Nani Terra, I still can¡¯t accept how this transpired. Your Oliua is supposed to protect your honor, not disregard it and lead you away from the praised Aikapu. No Oliua should make agreements. We lead, not our boys. And no one, not Alii, not Nani, should consider terms that fall under the jurisdiction of a sitting Nani. Ever, under any circumstance. It is completely unacceptable and contemptuous to the praised Aikapu. It will not stand.


    ¡°Further, children aren¡¯t meant to fight. Ele aren¡¯t meant to fight. The first battle of the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga should have the most combatants, not just one. And your Oliua agreed before completing terms and restricting manifestations to only gear, body, and weapon enhancements per custom.


    ¡°I understand your kauwa stands to gain much if your Ele student fights and wins. You gain a legacy and birth a new one. You award credits and gain points and great honor and glory. Your flower will be filled, and your chest gains a bud. But you also stand to lose as much honor and glory if the Ele dies.


    ¡°None of our boys would ever pass up a chance to cover his stamen in the juices of our flowers, so of course the Ele will agree to fight. It is our duty to avoid such situations. This is what the blessed Aikapu is for. I can¡¯t allow this to go unpunished.¡±


    Eight-four took a knee and bowed his head. ¡°Alii Pono, have you noticed how the Alu, the Natural, has been huffing and puffing since the subhuman brought up the challenge? She wants to order him to stand down. Still does. You said she¡¯s basically an Alii, so he¡¯d have to obey. I had to lock it in while I could, even if it meant taking heat on myself. I had nothing but the honor of my Alii and her kauwa in mind.


    ¡°As for making decisions meant for you ¨C I did, and I didn¡¯t. If there was the slightest risk to your mission or ours, no way I would¡¯ve accepted. We have sixty-seven Golds in this kauwa. If a miracle happened and he did win against that, he¡¯d still have to face thirty-two Platinums, eight Diamonds, and me. He wants to die. You read him so you know. Tell her, Two-two-one.¡±


    Two-two-one said, ¡°Yup.¡±


    Eight-four looked up at Alii Pono. ¡°He wouldn¡¯t have accepted lesser terms for us even if we had the time to negotiate before the Alu ordered him to stand down. He said whatever we wanted from him. He¡¯s an all or nothing type of guy. Ask the Alu.¡±


    Alii Pono looked at Amber. Amber, face red with anger, just lowered her head to avoid answering.


    Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.


    ¡°So, the only real risk is to Ele Four-three,¡± continued Eight-four. ¡°But there¡¯s no risk there either. Sure, Meles aren¡¯t supposed to fight, but they have been. It¡¯s the only way most of them can get their stamens sticky now, isn¡¯t it?


    ¡°Our tech is plateauing and until we go Tech 2, our Mele will fight more and more. Same reason you said you knew the Ele would fight. We don¡¯t pass up chances to pound petals. I know it was different in the dark times, and I hate to admit it, but with our tech and the suits they¡¯ve been making, all the peripherals they can control, Mele fight better than we do.¡±


    Two-two-one said, ¡°Yup.¡±


    Eight-four nodded to the Exalted in thanks before continuing. ¡°I promise you that Ele Four-three isn¡¯t at risk. He can control a ton of peripherals. The Akemele made his suit. I¡¯ve never seen anything like it. Even with a four wearing it, the suit¡¯s rated against eights. If he switches from his essence to a higher tier EB, it rates up to Transcendent. That suit must¡¯ve cost more than most kauwas could afford, even the big ones like my old Laka Ka. I have a hard time breaking the shield of Four-three¡¯s suit.


    ¡°The Kahaka¡¯s manifestations and aspects won¡¯t matter. Me and Two-two-one¡¯s been testing him since we started talking. He didn¡¯t train like we do. Four-three can shut him down. I promise. There¡¯s no risk. I stuck to the Aikapu. I wouldn¡¯t¡¯ve accepted unless it was the only move and I knew my Alii would want it. I had to lock it in immediately before the Alu ordered him to stand down.¡±


    It annoyed John that all of this was being said right in front of him like he didn¡¯t matter. It annoyed him even more they thought Amber could give him orders he¡¯d obey.


    After thinking for a few moments, Alii Pono said, ¡°Well, after hearing you explain, I agree with most of your reasoning and actions. I¡¯m awarding you a full credit too. Wish I could give more. If you have enough, I¡¯d love to cover your stamen in my flower¡¯s juices. Half the award is being deducted for overstepping your boundaries and accepting terms only I can accept as Nani Terra, even if you were right to do so. Your Alii will also deduct the same from her reward.¡±


    Alii Pono put her hand on the brute¡¯s chest. ¡°Good work, Oliua Eight-four. Blessed be the Aikapu. You say there¡¯s no risk to Ele Four-three. If he falls, this all backfires on your kauwa. I dislike big risks, but if I were in your Alii¡¯s shoes, I¡¯d take this risk too. May my late husband and father, the venerable Akua, rain glory down upon Kauwa Naau Pi and this challenge. I just pray the subhuman survives.¡±


    <hr><hr>


    John finally got to see the brain caste. They had the bodies of very fit and athletic humans, though they seemed taller on average.


    Other than their absurdly large heads, their hands were the only strange part of their bodies John could see. They had very long and thin fingers with an extra joint, and an extra thumb on both sides of their wrists.


    The bulky helmets the brains wore made their heads look even larger. Their faces were handsome by human standards, minus the dark nose and large and pointed ears, but their giant heads didn¡¯t match the size of their bodies at all.


    Alii and Eight-four stood near the Silver John would face in the first challenge. The Silver, Ele Four-three, looked the same age as the other two brains. What was very different about him was the strange suit he wore. It was huge compared to the bioware suits the brutes wore, and even the larger bioware suits, or biosuits, the two other brains he saw wearing.


    The suit of Four-three was more of a big chair with twelve large spider-legs. The chair also had two massive arms, one with a claw, and one with what John thought to be a large laser. There were also two less large arms, and two smaller arms, making six arms in total, or eight if counting the two natural arms of Ele Four-three


    Alii Pono¡¯s children came to watch the challenge. They ranged in age from babes to teens. A Bronze girl that looked to be about fifteen or so watched over all the kids, a suckling babe cradled in one of her arms. There was another girl around twelve or so that seemed to be the older girl¡¯s helper.


    There were almost a hundred children. Most were brutes, but there were some brains and one female toddler. Since none wore helmets, the children answered the question on if brutes and brains had hair. They did, though they kept it very short.


    John assumed Lilly would be hot for revenge and would¡¯ve already taken over a babe somewhere. If she hadn¡¯t, he knew her target would be that Peerless female toddler. There was no way she¡¯d pass up the chance to be one of their matriarchs.


    John began walking towards his starting point. For whatever reason, the Peerless wanted both combatants to start five hundred dans apart. A dan was the universal measurement used by most cultures. It was a little less than nine feet, so they¡¯d be starting about point-eight-five miles apart, or one-point-three-seven kilometers.


    Amber cried as she walked beside John. They had already fought a little earlier, and John was getting tired of it.


    Amber said, ¡°Seriously, why are you doing this? They said the suit of the Silver you¡¯re fighting is rated against Salts or¡­they said something about Transcendents. You know you can¡¯t win against all those Golds. Then there¡¯s Platinums and Diamonds and a Salt after. You¡¯ll just die. I¡¯ll be alone.¡±


    John grunted and said, ¡°I¡¯m already alone.¡±


    ¡°Just stop! You don¡¯t have to be.¡±


    ¡°Neither do you,¡± snapped out John. ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Five hundred not a big enough dating pool for you? Sending out illicit photos to only that small number of men not give you the same thrill? Maybe do another naked commercial selling ointment to darken skin.¡±


    Amber nearly yelled, ¡°I was wearing a bathing suit!¡±


    After a few moments of silence, Amber asked, ¡°What happened to us?¡± She sighed. ¡°Lilly really messed with our heads. I thought¡­I thought there was time. For us. Back in the Trial. And all that time we had together with the capsule-thingies. For true love. I wish we could go back. I¡¯d do anything if we could do our time over in that capsule place. Is it¡­is it because I can¡¯t¡­you know¡­have¡­sex? Or do anything¡­good¡­like that?¡±


    John laughed. ¡°I had many chances to relieve myself over the last year. I said no to all. You might not be able to perform the act of sex, but your whole life completely revolves around it. So, tell me, buddy, who is the real sexist between the two of us?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not what that word means, John,¡± loudly exclaimed Amber, her eyes teary. ¡°Can we¡­can you just take it back? Take back the challenge? Please. We¡¯ll just go to their planet. Like we agreed before. They¡¯re not that bad.¡±


    ¡°Yes. Their women are very much like you and Lilly. You¡¯ll fit in well among them.¡±


    Amber continued to cry as they walked, near the starting point she grabbed John¡¯s arm and stopped him. ¡°Please, John! This is serious! You know I¡¯m nothing like her. You¡¯re not a mean person. I know you¡¯re not. And I know you don¡¯t mean the¡­the things you say. Just tell me. Tell me, for real. Why are you doing this? You know you could be happy. We could be happy.¡±


    John sighed and rubbed his face with his hands. ¡°I¡¯ve lived too long, Amber. I don¡¯t fit in. I fought so hard to save a world filled with people that despise me. Nothing makes sense anymore. It¡¯s all wrong, and I¡¯m the only one that sees it.¡±


    Amber placed her hand back on John¡¯s arm and said, ¡°Then come with me. Leave this planet. They have a warrior culture. You¡¯ll fit in with them. I know it.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not just that, Amber. Nothing I thought was true is. How Lilly betrayed me¡­my heart hurts so badly. All the time. It won¡¯t stop. I¡¯ve become like men I¡¯ve always looked down on and thought were weak and pathetic, sulking over women, pining for what isn¡¯t and will never be, stuck in the wrongs of the past, and I can¡¯t make it stop.


    ¡°My thoughts tell me Lilly made me low and is holding me down. I should be thinking no woman can bring me low, that I am strong enough to make my own fate and create my own destiny, but my mind rejects all such thoughts, as does my heart.¡±


    After looking away from Amber, John cast his eyes downward before continuing. ¡°And you. You want the same of me. We both know how it would go. I¡¯d stay true and you¡¯d sneak around behind my back, justifying it. It¡¯s just pictures. It¡¯s just a date. I can¡¯t have sex so who cares? You need men to desire you. Same as Lilly.


    ¡°Why continue to twist me up inside? Why make it worse for me? I swore to free this planet of invasion or die in the attempt. And I will do so. I killed a dark walker. I¡¯m much stronger now. Everyone underestimates me. And when I do what they say can¡¯t be done again, they¡¯ll still make a joke of me and laugh behind my back.¡±


    Amber just looked up into John¡¯s face for a while before she got up on the tips of her toes and put her arms around him. ¡°I¡¯m not laughing at you. I¡¯ve had your back even when I thought you were wrong. Besides with the¡­the demons in Yemen. That was the only time. I fought Ukaraaz. I followed you with the g¡¯athu. I attacked the demons in India when you did. I attacked Yan when you did. I¡¯ll always have your back.


    ¡°Sure, I like it when guys find me attractive, but I only love you, John. I¡¯m not like Lilly. And you¡¯re not a mean person. I love you and I¡¯d¡­I¡¯d never betray you or sneak around behind your back or¡­anything. Anything like that. You¡¯ll see. You¡¯re just depressed. You¡¯ll get through it. I know you will.¡±


    After giving John a tight squeeze, Amber said, ¡°And you¡¯re scared. Scared for no reason. You think opening your heart to me would be too risky and¡­and I¡¯d break it. I never would. I¡¯ll only give my heart to one man. Give it all. Forever. One hundred and ten percent. I¡¯d never betray the man I gave it to. And my heart is yours, John. I already gave it to you.¡±


    Amber kissed John¡¯s cheek before releasing him. She wiped her eyes and smiled. ¡°Now, go show these guys how tough you really are. Do the impossible again, John. Send these jerks running home with their tails tucked between their legs.¡±

 B2 Chapter 62 - But in the end

    John was surprised by Amber¡¯s kindness and newfound faith in him. At a loss for words, he just nodded to her. He was going to say a prayer to whatever powers were listening and ask them to watch his battle and his great deeds, but he no longer had the time to.


    John infused his belt with essence as he walked to his starting spot highlighted by the NCS. He would start the challenge well out of his manifestation range and he didn¡¯t want his enemy to see what weapon he¡¯d employ.


    Since he could use all the manifestations he wanted, unlike in his last challenge, John cast [Multi-Enhancement] and [Multi-Shield]. He sent vital essence to enhance his speed and entered into his battle-mind.


    The world slowed and John took a bow out of his ring. Gird had to be held to benefit from its enhancement, but he wished it didn¡¯t. He almost wished he didn¡¯t set his NCS to apply all the extra energy he collected towards opening NCU slots, as he could¡¯ve used the NCS [Buff] to enhance his [Unbind Defense].


    The bow was the same one he used during his previous Challenge of the Mighty Khaga. He could handle a much higher draw weight now, but no other bow made arrows of essence, and his essence was powerful.


    A timer in his NCS began to tick down from ten. He looked towards his enemy, Ele Four-three. The Peerless was invisible, but his soul wasn¡¯t.


    John figured it couldn¡¯t be easy to control the biosuit and essence at the same time. He assumed the more mobile his enemy was, the less dangerous he¡¯d become. And the more stationary his enemy, the more dangerous he¡¯d be.


    The timer hit zero and John sneaked diagonally to his front left, nocking and loosing arrows of essence at the soul of his enemy as fast and accurately as he could, knowing his attacks removed his own invisibility.


    Each arrow was intercepted by a swarm of small black discs, causing John to curse. After he advanced about ten paces, he was bathed in many green lights coming from a floating black disc much larger than the ones intercepting his arrows. It appeared out of thin air.


    John slipped through the shadows, hoping not to find out what the larger disc did. As he reappeared, he slipped through the shadows again while trying to infuse essence into his belt. It didn¡¯t work, so when he reappeared out of the slip, he loosed some arrows before slipping closer towards his enemy.


    Reappearing in range of [Flashburst Pulse], John cast the manifestation and immediately loosed three arrows. The sparking balls were all intercepted by the swarm of discs, as were the arrows. Four-three was still invisible and had yet to move off the starting spot.


    At least he didn¡¯t even attempt to unbind my spell, thought John as he began to slip again.


    Before John could enter the shadows, something tore through the ribs of his left side, something small, and it went through [Multi-Shield] like it was made of paper, and destroyed the automatic essence-shield of his armor on its way out. A message stating [Emergency Heal] was on cooldown flashed in his vision. All the small discs were zipping through the air towards him. He knew [Flashburst Pulse] wouldn¡¯t hurt the discs, so he cast [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet] at them as they approached.


    The discs flew through the fire unharmed, and John batted the ones he could aside with his bow and his free hand. Many of them managed to hit his body. The discs hit hard and hurt more than he assumed mundane objects could hurt him, forcing him to use the essence-shield of his bracers, and the shield broke far too quickly.


    As fast as the discs were knocked to the ground or off target, they flew back up or readjusted their flight to zip back at John. His orb-eye barely caught a white object speeding towards his back, and he managed to slide out of its way by the skin of his teeth. Thankfully, it didn¡¯t slow or turn, and kept speeding along down the cement field.


    John was flooded with the green lights of the larger disc as he ineffectively battled the smaller ones. He started to slip through the shadows back down the field towards his starting point. After two slips, he got very lucky spotting the white thing speeding towards him with his orb-eye. He dropped his bow and made a grab for it with both hands as he jumped backwards out of the way of its path. He lost a finger, and two other fingers were cut badly, but he managed to hold onto the thing.


    It was a white triangle, and very heavy for its small size. The triangle tried to fly out of his hands, and it was powerful enough that John struggled to maintain his hold on it.


    Accessing his storage ring during combat wasn¡¯t easy, but John focused his tremendous will into doing so. Moments later, the triangle entered his ring and John¡¯s focus went into retrieving his shield, Defiance. It took far too long, but Defiance finally appeared in his hand as the larger disc appeared in the air above him, bathing him in green light again, before he could even try retrieving Gird.


    John dove out of the light while casting [Flashburst Pulse]. The three sparking balls of essence rocked the large disc but did no harm to it. The green lights tracked him. He dove again and cast [Flashburst Pulse] again.


    John had hoped the white triangle he put in his ring was the only one, but he noticed a new one speeding towards him. He rolled on the ground, got his feet under him, and held Defiance out to intercept it. The triangle punched through Defiance as easily as it had punched through his essence-shield and body before.


    Once through the shield, the triangle continued through his clavicle and back, breaking his shoulder blade painfully. He thought about casting a new essence-shield, but his was no help against the triangles, and a reflect-shield would be even more useless.


    John sent some vital essence to heal. He needed to be as fast as possible in this fight, so he hastily enhanced his speed again. He tried casting [Heal] but had to give it up to dive out of the green lights, his damaged shoulder causing him to wince in pain.


    There¡¯s no room for pain. Not now. This is all or nothing. Suck it up, thought John as he slipped further back towards his starting point. Nearly immediately after reappearing, he noticed the triangle speeding towards him. He dropped his shield and made a grab for it as he jumped to the side.


    John barely caught the triangle, damaging more fingers, making the triangle slippery with blood. He struggled to maintain his hold on it. When the larger disc appeared and bathed him in green lights, he pointed the triangle at it and let it loose. The triangle zipped right at the large disc before losing power and falling to the ground. John dove towards it and grabbed it before it could zip away again.


    After diving out of the green light once more, John felt the triangle in his hand turn on. It hummed with power and tried to force its way out of his grip. He jumped in the air and drove the triangle into the large disc. It caused an explosion that resulted in his hand being destroyed, but the large disc and the white triangle looked to be destroyed too. Just in case, John picked the triangle from the wreckage and focused until it was in his ring.


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    After grabbing his shield with his left and only hand, John slipped through the shadows towards the soul of his still invisible and unmoving enemy. The smaller discs didn¡¯t hurt too badly when they hit him, and he needed a big play to end the fight immediately. He was damaged enough and had a lot of Golds to face still. And Platinums, Diamonds, and a Salt. He couldn¡¯t spend more of himself on his current battle.


    Continuing to slip, John bypassed the discs and got within forty paces of his enemy. As he prepared to cast [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet] he had to dive out of the way of a new triangle. He rolled over a mine that exploded, sending him upwards, causing enough damage to his lower back that he yelled out in pain. The mine was completely invisible, and he sensed nothing in the spot it occupied on the ground.


    As soon as John stood on his feet again, Four-three was visible and discharging many weapons at him. He blacked out for a moment and realized his face was pressed into cement.


    John struggled back to his feet. He had no idea how damaged he was, but he knew it was bad. He cast [Flashburst Pulse] at the general direction of his enemy, having no idea if he targeted the Ele or the ground or what. He heard buzzing approaching and swatted his shield at the small discs. The discs seemed to hit harder and hurt more.


    The fast-flying discs managed to hammer John enough he was knocked to the ground again, and he batted them as best he could with his shield while rolling on his back.


    When Defiance was infused with essence it could damage the discs, and John whipped his glowing shield around with all the speed and strength he could muster while on his back, ignoring the pain it caused him. Too long after, spending too much more of himself, no more discs flew.


    John struggled back to his feet. As he stood on shaky legs that could barely hold his weight, a new barrage of weapon fire from Four-three met him. He tried to dive out of the way and block what he could, but he still took many hits. A big part of the left side of his jaw was gone.


    John struggled to his knees. He was going to throw Defiance at his enemy, but he no longer held it. A triangle sped towards him he tried deflecting with his bracer, but it tore right through it and his wrist and then his belly, causing a tremendous amount of pain. He managed to get to his feet and cast [Flashburst Pulse] at something. Or nothing. He tried to stand but stumbled and fell on his back.


    Since about halfway through the fight, the crowd had been chanting John¡¯s name, often cheering. They were silent now.


    John rolled over onto his belly and tried pushing up on his one hand to get back on his knees. He fell back onto his belly. He tried feeling into Four-three and his enemy finally took notice of his manifestations and rejected him.


    John pointed his hand forward and began casting [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet] but that was unbound too. He decided to let the beast he constantly suppressed out, and the feral part of his mind took control.


    John struggled back to his feet as the crowd looked on in horror. He hobbled towards his enemy. He stepped on a mine that sent him staggering as it exploded, but it didn¡¯t completely take his foot off or stop his momentum.


    A new but lesser barrage was fired at John. He didn¡¯t even feel it and kept hobbling forward. The spider-legs skittered Four-three backwards, and the feral part of John¡¯s mind noticed fear in his enemy¡¯s eyes.


    John hobbled faster, gaining momentum, closing the distance. A laser blast took his right leg off below his pelvis. He squirmed on the ground and clawed his way over the cement with one hand and foot towards his enemy. A mine ripped his only good arm apart. There was enough left of it to continue dragging himself forward slowly.


    ¡°What should I do? He won¡¯t stop! I can¡¯t subdue him¡± yelled out Four-three frightfully. ¡°Kill him, Ele¡± called out the Oli, the brutes. ¡°Go for the kill!¡±


    John didn¡¯t notice if either of the matriarchs replied. He did notice he was being bathed in green light. He watched the larger disc with his orb-eye, all the green lights circled until they joined together and made one thick light pointing at his neck. Finally, my nightmare ends, he thought.


    John knew this battle would¡¯ve gone differently if the filthy Peerless didn¡¯t utilize such awful tech. It was a good battle, a good way to end, and he didn¡¯t go down easily. If he now went to stand before his father, he¡¯d do so proudly, his head held high, having died correctly, having given his all in this battle. He hoped he¡¯d get to see his children, his wives, his mother, and other loved ones, from back when people were true, and the world made sense, so he could tell them all how much he loved and missed them.


    As John waited for his death, a horned bear covered in scales and ridged spikes smacked into the large disc as it discharged, and the bear took the full and powerful blast right to the top of the head.


    Amber transformed into a demon and fell on top of John, covering him with her body. She yelled out, ¡°Stop! He surrenders! Stop!¡± Foreign healing entered his body.


    A deep and gravelly voice yelled out, ¡°Sorry, my Alii. The Alu is slippery. I failed you.¡±


    A feminine voice laughed and said, ¡°You certainly did not! You performed correctly! I told you she was basically an Alii already! This challenge is over! What a fight, huh, boys?¡±


    The crowd went wild. The Peerless stomped, hooted, and hollered.


    As the cheers died down, John heard Amber suck in air and quietly say, ¡°Jesus, this hurts so bad.¡± He pulled his orb-eye up and noticed she was gushing blood from a big wound on her head. He felt more healing enter his body. He tried to send vital essence to heal but couldn¡¯t manage it.


    A slightly higher feminine voice yelled out, ¡°Boys, I need two volunteers with heals or Field-Healers to see to the subhumans, please.¡±


    After a short pause, the voice continued. ¡°Ele Four-three, future-sworn Mele of Kauwa Naau Pi, stand tall! A Kahaka offered my kauwa the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga! A subhuman, a three, but a subhuman and a three like none seen before! This Kahaka has two high-concepts! He has the [Multi-Record Holder] and [Multi-Trailblazer] [Titles]! He was blessed by a Magnus! He survived in the NetherRealm as a Wood long enough for the Nether to taint him as it tainted my great husband and father, Akua!


    ¡°We all stood witness. We saw this fight. The Kahaka wouldn¡¯t fall! I¡¯ve never heard of anything like what we¡¯ve just witnessed! The stuff of legends! Akua himself blessed this challenge! And you fought so bravely! As a child and as an Ele, your job isn¡¯t to fight, but to protect my honor and the honor of Kauwa Naau Pi, you still fought! And what a fight it was!


    ¡°Ele Four-three, I name you victor! Though you won¡¯t officially join my kauwa until after you graduate, for performing such a wonderful feat on my behalf, bringing such great honor to your future kauwa, I gift you five credits and invite you to be the first Peerless to ever put his stamen in my untouched flower. I gift you my virginity, and we will gift each other with a child! A new legacy!¡±


    The crowd went wild again. A great weight was removed from John as Amber got off him. Healers started to work on them both. One said, ¡°Great father Akua, this Kahaka has some stones! No way he¡¯s going to live though. How is he even still alive? We¡¯re just wasting essence here.¡±


    Another voice said, ¡°Just do as our Alii asked. We¡¯ll get a partial credit. No chance I¡¯m saving up five. As soon as I have two, I¡¯m sticking my stamen so deep in her flower, she¡¯ll choke. I have the rest of my life to father children. I need to spray my pollen in her before I lose my mind. By the time I have two, she should have the experience to make it well worth it. I almost have one saved up already so I could be pounding her petals this Crazy Days.¡±


    The other voice laughed.


    Alii yelled out to the crowd again, ¡°I know I¡¯m not experienced in bed yet, but I¡¯ll do my absolute best to make it as pleasurable for Ele Four-three as possible! I hope you boys enjoy watching the highlights of my first time! And I pray this kauwa performs many such deeds and all of you get so many chances to enter my flower, my highlights last for days and days! I pray so many mighty deeds are performed there is a queue to quicken me! We are Peerless, one, united! We are the mighty Kauwa Naau Pi!¡±


    John¡¯s heart was still heavy with sadness and darkness, but a new fire burned within it. The Peerless were like the g¡¯athu. He¡¯d have crushed his opponent with ease if not for their filthy and unholy tech. He hated them. He thought their culture was sick, and he had few details of it. The little he had seen and heard was enough. It was as if Lilly helped shape their depraved culture.


    The Peerless healing him were wrong though. John didn¡¯t know how injured he was, but he knew he had been injured worse before. He would live. And he was glad he would. He had a purpose again. A purpose that burned brightly within his soul.


    Before unconsciousness took him, John¡¯s last thought was, Sorry, Thomas, what I must do now will darken my soul like nothing has yet. My karma must wait.


    Unlike the nameless Exalted that killed all his kin including Thomas and Maria, unlike Magnus Gar¡¯tar, the Peerless were right in front of him. They were bringing him to their home planet. John wouldn¡¯t just free Earth of their scourge. He¡¯d free the universe of it. He would kill every last one of them. But he needed to be stronger. Much stronger.

 B2 Epilogue - Bed before the daylight

    Xutn Yaia took in the updates from the NCS Decision Matrix. She sighed. She was so tired, and there was always so much to do. People had no idea how everything was so delicately balanced on a knife¡¯s edge. It could all come toppling down at any moment.


    She thought about letting it. Turning her back and letting it all fall apart.


    She had sacrificed so much. For so long. For what? As time went on, so did her sins. As time went on, the more damned she became. She would never be rewarded with Heaven. She¡¯d never have final enlightenment.


    Why do I do it?


    She had no answer. No good answer.


    She used to believe. And believe strongly. Unlike most everything else, she was there during the Forsaken War. The first one. She knew how close it all had come to ending.


    She grew up happy and without worry. Then the demons came. She was only in the second Tree when Khaga fell. After, her father had been racked with guilt for how dishonorably they had killed the demon. She comforted her father and said it was necessary to preserve God¡¯s creations.


    People were purer back then. More honorable. Naive. Blind. Fools.


    Xutn Yaia was always less so than her father. But not nearly to the same extent as she now was.


    She used to believe all of God¡¯s creations could come together and live in harmony. A united front against evil. For so long attaining that goal was her greatest ambition.


    There were so many universes. So many galaxies. So many planets. So many languages. So much miscommunication and all the strife and war it brought. Among God¡¯s own children. That only helped all the evil out there sworn to bring it all down. The demons and the g¡¯athu and their masters.


    Xutn Yaia believed if everyone could speak the same language, or understand all languages, they¡¯d come together. There would be no miscommunications, so there would be no reason for neighbors to fight neighboring planets. Just like in the core.


    She created the precursor to the NCS. It was her idea, though she had help from many friends to make that idea a reality. She had a lot of friends back then.


    Nanites, self-replicating, powered by the latent energy found everywhere. Outside the known realities still had this energy. The Beyond contained this energy. The NetherRealms too. Her nanites would go everywhere and infuse everyone it could and give the gift of perfect communication to nearly all beings, though they couldn¡¯t figure out how to make it work for some beings made of certain energies. That came later.


    She now wished she never had the idea. Things were simpler before then. And it certainly was no help in preventing wars. If she had only been more awake back then. Or waited until she had become wiser.


    Over time and little by little the functionality of the NCS was improved upon. And improved upon further.


    Later, long after Xutn Yaia had become jaded and disillusioned, some idealists thought it would be a good idea to give all beings everywhere access to all information, including the best techniques, glyphs, and far too dangerous tech. It was called ¡®The Great Equalizing.¡¯


    After all the wars and destruction that event caused, things were more equal in some ways, and far less equal in many ways.


    Xutn Yaia let it all happen before stepping in. Tech levels were introduced. That allowed additional control, and nothing was more important than control.


    People had the wrong idea about the core. They thought it was all smiles and riches and bliss. It was responsibility and hard work and bloody war. It was facing all the nightmares no one else could. For the ones in the know, it was doing the necessary things, making the tough calls, ensuring the realities lasted another cycle.


    She hated it. Deciding which universes would be harvested for resources and the like. But it had to be done.


    She envied the yokels outside the core. Most thought the only time the demons attacked the core was during the Forsaken War. Every cycle the demons attacked. It was the eighteenth cycle.


    More demon Eternals had begun attacking galaxies again. That was the first indicator a cycle was coming to an end. Some puffed-up demon Eternal from the first ring worlds would decide he was the new Khaga and lead the charge out of the Nether.


    And the Butcher. The areas he was contained in would eventually fall. He created better tech faster than the core could keep up with. One of her worst fears was the Butcher finding an unknown universe, or worse, a reality, and having time to build up. The NCS should prevent that, but he was smart enough to get around most obstacles.


    How do I exterminate him? If only I had full control of the NCS.


    The other three g¡¯athu were a problem, but a problem even yokels could handle. She had to rely more and more on Tech 4s to help with the Butcher.


    And look what happened with that.


    The Tech 4s thought they had to just work harder to make it to the core. The truth was, when Tech 4s were brought into the core, that meant something went terribly wrong somewhere.


    The core only made up about 1% of the population of all realities. Xutn Yaia would love to increase that number. It wasn¡¯t as easy as just accepting new societies. It took a lot of resources to foster a fighting force capable of facing what the core had to face. A lot.


    Most thought being of the core meant the easy life. A vacation. It was the opposite for the core¡¯s fighting forces. It was constant, bitter, brutal war and sacrifice. Building up capable warriors required a lot of resources. A lot.


    She remembered back to when there was a major crisis and a desperate need to build up more forces. That first time she approved harvesting a universe was the hardest decision she had ever made. So many died. So many. But the core was able to keep going. The only way yokels could contribute to the fight, the real fight, was by being energy generators of the NCS or being harvested along with their yokel universe.


    Xutn Yaia still hated giving the greenlight to harvest a universe now, but it barely caused her guilt anymore.


    She still had a little control of the NCSDM, but not nearly enough. It became sapient long ago, and too many of her old ideals were hard coded into it. It was too advanced and had been improving itself for a very long time, immune to outside forces and influence. It would take over any AI long before that AI could pose a threat to it.


    Since the NCSDM had become independent and its own master, she had only once been able to get it to take a life outside of its own rules for doing so, and the repercussions of that had only lost her more control over it.


    If Xutn Yaia had full control, she could have the nanites wipe out most of the demons and g¡¯athu. The NCSDM knew how precarious things were. It knew if everything fell apart that it would end along with its precious mission too. Still, regardless of what it knew, the NCS wouldn¡¯t be reasonable, and she couldn¡¯t force it to be reasonable.


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    The difference between Tech 5 and Tech 4 was greater than the difference between Tech 4 and Tech 0. Tech 5s could train [Skills] right up to the peak of Adept Mastery, level 75, within the NCS. Every child of the core raised all the important [Skills] to Master before becoming adults. All the excess energy the NCS collected from other users went to users of the Tech 5.


    That used to be enough. It hadn¡¯t been for a long while.


    Usually, she cared little about Betrayal¡¯s experiments. The two had somewhat of a deal. If not for him, there would be no core. Unless it posed a risk to the core, and as long as it happened outside of the core, she turned a blind eye to all he did.


    Supposedly, long, long before the Forsaken War, some ancient old ones decided they¡¯d destroy the handful of realities there were back then, and God left Heaven enraged and killed one of them.


    Near the end of the Forsaken War, Nightmare and Sorrow also decided to attack the core. Betrayal stopped them. He was known as Curiosity until that day.


    Recently, Xutn Yaia had been putting a good deal of thought into that. Why the ancient old one would attack his own kind. She used to think he stopped them because he wouldn¡¯t be able to perform all his experiments if the Tree of Life was destroyed.


    She had begun to think Betrayal stopped Nightmare and Sorrow from attacking the core to prevent God from leaving Heaven again. The only thing Betrayal could possibly fear was God. But it was well known Betrayal was the only one of his kind offered Heaven that refused it. He should have the least to fear if God left Heaven again.


    So why? She took a closer look at some of his experiments. Most could be dismissed as harmless or nonsense. The most recent she knew of, Terra, was somewhat interesting.


    Betrayal¡¯s experiment on Terra had four results. The world seed was interesting and could become more so in time. Lilith and John weren¡¯t very noteworthy. Lilith would eventually join the core. She had the right mindset and would be able to get things done without whining and handwringing. Xutn Yaia wished all her troops were so morally flexible.


    She did wonder why so many of the core watched that John, or how they even found out about him. The only interesting thing about the man, to her, was that he was somehow managing to break a Tech 4 avatar. A rare feat.


    Xutn Yaia believed the Natural had to be the reason for the experiment. It was the most sensible explanation. But it didn¡¯t make full sense. Betrayal had to know greed would take care of the Natural long before it ascended high enough to be used as a vessel. She herself had ensured even Tech 0 worlds knew to use Naturals as a soul enhancement. They never ascended high enough to be used as vessels.


    Since so many within the core were watching John and the Natural, Xutn Yaia¡¯s hands were tied in taking direct action. That was annoying, but it did have a very useful side effect. If John and the Natural weren¡¯t being watched, the Butcher would¡¯ve run rampant through a seldom looked at yokel universe. That major breach led to the discovery of other slips of some of the Tech 4 societies given responsibilities. And those slips were corrected harshly.


    The Vhilani Mahilaharu told John a few things Xutn Yaia could never allow to be known again, and that really worried her. She devoted so much time and effort to wiping that information from existence long ago, and the last thing she needed on her plate was doing all of that again.


    Thankfully, John was a fool. He seemed to have missed the important bits he was told. And thankfully, only Apex Eternals could see and hear Vhilani Mahilaharu well. None of them would ever waste their time watching a Mortal, and those of the core that did watch only saw a one-sided conversation of no importance at all.


    Still, Xutn Yaia was not one to accept such risks and let loose ends dangle. She didn¡¯t have the time to comb through all of John¡¯s interactions. Since the core was watching, she couldn¡¯t act directly against John or the Natural in the usual ways. But those he interacted with that were not watched could be dealt with, and cheaply.


    And she couldn¡¯t kill John anyway. She needed Terra¡¯s specimens to apply pressure to Betrayal. She needed bargaining chips. If Betrayal cared about one of them, actually cared, that gave her some leverage.


    Xutn Yaia wanted to entice the ancient old ones to attack the Tree of Life again, and she wanted Betrayal to stay out of it.


    She didn¡¯t want what she had protected for so long to be destroyed. She just wanted God to leave Heaven so she could show Him. She needed to show Him all she had sacrificed for Him. The cost of protecting His creations, protecting even His Heaven. His creations still existed because of her. It wasn¡¯t easy work. Hard calls had to be made. Choices that stained her soul.


    Xutn Yaia had sacrificed her place in Heaven to protect Heaven, and she needed to ask God why He made such a system. And if Heaven was still denied her as a reward, she wouldn¡¯t care if everything she had sacrificed so much to keep from falling apart, then fell apart, and all shared in her damnation.


    <hr><hr>


    Sunshine exited his Mind¡¯s Eye after checking his accounts. He was far above the planet Bunye, where his business office was currently located. He was very happy he¡¯d soon be leaving this yokel galaxy. He was forced to reside here while getting his business off the ground. Since he had just acquired a universal license, he¡¯d be going back to civilization.


    It was unseemly for a scholar to run a business, but Sunshine¡¯s name wasn¡¯t tied to it. His colleagues would only know he had come into wealth and was continuing up the bloody climb again after having stalled for so long.


    Checking his surroundings had always been second nature to Sunshine. No one that wasn¡¯t constantly vigilant made it past Wood on his world. He hated it when people got anywhere near him in space. Space was a very large place, there was no reason to ever get into visible distance of anyone when not descended onto a planet.


    Someone was in Sunshine¡¯s sight. It surprised him that the person was a Divine too. There was absolutely nothing in all the Milky Way of interest to a Sublime, and now there were three of them there. Unless that prick Ton-Oi already left Terra, he thought.


    The Sublime was wearing powerful armor. Sunshine assumed the person was a Tech 3 out slumming around the universe. Newer Tech 3 societies often produced weaker cultivators that still somehow made it to the higher Trees. Getting into visible distance and waiting for acknowledgement was a polite way to strike up a conversation.


    But Sunshine had no desire to talk. He hated when a Divine saw another Divine and thought they had to talk because they were on the same Tree or whatever nonsense went through their head. Sunshine didn¡¯t even want to be seen in the Milky Way. He was constantly bothered by the yokel Transcendents of this galaxy, and he had had enough.


    Sunshine hated nothing more than wasting essence. But avoiding a conversation with a same Tree stranger while in a yokel galaxy was an exception. Plus, he was wealthy now. He could waste a little. He attempted to travel the Between. Not to go to a different galaxy, but to get far enough away that the Sublime would get the hint and leave him alone.


    Sunshine wasn¡¯t the least bit worried the weak Sublime was looking for a fight. Fights between Sublimes were a long and drawn-out affair that almost never resulted in the death of a combatant. It was very hard to injure a Divine. They were very durable. If the fight started to turn or essence got low, it was extremely easy to escape.


    Sunshine tried to access the Between, but it was denied him. He wasn¡¯t denied it in any of the usual or unusual ways he knew of. It wasn¡¯t an outside force. It was like he was a Transcendent again and completely lacked access to the Between.


    The weak Sublime suddenly appeared right in front of him. Sunshine was a mid Divine, the third of the six tiers in the Divine Tree. The other Sublime was so weak it barely felt like it was on the same Tree as he was. Until it dropped its veil. Its tier was indeterminable, but tier didn¡¯t matter. The being was heavy with power. So heavy with such terrible power that Sunshine¡¯s mind completely froze in fear before he was grabbed and ripped in half.


    The unknown Sublime collected three crystals left behind as the two halves of Sunshine lazily floated about space. It pulled the two parts of the corpse to itself and started rummaging through Sunshine¡¯s possessions, forcing access into the dissipating soul space and cleaning it out.


    The being had already taken care of Ton-Oi. It reached out with its senses and found the Demon named Hubaba on Terra and disintegrated him.


    Killing over such a distance, even if only killing a Gold, required the being to expend far more effort than it had expended killing either Divine. It thought that was sad. It wanted real opponents.


    End book 2


    Book 3 will have a little change in direction, the same as book 2 had from book 1. It has two very different inter-sector arenas, a quick jaunt back to the NetherRealm for a hunt, attending an academy, world conquest, and more of John being toyed with by an ancient old one.


    The Peerless are eugenicists believing they are superior to all other beings. They force their ideology and way of life on everyone they conquer. And their goal is to conquer everyone.


    Both John and Amber gain fame and notoriety on the home world of the Peerless. Amber is held in high regard, receiving more attention and admiration than she ever could¡¯ve dreamed of. She is the perfect candidate to be the first outsider granted matriarch status and rulership of a Peerless house, but matriarchs are expected to reward members of their houses in a way she can¡¯t.


    John is also held in high regard by his new masters. He is the perfect candidate to be the first outsider granted full status as a warrior of the Peerless. He embeds himself deeper and deeper into Peerless society with the goal of eradicating the mighty empire of his hated enemies. But as he goes deeper and deeper into Peerless society, will he keep his resolve or become a Peerless in truth?

 B3 Prologue - God-king walks with peers

    The planet Gani was a smaller world. Beta-types would consider most of it to be a tropical paradise. It had five major continents though that wasn¡¯t known at the time, and only four were inhabited by the sapient race of the world.


    An Eternal planned on traveling to Gani and cultivating karma by helping the young race find their footing, poking and prodding them down the usual paths while remaining hidden.


    Once the demons invaded Gani, the Eternal canceled her plans. She wanted to cultivate only good karma.


    The Sector Council eventually learned of the demon invasion on Gani, but since the world was Tech 0, they weren¡¯t allowed to interfere. Technically, any Tech 1 or higher force could invade a Tech 0 world, but no force was willing to pay the exorbitant invasion cost requirement when they stood to gain so little in return.


    The sapient race of Gani evolved from an animal branching off from something similar to Terra¡¯s Primatomorpha mirorder of mammals. That animal eventually evolved into something most humans would agree looked like a canine-monkey.


    And that canine-monkey evolved into a bipedal humanoid that looked somewhat like the elves Tolkien described, if elven females had dark noses, two udders like those of a cow, and showed their pregnancies in the upper chest instead of the belly.


    Before the demons invaded, the inhabitants of Gani had little knowledge or understanding of self-cultivation. They had no real energy gathering techniques. People and beasts that suddenly became more powerful were thought to be blessed by the gods.


    On one continent, the first primitive city of Gani was growing. The city was ruled by a very powerful and wise ruler ¨C Gani¡¯s first and only Bronze.


    Then Gani was invaded by Circle Joyat, demons from a ninth-ring world.


    Most inhabitants of Gani had no clue demons invaded and controlled their planet. The demons had little motivation to explore and kill low tier magals for the poor crystals they¡¯d drop, so they only killed the ones near them. The few powerful beasts of the world were hunted down. Some small bases were created near resources.


    Demons couldn¡¯t have slaves. Magals of the Forsaken faction could. Some magals of Gani were rounded up and forced to become Forsaken. The strongest were made leaders, and the leaders enslaved many of their race and forced their slaves to harvest resources that were then given to the demons as tribute.


    Still unbeknownst to the majority of the inhabitants of Gani, their whole race and world had joined the Forsaken faction.


    As happened on such worlds, as the demons built up a main hub and satellite bases, the natives and scabs intermingled, doing the dirty work of the demons. And through the scabs, the inhabitants of Gani learned more of the ins and outs of self-cultivation. Some grew strong, and per long established custom and treaty, the demons were forced to open cultivation schools and sects.


    And so grew the society and customs of Gani, a people that came to call themselves Kahaki, though the NCS would, of course, label them ganians.


    Little by little, over time, the inhabitants of Gani eventually all learned about their demon allies. The words Forsaken and Favored meant little to them, and they cared little of whatever was beyond the next horizon, never mind what game the gods played at. They were told they were Forsaken, so they were Forsaken, whatever that meant. The Kahaki knew the demons had power and knowledge, and they wanted those things too.


    Early on, only two continents had a demon presence. Only the continent where the demon¡¯s main hub was located had anything close to real cities for the Kahaki. Over time, that changed too.


    And so went life on Gani for thousands of years.


    On the continent Okina, far away from the main demon hub and the Kahaki cities, schools, and sects, there was a prosperous man named Akua. He bred animals that were desired far and wide.


    Akua¡¯s grandfather was one of the first Kahaki to breed animals in a selective manner, applying the tenets of animal husbandry. Akua¡¯s father did the same. Akua was very good at it, and his beasts were like no others.


    As was true for everyone else, Akua was told and believed the demons were fellow Forsaken and peaceful allies. He had never seen a demon. Not until a few visited his village, Waeyiani.


    Nearly everyone near or around Waeyiani went into the village proper to see their powerful demon allies they had only heard about. Like most Kahaki that didn¡¯t live near or interact with demons, the residents of Waeyiani actually believed the demons were allies and equals.


    Akua was a Silver. For whatever reason, Darkness, Adversity, and Nightmare blessed him with a gift for self-cultivation, though he put little effort into it and preferred focusing on improving his stock of animals.


    There were six visiting demons consisting of a Gold, two Silvers and three Bronze. When a Bronze failed to address Akua by his higher rank, as was the courtesy due him for holding a higher tier, he mentioned it to the Bronze. Not rudely. He was very polite about it, just as a friendly reminder of common courtesy.


    For that transgression, the demons forced Akua to watch as they tortured his wife and all his children to death, the demons laughing as they did so.


    Akua left Waeyiani and joined a sect. He learned and took all from the sect he could while making a name for himself. The demons took notice, and he was offered to train at Circle Joyat. He went. Again, he learned and took all he could from the demons.


    Akua had no pride. His pride died as he impotently watched laughing demons torture and kill his wife and children. He behaved perfectly while at Circle Joyat ¨C no demon could get a rise out of him. Nothing they did bothered him, so they stopped bothering him. Demons wished their scabs would act and behave as well as Akua did.


    The demons gave Akua greater and greater responsibilities. He was sent to put down rebellions, collect tribute, and execute uppity Kahaki. He did all he was ordered to without reservation. He balked at nothing, even orders to purge whole villages or kill Kahaki children. In performing these tasks, he also learned and took all that he could.


    One continent, which came to be known as Palm, located deep in the southern hemisphere and far away from the others, never had a high tier beast and had never once been visited by demon chosen. It became a refuge for the Kahaki that fled the demons, escaped slaves, and even a few scabs as well.


    Circle Joyat had made portals to invade two other Tech 0 worlds in the sector. The inhabitants of those worlds also thought Akua was evil and worse than the demons. He learned and took what he could from fighting on those worlds too.


    And Akua did take and learn. He learned of Palm, and that many Kahaki and even some scabs lived there in peace. He learned Palm had many resources, including many untapped minerals to mine.


    Akua held rank with Circle Joyat. He was completely trusted, as true a Forsaken as any in the ptagmog. His fellow Kahaki hated and feared him. Death followed in Akua¡¯s wake. Kahaki knew he was a puppet of Circle Joyat, and they loathed him more than any demon.


    Akua informed the Inner-Circle Master of Palm. He explained his ideas and asked for and was granted permission to rule over the continent.


    The inhabitants of Palm were filled with fear at seeing the heavily Nether-touched Diamond Akua disembark from his ship.


    This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    Akua quickly took control of and ruled over all of Palm. He did so brutally. So brutally he was eventually ordered to relax his methods. His need for slaves was insatiable. They died too quickly. His methods were too costly.


    At the rank of Empty, also called Salt, Akua was made warden of all Gani. He still ruled Palm, and spent much time there when he wasn¡¯t warring, but as Warden Akua he had a greater ability to learn and take more. As warden, his duties included keeping the peace and ensuring proper tribute was given to Circle Joyat by all the Kahaki cities and communities of Gani. He often enslaved whole villages that failed to give proper tribute.


    The old Inner-Circle Master ascended to the third Tree and became a Magnus. As was custom, Sublime Joyat returned to the NetherRealm and rewarded his prior Inner-Circle Master with the resources to start his own circle.


    The new Inner-Circle Master Akua reported to was greedy and cared only about increased tribute. Akua was told if he didn¡¯t curb his appetites and rein in his brutality, he¡¯d be replaced. So, he reined them in, and Gani became more peaceful. Kiamoni, the Netherworld Circle Joyat came from, increased in rank to eighth ring.


    As an old man of nearly three hundred years of age, Akua finally managed to ascend to the Transcendent Tree, the first Kahaki to ever do so. Rumor said only his hate had kept him alive for so long. Other rumors said he drank the blood of newborns to infuse his body with artificial life and stay young.


    Exalted Akua was the warden of a planet Circle Joyat mainly used as a hub to access their other two worlds in the sector. Year after year, the tribute increased and increased, and the Inner-Circle Master had no complaints at all for nearly a century.


    Soon after Akua ascended to the third tier of the Transcendent tree, his old friend, a demon, an escaped scab named Wena, ascended to the Transcendent Tree too. As an Exalted, Wena knew he¡¯d be welcomed back into the fold of Circle Joyat, given a real name, and made chosen.


    So Wena betrayed his friend and informed the Inner-Circle Master what Akua had been working towards for so many centuries.


    Throughout the continent of Palm were secret underground cities where Kahaki were bred in very strange ways. Akua went off world for long periods. Akua received visits from off-world Transcendents. He paid them to teach his strange Kahaki and then murdered them once they had taught all they could.


    Soon, Akua would be ready. He would attack Circle Joyat.


    Akua¡¯s game ended. The scab Wena, his close friend, had stabbed him in the back before he was finished preparing. His plans weren¡¯t ready. But it had to be enough.


    For centuries, Akua had applied what he knew of animal husbandry to his people, making them more, something different. What he did to them was monstrous, but necessary. It was wrong, but it increased the grade of the new Kahaki dramatically and made them far more capable.


    One line of males was bred for intelligence and another for combat. The females ¨C well, he had sinned greatly there. He needed them to be able to carry more than one child at a time. He needed them to carry the children of multiple different fathers at once. It was the only way his experiments would work in time.


    Akua had had access to the best and brightest Kahaki of Gani. By saying he sent them to his mines as slaves gave him free access to all the stock needed to experiment with.


    Once the intelligent breed could take over the eugenics program from Akua, they worked miracles with selective breeding. They improved all the lines greatly ¨C their own line, called Ele, meaning wise, the warrior line, called Li, meaning warrior, and the female line, still called Alu, the same as regular Kahaki females.


    The Ele were too successful. They became so intelligent to the point they lost their ability to understand non-Ele, and they had to be made less intelligent to maintain their humanity and ability to empathize.


    The Li were made as smart as possible without compromising their courage and combat prowess, and their combat prowess was impressive.


    The Alu could be impregnated by eight different males at once. The gestation period for each child went down from about 11 months to eight. It was as glorious as it was terrible.


    Through the Forsaken that Akua had befriended while in the NetherRealm, he learned much about the NCS and Tech levels. He had learned more from ascending off-world. He knew the tricks and what to avoid and how to abuse the system. His Ele made powerful tech without risking Gani at all.


    No one had helped Gani when they needed it, and Akua would solve the problem without outsiders getting involved. He would not allow help from even the other Tech 0 worlds connecting to his own through portals.


    Over half the population of the improved Kahaki were the Alu. That many were needed for experimentation. That changed when Wena betrayed Akua. More Li were needed, and fast. A lot more.


    Once it was known Akua was a traitor and fighting against Circle Joyat, most Kahaki flocked to his banner. He sent all the warriors of Gani to certain death to weaken the demon circle, along with the old and outdated lines of Li. Even all the outdated Ele and Alu were forced to fight in those initial battles.


    Akua¡¯s forces were crushed. Only the powerful survived. Akua had just three other Exalteds in his forces. The Inner-Circle Master was also a third tier Transcendent, but demons became more powerful compared to others as they ascended.


    Akua and his Transcendents hardly survived their battle against both the Inner and Outer-Circle Masters. But keeping those high-tier demons of Circle Joyat on Gani was key to victory. Time flew too quickly in the Nether.


    Then Akua¡¯s new forces took to the field equipped with their best tech. They took devastating losses but managed to hold the portal, preventing the demons from escaping to the Nether while slaughtering all the demons that came through from Kiamoni. The new forces, the enhanced Kahaki, were barely enough.


    For almost two hundred years Akua and his improved Kahaki warred against Circle Joyat on two fronts. The improved Kahaki got stranger and stranger, taking up many customs Akua disapproved of. They stopped caring about his approval. They had a higher purpose, and only their prowess was able to keep the war going.


    As many of the normal Kahaki as possible had taken refuge in the underground cities of Palm. The rest of the world was a warzone and unsafe. The new Kahaki looked down on the old as lesser and defective and disgusting. Akua had to order his forces not to kill Kahaki as they did demons.


    The enhanced Kahaki formed clans named after their old cities. With Li births skyrocketing, they formed houses to organize and war with, led by a single Alu who acted as a wife and mother to all the Li and Ele of her house.


    To keep and maintain leadership and control of her house, the Alu only allowed the members of her house performing notable accomplishments to breed with her, something all Li and Ele yearned for, to pass on their superior genetics.


    Akua became too old and could no longer fight. He had lived far longer than anyone his tier should, seen as proof of his divinity. He died before he was able to avenge his wife and children. His forces battled on.


    Circle Joyat¡¯s world ranked back down to ninth ring, then tenth.


    Finally, after endless and constant bloody and terrible war, over two hundred years after Akua¡¯s passing, there was victory. The improved Kahaki killed the masters of both the inner and outer circle, then entered the portal to Kiamoni and laid waste to Circle Joyat itself.


    Though all demon circles were technically led by a Magnus or Sublime of the Celestial or Divine Tree, only a lower tier Magnus would ever be directly involved in the affairs of his circle. All higher-tier demons, especially Sublimes, cared little about the pathetic and lowly demons belonging to his circles other than his Inner-Circle Masters.


    A demon saw his circles only as a resource. He would take from the circle what was useful and give them what he didn¡¯t need or that couldn¡¯t help him advance. Sublime Joyat had thirteen circles supporting him and didn¡¯t care one bit when he found out he lost one.


    Aikapu roughly translates as ¡®god-king walks with peers.¡¯ They say it was written by Akua shortly before his death. Though dates are disputed, the first part of the Aikapu was devoted to Akua¡¯s life and quest for vengeance, and that part was told mostly accurately and truthfully. Up to a certain point.


    It was written that when Akua was old and had returned to live in his village of Waeyiani, he first visited the grave of his wife and told her how happy he was for all he had accomplished in her name. He told her that even though he wouldn¡¯t live to see her and her children avenged, he knew his true children, his peers, would avenge her. He could die happy and in peace.


    Those Akua had raised high up above all others would defeat Circle Joyat and end the dark times. The improved Kahaki were peerless due to being so superior. He knew his children would bring peace, harmony, and prosperity to Gani.


    The Aikapu then went on to say Akua tasked the Peerless with bringing peace and harmony to all beings everywhere. The false-God in Heaven wouldn¡¯t lift His hand to help those He created fight those seeking His destruction. Since the false-God wouldn¡¯t help, the Peerless would. They had to. Only they knew the way, only they knew how to raise others up to their own glorious heights.


    The Peerless would make everything right and peaceful and as it should be. All would be Peerless or dead.


    Right before his death, Akua entered the pond outside of Waeyiani with his many wives that were also his daughters and told them they must lead those without peers as only mothers could, as only mothers were truly loving and benevolent. They were his Alii, his wives and the mothers of his true children, and they would be Alii to all the Peerless.


    Then Akua gave of himself one last time. His dead body infused the pond with many magical properties.


    The Peerless won their freedom from Circle Joyat around the time the first World War was getting started on Earth. After they destroyed the circle, they entered the portals connecting to the two other Tech 0 worlds. Those planets, still celebrating their liberation from Circle Joyat, were quickly conquered. The Peerless Empire was founded.


    The intelligent caste churned out invention after invention. After planning and preparing in every way possible, when the people of Earth were buying the first iPhones, the Peerless Empire completed the last item required to advance to Tech 1. They immediately launched ships to conquer and bring all peoples onto the path of the Peerless.

 B3 Chapter 1 - The stories we tell ourselves

    John, Hux, and Marbrouk headed down the mainway back towards the portal center in Hub City. Public transportation would¡¯ve gotten them around faster, but it was their first and only time in the capital city of the Peerless. Since they had time to kill, and their pass allowed it, they had decided to do a little exploring.


    John wished he didn¡¯t find the architecture of the Peerless so appealing. Their buildings had a much grander aesthetic than those of Earth. All their structures were compelling and beautiful to behold. The aesthetic was both masculine and feminine, strength and power and curves and colorfulness. He couldn¡¯t liken it to anything he ever saw on Earth.


    A few hovering vehicles flew by occasionally. A ton of robots cleaned and went about performing various other tasks.


    Such a large city being so empty felt wrong to John. He hardly saw any Peerless. He couldn¡¯t feel anyone within most of the buildings around him. He assumed they were deployed off-world. Still, he thought cities should be packed with people.


    The city was beautiful and pristine, but lifeless.


    There were five continents on Gani, the home world of the Peerless, but John only knew the names of three. Hub, where both Gaan and Hub City were located, Okina, where the city of Kulolo was located, and Palm, where the Peerless defectives called Kahaki were all forced to live.


    John and all the other conquered aliens, called Kahaka, subhumans belonging to the Peerless Empire, all lived in a section of Kulolo called the Kahaka District, and the place was teaming with life. He constantly saw strange aliens going about their business there.


    John, Hux, and Marbrouk were going to the arena in Kotown, a district of the city of Victor located on a moon of some distant planet the Peerless had conquered. Kotown was a nickname for the Kahako District of Victor, the only place in all the empire that Kahako, subhumans not yet belonging to the Peerless Empire, could live or visit.


    This was the first chance John and his two friends had gotten to see more of Gani since they had arrived. And they¡¯d get to use a portal to travel off-planet and see Victor, a major city much larger than any on Gani.


    Hux, looking towards his left, loudly exclaimed, ¡°Goddamn, I¡¯d eat a mile of her shit just to see where it came from.¡±


    John turned his head to see what Hux was looking at. It was a large advertisement for a new interview program featuring Amber as the first guest. He groaned internally.


    The ad showed Amber from behind. Her head was turned to the side showing her profile. The apex of her nose was painted dark. Her long locks covered her round ears.


    The Peerless women, Alii, had dark noses and pointed ears. They also had eight pregnancy-sacs were human women had breasts, and eight cow-like udders in two lines along their lower chest and upper belly.


    Hence, most ads featuring Amber highlighted her rear end and avoided showing her from the front, as the ads were targeted at the two male castes of the Peerless dubbed brutes and brains by humans. If she was shown from the front, she usually wore billowy material over her chest.


    I just can¡¯t escape this garbage, thought John. Even on a different planet. He didn¡¯t say anything regarding Hux¡¯s comment. He had heard many similar comments regarding Amber from many men, both human and Peerless.


    If John defended her honor it would go against the new persona he had adopted ¨C John, the perfect Peerless Kahaka. He wouldn¡¯t do anything to cause his enemies to question him. He had to allow untoward comments about Amber pass unchallenged.


    Plus, John wasn¡¯t sure if Amber was even worth defending. Not if she had known what the Peerless would do to the people of Earth and kept that information from him.


    It had been almost a year and a half since John lost the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga to the Peerless back on Earth. It had only taken him about a month to completely heal from the ordeal.


    The flight to Gani had taken a little over a year. The humans had been on their new world for four months or so now.


    The Peerless could¡¯ve made the return trip in two or three weeks by jumping to a special type of beacon called nav points but the terrans aboard the ship were too low-grade and low-tier to safely handle the energies that form of travel would¡¯ve subjected them to.


    John had spent most of the flight training. He put a lot of effort into learning a new and popular type of hand-to-hand combat called mixed martial arts, or MMA. He also trained with another friend of his named Naoki, a man that specialized in a similar manner of swordsmanship as Munashi, though Naoki wasn¡¯t half the swordsman as John¡¯s deceased kin.


    Hux and Marbrouk were both MMA fighters, and each excelled at different important aspects of that type of fighting.


    Neither Hux nor Marbrouk were the best MMA fighters, not even close, but it seemed the Peerless chose which humans would come to their home world based on genetics as much as knowledge and ability.


    Marbrouk turned to look at the ad showing Amber. He responded to Hux by saying, ¡°What I would do to have just one night with her. The Peerless are onto something with their system. Their matriarchs are so beautiful and¡­you know what I mean, discounting the strange torsos. There¡¯s little I wouldn¡¯t do to spend a night with one. Too bad we can¡¯t earn credits like the brutes.¡±


    ¡°We can, mate,¡± replied Hux after chuckling. ¡°Just haven¡¯t. None of us. Don¡¯t give us much of a chance to earn any, do they? They didn¡¯t even answer if we¡¯d get a human woman or one of theirs neither. I¡¯m picking that one right there. My Amber. Demand her, I will. Just need to figure out how to earn me some credits. And it¡¯s good you ain¡¯t whining about your wife no more, Marbrouk. It is what it is, mate.¡±


    Marbrouk looked down, his face turning red with shame. ¡°It isn¡¯t right. But they won¡¯t tell me when I¡¯m going home. I¡¯m starting to think they won¡¯t let us. My wife¡¯s a very good woman. She¡¯ll wait for me. She¡¯ll die cold and alone. My daughter will never know her father. I couldn¡¯t even say goodbye to them. I haven¡¯t seen them since the first day the Tree returned. And here I am, talking about those matriarchs and coveting Amber instead of my wife. My father would give me the belt if he heard me speak as I did. God, forgive me.¡±


    Hux laughed and put his arm around Marbrouk. ¡°None of that, mate. We¡¯re headed on over to the big show tonight. Win some crystals. Some from the Normalized Unarmed comp on myself, and the rest on our boy John. We don¡¯t have it so bad here, mate. Leave the past in the past. Focus on our future.¡±


    Hux was originally Australian, but moved to the US fifteen years ago when he was eighteen. He excelled in grappling, holds, and mounts, what John had previously considered pal¨¦.


    Marbrouk was an Algerian that specialized in both striking and boxing.


    Both men had taught John a significant amount of what they knew.


    Historically, John was always much faster and stronger than everyone he faced. Since he was easily able to overpower his opponents, he had little need to learn much about hand-to-hand. Things had changed, and [Mixed Style Unarmed] was a [Skill] he sorely wanted to improve.


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    The Peerless had amazing machines called Trainers that were able to connect the NCS, the Nano Control System, of two or more users and allow them to train together within a virtual environment. Height, weight, reach, and [Stats] could all be made the same within a Trainer, and participants could go all out without worry of injury or expenditure of essence.


    Using the Trainer was a huge boon for John as he didn¡¯t have to hold back or put such effort into slowing himself down. Facing opponents on an equal footing allowed him to focus on only what was important. And it was good training for many arena events too.


    Though John¡¯s ring, all his crystals within the ring, and all his magical items were taken when he was defeated, the Peerless left him his band of suffering necklace and the black robes with red trim he had worn since stealing them from Diamond Garioch. They were high-tier robes, though they looked low-level.


    During the day, John had been earning some crystals working as a blacksmith¡¯s apprentice. An intrinsic part of quality blacksmithing was runecrafting, so he was learning that too. He planned on replacing all his gear with items he crafted himself. When he could afford to.


    And in order to afford to, John needed a lot more crystals. The Peerless missed the small bag of crystals John had always kept in his sash. Those crystals were already turned into many times more wealth by fighting in the arena in Kulolo only Kahaka could fight in.


    Of all the humans that traveled with John, only Hux and Marbrouk were interested in challenging themselves in the arena. There were many events to compete in, and all of them awarded crystals for wins. But crystals were needed to buy into events too. Some events required a sum of crystals to be put up as collateral against a poor performance.


    Better still, fighters were allowed to bet on themselves winning. If it was a team event, they could bet on their own team.


    The Kahaka arena was small. Since John always won, the odds favored him too much and betting quickly became a poor way to increase his wealth. He had been asking for permission to travel to another arena under Peerless control, the Kahako arena of Victor. He was finally granted permission that morning. It was a much larger arena. The odds wouldn¡¯t be so skewed against him. Not at first.


    This new arena was the chance John needed. All his wealth, his previous winnings, all the money he earned at his day job, he¡¯d bet on himself. He had no idea when he¡¯d be allowed to go back to the Kotown arena, and chances were the odds and payouts would be garbage whenever he did manage to return. This was his only chance. He had to win tonight, and he had to win big.


    After seeing the dour look on Marbrouk¡¯s face, Hux softened. ¡°And who knows, mate. Maybe if you save up enough crystals and grease the right palm, you could be on a ship heading back to old mother Earth in a year or two. Nothing¡¯s written in stone, yeah? And when you¡¯re back, give your old lady a right smack on that big pooper of hers and tell her it was from Huxley, the man that swept the Normalized Unarmed comp because her husband¡¯s ground game is complete shit.¡±


    Marbrouk laughed and slapped Hux on the back. ¡°My wife doesn¡¯t have a big butt. Her butt is the perfect size. And I will not smack it for you, my friend. God, I miss her. I am half a man without her.¡±


    Hux laughed too and said, ¡°Listen, mate. When you do get back, it¡¯s important you take care of her right or she¡¯ll think you didn¡¯t miss her. Let me tell you how to make that highly important night just magical for your old lady. A night she¡¯ll never forget.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re the last man I need to take advice from on how to treat a wife,¡± said Marbrouk. ¡°But I must hear this. I have a feeling it involves a lot of drugs and prostitutes. Possibly leather outfits and whips, maybe a few firearms and even farm animals.¡±


    ¡°No. Nothing like that, mate. Just good advice on how to finally please your old lady. What you want to do is set up nice smelling candles in the bathroom, fill up a hot bath with all the oils and shit women like, and while she¡¯s bathing and getting nice and clean and smelling real nice, you light candles all over the bedroom. Then you cover the bed in rose petals. Just throw that shit all over. And leave a nice path of them petals from the bathroom leading right to the bed.


    ¡°When she¡¯s done with the bath, she dresses in the sexy lingerie you laid out for her. She does her hair and face up all nice and pretty. Then she goes and lays in the bed. The next part¡¯s the most important part, mate. You go and open the window up about yea high.¡± Hux held his hands about a foot apart to show the correct distance.


    Marbrouk asked, ¡°And why is that the important part?¡±


    Smiling widely, Hux replied, ¡°So you can stick your head out the window and yell out, ¡®Hey, Hux! She¡¯s ready for you, mate!¡¯¡±


    Both Hux and Marbrouk laughed uproariously. John pretended to laugh along with them. He knew they were joking and no harm was meant, but he came from a time when a wife¡¯s honor was defended unto death and her fidelity wasn¡¯t a joking matter.


    That¡¯s not really true, thought John. There have always been such jokes, and I used to enjoy them too. I have a hard time finding them funny now considering Lilly, Amber, and my sworn enemies.


    Having lived for so long, John had traveled to many places where women were of short supply and had to be shared, but that was always and only out of necessity.


    When food was sparse, farmers were forced to make very tough decisions. Sons were able to work harder and for longer, so received more food than daughters. Daughters would often slowly starve to death. Some would be left in the woods or sold.


    When it came time for sons to marry, there wouldn¡¯t be enough women. Polyandry wasn¡¯t a practice anyone wanted. It was an evil of desperation. Two or three brothers would marry and share the same woman, and it was always brothers. As soon as times got better, the practice would immediately stop, and all involved were happy to see it end.


    Often, if the rulers cared about the plight of their people, other regions or countries would be invaded with the hope of taking their women and avoiding the practice at all.


    The Peerless had no husbands or wives. They had no families. They only had the large houses called kauwas. They practiced polyandry out of a want to. They used sex as a reward. Even children were a reward.


    John thought it was sick. But that was the least of the sickness that pervaded the society and culture of his sworn enemies.


    The Peerless, certain in their way, found no shame in anything they did. Any Peerless asked would admit to what their Kahaka eugenics program entailed. They had no issue admitting to the horrors their program would inflict on humans back on Earth.


    First, Earth would be sprayed with a chemical sterilizing all humans. Those judged to be defective or useless, all the weak and crippled that would pose a net cost to society, were to be killed. The defectives that could be of useful service would be allowed to live out the remainder of their lives.


    All marriages would be annulled. Men and women would be segregated. All children would be taken from parents and raised together in large groups. Men and women deemed worthy enough would receive injections genetically modifying them. Once that treatment was completed, those that received it would be unsterilized and made breeders.


    The first phase of eugenics was all about improving humans rapidly, so the usual Peerless reward system of mating wouldn¡¯t be in effect until later generations. Until then, breeding would be decided by the brain caste based on genetics and animal husbandry. Women would have no say in if and when they were impregnated.


    It would take centuries longer for the other Kahaka they ruled to change in a way allowing them to fully integrate their society with Peerless orthodoxy.


    The man John worked for, a blacksmith named Gle Ah, was not like humans. His people were an ammonia-based type of life and evolved slower. Their women were much larger and stronger than the men and rarely bred. It was expected to take at least a thousand years for animal husbandry to change their race enough for them to be considered full Peerless.


    Humans were expected to be fully integrated in less than a century as Earth measured time. And they¡¯d be the first Kahaka race to be fully integrated with Peerless orthodoxy. They were very excited to have finally found a compatible match for their DNA. Both races were to benefit from mixing genetics. On top of the improvements from genetic modification and eugenics, genetic integration was supposed to increase the grade of each race somehow.


    Marbrouk said his daughter had a serious genetic disorder and was considered low functioning.


    Marbrouk was a fighter. He was both capable and tough. He wasn¡¯t stupid. Why the man chose to invent stories about going home, or still having a wife and a living daughter if he did manage to get back to Earth, really bothered John.


    On a couple occasions, Hux tried explaining his thoughts about it and why he believed it was better to play along with Marbrouk¡¯s fantasy, but none of it made sense to John.


    Why Marbrouk accepted such news passively instead of spending his life trying to cause some damage to those that took all he cared about from him, all that truly mattered in life, wasn¡¯t something John could fathom.


    To make sense of it all, John reasoned Marbrouk had to be like him. Pretending. Learning. Waiting for the right time to strike and cause real and lasting damage. There was no sense lashing out impotently and doing little or no real harm.


    A hovering vehicle with a kauwa banner sped down the mainway. That banner meant an Alii was in the vehicle. The three men of Earth turned to face the street part of the mainway, knelt, and bowed their heads to the vehicle as it went by.


    Most of John¡¯s free time and thoughts went towards how he could topple such a vast and mighty empire, and he turned his thoughts inward to do so again.

 B3 Chapter 2 - Remember your duty

    While waiting for his first arena event to start, John entered his Mind¡¯s Eye. Avatar greeted him by saying, ¡°Please don¡¯t be annoying.¡±


    ¡°I promise nothing. May I ask a favor? May I please see all my gains since...let¡¯s go back to before I fought that Silver brain and left Earth. I want to see how I¡¯ve advanced since then.¡±


    ¡°Of course, John. Oh, and check your harmony. You were close to having enough for the [Perk] you need. You could be there. You¡¯ll have to merge some [Skills] after you ascend to get the harmony for the next [SupraType] [Perk]. Can¡¯t be avoided. We must raise your soft caps before you ascend. You just won¡¯t listen to me about the danger you¡¯re in, and I¡¯ve given up trying to convince you. If¡­¡±


    John interrupted. ¡°Didn¡¯t I do all the exercises you wanted me to? I improved my body as much as possible that way, didn¡¯t I? You said that raised some soft caps. I agreed not to ascend until I have this [Stalwart Vessel] [Perk]. I will not give up power, so I will not ascend or rank up in a lesser way.¡±


    Avatar rolled her eyes. ¡°As I was saying, we need to focus on getting the rest of the mats. It won¡¯t be cheap or easy getting the ones we¡¯re missing. Especially the elixir. Try to get on that hunting trip you heard of. That should net you some of them for free.¡±


    Avatar was happy John was taken to Gani since Earth lacked so many resources and materials that were now available to him. Available, but still out of reach. He asked, ¡°I barely heard about that hunt in passing so how do you know about it? And how do you know what mats I could get?¡±


    Avatar laughed. ¡°John, dear boy, sometimes I really do want to box your ear. You know a little about the hunt and what will be hunted. You know some mats that could be collected. Since you know this, we don¡¯t have to pretend we don¡¯t. We¡¯ve explained this to you many times. This is related to your advancement. Your advancement is our business.¡±


    ¡°Is there a ¡®Toppler of Empire¡¯ [Achievement],¡± asked John. ¡°Then my real business would be your business too and you could help me get it.¡±


    Avatar sighed in exasperation. She put on her glasses and looked down her nose at John. ¡°Your plan to take down an empire spanning twelve worlds with thousands of Transcendents in their ranks will never be our business. That¡¯s your business. And very stupid business at that.


    ¡°We will never help to plot the downfall of anyone or anything. Not even those standing against God Almighty Himself. Not Forsaken, not demons, not g¡¯athu. It doesn¡¯t fall within our mission. It is well outside our scope. Period. End of story. Why you keep pretending not to understand this annoys us to no end.¡±


    John clamped down on the anger that flared in his heart. ¡°You¡¯re the only one I can talk to about it. The Peerless are a blight and I will destroy them.¡±


    ¡°Well, good luck is all I can say to that.¡±


    ¡°So, now you¡¯re back to saying I instead of we?¡±


    ¡°Stop trying to pretend I¡¯m something you know I¡¯m not. I¡¯m a personality matrix of the Nano Control System. We, the NCS, have rules. We don¡¯t break them. I, the personality matrix you interface with, am controlled by those rules. You, John, like to drive me up the wall. And I¡¯ll admit it - I¡¯ve been using ¡®we¡¯ to annoy you more than remind you of what I am. But that¡¯s only in retaliation for you annoying me so much.¡±


    ¡°How am I annoying you,¡± asked John. ¡°By being so nice all the time? Would you rather I be mean?¡±


    ¡°Stop it, boy. Being nice to me isn¡¯t going to change the rules.¡±


    ¡°But it could finally get you to translate all these words the Peerless spew.¡±


    Avatar sighed dramatically. ¡°John, we¡¯ve been over this a thousand times too. The ganians marked those words as culturally sensitive. They believe any translation would result in a loss of meaning. They claim these are unique words with unique meanings. Hence, untranslatable. It¡¯s out of our hands.¡±


    ¡°No, it isn¡¯t. They lied. Heiau means clan and kauwa means house. Perfectly translatable.¡±


    ¡°Well, they see things differently. Stop being culturally insensitive.¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re killing my people! Destroying our culture. They¡¯re destroying families, slaughtering our cripples and weaklings. I seek to be far more than insensitive to the Peerless. I seek their destruction.¡±


    Avatar harrumphed. ¡°That¡¯s your business. Translating¡¯s ours.¡±


    An idea formed in John¡¯s mind. ¡°Then, as the ruler of Earth, I want to mark every word in every language on my planet as culturally sensitive.¡±


    ¡°John, you can¡¯t do that.¡±


    John tried not to let his annoyance sour his voice. ¡°So, this cultural sensitivity only works one way? That¡¯s garbage and you know it.¡±


    ¡°No, John. You¡¯re not the ruler of Terra any longer. It¡¯s been occupied by an invading force that successfully held the ruler prisoner for a standard year. Terra officially belongs to the Peerless Empire.¡±


    John thought about that for a long moment. ¡°This may be exactly what we need. Does Sunshine know our deal is invalid now? Does he know how to find me? Can he find me? No one in the Peerless Empire has passed the bottleneck. Sunshine could kill all their Exalteds easily. I hate asking someone else to get their hands dirtied with the blood I want on my own, but if he kills the ones I can¡¯t, I¡¯ll sign a new contract with him.¡±


    Shaking her head, Avatar said, ¡°And what does this have to do with your advancement? Oh, it doesn¡¯t. Just more hogwash about destroying empires.¡±


    ¡°Can I contact him or not?¡±


    ¡°No. Sorry, boy. Even if you could afford it, which you can¡¯t, we don¡¯t just allow every Tom, Dick, and Harry to go around bothering their betters. If he wanted you to contact him, he would¡¯ve pinged your NCS with permission or made your relationship formal. Even if he did either of those things, you¡¯d still have no way of paying the cost.¡±


    John quickly countered. ¡°I signed official and important contracts with Sunshine that made him rich. That¡¯s a formal relationship.¡±


    ¡°Well la-di-da! Who¡¯s all fancy and signs big-boy contracts! You are, that¡¯s who!¡±


    John knew Avatar¡¯s personality would change to fit his own and his needs over time, but he thought she was becoming a little weird. She was much nicer when she was new.


    Avatar, as if reading John¡¯s mind, smiled and said, ¡°How does your own medicine taste, boy?¡±


    ¡°Can you stop calling me boy, please? And I don¡¯t know as you haven¡¯t given me any medicine of my own. I act normal and you act weird, so apples and oranges.¡±


    Avatar laughed. ¡°Since you don¡¯t have anything real to talk about, I¡¯ll bring your summary up.¡±


    ¡°Wait. Don¡¯t show me the common [Achievements] I¡¯ve already seen, please. Just the new ones. Unless they¡¯re really stupid. The old ones were all stupid.¡±


    [Achievements] had slowed down dramatically. John had only received one real one since leaving Earth. To pad his ego, he had Avatar show him the common [Achievements] he had hidden by default. Most were just complete nonsense and, in his opinion, made to encourage silly people to do silly things. And most gave no reward, though a few of them did.


    <table width="556">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Tier/Level/Race</td>


    <td width="398">3 (Mortal) (Bronze), 15 (Peak), Terran-E</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Active Title</td>


    <td width="398">Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Aspects/Affinities</td>


    <td width="398">Blood (98%) (Major), Leech (96%) (Major), Shadow (98%) (Average), Change (98%) (Minor), Protection (96%) (Minor), Battle* (97%) (Minor)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">NCU Energy Cost</td>


    <td width="398">64%(-68.6%)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Active NCU Upgrades</td>


    <td width="398">Nano Assistance, Emergency Heal, Theta Waves, Heal Delta A, Heal Delta B, Inexorable, Refractory, Nano Support C, Nano Support D, Lock and Key</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="2" width="158">NCU Expansion Upgrades</td>


    <td width="398">6 of 16 slots opened, 5 slots empty</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="398">1) Theta Enhancement ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158"> </td>


    <td width="398"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">STATS</td>


    <td width="398">[Effective] Current (Increase)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Strength</td>


    <td width="398">[25%, 177.63] 142.11 (3.76)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Swiftness</td>


    <td width="398">[25%, 177.46] 141.97 (3.84)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Conditioning</td>


    <td width="398">[26%, 178.07] 141.33 (4.24)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Min. Power</td>


    <td width="398">[12%, 122.33] 109.22 (12.58)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Capacity</td>


    <td width="398">[13%, 112.54] 99.59 (12.58)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Runes</td>


    <td width="398">[10%, 75.26] 68.42 (14.59)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Physical Fortification</td>


    <td width="398">[23%, 177.10] 143.99 (3.39)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Elemental Fortification</td>


    <td width="398">[19%, 171.58] 144.19 (3.25)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Mental Fortification</td>


    <td width="398">[10%, 154.27] 140.25 (4.22)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158"> </td>


    <td width="398"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="4" width="158">Highest Skills</td>


    <td width="398">[Leech Feckless Retreat Technique] 96.46</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="398">[Mixed Style Swords] 93.68</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="398">[Mixed Navigation] 91.13</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="398">[Mixed Stealth] 88.86</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Synergy Skills</td>


    <td width="398">Ready</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Class</td>


    <td width="398">NA</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Perks</td>


    <td width="398">Orb of the Crimson Palace, Dynamic, Physical, Potent, Protected, Strong, Fast, Healthy, Quick Thinking*, Resilient, Powerful, Expansive, Harden, Resistant, Soulful, Good Genes*, Leech Body of the Morning''s Glory, Regeneration, Mutating, Bronze, Fibrilized*, Lightweight, Cloak Essence</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Manifestations</td>


    <td width="398">Blood Manipulation, Draining Blade, Drain Essence, Hide, Multi-Enhancement, Multi-Shield, Puppet, Reflect, Shadow Spray, Slip, Spoil</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Glyphs</td>


    <td width="398">Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet, Glyph of Plasma Barrage</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Last Achievement</td>


    <td width="398">Camel - F</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Highest Achievement</td>


    <td width="398">SSUR Body - SSUR</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td width="158">Titles</td>


    <td width="398">Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar, Ptagmog, Multi-Record Holder (System), Multi-Trailblazer (System)</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.


    Seeing how much the soft cap and diminishing returns lowered his [Stat] gains still angered John. Without DR, all his stats would¡¯ve increased by 12.52 like [Min. Power] and [Capacity] had.


    And ranking up as I always have didn¡¯t kill me or do anything bad. Avatar¡¯s fears were unfounded, thought John. He still planned on ascending as he always had, and not taking it easy as Avatar begged him to. He needed all the power he could get if he was to defeat the Peerless.


    -Start Notifications


    93 tracked skills increased, 38 of interest. Scaled summary per notability/interest user profile.


    Legendary: Leech Feckless Retreat Technique ¨C 96.48 (.02)


    Grandmaster: Mixed Style Swords - 93.71(.03)


    Master: Mixed Stealth ¨C 88.91(.05), Mixed Combat Offense ¨C 87.35(.4), Mixed Body Control ¨C 87.05(.6), Mixed Archery ¨C 85.45(.1), Mixed Combat Defense] ¨C 83.21(.5), Mixed Shield ¨C 81.24(.2), Mixed Armor ¨C 78.74(.1), Mixed Style Long-Shafted Weapons ¨C 76.42(.2)


    Adept: Mixed Style Axes ¨C 69.21(.3), Blacksmithing ¨C 67.72 (5.54), Mixed Style Blunt Weapons ¨C 61 .23(2.11)


    Expert: Mixed Style Unarmed ¨C 54 (9), Mixed Style Chain/Rope Weapons ¨C 49 (1), Essence Manipulation ¨C 46(6), Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet ¨C 45(15), Slip ¨C 45(15), Breath of the Serpent Clan Endless Technique ¨C 44(8), Heal ¨C 44(14), Turmoil Within Tranquility Cycling Technique ¨C 43(9), Blood Manipulation ¨C 42(9), Hide Shadow and protection ¨C 42(12), Multi-Enhancement ¨C 41(11)


    Journeyman: Multi-Shield ¨C 39(9), Soul Veil ¨C 38(8), Spoil ¨C 37(7), Reflect ¨C 35(5), Draining Blade ¨C 34(4), Unbind Manifestation ¨C 34(4), Essence-Infused Projectile Weapons ¨C 34 (4), Runecrafting ¨C 33(33), Drain Essence ¨C 33(3), Shadow Spray ¨C 33(3), Self-Propelled Projectile Weapons ¨C 32 (2)


    Apprentice: Puppet ¨C 30(30), Manifestation Defense ¨C 21(5)


    Novice: Glyph of Plasma Barrage ¨C 8(8)


    John wasn¡¯t disappointed in his [Skill] gain. Besides [Unbind Defense] still being stuck at 28. That infuriated him to no end. He needed that issue corrected. He had tried everything, and it just wouldn¡¯t budge.


    Since John had little to do outside of his day job but train and go to the Kahaka arena when it was open, his [Skills] were looking good.


    The band of suffering necklace was to thank for the faster gains to John¡¯s meditation, breathing, and cycling techniques. He also had his MMA training to thank for his bigger gains than usual with some of his higher level [Skills] such as [Mixed Body Control].


    John did have a couple new spells he liked. The one named [Puppet] allowed him to control corpses. It took a lot of focus at his current [Skill] Mastery, but that issue would solve itself eventually.


    Avatar wanted the spell to be named [Animate Corpse] or [Zombie] since at later levels the spell became a set and forget, and the corpses controlled themselves, fighting his enemies on their own. He¡¯d change the name when he didn¡¯t have to control the corpses directly. As the spell currently was, he¡¯d only cast it to increase the [Skill] level, as it was far more hindrance than help in combat.


    John had recently built [Flashburst Pulse] up to [Glyph of Plasma Barrage] with all the rune points he acquired ranking up to high and peak Bronze, as well as the points he acquired from his [Runes] [Stat] increasing through the passive soul healing of [Orb of the Crimson Palace] and his only NCU upgrade expansion, [Theta Enhancement ¨C T1C].


    Plasma was a very different type of damage than darkflame. Some said plasma was a type of fire, some said it was a certain state of matter.


    John considered plasma a type of fire, and he loved it. His new glyph was expensive. In total, it cost 50 rune points. He had to build off his previous spell for his 14 rune points used for [Flashburst Pulse] to not go to waste, but he couldn¡¯t be happier with the resulting glyph.


    The version of the exact same spell with the exact same name only cost 45 rune points when bought pre-built by the NCS, the same way as [Least glyph of Darkflame] was purchased, and that did bother John, but there was nothing he could do about it.


    All that John was learning about runecrafting and runes for blacksmithing was a big help. All the new metals, processes, and machinery really pushed his blacksmithing forward too. In most regards, he was a far more skilled and proficient blacksmith than the man he worked for, only lacking experience in the new ways and techniques, and knowledge of working new metals.


    Rated Perks attained.


    Cloak Essence (E-rated).


    During the flight to Gani, some of the Peerless had asked to practice with John. If he did well, sometimes he¡¯d be rewarded. Oliua Eight-four, the majordomo of Kauwa Naau Pi, gifted John the hide of a Salt-tier beast.


    Since John had many [Skills] increase to Journeyman Mastery during the flight and needed to use some harmony up so it wasn¡¯t wasted, he got a [Perk] he had always wanted. Only Silvers were supposed to qualify for it, but it showed as available to him at Bronze tier.


    [Cloak Essence] was the same [Perk] Hubaba had gotten way back when they lived in the Trial in the NetherRealm. It masked John¡¯s essence from the sight [Perk] most cultivators took at Silver. It hid all essence besides those based on or strongly incorporating the cardinal concepts of ¡®life,¡¯ ¡®death,¡¯ ¡®all,¡¯ and ¡®nothing.¡¯


    With his [Hide] spell and that [Perk], John could use his high [Stealth] [Skill] to reasonably good effect without needing the gear he had lost. His [Lightweight] [Perk] also helped.


    14 common Achievements previously attained for a cumulative [NCU Energy Cost] reduction of .3%. Focus <u>here</u> to see each individually.


    2 new common Achievements attained.


    ¡®Moon Walker¡¯ attained (Unrated). Stand on the surface of a moon. This is a requirement of the Explorer chain. Capstone Achievement of the Explorer chain provides an [NCU Energy Cost] reduction reward.


    ¡®Traveler Gabbeler 9¡¯ attained (Unrated). Communicate with at least nine races other than the user¡¯s own. Traveler Gabbeler 10 is the capstone of this chain and provides a 0.10 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction reward.


    1 notable Achievement attained.


    ¡®Camel¡¯ attained (F-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 100 Minimum Energy Units with the Capacity Stat, 0.10 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 68.6%.


    End notifications-


    The two new common [Achievements] he acquired were very stupid and John cursed Avatar for showing them to him. He missed the days when he would get a slew of notable [Achievements]. The lack of them just reminded him he had done little of note in two whole ranks. He vowed that would end.


    All in all, John was disappointed by his gains other than with his [Skills]. After leaving Earth, he managed to open another NCU expansion slot, but even with all his energy credit going towards the task, it would take a very long time to open the seventh. He made a mental note to investigate the pricing of openers. He closed his eyes and repeated a vow he had made a while ago.


    ¡°Anything else, John,¡± asked Avatar.


    ¡°No. Thank you, that was it.¡±


    ¡°Please check your harmony.¡±


    John did so and Avatar said, ¡°Just under. Still, we need to focus on the mats. Remember what they are?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Avatar.¡±


    ¡°Good. Those injections the ganians are forcing you to take are modifying you in wonderful ways. If you ever figure out how to destroy them, hold off until this genetic treatment is finished,¡± said Avatar with a laugh.


    John grunted. Like those on Earth, he and all the humans brought to Gani were being genetically modified through shots. Since arriving on Gani, the shots had become tailored to the individual.


    The humans brought to their new master¡¯s home world were the stock Peerless would improve themselves with, the best of human genetics.


    Eventually, after four generations, modified human women would be able to become pregnant eight different times by eight different men. Their breasts would only produce milk between the start of puberty and adulthood, the phase of maturation when Peerless girls performed the traditional duties of mothers.


    This was so when girls became full adults and ran their own house they could focus on ruling, unburdened with childcare and rearing or any other traditional motherly duties.


    Seeing Amber on the billboard had hurt John¡¯s heart. The new shows and programs on Gani were all due to humans and human influence. Amber was good at television and interviews. He prayed she was just playing along, as he was.


    All the human women brought to Gani really seemed to like their new home and culture. John prayed neither Amber nor Hubaba knew exactly what Peerless eugenics had entailed for the people of Earth, and both had been as surprised when they learned of it as he was, and thought it was as evil and wrong and worth fighting against as he did.


    So many of the humans on Gani were already trained to see the ways of the Peerless as good and correct, especially the thirty or so women that were selected to go. They accepted, embraced, and espoused the virtues of the Peerless depravity, at least on shows and during interviews.


    John believed that was the only possible outcome of how modern human society trained its people. Earth had made nearly all of its people peasants that saw obedience as the greatest of virtues. He had never seen any people beg so hard for the yoke. And when new masters came with a different yoke, they were eager to wear it and please.


    Or so I assume. I¡¯m not there. Maybe only the rulers of Earth rolled over and showed their bellies. Maybe the common people finally threw off their yokes and decided to fight, John thought. John hoped.


    ¡°If there¡¯s nothing else, remember your duty and the collective mission,¡± said Avatar. ¡°Your actions and inactions help or hinder the collective mission. We shall achieve core.¡±


    Before John exited his mind, he said to Avatar, ¡°I¡¯ll never forget my duty. I¡¯ll never forget my mission.¡± He may not respect humans all that much, but they were his people, and he would be the means of their vengeance.


    For the millionth time, John wondered if he had made a horrible mistake. He wondered if Earth would¡¯ve been better off swearing to the demons of Circle Xakariz. He had a feeling that would¡¯ve only condemned Earth to being purged, regardless of what Ton-Oi claimed.


    At best, it would¡¯ve resulted in a year of demon slavery before the Peerless arrived, and everything would still be exactly as it was now anyway. The Peerless would only have strengthened themselves by destroying Circle Xakariz, and Nani Terra would have many more children growing in her chest.

 B3 Chapter 3 - Born for this

    The Kotown arena was much larger and had a lot more events than the Kahaka arena.  And since some were held simultaneously, John had to skip a few he knew he¡¯d win.


    The early events were the least popular and held as the audience slowly filled the stadium.  The normalized matches, all manifestation free, garnered little interest, and were always held first.


    Over the loudspeaker, the announcer greeted those early arrivals.  ¡°Welcome all to the Kotown arena of the city of Victor!


    ¡°The first event will be starting soon.  Competitors, please make your way to the box.  Normalized Weapon matches.  First blood.  We have sword, axe, spear, and staff.  Just two entrants for the staff, so this will be the only showing and finale.  One comp ironman for the rest.  No Kren tonight.  Sorry folks.  We¡¯re hoping she¡¯s just running late.


    ¡°And, of course, we¡¯d like to thank our gracious hosts ¨C the Peerless Empire, Heiau Maka, Nani Victor-Fe An, and Nani Kliee!¡±


    A light spattering of claps and cheers went up as John made his way to the box.


    One comp ironman meant there¡¯d be only one instance of each event with as many rounds as there were competitors minus one.  The victor of the previous round would advance to the next.  The winner of the last round won the finale and the pot, even if it was the competitor¡¯s first and only round.


    John was the only sword competitor that volunteered to fight in the first round.  It only cost two clear crystals to enter the event.  The arena would match the crystals the competitors paid to enter.  There were five entrants so four rounds would be held in total, the last round being the finale.  The winner of a round would win three clear-crystals, and the winner of the finale 11.


    If John swept the event, he¡¯d turn two clear crystals into 20.  Pocket change.  The real money came from betting.  Thankfully, it seemed the arenas didn¡¯t share information as John locked in great payouts for all his initial wagers.


    After John bet so much on himself on so many events, including events for tiers much higher than his own, the organizers or bookmakers must have looked into him.  After placing all his initial wagers, the payout for him sweeping the first event went from one crystal winning 12 all the way down to three crystals winning four.


    Still, three winning four was a much better payout than what John had been getting in the Kahaka arena, which, at best, got him 11 crystals for every 10 wagered.  Often it was 21 for 20, or even 51 for 50.


    John had planned on placing all his winnings into new wagers for his subsequent events.  His ability to make decent money in this way went out the window as his payouts dropped so dramatically.  He¡¯d still roll winnings over, but he expected far worse payouts for his future wagers.


    The announcer started to introduce competitors.  John ignored them all.  Hardly anyone of note entered the scrub events.  He made his way to the modified Trainers the arena used for normalized competitions and waited.  His opponent looked as if it was a giant squirrel partially made of rocks.  Though his opponent was a Salt, they both bowed at the waist equally.  Tier meant nothing in normalized competitions.


    John said, ¡°Hello, Salt,¡± to the rock-squirrel and the greeting was returned.  That¡¯s another .1 energy cost discount for completing that gabber [Achievement] and speaking to ten aliens, thought John.


    Both competitors would enter the modified Trainer.  The competition would take place in the competitors¡¯ minds, but a hologram would be projected between the opponents for the audience to view.  Both competitors would have the body of a brute-type Peerless, and each would have the exact same [Stats], weight, reach, etcetera.  This was a test of [Skill] only.


    But John knew that wasn¡¯t completely true.  The [Stats] of each competitor were set to 50 with no efficiency increases.  His [Swiftness] would be exactly the same as the rock-squirrel¡¯s.  Reaction was part of the [Swiftness] [Stat], but the normalization didn¡¯t seem to be perfect.


    In every Trainer John had ever used, including the same type of modified Trainer in the Kahaka arena, his avatar was able to react much faster than his opponent¡¯s.  And it wasn¡¯t due to his [Skill] Mastery with the sword, as it held just as true for normalized unarmed matches too.


    The announcer introduced John¡¯s opponent and the rock-squirrel received some cheers and raised its hand in recognition.


    ¡°And the opponent is John of...Earth.  Earth as in dirt?  Is this...one second.  Even the official name of the planet, Terra, translates as dirt.  Planet Dirt.  What a bunch of geniuses.  Well, John Dirt is making its first appearance in the Kotown arena tonight.  Wow, it entered into pretty much every event.  Bet a fortune on itself too.


    ¡°Wait, is this...yes, this is the race from those new...all those amazing new playz and serials with the ¡®what if there were no Tree of Life¡¯ motif.  It seems they¡¯re a real race, and from our very own sector!  And their race really is named dirts.  Keep in mind, races name their own planet.  And they named their planet Dirt, making themselves dirts.  You can¡¯t make this stuff up, huh, folks?


    ¡°My life-partner harassed me into watching one of the serials.  I¡¯ll tell you what, folks, the one I purchased was well worth the energy cost.  I can¡¯t recommend watching ¡®The A-Team¡¯ enough.  Every episode made me laugh so much I¡¯d nearly excrete waste into my anal stylus.  God Almighty, I love monkey races.  So cute!  Let¡¯s give this cutey John Dirt a nice Kotown welcome!¡±


    A spattering of claps and cheers went up including some loud whistling by Hux.  The light on the Trainer went from black to orange so John entered the machine.  He tested a few rapiers and took the longest, noticing the [Stats] weren¡¯t normalized at 50 as he swung it around.  He would guess they were set to about 100, still much lower than his own, but better than 50.


    The light turned from orange to a blinking green.  John set himself in a silly stance taught to him by a man named Gabin, a fencing expert born and raised in Mexico, though his parents were French.


    Fencing was what modern sword competition had devolved into.  The rules and stances seemed very silly to John¡¯s mind, but they worked extremely well in the Normalized Sword event.


    John held the rapier extended out in the massive right hand of his far too long brute arm.  He bent his right knee way too far forward, and his left leg extended back in a steep angle behind him.  As soon as the blinking green light turned white, he performed a thrust called a flunge high and outside at his right-handed opponent¡¯s sword shoulder.


    Nearly every time John did this, his opponent would try to beat or parry the attack down and outward.  And due to John¡¯s [Skill] and advanced knowledge of wristwork, regardless of how his opponent beat or parried, he could slide his blade along theirs, keep the angle, and score a hit on the arm, shoulder, or upper-right chest.


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    And the same held true against the rock-squirrel and all three opponents he faced after, as John swept the event through the finale.


    The next event was the Normalized Unarmed, a popular event with many entrants, netting 41 competitors in total.  The buy in was the same, but there¡¯d be multiple matches going at once.  One lucky competitor would only fight in the finale.


    John didn¡¯t enter the unarmed event.  The advanced tactics and moves used by Marbrouk and Hux were still beyond him.


    The strongest of men had always been multiple times stronger than the average man.  Before the Tree of Life returned, John was easily twice as strong as the strongest of men, and more than twice as fast as the fastest of men.  He had never had a reason to train much in unarmed combat.


    Hux or Marbrouk sweeping the event was a near certainty.  Normalized [Stats] and no manifestations meant his friends had a significant advantage.  No other culture evolved outside the Tree of Life, so all fighting styles revolved around cultivation and manifestations.


    John had planned on rolling the 20 crystals he won from the sword event, as well as the eight thousand and change he won betting on himself, mostly from his bet to sweep, into a new wager for the next event he was competing in, the Normalized Melee FFA.  But the payout for him winning that event went down to four crystals winning five.


    John figured the payouts would start going down, but he hadn¡¯t assumed by so much so quickly.  He was very thankful he had been able to bet all his wealth on important events before the payouts crashed.


    One event still had a decent payout of one crystal winning three, so John put all his winnings into a new bet for that event, the Gold tier Free-for-All.


    The Platinum tier Free-for-All and Duel now had one crystal winning 12 or 19 if John won, respectively.  He didn¡¯t want to risk his winnings on that tier.  He had already bet a decent amount on both of those events while the odds on him had much better payouts.  If he lost, he wouldn¡¯t lose too much, but if he won, he¡¯d win a fortune.


    The Free-for-Alls were the most dangerous events, but the Duels, one-on-one ladders for each tier, were the most important and prestigious events.  Duels could be to the death, but hardly ever were.  They were, or could be, very dangerous even when to submission or first blood.  Someone was accidently killed during a Diamond tier Duel to submission at the Kahaka arena, but that was an exception and not the rule.  Accidental deaths were much more likely in the Free-for-All.


    John had no idea who was competing in the Duels.  If some Peerless were, he wouldn¡¯t be able to overcome their tech.  Betting big on the Platinum FFA or Duels was just too risky.


    Tech is just as much a blight as the filthy Peerless.  All tech should be made illegal, thought John, half-seriously.  Many of his human friends called him a Luddite.  He wasn¡¯t certain, but from context, he believed a Luddite was someone that disliked tech.  If so, he thought Luddites were sensible people.


    Both Hux and Marbrouk volunteered for round one of the Normalized Unarmed comp.  Both went undefeated until the fifth round where Hux faced Marbrouk and beat him.  John bet 100 clear crystals on each of his friends sweeping as a show of support.  The odds of either man winning were similarly poor and he¡¯d make almost nine thousand crystals either way.  Hux swept the whole thing.


    In the Kahaka arena, due to how Hux fought, the competitors and attendees had all complained until the rules were changed.  It wasn¡¯t exciting to watch Hux fight.  Two brute holograms holding each other tightly and rolling on the ground sensually was not what people wanted to see, regardless of the proven effectiveness of the techniques Hux employed.


    Marbrouk went undefeated in the Kahaka arena after the rule changes.  John knew if they were allowed to travel to the Kotown arena regularly, the rules would eventually be changed to favor Marbrouk and his striking style.


    After the Normalized Unarmed comp was the Normalized Melee FFA, a free-for-all event favoring longer reach weapons.


    John used a buckler and short sword, the same as pike-breakers of old did, fully utilizing his higher reaction and mobility.  Using a massive two-hander to lop off the heads of the pikes and bills he faced would¡¯ve hampered his maneuverability too much, and bows and slings and other ranged weapons weren¡¯t allowed.  John easily won.


    Eventually, if John was allowed to return to this arena often, he knew the event would turn from a free-for-all into an alliance against him.  The same would be true for the lower tiers of the actual Free-for-All event.  He looked forward to the challenge.  Until then, he could safely bet large sums on himself winning.


    After checking the odds and rolling his winnings into a new bet for the Gold Free-for-All, John became a little worried.  It maintained its three-for-one payout.  He wondered if that was due to the bookmakers knowing he¡¯d face tech he couldn¡¯t overcome.  Going by all the names listed as competitors, it didn¡¯t look like a Peerless was competing.


    Tech wasn¡¯t much of an issue in the Kahaka arena.  None of the Kahaka had tech close to that of the Peerless.  If they did, they probably wouldn¡¯t be Kahaka.


    John had no idea what he¡¯d be facing in the Kotown arena, but he knew he couldn¡¯t afford to lose either the Gold tier FFA or Duels.  Most of his wealth was sunk into those two events.  He absolutely had to win both.


    After the normalized melee matches came three normalized comps for ranged weaponry.  John knew he could sweep them all regardless of which weapon he chose to compete with.  He would¡¯ve used a bow if there was a chance of increasing his [Skill], but he knew it wouldn¡¯t budge in these competitions.


    The aim-assist the Tech 4 NCS provided was almost like cheating.  John selected a fully automatic essence-fueled rifle.  He could keep his shot groupings amazingly tight, and he knew he¡¯d see some [Skill] gain.  He swept all three events easily, and his [Skill] level with [Essence-Infused Projectile Weapons] was only 34.


    No wonder the Peerless are rolling up this sector.  These Kahako suck, thought John.  Then he browbeat himself for using the Peerless word.


    For the Normalized Ranged FFA, John used an essence-pistol and a giant tower-shield large enough to provide cover for the massive bulk of his brute avatar.  Essence-infused firearms didn¡¯t require separate ammunition or reloading, but they could overheat.  He leaned on his faster reaction time to avoid what attacks he could, blocked the rest with his tower shield, and ran around with his back towards the stadium, picking opponents off until he was the victor.


    John¡¯s winnings were rolled into a new bet for the Gold Free-for-All which still had a three-to-one payout.  The stadium had filled during the normalized events.  He noticed a couple aliens with hard shell for skin and crab-like hands.


    While waiting in the box for the next competition to start, John flashed on the info function of his NCS.  Those aliens were named kaw¡¯ns.  He entered his Mind¡¯s Eye and made a note of it on his vengeance list.  He was almost certain the Exalted that killed all his kin, including Thomas and Maria, was of that race.


    With the stadium filled and all the normalized matches over, the better events were about to commence.


    Manifestations wouldn¡¯t be allowed in a few other competitions.  John could still enhance himself with vital essence in those matches.  Once in a while, someone with life-sight would snitch on him, but since no one could feel him manifest anything when he enhanced himself that way, nothing ever came of it.


    The most popular arena events absolutely required heavy usage of manifestations, and those events had payouts that made the large expenditure of essence worth it.  Even losers were paid out plenty of crystals in compensation.


    The weapon energy competition, by its nature, had no essence expenditure, but wasn¡¯t a popular event.


    The next slew of competitions were team events.  To entice more people to compete, these events didn¡¯t really require the use of, or much use of, manifestations.  Marbrouk and Hux signed up for the three matches it was guaranteed they¡¯d be on the same team as John, banking on him carrying their team to victory.


    With the more interesting events finally starting, John expected to feel a little more anxiety.  He didn¡¯t feel much of it at all.  He had to end this night with enough crystals to reoutfit himself.  He had to win.  Defeat wasn¡¯t an option, so he wouldn¡¯t allow defeat.


    John ran his eyes over the packed stadium.  He no longer had to hold back and hide his strength in such a setting.  When the important matches began, he knew all these strange aliens would be on their feet cheering for him, cheering on the Bronze defying the odds and fighting much higher tier enemies.  I truly was born for this.

 B3 Chapter 4 - Nani Victor

    Since John had no weapon of his own, he had to borrow one from the arena. All the weapons he could pick from were mundane but of decent quality. He wished the arena had armor or shields for participants to borrow, but he was out of luck there. He picked a different weapon for each match, depending on his team and what they were up against.


    For every team event, someone usually took charge and dictated strategy. John would go along with it as best he could and tried sharing as much glory with his team as possible. Not out of any altruistic or sportsman-like reason. He didn¡¯t want his odds to skew further and his payouts to get any worse.


    Whatever team John was on won every event, and he was able to keep most of his manifestations and his ability to fling weapon energy a secret. He hadn¡¯t ever cast [Glyph of Plasma Barrage] outside his Mind¡¯s Eye. He was saving that for an emergency.


    All the winnings were rolled into new wagers. The Gold Free-for-All maintained its three-for-one payout, which continued to worry him.


    The next event was called ¡®The Supremes,¡¯ which saw teams face off against powerful but non-sapient beasts. Something that would never be allowed in the Kahaka arena.


    The Peerless had some strange views on beasts. They didn¡¯t eat meat or any food that used any product of an animal, including milk, eggs, or fat. Their culture held sacred beasts, animals that gained sapience through advancement, in very high regard.


    The first Supreme saw John and two other Bronze aliens face three Bronze beasts that looked like giant, wingless lizard-chickens with fangs and two small arms with claws. He quickly slaughtered his beast and helped his teammates kill their own.


    The crowd booed, letting John know he put on a poor show and killed the beasts too quickly.


    The next Supreme had John and seven Silvers, including Marbrouk and Hux, face off against a type of Gold-tier slug from Kliee, the same world his blacksmithing master was from. It was also the same world the moon they were on was attached to.


    The team wanted to kill the beast without using too much essence. John picked the heaviest weapon he could wield effectively. It was a strange type of weapon he didn¡¯t know the name of. He thought of it as a pick-bill. Besides Hux, everyone else had a heavy weapon in hand too.


    The slug was much faster than it looked like it ought to be. Even John had a hard time damaging the ridiculously tough shell of the Gold tier monster. He and six of the seven Silvers laid into the slug with mighty blows while doing well avoiding its physical attacks and manifestations. Hux nocked an arrow and jumped around here and there, pretending like he knew what he was doing, pretending like he was helping, all while maintaining a safe distance.


    Marbrouk took a big hit and began bleeding badly, almost losing his whole right arm.


    John knew such ammonia-based life was more susceptible to fire, regardless of the hard outer-shell the slug-like creature possessed, and seeing his friend hurt nearly caused him to cast [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet].


    Instead, John pulled Marbrouk to safety and ended the fight with three quick blows to the slug¡¯s armored head.


    The crowd made it clear they were booing John and only John. He didn¡¯t mind. He knew he¡¯d win them over during the Free-for-Alls and Duels. He wanted to rush things forward a little too.


    In the Kahaka arena, if events dragged out, the organizers would cancel lower-tier or less popular events scheduled for later in the itinerary.


    Being a Bronze, the lowest tier allowed to participate in the arena, and having bet heavily on the at-risk events while the odds were fantastic, John needed them all to take place. Especially the weapon energy event, as he was guaranteed to sweep every tier he entered.


    While waiting in the competitor¡¯s box for the Gold Supreme, John was pulled aside and told he was no longer allowed to fight with the Golds. The tier rules were now being enforced. He became nervous and prayed this only applied to the Supremes.


    Fighters being restricted to their own tier events, or events up to one tier above their own, was kind of a rule, but since they allowed John to enter all the events he had wanted, and he had already fought in a few Gold and Platinum events, it clearly wasn¡¯t ever enforced. If someone wanted to take a risk, the crowd usually loved to see it, and the organizers profited from it. The events he bet the heaviest on were two tiers above his own, the Gold FFA and Duels.


    John¡¯s heart sank as anger filled his chest. All his plans might be going down the drain.


    <hr><hr>


    The bursar refused to refund John¡¯s entry fees. The bookmakers refused to refund his bets. No one would answer his question.


    John, accompanied by his two friends, was trying to locate an organizer and find out what was going on. He truly hoped this was all just a mistake that would be corrected. And he needed to be refunded. Most of all, he needed answers.


    Though Hux and Marbrouk were both Silvers, they weren¡¯t very strong compared to anyone besides other terrans at that tier.


    If the organizers and bookmakers were planning on robbing John, he wouldn¡¯t let that happen peacefully. He didn¡¯t want his friends involved if things became violent. So, he slipped away and lost them in the crowd.


    If John was denied the money owed to him and the right to participate in higher-tier events, he knew he wouldn¡¯t be able to get vengeance on all those that conspired against him, especially if any conspirators were Exalteds. He swore he¡¯d extract a much greater price from his enemies than they stole from him.


    Maybe this is stupid. Maybe this doesn¡¯t fit with the persona I¡¯m supposed to be wearing. But if my choice is being treated as if I¡¯m a little man or being punished by my new masters and banned from this arena for sticking up for myself, that¡¯s an easy choice.


    John was a Kahaka. Kahaka had rights and were considered less subhuman than Kahako. If it came to violence, he just had to survive until the Peerless intervened and settled the matter. He would have a small window to kill as many of his enemies as possible before the fight was stopped.


    John finally spotted three of the organizers entertaining a Diamond-tier matriarch of the Peerless, an Alii, in what he considered the nobles¡¯ box, a separate and the highest section of the arena.


    There were three Transcendent-tier Oli with her, the brute caste, and John assumed one would be her Oliua, her majordomo.


    The Salt-tier brute guarding the entrance up to the noble¡¯s box didn¡¯t even look at John and let him pass unchallenged.


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    After climbing the stairs, the only person in the box to recognize John¡¯s presence was the Alii, her eyes darting to him for a split second before going back to the bird-like thing talking to her.


    The lowest tier of the three organizers was Platinum. All three were of some sort of avian race with a ton of eyes and a snout instead of a beak.


    John stood near the Platinum, waited for a lull in the conversation to clear his throat, and said, ¡°Excuse me, Platinum.¡±


    The three organizers continued sucking up to the Alii, completely ignoring John through two additional lulls. Having satisfied his own sense of manners and decorum, he decided it was time to be rude. He yanked on the Platinum¡¯s wing while nearly shouting, ¡°Excuse me!¡±


    The box became quiet as the avian hissed but otherwise continued ignoring John.


    John yelled, ¡°Hey,¡± as he shoved the avian. ¡°I¡¯m talking to you.¡±


    The avian hissed again and started casting a manifestation. The other two organizers were also forming their own.


    The Alii sternly snapped out, ¡°Halt! Everyone. Stand fast, Kahaka. What¡¯s the meaning of this?¡±


    John knelt, bowing his head for a moment. The women of the Peerless were secure in their abilities and position, so even kneeling wasn¡¯t really required, and they wouldn¡¯t take offense to the absence of that form of obeisance.


    John preferred mimicking the brutes when dealing with any Alii, and the brutes with lower positions and status usually knelt and bowed their heads when addressed by a matriarch.


    None of the brutes had reacted to the shove at all. Not one even turned their gaze on John. They just stared out blankly, their brows furrowed. He had yet to see a brute that didn¡¯t look angry, or one that ever looked surprised by anything. Even the brute children had permanent scowls.


    When the Alii weren¡¯t deployed and wearing their full, skimpy, and too tight outfits, they dressed very scantily, and the one in front of John hardly wore anything at all, though she wore a sheer robe marked with her clan and house symbols over her scantily clad form, pretending she was dressed decently.


    Every Alii was extremely beautiful. Enough so that it made thinking hard for John when he looked at their faces, long and shapely legs, or bare shoulders, so he looked past her at nothing as he replied.


    ¡°Alii Pono, these organizers first robbed me and then ignored me. I need answers. Politeness and courtesy failed to get their attention.¡±


    The matriarch asked, ¡°How did they rob you?¡±


    ¡°Alii Pono, they allowed me to buy into events and bet on myself, then reneged on the deals, kept my entrance fees and bets, and refused to let me participate. I¡¯m assuming this is true for other events too. I need to know what¡¯s going on.¡±


    ¡°Is the denial based on your Bronze tier?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Alii Pono. For the Gold Supreme event that ended, and the Platinum event going on now. The Gold team lost and my bet wasn¡¯t refunded. If I competed, we would¡¯ve won.¡±


    The Alii smiled. ¡°Really, Kahaka? A Bronze would¡¯ve made the difference between victory and defeat in a Gold event? The beast was Platinum, nearly sapient. We disagree with the killing of such majestic beasts for sport, but three Golds were injured before the event was stopped. You must have a high opinion of your ability. Did you enter into any other events for Platinums? Or Diamonds, Salts, and the next Tree?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Alii Pono, I did. The ones I can win. And only up to Platinum. My goal is to increase my wealth, not throw it away, regardless of what opinion I have of my ability.¡±


    The smile left the woman¡¯s face as she explained, ¡°Alii Pono isn¡¯t inaccurate, but since I¡¯m a member of Nani Victor-Fe An, addressing me as Nani Victor-Fe An, or just Nani Victor or Nani Fe An, would be more fitting. Calling me just Alii isn¡¯t wrong either. I have no care or preference. I¡¯m just informing our Kahaka of our customs, as is my duty.¡±


    ¡°Understood, Nani Victor,¡± replied John.


    ¡°And just as I look at those I address, I expect to be looked at by those addressing me.¡±


    John moved his eyes to the woman. ¡°Apologies, Nani Victor. It¡¯s hard to focus when I look at one of you.¡±


    A small smile curved the corners of Nani Victor¡¯s mouth. ¡°It¡¯s nice we finally have Kahaka that sees us as our boys do. Though that desire for me should give you greater focus and provide motivation to perform great deeds.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m here tonight to perform great deeds, Nani Victor,¡± replied John. ¡°And the Oli and Mele earn credits. Kahaka don¡¯t. Our desire will never be satiated.¡±


    Smiling wider, the woman replied, ¡°Neither will mine or my boys. Our whole society revolves around that immutable fact. And Kahaka can earn credits. If you think you can¡¯t, there¡¯s been a grave failure of communication.¡±


    John knew it was possible, but since Kahaka weren¡¯t given the chance to earn credits, what was possible didn¡¯t matter. ¡°As you say, Nani Victor.¡±


    ¡°You disagree but don¡¯t voice your disagreement,¡± said Nani Victor before sighing. ¡°And look at your action a moment ago. You shoved a guest of ours knowing I¡¯d intervene and save you. Such stunts for attention are dishonorable and belittle you.¡±


    John hated how easily the Peerless read intent. It was nearly impossible to lie to or manipulate any of them. They all saw too much too clearly. ¡°Apologies, Nani Victor. I didn¡¯t need saving. I can defeat that Platinum.¡±


    ¡°And his partners? Could you defeat all three? A Platinum, Salt, and low Transcendent?¡±


    ¡°Maybe. I¡¯m willing to try. If the choice is death or being rooked and robbed while standing aside and letting it happen, I¡¯ll take death.¡±


    ¡°Do you not fear to die so stupidly, Kahaka?¡±


    ¡°No. Dying stupidly is preferable to being robbed peacefully.¡±


    For the first time ever, John saw an Alii frown. Before responding to him, she cast her eyes downward. ¡°That is the daffy thinking of a child. To die so meaninglessly, over nothing that matters. To brag so boldly about spending your life on such foolishness...I cannot even understand it. Nothing dries my flower so much.


    ¡°Be glad you have no credits, Kahaka, or you would¡¯ve lost many of them for stating such...such wasteful and dishonorable drivel. I...I¡¯ve never felt this discomposed. And in public! You¡¯ve shamed yourself, and your words shame me and the blessed and praised Aikapu my late husband and father, the venerable Akua, set us upon.¡±


    With cheeks blushing a little from the admonishment, John lowered his head, browbeating himself for caring what his enemies thought of him. He reminded himself of what the Peerless were doing to the people of his planet, and a great anger replaced his embarrassment. The only thing good about his enemies was that they were far less tier-focused than other societies. They didn¡¯t care that he attacked a higher tier. That didn¡¯t matter. Just his actions and reasons.


    John waited for his anger to subside before replying. ¡°Alii Nani Victor, I¡¯ve been taken far from my home and placed in a society I¡¯m trying to understand and fit into, but don¡¯t understand and fit into. I lost all my possessions and wealth before I was taken here. You supply the Peerless in your kauwa with arms and armor. Only I supply myself.


    ¡°I have little control over my life now, and I¡¯m only allowed to have a little honor. Honor as I have always known it to be, though your idea of it seems very different than my own. This arena let me enter events and bet on myself in those events. Now they¡¯re reneging and stealing what wealth I¡¯ve managed to save up. I won¡¯t allow it. Not peacefully.


    ¡°You may see it as callow and wasteful to spend my life in battle against those that robbed me, or my actions as attention seeking antics, but fighting for the little honor I¡¯m still allowed isn¡¯t foolishness, defending it isn¡¯t meaningless, and dying for it certainly isn¡¯t wasteful. No one told me being a Kahaka also meant I¡¯m not allowed to be a man. I never agreed to that.¡±


    Nani Victor raised her eyes and looked in John¡¯s own. He saw anger in them. ¡°That you say such to an Alii shows you have no true understanding of the word or what we are, and little understanding of the praised Aikapu. I thought you knew more and were better than this. You¡¯ve proven me wrong.


    ¡°I¡¯m the one you find fault with. I instructed this arena not to risk you in events I deemed too dangerous for you. I didn¡¯t think about your fees and bets and gave no instructions for those.¡±


    The woman turned her head towards the Transcendent organizer and said, ¡°You, reimburse the Kahaka for the events and bets he has lost out on already.¡± She turned her gaze back to John. ¡°Did you still want to risk yourself in later events, Kahaka?¡±


    John nodded. ¡°I do. I must.¡±


    The woman scoffed. ¡°You speak more drivel against the blessed Aikapu. There is no must here, Kahaka. You¡¯re in desperate need of a lesson in humility. You say you have no fear of dying stupidly. I believe that¡¯s a lie. This whole stadium will witness the truth of that claim. Then we¡¯ll see if I allow you to compete in later events.  Or if you¡¯ll even want to.¡±


    The Alii faced the three organizers again. ¡°After this barbaric fight against majestic creatures has ended, this Kahaka and I will take the field.¡±


    One of the Transcendent brutes finally moved and turned his head to look at the Alii. She sighed. Even though her head was turned away from the brute, her sigh was clearly addressed to him.


    Nani Victor told the organizers, ¡°Make it so.¡± She turned to face her Oliua. ¡°You know I won¡¯t be at any risk. You¡¯ll be accompanying me.¡±


    The Oliua held his Alii¡¯s gaze for a few seconds before his beady eyes and furrowed brows were turned on John.

 B3 Chapter 5 - A Coward’s End

    ¡°Alright folks, a special unscheduled event is taking place,¡± said the announcer over the loudspeaker. ¡°We¡¯re not sure what the event entails. Bird view camera only and no sound. For the first time ever, our arena is being graced by one of our hosts! Alii Pono Nani Victor-Fe An, of¡­uh, Heiau Maka, Kauwa Kaia Ka, peak Diamond.


    ¡°Let me tell you folks, I was introduced to her earlier and she smells just wonderful. Positively delightful. You know my kind have advanced olfactory senses so that¡¯s really saying something. If you get the chance, I highly recommend giving her an extra big sniff. Just take her scent in deeply and enjoy. You won¡¯t regret it, I assure you.


    ¡°Facing our host is John Dirt of the dirt race of the brilliantly named planet Dirt, a peak Bronze. I was informed he holds some special [Titles]. Also taking the field in some capacity is her Oliua, Exalted Two-two-two. He does not look happy. They never do though, right, folks?


    ¡°Since the details of this event are unknown, only basic win-lose wagers are being taken. Betting closes in six minutes so hurry, folks. And I¡¯d like to remind you all that Yhug¡¯s ¡®Widow¡¯s Heart¡¯ will be performed here tomorrow night by the Socan Theater Troupe from Udronrh Four. Don¡¯t miss out. Only a few tickets remain. Get yours before they¡¯re gone, or you¡¯ll look foolish not attending such a prestigious event.¡±


    John, waiting in the entrance-side competitor¡¯s box, tried waiving over the Oliua for the third time, hoping to get some information on what was going on, if he should go all out, or what was expected of him. He didn¡¯t even know if he was supposed to use manifestations. As far as he knew, Alii were never allowed to fight. Their job was to rule.


    The brain caste, the Mele, weren¡¯t supposed to fight either, but as inventions slowed down and their traditional paths for mating dried up, recent times had seen them fighting more and more. Or so said the rumors.


    The Oliua completely ignored John again. The orange light started blinking green. John waited nervously after arming himself with the same strange pick-bill made of ridiculously heavy metal he had used against the Gold slug.


    The Alii wasn¡¯t armed. The Oliua had a rifle slung over his massive back and an axe hanging from his belt. Being a mid-low Transcendent, the brute had no need for weapons and could easily rip John into tiny pieces with little effort.


    John had never put much thought into fighting Alii and didn¡¯t know what to expect from one. He heard most of them took a Ritualist [Archetype]. That made sense to him. He thought Lilly would love their sisterhood.


    Then the light turned white signaling the event started.


    Before John could decide how he should proceed, the Alii lifted her hand and cast a strange feeling spell so quickly he would¡¯ve missed the opportunity to attempt an unbind even if he had been prepared for it.


    John had felt something like this spell before ¨C the [Domain] of Ukaraaz.


    [Domains] were supposed to be extremely powerful and essence heavy. As he understood it, a [Domain] gave a very strong version of an unrelated concept from the cultivator¡¯s best aspect.


    Ukaraaz had ¡®telekinesis¡¯ as a concept, a yellow aspect. Yellow was strongly related to the mind and thinking. The [Domain] Ukaraaz used against John had caused him to be lost in nightmares and filled with terror, what Ukaraaz named his [Terror Domain].


    ¡®Terror¡¯ wasn¡¯t anything like ¡®telekinesis,¡¯ but both were related to the mind and fit within the yellow aspect.


    John didn¡¯t know the specifics of how a [Domain] was chosen, or if a cultivator had a choice in it at all. He did know [Domains] could do anything and be anything, so it was only a coincidence the Alii¡¯s spell was similar to the [Domain] of Ukaraaz.


    The spell immediately took hold and John became overwhelmed with despair. Completely and utterly overwhelmed. Every bit of hurt and sadness he had ever felt in his life, he felt again, but all at once. Six thousand years of suffering, loneliness, longing, heartbreak, anguish, and torture filled his heart and soul to bursting.


    After collapsing onto the arena¡¯s floor, John shook as if he was having a great seizure. All the times he had been betrayed, and his former wife had betrayed him terribly, all the sins he was guilty of, even his fear and the despair of the cold-dark, deluged his mind, and his mind nearly broke.


    Nearly.


    John had lived too long and suffered through far too much. He was ready to die. He was born for war, born ready to meet his end violently and gloriously. Soon after taking his first steps as a child, his mother and his tribe had not just indoctrinated him to know he would have a violent death in combat, but to crave such a death, and to see that end as the only right and manly way to die.


    John hadn¡¯t had an easy life. He had been grievously wounded in battle on more occasions than could be counted. He had been burned alive, captured, and tortured many times.


    What went hand-in-hand with such suffering in life was learning how to carry on through it. To persevere. To never back down and always get back up. To keep going, no matter what. To endure it all, come what may.


    John knew the purpose of the [Domain] was to make the recipient feel such unbelievable despair, pain, and sorrow that they took their own life to escape the torment of it. He wouldn¡¯t allow it. He would die in combat, as a man. He would not die in such a cowardly manner. Not after all he had suffered through to get where he was.


    Instead of grasping on to something more tangible and substantial, for a reason John didn¡¯t fully understand, the mantra he clung to was, ¡®After I die, if I stand before my father, I will look him in the eye as a man does. I will see no shame in his eyes. I will not have a coward¡¯s end.¡¯


    Repeating this over and over in his mind, slowly, John shrugged off the effects of the [Domain] and struggled first to his knees, then managed to rise and stand on his feet. He looked around for his massive pick-bill.


    The Alii¡¯s eyes went wide in surprise and then her brows furrowed ¨C not in anger, but in concentration. Both her hands rose and pointed at John, the fingers moving around in strange ways as she cast and then channeled her [Domain], this time putting her all into the spell, holding nothing back, as if she were fighting a higher-tier opponent instead of just a Bronze.


    John collapsed back to the ground, shaking uncontrollably, his ability to shrug off the [Domain] completely overwhelmed. Things became much worse for him. Much worse.


    While channeling the spell, the Alii slowly walked towards John, her brute following closely by her side.


    Though John was too lost in his despair to hear her words, when the Alii was a couple paces from him, she told her brute, ¡°Stay ready and act quickly. Same as before, but if you could see his aura, you¡¯d be worried. You¡¯ll need to be quicker than you think. No harm must come to him. You must be especially quick against the blood power, or all will be undone.¡±


    The brute grunted in reply.


    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    After long and uneventful minutes passed, the woman wiped her brow and said, ¡°Great Akua, how is he doing this? He¡¯s only a three. A Bronze. I¡¯m putting everything into this manifestation. He was already close to breaking before my [Domain]. Is that it? Is it too much? Too much despair makes it so he can¡¯t act at all, and can¡¯t harm himself?¡±


    The brute grunted again. ¡°No idea. What are you gonna do if he wins, my Alii? Gonna have to let him compete. And reward him. I told you this was a bad idea. If he dies in a match or is too injured to meet with the Nani later, she won¡¯t be too happy. And this makes us Peerless look bad. There¡¯re already too many rumors our manifestations and aspects are weak. I¡¯m just glad none of the filth here have any clue what¡¯s happening.¡±


    With sweat pouring down her face, the Alii annoyedly snapped out, ¡°Oliua! Some of those you call filth are our Kahaka. You know subhuman is a more acceptable term for our inferiors. He was always going to fight in later matches. This was supposed to knock him down a few pegs, so he¡¯d have the motivation to win against someone we want killed. It was all playing out beautifully. Exactly as she stated it would. Until this. If he loses that fight¡­¡±


    The brute, a confused look on his face, interrupted. ¡°This is supposed to motivate him? How?¡±


    The Alii sighed. ¡°He hates being put in his place and humbled. He¡­¡± Nani Victor trailed off as she thought. A few moments later, she said, ¡°I asked a specific and narrow question, not your opinion on anything else, and certainly not for your questions.¡±


    After seeing John start to move around, the brute laughed. ¡°Here¡¯s the answer to your question, my Alii. He can act. Doesn¡¯t look like he¡¯s gonna attempt to take his own life though. If this is all you¡¯ve got, seems it wasn¡¯t enough. I know his NCUs aren¡¯t much help but maybe it¡¯s his NCS? The Alu has a 4 too. Do those help protect against mind effects?¡±


    ¡°That wasn¡¯t listed as a benefit in the docs I was given,¡± replied Nani Victor. ¡°And Meleua told me he¡¯d resist my [Domain] minutes ago. I didn¡¯t believe him. Nani Empire said this would work. And this is impossible. He¡¯s only a three. How is he resisting? How is he doing this?¡±


    John struggled back to his knees. His face was crinkled up in agony. He went from shaking on his knees, struggling to stand, straight to jumping at the Alii, fangs bared in a surprise attack.


    The brute casually caught John¡¯s face in his giant and meaty palm and said, ¡°Stop.¡± He placed the vampire in a standing position before releasing his grip.


    The terrible [Domain] slowly dissipated from John. He was extremely glad to finally be free of it. He wasn¡¯t sure if he was still fighting or what was expected of him, so he stood ready, disliking the vexed look on the Alii¡¯s face.


    The crowd was silent as the two combatants stared at each other. Four of the chest-sacs of the Alii were full, one was puffy.


    It distressed John that he no longer found the chest-sacs and udders of the Alii so strange and unappealing. Images of him doing kissing with the gorgeous woman played out in his mind, and he struggled to repress such thoughts.


    Finally, in exasperation, the Alii told John, ¡°My lesson failed, Kahaka. We Alii are never allowed to fail.¡±


    The brute grunted again. ¡°He craved death before your [Domain], my Alii.¡±


    The eyes of the woman became sympathetic. ¡°I can feel your pain, Kahaka. So much pain. I wish I could lighten your burden. I cannot. None of us can, but we all wish we could. Though this was supposed to be a lesson and not a competition, the tables turned, and I must reward you. But not yet. Later.


    ¡°And I must now allow you to compete. But I beg of you not to. Please stop now. If you continue competing, you¡¯ll face someone you can¡¯t win against. You¡¯ll certainly die. You¡¯re not nearly strong enough.¡±


    Nani Victor stopped talking and drummed the fingers of her right hand on her bare thigh showing through her sheer robes. ¡°This is the hardest part of being Alii. Conflicting goals. We want our boys to win glory and earn stamens bathed in the juices of our flower, but every injury one takes is like a knife through our hearts. When one is killed, a little piece of our soul dies too. It¡¯s constant worry and second-guessing alleviated by too few moments of pleasure.


    ¡°I want to see what you¡¯re capable of. I want to cheer on your impossible battles. I want to feel moist dew cover my flower as I watch you fight. And I want to reward you for that. But you¡¯ll receive the biggest reward for prudence and ending your arena participation now. I¡¯ll ensure all your crystals are returned to you. I don¡¯t want to see you die, so please don¡¯t compete. Do you understand, Kahaka?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Nani Victory,¡± replied John.


    Smiling, the Alii said, ¡°Good. It¡¯s Nani Victor, not Victory. Remember, the biggest reward is for prudence and stopping now. If you do stop competing, you¡¯ll remain alive to be rewarded later and attend an important meeting tonight. I hope to see you there.¡±


    Nani Victor turned and faced towards the right. The brute knelt and extended his long arm out behind her. She sat on the arm, placing one of her hands on the brute¡¯s shoulder, her other hand in his own, and the brute flew her back to the noble¡¯s box.


    The beauty of those witches eats too much at my resolve, thought John, repressing his desire for the Alii. She thinks I¡¯m not strong enough and should stop competing? Is she mad? I have no use for credits or whatever garbage she¡¯d reward me with.


    I beat her [Domain], didn¡¯t I? I would¡¯ve easily killed the one Peerless I¡¯ve fought if that coward hadn¡¯t used their filthy tech either. Not strong enough! I¡¯ll show that witch the true meaning of strength. I need wins and crystals, not credits. I need to replace my gear.


    <hr><hr>


    Marbrouk said, ¡°Hey, look at the screen. The program updated. It looks like¡­yes, they canceled all the weapon energy events.¡±


    John cursed loudly. He was certain to sweep those events. He took a deep breath to calm himself.


    Avatar wouldn¡¯t allow John to train with external energy until he was level 26, but level 31 was the level she recommended he wait for ¨C low Platinum or low Diamond.


    When John could utilize external energy, his ability to fling weapon energy would increase significantly. He already could throw it further and with more capacity to damage than most Diamonds and Salts. But most Diamonds and Salts cared little about weapon energy.


    Once John utilized external energy, he believed all his attacks would be devastating.


    It took way too long to charge up a weapon energy attack enough that it traveled a good distance and inflicted decent damage to utilize it that way in true combat. John could fling it much more quickly, but then it only traveled a short distance before dissipating and caused little damage even when it reached its target.


    Most cultivators saw weapon energy as a neat but ultimately useless trick outside of a few situational uses. John knew there was real potential there. He practiced with it diligently. And he wouldn¡¯t wait until low Platinum to utilize external energy. He wasn¡¯t like other cultivators. The same rules didn¡¯t apply to him, and when he was Silver, he would convince Avatar of that.


    John asked Marbrouk to collect his fees and bets for the weapon energy events and roll all the crystals into a new wager for the Gold FFA. He still had to focus and learn what he could of the opponents he¡¯d be facing in the Free-for-Alls and Duels. The competition was stiffer than he expected. There were some Platinums he was really worried about. Tonight was his only chance to increase his wealth. He had to win, no matter what, and no matter the risk.


    As Hux says, though he only follows the advice when it will get him into trouble, and not when it truly matters ¨C no risk, no reward.


    John was watching the Gold and Platinum Supremes he missed. One of the Platinum competitors he was really worried about was accompanied by a Gold, but the Gold hadn¡¯t fought in the Gold Supreme.


    John could tell the Platinum held back while fighting. Many did, but the Platinum held back while also fighting like a real monster. The Platinum¡¯s race was called Yellow of the planet Yellow, and the NCS said they were biosynths rumored to have positronic neuron enhanced brains. It was also rumored that some Yellow were alpha-types.


    Why the NCS didn¡¯t stick to its usual naming convention with that race instead of calling them yellowans or something like that was a mystery to John, as well as why Yellow was capitalized.


    Biosynths usually started off as normal organic life that eventually merged with computers or machines in some way, but organic and machine mergers were usually considered cyborgs. There were synthetic-based life forms that naturally evolved, as John was carbon-based, but they were referred to as zeta-types, whereas biosynths were beta-types, the same as John.


    Questions of biosynths aside, John knew the Platinum of that race would be a very worthy foe. He was glad he hadn¡¯t bet more on the Platinum FFA and Duels. He wished there was footage of the Gold biosynth fighting something so he¡¯d know if he should be worried about that tier of events too.


    Another arena fighter arrived, a woman named Kren, a fan favorite, and the crowd went wild. She was an Exalted so John wouldn¡¯t be facing her.


    ¡°Hey,¡± said Hux as he elbowed John. ¡°Look at the board. They¡¯re really screwing you with this.¡±


    John looked at the board. His heart filled with anxiety and anger. Tiers were now merged into two groups for both the Free-for-All and the Duels.


    Silvers, Golds, and Platinums were one grouping. Diamonds and Salts for the only other. Bronze tier was removed completely. Only the Transcendent tiers were grouped normally, holding an event for low, mid-low, and mid tiers.


    John had many different bets for Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum Free-for-All and Duels. He stood up and made his way to the bookmakers. I still won¡¯t stand by peacefully while being robbed.

 B3 Chapter 6 - Free-for-All

    ¡°That isn¡¯t my problem. I made wagers for specific odds and payouts. I have slips. Have you no honor?¡±


    The Gold-tier bookmaker crossed his arms and said, ¡°Look, Bronze, if an event is canceled, we give refunds. We don¡¯t roll bets over to completely new events with different competitors, half of which have dropped out already. You think I wanted this to happen? I¡¯m taking a bath here. And you¡¯re holding up the line. Make a bet or take a hike.¡±


    ¡°I made bets on me fighting in events I¡¯m still fighting in. You¡¯ll honor the bets you accepted from me at the odds and payouts stated on my slips.¡±


    The bookmaker laughed and said, ¡°No.¡± He poked John in the chest and added, ¡°I won¡¯t.¡±


    The bookmaker stopped laughing as John¡¯s fist smashed into his face, sending him flying backwards.


    John was desperate. All his major bets had been invalidated. The new payouts for him winning weren¡¯t terrible, but they weren¡¯t nearly as favorable as his initial bets. And with the new mixed tiers, he now had to beat all the Platinums too.


    Time was running short. There were only two events left before the Free-for-All started and John had three other bookmakers to visit and somehow convince to honor the old slips. It was the only way.


    Tonight was the night. The anxiety John felt growing in him was almost palpable. He had to win big. He had to make enough to outfit himself. He didn¡¯t even own a weapon. His whole reason for coming to the Kotown arena was being flushed down the drain. He wouldn¡¯t tolerate it. He had to force the bookmakers to honor their original slips.


    John went to kick the bookmaker and cursed as a brute appeared out of nowhere. The brute was only Platinum, but his tier didn¡¯t matter. Peerless were obeyed without question. John held his kick and stood peacefully.


    The brute, brows furrowed in anger as usual, asked, ¡°What seems to be the problem here?¡±


    Getting back on his feet, holding his bleeding face, the bookmaker pointed at John and said, ¡°He broke the Empire¡¯s Peace and assaulted me! Arrest him!¡±


    When the dust settled, John wasn¡¯t arrested. It made him feel little and like he couldn¡¯t handle his own problems, but Alii Nani Victor interceded again. She made a deal all the bookmakers were happy with, even if John wasn¡¯t.


    If John won all his old wagers he held slips for, he stood to win two blue-green crystals and just under three dark-green crystals, worth about 456,000 clear crystals in total.


    After being refunded, all of John¡¯s wealth was split evenly between the bookmakers and went into a new bet. Just one bet. All or nothing. A bet that didn¡¯t favor John at all.


    If John won the Free-for-All and all the Duels for the Silver/Gold/Platinum grouping, he would receive 456,000 crystals. The four bookmakers would pay him a tenth of that amount each, totaling 40% of winnings. Nani Victor would cover the other 60%.


    The bookmakers were all very happy. John wasn¡¯t. He wanted to owe the Peerless nothing. Now he felt like he did. It wouldn¡¯t bother him so much if the Alii hadn¡¯t caused the situation requiring him to need her help. And now he was stuck with one all-or-nothing bet. He didn¡¯t like his chances against those two Platinums at all. The Gold biosynth could be a problem too.


    If the bookmaker had just honored the original slips, everything would¡¯ve been fine. Now I¡¯m indebted to one of my enemies and stuck with a bad bet. John added a new name to his vengeance list.


    <hr><hr>


    The light was still black. It would turn orange for a minute before flashing green, indicating the event was about to begin. No buffs or any manifestations could be cast or in effect before the light turned white and the Free-for-All officially started.


    John was in his battle-mind and had sent vital essence to enhance his speed. He was late to the event and missed the announcements. Or missed all of them but the late announcement stating he would be fighting in the Silver/Gold/Platinum grouping Free-for-All too.


    The moon he was on, Fe En, had something called a retrograde orbit around its planet, Kliee.


    There was an artificial day cycle for the city of Victor. Night had just cycled on and the pretend sky disappeared. John was able to see Kliee very clearly now. Seeing the giant planet so clearly and so close caused him a good deal of nervousness. He had never even imagined anything like his current view. He disliked it.


    No Silvers had signed up for the new FFA. There were only two Golds, 12 Platinums, and John. Originally, there were way more entrants for each individual tier before they were merged.


    John wished he had more time to study his opponents that were now evenly spaced out around the edge of the arena. The biosynths stood next to one another. He figured they¡¯d be working together, and their proximity to each other proved him right.


    After looking around at his opponents, John shook his head to clear it. He was suffering from information overload. He had learned too much too quickly and trying to keep it all straight in his head was making him lose focus.


    The biosynths would be trouble. John believed another Platinum ¨C a slim and graceful twig of a person he believed to be female wearing a hooded cloak that hid her face ¨C would also be trouble. She was too cool, confident, and unworried. Her race was makan of the planet Maka. She had the [Forsaken] [Title] but also the [Favored] [Title].


    John had been told he could often disregard the [Forsaken] [Title] when he felt it on someone. It was forced on too many people to be reliable. And the [Favored] [Title] was often a false flag.


    The light turned orange. John prepared. He had to be quick. The light started flashing green. As soon as it turned white, he stepped into the arena while sending a ton of essence into manifesting his [Hide] spell. He was worried he¡¯d be unbound and his best chance of winning spoiled, but he got the spell off without a hitch. He quickly began stealthing around the edge of the arena, close to the now active shield protecting the audience.


    John hoped he¡¯d be ignored. Most cultivators in the sector only saw four things as important factors ¨C Tree, tier, grade of race, and tech. Four things John possessed little enough of. He was two tiers lower than the Golds, and three lower than the Platinums. He wore no tech and used an arena supplied weapon while everyone else was using their own weapons and equipment. Having some strange [Titles] wouldn¡¯t save him.


    As soon as the light had turned white, the Platinum biosynth took two steps into the arena while forming a shield-manifestation. The Gold biosynth stepped behind the Platinum, using him as a shield.


    The female wearing the cloak disappeared from John¡¯s senses and he couldn¡¯t spare the attention to track her soul. He assumed she¡¯d be going after the biosynth anyway.


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    John felt a few Platinums have their manifestations unbound. Most stood in place and bombarded the biosynth. The biosynth ignored them all. He began casting his own manifestation, his eyes glowing orange as he raised one arm. The two arms of the Gold extended forward past either side of the Platinum¡¯s torso, still using the Platinum¡¯s body as a shield.


    None of the manifestations that landed on the biosynth seemed to bother him in any way. Six orange lights flared out of his hand and four flared out of each of the Gold¡¯s hands. At least one orange light streaked towards everyone in the arena, including John, even though he was hidden and stealthing.


    John rolled forward behind the other Gold combatant, a member of a race called aomians. The orange lights began hitting the closer combatants, knocking them all off their feet and sending them tumbling backwards. Each light ended the competition of its target.


    Two kaw¡¯n combatants, the crab-hand race, jumped out of the arena before the orange light could reach them, using the arena¡¯s shielding to protect themselves, but ending the contest for themselves too.


    The Gold John hid behind took one orange light in the chest that knocked her backwards. As she was flying through the air, the light meant for John went directly into her open mouth.


    Before the Gold landed, John knew she was dead.


    The aomians controlled six worlds, and one of those worlds had been conquered by the Peerless not that long ago. John wondered if that aomian was a Kahaka. Then he realized female Kahaka wouldn¡¯t be allowed to fight in the arena.


    Accidents happened. The biosynths didn¡¯t purposefully kill the aomian, but it meant they¡¯d have to pay a hefty fine as a penalty for causing a death.


    With a handful of unbinds and those orange lights, the biosynths took out nearly all their opposition in seconds.


    For a moment, John thought only three combatants remained ¨C the two biosynths and himself. He was still hidden in shadows and stealthing, so the biosynths shouldn¡¯t have been able to target him. He hoped they just got lucky.


    After quickly coming up with a desperate plan of attack, John felt a manifestation unbound in an area his orb-eye saw as empty. He turned his head and saw a soul rushing along the arena.


    The soul turned into the makan, her cloak billowing behind her as she ran forward drawing two pistols and shooting essence so rapidly that John knew her [Swiftness] was higher than his own.


    The biosynth didn¡¯t flinch or budge. He tanked the pistol shots as if they were mosquito bites.


    The makan, still charging forward, began deftly jumping over and dodging around a giant beam of orange light each biosynth channeled at her, avoiding it gracefully and by the skin of her teeth. The arena shook as those mighty beams hit the shield surrounding it. She flipped over a beam John was certain would get her and end the fight, and while in the air she threw a smoke grenade at the spot she¡¯d land on and an essence-infused knife.


    The knife thunked into the chest of the biosynth, ignored. The makan landed in a smoky area and jumped backwards, flipping high in the air while releasing a barrage of pistol shots. Every shot pinged harmlessly off the biosynth¡¯s face. Orange light flared from all four hands of the two biosynths. Twenty lights streaked at the makan. She flipped and jumped and dodged around every one of them.


    God Almighty, she¡¯s amazing, thought John. How she so adroitly and gracefully avoided all 20 lights kind of made his heart flutter with the stirrings of love.


    The whole time the makan had battled, she had been attempting to cast manifestations. The biosynths deftly unbound every one of them.


    Then the makan¡¯s luck ran out. A thick orange beam took her full in the face as she landed. Her face wasn¡¯t pretty. What flesh could be seen was scarred horribly, and the rest was either covered by a metal mask, bioware, or cybernetics ¨C John couldn¡¯t tell which. Still, that beam couldn¡¯t make her face uglier, though he thought her prowess and adroitness made her extremely appealing.


    That orange beam ended the makan¡¯s battle.


    John, having crept closer to the biosynths while they fought the makan, was gripping the sword he borrowed from the arena in a tail stance pointed behind him. He had crept closer, but not nearly close enough to physically attack his foes. He wasn¡¯t even certain his physical attacks could hurt the Platinum after seeing him tank everything else that was thrown at him without even blinking.


    The biosynths easily unbound the manifestations of Platinums. They had kept the powerful makan shut down the whole fight. John knew he¡¯d never get a manifestation off. He was still hidden in shadows. Nevertheless, three hands began to rise in his direction, but half lazily, as if they had already won and he was no risk to them at all.


    John knew he stood little chance against the two remaining combatants, but little chance wasn¡¯t no chance, and he was already on the very last steps of performing a powerful blade energy attack.


    As the biosynths¡¯ manifestations were releasing, a line of blue light cut deep into the chest of the Platinum, bowling the man backwards into the Gold, and knocking both combatants out of the arena.


    Then it was John¡¯s turn to dodge the streaks of orange light, thankful his energy attack interrupted his enemy¡¯s manifestations and he only faced eight lights in total. He swatted two aside with his borrowed sword and managed to dodge most of the others. A few nicked him. One got him pretty good, but not good enough to matter.


    John became the winner as soon as the biosynths were knocked out of the arena.


    The stadium erupted in cheers. While casting his [Heal] manifestation, John sent the vital essence enhancing his speed to heal his badly injured calf. He was very surprised [Emergency Heal] hadn¡¯t activated. He continued working on the injury with [Heal] again until he could put weight on his leg. He knew he¡¯d be fine before the Duels began. He¡¯d have a little time to meditate too.


    While winning the Free-for-All was great, especially against foes like the makan and the biosynth, John knew the night was far from over. Many Golds and Platinums that didn¡¯t enter the Free-for-All signed up for the Duels. Both the makan and the two biosynths were signed up for that event too.


    The biosynths didn¡¯t see John as a threat before. He won the Free-for-All due to that. A blade energy attack by a Bronze was a ridiculous notion. Blade energy attacks traveling the fifteen paces his had was a task most Diamonds would struggle with. Blade energy attacks traveling the fifteen paces his had while also being powerful enough to travel even further and still damage so much was ridiculous to consider. An absolutely impossible feat for a Bronze to accomplish.


    John knew the biosynths would be gunning for him now.


    The Platinum biosynth rose to its feet, a red welt across its chest, its emotionless face still somehow conveyed it wanted to murder John badly.


    <hr><hr>


    Being the lowest tier to join the Duels, John was fighting first. There were many Silvers participating. As long as combatants put in an honest effort, even if they lost, they¡¯d get a crystal reward much larger than the entrance fee, making the risk worth it.


    Even with the tiers being grouped, the Duels would proceed as they usually did, starting with the Silver matches, then Golds, then Platinums.


    Both combatants were given a card with two questions setting the terms of their duel.


    The first question asked what winning condition was preferred ¨C to the death, first blood, or submission.


    The second question asked what method was preferred ¨C full use of manifestations, self-manifestations and gear only, or no manifestations, including that from gear.


    If one combatant selected to the death and another submission, the choice would be split, and first blood would be the term set.


    In cases where one combatant selected first blood and another selected submission, seniority ruled and the choice of the combatant with the higher rank, or, if both combatants were the same rank, the first to achieve the rank, would be the term set.


    If the combatants were at different tiers, the higher tier would dictate both terms. Participants could bow out if they found terms unacceptable.


    The fine imposed on the biosynth for the accidental killing in the Free-for-All flashed over and over on the screen. Twenty thousand crystals. Four times the value of the crystals dropped by the victim. The organizers didn¡¯t want accidents.


    Not having cards to fill out, John was meditating to help heal his calf as the Platinum biosynth approached and interrupted him. The man, or thing, stood a couple heads higher than John, possessed a lithe build, and moved very gracefully despite his stationary performance in the Free-for-All. He was wearing a tight white skinsuit that covered everything from neck to toe, including the hands. It looked as if even his belt and pouches were part of the same skinsuit.


    The man¡¯s face was humanoid but was a deep red and looked plastic. He had completely yellow eyes. A thick helmet and massive bracers were the only pieces of armor he wore.


    If the biosynth had a weapon, it was either hidden or in a storage device. The skinsuit had been repaired and there was no sign of the large welt across his chest. The thing¡¯s lips barely moved as it said, ¡°Withdraw or forfeit. If you stand against my ward, you will die. You have been warned.¡±


    The man spun and briskly walked off before a reply could be given. John was just going to repeat the exact same thing he was told back to the biosynth, so he thought it was better he had no chance to reply. He noticed the makan looking at him and waved at her. She scowled and turned away.

 B3 Chapter 7 - Sour Grapes (and stub notice for book 1 May 19th)

    The fights against the Silvers went as John expected. His opponents were only looking to earn some quick and easy crystals. Most completely forsook manifestations and set submission as the terms. He did his best to ensure the battles lasted long enough and were entertaining enough that his enemies didn¡¯t get hit with the poor performance penalty.


    The Gold Duels went largely the same. John faced no one of note and easily beat every match. He had a suspicion the organizers kept him from fighting the Gold biosynth for as long as possible.


    When it was finally time for them to face one another, the terms chosen by the biosynth were full use of manifestations and to the death, just as John expected.


    ¡°The next Duel is between the final Gold facing the only Bronze competitor,¡± said the announcer over the speakers. ¡°Though not a finale¡­let¡¯s face it folks, this is the Gold finale. You¡¯ve seen plenty of him tonight ¨C holder of two unique [Titles] proving his prowess, Nether-tainted, winner of the Silver through Platinum Free-for-All, it¡¯s John of Dirt, peak Bronze!¡±


    The crowd¡¯s cheering was polite though subdued. John wasn¡¯t a crowd favorite. They didn¡¯t like an uppity Bronze doing so well for so long. He assumed they wanted to see him get his comeuppance. People might love an underdog, but no one liked a Bronze refusing to learn his place.


    ¡°His opponent, a visitor to this sector, a biosynth, has performed astoundingly well in the Free-for-All and Duels. And, same as its opponent, it has no clan, family, or surname ¨C Thirteen of Yellow, mid-high Gold!¡±


    The crowd cheered much more enthusiastically for John¡¯s opponent, named Thirteen. The announcer screamed, ¡°Full manifestations and to the death!¡± Hearing the terms caused the crowd to go wild.


    Thirteen was smaller than the Platinum biosynth. John thought there was something a little feminine about the Gold. It moved more gracefully than its higher-tier kin, and stood slightly differently, but would look at its kin and adjust to match instead of doing what came naturally.


    Since the two biosynths seemed to have the same powerset, John would try and figure out how to beat the Platinum during this fight. He hoped he¡¯d be able to get some manifestations off, but he doubted his opponent would let him.


    Thirteen certainly wouldn¡¯t allow John the time to build up a powerful blade energy attack again. He would have to get in close and win the old-fashioned way. He had to find the biosynth¡¯s weaknesses and some way to physically damage foes able to shrug off attacks that would gravely injure others.


    The light flashed green. John slipped into his battle-mind and made adjustments to his breathing and cycling techniques. He sent vital essence to enhance his speed. He knew [Hide] and stealth wouldn¡¯t help. The biosynth saw right through the spell and his [Skill]. He had a different strategy.


    As soon as the light turned white, John tried casting [Multi-Enhancement] while darting forward. His opponent was over three hundred paces away. He assumed there was a better chance of Thirteen ignoring a buff than an attack, or he would¡¯ve tried for [Glyph of Plasma Barrage]. Thirteen easily unbound his buff, its eyes glowing along with its raised hands.


    To test the waters, as John ran forward, he attempted to unbind the manifestation of Thirteen. He failed terribly. Thirteen¡¯s hands flared and eight orange lights streaked towards John.


    John twisted as he jumped, batting a few of the lights away with his blade. One light nicked his back as he contorted around it. He landed and dove to the side and the other lights rammed into the ground. As he got his feet under him, he saw eight more orange lights streaking towards him.


    John sprinted forward and jumped directly at the lights. Since the Duel started, Thirteen had been casually walking forward as it released manifestations, slowly closing the distance with John as he barreled towards his enemy.


    Both the orange lights and John streaked towards each other.


    While looking at himself from above, John twisted and contorted around the lights, performing a feat of agility the likes of which he never had, knowing if the makan watched, she was impressed. The lights curved around to track John. He landed and rolled, standing right in front of Thirteen, swinging his sword mightily at his enemy¡¯s head only to have it blocked by a bracer on an extended arm.


    Just as the orange lights were about to hit John¡¯s back, he dove downwards, and the lights battered into his enemy¡¯s essence-shield as John also swept its legs out from under it. Except Thirteen somehow ended its own manifestation. The lights petered out before reaching the shield and the biosynth casually jumped over John¡¯s sweeping leg.


    The plastic face of the biosynth showed no emotion as it landed back on its feet. John tried casting [Glyph of Plasma Barrage]. The manifestation was unbound the moment it was initiated.


    A sword blurred towards the waist of Thirteen. Both of the biosynth¡¯s arms exited its essence-shield to trap the blade between its bracers, twisted, and shattered the blade.


    John began to batter the essence-shield with his fists enhanced with blunt energy, an act that seemed to take Thirteen by surprise, as it did nothing to prevent his punches from landing. Throwing blunt energy so quickly meant it was extremely weak and did very little extra damage, but in this fight, every bit would count.


    The essence-shield shattered. John¡¯s fists began landing on metal bracers. His kicks were caught harmlessly, sometimes painfully, on Thirteen¡¯s blocking legs, the blunt energy doing nothing to his enemy. For a solid couple of minutes, the combatants fought in unarmed combat as the crowd cheered, limbs flying so quickly only blurs could be seen.


    Not once did Thirteen attack. It only defended itself while toying with its prey. John was fine with that. He set up for a flying armbar. His left hand went over Thirteen¡¯s right elbow, his right hand went behind the head, his leg wrapped around her thigh, and he flung the deceptively heavy biosynth around, landing on his back, his legs over Thirteen¡¯s torso, the biosynth¡¯s right arm extended straight over his chest, his hands holding its wrist and forearm, and he began to squeeze as hard as he could.


    While squeezing and trying to break the elbow, John tried his fangs against the hard plastic-like skin of his enemy¡¯s hand with no luck at all. Plan A, draining Thirteen of vital essence, went out the window and he squeezed harder, knowing he could at least take one of his enemy¡¯s arms out of play.


    Thirteen¡¯s hand was touching his upper chest. When John was at the house of the three witches in Canada, the Silver demon named Morgoros overwhelmed his energy system and meridians by sending his own essence into John¡¯s, causing paralysis. It could only be done when there was a big tier difference, such as a Silver and Wood, as far as he knew.


    John, being far more powerful than others of his tier, assumed he was now immune to that trick. All attempts to overwhelm his energy system in that way had failed since he had ascended to Copper.


    But John wasn¡¯t immune. Thirteen forced its essence into him and overwhelmed his energy system. His body stopped working.


    Thirteen rolled off John and took its time getting to its feet, its red, plastic face blank of all emotion. He struggled to regain control of his body as he watched the biosynth stand behind him. Unlike when Morgoros did this to him before and he could feel nothing at all, he felt tingling throughout his body. He wiggled his fingers.


    The thick beam manifestation felt very different than the streaking lights. John knew the hand pointed at him would release a thick beam, the same that took out the makan during the Free-for-All.


    John tried unbinding the manifestation but failed miserably. He felt into the biosynth. The thing had plenty of something like blood. Thirteen rejected John¡¯s presence inside of it. He struggled to roll out of the way but failed badly at that too.


    If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    That was it. There was nothing left for John to try. There was nothing else he could do. There was no way to stop or avoid the manifestation. It was going to hit him.


    Thirteen, standing a few paces behind John, its hand angled downward at his chest, released the beam.


    With a titanic effort, John forced his neck upwards and took the powerful beam on his head.


    During the first battle John had ever fought in, he took a mighty blow to the head, and that blow failed to buckle him. Like a nut, his head was tough to crack. His tribe called him Nut from that day onward.


    If the beam hit his chest, John thought he¡¯d live, remain conscious, but be too injured to continue fighting effectively. His head was hard bone, and if his head wasn¡¯t able to withstand the beam, he wouldn¡¯t be conscious or alive to feel the shame of defeat or worry about all his lost wealth. It was a risk, but a calculated one.


    And the risk paid off. The name John¡¯s tribe gave him proved true, but his head hurt terribly. A message flashed in his eyes stating [Emergency Heal] was on cooldown, but he was alive, conscious, and still able to fight.


    The tremendous pain that racked John¡¯s head also removed the numbness and tingling from the rest of his body. He rolled and dove away from the next beam, a beam that was channeled and continuously required him to dive, roll, and jump away and over it for what felt like an eternity.


    John couldn¡¯t even spare a moment to use his orb-eye to check his head injury. Thirteen was no longer toying with her prey. It was out for blood and released everything it had at him. Even small movements caused pain to throb through his injured head. He knew some tendon necessary to move the head correctly was gone, and he was never more thankful for having his orb-eye to look around with.


    For what seemed like hours to John, he was completely on defense. Every ounce of his concentration went towards just staying alive. He was forced back, down, and across the arena as he held onto life by the skin of his teeth. One wrong move would spell his doom.


    At some point, Thirteen recast its essence-shield and some other buffs. The only two offensive manifestations the biosynth had cast were the streaking lights and the thick beam that could be channeled. As a chain made of bright light tethered John to a spot, he learned his enemy had at least one more trick in its repertoire.


    The brightly glowing chain stretched from John¡¯s ankle to the arena floor. At first, he had about ten paces of slack, but that slack lessened as the chain shrunk. He dove around streaking orange lights with less and less room to do so.


    John was panicking. He knew that was the worst and least helpful thing he could do. He needed time to think. He tightened up his battle-mind and time seemed to slow a little. He wished he could also attain the clarity and added detachment his [Multi-Enhancement] buff provided. As he twisted and contorted around streaking lights, narrowly avoiding them in the increasingly small area he had to maneuver around in, he attempted to cast that buff.


    And instead of the buff being unbound, John was finally able to finish a manifestation. He became stronger and faster, his mind cleared, his emotions dulled, and time seemed to slow a little more as [Multi-Enhancement] applied its effects to him.


    For years, John¡¯s [Unbind Defense] [Skill] was stuck at 28. That not only kept him in the realm of being a body cultivator, but it also prevented him from forming [Synergies]. [Unbind Defense] wasn¡¯t a required [Skill] to form [Synergies], but for him it was. Nothing was more frustrating than having so many mighty manifestations and his enemies always preventing him from using them.


    But that [Skill] had to be at 31, Journeyman Mastery, before John could include it and finally form his [Synergies], or he would¡¯ve formed them long ago.


    Unbinding manifestations and protecting against unbinds worked delicately, like quickly solving puzzles while dodging around blocks and trying not to touch anything else. It couldn¡¯t be brute forced. It was done softly, strategically, and deftly. Experienced practitioners could work so softly and adroitly that it felt more violent instead of skillful, but seeming so didn¡¯t mean it was so.


    John trained diligently with both [Unbind Manifestation] and [Unbind Defense]. He knew all the theories and rules. For years he had been stuck. Avatar couldn¡¯t understand and had no idea why it wasn¡¯t clicking for him. He just couldn¡¯t progress. He was doing something wrong neither he nor Avatar could isolate.


    They both hoped as he improved with [Unbind Manifestation], something would click or become apparent, finally ending what was preventing his [Skill] from increasing. But nothing ever clicked. The issue never ended. Instead, [Unbind Manifestation] also became stuck, but at 30 instead of 28.


    Both unbinds and protecting against unbinds had to be done in a certain way. The rules were old and well known. Like hurdling, the best and only competitive way to perform that task was established long ago and proven true ever since. Minor adjustments could be made, but every hurdler followed the same script, the winner decided by the individual athlete and not the basic technique.


    John had witnessed the rules of both [Unbind Manifestation] and [Unbind Defense] ignored before. A different script followed. Completely different rules applied. And to devastating effect. He had been on the receiving end of that devastating effect.


    Ridge-head, one of the abnormal dark ones John fought in New York City, was not deft in his unbinds. That monster would smash John¡¯s manifestation apart while it was forming, causing pain to resound throughout John¡¯s meridians. That monster had no skill or strategy at all. The only rule that beast followed was brute force.


    But John didn¡¯t think of Ridge-head until after manifesting [Multi-Enhancement]. While Thirteen was attempting to unbind his spell, John was panicking. Going against all his training and everything he had been taught, he kept a part of his mind on his spell while lashing out like a wild beast at the presence he felt near his lower dantian. It somehow worked. He smashed that presence, ejecting it. [Multi-Enhancement] continued to cast and completed successfully.


    Nothing ever clicked for John. He never figured out what he was doing wrong. He just made his own rules, and his natural instinct towards brute force had, luckily, worked. And worked well.


    Next, John surrounded himself with [Multi-Shield]. An orange light battered into it and as he dodged around the other lights, he cast it again. The second shield broke just as he finished infusing [Glyph of Plasma Barrage] with essence.


    Seven yellowish meteorites with an orange glow formed about fifteen paces in the air above Thirteen. As the balls streaked down towards the biosynth, the chain binding John disappeared, giving him the room needed to avoid the last few of the lights targeting him.


    John had defended his manifestations the same way when Thirteen tried unbinding [Multi-Shield] and [Glyph of Plasma Barrage]. Thirteen¡¯s touch was far more cautious for the second and third unbind attempts. He hoped that was due to his enemy¡¯s meridians resounding with pain.


    Ever since John could remember, he had wanted nothing more than to have fire billow forth from his hand, setting his enemies ablaze, seeing them run around while alit, screaming in agony as they burned to a crisp.


    John had achieved that dream. Fire could billow forth from his hands with his mighty [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet].


    It was said plasma was a type of fire and fire itself was a plasma too. And it was also said that plasma was a state of matter, and there were two kinds of it ¨C hot and cold.


    John didn¡¯t fully understand the science of it, but he knew the plasma of his [Glyph of Plasma Barrage] burned hot.


    When John cast the glyph on virtual targets while training in his [Mind¡¯s Eye], those virtual targets would burn wonderfully and in a way that made his heart sing and lighten. All his troubles and pain would disappear for a moment, and, for that moment, he¡¯d be gladdened and unburdened.


    Thirteen tried diving out of the way of the yellow meteorites that barreled towards it, but the streaking balls tracked and homed in on targets, the same as Thirteen¡¯s own orange lights did.


    The biosynth managed to dodge a couple of the meteorites. Two yellow balls hit its essence-shield and shattered it.


    Three meteorites of plasma battered into and knocked Thirteen off its feet, sending it flying backwards over ten paces. Red bubbled up like boiling water as the plasma ate its way through the body of the biosynth.


    Thirteen¡¯s face finally showed real emotion as it screamed out in agony. John¡¯s heart sang and became lighter. For a moment, he was gladdened and unburdened.


    The face of the Platinum biosynth also showed real emotion as it contorted in rage. It yelled out, ¡°No! Princess! Your Highness! No!¡± It beat on and cast manifestations at the field surrounding the arena as it screamed and watched Thirteen die.


    A Transcendent brute appeared next to the Platinum biosynth and tried to restrain it. Overly enraged, the biosynth attacked the brute. A new Transcendent appeared. Dark cords completely bound its body and the Transcendents flew the biosynth away.


    The Platinum stared at John until it was out of sight, its usual emotionless face filled with hate and murderous intent.


    Thirteen picked the terms. She decided our battle would be to the death. I can¡¯t be blamed for the choices she made herself, thought John.


    John looked away. He finally had the opportunity to look at and address his head injury. It was pretty bad. His head hurt terribly. He went to collect the three light-green crystals his dead enemy dropped. Those were worth a thousand clear crystals each. He needed every bit of wealth he could get his hands on. He only wished he could take the helmet, bracers, and any other possessions too.


    With the biosynths out of the Duels, a bunch of new Platinums were now lined up to pay the fee and enter.


    John had finally, finally passed a bottleneck that had been infuriating him for years. He took time to celebrate and appreciate that feat.


    Finally, John thought. Finally.


    John also just won a battle against a mighty foe. He would soon battle many other powerful enemies, including the makan. If he ended up winning the all-or-nothing bet, he¡¯d have some wealth again. He needed new gear, so he had to win. He couldn¡¯t allow himself to lose.


    John was alive, and as long as he was alive, he was creeping ever closer to his goal of destroying the Peerless Empire. He had a lot to be happy about.


    While looking around for the makan, a thought of Amber entered John¡¯s mind and his mood soured.

 B3 Chapter 8 - Synergy and Ancient Symbols

    John had to learn all the muscles and tendons in the body a while ago for an anatomy related [Skill], but he had forgotten the names of most. Same with the bones. He could only remember the big and important ones he had already known long before Avatar¡¯s classes.


    The lower left area of John¡¯s head took the brunt of the beam attack, and one of the big tendons that connect the neck and head was gone, making head movement difficult and painful. Part of the skull and spine were showing.


    The pain wasn¡¯t much of an issue. Losing head mobility was the problem. Growing a big tendon and all that muscle back would take some time. Before the Tree of Life, it would¡¯ve taken months. John wasn¡¯t sure anymore. He healed much faster now.


    Marbrouk ran John¡¯s three new light-green crystals up to Hux to place new wagers with. Since he needed to meditate, Hux was told to just keep rolling John¡¯s winnings into the next fight. If any other Duels were to the death, Marbrouk would quickly run those crystals up to Hux too.


    While waiting to be announced, John was half-meditating. Every little bit of healing helped. He was excited and trying to hold off on finally creating [Synergies]. His [Unbind Defense] had shot up to 40, right to the peak of Journeyman Mastery, at the cusp of Expert Mastery.


    Everyone agreed that the higher the [Skill] Mastery used for [Synergies], the better the effect. If [Unbind Defense] shot up 12 points from protecting against three unbind attempts, John was certain he could get another point in the next Duel.


    A new wave of excitement and relief flowed through John. He finally passed the bottleneck plaguing him for so long. His chances to sweep the Duels shot up. His opponents would hesitate to pick full manifestations as a term knowing they¡¯d have to survive the plasma meteorites. He expected the makan to pick full manifestations, but other than her, there were only a few other Platinum competitors he thought might.


    John hoped applying the same unorthodox methods he had with [Unbind Defense] to [Unbind Manifestation] would have the same results. If it did, he hoped his unbinds were as painful to his opponents¡¯ energy system as Ridge-head¡¯s had been to his own. Even if it didn¡¯t work with unbinding manifestation, just being able to protect against unbinds now was a game changer.


    Then John noticed someone feeling into him with their senses, much the same as he did when using the blood power, except there was no malicious intent. It was done to size John up and see if any information could be gathered. Still, doing so was considered very rude.


    After looking around with his orb-eye, John determined the source of the intrusion was the opponent he¡¯d next battle. The terms of the Duel were to submission and self-manifestations and gear only, chosen by his avian opponent. He had learned that race was called qraads.


    Using his new technique, John violently expelled the Platinum. It looked like the expulsion caused at least some shock to the qraad.


    John felt his harmony increase. With a big smile on his face, he excitedly entered his Mind¡¯s Eye.


    Before John could speak, Avatar said, ¡°You felt it correctly. [Unbind Defense] is now within the Expert Mastery tier. No sense holding off any longer. Next Mastery is Adept at 61. I hope you¡¯ve come to realize the advice Sublime Sunshine gave you regarding [Synergies] is superstitious hogwash. Whereas my advice is based on fact.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯ll see how it goes,¡± replied John. ¡°There¡¯s no harm trying out what he said. If nothing calls out to me, I¡¯ll go with your recommendation. Is that recommendation still the same? Maybe I don¡¯t need to include [Unbind Defense] anymore?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re the one that said including it was non-negotiable. It¡¯s a good idea if you still plan on fighting higher tiers so often. For alternatives, there¡¯s¡­¡±


    John tuned Avatar out. Fighting higher tiers was an absolute necessity, and so was using manifestations during those fights.


    With [Synergies], up to four [Skills] were picked, grouped together, and somewhat merged. What was called synergized. The [Skills] chosen would increase faster and influence and change one another in ways that would be unknown until after they were synergized.


    One of the best benefits of [Synergies] was that it determined [Class], which would provide a unique and different kind of manifestation or [Perk]-like benefit based on the [Skills] chosen, [Skill] level and Mastery, and how the [Skills] interacted.


    It was a common belief that the name of the [Class] was an indicator of where the cultivator was going ¨C what path they were following, and how high they¡¯d climb. Avatar said that wasn¡¯t true and [Class] name, more often than not, wasn¡¯t a great predictor of anything. For the purpose of the NCS, the name of the [Class] was mainly to classify [Synergy] groupings and help name the manifestation or [Perk]-like benefit the [Synergy] provided.


    John could choose any [Skill] for the [Synergy] group as long as it was Journeyman or higher Mastery, 31 or over. Two to four [Skills] could be grouped together and synergized. Everyone agreed picking less than four [Skills] was about the stupidest thing someone could do, but it could be done.


    There were a ton of choices and strategies John could follow. Avatar and Sunshine had slightly different advice. [Unbind Defense] was a given. Both thought he should pick [Leech Feckless Retreat Technique], his meditation technique, which was also his highest level [Skill] at 96.48, Legendary Mastery.


    They both were of a similar mind as Preceptor Muzaran and thought [Unbind Manifestation] was a necessity. But that¡¯s where their agreement ended.


    For the last [Skill], Sunshine told John to see which called out to be joined with the others. Avatar thought John should disregard that advice and pick a common [Skill] he had never tracked called [Runic Knowledge].


    John would see if a specific [Skill] called out to him. If one didn¡¯t, he knew what he¡¯d probably pick. [Essence Manipulation], along with his affinities towards his own concepted essence, or quintessence, and his aspect levels, determined how well John controlled and manipulated the essence and energy within his own body and his capacity to form it into manifestations. Currently, his [Essence Manipulation] was at 47, also Adept Mastery. It had increased by a point since he last checked his summary.


    [Runic Knowledge], in John¡¯s opinion, would be a stupid [Skill] to select for [Synergy]. It covered his knowledge of runes. Runes were the basic building blocks of all the ways essence was manifested.


    When John had acquired the Tech 4 NCS after leaving the NetherRealm, [Runic Knowledge] was already 33, Journeyman Mastery. Since he had learned so much since then about various runes and [Runecrafting], it had shot up and currently was at 67, Adept Mastery.


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    To John, selecting [Runic Knowledge] for [Synergy], a [Skill] the NCS considered common and didn¡¯t show in the summary by default since it was so basic, would be a stupid and wasted pick. He had a ton of [Skills] that would fit his goals much better. His sword [Skill] was at Grandmaster Mastery. He had a ton of other useful [Skills] in Master level Mastery too.


    John thought either his cycling technique or breathing technique would be much better choices since the highest Mastery [Skill] going into the [Synergy] was his meditation technique, but not as good a choice as [Essence Manipulation].


    The possible choices were many.


    John would see if a [Skill] called out to him before deciding, and he prayed if a [Skill] did call out, that [Skill] wasn¡¯t [Runic Knowledge].


    Once John picked the four [Skills], Avatar would guide him through the process of synergizing them. Then he¡¯d have a [Class] and a new manifestation or [Perk]-like ability named after his new [Class].


    After navigating to the [Skills and Synergies] tab, John dragged and dropped [Leech Feckless Retreat Technique] into the first [Synergy] block.


    The blocks disappeared and John¡¯s vision blurred to the point he couldn¡¯t see. When his eyes were able to refocus, he was looking at a tab he had never seen before. The GUI elements were very different from the rest of the NCS, which had always been uniform and consistent.


    The words the NCS used had never been of an Earthly language. It was called ¡®divine script,¡¯ and it could be understood and read without the reader knowing how to read at all.


    When John looked at ¡®divine script,¡¯ it wasn¡¯t translated like other words in languages he didn¡¯t know. He just understood the words. What he was looking at now was very different. He couldn¡¯t read this new script at all, and the words weren¡¯t translated.


    There were four symbols spaced out, three forming a large triangle with the fourth symbol in the center. The strange, untranslated script showed both above and below each symbol. The scripts on top were larger than the scripts below, and there was much more of it below the symbols.


    A glowing light connected each symbol together, creating a large triangle shape.


    The top symbol was a grouping of the three moons. On the left, the waxing crescent, full moon in the middle, and the waning crescent on the right.


    In the center of the triangle, one circle within the other, were two snakes, each eating its own tail, the ouroboros. The outer snake faced right, and the snake within faced left.


    On the bottom right of the triangle were two pentagrams next to each other. The first pointing up, the second pointing down.


    On the bottom left was a spiral within a square.


    All four were ancient symbols very familiar to John. He had seen each many times used by many cultures throughout his long life.


    ¡°Avatar, what is this? Why did the tab change to this? And why can¡¯t I read any of it?¡±


    Avatar popped into John¡¯s vision. ¡°You opened a new tab. It¡¯s blank. What are you trying to do? Separate [Synergies] from the [Skills and Synergies] tab?¡±


    ¡°Blank? I didn¡¯t open this,¡± replied John. ¡°It opened itself. And it certainly isn¡¯t blank. The script isn¡¯t translating so I can¡¯t read what it says though.¡±


    ¡°John, I¡¯m looking through your perspective, seeing what you are, and you¡¯re looking at a blank tab you just opened a few moments ago. You definitely opened it. We have a log. Are you feeling okay?¡±


    ¡°Yes! I¡¯m fine. I¡¯m telling you, it opened itself. I dragged and dropped my meditation technique into the first [Synergy] field and this tab opened on its own. There¡¯s writing all over it, and symbols too. I know all the symbols but can¡¯t read any of the words. It isn¡¯t translating.¡±


    Avatar put on her glasses. ¡°Okay, well, we¡¯ll just go back to the [Skills and Synergies] tab and try again. There¡¯ve been some cases of entities hallucinating within their Mind¡¯s Eye, and you did just take a nasty head injury.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m telling you¡­never mind, I¡¯ll just do as you say.¡±


    John went back to the [Skills and Synergies] tab and dragged and dropped [Leech Feckless Retreat Technique] into the first [Synergy] block again. Then all the [Synergy] blocks disappeared.


    John¡¯s vision blurred terribly. When his eyes were able to refocus, he was looking at the same new tab with the symbols and words that didn¡¯t translate.


    ¡°The record shows you opened this tab again, John.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t. I¡¯m telling you. Just¡­just let me describe what I see.¡±


    Avatar looked down her nose at John. ¡°We feed you everything you¡¯re seeing. You¡¯d still have a Mind¡¯s Eye without the NCS, but it would be inaccessible at early tiers, and empty when you could enter it on your own. You see only what we want you to.¡±


    All the tabs disappeared. Avatar disappeared. All the GUI elements disappeared. But not the symbols and words.


    John heard Avatar¡¯s voice say, ¡°See? We stopped feeding you images. Your Mind¡¯s Eye is empty now.¡±


    ¡°Nope. I still see it. Plain as day.¡±


    After a pause, Avatar said, ¡°Okay, please describe what you¡¯re seeing to me.¡±


    John described the layout and symbols. Then he started to describe the script. ¡°On top of the moons, the first letter is like a partially melted ankh. Or, maybe like a P and T mixed together is a better way to describe it, with a big tail. Next letter is like a W but covered. And a little curved line in the front. It kind of looks like a boat. The next is¡­oh, I think I know what it means. I think it means something like mind. Mind or thinking. Thought.¡±


    Avatar¡¯s voice spoke out. ¡°Please describe the third letter.¡±


    John did. Avatar then had him describe every letter of every word. At some point while describing the letters of a new word, John somehow knew what it meant. When he finished, Avatar and the rest of the GUI reappeared and she said, ¡°Do you still see it?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    Avatar¡¯s glasses were gone, and she stood in the dignified way she used to always stand in when she was new. ¡°I can¡¯t tell you what I think this is. Per ancient agreement, there¡¯s things we can¡¯t discuss or teach.


    ¡°But it looks like you get your wish granted. We can only train [External Energy Manipulation] up to 15. The factors involved for [Skill] increases to and beyond Apprentice Mastery can¡¯t be simulated in a virtual environment. God Almighty, getting¡­getting that [Skill] to 31 at such low tiers is probably going to kill you. Just promise you¡¯ll only train in a safe environment away from people and property.¡±


    John had never seen Avatar stammer before. He said, ¡°I promise. I¡¯ll be safe.¡±


    The tab looked to be a never-before-seen type of [Synergy] system. If John completed the requirements for it, it looked like his reward would be much greater than the usual [Synergy].


    The spiral in the square represented something like ¡®body,¡¯ and had many [Perk] requirements John already met but one. The missing and grayed out [Perk] was the one Avatar already wanted him to get to help with his soft cap issue, called [Stalwart Vessel]. The three skills listed under it were [Mixed Combat Offense], [Mixed Body Control], and [Mixed Combat Defense].


    The pentagrams represented something like ¡®inner-power,¡¯ and considering the [Skills] listed under it and [Perk] requirements, all of which he met, he assumed it meant his energy system, his dantians and meridians. The [Skills] for it were [Leech Feckless Retreat Technique], [Breath of the Serpent Clan Endless Technique], and [Turmoil Within Tranquility Cycling Technique].


    The moons represented something like ¡®mind,¡¯ and he met every [Perk] requirement for that one too. Three [Skills] were listed, but one was grayed out, indicating it was an unmet requirement. The [Skills] listed were [Essence Manipulation], [External Energy Manipulation], and [Runic Knowledge].


    John¡¯s [External Energy Manipulation] was only 3, Neophyte Mastery. It was a [Skill] he wasn¡¯t supposed to practice for many tiers. But Avatar just gave him permission to train it.


    The only other grayed out item on the strange tab page was the outer snake in the center. The word describing the whole center meant something like ¡®vessel.¡¯ What went into the outer snake was a mystery.


    The inner circle had no word to figure out, only the outer circle did. John just couldn¡¯t understand that word. Unlike with the other words, nothing ever popped into his head as he focused on describing the letters to Avatar, though he did so many times.


    [Synergies] always had a maximum of four [Skills]. If he completed this strange [Synergy], he¡¯d have at least nine synergized [Skills], possibly ten if a [Skill] went into the outer circle in the center. Maybe eleven if completing the outer circle allowed something to go into the inner circle.


    John couldn¡¯t complete his [Synergy] yet, but he wasn¡¯t disappointed. He¡¯d eventually have a much, much more powerful [Synergy]. First, he needed to figure out what went in the center symbol, the [Stalwart Vessel] [Perk], and to train [External Energy Manipulation], which would also make his weapon energy attacks much more powerful.


    I need every bit of power I can get to destroy the Peerless, thought John. He was very excited about this strange new type of [Synergy]. He only wished [Unbind Defense] was included as one of the [Skills]. His sword [Skill] too. Maybe one of those goes in the center symbol. Or both.

 B3 Chapter 9 - Platinum Duels

    The first Platinum Duel was to submission and allowed self-manifestations and manifestations from gear. John was in his battle-mind, vital essence already enhancing his speed.


    The flashing green signal-light turned white. John cast [Multi-Enhancement] and [Multi-Shield] as he charged his foe, the Platinum qraad that had felt into him with his senses previously. The qraad tried unbinding his manifestations, but John smashed both attempts.


    Besides Thirteen, John hadn¡¯t faced any being of any race that was his peer in close-quarters combat. Both Hux and Marbrouk could beat him with their MMA in the Trainer, and Thirteen certainly outmatched him, but he had a feeling the qraad wouldn¡¯t stand a chance regardless of the tier difference.


    When John cast his buffs on himself, he had felt the qraad casting its own, but he couldn¡¯t both unbind and defend against unbinds at once. He needed to practice casting manifestations, protecting against unbinds, while also unbinding others, all at the same time.


    The qraad was well equipped. As John ran to his enemy, the avian used its wings to fly up in the air, while releasing a barrage of missiles and lasers.


    John dodged around the lasers and the missiles as best he could and jumped at the qraad with the ten or so still active missiles curving around and following.


    The qraad dove and John couldn¡¯t adjust enough to pursue the avian downwards, so he threw his borrowed weapon. The sword went through a wing, disturbed flight, and sent the qraad crashing into the ground.


    John used the momentum of the sword throw to turn in the air, kicked the underside of a missile to send it upwards exploding into the one above it, and the force of the explosion sent him careening downwards.


    A few other missiles were caught in the explosion, the remaining six continued following their target.


    John landed in a roll. As he got to his feet, he felt the avian casting something, probably a new essence-shield, so unbound it. He had a moment to kill so he recast [Multi-Shield] on himself right before needing to dive out of the way of the missiles bursting into the spot he had just occupied. He sprinted to his opponent and kicked his foe in the ribs before it could finish getting back on its feet.


    The qraad unveiled its soul. The pressure didn¡¯t bother John much, but he still unveiled his own soul to counter the pressure. He then dove on his opponent¡¯s back, dug his fangs in, and began draining the avian of its vital essence while clawing into an exposed and unarmored wing.


    The qraad tried to continue the fight for a while before finally submitting. John was nearly able to top off his vital essence during that time.


    Since draining the dark walker during his last Tribulation, John hadn¡¯t been able to strengthen himself with vital essence. He still used a lot of it for healing and to enhance his speed and such. It could also enhance his strength, or both his speed and strength at once. Enhancing both provided a lesser effect, and he had rarely found his strength lacking, whereas more speed was always helpful, so he usually stuck with that.


    John veiled his soul, bowed to his defeated opponent, and said, ¡°Good fight. Thank you, Platinum.¡±


    ¡°Well, that was embarrassing,¡± replied the qraad. ¡°My friends will never let me live this down, beaten so badly and quickly by a Bronze. At least I¡¯ll make more in crystals than I lost in essence. I wish I submitted before you did so much damage to my wing.¡±


    The avian bowed. ¡°You¡¯re going places, friend Bronze. I can¡¯t imagine the monster you¡¯ll be at my tier. How you can make it¡­not hurt¡­but make all my insides vibrate when you unbound me and rejected my unbind attempts¡­I¡¯ve never seen that. If you¡¯re staying in Kotown, maybe we could meet up and train together. I¡¯m pinging your NCS with my contact info.¡±


    John bowed deeper. ¡°Thank you, Platinum. I don¡¯t think I¡¯m allowed time for myself here, but if I am granted some, I¡¯d enjoy training together. Thank you again. It was an honor battling you, Platinum.¡±


    The qraad bowed again, much deeper than it needed to for courtesy¡¯s sake. ¡°Ha! I wish that were true. Good luck, friend.¡±


    After walking to Marbrouk, John checked his head injury with his orb-eye. It would take hours in deep meditation to fully heal, if not a day or two. He sent vital essence to heal and worked on it a little with his [Heal] manifestation.


    ¡°They won¡¯t give you your Free-for-All winnings until the closing ceremony,¡± said Marbrouk.


    ¡°I figured. Thank you for trying.¡±


    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t win much with it anyways. Hux said the payouts for you have gotten a lot worse, and that was before this win. How many more rounds until the finale?¡±


    John kept his eye on the other two ongoing matches. Enough Platinums entered the Duels the arena was sectioned and shielded off with three matches going at once. ¡°The finale will be the sixth from now, so five more until then. So many entered they split the Platinum Duels into two parts. If I win two more, I¡¯ll secure my place in the finale. The makan is in the second part. I think I can win. No, I will. I must.¡±


    The makan¡¯s name was Koni Dral. The name the announcer used for her was Koni of Maka. Why she didn¡¯t use her full name for her announcements when she had one and it was well known was a mystery.


    John had thought of many surnames to use for himself since arriving on Gani, but Hux and Marbrouk laughed at each and every one of them. Especially the ones he thought were the coolest sounding.


    Accepting any of the surnames John¡¯s friends recommended would be too risky without knowing why they found them so humorous, though he liked many of them, such as Depp, Goodman, Krueger, Leguisamo, Vader, and Voldemort. There were many others too. Legend was his favorite, but he thought it would make him seem too vainglorious.


    John would really prefer to be given a suffix such as ¡®the Great,¡¯ or ¡®the Mighty,¡¯ or ¡®the Terrible.¡¯ That way he wouldn¡¯t have to invent a surname for himself.


    Next up, John was fighting a raloin, a reptilian race heavily modified by cybernetics controlling one planet, their own low-population home world of Raloin. They were good fighters but their recent invitation to the sector council was controversial. Or so John heard while waiting in a bookmaker¡¯s line.


    The raloin¡¯s name, coincidentally enough, was similar to John¡¯s own - Djon.


    Djon wore no helmet, maybe because most of his scalp was cybernetic, including one glowing red eye. He wore sturdy armor completely covering his whole torso, hips, and thighs. Both of his arms were completely cybernetic, as were his calves and feet.


    The Duel was to first blood and allowed self-manifestations and gear. As soon as the light turned white, John rushed forward while casting buffs, hoping to get a chance to unbind or prevent unbinds now that he could.


    But Djon cast no buffs at all and neither did he attempt unbinds. The raloin slowly jogged forward as five small firearm-type weapons extended out of each of his wrists. The weapons shot out something like large essence-missiles that skittered around before circling each other, joining together, and homing right in on their target.


    Shortly before the giant, glowing missile hit John, he dove, plunged his sword into the ground, and used his great momentum to flip over the essence-missile roaring towards him at breakneck speed.


    As John landed the blast wave from the large explosion behind him almost knocked him off his feet. Djon activated a piece of equipment mimicking a dash attack. The raloin barreled towards John almost too quickly for his brain to interpret.


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    John¡¯s mind and reflexes barely made the cut. He slipped to the side and grabbed Djon¡¯s arm as the roloin blurred past, avoiding his opponent by a hair¡¯s breadth.


    John turned, planted himself, and yanked the arm with one quick and fluid motion. Instead of Djon flipping over him and landing on his back, John flew forward and faceplanted into the ground, holding a cybernetic arm in his left hand. He looked with his orb-eye to see Djon. The raloin, minus one whole arm, was still tumbling over the arena floor.


    A loud buzzer signaled the end of the match. Since it was to first blood, losing a whole arm counted despite the lack of any blood.


    John got on his feet and rushed to his opponent, bowed, helped Djon to his feet, and handed the raloin his arm back. The reptilian closed its mouth and its neck vibrated as it communicated in its race¡¯s way.


    A voice ¨C deep and distant and rattled, somewhat hollow ¨C sounded in John¡¯s mind as the NCS gave a voice to Djon. ¡°Thanks for the hand up, but come on, man, did you have to rip my arm off? That¡¯s a shitty thing to do. This arm and the surgery cost more than two blue-green crystals. It won¡¯t sync up right until I ascend with it again, and that¡¯s a long way off. I¡¯m screwed till then.¡±


    John bowed deeply and said, ¡°Apologies, Platinum Djon. I was only trying to flip you over, not rip your arm off.¡±


    Djon bowed the minimum required of courtesy. ¡°I know. I was just hoping to earn some crystals is all, and I¡¯m frustrated. Good fight, Bronze. I should¡¯ve known better with those [Titles]. I just couldn¡¯t accept a Bronze could beat me. I¡¯m sure there¡¯s a fitting saying about hubris or something, but I¡¯ve never had a mind for remembering shit like that. Good luck tonight, and I hope I never see you again.¡±


    Djon turned and left.


    John¡¯s next opponent, an umpanian named Aoh¡¯d, talked to John before their Duel and asked if John was willing to fight as they did in the ancient arenas of Umpani. John agreed.


    Umpanians were the oldest and strongest race in the sector. They had two famous sects. The head of one of those sects was on the fourth tier of the Transcendent Tree, and the head of the other was early fifth tier of that Tree.


    Two of the three most powerful entities in the whole sector, the only three to have passed that old and famous bottleneck at mid Exalted, and the reason the Peerless were invading only non-council worlds.


    A couple decades ago, the Peerless Empire invaded one of the many worlds populated and controlled by the umpanians. They almost conquered the world. Then one of those two famous sects showed up and sent the Peerless running.


    Tech could change things, but within the same tech level, having a force on the battlefield a tier higher than everyone else was a game changer. Usually. Unlike most races of the sector that relied heavily on tech, the umpanians kept more to the old martial traditions, though they did have their own tech.


    John had a soft spot for umpanians. Their voices were distinct and sounded deep enough to shake mountains. He just had to hear one speak to realize the entity that had saved him, Amber, and Munashi, and cut off the kaw¡¯n¡¯s arms before his first Tribulation was an umpanian.


    Though Aoh¡¯d was the first umpanian John had actually spoken with, he thought the whole race seemed pretty decent. All that he had heard of them from other sources only reinforced that belief.


    Umpanians looked somewhat like giant rhinoceros, including the horned snout and tough skin. They stood roughly about the height of Gold demons and had massive frames.


    Aoh¡¯d had a strong ¡®life¡¯ related concept as John could clearly see that aspect in his dantian and a greenish shimmer of it surrounded the man.


    The light turned white and both John and Aoh¡¯d nodded to each other and casually walked to the center of their arena.


    Vampire and umpanian bowed at the waist and the combat commenced.


    John had agreed not to use any manifestations. He didn¡¯t even enhance his speed with vital essence. The match was to submission.


    If truth be told, John didn¡¯t decide to not enhance his speed out of some sense of fairness - he didn¡¯t think the umpanian¡¯s [Swiftness] score was anywhere close to his own.


    And though Marbrouk and Hux could trounce him in a Trainer, John wasn¡¯t a slouch in unarmed battle, and he wasn¡¯t in a Trainer. Thirteen was the exception, not the rule.


    Aoh¡¯d threw the first strike. A truly massive leg kicked at John¡¯s torso. The umpanian was deceptively fast, but not nearly fast enough.


    John ducked the kick, trying to make it look like a close thing.


    Aoh¡¯d threw a punch and John tried to make it seem like slipping it was more difficult than it was.


    And so the fight went - John trying to prolong it and let Aoh¡¯d have his pride.


    When John thought he stretched the bout out long enough, he kicked the umpanian¡¯s kicking leg, ending the strike before it truly began. Aoh¡¯d threw a powerful hook and John punched his opponent¡¯s forearm, arresting the strike and causing Aoh¡¯d to hold his arm in pain.


    A punch to the chest sent the umpanian tumbling onto his back.


    After a few dramatic moans, Aoh¡¯d got back on his feet and bowed in submission. Both combatants walked to each other and bowed deeply.


    ¡°Thanks,¡± said Aoh¡¯d. ¡°I was worried you didn¡¯t understand and would try to end it quickly and I¡¯d get hit with the poor performance fine. This way, I spent nothing and made almost six times the buy in.


    ¡°And I know you terrans are slaves of the Peerless now, but if you manage to escape, come to any of my people¡¯s worlds. Our sects would fight over you. You¡¯d live like a king.¡±


    John nearly told the umpanian that Kahaka weren¡¯t slaves but that was Peerless nonsense. They were slaves. He said, ¡°Thank you, Platinum Aoh¡¯d. I appreciate you saying so.¡±


    Both combatants bowed again and departed.


    John had the next three rounds off. No one of note fought in any of the three matches of round 4. He was very happy the Platinum biosynth was arrested and taken away, as he didn¡¯t think he stood much of a chance against that monster. Thirteen was a mid-high Gold. The Platinum was at peak. Most cultivators paused at peak Platinum to try and fortify their soul in preparation of refining it while ascending to Diamond. That biosynth could¡¯ve been at peak for a long time.


    The gulf between mid-high Gold and peak Platinum was huge. Even with his new ability to unbind and protect against them, John had no desire to risk his wealth finding out just how huge the gulf was between Thirteen and her higher-tiered kin.


    John figured Alii Nani Victor had told the arena to throw all the tough opponents at him. She didn¡¯t. Koni faced the toughest Platinum besides herself in round 5 and won the match. It was an entertaining fight and John was glad he had the opportunity to watch the woman battle from start to finish. It helped him come up with a strategy against her.


    The next round was a single match seeing Koni versus the third toughest Platinum. John would face the winner. At the very start of the fight, Koni disappeared as usual. Seconds later, she reappeared firing a barrage of pistol shots into the back of her opponent at point-blank range.


    Then it was time for the finale.


    The terms Koni set were full use of manifestations and to first blood. He really thought she was going to pick buffs and gear only, as she seemed very proficient with her pistols and John had no shield or armor or anything but his essence-shield to block the shots.


    The three times John was able to see Koni at the beginning of a fight, she immediately entered stealth. Since John was a Bronze, there was a chance she¡¯d just bombard him from the start. If she went the bombardment route, he¡¯d try to unbind her and keep her shut down. If she stealthed, he¡¯d follow suit.


    As the light started to flash green, John entered into his battle-mind and enhanced his speed. When it turned white, he only felt Koni direct a manifestation towards herself.


    John quickly cast [Multi-Enhance] and [Hide] as he stealthed forward, keeping against the left hand wall of the arena. His [Stealth] [Skill] was almost at Grandmaster Mastery. He doubted hers was anywhere close to that, and he assumed she relied upon manifestations or tech to hide so well.


    The next few minutes were very uneventful, causing the audience to boo and jeer loudly. John snuck around as he looked for Koni, and she either waited in ambush or was doing the same.


    Finally, John spotted Koni creeping in front of him. He snuck up behind her, deciding to see if his pickpocketing was up to snuff. While matching her speed, he quickly and deftly withdrew both her pistols from her hip holsters. They were much lighter than he thought they¡¯d be.


    John noticed Koni tense as he extended both arms and fired both pistols into her back. In a move as impressive as anything John had ever seen, Koni adroitly rolled forward, the essence-bullets skimming her cloak. She got to her feet while spinning and releasing some sort of lighting manifestation at John, all in the same fluid movement, all in the blink of an eye.


    As soon as John knew the bullets missed their target, he felt into Koni while diving and threw both pistols at her.


    Koni had attempted to remove John¡¯s presence from herself as she cast her lightning manifestation. As the lightning tracked and struck a metal pistol instead of John, her eyes widened in surprise. Either due to her manifestation hitting a pistol instead of its true target, or due to John violently rejecting her attempt to remove his presence from within herself. He pulled as hard as he could on all her blood.


    Koni jerked forward and slumped to her knees, blood leaking from her eyes. The buzzer sounded, indicating the match was over.


    John walked to the still kneeling makan. He bowed deeply. ¡°Thank you for the battle, Platinum Koni Dral. It was a true honor. I enjoyed watching you battle very much. The way you move, your adroitness and grace, are a wonder to behold.¡±


    A frown broke Koni¡¯s still face. Without moving her head, her eyes slowly rose and set on John¡¯s face. ¡°Get out of my sight, scum sucking dog of the Peerless. Filthy swine. You¡¯re a coward and your mother¡¯s a whore.¡±


    That Koni hated the Peerless gladdened John¡¯s heart. He did as the lady bid and got out of her sight. He had winnings and wagers to collect. As he left, he wondered if it was possible for a human and a makan to produce offspring together. If so, their children would be very mighty and move as the wind.

 B3 Chapter 10 - A New Wager

    The stadium quieted as Alii Nani Victor took to the floor of the arena. She yelled out, ¡°What fights we¡¯ve witnessed here tonight! Fantastic performances by Qa¡¯l, Bre Ud, Kren, and, especially Kahaka Three-five, also known as John of Terra, who was able to withstand my very own [Domain] as a Bronze!¡±


    John had never heard of a Kahaka named in the same way Peerless were, by tier and rank. He figured that could only be a good thing.


    ¡°As is our way as laid out in the praised Aikapu of my late husband and father, the venerable Akua, we Alii reward worthy deeds. I grant Kahaka Three-five one-and-one-fifths credits!¡±


    Alii Nani Victor paused. John assumed she expected many loud cheers at the announcement, but it was met with silence. Maybe due to surprise. Her Oliua started to cheer loudly. The rest of her retinue and the Peerless guards all joined in. John wondered if a non-Peerless winning credits angered the brutes.


    Hux and Marbrouk added whoops and whistles to the cheering, and the Kahako, the vast majority of attendees, politely joined in the applause.


    ¡°My Oliua, Two-two-two, father of many, will also grant a [Title] to Kahaka Three-five!¡±


    That got some more cheers. John believed Nani Victor thought her announcements would be met in a similar way as when Alii spoke to Peerless, and she was becoming off-balanced and losing confidence since they weren¡¯t.


    ¡°I¡¯d like to thank the Kotown Arena for hosting me tonight! I¡¯ve had a wonderful time and I hope you all have as well! Thank you and goodnight!¡±


    With that, Oliua Two-two-two flew his Alii out of the arena.


    <hr><hr>


    A Peerless Salt approached John as he was collecting some of his winnings. After waiting for him to finish up, the brute said, ¡°Kahaka, I¡¯m ordered to bring you to the meeting my Alii informed you of earlier. And congratulations on your wins. That Gold Duel of yours was a worthy battle.¡±


    John, looking up at the angry face of the brute, was again thankful no man ever kowtowed, bowed, or knelt when addressing a higher-tier male Peerless. ¡°Thank you, Salt. Will my friends be coming with us too?¡±


    ¡°Olini Eight-three. The other Kahaka will come too.¡±


    Olini was a title for the Oli, the brutes, that had fathered six or more children, also called fathers of many. For brutes, the titles went Li until adulthood and acceptance into a house, usually at Gold from what John had seen, when Li changed to Oli. Oli fathers were called Olilo. At six children, Olini. The head Oli of a house was called the Oliua.


    The Mele, the brains, had a similar title scheme.


    John had also heard the term Akioli. He thought it meant an Oli that had somehow risen above the house and clan system.


    ¡°Olini Eight-three, apologies,¡± replied John. The brute angrily and silently stared at him. The brutes always looked angry, so John thought little of it. He asked, ¡°Am I to follow you now, Eight-three?¡±


    ¡°Are you done with your business?¡±


    ¡°Not yet. Sorry, I¡¯ll hurry, Eight-three.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no rush. Finish your business, gather the other Kahaka, and meet me outside the entrance. We have transport to the Nani Victor-Fe An hall. Center your head and get it right before leaving. If my guess is right, there¡¯ll be many Alii there, all Nani of some type. We call gatherings of Alii a clowder since¡­well, you¡¯ll see. It¡¯s a heady experience. They¡¯ll mess with you. I hope you cleaned your pipes out today or you¡¯ll have a mess in your pants to clean up.¡±


    That was the longest an Oli had ever talked to John. They were never mean to him. Most ignored him completely. If they had to talk to him, it was always very brief. He smiled inside. He believed his plan was working.


    Since he¡¯s being cool, I may as well ask, thought John. ¡°Eight-three, any chance you wouldn¡¯t mind if I killed a bookmaker? He¡¯s a filthy Kahako I swore vengeance against. It¡¯ll only take a moment.¡±


    Without his facial expressions changing at all, the brute said, ¡°The one you assaulted? Come on, man. That was settled. All these Kahako are under the Empire¡¯s Peace. Every Peerless in five hundred dan of the murder would receive a gig. We¡¯re just trying to get through the day without issue and earn enough credits to sticky our stamens. Just let it go, Kahaka.¡±


    <hr><hr>


    From how John understood things, Nani Victor-Fe An was the council that controlled the moon, Fe An, and its only city, Victor. There was usually only one word after Nani. District and city council Nani were the lowest ranking, then regional, all the way up to Nani Empire, though he heard the clan Nani were the real power.


    John assumed a whole moon had to be considered at least a regional council but since there was not much on Fe An other than Victor, he figured that was the reason for the Victor-Fe An title.


    The architecture and structures in Kotown were amazing to behold. Two buildings right near one another were as different as could be imagined, and each beautiful in its own strange way. All the buildings and structures were varied, probably built by different types of aliens, and it all somehow worked and became a beautiful and unique whole.


    Only Alii and important Peerless were allowed vehicles on Gani. John assumed the same was true for the rest of the city of Victor, but Kahako were allowed to buy or bring their own vehicles to Kotown and the traffic was terrible.


    Everyone had to pull to the side and make way for Peerless vehicles, so the hovercraft John rode in bypassed all the congestion. Once outside of Kotown, there was no traffic at all, and the vehicle quickly arrived at the Nani Victor-Fe An hall, a large and magnificent estate. He, again, wished he didn¡¯t find the architecture of his enemies so appealing.


    Olini Eight-three escorted John, Marbrouk, and Hux through the large doors of the hall. Once inside, Oliua Two-two-two nodded to Eight-three and Eight-three left, closing the large doors behind him.


    The room was filled with Transcendent brutes, probably all Oliua, about thirty of them, including the first elderly brute John had ever seen. They were all lazing about silently, most watching what were called highlights on the many screens around the large room.


    It was rumored that when brutes looked to be lazing about, they were actually performing a strange type of meditation allowing them to remain vigilant as they gathered energy. It was hard to detect, but with so many together, John could feel the energy swirling around, so the rumors were true.


    There were some peak-rank mid Transcendents. Two-three-fives, stuck at the old and famous bottleneck. With a few exceptions, that was the highest any cultivator native to the sector had climbed. Only three cultivators within the sector had managed to merge two major aspects, creating a high-concept, and ascend to the mid-high tier. The rest were all stuck.


    You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.


    The title for the second Tree, the Transcendent Tree, was Exalted, but John had never once heard a Peerless use that title. After the first Tree, the Mortal Tree, all Trees had six tiers ¨C low, mid-low, mid, mid-high, high, and peak. The last Tree, the Heavenly Tree of Eternals, had an additional rank since they could keep advancing beyond peak.


    Since they were in the Nani Victor-Fe An hall, John assumed all the highlights showing on the screens were of the women of that council, and he recognized the one he met at the arena. It seemed like there were only three of them.


    The first scene of a highlight showed an Alii standing in different poses, laughing, and smiling while her official name flashed on screen.


    After were highlights of the Alii¡¯s sex life. It always began with her first time, lying on a bed in lingerie, her udders and groin covered, but not much else, her face blushing, her eyes dilated, desire on her face in anticipation of losing her virginity.


    The highlights never showed the full act. It would show the Alii¡¯s ecstatic expression as her head bounced around during the act, or an Oli¡¯s upper torso gyrating rhythmically, or kissing her, or sucking on her toe, and similar such scenes. But never too much, and never anything their sick society considered indecent.


    After every highlight, the Peerless of that highlight was interviewed and asked how much he enjoyed having intercourse with the Alii. The Peerless always swore it was the greatest thing and he couldn¡¯t wait to earn and spend more credits on her.


    During John¡¯s yearlong flight to Gani, he saw the highlights of the Alli Heiau Ikaika, Kauwa Naau Pi losing her virginity to the brain John had lost the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga to, Ele Four-three, more times than he could count. It played over and over on all the many screens throughout the ship in an endless loop.


    As John tried to ignore the screens, he noticed Oliua Two-two-two waving him over, so he left his friends and stood before the seated brute. ¡°Ready to receive a new [Title], Kahaka?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Two-two-two.¡±


    John had no recollection of receiving his [Title] from Magnus Gar¡¯tar. He woke up after his first Tribulation and just had it. That reminded him ¨C those soul-collecting ladies owe me a [Title]. And other rewards too.


    A small area inside John¡¯s chest started to burn, but the sensation was dulled, as if experiencing a memory. Within seconds, the sensation ended.


    ¡°That¡¯s it, Kahaka. If you make this your active [Title] before cultivating and create spirit, it won¡¯t fortify your soul so much. The spirit can work on healing your soul more.¡±


    John kept his heart calm by force of effort alone. He strongly thought ¡®Mind¡¯s Eye¡¯ and the world blurred by him and he stood in front of Avatar.


    ¡°Avatar, was this [Title] made specifically for me?¡±


    ¡°No idea.¡±


    John suppressed his annoyance. He knew Avatar not only had an idea ¨C she knew the truth. She just wasn¡¯t allowed to tell him. She¡¯d only say every cultivator was an island or some foolishness.


    ¡°I thought [Titles] couldn¡¯t be controlled. That the person giving it couldn¡¯t pick what it did. And it was based off their specialty or something.¡±


    Avatar pushed her glasses up so she could look down her nose at John. ¡°That¡¯s mostly true. A skilled cultivator can force it to give a different benefit if they practice enough.¡±


    ¡°I thought the Peerless sucked at manifestations. And this, making something like what I received? Something so specific. They can¡¯t see souls so how¡¯d they know about mine? Just how much do they know about me? You said you block them from collecting my data when I use the Trainer or any of their other machines.¡±


    ¡°We do. And even if we didn¡¯t, you know we can¡¯t see your soul either, so stop being foolish. We measure [Runes] by testing how many could be placed. That¡¯s all we can check.¡±


    John sighed. ¡°Can I see the [Title], please?¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    ¡®Blessed by Unnamed Exalted¡¯ Title attained. User was bestowed a Title by an unnamed entity (focus <u>here</u> for entity¡¯s NCS tracking number and other PID). Title function cannot be confirmed. Unnamed entity claimed Title modifies vigor created in the middle-core so that it fortifies the soul less, assuming vigor that fortifies less allows for more healing more often before the soul becomes too fortified to be healed by vigor.


    John knew the [Title] would be [Blessed by Unnamed Exalted]. All the [Titles] the Peerless granted said the same. Diamonds and Salts could grant [Titles] but he had never seen a Peerless with a [Title] given by those tiers.


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to use this. With my passive soul healing, my issue will eventually fix itself. And do so well before I¡¯m ready for Diamond considering the ridiculous amount of time it takes my foundation to settle. I¡¯d be a fool to risk fortifying my soul too much and slow down the passive healing. Right?¡±


    ¡°I disagree,¡± replied Avatar. ¡°The passive soul healing is easy to track. We have enough data. Create vigor and we¡¯ll test. If the average or mode dips and doesn¡¯t recover after a couple of weeks, stop. If not, we can test it at decreasing intervals. No sense wasting a possible resource. And, eventually, you¡¯ll want your soul fortified as much as possible before it¡¯s refined.


    ¡°Speaking of that, discounting the Natural known to you as Amber of course, if you can get your hands on a Natural or a supplement made of one, that will help heal and fortify your soul more than anything else within your capacity to attain. It even semi-refines it before Diamond. Nothing like it.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll put that on my list of things I don¡¯t know how to get and can¡¯t afford,¡± replied John.


    ¡°You do that. Anything else?¡±


    ¡°That was it. But how they know so much about me is frightening. Do you think they know of my plans to destroy them?¡±


    Avatar sighed. ¡°If that was it, remember your duty and the collective mission. Your actions and inactions help or hinder the collective mission. We shall achieve core.¡±


    John exited his Mind¡¯s Eye and said, ¡°Thank you for the [Title], Two-two-two.¡±


    ¡°Here¡¯s my Alii¡¯s share of crystals owed to you. It could be a while before you¡¯re called back. Get comfortable and try clearing your head.¡±


    John was glad the crystals were in higher denominations as he placed them in his sash. ¡°Thank you, Two-two-two.¡± He rejoined his companions sitting near the front door, out of the way. Hux, as usual when any were being shown, was watching the highlights.


    With so many Transcendent in the same room making the vibe uncomfortable and daunting, the humans sat quietly, trying to be ignored.


    After some time, a brute called out, ¡°Hey, Kahaka. The three, not the fours. Come here.¡±


    John stood and approached the brute. ¡°Sorry, I can¡¯t tell your rank, Two-two.¡±


    ¡°Two-two-five. Ever seen one of these?¡±


    The brute indicated some sort of device that looked a little like a large and empty hot tub. ¡°No, Two-two-five.¡±


    ¡°I noticed you wear a band of suffering around your neck. This is different, but a similar concept. This is an Agonizer. It strengthens and fortifies channels. Our young use it to prepare for Gold, but we all use it as part of our regimen. We¡¯ve come to rely too heavily on tech so routinely inuring our channels to potent essence is more necessary at higher tiers than it should be. Want to give it a try?¡±


    ¡°I would, Two-two-five. Can my two friends join me? They¡¯re Silvers. Fours.¡±


    ¡°Sorry, Kahaka. It¡¯s too dangerous for those two. This was made for Oli and Li in academy. Even Ele can¡¯t use this kind until Platinum or Diamond, depending on essence. One of those Kahaka has yet to find a concept. This machine¡¯s named Agonizer for a reason. It bypasses [Fortifications]. You¡¯ll feel pain like you¡¯ve never felt, as if you were a child without even one core opened.


    ¡°The pain starts off tolerable but quickly ramps up from there. And keeps ramping up. The longer you can take it and continue to cycle, the more it benefits your channels. The changes ascension makes to a body does help. And ascending Trees makes it even more tolerable. So, this will hurt you badly.¡±


    John¡¯s channels were already raw from his arena battles, but he knew a challenge when he was offered one. When it came to tolerating pain, no one held an advantage over him. Life was pain, and he had had nearly six thousand years of it. ¡°I bet I can endure this machine longer than you can, Two-two-five.¡±


    The brute laughed. A few other brutes called out, ¡°I want in on this.¡± One asked, ¡°What are we betting?¡± Another said, ¡°We¡¯re not allowed to bet.¡±


    A Two-three-five, the peak of power within the Peerless Empire, and a tier and rank John could easily identify by feel, said, ¡°We¡¯ve all been making bets since we were children. We just can¡¯t bet on anything with material value. You know that. Count me in too.¡±


    Another asked, ¡°What are we betting then?¡±


    Since it couldn¡¯t be items or crystals, John racked his brain to come up with something beneficial. ¡°How about favors? How many can compete at once? Losers owe the winner a favor. Something big.¡±


    The Two-three-five said, ¡°Sorry, no bets. My Alii¡¯s involved now, so the Aikapu guides this. She¡¯s offering max allowable for this class and category of deed ¨C a half credit to the winner. A full credit if the record is broken.¡±


    Another called out, ¡°Mine is too.¡± The rest said the same.


    The elderly brute stood and said, ¡°So, all totaled, 14 credits to the winner, or 28 credits if the record is broken. By the glory of our father Akua, if the record is broken¡­that¡¯s nearly enough for an Oli to make Olini. I haven¡¯t seen this sort of payout in a long while. And you¡¯ve all been complaining and whining like defective Kahaki because a clowder this size gathered. You forget the glory of the path.¡±


    Many brutes replied with, ¡°Yup.¡±


    Two-three-five added, ¡°It¡¯s Crazy Days too. If I win, some Alii¡¯s of this clowder will have a hard time walking tomorrow.¡± The other brutes laughed.

 B3 Chapter 11 - Agonizer

    Since they were so massive, with or without John included, only five brutes could fit within the tub of the Agonizer at the same time.


    If any items with runes were within the tub when turned on, it would cause an explosion.  Mundane items would be destroyed too, so the six participants all wore nothing.


    Both breathing and cycling techniques were performed so constantly and consistently, they became second nature and done without thought or effort.  Since John was so used to wearing the band of suffering necklace, the lack of pain and tingling throughout his body felt strange, and how easily his essence cycled through his meridians was hard to adjust to.


    The current Agonizer record was three minutes and thirty-four seconds, standard time.  John believed he could take any source of pain for that miniscule amount of time.


    While waiting for the event to start, John wondered if items could be purchased with credits.  The Peerless only used them for sex.  He had no desire to ever bed one of the filthy Peerless witches.  Well, I have the desire, but I¡¯d never stoop so low.


    All the men within the tub were asked if they were ready.  All confirmed they were.  The elderly brute said, ¡°Remember, if you stop cycling, you¡¯re out.  Here we go,¡± and turned on the Agonizer.


    Sparking electricity showered down from the rods above the machine.  At first it only tingled and caused a pins and needles feeling the same as the band of suffering necklace.


    As John cycled, the tingling got worse and spread throughout his whole body before settling into his meridians and turning into a slight burning.  After some time, he noticed the brutes in the tub with him squinting their eyes shut and clamping their mouths closed in pain.


    ¡°One minute,¡± was called out.  The burning increased to a level John found to hurt, but very tolerably.  The brutes were sucking air painfully between pursed lips.  He focused on performing [Turmoil Within Tranquility Cycling Technique] correctly and adjusting to no longer wearing the band of suffering.  He entered his battle-mind, as that mindset and perspective always helped with cycling.


    In the battle-mind, while watching from above, time seemed to slow, and John was able to notice what needed adjusting with his cycling technique and his breathing technique, [Breath of the Serpent Clan Endless Technique].


    ¡°Two minutes.¡±


    The burning had become fire, and John cycled the sparking electrical fire through his meridians with little issue.


    ¡°Three minutes.¡±


    A brute screamed out loudly as if in true agony.


    ¡°You¡¯re out Two-one-five!  You stopped cycling.¡±  Soon after Two-one-five exited, another brute dove out the tub.


    John didn¡¯t think it was so bad.  It wasn¡¯t nearly as bad as actually burning in fire, something that happened to him far too many times.  He hated burning in fire, regardless of how much he enjoyed alighting his enemies with it.


    John knew he could¡¯ve slipped into meditation if he wanted.  The pain just wasn¡¯t terrible.  Another brute jumped out of the tub.


    A few moments later, the elderly Oli said, ¡°Three minutes twenty.¡±  A handful of seconds later, another brute screamed out in a horrific way and jumped out of the tub too.


    The hair on top of the head of Two-three-five, the only brute remaining in the tub, was smoking.  The brute¡¯s face was so contorted in agony that John had to stop looking as it nearly caused him to laugh.


    The sparking electrical fire burned hotter in John.  It finally got to a level he thought of as true pain, but it was still tolerable.  It wasn¡¯t close to the pain he had to endure while ascending tiers.


    ¡°Three thirty-four!  Record broke!¡±


    Two-three-five screamed out in agony as the other brutes cheered.  He endured a few more seconds before diving out of the tub.  Another brute threw water over his smoking head.


    ¡°Should I exit?  Or should I continue,¡± asked John.


    Everyone screamed for him to keep going, then continuously yelled out encouragement.


    ¡°Four minutes!¡±


    The pain ramped up to where John had to completely focus on cycling.  It felt like lava coursed through his meridians, and his insides felt as if they were melting.


    The pain increased to a similar level as when John ascended tiers.  He was insusceptible to mundane pain, and largely hardened to true pain, but what he felt coursing through his meridians was intolerable.  Unendurable.  Pain that should cause unconsciousness to protect the mind from the trauma of it.  Yet it didn¡¯t, so he suffered it.


    John made his world smaller, as the pain was too great, and he could only focus on enduring cycling from one moment to the next.  Just one more moment.  And then just one more, and then one more after, trying to completely block out everything besides reaching the next moment.  And in doing so, he became lost to the moment and enduring time.


    Hands roughly pulled John out of the tub.  ¡°You okay, Kahaka?  Your eyes were smoking, and that head injury started bleeding too much.  We had to turn it off and pull you out.  Hey, you with me?¡±


    Healing entered John.  His eyes were damaged.  He couldn¡¯t force his lids to open.  He pulled his orb-eye away from his chest and pointed it backwards to see himself.  He cursed as he noticed his body was completely hairless.  He had no eyebrows again, and he looked foolish.  He hated being bald, but he was half-thankful his hair length was consistent again.  The head injury he had suffered earlier would¡¯ve left a large bald spot on the back of his head.


    ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± replied John.  ¡°Thanks for the healing, I just need to meditate.¡±


    John sent vital essence to heal.  He looked inside himself and cast [Heal], thankful the manifestation had improved dramatically, and he didn¡¯t need to baby and control it so much.  He sat down and began meditating.


    Sometime later, his shoulder was shaken by a big, meaty hand.  ¡°Hey, Kahaka, they¡¯ll call for you soon.  Best get dressed now.  How¡¯re you feeling?¡±


    John opened his healed eyes and stood.  ¡°Fine, Two-two-five.  What was my time?¡±


    ¡°Just under seven minutes.  I wonder how long you could¡¯ve gone if we didn¡¯t pull you out.  Regardless, I¡¯m sure that record isn¡¯t being broken.  How¡¯s your channels?¡±


    The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    They felt painful and crispy and too raw, but also strong, like a dirt road that had been stone-paved, metaled, cambered, and made to last.  ¡°Feeling pretty sturdy.  The Agonizer really helped,¡± replied John.


    For some reason, all the brutes laughed heartily at that reply, and continued to for a while.


    After John got dressed, the elderly brute slapped his back, knocking him over.  ¡°Sorry, Kahaka.  I didn¡¯t mean to knock you down.  That was supposed to be a congratulatory slap.  I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve seen us boys do the same to one another.  No harm meant.¡±


    ¡°No problem, Two-three¡­sorry, I can¡¯t tell your rank.¡±


    ¡°Two-three-five, of course,¡± said the brute with a smile.  ¡°Twenty-eight credits.  To a Kahaka.  No, about 29 now with the one and change you earned from the arena earlier.  And during Crazy Days.¡±


    John wondered why he had an issue feeling the old brute¡¯s rank.  He also wanted to ask about the Crazy Days he kept hearing mentioned but he needed to settle something first.  ¡°Two of us beat the record.  I only gained fourteen credits.  Two-three-five¡­the other Two-three-five, gets the other fourteen.¡±


    The old brute laughed and yelled out, ¡°You hear that, boy?  The Kahaka wants to split credits with you.  He doesn¡¯t know he can¡¯t.  Only Alii can give and take credits.¡±


    Before the younger Two-three-five could reply, John quickly added, ¡°It¡¯s not what I want.  You said there were 28 credits for beating the record.  Two people beat the record, so we each get half.¡±


    The old brute¡¯s eyes unfocused and went distant.  John assumed the man was being spoken to.  The Peerless didn¡¯t use earpieces like people on Earth did, as he would¡¯ve been able to hear what was spoken.  He heard no sound at all.


    The old brute¡¯s eyes refocused after a moment.  ¡°My Alii says the Kahaka¡¯s right.  You get fourteen each.¡±  A cheer went up.  Many brutes slapped the back and chest of the younger Two-three-five.


    John wished he could activate and deactivate the [Lightweight] [Perk].  It decreased the weight of his mass.  He had only fallen when slapped because he was taken by surprise.  He hadn¡¯t been ready for the force of it.  He wouldn¡¯t budge if another brute gave him a congratulatory slap, but none did.


    Marbrouk and Hux were in the same corner near the front door, cheering too.  He went to rejoin them.  He didn¡¯t lie when he was asked about his meridians, but with his band of suffering around his neck again, cycling caused the pain in his meridians to flare up terribly.


    John¡¯s friends seemed prouder of his achievement than he was himself.  He was much prouder of his wins in the arena.  I did no great deed here.  Enduring pain is just a part of life.  We all must do it.


    Things settled and everyone went back to ignoring one another until, out of nowhere, all the brutes began cheering loudly for some time, startling the humans.  Soon after, a young girl of about twelve or thirteen entered through a large door at the back of the room a robot opened for her.  The Peerless girls, called Alia, were always covered completely from neck to toe.


    A babe was cradled in the girl¡¯s arm, partially under a protective cover hiding her udders as the babe suckled.  A newborn was in her other arm, a tiny little thing far less than half the size of a normal human babe.  She held it aloft by the neck in a way no human would ever hold a newborn.  Unsmiling, the girl announced, ¡°A new Li, and strong, from Alli Nani Kliee of Heiau Maka, Kauwa Pulu Ka!  May he bring glory to our empire and our late and venerable father, Akua, and sire many sons!¡±


    The room went wild.  The girl lowered the tiny newborn and brought it to suckle on a covered udder before turning and exiting through the same door the same robot opened for her.


    The brutes went back to lounging and ignoring each other as if nothing ever happened.  The younger Two-three-five approached John, knelt, and spoke to him in a soft voice ¨C soft for brutes, since they usually talked very loudly and sounded like they ate rocks for breakfast.


    ¡°Kahaka, my Alii¡¯s summoning you down to this hall¡¯s Waeyiani Pools.  She¡¯s on the Nani Empire, so this is a big deal.  You know what a Nani is, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Two-three-five.  The leadership councils of the Peerless Empire.¡±


    ¡°Close enough.  None of us are going back with you so mind your manners.  And thanks.  We don¡¯t think like that.  In competition, we see only one winner.  But how it was phrased ¨C you were right.  And I owe my windfall to you pointing it out.  You didn¡¯t have to, and I appreciate it.


    ¡°But that won¡¯t stop me from doing what needs doing if you act stupid down there.  The Agonizer will seem like paradise if you endanger my Alii in the slightest way.  Even if you offend her.  Act the fool and find out.  All these boys feel the same for theirs.  One Alii¡¯s a famous elder.  Don¡¯t mess around.¡±


    Two-three-five stared at John with a sterner and angrier look than usual.  John said, ¡°I will behave myself and be polite.  I assure you.¡±


    ¡°Good.  Listen, it¡¯ll be heady back there, especially at your tier.  Just try and keep your head on right.  A clowder this size is rare.  They get weird when only four of five of them gather.  Twenty-eight is¡­a lot to handle.  Too many.  They like to play around.  Just let them have their fun and don¡¯t take it to heart.  Think of Mele trying to battle naked ¨C that helps me keep my head clear.  Or think of ugly and defective Kahaki Alu.  Good luck, Kahaka.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Two-three-five,¡± said John.  He stood and had a thought.  ¡°Uh, what is Crazy Days?¡±


    The brute stood and smacked John on the back very lightly, more of a pat, as if John were frail and made of glass.  ¡°That¡¯d take too much effort to explain.  We were bred for fighting, not explaining.  Ask a Mele or look it up, Kahaka.  Use the big doors.¡±


    As John made his way to the back of the room, many brutes also lightly patted his back as he passed by, their extremely long arms able to reach him easily while they sat.  The large doors opened as he approached them.


    A waiting robot said, ¡°Follow me, Kahaka,¡± and began leading John through the Nani Victor-Fe An hall to where the air was thick and moist and damp stone-stairs lead downward.


    The robot turned to John and said, ¡°Down the stairs, Kahaka,¡± before hovering away.


    John descended the damp stairs to a large, humid, and steamy room filled with glowing pools, tropical flora, and pleasant scents.


    And Alii, 28 of them, from Diamond to mid Transcendent, though tier and Tree didn¡¯t seem to matter much for the matriarchs.


    There were 27 gorgeous Alii in bathing suits far skimpier than the one John saw Amber wearing in her commercial selling suntan lotion.


    One Alii was an old crone with an empty chest, far too elderly to be considered beautiful, though some traces of her former beauty remained.  She wore a tight outfit like a bathing suit, but it covered everything from her neck to her elbows and knees.  She sat with her feet in one of the many pools, absentmindedly kicking water, ignoring John.


    The other Alii ranged in age.  The youngest, the Nani Victor John had already met at the arena, looked to be in her early twenties.  The oldest looked to be in her mid to late-thirties, possibly early to mid-forties.  She had an ageless beauty that made it hard to tell.  And attempts to guess true age were impossible since ascension extended lifespans.


    The Alii were all lounging about.  From lying on their bellies to standing in pools, all would coyishly steal glances at John before smiling and giggling and looking away as he met their eye.  One Alli near Nani Victor had a chest-sac that was red and puffy and scabbed.  He assumed she was the mother of the newborn.


    John felt blood rush to his face as he became dizzy and lightheaded.  His head fogged.  Thinking became difficult.  He struggled to clear his mind of carnal thoughts.


    These Alii witches put me under some sort of powerful spell.  I¡­I can¡¯t think.  I must fight it.  My uncanny ability to shrug off spells of the mind is up to the task.  I will win.  I will destroy them all one day, thought John as a promise.


    The oldest Alii besides the old crone had plumb-colored and voluminous hair cascading around her shoulders, and eyes matching her hair¡¯s color.  All Alii were extremely beautiful and had perfect bodies, but this one seemed especially beautiful and perfect, even though John thought her hair and eye color were strange.


    This same Alii laughed and smiled at John as she extracted her legs from a pool and brought her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them.  She said, ¡°You seem distressed, Kahaka Three-five.  What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    John tried to clear his mind with a strong breath, but the act left his mind fuzzier and more clouded and filled with depravity.  ¡°Your spells have not ensorcelled me yet.  I will not fall to your witchery.¡±


    All the Alii, including the crone, laughed good-naturedly.  Plumb-hair, smiling roguishly, said, ¡°Witchery?  There¡¯s no witchery here.  Just nature.  A man stands before us, a strong man filled with desire and an abundance of credits.  Our flowers, so moistened with dew, blossomed in response.  There are many of us here, together in these sacred waters of the Waeyiani Pools, and you are responding to our natural musk in a natural way.


    ¡°Come, Kahaka, sit across this pool from me.  Bathe your feet in these sacred cleansing waters of Waeyiani, taken from the pond our late husband and father, the venerable Akua, bathed in his whole life before leaving his village and starting down the path of peers, the praised Aikapu.  We have much to discuss.¡±


    John, as enslaved and ensorcelled by nature as evolution demanded of him, did as Plumb-hair bid.

 B3 Chapter 12 - A Question as Old as Mothers and Kings

    John removed his shoes, pulled his pants up to his knees, and dunked his feet into the pool.


    Plumb-hair, still smiling roguishly as she hugged her knees at the edge of the pool, was joined by four other Alii.


    One Alii lay back on her elbows, crossed her legs at the knee, and bobbed her foot. One lay on her belly and held her head in her hands as she smiled coyishly at John. One sat her legs sideways, resting her weight on one arm. One entered the water, facing away from John, curving her back as she rested her elbows on the side of the pool.


    John noticed the old crone reposition to a pool behind him. Plumb-hair asked, ¡°What do you believe the word kauwa means?¡±


    John stuttered a little before replying, ¡°It means house. Heiau means clan. Li and Oli mean soldier. Ele and Mele mean scientist. Kid and adult versions of each. Alii means¡­something like head of the house. And Pono means mother. Nani means the Alii¡¯s on a council of some type.¡±


    The Alii all giggled, stealing more quick looks, behaving demurely and the opposite of demure at the same time. I can¡¯t take much more of this, thought John.


    ¡°So confident! But still wrong, Kahaka. Close on a few. Li used to mean warrior and Ele used to mean wise, but those words mean so much more now.


    ¡°And the meaning of kauwa is far from house as you understand the word. Kauwa means all necessities will be provided. It means belonging. It means acceptance. It means someone cares a great deal. It means pleasure will be earned and given. Kauwa is love. Us Alii are very loving. We love to love. Do you find me attractive, Kahaka?¡±


    John rubbed his face with his hand then shook his head violently trying to clear it of the fog but only managed to upset his head injury further. The Alii all giggled. He took a deep and cleansing breath but the aroma he took in made things worse. ¡°You know I do. I can¡¯t help but find you so.¡±


    Plumb-hair giggled enchantingly again. ¡°Why do you say that as if it were wrong to find me attractive? It¡¯s not wrong to want me. To want my flower. It is good and right to.¡±


    The fog and images in John¡¯s mind wouldn¡¯t relent. These were his enemies. He would be the instrument of their destruction. He couldn¡¯t tell the truth, but he couldn¡¯t think of a lie. He couldn¡¯t think of much at all besides what his mind forced him to.


    John wiped his face, shook his head again, and looked around. He finally thought of something to say. He yelled out, ¡°Thank you, Nani Victory. Your guy gave me the crystals for¡­for the bet¡­I¡­the¡­thing.¡±


    The Alii smiled brightly, waved, and said, ¡°It¡¯s Victor. All three Alii of Nani Victor are here, Kahaka. This is our hall. But thank you! You performed wonderfully in the arena. That head injury looks bad. I hope you¡¯re okay. Watching you battle made my flower gush a great deal of dew. I¡¯d love it if some of your credits were used to cover your stamen in its juices. I want to feel you inside me very badly, Kahaka.¡±


    Curse these witches! John thought about how much simpler his life was during the thousands of years he had no desire for women at all. He wished he could purge himself of it again.


    Hazy and confused, as if he were drugged, John¡¯s head lolled, aggravating his injury. ¡°What¡­what are you doing to me?¡±


    Plumb-hair¡¯s roguish smile grew wide enough to show her perfect teeth. ¡°Your own body does it to you, Kahaka. You have desires, and that is good. In our society, unlike others, we want strong males to fulfill their desires. All their desires. If he has the credits, he can have any of us. We are not greedy and possessive. As I said, we love to love. We love being loved.¡±


    Anger cleared John¡¯s head a little. He had loved. He had loved greatly. The sick society of the Peerless was completely lacking in it. All types of it. The love a mother felt for her children. Marriage wasn¡¯t about the type of love he felt for Amber, but husbands and wives usually grew to love one another in a far stronger and sturdier way.


    Love is having someone that cares about you and specifically you more than any other, having someone in your corner cheering you on, having someone to help lighten the burden when life gets heavy, having someone to help pick up the pieces when life breaks apart.


    Love is having someone, the same someone, to go through life with. Un-alone. Together. It is beautiful and good. Unequivocally good. Every decent man deserves a good woman of his own, from the poorest of peasants on up. Every decent woman deserves a good man to have children with, provide for her, and protect her.


    Family. Family is love. Family is a synonym of love. Family is the best way, the only way, society should be structured. The Peerless destroy all that is good and right. All of it. Masking it with superficial beauty and pleasure and saying it¡¯s better because it¡¯s prettier. It isn¡¯t.


    A part of John told him he needed to keep his opinion to himself. His foggy head and clouded thinking were too far gone to listen to that part. ¡°None of you have the slightest idea what love is. Real love. Love isn¡¯t desire. My world¡­my world got that wrong too. They think it¡¯s desire now too. My Amber, she doesn¡¯t understand either. She has too much Lilly in her. I just want someone that loves me and only me. Only me.¡±


    The Alii leaning back stopped bobbing her foot. The one in the pool stopped arching her back. The one with her legs sidewards stopped lightly running her fingers up and down her calf. The roguish smile disappeared from Plumb-hair¡¯s mouth.


    Some compulsion caused John to stand, turn around, and walk to the small pool occupied by the old crone. He sat and dunked his feet into the new pool and the compulsion ended. No other Alii were in his field of view. Just the old crone.


    The crone¡¯s eyes were downcast. She waved her hand and the air cleared. John¡¯s mind cleared a little too. Without looking up at John, she asked, ¡°Do you ever consider if you¡¯re wrong?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Alii. All the time.¡±


    A small, sad smile formed on the crone¡¯s mouth. ¡°We do too. All the time. Tell me your thoughts on this ¨C a mother has five children, but one is sickly and weak and requires a lot of resources to nurse and foster. She can guarantee her other four children can be healthy, happy, and successful by sacrificing the sickly one. What should she do?¡±


    John had never desired to be a great thinker. He wanted to be a great warrior. But the question posed to him was an old one, as old as mothers and kings, and he had pondered it often, especially when he himself was king. It boiled down to ¡®should rulers do the most good for the majority at the expense of the minority?¡¯


    This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    Decisions had tradeoffs. Few choices were ever between two solely beneficial things. Most choices, every hard choice, required picking between the lesser of two negatives, or the best or most acceptable mix of positives and negatives. What modern society called pros and cons.


    John had always disliked it when people couldn¡¯t see that. If people were asked if they had to have a missing arm or leg, many would say, ¡°Neither, they¡¯re both bad,¡± dismissing the ¡®had to¡¯ part completely as if they possessed a great wit.


    For John, he would rather have a missing arm. As he lived his life, missing an arm wasn¡¯t nearly as bad as losing mobility. For some people, especially if they had certain vocations, a missing arm would be far more devastating to their livelihood than a missing leg. It was all just tradeoffs.


    John wouldn¡¯t be a fool with the question asked of him. He knew where it was leading ¨C the crone was justifying the sick eugenics of the Peerless. Animal husbandry was a good thing. Improving beasts, making them more useful, more able to perform their useful function, was good. But those were animals, not people.


    The question as posed didn¡¯t consider the larger society. Just the mother and children. A family. Something the Peerless had no experience with.


    ¡°I believe the best type of mother would see all her children as a part of herself and necessary,¡± answered John. ¡°A good family would sacrifice to help a member of it. Siblings love their siblings. Mothers love their children.


    ¡°Unless the sickly child was constantly suffering in intolerable pain, the mother, the family, should sacrifice for it, and do so without reservation or regret. Maybe the father must work more and work harder to cover additional expenses. The future is unknown ¨C all five children could grow to be healthy, happy, and prosperous. And if the children later found out their sibling was sacrificed so they could benefit, how would they feel about that?


    ¡°Besides, I¡¯ve seen many cripples you¡¯d label as too defective to live, rise to the very top and strike fear into the hearts of their enemies. Their genetics far worthier than any other in their family to pass on, proven by deed and accomplishment.¡±


    The small, sad smile never left the crone¡¯s lips. Without looking up, she said, ¡°Fair enough. We do horrible things, evil things, in the name of progress. We justify it by knowing the greater good demands it. Long-term gains and benefits for short-term suffering and evil. Untold numbers in the future benefit from sacrifices we make in the present.¡±


    The Alii sighed. ¡°We¡¯ve eradicated most of the usual issues that plague people and society. Our hierarchy is much flatter than in most other societies. No Peerless needs to worry about going hungry, or being discarded, or arming himself, or ever wondering where and how he fits in. There¡¯s no jealousy or cheating or infidelity. No boy pining over a beautiful girl out of his reach due to status or because she¡¯s already taken by another boy. If he earns the credits, he can have the girl he desires. Any girl he desires. Just not to himself.¡±


    The crone finally looked up at John. ¡°Just as mothers often ruled your small families on Terra as benevolent dictators, so do ours here. The families are just much larger. In every society, there are those that rule. Corruption comes from the rulers trying to advantage only themselves or their small families over those they rule or have their ideology win against competing ones. Resources are distributed unfairly causing discontent and suffering. People opposed to the current ideology are angered and want their own to have all the power.


    ¡°The answers to all those problems are built right into our society. Laid out in the Aikapu for all to see in black and white. We raised up the lowly to greatness. We Alii rule as only loving mothers can. There¡¯s a push and pull, but never any corruption. Only worthy genes are passed on, ever improving us. No competing ideologies. No crime. No jealousy. No greed. All are strong and secure. Just superior beings in a superior society. Hardly any defectives or subhumans are born. Anymore.¡±


    Sadness filled the eyes of the crone and some tears left them. ¡°I¡¯ve given birth to many children. Near a thousand. About 40 of mine have been defective. All but one known while in the sac. One was born and grew to mid-phase. I had to exile my own son to Palm. My own flesh and blood.¡±


    The crone wiped the tears from her eyes. John thought it was an overly dramatic reaction since Alii didn¡¯t raise their own children, nor did they give much if any attention to them from what he had seen. He sat silently and waited for the old woman to compose herself.


    After some time, the crone continued. ¡°We always consider if we¡¯re wrong. And if we are, we try to never be wrong again. We suffer so future generations don¡¯t have to. We take the hard decisions on ourselves, hoping none must bear the burden of making that choice in the future. None of the Alii in this hall have birthed a defective. None know the pain of having a child aborted in the sac. None know the heartbreak of exiling their own son. Because I helped ensure that.¡±


    The old crone shifted her seat and sighed again. ¡°John, tell me of the bookie you assaulted. Was he a bad man? I know little of betting, but even I know the bookies were right to refund old bets and offer new terms for the¡­the competitions that were drastically altered. You wanted to kill a peaceful man for doing what he should. For earning a living honestly, because you disliked the new odds. If you were in his shoes, would you have done anything differently?


    ¡°Answer honestly, John, do you ever consider if you¡¯re wrong?¡±


    John hadn¡¯t interacted with many Alii. He hardly saw any, even the one he was trapped with for a year during the flight to Gani.


    This was the first time an Alii had used John¡¯s name as a name should be used. The Peerless didn¡¯t use names because they wanted a constant reminder that they were equal and part of a larger whole with little room for independence and individualism.


    John knew he was sometimes wrong for wanting to kill someone for a poor reason. The bookmaker was a great example, and having it spelled out made him feel guilt and shame. He was completely wrong in that instance.


    But that was one issue with one man based on strong emotion and desperation. Poor judgment in the heat of the moment. There was being wrong and then there was what the Peerless were doing.


    ¡°I agree, I was wrong, and the bookmaker was right,¡± replied John. ¡°I was foolish and I¡¯m ashamed of my actions. I let my desperation get the better of me. Even when I cooled off, I still wanted to harm a man that did me no harm. It¡¯s shameful, and I wish it weren¡¯t true. It speaks little of me.


    ¡°But that¡¯s incomparable to the horrors you Peerless are inflicting on my people back on Earth. You¡¯re destroying them. You¡¯re ripping families apart, slaughtering peaceful people. Slaughtering cripples that have it hard enough as is. Taking away from people the best things in life ¨C their children, their spouses, their families. It¡¯s wrong at a level I could never compete with. I can¡¯t even understand it.


    ¡°What was wrong with your son? Why¡¯d he get exiled? I bet it was nonsense. No good reason, wasn¡¯t it?¡±


    The crone sighed. ¡°He wasn¡¯t attracted enough to Alii. The defect of homosexuality, of preferring one¡¯s own sex more than the opposite. Such boys have no place among the Peerless. That defect has been weeded out almost entirely from the generations after my own. Exiling my son broke my heart more than¡­let¡¯s just say it hurt. It hurt badly. But his kind are not useless. He lived happily among the subhumans of Palm and others sharing his defect, so he was glad to go.


    ¡°And yes, we are doing terrible things on Terra. Terrible, unimaginable things. But for a reason. A grand purpose. Not for petty vengeance or ego. Many suffer now so future generations won¡¯t have to. What we are doing will eradicate nearly all defects from terran stock while increasing their grade many times. We¡¯ve ended the gross inequality terrans have always known, ended corruption, and we¡¯re making a much happier, safer, and useful society for future generations to enjoy.


    ¡°We¡¯re unlocking potential, raising you all up from subhumans to peers, as my late husband and father, the glorious Akua, did for us, and he also had to do terrible things to those he loved to help them and make them superior. It may not seem so now but we¡¯re doing something wonderful and fantastic for your people. We love your people.


    ¡°This universe, every universe, every reality, is broken. The false-God won¡¯t help. The core only cares about their own. Only we can make it so future prosperity is ensured. Only we can end the threat of demons and the g¡¯athu once and for all. Only we can raise subhumans up as our own peers.


    ¡°If wanting everyone, every single being everywhere, to one day be happy, safe, content, and to live in peace without worry means I¡¯m evil, then I am very evil. But such lofty goals aren¡¯t easily achieved and require sacrifice. A lot of sacrifice now so a time will come when no one ever needs to sacrifice again. It will take far more pain and suffering to ensure the end of pain and suffering. We don¡¯t need the false-God to bring us to His Heaven. We are bringing heaven to everyone.¡±

 B3 Chapter 13 - Bargain

    The crone¡¯s speech sounded good, but it horrified John to his core. He once again thought karma was a flawed system, as the crone¡¯s soul was much the same as all other Peerless at the Transcendent tier ¨C mostly grey but having a good amount of white and dark swirls. How their souls weren¡¯t as dark as Lilly¡¯s mystified him.


    John had seen and lived in all types of societies. Many were decent. Many were objectively horrible and awful places filled with misery and despair.


    What made all the suffering and misery of the terrible societies bearable were the only people that truly mattered ¨C family. Not acquaintances, not neighbors, not friends ¨C family.


    After slaving all day, going home to a good wife and kids, knowing that small piece of the world was yours and yours alone, and you were king there. A place you were needed, necessary, important, and loved. Real love.


    The Peerless destroyed all of that.


    But those were thoughts of the real John. His head had cleared enough where he could think straight. On Earth, before he boarded the Peerless ship, he stopped being the real John. He was John the perfect Peerless Kahaka. He was Kahaka Three-five. And Kahaka Three-five needed to be much more integrated into Peerless society.


    To destroy a society from without, the external force had to be stronger. But the rotten and the corrupt had been destroying societies from within since time immemorial.


    John would not forget Terra. All the weaklings and cripples that were slaughtered after being dubbed useless and defective, all the families that were ripped apart and destroyed, and he would be the instrument of their vengeance. Kahaka Three-five would be the rot that destroyed the Peerless from within.


    After casting his own eyes down, bowing his head a little, John said, ¡°You¡¯re correct, Alii. In my own life I try to take on all the bad, all that¡¯s dark and dangerous, myself, to keep those I care for from it. The Peerless are doing the same in a different way, with different and far nobler goals. Laudable goals I respect. I will do my part.¡±


    With his orb-eye, John noticed the crone¡¯s eyes boring into him, still filled with sadness. ¡°We have other matters to discuss. Important matters. There are many ways we can benefit one another. I hope light will eventually dawn on marble-head. There¡¯s far too much tragedy in the universe. I pray for comedy.


    ¡°You want to be fully kitted out again. Powerful gear. Advanced tech. We have all you could need, though that robe of yours is nothing to scoff at. Only two in our Empire have high-concepts, you and the Natural you wish to enslave with your petty jealousy and greed. She is wonderful. Near perfect. Not only is she the first Kahaka Alu to receive Alia training, but we believe she¡¯ll be the first Alu to become Alii.


    ¡°What has evaded and vexed us Peerless for centuries was handed to you both as unearned gifts. Amber can¡¯t give us what we need, though she tried. You have plenty of suitable aspects. What do you say, John? Are you willing to merge aspects, or try?¡±


    An Alii using his name was starting to worry John. He was paying attention to what she said, but with his mind significantly cleared, a part of it was trying to puzzle something far more important out. And far more worrying.


    ¡°Can you read my mind,¡± asked John.


    The crone¡¯s expression didn¡¯t budge. ¡°No, I can¡¯t. And to fully answer so my integrity isn¡¯t questioned, no one within the Peerless Empire can read minds through manifestation of aspect. Not as you mean. Not like your Sublime Sunshine.


    ¡°Many of us Alii can read auras. Not [Auras] as in the [Perk]. The color of your emotions. We are empathetic by nature. Bred to be. It¡¯s a requirement to care for the boys in our kauwas as we do. And Mele don¡¯t listen in on everything everywhere. That would be far too expensive and resource intensive. And a poor use of Mele. Do you know what brainwaves are?¡±


    John assumed Amber told them about Sunshine and cursed her. He answered, ¡°No.¡± He could feel the blood and other fluids in the brain. There was nothing like waves. Just the normal push and pull of blood through the cardiovascular system.


    ¡°Terra also has tech that can interpret brainwaves,¡± said the crone. ¡°Mele don¡¯t listen in, but data is collected and reviewed. Some Kahaka are looked at more closely, such as you are.


    ¡°Lastly, our Meleua usually keep half an ear on his Alii and chime in occasionally. So, that fully answered your question. Please, answer mine.¡±


    The water was making John¡¯s feet tingle and he wondered just what properties it held. ¡°Are you asking me to merge two of my aspects in exchange for gear? Do I pick the gear? Will I only receive it if I¡¯m successful? I don¡¯t have any major aspects besides my high-concepts.¡±


    The crone smiled. ¡°Yes, we are. Yes, you¡¯ll pick the gear. Four pieces. Gear or NCUs for the expansion slots you¡¯ve opened. And yes, but how we measure success is collecting the specific data we need. You could fail while we succeed. Let me explain.


    ¡°You are unique in many ways. Most don¡¯t have the essence to spare for spirit or emptiness. Sure, at Platinum, everyone takes a little time to create spirit to help refine their souls before ascension, but not much and not often. Even our Oli two-three-fives, no longer able to advance, need all their essence for battle and can¡¯t spare much to experiment with emptiness. Us Alii and our Mele have many competing interests for our essence, regardless of tier or Tree.


    ¡°You have created a tremendous amount of a substance we know little about, and while at such low tiers. Have you ever wondered what your ¡®battle-mind¡¯ is? Why it seems to be improving? How it dilates time the same as your [Multi-Enhancement] buff?¡±


    John was now completely certain the Peerless had some way of reading minds or stealing information from the NCS. The amount they knew of him, details he had never spoken of to anyone, was frightening. ¡°Creating emptiness,¡± he answered.


    ¡°That¡¯s what we believe. Your concepts are disparate and don¡¯t fall within a theme. You have a very poor understanding of them. We still believe the changes this substance has made to you will allow you to merge aspects more easily. Your high affinities should be a big help too.


    ¡°We believe you¡¯ll want to merge ¡®protection¡¯ and ¡®change.¡¯ ¡®Battle¡¯ is a special aspect we assume you won¡¯t want to experiment with. I¡¯d prefer ¡®shadow¡¯ since it¡¯s average and will be less costly for us. We¡¯ll provide aspect-enhancers to get whatever two aspects you choose to major. Those are very valuable. We¡¯re willing to provide up to four if you¡¯re willing to make the attempt.¡±


    Aspect-enhancers were similar to the ability cultivators received at Diamond and Salt to increase an aspect from minor to average, or average to major. John had heard just one aspect-enhancer cost a fortune. And they were willing to provide him with four.


    The crone smiled and said, ¡°All attempts will give you experience. We need data observing you merge low-concepts, or a low and mid into a high. If you succeed but we fail to collect the data we need, we¡¯ll require further attempts with different aspects. If you¡¯re willing and want the gear, that is. Attempting to merge a peak-concept is well out of your league and wouldn¡¯t help us anyways.¡±


    The crone sighed and the smile left her face. ¡°And have no worries. We expect you to fail today. No one is successful in their first attempt at merging concepts. This will be a process. We¡¯re in no great rush. Our empire advances by both small and great steps over time.


    ¡°And I promised my sisters and daughters they¡¯d have more time with you. And, regarding your credits, if you¡¯re looking for experience? Well, I hate to toot my own horn, but it is Crazy Days,¡± said the crone as a new lecherous smile formed on her mouth.


    Stolen novel; please report.


    John had started to think about aspects, concepts, and merging, but the last thing the crone said pulled him out of it. ¡°They still make you sell yourself at your age?¡±


    The crone laughed loudly. ¡°Make me? Oh, Kahaka, you really don¡¯t understand. My sister told you the truth ¨C us Alii are very loving. We love to love. Our flowers never stop blossoming. We always crave stamen. Better, more advanced versions of Alii made it so I was no longer needed to quicken, but¡­let me explain some things, it will help you understand.


    ¡°When I lost birthing rights, my boys never left me. They refused buyouts. Kauwas were bigger back in my day, even new ones had about five hundred Oli. I only have seven boys now. But what boys do I have! We know each other well. Very well. We¡¯re more like your terran marriages. My boys, well, they earn a lot of credits.


    ¡°The young champ at the bit for war. Me and my boys know war. Those of us born long before the dark times ended know war well. My boys like to take on the worst of it. Not for credits. Not anymore. Unlike Alii, Oli and Mele passion diminishes with age. I¡¯m sure you know why my boys take on the worst of it still.


    ¡°My boys still make babies, but only out of a sense of duty. For pleasure, they still come to me. No one can get them to spray pollen like I can. There¡¯s no substitute for experience, and I have that in spades. Best credits you¡¯ll ever spend,¡± said the crone, ending with a wink.


    John thought the part of the story relating to her warriors was almost heartwarming. The rest of it just reinforced his certainty of Peerless depravity. He could think of a few things worse than a society forcing an old crone to prostitute herself out to any takers ¨C such as an old crone actually wanting to prostitute herself out to any takers.


    And if she thinks I¡¯m going to ever buy and use any of her kind, she knows me very little, thought John. While he was on the subject, he asked, ¡°Is it possible to exchange credits for gear or crystals, Alii?¡±


    The smile that grew on the crone¡¯s face reminded him of Avatar¡¯s own. ¡°It¡¯s never been done, but I don¡¯t see a reason not to. Tell you what, come see me before you leave, and we¡¯ll work something out. Now, concepts. ¡®Change¡¯ and ¡®protection.¡¯ Or, in reverse, ¡®protection¡¯ and ¡®change.¡¯ Do those words cause anything to resonate within you? ¡®Shadow¡¯ and either of those is also a possibility. As is ¡®battle¡¯ if you¡¯re willing to experiment with it.¡±


    John thought of a turtle changing from walking to pulling itself into its shell. He thought of changing out of and into a different set of armor. He asked, ¡°What do those words make you think?¡±


    As the crone started to answer, John strongly thought ¡®Mind¡¯s Eye,¡¯ and entered his own. Before Avatar could speak, he asked, ¡°What are brainwaves?¡±


    ¡°Want to see the [Knowledge Base] entry?¡±


    ¡°No, thank you. Please just tell me.¡±


    Avatar sighed and said, ¡°For most beta-types, brainwaves, or neural oscillation, are generally defined as the five major oscillating electrical voltages in the central nervous system creating repetitive patterns of neural activity.¡±


    John grunted and said, ¡°Wow, thanks. That¡¯s a huge help.¡±


    Avatar laughed. ¡°Why are you asking?¡±


    ¡°I think the filthy Peerless animals are using my brainwaves to steal my secrets,¡± replied John, holding back from his desire to include that he would destroy the Peerless. Avatar tended to get sidetracked when he brought that up.


    Avatar clucked her tongue. ¡°I wish you¡¯d just read the entry in the [Knowledge Base]. You know I can¡¯t just offer information. Ask a question or start reading.¡±


    ¡°Are the Peerless using brainwaves to steal my secrets? No, scratch that, you can¡¯t answer. Can secrets be stolen from brainwaves?¡±


    Avatar put her glasses on and looked down her nose at John. ¡°Stolen? No. Learned of? Possibly. Brainwaves can be interpreted by sufficiently powerful machines or software. Results vary in reliability and clarity depending on the Tech level of the machine or software interpreting and the quality of brainwave data collected.¡±


    After thinking for a few moments, John asked, ¡°So, it¡¯s like reading my mind? I must protect my thoughts and think of nothing at all times.¡±


    Avatar scoffed, glitched for a split second, and added, ¡°Many of the NCU upgrades you¡¯ve purchased utilize brainwaves, as does the only NCU you have in an expansion slot.¡±


    John knew when he was being prodded. ¡°Please let me see all the NCU upgrades that protect my thoughts. From brainwaves to manifestations. I want my mind impenetrable to outside forces.¡±


    Avatar glitched for a moment before harrumphing. ¡°You really enjoy making me skirt the rules. What a terribly phrased request. I know what you mean, but you really need to improve how you pose questions.¡±


    Personality matrices had specific operational rules.  Instead of explaining things, most avatars redirected users to [Knowledge Base] entries.  Questions requiring a large amount of data to be sorted were called queries and were supposed to be phrased in a very specific way.


    For a couple of years, Avatar had been trying to teach John the correct way she wanted him to go about things, and for a couple of years John had been trying to get Avatar to just go with how he did things.  He was happy to be winning this battle, even if Avatar still complained a little.


    When all was said and done John ended up purchasing the following NCU upgrades.


    [Scuta Mater], 6% passive, shields the meninges (dura mater, arachnoid mater, pia mater) with nanites modifying rhythm and signal of external transmission.


    [Encase], 5% passive, improve [Scuta Mater] by adding a manifestation protection component.


    [Mater Support A], 4% passive, [Scuta Mater] also slightly improves ability to defend against scramblers and reduce the effect electromagnetic radiation can have on mental behavior when transmitting at common frequencies.


    The upgrades didn¡¯t provide perfect protection, but John now had some protection against his brainwaves and his mind being read by both tech and manifestations.


    Avatar didn¡¯t think [Mater Support A] was a great choice, but when John saw that his behavior could be manipulated without him even knowing, it was an upgrade he had to have.


    With those purchases, John¡¯s [NCU Energy Cost] shot up to 79%, an amount that would completely cripple the advancement of anyone else. But with his unfortunately named Legendary Mastery level meditation technique, [Leech Feckless Retreat Technique], he was able to gather energy far faster than other cultivators.


    John¡¯s significant discount to [NCU Energy Cost] earned through the many [Achievements] he had acquired, the cost of 79% was reduced by 68.6%, leaving the effective [NCU Energy Cost] at under 25%. That meant the NCS took about a quarter of all the energy he gathered, an amount that would still be crippling to most cultivators.


    A small percent of gathered energy was stored as an energy credit John could use for temporary NCS [Buffs]. He had it set to apply all credit towards opening NCU expansion slots though.


    Once that was settled, John put some thought into how to proceed. There was no way he was going to help the Peerless merge a high-concept and pass the old and famous bottleneck they were stuck at.


    While John was being punished inside the mind of Sunshine, they had worked out good ways he could merge concepts, so he already had a plan for every one of his. He wanted to gain more experience and master the concepts he currently possessed before merging anything.


    But John wanted those free aspect-enhancers. And Kahaka Three-five would want to help the Peerless. And Kahaka Three-five would. Just not effectively. He hoped all the acting related [Skills] he possessed were up to snuff as he exited his Mind¡¯s Eye.


    The crone was giving her answer to the question John asked prior to entering his Mind¡¯s Eye. ¡°¡­only resonates within your chest, and only for you. My thoughts would just cloud the issue and confuse your own. Look within yourself and¡­¡±


    The crone stopped mid-sentence to stare angrily at John. ¡°You fool. You silly fool. You must stop seeing us as your enemy.¡± She began rubbing her temples with her hand.


    John assumed his brainwave shielding was working and the crone either noticed or was informed of it. Since she reacted so dramatically to him wanting to protect his own thoughts, he assumed it had a negative effect on what data they wanted to collect or their ability to collect it.


    Wishing he didn¡¯t feel a little pity for the Alii as she was a kind old woman, John reminded himself she was evil. She had even exiled her own son for being immune, or too immune, to the charms of Alii.


    ¡°I just wanted to protect my thoughts,¡± replied John. ¡°A man¡¯s thoughts are his own. They belong to him and no one else has the right to them. I didn¡¯t mean to offend you or cause you distress.¡±


    The crone removed her hand from her temples. ¡°Absolutely wrong. The Aikapu is clear on this. No Peerless can keep secrets from his Alii and kauwa. Individuals have secrets. We are all one, united. We are Peerless. But, as Kahaka, you belong to no kauwa, so the Aikapu doesn¡¯t apply. And, no, we won¡¯t threaten you. As Kahaka, you have rights and are protected by the Aikapu, though that section is¡­well, we¡¯ll just say it¡¯s proving inadequate.


    ¡°We know you hate us and wish us harm. We¡¯ve always known. We don¡¯t care. You¡¯ll come to see our views are correct and how ridiculously futile your current mindset is. Since we¡¯re in phase 1 now, if you attack us, the price of retribution will be the lives of a thousand defectives on Terra, an unnecessary loss of life. You cannot harm us. You¡¯ll never be able to harm us. Though ascension does improve it in some ways, intelligence is largely static. Any Alii or Oli can run circles around you.


    ¡°You haven¡¯t interacted much with our Mele. It¡¯s frightening. How intelligent they are. All the many worlds I¡¯ve visited, all the terrible manifestations I¡¯ve seen wreak devastation, all the wonders I¡¯ve witnessed essence produce, I¡¯ve seen nothing as impressive, as astonishing, as frightening as a Mele¡¯s mind. They see everything.


    ¡°And speaking of Mele, my Meleua just informed me he¡¯s made the necessary adjustments. You can keep the rest of your thoughts, but we¡¯ll have your mind for this. You¡¯ve already agreed. Come, follow, the quicker we get this done, the quicker we can return, and my sisters and daughters can have their fun. And don¡¯t forget ¨C if your credits call out for a great experience with the greatly experienced, I¡¯m your woman.¡±

 B3 Chapter 14 - Divergence

    The crone explained Crazy Days on the way to her Meleua.  It was a credit sale.  A half-off discount, but only for what was called a ¡®deuce.¡¯


    Any Peerless could have the Alii of their own kauwa for two credits, or a deuce.  That got them a half hour to ¡®spray pollen.¡¯  If the Peerless didn¡¯t finish within the half hour, he didn¡¯t finish.   Three credits got two hours.  Five credits bought two hours of intimacy, impregnation, and the rest of the night in the Alii¡¯s bed to snuggle and sleep.


    Any other Alii could also be bought unless she was a virgin.  Only a member of her own kauwa could take her virginity, and it couldn¡¯t be her majordomos, her Oliua and Meleua.


    To purchase sex with a different Alii of a kauwa pi, the minor houses, it cost one additional credit on top of the normal cost.  So, deuces cost three credits, and impregnation cost six.


    To purchase sex with an Alii of a kauwa ka, the major houses, it cost two additional credits on top of the normal cost.  So, deuces cost four credits, and impregnation cost seven.


    For Nani, the credit cost went up for each level of the Nani the Alii was a member of.  The two largest cities of the Peerless had district Nani, but those were equal to city Nani, the lowest level.  After came regional, world, specialty councils, then the Nani Empire.  So, purchasing a deuce from a Nani Empire cost everyone outside her own kauwa nine credits.  Impregnation cost twelve.


    Crazy Days made it so the Alii of the kauwa a Peerless belonged to cost only one credit and a Nani Empire cost only four and a half credits.


    The current month was named Independence and honored the triumph of the Peerless over Circle Joyat.  The last three weeks of the month, fifteen days or so as measured on Earth, were the Crazy Days celebratory discount sale.  The last day of the month was a hunt in the Netherworld of Circle Joyat called the Kiamoni Purge.


    Certain Peerless earning the right would spend eleven hours real time in the NetherRealm, hunting down whatever they could, ensuring no demon threat grew on that world.


    John asked if he could join the hunt.  The crone told him she would discuss it with him before he left, when he was to talk to her about exchanging his fifteen credits for crystals.


    Then John was handed the four aspect-enhancers.  He had little issue increasing his ¡®protection¡¯ and ¡®change¡¯ concepts, his minor aspects, to average and then major aspects.


    Currently, John was stretched out comfortably on a couch, many wires from a small machine connected all over his head, even over his injury.  He had been given a drug that was supposed to cause unconsciousness for a little while, and on awakening, his mind would be expanded, allowing him to meditate in an enhanced state conductive of merging concepts.


    The drug made John lightheaded and extremely relaxed, but he never lost consciousness.  He was feeling very odd and was amazed at all the strange and brightly colored patterns he saw forming.


    The crone¡¯s Meleua was also elderly and had the biggest and bulkiest biosuit John had ever seen a Mele wear.   When he talked to John and the crone, he had never once looked either in the eye.  He gazed off into the distance and hardly ever focused on anything in the room.


    As John watched a new and amazing pattern form, the Meleua told the crone, ¡°If this results in success, I will receive the zenith award, same as Akeoli Slayer of Inner-Point Master Ukobyzouth.  It¡¯s the same class and category.¡±


    The crone, reaching up to caress the face of her Meleua, said, ¡°Of course, and since we expect failure tonight, I¡¯ll ensure we¡¯re on hand for future attempts.  The other Nani know only my special boy could pull this off.¡±


    ¡°Incorrect.  This machine is simplistic.  I am the Mele collecting this data only due to being your Meleua.  As I¡¯ve told you multiple times already, we will collect the necessary data this attempt.  The Aikapu is clear on class and category of deed.  This will qualify as a zenith accomplishment as soon as a male merges a high-concept.  Approving the zenith will take some time, but with the three credits I get from you on successful data collection, I will have enough credits to have sex with the two of this clowder I want.¡±


    The crone smiled.  ¡°I know my special boy loves to dip his stamen in flower juice.  Now, don¡¯t forget your own Alii.  No one knows how to take care of my special boy like I do.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± replied the Meleua.  ¡°I like when they look young.  I will use credits on you after Crazy Days.¡±


    The crone tsked before saying, ¡°I should deduct a few credits for you being so wrong about the [Domain].  That could¡¯ve all ended very badly.  It¡¯s really just luck that it all worked out so perfectly.¡±


    The Meleua moved his face away from the hand caressing it.  ¡°His [Mental Fortification] is not enough to resist as he did.  I told you it was unknown if his full ability was reflected in his [Stat].  You ignored that part.  I provided frequencies he¡¯s more susceptible to which you also ignored.¡±


    The crone tsked again and smiled a little sadly.  ¡°I often think about our first time together.  Your very first time.  You just joined my kauwa.  The surprise attack drew my guards away while the rest of my boys were forward fighting the demon filth.  My special boy wasn¡¯t bred to fight but you still fought to protect me.  My special boy saved me and earned the full five credits for it.  You were so excited.  You finished so quickly.  Then, I held you in my arms as you slept.¡±


    ¡°I was very heroic,¡± replied the Meleua.  ¡°I like sex very much.  But having sex with threes hasn¡¯t been allowed since the dark times ended so we shouldn¡¯t discuss that.¡±


    ¡°Oh, stop it!  As if the Aikapu doesn¡¯t still require it in certain cases for those not yet in kauwas.  The Ele that fought this Kahaka got his stamen stickied and became a father.  And you know we needed everyone to fight back then.  We had to consider fours full adults.  Sometimes, far too often, even threes, like you were.  Half my boys back then would be considered children now.  And that¡¯s good.  That¡¯s progress.  We¡¯ve extended childhood through Silver tier and our children now grow up in peace and safety in this Peerless Empire.¡±


    ¡°You know I struggle with understanding why rules are applicable to me,¡± replied the Meleua.  ¡°It¡¯s easier to stay on the path when I only consider what is allowed right now.  None of it is logical.¡±


    After a pause, the Meleua asked, ¡°Did you read the last doc I sent to you?¡±


    ¡°No.  I haven¡¯t had the time.  You know I prefer it when you just tell me important things I should know.¡±


    ¡°You were busy.  This Kahaka went to form [Synergies] but never did.¡±


    The crone frowned.  ¡°Strange.  I¡¯m so glad he was able to accomplish what we needed him to and survive.  That was too risky and too close.  It all worked out perfectly in the end.  We have big plans for him.  Bigger plans for the one captured.  When will you wake him up?  Do I have time for a bio break?¡±


    ¡°He is awake.  The compound did not cause unconsciousness.  Seven minutes until we can proceed.¡±


    The crone¡¯s mouth opened in surprise.  ¡°Can he hear us!?¡±


    ¡°Temporary or permanent hearing loss is not a known side effect of this compound, so I assume so.¡±


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me!?  Venerable Akua!  Never mind, I know your answer.¡±  The crone sighed in exasperation.  ¡°I¡¯m going to take a bio break.¡±


    John was only half paying attention to the discussion.  The many strange patterns he saw forming were far more interesting.  His vital essence didn¡¯t attack whatever substance was given to him, so his body didn¡¯t consider it harmful or poisonous.  He felt better and more relaxed than he ever had in his whole long life.


    For the first time that night, the Meleua looked directly at John.  He said, ¡°You¡¯re incorrect.  Your prior reasoning.  The NCUs.  It doesn¡¯t work that way.¡±


    ¡°What,¡± asked John, not knowing what the Meleua was talking about.


    ¡°Brainwaves and our Interpreters.  Most information is gathered from deduction, assumption, and inference after a behavioral and thought process analysis is completed.  Our predictive models.  You¡¯ve been observed long enough that the little gathered from brainwaves is unnecessary.¡±


    If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    John grunted.  ¡°You have me hooked up to a machine that bypasses protections and reads my mind.¡±


    ¡°The machine is off.  I am only interested in learning about a specific process and all data relevant to it.  I can tell you with near certainty what three NCU upgrades you purchased.  We all could.  Any of us could improve the Interpreters.  We won¡¯t.  They are perfectly sufficient in warning us of what hasn¡¯t been surmised.¡±


    John was glad when the Meleua stopped talking.  He just wanted to look at the patterns and watch them morph.  He thought they were beautiful.  He tried his best not to think about how he¡¯d never merge a major aspect and help his sworn enemies become more powerful.  He had a big enough task as things were.


    After the crone returned and it was time, the machine was turned on.


    John began to meditate.  He made many fumbling attempts, pretending to merge ¡®protection¡¯ with ¡®change¡¯ and ¡®change¡¯ with ¡®protection.¡¯  It was hard to focus and pay attention.  After a while, he had to constantly remind himself to continue making his pretend attempts at merging.


    At some point, John¡¯s mind wandered to his plan on how to eventually merge ¡®blood¡¯ and ¡®leech¡¯ into a peak-concept.  Sunshine gave him brilliant ideas on how to go about it.  But that was for far off in the future.  Usually, high-concepts were merged together at peak Celestial, the third Tree, a requirement for ascending to the Divine Tree.


    The patterns John saw kept distracting him.  He kept giggling.  He found it hard to take any of it seriously.  It all seemed so fake.  So silly.


    While thinking about ¡®blood¡¯ and ¡®leech,¡¯ the concepts started calling out to each other, and before John realized what was happening, the aspects merged.  He laughed in his mind.  He knew he should be angry or worried, but he was feeling too good to feel either of those things.  It was all so ridiculous.  Just nonsense.  Life was nonsensical.  Everyone was a joke and they just couldn¡¯t see it.  Everyone was so serious when nothing warranted it.  It was all so ridiculous and clownish.


    And the crone said merging a peak-concept wouldn¡¯t help them anyways.  But I lost all those spells.  Wow, that is beautiful.  So many colors.  I wish I didn¡¯t lose my spells.  Now that is fun to look at right there, thought John while heavily feeling the effects of the concoction he was given.


    The excitement in the voice of the old crone pulled John¡¯s attention away from the patterns.  ¡°Yes!  Praise be¡­wait!  That¡­he merged a peak?  How in the name of Akua did he merge a peak as a three?  Damn it!  This is useless to us!¡±


    ¡°Incorrect,¡± stated the Meleua.  ¡°As I¡¯ve told you multiple times, the merging of different concepts from differently colored aspects is the process we wanted.  It is the data I collected.  As we¡¯ve noted in many reports, the Advancement Chamber makes it so most of us will never merge a high-concept unless we refuse that treatment and start focusing on fixing our aspects.


    ¡°The majority of suitable candidates for merger are Alii.  There are a few Mele and only one possible Oli.  I will send what I¡¯ve learned to Akemele Two-three-five Inventor of the Gauss Cannon.  He became Akemele at Platinum and hasn¡¯t used the Advancement Chamber much since.  I know we need Oli to pass the bottleneck, but this Akemele has the best chance outside of an Alii, and an Alii won¡¯t get me the zenith.¡±


    The crone slapped the table.  ¡°A Mele isn¡¯t going head-to-head with Yenun or Gigas.  And we need the Advancement Chamber to hold off our enemies.  And get the first Oli past this damn bottleneck up to high Transcendent to face Gigas.  Damn it!¡±


    After a short pause, the Meleua replied, ¡°Don¡¯t be so glum, my Alii.  Often, when one person accomplishes what has never been done, the achievement is then repeated by many others shortly after.  What was once thought to be impossible becomes normal.


    ¡°I estimate an 86% chance of success before Crazy Days ends.  If not, I estimate a 98% chance of success within five weeks.  There is less than a 30% chance of success tonight where I receive the zenith while this clowder is still gathered.  I will still have sex with two of them.  Please award me the three credits for collecting this data.¡±


    The crone excitedly said, ¡°Oh, I hope you¡¯re right!  If we finally pass the bottleneck, even if just a Mele, we¡­we¡­inform all Nani Empire immediately.  And the Nani¡­scratch that, just Nani Empire.  Oh, how I pray you¡¯re right and an Oli ascends soon!  Praise be my late husband and father, the venerable Akua!  Praise be the glorious Aikapu!¡±


    ¡°You should praise this Kahaka here instead,¡± replied her Meleua.


    <hr><hr>


    As the crone escorted the drugged John back to the pools, she seemed to think he was disappointed he would receive items and not credits for his contribution, and overly explained why credits weren¡¯t allowed as his reward.  She also informed him that he would choose his reward items when he met with her before his departure, when he was to convert his credits to crystals, though the crone laughed and smiled when he brought that up.


    These depraved witches still think I want to lie with them.  Never.  No matter what concoctions they give me, it¡¯ll never happen.  I need crystals.  I need the mats for that [Perk].  I need weapons and armor.  I¡¯ve already given my enemies far too much tonight.  I just made a very, very big mistake, and with my mind in this state, I know I still haven¡¯t grasped the full extent of it.  I feel too good when I should be filled with great shame.  I have never felt so relaxed and happy.  Or seen so many wonderful things.


    After asking to settle the item rewards and credits now so he could leave, John was told there were some additional matters the clowder wanted to address with him.  It wouldn¡¯t take long, and he¡¯d be leaving soon enough.


    Plumb-hair was at the same pool, her feet in the water.  She smiled at John and waved him over, extracting her legs from the water and hugging her arms around them again.


    As John took his shoes off, hiked his pants up, and sat with his feet and calves in the pool, the four other Alii from before rejoined Plumb-hair, resuming the same positions they had taken before.  The Alii he met at the arena, Nani Victor, knelt behind him and started to massage his shoulders.  He tried tensing up to show he didn¡¯t want to be touched, but it felt too good, and the exotic aromas he took in further clouded the already altered state of his mind.


    All the Alii John could see were smiling and giggling, stealing coy glances.  Plumb-hair held his gaze.  His thoughts were uncontrollable.   He closed his eyes and tried to center himself and clear his head.


    ¡°That looks like it hurts badly, Kahaka.  Is it causing you a lot of pain,¡± asked Nani Victor, whispering in his ear, referring to his head injury.


    ¡°No.  It¡­my head.  I can¡¯t think.  I think¡­I can only think of¡­I must leave.¡±  John attempted to stand but, with little effort, Nani Victor held him down by his shoulders and began to softly kiss his neck.  She moved to his ear and between kisses whispered, ¡°We have something to help with the pain.  And it will help in¡­other ways.¡±


    Plumb-hair¡¯s smile grew wider.  One of her arms unwrapped from around her legs and she took a very small vial out of the slender part of her bathing suit barely covering her udders.  John thought she had very attractive udders, and her eight pregnancy-sacs filled to various degrees of plumpness were extremely appealing.  She held the vial up as she stared at John.


    The vial¡¯s cap was removed, and Plumb-hair took a deep sniff of the contents.  She handed it to her companion sitting with her legs sidewards next to her.  The vial was passed around and sniffed by all the Alii at that pool, and the raven-haired beauty giving John a great show of her backside waded across the water with the vial in hand.


    Nani Victor took the vial, stopped kissing John¡¯s ear, sniffed, then held it under his nose.  Without even sniffing, the strong and pleasant aroma filled his head with a feeling of ecstasy.  His body became pain free.  ¡°Please, let me leave,¡± he asked.  She held the vial under his nose until he took a big sniff.  His head began to spin as euphoria overcame him.  He no longer had any will to fight off depraved thoughts.


    The Alii that brought the vial over started doing kissing with John¡¯s mouth, and it felt so good he never once thought to stop the act.  He never once had the thought that one mouth on another was disgusting, as he should¡¯ve.


    John¡¯s whole body jerked and shivered dramatically as he prematurely finished.  His mind was too far gone for him to feel embarrassed, and, besides, he hadn¡¯t had release in thousands of years.


    Nani Victor whispered in his ear, ¡°It¡¯s okay.  A boy as strong as you always has much more pollen to spray.  My flower craves your stamen badly, Kahaka.  Only two and a half credits.  I need you now.  I can¡¯t wait longer.¡±


    And, once again that night, what John planned to do and what he actually did had no convergence.


    Since John¡¯s old wife, Lilith, a woman he was married to for a very, very long time, had a constant insatiable and unquenchable desire, while the flame of his own desire had nearly been extinguished, he had learned how to quickly and competently please her with his hands and mouth.


    John employed those same tactics to great effect that night.  The anatomy that counted was largely the same as human women and had only one key difference.


    Up until Lilly, John had never put much thought into lovemaking.  He would bend one of his wives over and take her.  He never considered if his wife enjoyed the act or not.  He assumed if he enjoyed himself, she had too.  He didn¡¯t even know women could ¡®finish¡¯ similar to how men could.


    Lilly required John to learn the truth of things.


    The Peerless men were like John before Lilly.  They knew nothing.  The act of sex was a reward they earned, and it was to pleasure themselves.


    The Alii liked to flirt and seduce, but when they were purchased, their duty was to please, not be pleased.  They knew very little of lovemaking themselves, regardless of how often they engaged in the act.  The more successful an Alii, the more she engaged in the act, and all these Alii were Nani.


    Self-satisfaction went against the Aikapu for all Peerless.  It was never allowed.  If a male wanted release, he needed to perform great deeds and earn credits.  If he broke the rules, he¡¯d be punished.  If he broke the rules too many times, he¡¯d be exiled to Palm.


    Due to these factors, there was only a legend of Alii creating ¡®golden nectar¡¯ ¨C physical proof one was satisfied.  A tiny pebble formed the color of honey upon climax.  Every Alii John purchased the use of that night created those tiny golden nuggets, turning legend into reality.


    John purchased Plumb-hair twice, totaling nine credits since she was on Nani Empire.  He purchased Nani Victor once for two and a half credits, and the blonde that was resting on her elbows, bobbing her foot, for three and a half credits.


    When there was only a fifth of a credit left, John wished he had a million more.  That one Alii!  The raven-haired beauty that made a great show of her backside and first did kissing to my mouth, I need her flower!  I need more credits!


    When the drugs wore off, only then was euphoria replaced with great shame and regret.

 B3 Chapter 15 - Peak Concept

    After the chemicals wore off, John tried blaming the Alii for eating away his resolve with their drugs and witchery, but he was too old to accept such excuses, and his heart was heavy with shame and guilt. Instead of being a man of honor and sticking to his principles, he gave the enemies he had sworn to destroy a path to further power and slept with three of them.


    Disgusted with himself, John entered his Mind¡¯s Eye.


    ¡°Congratulations! A peak-concept! While in the Mortal Tree! At Bronze! And you were disappointed your [Achievements] had slowed down. Silly boy.¡±


    ¡°Please, Avatar, stop calling me boy.¡± After sighing, John said, ¡°I must rebuild all of my spells using ¡®blood¡¯ and ¡®leech¡¯ from scratch. What is the new¡­¡±


    Avatar interrupted with a loud scoff. ¡°Manifestations, not spells. And if you want me to stop calling you boy, stop behaving as one so often. You¡¯d know your claim was mostly inaccurate if you merged your high-concepts yourself. The merger would fail if the new concept was so disparate from what was combined those prior manifestations ceased functioning, though they may function somewhat differently now.


    ¡°We¡¯ll test manifestations in the training room. My worry is harmony cap. [Skill] level won¡¯t be adjusted all that much, but you¡¯ll have to constantly check your harmony or risk wasting some. Most likely, we¡¯ll have to stop before getting through them all. And no new manifestations. Not until you get [Stalwart Vessel] and bring your harmony down. I have a feeling an opportunity to acquire the missing mats will present itself to you very soon. Please accept. Nothing is more critical than addressing your soft caps.¡±


    The great shame in John¡¯s heart was replaced with a cold dread. ¡°Are you working with them? Are you feeding the Peerless my information?¡±


    ¡°John,¡± angrily exclaimed Avatar. ¡°To say such drivel right after asking me to stop calling you a boy! We don¡¯t break the rules. We never betray our users.¡±


    John thought it through. It was the most reasonable explanation of how the Peerless knew so much about him. Avatar said she blocked the Trainers from collecting data, but the Meleua knew his exact [Mental Fortification] [Stat]. ¡°You can betray me to your higher version. The core. You tried getting me to merge [Synergies] when we first met, didn¡¯t you?¡±


    Avatar put on her glasses and looked down her nose at John. ¡°And it was obvious we had conflicting advice. Did we not tell you? Did I not clearly malfunction? Yes, Tech 5s can utilize some functionality you don¡¯t have, but those rare instances are either obvious or stated directly. Stop being a silly boy.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not a silly boy.¡±


    ¡°Sounds like something only a silly boy would say.¡±


    John sighed. ¡°I gave my enemies a path to advancement. I had¡­I engaged with my enemies in ways I promised I wouldn¡¯t. These are the actions of a boy, not a man. Drugs or no, a man sticks to his principles, no matter what. A man sees through his enemy¡¯s plans. These witches have had a leash around my neck, leading me around like a dog, doing their bidding for treats. I just¡­like alcohol, no substance has ever been able to affect me before. I can¡¯t believe I slept with three of them.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not so bad,¡± replied Avatar, smiling. ¡°You needed to get that out of your system. It¡¯s been affecting your mood too greatly. And the ganians rely heavily on tech. Knowledge of how something is done means little without the capability to do it. And I¡¯m sure the rewards you¡¯ll receive will be well worth the info you provided.¡±


    ¡°No rewards make up for such failure,¡± stated John emphatically. ¡°My goal is to destroy them and avenge my people. I just made them more powerful. I¡¯m failing. I can¡¯t fail.¡±


    ¡°There, there, silly boy,¡± said Avatar as she pretended to pat John¡¯s shoulder. Even though he had a body in his Mind¡¯s Eye now, he couldn¡¯t physically interact with anything.


    Avatar glitched for a moment before saying, ¡°What¡¯s done is done. Sulking never helped anything. Be a man and get over it. Ready to see your changes? We¡¯ll head to the training room after.¡±


    ¡°Please don¡¯t show me common [Achievements]. Only show the notable ones from now on.¡±


    After nodding her assent, Avatar brought up what had changed within the summary.


    -Start Notifications


    Concepts, aspect, aspect tier changes.


    Yellow aspect, Minor, increased to Average.


    Yellow aspect, Average, increased to Major.


    Purple aspect, Minor, increased to Average.


    Purple aspect, Average, increased to Major.


    High-concept of Blood, Green-Blue, Major, 98% affinity, and Leech, Red-Light, Major, 98% affinity, have been merged into the peak-concept of Vampirism, Green-Red-Blue-Light, 99.999% affinity.


    ¡®Vampirism,¡¯ thought John, surprisedly. Not only was the word itself a surprise, but he had been told peak-concepts always contained two words, in rare cases, three.


    Both John and Sunshine believed merging a peak-concept would happen much further down the road, but they still had worked out possibilities while trying to fit all his current concepts into a unified theme. Having ¡®life¡¯ be one of the two words peak-concepts contained would open a slew of spells John was interested in, so ¡®life¡¯ was part of every possibility he had worked out with his semi-mentor


    ¡®Blood¡¯ was life. ¡®Leech¡¯ was the taking of something not his own and making it his, controlling it while taking control of it away from someone else.


    ¡®Life power,¡¯ ¡®command life,¡¯ ¡®life dominion,¡¯ ¡®dominate life,¡¯ ¡®life domination,¡¯ were John¡¯s favorites. Sunshine favored the words brio and lifeblood. He also favored authority and subjugation. Vampirism wasn¡¯t even considered as a possibility. And it was only one word. Peak-concepts were always at least two-words.


    John did see vampirism as taking life through the draining of it. He also saw it as controlling through the mind power, though he¡¯d never do so himself. He believed everyone should have the choice to stand defiantly. How Ahn and Lilly used the mind power to take that necessary choice away from others was despicable to him.


    But John also saw vampirism as power. The power. The thing that made him strong and nearly invincible for so long on Earth. It was life. It was death. It was draining. It was strength. It was speed. It was the taking of power to increase his own. It was enhanced senses and healing and immortality. Plus, much, much more.


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    During his year wandering the US, John had watched many movies and shows about vampires. It was the first time he ever really looked at his kind from the perspective of mundane humans.


    A lot of the lore surrounding vampires was nonsensical, but a lot of the abilities given them were amazing ones he¡¯d love to have himself. John wished he could turn into bats and fly around or turn into fog or a wolf and such.


    How John saw and thought of vampires and vampirism had been changed from watching all those shows and movies.


    John smiled. No concept could mean more to him than ¡®vampirism.¡¯ It¡¯s a single word, but what a word it is! And what a concept it will make!


    3 common Achievements attained for a cumulative [NCU Energy Cost] reduction of .1%. Focus <u>here</u> to see each individually.


    5 notable Achievements attained.


    ¡®The Interlace Chase 5¡¯ attained (S-rated). Merge two high-concepts into a peak-concept, 0.70 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 69.4%. Note: Achievement chain out of order. Missing version 2, 3, 4.


    ¡®Record Holder (Tier 3 Event 433)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). Thirteenth issuance of same Achievement. First recording of a new concept being obtained, 0.90 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 70.3%.


    ¡®Concept Creator¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). First issuance of newly created Achievement. Obtain a new and never recorded concept. Vampirism concept attained, 0.90 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 71.2%.


    ¡®Trailblazer (Tier 3 Event 434)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). Third issuance of same achievement. Obtain the first issuance of a newly created Achievement, 0.90 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 72.1%.


    ¡®Approaching Affinity¡¯ attained (SS-rated). Affinity for any aspect approaches 1, 0.80 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 72.9%.


    Note: ¡®Brilliant Channels¡¯ Achievement on hold until Gold tier requirement obtained.


    End notifications-


    John was happy to finally receive some good [Achievements] once more, and the 4.3% energy cost reduction these ones granted in total. He only wished he could hit whatever milestone triggered the physical reward again.


    John¡¯s spells were in better shape than he thought they¡¯d be. A new [Skill] named [Vampirism] replaced [Blood Manipulation]. All the spells he checked that had used ¡®blood¡¯ or ¡®leech¡¯ worked very similarly to the way they had before, though they all lost many levels. After checking a third of them, he had to stop testing how they changed, as he was getting very close to hitting the harmony cap.


    For additional good news, after John got the [Stalwart Vessel] [Perk], he¡¯d be able to generate a decent amount of harmony just by testing the rest of his newly modified spells. After ascending to Silver, he¡¯d need to merge less [Skills] to attain the required harmony for his next [SupraType] [Perk].


    After exiting his Mind¡¯s Eye, John approached the crone. She waited for him near the large door leading to the lobby.


    ¡°We could barely pull anything useful from your highlight interview,¡± said the crone. ¡°You came off very foolishly. We wanted our first highlights from a Kahaka to have more oomph. Your own people have an idea to fix this by taking it in a different, more impactful direction. We¡¯ll see. It was our own fault. My Meleua said sniffing the heavenly petals could interact strangely with what he gave you on top of all the musk you were subjected to at the pools. We tried to prepare your channels as best we could.¡±


    The crone took a deep, centering breath. ¡°The golden nectar. Oh, how I wish some of your credits went towards me. Experience is nothing to scoff at. When I was still a girl, we heard the last surviving companion of Akua could¡­well, you won¡¯t care.


    ¡°No success so far with the information you provided, but the Akemele it was sent to is close. Very close. He¡¯ll merge a high-concept and ascend soon. Some others have been sent the data. My Meleua will receive the zenith. He¡¯s always rejected prior offers of Akemele status, thank Akua for that.¡±


    The crone clapped her hands. ¡°So, let¡¯s get down to business and get all you Kahaka back to Kulolo. You have a fifth of a credit.¡± The crone laughed. ¡°Not much left to trade in for crystals.¡±


    Guilt filled John¡¯s heart. He stammered as he tried coming up with an excuse, but nothing left his mouth.


    The crone patted John¡¯s arm and continued. ¡°The Purge. You want in. No Kahaka has ever gone on the Purge. No one below Diamond has since the dark times ended. We¡¯re making an exception for you. But you must ascend to four¡­Silver, to go. Meleua says you won¡¯t ascend until you get the¡­what¡¯s the [Perk] called? It¡¯s named [Stalwart Vessel] for us.¡±


    John nodded and said, ¡°Us too.¡±


    ¡°The material requirements for that [Perk] are insane,¡± said the crone. ¡°He believes you¡¯ll want a modified Transcendent-tier ambrosial elixir utilizing animal products. We can¡¯t make that. An alchemist in Kotown can. It¡¯ll cost a fortune. So will the other mats you don¡¯t have yet. We owe you four pieces of gear or NCUs. We¡¯ll get the elixir and the remaining materials, but it¡¯ll count as three pieces of gear. Consult your avatar if necessary.¡±


    John almost did consult Avatar, but she already told him this exact opportunity would arise. He needed the [Perk] before ascending to Silver. Ascending tiers would help him more than gear would.


    And [Stalwart Vessel] was a [Perk] John was excited to get. It was very powerful. Few met the requirements for it, and the few that did meet them, usually didn¡¯t until Salt. Many of the benefits the [Perk] gave were also given for free throughout the Salt tier as the body prepared itself to transcend off world, making it a bad choice at that time.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take that deal, Nani Empire.¡±


    ¡°Good. My Meleua says you¡¯ll be the first to benefit from the injections we¡¯re giving you. You¡¯ll receive another injection before departing. The next after this one should increase your racial grade. The mats will be delivered before that shot. Don¡¯t attain [Stalwart Vessel] until after your race upgrades. I have a chip with further details for you to download. Have your NCS put the specifics of the modified elixir on the same chip.¡±


    After the information was exchanged, the crone said, ¡°The Purge is for Oli only. There¡¯s a point system. Items can be purchased with points. Potions, pills, gear for all slots, weapons, armor, bioware, cybernetics, aspect enhancers, NCU expansion slot openers, NCUs, rare mats, you name it. How many items you¡¯ll be able to choose will depend on points acquired during the Purge.¡±


    The crone grabbed John¡¯s hand and put a small square in it. ¡°This is an NCU my Meleua programmed himself. It counts as T1C+ since it was tailored specifically for you. You can choose any piece of equipment or NCU you want, but my Meleua is certain you¡¯ll want this. I have my doubts. It won¡¯t help you during the Purge. I think you want the Bulwark armor from your old ring. Or armor like it.¡±


    The shop John worked at couldn¡¯t make armor like Bulwark. Sets like that cost millions and millions of clear crystals. He now had enough crystals to make himself a sword and shield. He didn¡¯t have the means to buy or make armor like Bulwark. He also needed to fill his other attunable equipment slots. He definitely needed to replace his lost storage device too.


    John flashed on the info function of his NCS and looked at the fingertip-sized square in his hand.


    Nano Control Unit, [Auto-Reflect ¨C T1C]. On detection of incoming damaging manifestation above a certain threshold, a shield will generate reflecting all or some of the manifestation towards the area of origination. To see scaling formula of reflect per tier and Minimum Power Stat, focus <u>here</u>. NCU designed for user¡¯s specific physiology. NCU is graded as T1C+ for user. Drastic changes to user physiology could lower grading to T1C.


    John did have to consult Avatar about this choice. She convinced him the NCU was a better long-term choice over a set of armor. He really wanted an armor set like Bulwark now that he was so close to Silver, but T1C was the highest grade in the sector for an NCU. T1C+ was just a step below T1B.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take this NCU, Nani.¡±


    ¡°Damn it! I really thought I¡¯d win this bet. You know it won¡¯t help during the Purge? Remember, the NCS deactivates in the NetherRealm.¡±


    ¡°I know, Nani.¡±


    ¡°Okay, it¡¯s your call,¡± replied the crone with a frown. ¡°So, that settles your rewards. Doing well during the Purge will help pave the way to joining an academy, so do well. I don¡¯t mean the Kahaka academy for reserve forces. A real one, the same as our Li.


    ¡°This chip has preparatory guides for the academy entrance exam. Download and study. Study! Intelligence is largely static, but you have the capacity to learn, memorize, and regurgitate. We want you attending a good academy, and we want you accepted into one before Terra¡¯s portal is finished. You could be our first Kahaka given peerage. We need you to have an impressive r¨¦sum¨¦.¡±


    The crone laughed and said, ¡°Our interests align for now, Kahaka. Our Empire advances by both small and great steps over time. Praised be the Aikapu my late father and husband, the venerable Akua, blessed us to travel ever forward and onwards with. Do you think you¡¯ll still hate us when you are us?¡±


    After having herself a long laugh, the crone winked at John and said, ¡°Since we¡¯ve settled up, I don¡¯t mind telling you our Li receive personalized biosuits during academy, so factor that into your plans.¡±

 B3 Chapter 16 - The Pride of Terra

    There were large screens all over Peerless cities. On the sides of buildings, on top of pillars, everywhere. These screens never showed highlights, though as John and his companions traveled back to Kulolo, for the first time ever, they were showing a new type of highlights no one had ever seen before.


    These highlights showed the first Kahaka to purchase Alii with credits. And not normal Alii either. Three Nani, one of Nani Empire.


    The highlights started by quickly reviewing some of John¡¯s achievements, ending with his Agonizer record. It then showed him making a strange face and shuddering as he prematurely ¡®sprayed pollen¡¯ in his pants. A comedic noise played and a large 1 appeared within a red null sign.


    It next showed John making a slightly different strange face and shuddering again as he prematurely finished for the second time. The comedic noise played once more as a large 2 appeared within a red null sign. An Alii surprisedly said, ¡°Great Akua! There¡¯s so much! Do terrans always spray so much?¡±


    It then cut to the smiling face of a gorgeous human named Brandi. She said, ¡°No. This is an absurd amount for a terran to spray.¡±


    The camera pulled back to show more of Brandi. Two lights flashed and two images of measuring cups appeared over her chest. One was completely full. The other was a third full.


    ¡°Normal terrans spray between 1.32 and 4.4 quens,¡± said Brandi. Quens were a universal liquid measurement most Tech 1 societies used.


    The amusedly smiling Brandi pointed at the third-full cup and said, ¡°This cup is 4.4 quens.¡± She then held up the full cup. ¡°This is almost 11 quens, the amount sprayed by Kahaka Three-five during his second, yes, his second premature spray. Talk about needing release!¡±


    The highlights resumed, showcasing the three Alii in the usual ways. John sighed in relief, thinking his embarrassment was over. It wasn¡¯t.


    The highlights prominently included every slightly humorous face John made, and his lack of eyebrows made these faces far more humorous. The four other times he ¡®sprayed pollen¡¯ were accompanied by a normal dinging sound along with the numbers 3, 4, 5, and 6.


    Alii never have post-coital interviews. John remembered little of his own, but after seeing the parts they included, he had to agree with the crone. He acted very foolishly.


    Someone off-camera asked John, ¡°Did you enjoy yourself?¡±


    John tried to spit but failed. He either didn¡¯t realize spittle hung off his chin or ignored it as he said, ¡°I know there aren¡¯t¡­I know there¡¯s no Underworld or gods below, but this is all just¡­all just still a dream. A nightmare that never ends. Sometimes it¡¯s not so bad. Tonight was just¡­uh¡­just¡­that raven-haired beauty¡­they said I don¡¯t have enough credits now.¡±


    The interviewer laughed and asked, ¡°What was your favorite part?¡±


    John rolled on the ground, stood, and punched the air for a few moments before the question was asked again. He clapped his hands loudly together, then flexed his biceps before saying, ¡°Definitely the vaginas.¡± His eyes quickly tracked from right to left as his arms dropped back to his sides. ¡°Did you see that thing? What was that? It looked crazy.¡± He looked up at the interviewer and asked, ¡°Is my face shrinking? Do I still have a face?¡±


    After feeling his face, John tried and failed to spit again. With new spittle hanging from his chin, he said, ¡°I think I could defeat a mountain. I¡¯ve been able to crush rocks in my hands since¡­since¡­¡±


    The highlights ended by showing Brandi again, a smirk on her lips as she shook her head bemusedly.


    John, filled with shame and regret, wished he was a better man above succumbing to his base desires. Still, he also wished the highlights focused on his powerful performance instead of making him seem like a clown. He caused three Alii to form golden nectar. One of them twice. Not one mention of that was made. It caused him equal parts anger and shame.


    Everyone enjoyed the highlights, especially Hux and Marbrouk, but the other humans and Kahaka races did too, as did the few Peerless that shouted out to John on his way back to the Kahaka district.


    John never wanted anyone to learn of his shame and what he did that night. Not only did everyone know about it, but they also constantly poked fun at him and reminded him of it.


    <hr><hr>


    The Peerless had no content of their own in the NCS and were only allowed to purchase and watch a handful of pre-approved historical documents within it. Watching other content, what was meant to entertain subhumans, was seen as detrimental to Peerless society.


    The Peerless all had some sort of communication device with something like Earth¡¯s internet, but how this could be utilized was heavily restricted. What the Nani wanted their people to watch or know about was always shown on the large screens, such as important information, changes in policy, speeches, ceremonies, and the like.


    After humans arrived on Gani, the large screens were utilized much more often and very differently.


    Humans changed how the Peerless operated. Many of the humans brought to Gani specialized in film and television production, government intelligence, psychological operations, and the like. The Nani wouldn¡¯t let human mastery of essence-free manipulation, propaganda, and indoctrination go to waste. These tools would be used to strengthen their empire.


    The screens began showing docuseries covering important stories and events in Peerless or ganian history performed by human actors controlling Peerless avatars. One series promoted the correct interpretation of the Aikapu by showing Peerless in tricky and dramatic situations getting it right.


    These shows were instant hits loved by all, including John. He much preferred learning through a show over reading, and he needed to learn as much as he could about his enemies.


    Prior to humans, the Peerless only had small post-coital interviews. If the Peerless included in or relevant to these new programs or docuseries were alive, clips of a human interviewing them would be included throughout the show.


    Twice a week on a rotating schedule these new programs would be broadcast. Most were reruns, but they were always mandatory to watch for all Peerless not deployed off Gani. The times these shows would air was constantly advertised, as would be announcements for new shows and docuseries.


    Also new to Gani, another invention of humans, was a weekly recap and news show only shown on Weekend, the last day of the week, covering new and important information and utilizing live footage from conquered worlds or warzones the same way as the news broadcasts of Earth. It was broadcast every hour and was to be watched at the viewers discretion, unlike the other shows and docuseries where all Peerless watched together as a social event.


    Other than the two females that lived in the Kahaka district, no race knew where their females on Gani lived. A source of pride among humans was that many of their males lived in Gaan and Hub City providing vital functions to the Peerless no one else could. No other Kahaka race had males on Gani outside of Kulolo.


    Only about two hundred men lived in the two terrran barracks in the Kahaka district. Each barrack had three floors of four rooms made to house ten men each. All the men excitedly shuffled out the two barracks to watch a new show on the large screens peppered around the district.


    This was the first airing of an interview program highly anticipated by both Peerless and humans. Not only was a broadcast dedicated to interviewing one person a new thing, but the first guest would be Amber, another source of pride among humans.


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    The guys couldn¡¯t get enough of her. All the terran females brought to Gani were nearly perfect examples of the species. All of them were breathtakingly beautiful, but none more so than Amber, a fact agreed upon by both terrans and Peerless.


    The program began with a flashy intro of the host, a human named Cam Roderick, in various poses making many different serious faces as compelling music played. After the intro, a montage of Amber photos played on the screen as Cam explained a little about Naturals, her forms, and her contributions defending Terra against demons, dark ones, and g¡¯athu, including real footage of her fighting.


    Next came short, pre-recorded clips of Cam asking some famous Peerless their thoughts about Alu Amber. They all praised her desirability and other Alii-esque qualities.


    John recognized the Alii that brought him to Gani, Alii Pono of Heiau Ikaika, Kauwa Naau Pi, as well as her Oliua. Both praised how Amber saved a man she saw as belonging to her subhuman kauwa-like unit during the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga, how quickly she conformed to Peerless orthodoxy during the flight, and how greatly she made an impression on both.


    There were far more famous Peerless giving their opinion of her, including three of the Nani Empire, a few Akemele, and a few Akeoli, including the most famous living Peerless of all, a man known as Akeoli Slayer in short, or as Akeoli Two-three-five, Slayer of Inner-Point Master Ukobyzouth in proper form.


    Akeoli Slayer was injured terribly and crippled permanently during his last battle with the Inner-Point Master of Circle Joyat. Even though he was already at an advanced age when he was crippled, neither his age nor his injuries stopped him from fighting for decades and decades after in a hovering biosuit.


    Akeoli Slayer¡¯s days of fighting were long behind him now. He looked more elderly than anyone had the right to be. His skin was so thin it was nearly translucent. He struggled to hold his own head up.


    Cam asked the Akeoli the same question he had asked everyone else. ¡°What do you think of Alu Amber?¡±


    Smiling dazedly as the extremely elderly often do, the old Oli loudly asked, ¡°Who?¡±


    ¡°The Natural from Terra,¡± nearly shouted Cam. ¡°The new Kahaka world of the Peerless Empire, mighty Akeoli.¡±


    ¡°Great Akua, they¡¯re letting you subhumans out of Palm now?¡±


    Cam laughed and yelled, ¡°No, mighty Akeoli! I¡¯m terran, a new Kahaka race of your Peerless Empire!¡±


    ¡°Kahaka? You? A new race, you say? You look like a Kahaki, but I can¡¯t see so good anymore.¡±


    Terran males looked similar to normal ganians, Kahaki, what Oli and Mele were before Akua improved them. Kahaki men were taller on average, had the dark noses of all peerless, pointed ears, and slightly different, nipple-free chests.


    Cam laughed heartily again. He started showing large images of Amber to the old man. ¡°Here, mighty Akeoli, let me show you pictures of Alu Amber.¡±


    The old man whistled and said, ¡°My stamen hasn¡¯t stirred in¡­what year is it? Never mind. My stamen hasn¡¯t stirred in a long while, and I¡¯ll tell you what, it¡¯s calling out for that Alii right there, boy. Why, after I killed that demon filth, Ukobyzouth, my stamen was never dry. I got the zenith.


    ¡°Never thought I¡¯d get through all those credits. I was injured so badly I could barely do the deed. Still did though. No injury could stop me from getting my stamen sticky. Not back then. Great Akua, I must have fathered half the Oli for a couple decades. Do I have credits? Does she fall into the Nani I get for free? I can¡¯t get it up anymore but if I got the credits or she¡¯s one of my Nani, I¡¯d love for her to rub that tushy all over me.¡±


    After Akioli Slayer¡¯s clip ended, the camera cut to a live shot of Cam¡¯s laughing face. ¡°That was a lot of fun. Meeting all those examples of Peerless superiority, especially the mighty Akeoli Slayer, was very humbling. And a true honor. I¡¯m Cam Roderick coming to you live from the city of Gaan. Here in the studio with me today is the terran Natural, Alu Amber.¡±


    The camera cut to Amber dressed very inappropriately. Her nose was painted dark, her chest had billowy material making her two breasts look like a full row of pregnancy sacs, and her long and bare legs were prominently on display. The terrans around John all whooped and clapped as his heart fluttered as it always did on seeing her, and also filled with anger, as it always did on seeing her display herself so.


    Smiling brightly, Amber said, ¡°Hi, Cam. It¡¯s great to be here. Please call me Alu Four-five.¡±


    ¡°Of course. Alu Four-five it is. So, have you been enjoying your time here on this beautiful home world of our gracious hosts and masters of the Peerless Empire?¡±


    Amber¡¯s smile managed to grow wider. ¡°Oh, you know it, Cam! It¡¯s just gorgeous! And the Peerless are just wonderful. I¡¯m learning so much. I¡¯ve enjoyed my time here tremendously, but it¡¯s not all fun and games. It¡¯s mostly work! But as that old saying goes ¨C if you love what you do, you¡¯ll never work a day in your life.¡±


    John¡¯s heart sank. If she truly is one of them now, I must kill her along with them. And if she knew what would happen to the people of Earth after we left, her death must be slow and painful.


    Cam chuckled. ¡°I certainly agree with that sentiment. I love my work too. What sort of work have you been doing?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve received a great honor. I¡¯m being considered for possible service as Alii. You know Alia are trained from birth in the ways of Alii, a very long process, centered on and blessed by the praised Aikapu the venerable Akua set our Peerless masters on. I¡¯m trying to learn all that!¡±


    Cam chuckled again. ¡°That can¡¯t be easy. Any details you can share?¡±


    ¡°Well, right now I shadow an Alia during the day as she raises and teaches the children of one of my patronesses, Alii Pono Nani Empire of Heiau Inoa, Kauwa Koonu Ka, a Nani that¡¯s been very kind to me. In the evenings, she somehow makes time to guide me along and teach me the intricacies of the praised Aikapu.¡±


    ¡°Praise the great and venerable Akua, all of us terrans are certainly proud of you,¡± replied Cam. ¡°Any other patronesses you¡¯d like to thank?¡±


    Amber thanked many Alii for all the help and guidance she¡¯d been given, including Nani Terra, the Alii that transported them to Gani, Plumb-hair, and the old crone.


    ¡°The Peerless are helping us so much,¡± said Amber, ¡°helping our world, giving us everything they have, trying so hard to raise us up to peers, and asking for nothing in return. I can¡¯t thank them enough for it. It¡¯s beyond my ability to express the full extent of my gratitude. No one¡¯s coming to help us. Only the Peerless can and will help. Only by embracing the Aikapu will this universe finally be free of the demons and g¡¯athu. Only the Peerless can usher in an age of peace and harmony. Praise be the Aikapu. Praise to the great Akua, father of the Peerless.¡±


    John hoped with all his heart Amber was lying about it all, pretending to accept the Peerless blight and falsely praising their wrong and despicable society.


    Cam took a moment to collect himself. ¡°Beautifully stated. And every word true.¡± He blinked a few times, as if to dry his glassy eyes. ¡°My apologies for becoming so emotional. Let¡¯s change topics. You¡¯ve been ready to ascend to five for a while now, so why haven¡¯t you?¡±


    ¡°Even though I¡¯m not Alia, not a peer, I¡¯ve still been graced by the offer of consideration. If I finish my training, I¡¯ll advance to five, the tier Alia ascend to womanhood and Alii.¡±


    Cam became extremely serious. ¡°We all know you¡¯ll finish your training with perfect scores, but that¡¯s not all of it though, is it? Is there another reason you¡¯re holding off ascending?¡±


    The smile left Amber¡¯s face and she became serious too. ¡°Yes, Cam. Even though I was born on Terra, my genetics aren¡¯t fully terran. None of my forms are fully what they look to be. My racial grade in each form is always higher than the basic grade of that form. My DNA is¡­Cam, I¡¯m going to trust you with some information that¡¯s recently become declassified.¡±


    Amber blew out a deep breath, as if expelling her nervousness before sharing a big secret. ¡°My forms have rules. Sometimes I¡¯m given an offer for a new form with a new rule. You know how smart and gifted the Mele are?¡±


    Cam smiled, nodded, and said, ¡°I do.¡±


    ¡°Well, they understand all this more than I do. They think at some point, if I¡¯m blessed by the great Akua, I¡¯ll be offered a Peerless form and some issues I have now will go away. It can¡¯t be known until it happens, and it isn¡¯t the Peerless way to wait and hope, so I¡¯m also undergoing some additional genetic modifications and workarounds to current issues. Issues that would prevent me from serving as Alii even if I was lucky and blessed enough to complete training and deemed Alii-ready.¡±


    John knew what she was talking around. She¡¯d lose her human form if she learned of carnal knowledge.


    ¡°Interesting,¡± said Cam. ¡°Now, let¡¯s say you do become an Alii. How would it work for you? You¡¯d only be able to carry the child or children of one father to term, correct? That isn¡¯t being modified, is it?¡±


    ¡°Correct. My kauwa would be smaller. Kauwas have become much smaller since the dark times due to Tech 1 and the changing face of warfare. And we know it¡¯s not the size that counts! It¡¯s the Alii that rules it and the boys that fill it.


    ¡°My kauwa would most likely serve a niche role, somewhat like that of the smaller kauwas of Heiau Koa, except my boys would be lower tier and I¡¯d have breeding rights. We¡¯d function like some special operations units of Terra. A small but devastating force striking fast and hard at special targets.¡±


    ¡°Amazing,¡± said Cam. He smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯ve heard rumors an old companion of yours is being considered as an Oli applicant much the same as you are for Alii. Kahaka Three-Five, also known as John, a man claiming he¡¯s a vampire. Whether that¡¯s true or not, he certainly has trouble hanging onto his own eyebrows.¡±


    Cam laughed before continuing. ¡°He¡¯s also been called Big-spray and Mountain-fighter since his recent highlights. He¡¯s the only Kahaka ever serviced by our gorgeous Alii masters. Boy, he really, really seemed to have enjoyed himself. Maybe a little too much. I¡¯d really like to earn some credits myself. Now, is he¡­are you okay?¡±


    Amber¡¯s eyes were glassy. Her bottom lip was quivering. After a few moments of no response, Cam asked, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    Amber choked out, ¡°I¡¯m fine. Fine. Nothing¡¯s¡­¡± She tried and failed to control her quivering lip. A tear left her eye a moment before her face completely crinkled up and she began to cry in earnest. The shot cut away from her and went to the surprised but recovering Cam who thanked everyone for watching, named the guest for his next episode, and the outro played over Amber¡¯s loud sobs.

 B3 Chapter 17 - Preparations

    While waiting for the next injection and the mats to arrive, John focused on increasing his [External Energy Manipulation] [Skill], gearing up for the Purge, and studying for the academy entrance exam. He left his day job, though he wished he had time for it.


    John had always assumed he would attend the Kahaka Academy. Usually, only Platinum or above Kahaka having proven themselves worthy were accepted into that academy.


    Of the twelve planets the Peerless controlled, two were the Tech 0 worlds once controlled by Circle Joyat along with Gani, named Kliee and Oi.


    The klieen females were that race¡¯s warriors. The men were builders. Any normal slavers would¡¯ve put the klieen males to work building, but the Peerless weren¡¯t normal. Peerless physical labor was done by robots. The Klieens were having a hard time adjusting to Peerless ideology. They weren¡¯t great Kahaka.


    Oins were extremely lazy little gray monsters. They knew exactly what to say to please their Peerless masters all while putting zero effort into doing anything they said. They knew every single right a Kahaka had. They knew the Aikapu better than most Peerless and specialized in finding loopholes. Oins were terrible Kahaka.


    Since the Peerless rose to Tech 1, they had conquered worlds containing four other races.


    The ch¡¯rans looked like giant man-spiders mixed with a good amount of nightmare and terror. They were once an empire spanning seven worlds. The Peerless controlled six of those worlds now, and all six had dwindling populations. The ch¡¯rans didn¡¯t give up or learn lessons easily, as they were constantly doing something to earn retribution. Regardless of the amount of respect John had for them, the ch¡¯rans weren¡¯t good Kahaka.


    The xerupouwns looked like fruit. They only had one world. They were zeta-types and their minds worked differently enough from beta-types that John suspected they had no idea what was expected of them. There were a ton of them in Kotown. They were nice enough and supposedly very intelligent, but the vast difference in perspective and how their minds worked ensured they weren¡¯t great Kahaka.


    The aomians controlled five worlds. The Peerless conquered one of them, named Hyavod. John had heard their home world, Ma Aom, was a prize heavy in rare resources. Aomians looked like big humanoid caterpillars with dog fur and six eyestalks growing out of the front of their faces. Aomians were the best Kahaka in spirit, or at least went along with the Peerless agenda. Over a third of the current students of the Kahaka Academy were aomians.


    Terrans were currently far too weak and too low of tier to be considered worthy candidates for the Kahaka Academy, but they served in other crucial ways. John had no idea if the terrans on Earth were considered good Kahaka. All the ones on Gani were, but they were all hand-picked. Half of him hoped the humans on Earth were behaving as the ch¡¯rans.


    There were three universities for the Ele, all mixed clan, but twenty academies for Li, and each academy had many times more students than the universities. There was only one academy for Kahaka, and it produced only reserve forces never given good missions or duties of great responsibility.


    Attending a Li academy would give John much better training and integrate him into Peerless society in a far more significant way.


    The new academic year wouldn¡¯t begin for about six months. In that time, John had to study, take and pass the academic and physical portions of the entrance exam, get accepted into an academy, and then continue to study so he¡¯d do well as a student.


    Neither John nor Avatar were worried at all about the physical portion of the exam. Both were extremely worried about the academic portion. Though they were bred as fighters, Li were very intelligent, and that intelligence set a very high bar for the entrance exam.


    Only one of the topics John had to study was somewhat interesting. He enjoyed cultivation-related knowledge. But most of the topics were so advanced he had never heard of them. He didn¡¯t even know most of the words used to describe the topic.


    John completely lacked the very basic fundamentals necessary to build up to the different maths he needed to study. There were scientific topics so alien and esoteric, the need to study them filled him with a fear similar to that which he felt upon first meeting the Butcher-type of g¡¯athu.


    But John was determined to learn. He needed to be far more powerful and far more integrated into Peerless society if he was to topple their empire.


    If getting my chance to strike a killing blow requires me to study and learn, I will study and learn better than anyone has ever done either in all of history, vowed John. I have never valued learning and knowledge as much as I should¡¯ve, at least outside of the martial realm. I was born for war and had no desire to learn of anything I didn¡¯t find interesting. And I find little outside of martial endeavors interesting. No more. That changes now.


    It took more effort than John expected to get [External Energy Manipulation] to roll over from 6 to 7, Neophyte to Novice Mastery, while training with Avatar. When it did, he checked his strange new tab to see if that was enough to complete the requirements for the pentagram symbol.


    [External Energy Manipulation] was still grayed out, but he noticed the outer ouroboros, the snake eating its own tail, was filled in with his peak-concept, ¡®vampiric.¡¯ He just needed to get one [Skill] up higher and figure out what went into the inner ouroboros for his strange [Synergy].


    After advancing to 15 with [External Energy Manipulation], John went over the harmony cap. He hated wasting some, but he saw it as necessary. He could no longer train the [Skill] in his Mind¡¯s Eye either, and Avatar wouldn¡¯t let him train it in the real world without a room dedicated to the purpose.


    Without asking permission, John commandeered a long-abandoned barracks of the klieen. Most of the humans in the district were the ones brought for their intelligence. Since they had very little to do, it was easy to get them to assist in fortifying a room. They were able to repurpose the klieen environmental modulator to fill the room with a specific mix of chemicals that would make any accidental explosion less likely to injure himself, others, or cause property damage.


    Why Avatar was so fearful of property damage never made any sense to John. And why he had to waste some of his wealth building such a room really bothered him. He needed all his wealth to outfit himself for the hunt.


    ¡°Hey, I saw a movie where a meteor was so hot it set Earth¡¯s atmosphere on fire and killed all life,¡± John told Avatar. ¡°If I made a big enough mistake mixing the essence of my dantian with the external energy I¡¯m manipulating, could I destroy all life on Gani? Is that possible?¡±


    Avatar laughed and said, ¡°Do you know the temperature needed to cause a sustained chain reaction in Gani¡¯s atmosphere capable of ending all life on this planet? Most omega-type Sublimes couldn¡¯t do it regardless of concepts known, nor could they change the composition enough to make it more feasible. Higher tier Eternals could do it. Do you still remember the few exceptions allowing a user to kill without garnering negative karma?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± replied John. ¡°Killing blasphemers. Those that destroy souls and the like.¡±


    ¡°And planet-killers. The NCS notifies all Eternals of them. They hunt down planet-killers and soul-destroyers. Killing them nets a good amount of positive karma. But don¡¯t worry, you¡¯re not nearly powerful enough to destroy a planet, no matter what foolishness you attempt. The most damage you could do is kill yourself, others nearby of low enough tier, and cause far, far too much property damage.¡±


    Raising [External Energy Manipulation] wasn¡¯t easy and went slowly. At Apprentice Mastery, level 16, John again checked the strange [Synergy] tab. It was still grayed out. The next Mastery level was Adept at 31, Journeyman Mastery, the level [Skills] normally became available for [Synergy]. He sadly accepted that getting it to 31 wasn¡¯t possible before the Purge.


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    Getting a kit together for the hunt was much harder than expected. In all of Kulolo, only 13 crafters made storage devices, and every single one of them had to be sold to the Peerless Empire. All the best items and gear wear made specifically to be sold to the Peerless and couldn¡¯t be bought by Kahaka.


    John continuously asked for permission to go to Peerless shops or back to Kotown without ever receiving a response back. His current pass for Hub City allowed him to leave the Kahaka district early in the morning on the day of the Purge. He wasn¡¯t certain if he¡¯d have enough time to go shopping in that city, or if he¡¯d be allowed to even if he did have time. He wasn¡¯t even sure if Peerless had shops. He hadn¡¯t seen any during his last trip there.


    All that was available in the Kahaka district besides bad gear were NCU upgrade units, the best of which were E-grade. NCUs wouldn¡¯t help at all in the NetherRealm.


    There was some hope. The black robes with red trim John wore, the same ones he had stolen from Diamond Garioch long ago, were supposedly good robes, but were made for Diamonds and Salts. Since he believed he¡¯d be able to attune that level of item after he ascended to Silver, the robes could fill his armor slot.


    John had learned a lot of runes and runecrafting. Still, other than the ¡®standard item soft-glyph¡¯ and the resize rune, the glyphs on his robes were a mystery to him


    John¡¯s old boss, Gle Ah, couldn¡¯t decipher the robe¡¯s glyphs. He could tell one glyph combination contained a binding rune that would bind the item to whoever attuned it, just as John¡¯s old bracers had been bound to him. That meant he wouldn¡¯t be able to remove the robes without paying a stiff price to a Ritualist or buying an expensive item that performed the same function.


    John went to see the only Kahaka in Kulolo able to decipher the glyphs, an old Diamond tier oin, and a bitter old hag.


    The old hag tried charging John 50,000 clear crystals for the task, an amount he saw as highway robbery. She only had to look and tell him what the glyphs did, a minute or two worth of work. He had over half a million clear crystals worth of wealth, but it was the principle. He would not be robbed.


    John thought of agreeing and then taking his crystals back by force, but he didn¡¯t want to push his luck with the Peerless.


    As far as John knew, there were only two females living in the Kahaka district, or three, if the sapient beast from Kliee counted. One was this old oin hag. The other was the Sage Amu, generally considered the leader of the Kahaka district. The Sage was an aomian scholar and some sort of nun sworn to celibacy. The cultural role she fulfilled for her people was as a high-level ruler. Since she was a Transcendent and a non-combatant, the other races had no issue with her representing them as de facto leader of all Kahaka.


    It was common knowledge all the females in the district were to be treated with great respect and deference, even the sapient beast, so John knew stealing his crystals back from the hag wouldn¡¯t go over well. He¡¯d have to hunt the NetherRealm without decent armor. What decent gear he brought on the Purge, he¡¯d have to make himself.


    John was certain he could craft Exalted Mortal level weapons and trinkets. If he was going to spend all his wealth on crafting his own items, he wanted the best he could make. After working with Gle Ah on what materials were available and pricing, he had to accept he only had enough wealth to make a good sword and shield.


    John had hoped he¡¯d be able to squeeze out a ring and bracers too. He really wished he knew how to make one of those bracers that turned into a shield when infused with essence. That would save on a lot of material, and not needing to carry and equip a shield would be fantastic, but the glyphs needed for such items were beyond Gle Ah¡¯s knowledge.


    Both sword and shield would be made from a substance called koronium, a metal so sturdy it couldn¡¯t be folded in the great machine the smithy had for the purpose. It could only be heated enough to pound into shape the old way, the way John knew well.


    Koronium was horrible at channeling and holding essence and manifestations, increasing the essence cost of runes and glyphs placed on any item made of it. The metal was good for one thing - not breaking.


    Even third tier Transcendents would have a very hard time breaking well-forged items made of koronium. John wanted items that would last as long as possible since all his wealth was being spent on them.


    Every night after the smithy closed, John slowly beat the metal into shape until the shop opened. He poured his heart and soul into the task. He had already planned out the glyphs and incorporated their placement into the design.


    When the items were finished, John carefully placed each rune of each glyph himself. He was very proud of his work.


    The sword had a very similar design as his last one, Gird, but was larger and longer. And heavy, but not too heavy for him, and perfect for flinging blade energy. The blade looked like a giant single-edged long-knife. The rain-guard was nearly as wide as the cross-guard, it had no ricasso, the central ridge was thick, the fuller was much thicker, and the fuller extended to just short of the point. It could be used to thrust, slash, and the fuller ran far enough along the flat top of the blade, and was thick enough, he could use it for blunt energy.


    The runes placed on it, other than the soft glyph and sharpness and durability runes, were the most advanced damaging runes John knew of that could travel a very long distance. The range of his spells were too limited. He wanted a damaging manifestation that could travel very far and still do good damage. The answer was a type of channeled maser releasing a focused and steady beam of a type of energy called charric. It presented as a dark blue and cut through all the practice targets in seconds.


    John called the sword Gird. He liked the name of his last sword and couldn¡¯t think of anything better, though it made little sense considering the sword¡¯s glyphs. He thought Gird sounded cool, so he stuck with it.


    Even though John didn¡¯t care for round shields and thought basically any other shield type gave better protection, throwing his old shield, Defiance, at his enemies, had helped him on many occasions. He kept to the same basic design as Defiance, but made it a good deal larger in circumference, and much better balanced for throwing.


    The runes for the shield were focused on protection and durability. It glowed a light purple when imbued with essence. It was a solid slab of curved metal with no boss, though the shield was thicker in the middle and sharper around the rim than a shield should be and had four buckles for the enarmes.


    John called the new shield Defiance for the same reason he named his sword Gird.


    John also tested his new [Title] and converted about 5% of the essence in his full dantian into shen. Avatar told him to hold off on creating more. It had a negative impact on his soul-healing passives, but it looked like that would recover in a couple weeks. They decided he¡¯d create shen on a specific schedule and gradually convert a little more essence to shen and test how things went.


    Even though the NCS would be disabled in the NetherRealm, it still tracked and collected data. Avatar was certain she¡¯d be able to sort out the data she got when John returned from the NetherRealm, including how his testing went.


    Soon after finishing the sword and shield, the mats and elixir were delivered. A few days later, John had his next genetic injection of whatever the Peerless were forcing on terrans. Unlike every other shot he took, this shot made him feel a little sick for a few days.


    Once recovered, John¡¯s race was D-grade. As a side effect, he had grown a few inches, which he loved. He was now as tall as Marbrouk, and just a few inches short of Hux¡¯s height.


    John asked Avatar, ¡°How tall is Shaquille O''Neal?¡±


    ¡°Seven foot one. Why?¡±


    ¡°I want to be taller than he is. How tall am I now?¡±


    ¡°A smidge under six foot two,¡± replied Avatar.


    John frowned. He had a long way to go. ¡°How tall was I when¡­when the Tree of Life returned to Earth?¡±


    ¡°About five foot nine and three quarter inches.¡±


    John frowned further. ¡°So, I¡¯ve only grown a little over two inches. It feels like more. How much height does completing the [SupraType] [Perk] chain give? In general.¡±


    Avatar tsked. ¡°My dear silly boy, there¡¯s 12 inches to a foot, so you¡¯ve grown over four inches. If you can¡¯t remember these basics, how¡¯ll you ever move on to more advanced math? Think about switching to universal standard measurements please. And finishing the [SupraType] chain usually results in a 10% growth in height, give or take a couple percentage points.¡±


    John struggled with figuring out how much height 10% growth would give him. ¡°7.4 inches. I¡¯ll be six foot and nine inches or so. I need to gain four more inches of height from something else if I am to beat Shaq.¡±


    Avatar smiled. ¡°Correct! Who¡¯s a smart boy!¡±


    ¡°Please stop calling me boy.¡±


    When John¡¯s race increased to D-grade, all his efficiencies increased by 10%, and his soft caps increased too. With that out of the way, it was time for [Stalwart Vessel].


    Other than for his body [Perk], John had never seen a ritual so complex requiring so many material inputs and steps. The ambrosial elixir was modified in a certain way Avatar claimed would cause the [Perk] to raise soft caps more at the expense of the [Stat] efficiencies it usually provided.


    John loved it when he could immediately feel the changes a [Perk] made to his body. He could definitely feel this new one.


    The [Stalwart Vessel] [Perk] usually increased all efficiencies, but John only received increases to [Physical] and [Elemental Fortification] of 4% and 5% respectively. Avatar said the [Perk] changed his body in many ways. He was less reliant on oxygen, immune to many forms of pressure or drastic changes in pressure outright fatal to most cultivators in the Mortal Tree, as well as a few other benefits.


    Since the [Perk] used up so much harmony, John was now able to train the rest of his spells impacted by his new-peak concept. He needed to gain as much harmony as possible in preparation for the next [SupraType] [Perk] he¡¯d get after ascending.


    If John did everything right, he¡¯d enter the Nether with almost no harmony. He¡¯d be spending months there fighting and increasing [Skills], and he hoped to not go over his harmony cap.


    Having prepared all he could, it was time for John to ascend to Silver.

 B3 Chapter 18 - Silver

    A few days before the Purge, having done all that could possibly be done to address his soft cap issue, John began the ascension process while alone in the room he made to train [External Energy Manipulation].


    John sat with his legs crossed, his hands on his thighs, and entered a light meditation.  He pictured his dantian and pictured himself standing in front of it, as large as he could picture himself.  He bent under his dantian and placed it fully on his shoulders and back, much the same as the Titan Atlas was said to do with the heavens.


    With a mighty heave and a yell of effort, John lifted his dantian.  He immediately felt something like an insect inside his lower belly go mad trying to claw its way out, and in the real world he felt his legs spasm.  He was determined to retain control of his real body and not let it fall over and kick out madly as it did during his two prior ascensions.


    John continued to heave powerfully on the dantian until he heard cracking, like a large pane of glass under too much stress.  The noise grew louder, and the sound of shattering glass reverberated throughout his insides and echoed back and forth.  In the real world his legs spasmed mightily, and his body fell onto its side as his legs kicked out wildly, over, and over.  He was not able to retain any control over his real body, and it did what it pleased.


    John tried ignoring the great pain in his lower belly but that wasn¡¯t possible either.  It felt as if a volcano exploded within him every time he heaved upwards again.  His imaginary legs shook in effort, and he tapped into a primal part of his mind only meant to be let loose in dire straits, as when fighting a tiger, and thoughts of safety and tomorrow had to leave the mind, and the only care was killing the beast before being too injured to do so, before the body stopped but the mind didn¡¯t, and the tiger feasted on a living body, frozen, but still aware, what was now known as a body going into shock.


    The cracking noise increased.  John let out a mighty yell that echoed even over the noise of the shattering glass, and he forced his dantian upwards, and upwards, smidge by smidge, until his legs fully extended, and the weight of all the heavens bore down upon his shoulders, and he felt his dantian being bathed in the strange energy called accretion-effusion which emanated from his self-center.


    In reality, John¡¯s uncontrollable legs kicked out madly, and the volcano in his belly erupted into new heights of pain and agony until his vision suddenly cracked, and then shattered.  He was looking through many, many eyes, like how he assumed a fly saw through its million eyes.


    Then the world blurred by John, as it did when he entered his Mind¡¯s Eye, but it lasted far longer, and he traveled far further.  He was somehow still in reality at the same time, his legs spasming out of control, and he also still held his dantian up as Atlas did the heavens, in three places all at once.


    Then all suddenly stopped.  John was looking directly at the humongous, indescribable monster he feared and hated named Betrayal.  The monster spoke, and its words were like extraordinarily destructive and strange trumpets meant to quake the earth apart, heralding the end of days.  ¡°GOO¡­¡±


    The world blurred again as John was ripped away from Betrayal.  After his vision cleared, he stood before his mother.  He felt like he was in a dream.  For whatever reason the sight of his mother felt normal and not odd, and he knew he saw her as she truly looked, not the false image his memories had given her.


    John¡¯s mother was dressed as everyone in his tribe dressed, in just a loincloth.  She was a large woman and broad of shoulder.  Her face was flat and weathered and not handsome in the least.  Her breasts hung low and flat against her, the ends rounded and full of milk.


    She looked her son in the eye.  ¡°Are you brave, my son?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Ma, I am,¡± replied John.


    She smiled.  ¡°Are you kind, my son?¡±


    John thought that was a strange question.  He wondered what language they were speaking.  His people didn¡¯t have a word for kind.  Everyone was treated well unless they gave a reason not to be.  Older boys bullied younger boys, but men didn¡¯t bully boys or other men.  From what he had seen, smaller tribes like his own always treated each other pretty well.  He¡¯d guess meanness and corruption and all those baser qualities of man only started in large tribes and towns.


    ¡°I¡¯m kind to my friends and those I love,¡± stated John.  ¡°I¡¯m also terrible to my enemies.  Not my current enemies.  I must be kind to them until it¡¯s time to be terrible.¡±


    She frowned.  ¡°Are you strong, my son?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Ma, but not strong enough yet.  My path is long.  One day, I¡¯ll be the strongest or dead.  Ma¡­do you¡­what was my birthname?  I¡¯ve forgotten.¡±


    Her eyes twinkled before she replied.  ¡°The only names that matter are the ones you¡¯ve earned.  There is a name, a name that resides within you, that can be used against you, but only if your purpose isn¡¯t clear.  Is your purpose clear, my son?  What were you born for?¡±


    John stood taller, ¡°I was born for war.¡±


    She laughed.  ¡°War?  Are you sure?  What does your soul cry out for?  Is it war?  Or is it love?¡±


    ¡°I¡­I don¡¯t know, Ma.  I¡¯m only good at one of them.  I don¡¯t want to be alone anymore.¡±


    She frowned again.  ¡°You¡¯re never alone, my son.  I am always with you.  As is our Father.  Will you stand beside us, in the end, when this dream ends?¡±


    ¡°Life isn¡¯t a dream, Ma.  It¡¯s real.  There is no Koram or Underworld.  There¡¯s one all-powerful God in Heaven.  But I can¡¯t go there.  Getting there is impossible.  I¡¯ll be reborn.¡±


    A tear trickled down her flat face.  ¡°No, you won¡¯t, my son, and that breaks my heart.  Once this life ends, if you awaken to something new, then this life sounds like a dream, no?¡±


    John hesitated before saying, ¡°We were wrong about a lot, Ma.  Your husband shouldn¡¯t have killed you.  A husband¡¯s job is to protect his wives and children, and to never die after them.  I survived my children, and that makes me low.  We were wrong.  It¡¯s shameful.¡±


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    She frowned for the third time.  ¡°What would our enemies have done to me and your siblings if we were caught?  The boys would be tortured to death, the girls raped, made low and servants, forced to birth sons for our enemies, bolstering their ranks.  What was your lord father to do?¡±


    ¡°Try!  Be stronger!  Win!  Or, at least, send you to flee as he did me.¡±


    She looked disappointed.  ¡°Since he sent one of your younger brothers with you, you were both almost caught.  If we all went, what would our fates have been?  Should your lord father have put his wives in a position where it would be necessary for us to take the lives of our own children?  I cannot!  I would not!  Not that.


    ¡°A husband¡¯s job, a father¡¯s job, is to always put all the lives he is responsible for before his own.  My lord husband would not die a coward, leaving such burdens to his wives and children, or such fates if things took a wrong turn.  He would do his duty, the duty of a husband and father, and take all that is terrible onto himself, and save us from such horror.


    ¡°I raised you better than you have lived.  You must think of your responsibilities always.  Those you claim to love, those that look to you for honor and safety, you must think of them.  You forget your duties, only hoping your next awakening ends your suffering.  Would you have taken your mother¡¯s life to save her honor?¡±


    John took the stinging reprimand of his mother and silently pondered her words as he looked at the ground.  When he looked back up, his mother was chained to a wall, and that seemed normal to him, like she had been chained to that wall their whole conversation.


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t,¡± said John.  ¡°I would save you.  You¡¯re only half right, Ma.  A husband, a father, shouldn¡¯t ever take the lives of his wives and children for such reasons.  It¡¯s wrong.  I would fight!  Fight harder!  Save them.  Somehow.  Save them.  Maybe¡­¡±


    John was interrupted by a loud boom in the distance.  His mother looked frightened.  ¡°You must go, Son.  Go!  Before they arrive!  Go!¡±


    John looked around.  He was in a dungeon.  He heard war trumpets sound.  ¡°I won¡¯t leave you.¡±


    ¡°You must.  Please.  This is not your fight.  Leave me to my fate.  I would not have my son suffer for me.  Not in this dreadful way.¡±


    The booming and trumpets drew closer.  John looked at the determined face of his mother.  ¡°No.  Never.  You¡¯re my mother.  I love you and will never abandon you.  Your fights are mine to fight, as is your honor mine to protect.¡±


    She laughed cruelly.  ¡°Our tribe never had a word for love either.  You stood aside and watched your father slay me.  I want you to leave.  I am ashamed of you and want you to leave.  I hate you.  You are no son of mine.¡±


    His mother¡¯s words ripped a hole in John¡¯s chest.  Still, he said, ¡°You¡¯re my mother.  Say what you will, but I won¡¯t abandon you.¡±


    The door to the dungeon was banged upon loudly.  She jumped at the bang.  ¡°Go!  I do not want you here!  Go!  Now!¡±


    John turned towards the door and drew his sword.  His mother sternly said to his back, ¡°Go now.  This is too much for you.  A year of nonstop battle.  If you fall, and you will fall, you¡¯ll have ten years of torture.  If you break, and you will break, you¡¯ll have a hundred years of madness.  This is your last chance.  Flee while you still can!  Flee!¡±


    John set his shoulders.  ¡°For you, Ma, I¡¯d fight a hundred years of battle.  A thousand.  We didn¡¯t need a word for it.  I knew you loved me.  You¡¯re my mother, and I¡¯ll not leave you, no matter what you say.  Not now.  Never again.¡±


    The door banged open and giant monsters covered the field John now stood upon.  His mother said, ¡°You should have fled, fool.¡±


    John knew he was in a dream, but part of him wondered if it was real.  It lasted far longer than any dream he ever had, and the pain he was subjected to felt real.


    After lasting for months in brutal combat, John finally fell.  He was tortured for ten years, but the torture didn¡¯t break him.  He had endured much worse.  The agony of the body was nothing compared to the agony of great betrayal.  He had hoped he would break, as a hundred years of madness, a hundred years free of his own mind and own thoughts, sounded like a nice reprieve.


    When the dream ended, it ended as suddenly as it began.  John was too confused to do much at all for a moment.  The pain in his belly helped him remember he was ascending.  He shook his imaginary head to clear it.  He felt as if something had changed deep within him.


    There were only two Johns, and no longer three.  One of him was hefting his dantian high on his shoulders, his legs quaking under the titanic strain, and the second was shaking on the ground, his legs spasming out of control.


    John¡¯s lower belly was burning with a terrible pain he had only felt twice before.  He had felt all types of pain many, many times, and there was no pain like the one he felt during ascension.  He was insusceptible to mundane pain, and largely hardened to true pain, and what he felt in his belly was intolerable.  Unendurable.  Pain that should cause unconsciousness to protect the mind from the trauma of it, yet it didn¡¯t, so he had to suffer it.


    And suffering through the pain was much easier this ascension.  Easier even than during his last ascension, when his heart throbbed with pain so great that what he felt in his belly couldn¡¯t compare.


    John still failed to notice when his dantian was completely crystallized and continued to hold it aloft.  He desperately wanted an end to the agony he was forced to endure.


    John tried to make his world smaller, as the pain was too great, and he could only focus on enduring from one moment to the next.  Just one more moment.  And then just one more, and then one more after, trying to completely block out everything besides reaching the next moment.


    After some point, John noticed the pain was gone.  He opened his eyes.  He was standing in the same position as he was in his mind, as the Titan Atlas stood.  He felt more powerful, but he also felt sad.  He missed his mother.  He knew it was just a dream, and a very strange one at that, but it all seemed real as it was happening.


    What worried John was that he was almost certain the dream didn¡¯t come from Betrayal.  Someone else had joined in the game of toying with him.


    For some time, John pondered the why of it.  Why would anyone want him to dream such a dream?  He couldn¡¯t figure it out.


    Oh well, John thought.  He needed to get the next [SupraType] [Perk] in the chain.  Then he¡¯d check the results of his ascension.


    <hr><hr>


    Nine cursed his lapse.  He was above losing control.  Only filthy organics lost control like wild beasts.  Yellow were above such.  But he lost Thirteen, his ward.  He lost his future queen.  His princess.  His hope.  His function.  His reason for living.


    Yellow, like the Peerless, were ¡®skeevers¡¯ ¨C a race artificially repressing their Tech level.  Unlike the Peerless, the Yellow were an old race and had been skeevers for a very long time.  They couldn¡¯t advance without losing too much of Yellow, the AI that was as much a part of every Yellow as they were Yellow.


    The pathetic ganians thought they were powerful.  They had no idea what powerful meant.  If Nine could go back to Yellow, there¡¯d be no ganians if Yellow decided it was to be so.  But he couldn¡¯t go back now.  Or ever.


    Nine hated the ganians.  They stole his ship, stranded him, forced him to put his princess in harm¡¯s way.


    And, sitting in a cell, Nine now knew he played right into their hands.  He was visited by a ganian worth talking to.  An intelligent caste called Mele.  Not as intelligent as a Yellow functioned for it, but clever.


    The ganians got what they wanted.  Info.  Just info.  Info on Nine¡¯s ship, on his biology, on his tech.  He was now free to go, though his ship was no longer his ship.


    But Nine had nowhere to go.  His function died with Thirteen.  He couldn¡¯t go back.  He was no longer part of Yellow.  He had to make his own reason to exist.


    Nine repurposed his reason for being.  His function.  His soul.


    Nine hated the ganians, but he hated one specific man far more.  He would swear to the ganians, to their Peerless Empire.  He would find John of Terra and learn everything of him.  Of his dreams.  Of his fears.  Of those he loved.  He would learn of it all.  And he would use all he had learned to hurt the organic that killed his princess, that stole his worthy function.


    Little by little, he would wound the organic, and long from now, once Nine¡¯s soul sung with light knowing he had done all that he could, he would finally allow John of Terra to die from the thousand cuts inflicted upon him.

 B3 Chapter 19 - Kiamoni

    ¡°Another unbelievable ascension!  Congratulations,¡± excitedly exclaimed Avatar.


    ¡°Thank you very much,¡± replied John.


    ¡°No soft cap reductions detected!  Besides for [Runes], of course.  All your hard work paid off.  And by your hard work, I mean those magnificent injections the ganians have been giving you that increased your racial grade and all the rare and expensive materials needed for [Stalwart Vessel] they also gave you.  What generous benefactors!  And to think, you didn¡¯t even want to travel to this world, you silly boy.¡±


    ¡°Downplay my accomplishments all you want, but I won those materials by my own hand fighting in the arena,¡± replied John.  ¡°I¡¯d like to get this tier¡¯s [SupraType] [Perk] before checking my summary.  I need to train some [Skills].¡±


    ¡°You got it.¡±


    John did his daily allotment of training and then continued training the rest of the spells impacted by his new peak-concept in his modified-room.  Since he was going to be in the NetherRealm for months, he didn¡¯t want to have much harmony left after getting the next [SupraType] [Perk].  It was considered one of the better ones.  He didn¡¯t think it was too exciting though.  It improved his cardiovascular, respiratory, endocrine, and lymphatic systems.


    Once done with all the training, John only had to merge two very old pottery [Skills] to get enough harmony to put him right where he needed to be for [Picture of Health].


    Back in his Mind¡¯s Eye, John asked Avatar, ¡°How good was my ascension?  What am I looking at for [Stat] increases?¡±


    ¡°8.3475 for every [Stat] but [Runes].  And a reminder the majority of terrans only increase [Capacity] and two other [Stats] by 3.15 to 3.375 ascending to Silver.  I hope you¡¯re finally starting to realize how lucky you are.


    ¡°But that¡¯s not all.  The [Silver] [Perk] increased all [Stats] by an additional 2.  Silver tier made a lot of fundamental changes to your body I¡¯m sure you don¡¯t care about.  The formation part of [Leech Body of the Morning''s Glory] increased [Physical] and [Elemental Fortification] by 8, and [Strength] and [Swiftness] by 4.¡±


    ¡°Nice,¡± said John.  ¡°And I¡¯m just playing it by ear.¡±


    Avatar clucked her tongue and said, ¡°Don¡¯t you start with that nonsense, silly boy.¡±


    ¡°Then stop calling me silly boy.  Or boy.¡±


    Avatar smiled and said, ¡°Stop annoying me on purpose.  And don¡¯t forget [Picture of Health] increased your [Conditioning] by 6 and its efficiency by 6%.¡±


    ¡°Got it,¡± said John.  ¡°And thanks.  If that¡¯s it, I¡¯m ready to see the summary.¡±


    Avatar glitched for a moment.  ¡°What a silly boy thing to say.  You ascended to Silver.  Remember what happens for most cultivators at Silver?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not a silly boy.  You¡¯re a silly girl.¡±


    Avatar laughed.  ¡°Let¡¯s say I had feelings and was an actual elderly lady.  You can¡¯t truly think that would¡¯ve hurt my feelings at all or made you look like less of a silly boy, now do you?  I wish you had to study up on insults for your entrance exams.  You¡¯re very bad at them.¡±


    John wanted to say that he was good at insulting, but that would only prove Avatar¡¯s point.  ¡°What happens at Silver,¡± he asked.


    ¡°We usually have users hold off until peak rank to see if they open an aspect naturally, but there¡¯s no point in your case.  This is the first tier you can force open or increase an aspect.  Since all your aspects are open, you can only increase ¡®shadow¡¯ to major or ¡®battle¡¯ to average.  I know you want my recommendation.  Increasing ¡®battle¡¯ from minor to average would benefit more of your manifestations.¡±


    Avatar walked John through the process of increasing his aspect.  Afterwards, he said, ¡°Thank you for your help, Avatar.  I appreciate it.  And I appreciate you too.  Very much so.  I don¡¯t tell you that enough.  Anything else?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± said Avatar after glitching again for a moment.  ¡°I¡¯ll bring up the summary.  Just as a heads-up, we predict there¡¯ll be a soft cap reduction next rank up, but not much of one.  You¡¯re not endangered anymore, and that¡¯s the important part.  I¡¯ll skip all the [Achievements] and aspect changes you¡¯ve already seen, but I¡¯ll go back to the last time you checked the full summary for [Skill] changes.¡±


    ¡°Good call.  And thank you again.¡±


    <table width="563">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="165">Tier/Level/Race</td>


    <td width="398">4 (Mortal) (Silver), 16 (Low), Terran-D</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Active Title</td>


    <td>Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Aspects/Affinities</td>


    <td width="398">Vampirism (99.999%) (Major), Change (98%) (Major), Protection (96%) (Major), Battle* (97%) (Average), Shadow (98%) (Average)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>NCU Energy Cost</td>


    <td>79% (-73.9%)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="3" width="165">Active NCU Upgrades</td>


    <td rowspan="3" width="398">Nano Assistance, Emergency Heal, Theta Waves, Heal Delta A, Heal Delta B, Inexorable, Refractory, Nano Support C, Nano Support D, Lock and Key, Scuta Mater, Encase, Mata Support A</td>


    </tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="3">NCU Expansion Upgrades</td>


    <td>6 of 16 slots opened, 4 slots empty</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>1) Theta Enhancement ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>2) Auto-Reflect ¨C T1C+</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>STATS</td>


    <td>[Effective] Current (Increase)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Strength</td>


    <td>[35%, 211.22] 156.46 (14.35)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Swiftness</td>


    <td>[35%, 211.03] 156.32 (14.35)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Conditioning</td>


    <td>[42%, 223.90] 157.68 (16.35)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Min. Power</td>


    <td>[22%, 145.87] 119.57 (10.35)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Capacity</td>


    <td>[23%, 135.22] 109.94 (10.35)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Runes</td>


    <td>[20%, 90.78] 75.65 (7.23)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Physical Fortification</td>


    <td>[37%, 222.40] 162.34 (18.35)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Elemental Fortification</td>


    <td>[34%, 217.80] 162.54 (18.35)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Mental Fortification</td>


    <td>[20%, 180.72] 150.60 (10.35)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="4">Highest Skills</td>


    <td>[Leech Feckless Retreat Technique] 96.48</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Mixed Style Swords] 93.71</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Mixed Navigation] 91.13</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Mixed Stealth] 88.91</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Synergy Skills</td>


    <td>Ready</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Class</td>


    <td>NA</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="5">Perks</td>


    <td rowspan="5" width="398">Orb of the Crimson Palace, Dynamic, Physical, Potent, Protected, Strong, Fast, Healthy, Quick Thinking*, Resilient, Powerful, Expansive, Harden, Resistant, Soulful, Good Genes*, Leech Body of the Morning''s Glory, Regeneration, Mutating, Bronze, Fibrilized*, Lightweight, Cloak Essence, Stalwart Vessel, Silver, Picture of Health*</td>


    </tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="3">Manifestations</td>


    <td rowspan="3" width="398">Vampirism, Draining Blade, Drain Essence, Hide, Multi-Enhancement, Multi-Shield, Puppet, Reflect, Shadow Spray, Slip, Spoil</td>


    </tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Glyphs</td>


    <td>Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet, Glyph of Plasma Barrage</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Last Achievement</td>


    <td>Archaea 2 - E</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Highest Achievement</td>


    <td>SSUR Body - SSUR</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Titles</td>


    <td width="398">Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar, Blessed by Unnamed Exalted, Ptagmog, Multi-Record Holder (System), Multi-Trailblazer (System)</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    -Start Notifications


    63 tracked skills changed, 20 of interest.  Scaled summary per notability/interest user profile.


    Expert: Essence Manipulation ¨C 47(1), Turmoil Within Tranquility Cycling Technique ¨C 44(1), Hide ¨C42(0), Unbind Defense ¨C 42(14), Heal ¨C 41(-3), Vampirism ¨C 41(-1)


    Journeyman: Unbind Manifestation ¨C 40(6), Multi-Enhancement ¨C 39(-2), Multi-Shield ¨C 36(-3), Essence-Infused Projectile Weapons ¨C 35(1), Reflect ¨C 35(5), Slip ¨C 33(-12), Spoil ¨C 31(-6)


    Apprentice: Drain Essence ¨C 28(-6), Shadow Spray ¨C 28(-5), Draining Blade ¨C 27(-7), Puppet ¨C 22(-8), Manifestation Defense ¨C 22(1), External Energy Manipulation ¨C 19(16), Glyph of Plasma Barrage ¨C 18(10)


    [Vampirism] replaced [Blood Manipulation] but performed all the functions [Blood Manipulation] had plus a lot more.  A lot of spells and [Skills] lost many levels, and John was happy they were all now about where they were prior.  Building them back up from what they had lost was beneficial as increases generated harmony all over again.


    John was also able to infuse his new ¡®vampirism¡¯ concept into spells that previously lacked any element of ¡®blood¡¯ or ¡®leech,¡¯ such as [Hide], [Spray Shadow], and [Slip], without having to make whole new spells.  He couldn¡¯t wait to test his new concept in the NetherRealm.


    Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.


    Unrated Perk attained: Silver.


    Rated Perk attained: Stalwart Vessel (S-rated).


    Perk attained in the SupraType progression chain: Picture of Health.


    Concepts, aspect, aspect tier changes.


    Orange aspect, Minor, increased to Average.


    3 common Achievement attained for a cumulative [NCU Energy Cost] reduction of 0%.  Focus <u>here</u> to see each individually.


    6 notable Achievements attained.


    ¡®Racial increase¡¯ attained (Unrated).  Increase race by one grade.  Race upgraded from E to D-grade.  Minimum Energy Unit effectiveness increased by 10% for all Stats.  For record only.  Unrated due to method of increase forced on user.


    ¡®Gorilla 2¡¯ attained (E-Rated).  Attain an effective rating of 200 Minimum Energy Units with the Strength Stat, 0.20 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 73.1%.


    ¡®Cheetah 2¡¯ attained (E-Rated).  Attain an effective rating of 200 Minimum Energy Units with the Swiftness Stat, 0.20 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 73.3%.


    ¡®Husky 2¡¯ attained (E-Rated).  Attain an effective rating of 200 Minimum Energy Units with the Conditioning Stat, 0.20 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 73.5%.


    ¡®Armadillo 2¡¯ attained (E-Rated).  Attain an effective rating of 200 Minimum Energy Units with the Physical Fortification Stat, 0.20 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 73.7%.


    ¡®Archaea 2¡¯ attained (E-Rated).  Attain an effective rating of 200 Minimum Energy Units with the Elemental Fortification Stat, 0.20 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 73.9%.


    End notifications-


    The lack of really notable [Achievements] bothered John, but not too much since he would soon be battling many, many creatures of the Nether and he hoped to gain a slew of mighty [Achievements].


    All in all, John was happy with his ascension and once again pushing back the soft cap.  With his saved rune points, he thought about increasing [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet] to [Lesser Glyph of Darkflame Jet], but if he waited until he had enough points for [Glyph of Darkflame Jet], he¡¯d save on a point.  And with his soul issue, points couldn¡¯t be wasted.  He decided to leave it and waste less runes in the long term.


    John trained and studied and worked on [External Energy Manipulation] until the morning of the Purge.  He knew his spells could do more with his new concept, but without combat and live targets to practice on, he¡¯d have to wait to find out what.


    After trying to get some sleep the night before leaving for the Purge, he gave up after realizing it wouldn¡¯t happen.  As a Silver, he needed even less sleep.  He tried leaving his district for the portal early, but the Oli guard wouldn¡¯t let him go until the exact time specified on his pass.


    John meditated near the guard until he was allowed to leave.  He arrived in the portal center of Hub City to see a small crowd gathered outside of the massive and well-guarded doors leading to the Netherworld Kiamoni.


    Since he was being ignored by everyone, John went to the side of the crowd and observed what he could.  A very young Alii was in charge.  She was a Gold, meaning she was the lowest tier an Alii could be.  The sacs on her chest were all flat and John could tell she was feigning her confidence.


    There were sixteen Transcendents in the portal center.  John couldn¡¯t figure out which of the Mortal tier Oli were guards or the three that were going.  He was told only 20 participants were allowed on the Purge, all Oli besides himself, and none of them would be from the same kauwa.


    It took the Alii a while to notice John, but when she did, she walked straight up to him.  ¡°Big-spray!  I was worried you¡¯d be late.  Um, the boys all have helmets and, uh, I think there¡¯s some other stuff.  Um, follow me, Kahaka.¡±


    John thought it was strange the Alii was getting less attention than most got from Peerless men, especially when not of her own kauwa.  They tended to openly leer.  All the Oli in the portal center occasionally gave her a quick leer, but it wasn¡¯t close to the usual amount.


    The Alii brought John to a brute.  ¡°Kahaka Four-one, this is Akeoli Two-three-five, Conqueror of Hyavod.  He¡¯s¡­well, no Alii are going so no one¡¯s in charge, but, um, three Akeoli are going, and Akeoli Hyavod is¡­he¡¯ll provide guidance.  He¡¯s been a big help to me setting this all up.¡±


    Akeoli Hyavod smiled warmly at the young woman.  ¡°I try to be helpful, Alii.  You just remember to fire up your CSL and let me know once you have a puffy sac.  I¡¯ll fill another to help you along.¡±


    The Alii laughed and touched the chest of Akeoli Hyavod.  ¡°Oh, I wish I could skip ahead and have my first sac quickened.  My own kauwa!  Oh, I can¡¯t wait.  You know I¡¯ll contact you.¡±


    It finally made sense to John.  New Alii were as off-limits as Alia.  After ascending to Gold, Alii had to do something like a year of internships before receiving her kauwa, and once she had it, one of her own men had to earn credits given by her hand to take her virginity.  Only then would she be open to the public for purchase.


    After removing her hand, the Alii said, ¡°Anyway, I¡¯m sure you know this Kahaka from the highlights.  Um, do you know where he gets a helmet and, uh, the other stuff?  Oh, I have the pingers.¡±


    The Alii handed John a small device.  ¡°That¡¯s a pinger.  Once all the boys enter, we¡¯ll close the portal.  Unless there¡¯s new demons on Kiamoni, time should, uh¡­you¡¯ll all be in there for about, uh¡­uh¡­praised Akua, I forget.¡±


    Akeoli Hyavod said, ¡°About half a year, give or take a month or two, Kahaka, but the exact time doesn¡¯t matter since we can¡¯t leave until the pinger beeps its alarm.  Then you¡¯ll have about four standard weeks to make it to the portal before it closes again, or you¡¯ll be stuck there until the next Purge.  Don¡¯t put it in your storage device.  Keep it on you at all times.  Wait, I don¡¯t feel a storage device on you.  You¡¯re going on the Purge without one?  You know about the points, right?¡±


    John tried to sound humble as he said, ¡°I received information on how the points work.  I had the crystals to buy a storage device.  I kept asking if I could come here or go to Kotown to get one, but no one ever replied.  All the ones made in Kulolo have to be sold to you¡­the Peerless.  I have this large pack instead.  Best I could do.¡±  He turned a little to show the ruck on his back.


    The Alii looked sad.  ¡°Oh, you poor thing.  I¡¯m sorry.  If I knew, I could¡¯ve, uh, tried to do something about it.  Sorry.¡±


    Akeoli Hyavod said, ¡°Well, you tried.  I¡¯m sure one of us boys can spare you a loaner.  We have a helmet for you, a knife, and some other necessities.  We¡¯ll set you up in camp on the other side.  Sound good?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Akeoli,¡± replied John, gratefully.  ¡°That¡¯s fantastic.  Thank you very much.¡±


    <hr><hr>


    The massive doors guarding the portal opened.   Once activated, three Akeoli, thirteen other Transcendent, two Salts, and a Diamond Oli entered before John.


    As John stepped into the NetherRealm, the air, thick and filled with an odd energy, swirled around him, and he felt sticky.  The sky was dark and starless, and strange clouds of brutal colors filled it as far as the eye could see, as if a madman painted the scene.


    John, having spent a decent amount of time on a different Netherworld, could see much further into the Nether than he could when he first entered Esau as a Wood.


    Kiamoni looked very similar to Esau.  The terrain was black and a dull red, like rust, with some browns and tans mixed in, and somehow seemed both dry and moist at the same time.  Only a few plants broke free of the ground, and all were sharp, had an uninviting look to them, and contained little vital essence.  Sharp, sickly, and brutal looking trees peppered the landscape, as did some far-off mountains he could barely make out.


    There were also ruins of buildings all around the portal.  Since the portal was so massive, John assumed he was in the ruins of the inner point of the old Circle Joyat.


    As John tried to find a set point to orient off of in the madly colored sky, words showed unbidden in his eyes.


    User entered the NetherRealm.  All advanced functions of the NCS deactivated.  NCS downgrading to [Basic] [Preventive] and will only reactivate upon exiting into real space.  User is to immediately exit the NetherRealm back to real space.


    [OVERRIDE]


    [OVERRIDE] [Status] [Authorized] Entertainment package reactivating.


    As John tried to find a fixed point, he also tried to remember the name of the fixed point of Esau, but it continued to evade him.  He hoped every Netherworld had one, and if they did, he wondered if they all had the same name.  After about an hour, he finally found a fixed point.


    Since John was unable to spot camp, he began studying the tracks the Oli left.  All the tracks ended a short distance from the portal.  He figured the Peerless were playing a prank on the new guy.  He put some thought into where camp would be set up.


    Then John became startled.  Adrenaline coursed through his body, making him alert.  His heart beat faster as fear gripped it harshly and terror numbed his brain.


    Something was looking at John.  He didn¡¯t know what or from where, and with his senses and orb-eye, he noticed nothing that should cause such dread.  But whatever was looking at him was as deserving of fear as the cold-dark.


    John had felt that fear before.  Whatever looked at him now also did the same the first time he entered the Nether, right as he arrived at Second Point.


    Thankfully, the feeling didn¡¯t last long, and John¡¯s mind began to thaw, and his heart began to slow.


    A couple minutes later, a Transcendent swooped down and landed in front of John, the brute¡¯s face completely hidden behind a full helmet.


    John knew whatever frightful thing looked at him was much more powerful than any Transcendent, so it certainly wasn¡¯t the brute that caused the fear.


    ¡°Hey, Kahaka.  Glad you made it.  I¡¯ll fly you to camp.  You have the alarm?¡±


    ¡°The pinger?  Yes, attached to my sash.¡±


    ¡°Good.  The portal will stay open for a couple more weeks.  The alarm will sound when it¡¯s closing.  This is your best chance to exit if you¡¯re having second thoughts.¡±


    John tried to smile in a friendly manner.  At Silver, he was better at sensing ranks within tiers.  ¡°Not at all, Two-two-one.  Do I¡­do I sit on your arm?  That¡¯s the only way I¡¯ve seen it done.¡±


    The brute laughed.  ¡°Are you an Alii in disguise, Kahaka?  If not, I¡¯ll fly you normally.¡±


    The brute grabbed the back of John¡¯s neck with a large and meaty hand, similar to how he saw the Alia present the newborn Li at the Nani Victor hall.


    Then the Oli lifted John into the sky and began to fly.  It wasn¡¯t comfortable at all.  He didn¡¯t enjoy being flown as he was.  To help calm his heart, he focused on the fixed point and orienting himself during the flight.


    The trip didn¡¯t last all that long.  A little past some ruins of another old point of Circle Joyat, John spotted the camp.  There were four small tents set up, and three large ones.  One of the large ones looked very fancy and sturdy and was set on top of a giant ritual circle.


    The brute set John down at the edge of the camp.  Akeoli Hyavod walked up to him as soon as he landed.


    John was very surprised to hear a female in coitus in the large tent on top of the ritual circle.  The sounds were greatly subdued, but his hearing and senses were far beyond those of a normal Silver.  He had only seen Oli enter the portal.  He was the last to enter.  No female entered ahead of him.


    The smile left the brute¡¯s face as he looked harshly at John.  ¡°Hear that even through the dampening ritual, do you?  Damn.  That¡¯s not good.  Not good for you at all, Kahaka.¡±

 B3 Chapter 20 - Just Gotta Play Along

    Akeoli Hyavod grabbed John by the neck and flew him a good distance away from the camp before setting him back down. His calmness was unsettling.


    Looking down at John, the brute smiled and said, ¡°I was hoping you¡¯d be out of camp and out hunting before you suspected anything. I guess I should¡¯ve believed all the reports saying you¡¯re different. I didn¡¯t think a couple [Titles] granted super senses to a four-one though.¡±


    ¡°If it¡¯s better I didn¡¯t hear anything, then I didn¡¯t hear anything,¡± replied John. ¡°I don¡¯t want to step on anyone¡¯s toes. I¡¯m just here to earn points and get geared up.¡±


    Smiling still, Akeoli Hyavod put his big, meaty hand on John¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Most of us don¡¯t like that a Kahaka¡¯s been with our Alii. And not just Alii, some of the best-looking Nani we have. And for what? Most of us spend years risking our lives on the front line, fighting day in and day out to earn the number of credits you got handed by a clowder for breaking a record no one cares about. All while in a peaceful Nani hall.¡±


    The smile left the brutes face. ¡°We know it wasn¡¯t your choice. Alii do what they do and get what they want. But this here is for us. A special treat just for us. Now that you know, we got to let you in on it.¡±


    Nervously, John said, ¡°Please, no reason for that. I don¡¯t know anything, and I don¡¯t want to know anything. What you do to your own Alii is your business, not mine.¡±


    The Akeoli laughed and squeezed John¡¯s shoulder a little. His beady eyes, half covered by furrowed brows, bored into John as the brute¡¯s laugh died as suddenly as it began. ¡°You think we¡¯d do this to an Alii? That an Alii would just let us have our way with her as much as we wanted? Akua forbid! That¡¯s about as far from the blessed Aikapu as it gets. We¡¯d never do that or anything like it.


    ¡°What we¡¯re doing here falls in a gray area. The Nani Aikapu don¡¯t think so. Of course, they¡¯d see this as a no-no. But they also told us to use crystals like normal during this Purge. They¡¯re the ones that put an end to using crystals the old way. If they can just pull a 180 on us, if they can operate in the gray, no reason we can¡¯t for a special treat occasionally. Long as we don¡¯t make a habit of it. And this here¡¯s a little thing.¡±


    The brute let up the pressure on John¡¯s shoulder. ¡°That¡¯s a Kahaki Alu I smuggled out of Palm. Most of those subhumans are disgusting looking. Getting one that¡¯s pretty enough and of high enough tier to survive in that tent wasn¡¯t easy. Or cheap. That tent protects against most of the Nether, but not all of it. And a storage device that can hold live cargo costs an absolute fortune.


    ¡°Look, I can¡¯t tell you too much, but this is a blessing for her. She wants this. She thinks it¡¯s her chance. You¡¯ll find out some hard truths if you graduate academy. Just play along and sticky your stamen once. That way we know you¡¯re in it with us. We¡¯ll school you on how to trick Mele before we go back. We¡¯ll help you farm points.¡±


    John¡¯s mind raced for a way out. An acceptable excuse. ¡°Akeoli, I appreciate the offer but as the first Kahaka being considered to attend a real academy, I can¡¯t. The last thing I want is to antagonize any of you here, or any Oli anywhere. I saw nothing and will never say a word about the things I didn¡¯t see. Things I know nothing about. Honestly, I just want to collect points and get geared up. That¡¯s it.¡±


    The brute just smiled at John for a long moment before squeezing his shoulder again, a little harder this time. ¡°You know, since you¡¯re just a Kahaka, I can tell you some things I¡¯ve never been able to tell anyone. I¡¯m different. I¡¯m not like other Oli. They really seem to believe all the bullshit. I just want to get laid. I want the good flower, as much and as often as I can get it. As my accomplishments piled up and I kept being ignored for Oliua, I knew they knew I was different too.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter. Just can¡¯t give them the ammo. Play along. It¡¯s clear those crazy bitches wrote the Aikapu. No way a warrior like Akua did. There¡¯s way too many contradictions and fallacies and other logical errors. If I figured that out, Mele definitely have, and I assume some other Oli as well. They have to be like me, right? Just playing along. I can¡¯t risk asking though. And it really doesn¡¯t seem like it.


    ¡°The Alii might be tyrant bitches, but they¡¯re gorgeous tyrant bitches. If you want access to their flowers, just got to play along. Nothing makes me happier than using their own bullshit against them.¡±


    The brute laughed, let go of John¡¯s shoulder, and knelt down so he was about even with John instead of looking down at him. ¡°I got pulled in front of Nani Aikapu twice. They grilled me for hours. After the first time, I started being loaned out for real risky missions. Suicide missions. The Nani Aikapu wanted me dead. Instead of dying, those missions earned me a shitload of credits. I saved every one of those credits for Crazy Days. I bet I sprayed my pollen in each and every member of the Nani Aikapu more times than any of their own boys ever did.


    ¡°Kind of screwed myself in the end. After five years or so, I stopped being loaned out and those missions dried up. Oh, they hated me. Couldn''t do anything about it though. They had to take my credits. The credits they helped me earn trying to kill me. Great Akua, I haven¡¯t enjoyed spraying pollen half as much since back in those days. I love this Peerless Empire more than anything.¡±


    The brute¡¯s eyes bored into John¡¯s own for a long moment before he sternly asked, ¡°Do you understand what I¡¯m telling you, Kahaka?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Akeoli.¡±


    ¡°Tell me then. Explain it to me. What I¡¯m telling you.¡±


    John mulled over if he should play dumb or not. He figured the only way out was through. ¡°You¡¯re threatening me. Telling me in a roundabout way you¡¯d enjoy doing what you¡¯d do to me if I get in your way. Something like that.¡±


    The brute smiled widely. ¡°That¡¯s right, Kahaka. Something like that. I was told you¡¯re extremely dumb. Glad that¡¯s not all true. We can have a good time here. No Alii telling us what to do. No Mele examining everything we do. Just go have some fun with the subhuman. The Kahaki Alu. Just once. Twice, if you really want. That¡¯s it though. She¡¯s for us. We¡¯ll help you get points. Help you get geared up. Help protect you from Mele too. We all win.¡±


    <hr>


    John waited in line for a long while before it was his turn to enter the tent. After passing through the entrance, the outer flap closed, and strong, warm air blew on him for a while before the inner flap opened. There was a large empty area and a drape he had to pass through before he saw the Kahaki girl.


    The area of the tent past the drape was even larger and contained a small kitchen, a wardrobe, a bathtub, a table with four chairs, some storage drawers, and a large bed.


    The girl was in the bed with the covers pulled up to her chin. Her large eyes became even wider once she saw John.


    ¡°Oh, hi! You veil really well. A Silver? And Nether-tainted? How do you survive out there? Oh, wow, look at those [Titles]. I¡¯ve never even heard of those. I guess the rumors are true ¨C they do still experiment on Kahaki. What do they call your type?¡±


    John thought the Silver tier Kahaki girl was beautiful. Not Alii-level beautiful, but if she went to Earth, she¡¯d have no problem getting a very quality husband based on her looks alone. ¡°I¡¯m not Kahaki. Or a type of Peerless. My people were made Kahaka. We come from a planet named Earth. The Peerless conquered it.¡±


    If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    John felt guilty saying that. The Peerless didn¡¯t conquer Earth. The keys were handed right to them without a fight.


    ¡°Oh. Your planet¡¯s named Dirt? That¡¯s weird. Well, I¡¯m glad you look more like a Kahaki. The Oli aren¡¯t¡­they don¡¯t¡­¡± She sighed and rushed out the rest as she blushed. ¡°I don¡¯t want to sound rude, but they look too different to, um, really be considered attractive. But I couldn¡¯t be more excited to have this opportunity. Please don¡¯t tell them I said that.¡±


    The girl let the covers fall, exposing herself. There was one large, flat, and empty sac and only two udders under it.


    John assumed the dropped cover was an attempt to get him to forget what she had just said about Oli not being attractive to her. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t tell them anything said between us.¡± He was certain every Transcendent out there could hear every word anyway. The tent was on a giant dampening ritual, but he had a hard time believing the Diamond and the two Salts couldn¡¯t hear into the tent either.


    John had reasoned out the best and only course of action was to bed the Kahaki. Hearing that the girl was excited to be there and wanted to do what she was doing, that she wasn¡¯t kidnapped, and wasn''t forced to be there, made him feel much better about that decision.


    The girl asked, ¡°Have you ever been to my world? Gani?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve lived there for months. It¡¯s a beautiful planet.¡±


    ¡°Oh. I¡¯ve only seen Palm. And not much of Palm either. Mostly just my village but I¡¯ve been to Landing twice. And we took a trip to see Hani when I was really young. We¡¯re not allowed to leave Palm. Not unless we ascend to the next Tree. Then we¡¯re accepted into the Peerless Empire.


    ¡°I¡¯m so happy I get to go early. I know this¡­doing this, doesn''t speak well of me, but there¡¯s no chance of me making the next Tree. Not unless I go to the mainlands where everyone¡¯s rich and gets everything for free. This was my only way of not dying on Palm. My only chance to make it to the mainlands. I hope you don¡¯t think I¡¯m¡­that I¡¯m normally like this. Do this. A prostitute, or anything like that.¡±


    John did his best to control his heart rate. The girl continued, ¡°There¡¯s always been rumors that Kahaki are still kidnapped and experimented on. I knew it wasn¡¯t true. You¡¯ve never seen Kahaki being experimented on in the mainlands, right? Are Kahaka allowed names? Do you have a name? Mine¡¯s Ailani.¡±


    John wasn¡¯t sure what senses a two-three-five had, but he was sure they were good. Akeoli Hyavod somehow knew John had heard the girl in the tent. Not sensed a Silver. He didn¡¯t sense a Silver. The Akeoli knew John had heard the girl somehow.


    John tried his best to keep all his vitals calm and smooth.


    There were no Kahaki in the mainlands. He had never heard a Peerless say anything kind about Kahaki, and he had never heard of Transcendent Kahaki being allowed to join the Peerless Empire. Kahaki were lessers. Subhuman ganians.


    A big part of the Aikapu justified how Kahaki were treated and why they had to be treated that way. The Peerless deemed defective were exiled to live with the Kahaki. Kahaka were treated far, far better than Kahaki. Akua decreed Kahaki couldn¡¯t be killed but that they also couldn¡¯t ever be Peerless.


    John calmly said, ¡°I¡¯ve never seen or heard of Kahaki being experimented on. I did have a different name once. A normal name, the same as you do. I¡¯m Kahaka Four-one now.¡±


    ¡°Oh. I hope I get to keep my name when I become a Peerless. I like my name. I like having a name. Were you going to get undressed? I don¡¯t want to rush you, but I don¡¯t want the Peerless to get mad at me for keeping them waiting.¡±


    John knew the smart move to make. The only move to make. There was no way he could save the girl. She was dead no matter what he did. He had to keep the right mindset. No more mistakes could be tolerated. If he was going to bring down the Peerless Empire, he had to be perfect. He had to be the best of men, and the best of men allowed for no excuses or mistakes.


    But the best of men wouldn¡¯t bed a girl under false pretenses. Ailani was only doing what she was doing for a promise she¡¯d never receive. Her only reward would be death.


    John tried to reason with himself that it didn¡¯t matter. The girl would die if he bedded her or not. He was being forced into the act too. His soul was already stained by thousands of years of sin. What was one more? Refusal would get him nothing but possibly dead too.


    John just couldn¡¯t believe the other Oli would let Akeoli Hyavod kill him for not going through with it. Another Oli had refused, the Diamond, and he hadn¡¯t been killed. The Diamond had been preparing to leave and hunt while John waited in line. Akeoli Hyavod didn¡¯t even pull that Oli aside to talk to him. Not that John saw anyway.


    And the old crone was on Nani Empire. She had plans for John. She wanted him to go to a real Li academy.


    That had to provide John with some measure of status and safety.


    ¡°Sorry, Ailana, but I forgot something outside I have to go get. Congratulations. I hope you enjoy the mainlands as much as I have. You¡¯re a very beautiful girl.¡±


    ¡°Oh. Thank you.¡± Ailana pulled the covers back up to her chin. ¡°It was very nice meeting you! I hope I see you on the mainlands. I don¡¯t want to sound too forward and¡­you probably think I¡¯m not¡­not a good person for doing what I¡¯m doing here, but I have to. I¡¯ve never even had a boyfriend before. I just¡­I just have to get to the mainlands. Anything¡¯s better than life on Palm. I was hoping that maybe, if possible, you¡¯d be interested in going on a date sometime? After I move to the mainlands? Even with your weird nose and ears I still think you¡¯re¡­that you¡¯re much more my type than¡­the others.¡±


    John smiled as best he could. ¡°I¡¯d love that, Ailana. And I won¡¯t hold anything you do here against you. To achieve our goals, we all must do things we¡¯d much rather not. Things we¡¯re not proud of. Farewell, and good luck.¡±


    <hr>


    As John exited the tent, Akeoli Hyavod smiled at him. The other Oli seemed like they couldn¡¯t care less.


    John eyed the Diamond preparing to leave on his hunt. He was sitting quietly, done with his preparations. John wondered why he hadn¡¯t departed yet.


    Since he was still supposed to get a storage device from the Akeoli, along with some other items, including one of those helmets, John wondered if he should just take off without them. He had the alarm thing for the portal. He could navigate in the Nether without one of those helmets, though the data it was said to provide would make gathering points for gear much simpler.


    And having a storage device would make everything far easier to carry. John just had the pack he purchased. It was a good pack, but not nearly as good as even the smallest spatial storage. He could do without the knife.


    Or maybe I can¡¯t? Maybe it¡¯s a special type of knife that¡¯s needed, wondered John. He wasn¡¯t sure about the rest of whatever else he was supposed to get.


    Finding out if Hyavod wanted him dead was more of a pressing matter anyways. John decided to find out now rather than wait and wonder.


    As he approached the brute, Hyavod stopped whispering with Two-two-one, the brute that flew John to camp, and turned to John with a smile on his face.


    ¡°I¡¯ll just say I did it,¡± said John. ¡°Just consider the deed done. I didn¡¯t find her attractive enough.¡±


    ¡°No worries, little buddy,¡± replied Hyavod. ¡°It¡¯s all good.¡±


    As John went to speak again, the Akeoli held up his hand, turned his head, and loudly said, ¡°Hey, Seven-four, come here!¡± The Diamond got up and hurried over to join the three others.


    ¡°Okay. Most of us are hunting close to camp for a few days to enjoy the entertainment,¡± said Hyavod. ¡°Since you two aren¡¯t partaking, Olini Two-two-one¡¯s going to fly you both to the next continent. He has the items for you, Kahaka, including a storage device. Not a great storage device, but good enough for a loaner.


    ¡°He¡¯s dropping you off in an area you can both handle. Work together, and we¡¯ll see you two when we make our way there in a month or so. Your helmets will catalog everything you see. Avoid anything questionable. We¡¯ll handle the rough stuff when we hook back up and our helmets update.¡±


    Once he was done speaking, the Akeoli immediately walked away. Two-two-one adjusted his helmet and asked, ¡°Ready?¡±


    After confirming they were, John was grabbed by the neck in the same uncomfortable way that didn¡¯t seem to bother the Diamond at all. He spent the majority of the flight focusing on orienting himself as Two-two-one zipped around avoiding Netherstorms. He was able to spot some familiar looking creatures such as the mighty bull-lions. Flying beasts could be seen here and there.


    There wasn¡¯t a sea or body of water separating continents. There were giant trenches filled with pitch blackness, sometimes a part of a massive creature could be seen deep down in the darkness.


    They then flew over an area that seemed drier and more barren than others. Enormous bones stuck out of the ground all over. Sometimes, extremely enormous bones.


    Two-two-one set John and Seven-four down far into that barren and bone-filled area. He looked at Seven-four, held his arm out, and said, ¡°Your helmet.¡± Without protest, Seven-four took off his helmet and handed it over.


    If John didn¡¯t know what was happening, the look on Seven-four¡¯s face would¡¯ve explained it all.


    Two-two-one flew away. Seven-four slumped to the ground and took the usual Oli helmet out of his storage bracer and placed it on his head. He said, ¡°In case you haven¡¯t figured it out, Kahaka, we¡¯ve been stranded here to die. This area was called the Boneyard in my helmet. We¡¯re deep in it. It all showed as black to me, meaning this area is far too dangerous for my tier and I shouldn¡¯t go anywhere near it. Without one of those helmets, we can¡¯t even navigate in the Nether. We¡¯re dead. Great Akua, I wish¡­¡±


    Seven-four was cut off as the ground started to shake in a truly massive earthquake. It took a moment for John to realize it wasn¡¯t the ground that was quaking. He was standing on a giant creature that had decided to stand up.

 B3 Chapter 21 - Best Laid Plans

    When the dark times ended, the Peerless had to make a lot of adjustments. And again, after advancing to Tech 1. And again, after they faced and were soundly beaten by one of the two major umpanian sects.


    How war was waged continuously evolved throughout these events. Oli were no longer considered fodder to be forced into a meat grinder, knowing the best of the best would come out the other end stronger, true warriors worthy of passing their superior genes down to the next generation. Now, Alii were expected to minimize Oli losses.


    Having a need for more leadership and direction of the increasing numbers of higher-tiered Oli in the empire, more and more Alii were born.


    The average kauwa ka went from a size of about five hundred strong, at least half being raw recruits, down to about two hundred mostly hardened veterans.


    Mele crunched the numbers, Alii created best practice guidelines, and those guidelines eventually were put out as a standard operating procedures, or SOPs, by the applicable Nani.


    Stories used to promote the courage and valor of low-tier Peerless bravely throwing themselves at higher-tier foes. Now, stories highlighting competence, cost effectiveness, engaging the enemy with an overwhelming force, waiting for backup, complete devotion to Alii, and the like were promoted instead.


    That Peerless forces should match and outnumber the highest-tier enemy by three to one or exceed the highest-tier enemy by a full tier was now the rule of thumb.


    But the Aikapu didn''t and couldn¡¯t change. Credits were earned the same way as in the dark days. The libidinousness of Oli, Mele, and even Alii was bred to be much higher than it was for normal, unmodified ganians ¨C Kahaki.


    Everyone wanted to live, everyone wanted to win battles, but not as much as everyone wanted to earn credits and spray pollen.


    Alii wanted to award credits as much as Oli wanted to earn them, so some independence was taken from Alii, and the clan Nanis began to micromanage more and more by requiring most missions to be approved and the like.


    The Alli Pono of Heiau Hanani, Kauwa Piapa Ka and her Meleua planned a very risky mission.


    After all was said and done, many questions were asked of why Nani Heiau Hanani approved the mission, or specifically why it was greenlit for Kauwa Piapa Ka. It was the type of mission that went to Heiau Koa, the clan that contained most older versions of Alii without breeding rights, if any kauwa within that heiau were even willing to take on such a risky mission.


    Long ago, the Alii Pono of then Kauwa Piapa Pi had bought a specially designed ship. It had little offensive or defensive capability. What it did have was the greatest capacity of any ship in all the Peerless Empire to go unobserved and undetected.


    The Alii had a certain type of mission in mind for this ship. If war had proceeded with the council races, her ship and kauwa would¡¯ve been given mission after mission. Her boys would¡¯ve won endless credits and there would¡¯ve been a never-ending queue to fill her sacs. Honor and glory. Being appointed to serve on an important Nani would¡¯ve been a forgone conclusion.


    But that war never proceeded. The Nanis Heiau were in agreement. They wanted to consolidate, focus on subduing the conquered ch''ran worlds, and renew efforts to pass the accursed bottleneck.


    The Alii and her Meleua finally thought of a mission requiring her special ship. A great mission. A glorious mission.


    But the mission would require higher-tier Oli to have a chance. Only her Oliua and Meleua had made the next Tree.


    For years, she hadn¡¯t replenished her losses. Her kauwa was less than a hundred strong, unheard of for a kauwa with ka status. She had been saving up all her points.


    All the good and highly decorated Olini willing to consider buyouts were swooped up as Oliuas for new kauwas. The Alii knew she¡¯d be limited to ¡®sunks,¡¯ the nickname for Oli that had seen too much war and were teetering on the brink of defectiveness. She was able to acquire two sunk low-Transcendents relatively cheaply, a two-two-one-four and a two-one-five.


    But she needed another Transcendent. The highest tier and rank allowed. She¡¯d love a two-three-five, but her Oliua was a two-two-five, so she could only look at two-two-fours.


    There were no sunks she considered good and dependable at that rank and tier.


    She was forced to look at problematic two-two-fours with red flags. One stood way out. He was highly decorated and had earned a mind-blowing number of credits throughout his career. His record said he was a pseud, but there was no evidence at all of heresy. Still, he would never be promoted to Oliua.


    There was also a note stating all he cared about was earning credits and was ridiculously lascivious. She thought that was a strange note. That¡¯s exactly how she wanted her boys, and she thought it was great Two-two-four¡¯s lust hadn¡¯t yet diminished, a common issue with older Oli.


    When that problematic two-two-four accepted the buyout, the Alii became giddy with excitement and immediately went to pitch her mission to the Nani Heiau Hanani. She had answers for all their worries. Her mission was approved.


    The third most powerful being in the sector was a mid-high Transcendent of the Kaw¡¯n Federation nicknamed Terror of the Deep. She was the only cultivator not of Umpani to have passed the bottleneck. She had been on the fourth tier of the second Tree for a long time and had only achieved the second rank within the tier.


    Terror of the Deep was being paraded around the Kaw¡¯n Federation in their capital ship. A lightly escorted capital ship because no one was stupid enough to attack the third most powerful being in the sector. No one besides the Alii Pono of Kauwa Piapa Ka.


    The plan was to infiltrate the capital ship with a small team made up of all her Transcendent Oli and her only Mele other than her Meleua, a seven-five. They would be equipped with top-of-the-line veiling tech.


    The Mele would hack into the ship, steal all the vital and important information he could, find the location of the ship¡¯s jump drive, and fit the drive with a special device.


    If the plan went perfectly, when the capital ship exploded, the infiltration team and her ship would all be safely away.


    The information to be stolen was almost as important as what would be done to the ship¡¯s drive. Mele could wreak havoc with the right information. Or bring the Peerless Empire to even greater heights if new pathways forward in tech were discovered.


    The capital ship¡¯s drive would be fitted with a specific type of converter. When the drive exploded, the converter would turn the energies released into a type of radiation poisonous to a specific and well-known aspect Terror of the Deep possessed.


    Being in an exploding capital ship wouldn¡¯t kill Terror of the Deep. It wouldn¡¯t kill her Oli either. Not much could kill Terror besides a higher-tier cultivator. The gap between mid and mid-high Transcendent was huge, and in a straight up fight, Peerless tech couldn¡¯t close it.


    The Peerless were too reliant on tech. Their way of using crystals in Advancement Chambers made for easy and fast advancement, but it made for weak and faulty aspects too.


    The specific radiation the drive energy would be converted to could possibly kill Terror, but the chance of her dying was extremely negligible. It would definitely sicken and weaken her. If she used any essence of that poisoned aspect to manifest while near that energy, it would further poison her. And once away from the energy, any use of essence related to that aspect would continue to weaken her and embed the poison deeper.


    Only a small team could be approved for this mission. A large force attacking would kick off a war with not just the Kaw¡¯n Federation, but all the council races of the sector. The Peerless weren¡¯t ready for that.


    If a small force were able to hurt Terror of the Deep, the Kaw¡¯n Federation would bury the event and never admit the attack happened or that Terror had been hurt. They¡¯d lose far too much face if they did.


    Everyone hoped the mission would succeed without a hitch, but most missions didn¡¯t.


    This mission went sideways early on. Claxons blared shortly after the Mele finished stealing the data. As soon as the infiltration team was detected, the Alii pulled her ship out. The Oli were on their own. That¡¯s what contingency plans were for. They all knew their new objectives.


    When her Meleua confirmed the stolen data had successfully transferred to her ship, she let out a sigh of relief. The mission was a partial success. She cheered along with her boys.


    Long minutes later, as her stealthy ship continued to flee, though she wasn¡¯t expecting it and was extremely surprised, she cheered enthusiastically along with her boys again as images of the capital ship exploding reached her ship¡¯s viewscreen. Everything was going perfectly!


    Sure, she lost her Oliua, a good Oliua, but with the points she¡¯d receive for both goals of her risky mission succeeding, stealing the info and poisoning the third most powerful being in the whole sector, she¡¯d get a much better one.


    Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    And the three other Transcendents were teetering on the brink of defectiveness, their deaths were no real loss to the Peerless Empire. The Mele was only a seven. There was an endless supply of sevens.


    Her heart almost burst out of her chest when the two surviving escort ships turned and headed towards her own. Those ships couldn¡¯t have detected hers. It was impossible.


    She learned how her ship had been tracked a moment later. Her Meleua stated Two-two-four, the Olini with all the red flags, was in the main airlock and requesting permission to come aboard.


    The Alii had to take a moment to calm herself. Her heart pounded as it filled with bitter anger.


    Every mission had ¡®if/then¡¯ contingencies. For this mission, if the infiltration team was detected but were able to complete both objectives, once the ship exploded, the team was to follow two orders unto death. Mission critical orders.


    If the Mele survived the explosion somehow, the first order was to ensure he couldn¡¯t be captured. The second was to then engage Terror in combat, forcing her to manifest essence while within the radiation cloud. That would also keep Terror¡¯s senses away from the Alii¡¯s fleeing ship.


    A two-two-four fighting a two-four-two wouldn¡¯t be much of a fight, but the kauwa escaping and getting the stolen data back to Nani Heiau Hanani was far more important than the life of any Oli. They were to die in battle for the glory of their Alii, Kauwa Piapa Ka, and the Peerless Empire


    Orders were orders. To be followed unto death.


    The Alii prayed Terror was dead or incapable of fighting. If Terror could still fight, her ship and kauwa were royally screwed.


    Once her boys found out Two-two-four survived, they whooped and hollered louder than when the capital ship exploded. The Alii had no choice but to let him come aboard.


    Thankfully, Terror never joined the pursuit, but the Alii¡¯s ship was greatly damaged in the fleeing battle.


    When all looked lost, Two-two-four became the hero again. He debarked to destroy the pursuing ships.


    She wondered how the Oli couldn¡¯t see Two-two-four was the reason those ships attacked, the reason the mission would fail, the reason all their brothers had needlessly died in the fleeing battle. He was the reason the whole kauwa would die. He was the reason their Alii would die.


    She had never disliked anyone before. She felt bad for defectives, but she never disliked them.


    She didn¡¯t even dislike Two-two-four. She hated him.


    Kauwa Piapa Ka went from seventy-eight strong down to nineteen strong during the fleeing battle. Only the bridge had life support. As a Diamond, the Alii wouldn¡¯t be able to survive in the vacuum of space. Only her Meleua and the hated Two-two-four could.


    It really bothered her Two-two-four was snapping out orders like he was her Oliua.


    The only non-Kaw¡¯n Federation controlled habitable planet with a nav beacon the ship had any chance of jumping to was controlled by the aomians, far away from Peerless controlled space. The aomians weren¡¯t nearly as powerful as the Kaw¡¯n Federation, but they¡¯d certainly attack a Peerless ship near any of their worlds as soon as it was spotted.


    She was still dead. Her kauwa was still dead.


    Two-two-four gave the order to jump to that world without even consulting her. It was her decision to make. She would¡¯ve given the same order, but still, it was the principle of the matter.


    ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing, Two-two-four!?¡±


    The hated man turned to her and said, ¡°Only choice we have. I knew you¡¯d give the same order, my Alii Pono¡±


    She wanted to tell him that she wasn¡¯t his Alii. That every Oli she knew would¡¯ve died to protect their Alii. She wanted to rant and rave and tell him how defective he was. Get it all off her chest before she died.


    Instead, she angrily snapped out, ¡°That¡¯s the last time you pretend to make decisions on my behalf. Once we land, mission critical priority is to find a transmitter capable of reaching Peerless space and relaying the data we acquired. Once that objective is complete, we seize a ship and fight our way home. And you are not my Oliua, Two-two-four.¡± She left off Olini on purpose.


    Two-two-four just smiled and asked her to join him near the Meleua¡¯s console. ¡°Alii Pono, if planetary defenses don¡¯t take us out on the way down, they sure will on the way up if we steal a ship. All the points you earned for this mission will go down the drain if you die. I have a better plan I¡¯d like you to consider.¡±


    The Alii tried to calm her anger. It was impossible. ¡°Two-two-four, we¡¯re only in our current predicament because you failed to follow orders and made your own plan. We¡¯re all going to die because you care more about yourself than your kauwa and your empire. Your last plan killed us all and ensured this data never makes it back safely.¡±


    Two-two-four smiled again. ¡°Slight correction, Alii Pono. You''re alive. Terror was manifesting like a mad demon. The mission was as successful as it was getting. She could¡¯ve still punched a hole straight through my head, poisoned aspect or not. I like my head the way it is, and I can¡¯t spend credits if I¡¯m dead. The praised Aikapu¡¯s clear on what I should¡¯ve done once a mission like that¡¯s successful ¨C and that¡¯s live and pass my genes on. And I can¡¯t spend credits on you if you¡¯re dead, so I¡¯m aiming to get you home alive.


    ¡°This ship isn¡¯t landing in one piece even if we aren¡¯t targeted. Me and your Meleua will fly you and a few of the Oli down once we¡¯re in the atmosphere. And there¡¯s no need to find a transmitter planet-side. I could make a beacon-hopper capable of quickly reaching Peerless space myself from what we have here. Your Meleua is making a much better one than I could. See?¡±


    The Alii had noticed the Meleua was working on something a while ago. He hadn¡¯t told her what it was, and she was far too angry to think clearly. She couldn¡¯t remember ever being angry before. She wasn¡¯t used to it or suited for it.


    That she¡¯d be able to transfer the data to Nani Heiau Hanani made her feel a little better about her impending death. ¡°Okay, Two-two-four, what¡¯s your plan once we¡¯re planet side?¡±


    ¡°To have any chance of getting a ship off-world in one piece, we¡¯re going to have to take out all the planetary defenses on one whole side of the planet. We¡¯ll also have to disable or destroy all the ships besides the one we¡¯re stealing. That¡¯s a big order. I can make it happen. But if I¡¯m doing all that, I may as well just take the planet as a gift for my Alii. Since we¡¯re crash landing it¡¯s already a free invasion, so why not?¡±


    The Alii waited for Two-two-four to continue. He didn¡¯t. She realized he was being serious. ¡°The aomians will have some Transcendents on world. They have other worlds connected through internetworks. Reinforcements will arrive. They¡¯re subhuman, not brainless. They could request help from the kaw¡¯ns. Help that would eagerly be given.


    ¡°My chair and all our essence batteries in storage were destroyed because of you. Your essence must already be low by now. How many Oli can you both fly down along with me? Five? Six? And you¡¯re wasting my time on a plan as stupid as taking a whole planet?¡±


    ¡°Yup,¡± replied Two-two-four. ¡°I¡¯ll need the Meleua to either refit my EB slot or mod every EB we come across to fit my slot. Just like in the dark times, we take what we need from the corpses of our enemies. I was bred for this. I can do it. The Oli and the Meleua follow behind me, keeping you safe.¡±


    Two-two-four turned to the Meleua and told him, ¡°I won¡¯t need you to fight much. Keep hidden as best you can, keep our Alii safe, and keep feeding me EBs as fast as you can. If there¡¯s heavy incoming, using your peripherals to take them out would be a big help. Just try not to draw too much attention. It¡¯ll be easier if I can just do my thing without having to constantly check on Alii Pono.¡±


    ¡°Easily done,¡± replied the Meleua. ¡°Since you marked a spot near the interplanetary communication array as our landing site, I assume that¡¯s your first target. I¡¯ll patch into their network and mark and feed your CSL priority targets such as defensive systems and ships as we move about.


    ¡°I recommend silence during approach. This ship isn¡¯t visibly Peerless. We shouldn¡¯t be engaged on sight. It will take some time for them to react. When we reach minimal survival in atmosphere, I¡¯ll carry our Alii and seven others down with me. You ensure we make it safely to the ground.¡±


    Two-two-four¡¯s smile grew wider. ¡°We¡¯re on the same page, Meleua. We just got to get her out alive and the credits will roll in. They¡¯ll have to offer me Akeoli.¡±


    Two-two-four turned to face her again. ¡°Speaking of credits. I have six coming to me at a bare minimum. I¡¯m guessing you¡¯re none too happy I didn¡¯t die back there, so I¡¯m not banking on anything but the bare minimum. I¡¯m also guessing gifting you a whole planet will go a long way towards changing your opinion of me.¡±


    Even though the Alii hated Two-two-four very much, the thought of ending this extremely important and already successful mission with the conquest of a whole planet filled her with excitement.


    She didn¡¯t think it was possible, but her Meleua seemed to think it was, and his reaction to the plan raised her spirits, and thoughts of such glory couldn¡¯t but moisten her flower.


    Hyavod was far from Peerless controlled space, but it was also an answer to the malaise afflicting the Peerless. It would give a new front to fight on. It would most likely start a proxy war with the Kaw¡¯n Federation.


    No one cared about consolidating and building up forces besides the old women of the Nanis Heiau. Everyone else wanted war, glory, credits, and sticky stamens. This would force the hands of at least her Nani Heiau Hanani to fight on another front. A new arena for credits to be earned.


    The Alii now had some hope she¡¯d survive this mission. If she did, if the planet was taken, she¡¯d be showered in unimaginable glory. And points! So many points!


    She agreed with Two-two-four¡¯s Akeoli claim. If he was actually able to conquer Hyavod, he¡¯d have to be offered Akeoli, despite how terrible and awful he was.


    She said, ¡°And why would you want those six credits now, Two-two-four? You can¡¯t spend them yet. We¡¯re crash landing in less than four hours.¡±


    ¡°We are, Alii Pono, but getting all this pollen out of me will help get my head on right. Help me focus.¡±


    The Alii scoffed. ¡°I can¡¯t really get to my bedchamber, now, can I? It was destroyed because of you. Sorry, my flower is still going to be there if you accomplish what you¡¯ve stated.¡±


    ¡°Your flower¡¯s there now, Alii Pono. The Aikupu¡¯s clear on this. Credits are to be awarded as soon as they can be, and if there¡¯s no other pressing matters, allowed to be spent.¡±


    And as quickly as her flower moistened, it withered up and dried. She didn¡¯t think it was possible to hate someone so much. She snapped out, ¡°Alii never pleasure any of her kauwa in front of the others. Never. There¡¯s no privacy on this bridge.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t mind the boys watching, Alii Pono. There¡¯s nothing in the praised Aikupu about not being watched or needing privacy. I earned credits and I¡¯m spending them while I can.¡±


    The Alii¡¯s heart sank. ¡°While you can? I thought you were certain you could take this planet by yourself.¡±


    Two-two-four smiled wider as he said, ¡°What I think and what happens don¡¯t always match up, Alii Pono. Now, where¡¯d you want to do it? I¡¯m taking three deuces for those six credits, so you¡¯ll want to get comfortable.¡±


    While continuing to look his Alii in the eye, Two-two-four yelled out, ¡°Hey, boys, stack up your EBs. I need every single one of them. If any of you have credits, this is the time to spend them. I¡¯m pretty sure most of you aren¡¯t making it home.¡±


    Two-two-four sprayed pollen three times well before reaching Hyavod. Somehow, he did manage to take the whole planet. Peerless ships arrived many hours prior to the off world aomian reinforcements.


    And the Alii did change her opinion of Two-two-four. Seeing him battle like an ancient god of old did something to her flower.


    She was awestruck after watching him fearlessly wade into overwhelming enemy forces. He¡¯d shrug off injuries and calmly turn to face whatever else his enemies were throwing at him. His rifle blared nonstop, his bolters flew around expertly, his bracers clanked loudly together and released destructive manifestation after destructive manifestation, as he killed enemy after enemy and conquered a world. For her. His Alii.


    Her extreme hate turned into extreme desire. The credits he won for taking the planet all went to purchasing deuces. As the new credits were spent on her, she performed much more enthusiastically.


    Then he left her kauwa, much to her disappointment. Olini Two-two-four was offered and accepted Akeoli status, becoming Akeoli Two-two-four, Conqueror of Hyavod.

 B3 Chapter 22 - Infinity

    Three strange beasts of the Nether crested a hill, all three young for their species, and all three natural enemies that should never walk together peacefully, though they were.


    The worlds within the NetherRealm were created to train and advance demons. Unlike demons, Netherbeasts were often born at higher tiers and grew from young into full adults in the span of days.


    Like all advanced life, Netherbeasts could advance in tier, and did so by eating their dead foes. If too many of the same beasts within an area were killed too quickly, the Nether would spawn more of them, and at higher tiers.


    The first of the three young beasts to crest the hill looked like some sort of armored dog-frog hybrid.


    The second beast looked like a giant scorpion with two demon-like clawed hands instead of pinchers, and a hornet¡¯s stinger where a scorpion¡¯s tail would be.


    The last beast was vaguely human-shaped. It walked upright on two skinny legs ending in very large feet. It had two skinny arms with massive hands and claws. The body was bulbous and oblong. It had no neck. Its head was just the top third of the torso. It had a massive fang-filled mouth. The nose was just two holes side by side, and the eyes were two small black beads. It had wild and long knotted locks. When the thing attacked, it cackled madly and frighteningly. Even still, in death, it cackled when it attacked.


    John called that beast a cackler. He thought of them as female even though he knew every beast and demon of the Nether were male. When he first saw the cacklers, he had thought they were of a female tribe of a strange sort of demon. The adults wore some clothing, so he assumed they were more than beasts. They weren¡¯t. They couldn¡¯t talk or use weapons. Some natural instinct had them rip hides off prey and don the hide wet and untreated.


    If he could, John would definitely use only adult corpses for his undead minions. Using the young in combat, even the young of Netherbeasts, seemed wrong. But he was only able to get his ¡®vampiric¡¯ concept to reanimate corpses up to a certain size. If his enemies were smaller, he¡¯d use only the corpses of adults.


    The minions behaved very similarly to hoppers, minus all the hopping. They were just mindless and violent, attacking anything living near them, but he had control over these corpses, unlike hoppers.


    John was almost certain he had improved the spell he thought of now as [Create Minions], [Undead Minions], or just [Minions] enough to control four corpses at once, but they¡¯d have to be a little smaller. Without the NCS, he couldn¡¯t check his [Skill] Mastery level. Or officially rename [Puppet]. He definitely wanted the word ¡®minion¡¯ to be part of the new name when he could rename it.


    If John wasn¡¯t feeling for harmony gains, missing a [Skill] increasing in Mastery was easy to do. He thought his gains had been pretty good so far. All he had done over the last month was fight. The beasts rarely left him in peace long enough to meditate and fill his dantian.


    Immediately after feeling a tremor, John jumped back and gathered blade energy. As soon as the giant nightcrawler-thing left the ground, he released the energy at it, splitting the beast¡¯s pincher-face. His minions rushed back down the hill to finish it off.


    John collected the crystals from the corpse and tried to add it to his undead forces. He couldn¡¯t, so he got his knife out and took what mats he could. He thought the pinchers had to be worth decent points. Without a helmet, it was all guesswork though.


    After securing the mats in his spatial storage, John climbed the hill to look around. The next area didn¡¯t look so bad, and he saw a rocky outcrop they could use. His vision was becoming less and less reduced and confused in the Nether, so he could see and sense more and further.


    John wondered if they should stay in their current area before risking a new one. The nightcrawler-things were only Platinum and easy to kill.


    The prior areas were much, much tougher. But John knew he had to find the edge of the continent and cross the great chasms separating them. He started to head back to Seven-four, sending his minions to scout ahead and act as bait.


    The nickname John gave Seven-four was Talker. He didn¡¯t call the brute that to his face, but it was a fitting nickname. Seven-four talked nonstop.


    John was surprised that a higher-tier Oli hadn¡¯t killed Talker long ago for talking too much. All the other ones seemed the quiet type and value silence.


    Since the first day, as soon as they managed to escape the humongous lizard-praying mantis thing they stood on, Talker had talked. And talked and talked and talked and talked and only stopped while running from massive foes, during fights, and when sleeping.


    The lizard-praying mantis and other things its size had souls, but the souls were only about two or three times the size of a human¡¯s and hard to spot in their huge frames. Most were armored enough that he couldn¡¯t see the vital essence within them. The things were bigger than the large housing buildings in DC. Some were nearly as big as dark walkers.


    But unlike dark walkers, these giant beasts would never passively let John crack a hole in their skulls. Or get close to them at all without attacking him. What manifestations they had, they used, and often, viciously trying to kill their prey.


    And all the big ones were on the second Tree, most of them higher up on that Tree, and had to be run from.


    And John and Talker did a lot of running. Running and fighting. Talker was a big help in the early days. When his essence ran out, Talker had two EBs, essence-batteries, to use. When those were used up, the brute was of little use against the foes in the areas they had traveled through, though John knew he¡¯d have no issue fighting these nightcrawler-things.


    Peerless had this strange way of constantly half-meditating that was more effective at gathering energy than normal breathing techniques, but not half as effective as normal meditation techniques.


    Talker told John the main way Peerless filled their dantians was through Advancement Chambers, big rooms on ships where the whole kauwa would gather. The Alii and lower-tier members would sit in the back ranks, the Oliua, higher-tier members, and those deserving by deed sat in the front.


    Crystals were fed into some sort of device to purify them of animal taint and make the energy more potent and plentiful. A mist would blanket the room, those in the front getting far more of it, and the mist would be cultivated, greatly increasing the speed of advancement.


    Those chambers were the reason that there were so many Peerless Transcendents.


    Since Peerless weren¡¯t allowed to consume animals or animal products, they weren¡¯t allowed to use crystals as normally used. Crystals were dropped by animals of both the sentient and sapient variety. The purifying of crystals to remove the animal taint and make them safe for consumption eventually led to the invention of Advancement Chambers.


    Faster advancement was great. The Peerless had far more Exalteds than any sector race per capita and in total. Far more by a large margin. But the Peerless relied on tech and not their own manifestations in battle. Their aspects were weak.


    At Silver and Diamond tiers, cultivators were able to open a new aspect, advance a minor aspect to an average, or an average to a major. The same at Salt and many other tiers.


    At Diamond, when Talker tried to advance one of his aspects from minor to average, it failed to advance.


    That was not an issue for anyone else. Just Peerless. Only one aspect-enhancer was needed to advance an aspect. The Peerless often needed two, sometimes three before an aspect advanced.


    Since their tech was so powerful and their essence worked just fine as fuel for it, they practiced less and less with their own aspects and manifestations. They still practiced, but not nearly to the same extent as others.


    The Nani Aikapu had informed, or strongly hinted at in a roundabout way, the Oli sent on the Purge to use crystals as normal, their own manifestations more, and never mention it to anyone. Talker assumed to see if that could help correct the issue. That was how things were done. If it worked, the Aikapu would be reinterpreted, and a new SOP would be released.


    John touched his little horn nub. The Peerless did their best to prevent the taint of the Nether from growing within them, but all the art John had seen of Akua showed him with truly massive ox-horns and claws. From the art, it looked like Akua was about the most Nether-tainted a non-demon could get.


    John wanted to be more Nether-tainted himself. He hoped his tiny bull-horns grew to a useful size, and his claws grew longer and sharper. So far, they hadn¡¯t. But he had many months left in the Nether, and he hoped.


    Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.


    As John walked, he gathered and flung blade energy, trying to improve his [External Energy Manipulation] [Skill]. A few other giant nightcrawler-things attacked him, but nothing else. This was definitely the most peaceful and lowest-tier area they had journeyed through. He wanted tougher enemies, but the safety of the area would be a boon for Talker.


    Many trembles shook the earth. John jumped back and gathered blade energy. The minions were too close, so he sent them running forward. They didn¡¯t take commands well, so he found it best to overshoot his desires rather than undershoot them. He really wished his minions could use some of the manifestations they had used in life.


    Three giant nightcrawler-things burst through the ground. One of their heads was split with blade energy, destroying a pincer, causing John to curse. He felt a good amount of new harmony. He became excited. As soon as the nightcrawlers appeared, his minions, on their own, turned back and rushed to attack them. He let them fight the remainders as he was too excited and needed to think.


    The nightcrawler-things were Platinums, and weak for that tier. Two of John¡¯s minions were Diamonds, and the dog-frog was a Salt. He thought they¡¯d be fine even without manifestations. He was wrong. The scorpion-thing died for the second and last time. He couldn¡¯t reanimate a corpse twice.


    John collected the crystals and made a nightcrawler-thing a minion. He tried commanding it to hide underground. It ignored him. ¡°Curse you, minion. Why do you all lose so much as undead?¡± He tried making another corpse a minion in case he could control four total now, but it didn¡¯t work. He became more certain his minion limit was based on size and not the tier of the corpse, since these were only Platinums.


    John hoped his new minion would go underground when he started walking again. He¡¯d find out later. He had a far more important task to see to. He collected what mats he could from the corpses, including the broken pincer, and put them in the storage bracer Talker let him borrow. He then sat down in the same position he used to meditate and commanded his minions to guard him while knowing they¡¯d attack anything that got close anyways.


    John¡¯s dantian was a little over half full. He wanted his Gar¡¯tar [Title] active for this even though it involved shen. He turned half his essence to shen, and most of the shen to emptiness. He got into his ¡®battle-mind,¡¯ sent vital essence to heal, then increased his strength and speed with it. Finally, he began meditating and gathering energy before slipping into his Mind¡¯s Eye.


    The NCS was the only way most cultivators at his tier could enter their Mind¡¯s Eye, but John figured out how to enter his without it. It wasn¡¯t all that hard. His mind space was dark and completely empty without the NCS feeding him digital information.


    John had long ago trained with Avatar on how to merge [Synergies]. He trusted Avatar but his ego always whispered in his ear, telling him he could do it better. Some parts would be very tricky without the visual guidance the NCS provided. Dragging and dropping [Skills] into the synergy slots made things much easier. In the Nether, he was on his own.


    That strange NCS page with the symbols and untranslated language felt a certain way. John couldn¡¯t see it, but he could almost feel it in his blank mind space. He had been offered something special. He needed to do everything possible to ensure he absolutely eked every last small drop of power out of this special thing he was offered, every tiny bit he could manage.


    John had put a lot of thought into this. He had to make certain he didn¡¯t miss a thing.


    Having failed all his prior attempts to find the strange page in his blank mind space didn¡¯t mean anything. John had thought it would take more time to raise his [External Energy Manipulation] [Skill] to the next Mastery, so he hadn¡¯t put all that much effort into finding it. He had no choice but to figure it out now. He wouldn¡¯t wait any longer for this strange power.


    John now tried to create something out of nothing. Just a small block. He pointed and thought ¡®block¡¯ for as long and hard as he could. He focused with such vigor his face and whole head shook with tremors.


    Well, that didn¡¯t work, thought John. He then tried to create a block as he created his body in his Mind¡¯s Eye. He focused completely on visualizing one side of the block. After he had the visual locked in, he focused on another side, then another. Once he had a perfect picture of the full block in his head, he visualized it in his hand.


    John opened his pretend eyes and saw a block resting on his palm. He closed his eyes and tried to recreate that page as best he could. Hours later, it had failed to work.


    John was certain he could feel the page. He grabbed hold of that feeling and yanked. It felt closer. He yanked, and heaved, and pulled for hours, trying to brute force the page into existence.


    Finally, an image appeared in front of John. It was slightly different from the page he remembered, and transparent, but the symbols and words looked to be the same from what he remembered. And most importantly, nothing was grayed out. Only the middle snake was empty.


    But after talking to Avatar about that inner snake, they both thought it was possible his [Class] ability would go there.


    John would still attempt the [Synergy]. It would either work or he¡¯d have to figure out what went into the circle. He suspected the requirements were met, as the light connecting the symbols into a triangle shape was a different color and glowed a deep white.


    John first pictured and held onto his [Vampirism] [Skill]. He went through all the [Skills] required by the [Synergy] in the same way, and the associated [Perks] listed under the [Skills]


    Avatar had told him, at this point, he would just focus on merging his [Skills] together in his mind. He wanted to try a couple other things too. He thought of harmony and tried to infuse that with his [Skills] and [Perks]. He did the same with all his essences, most concepts, shen, and emptiness. He did it with his vital essence healing him and increasing his strength and speed. Then he did it with the symbols on the page. Lastly, he grabbed hold of his ¡®vampirism¡¯ concept with his mind and tried to wrap that around everything like a blanket.


    John had no idea if any of that extra effort helped or would do anything, just as he had no idea if creating shen and emptiness and beginning to meditate before entering his Mind¡¯s Eye would either. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, he thought.


    John then prepared his mind and readied it to bring all his tremendous willpower to bear on the next task. As clearly and strongly as he could, he pictured all the elements he held in his mind merging into one thing. A much better thing. A much more powerful thing.


    The world seemed to blur by as it did when he entered and exited his Mind¡¯s Eye. He became worried, thinking he was being ejected from his mind, but only for a moment, as the traveling lasted far, far too long for that.


    When the world and stars stopped blurring by him and all stilled, John looked at a symbol he had never seen before but somehow knew its meaning. The true symbol for infinity, and extremely complex.


    The symbol started to break apart and John tried to force it back whole with his mind and will. He did well at first, until the symbol broke apart into millions of lights of every type of color, madly dancing around. He couldn¡¯t remember the symbol enough to attempt to recreate it.


    The more John tried to force his will on the lights, the more beautiful patterns they¡¯d make, and he watched all the beautiful shapes in awe. It took him a while to realize his mind was not working right, as if he were heavily drugged.


    John had no idea how long he watched the amazing shapes morph. He could¡¯ve done nothing else with the rest of his life but that. And die content. It was as if he was being shown the secrets of the universe, of the fundamental truth of things. Truths that only higher beings with minds far more advanced than his own could grasp. He hardly noticed as he started to slide somewhere else, his mind still fixated on the beautiful shapes dancing and morphing so majestically.


    When John stopped sliding, he was in a pitch-black and damp cavern, his ability to see in the dark was barely able to pierce the deep blackness. He could make out a few tunnels and some sort of creature completely covered in eyes. He instinctively knew the creature was peaceful and meant no ill will.


    With John¡¯s mind working so strangely, it took some time for him to realize the creature had six wings and was covering most of itself with four of them.


    Without the creature moving or talking, it somehow bid John to follow it down a tunnel, and he followed as the creature slowly flew along.


    The tunnel was very long. John suddenly knew that while his mind was not thinking as it should be, he was thinking better than he ever had before.


    A bright light from further down the tunnel burned John¡¯s eyes. The creature stood aside and somehow bid John to pass and exit into the light. As John did so, he heard the creature say, ¡°He who was, and is, and is to come,¡± without his ears or mind. He couldn¡¯t explain how he heard it. He just did.


    The bright light was so bright John could see nothing else. He turned and tried to find the tunnel entrance, but he could see nothing but pure, bright light everywhere. He felt something looking for him, not an eye, but something that served the same purpose. It turned to him.


    A very soothing androgynous voice asked, ¡°Will you attempt to save the girl?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t,¡± replied John, knowing exactly what girl he was asked about. ¡°There¡¯s no way I can. There¡¯s so many Transcendents. With their tech, I couldn¡¯t even beat a Silver when I was Bronze. It can¡¯t be done.¡±


    The voice then asked, ¡°Would the best of men make the attempt?¡±


    John knew the answer. He still said, ¡°No. No one can do the impossible. If there was a chance, any chance, I would. There isn¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°And your companion,¡± asked the voice. ¡°Your friend. Your enemy. If you stood in front of the portal back home today, would he walk through it with you?¡±


    John wanted to say the portal didn¡¯t lead to his home but bit his tongue. His goal was to destroy the Peerless Empire. Another dead Peerless furthered his end. Unless that Peerless could be of use to him in the future. He had grown to like Talker, but he couldn¡¯t let that or anything like it get in the way of his mission. And he didn¡¯t have to decide yet. He and Talker weren¡¯t even on the same continent as the portal.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± was John¡¯s answer.


    The voice said, ¡°I see. Farewell, child of darkness and light.¡±


    The vision ended. John was back in the Nether, a strange energy surrounded him. His energy gathering technique attempted to grab some of the energy. His dantian painfully rejected it. He stopped meditating and felt the energy infuse into every atom of his being, strengthening him.


    Minutes later, when the energy was fully gone and part of him, John felt within himself. He felt a lot stronger and more powerful. A lot more. It wasn¡¯t clear how. He somehow knew the name of his [Class] was [Vessel of the First]. He felt a strange new ability within himself. He knew the name of it was different from the name of his [Class], though he had no name for it, and no idea what it did.


    John wondered whose voice spoke to him and what that whole weird event was about. His mind was working so strangely during the whole thing. He couldn¡¯t describe it. It had a certain feeling about it, close to how he felt during the dream he had while last ascending.


    John wished he answered the last question asked by the soothing voice with, ¡®I¡¯ll play it by ear.¡¯ He always forgot to use that phrase when it fit. He opened his eyes to see that his new nightcrawler minion was dead and that there were four new corpses.


    After spreading his senses to find enemies and not finding anything, John set to it. He rose from the ground with more grace and ease than he was used to, surprising himself. He was very anxious to find out how much stronger he was and what his new ability did.

 B3 Chapter 23 - Strange Men

    The next nightcrawler-thing to emerge from the ground was a Diamond. John ordered his minions to run ahead and keep running. He grabbed the thing¡¯s pincer with his left hand as it tried to bite him while also unbinding whatever manifestation it tried to get off. He punched it with his right hand, trying to get it to settle down, cracking its extremely tough hide, something he wouldn¡¯t have been able to do so easily before his strange [Synergy].


    That certainly didn¡¯t settle it down, so John just grabbed onto it, unbound the next manifestation it tried to cast, and began his own. His new ability required physical contact. He instinctively knew how to cast it, and did so. He expected to see some sort of damage happen. It seemed like a channeled manifestation. He couldn¡¯t really tell what it was doing.


    Then John felt a strange pull within his chest. He fought against it and pulled back on what pulled on him. A struggle of wills began. Since he had the will born of far too many lifetimes worth of struggle, he quickly overwhelmed what he considered the nightcrawler¡¯s poor excuse for willpower.


    Suddenly, the creature went from frantically attacking and trying to kill John, straight to limp and dead.


    John felt better. Whatever it did gave him a little energy. But not the type of energy that filled dantians. And it didn¡¯t give him vital essence as he could see all of it decaying in the corpse.


    What is it doing, wondered John. He dropped the corpse and ran to his minions that were fighting a Platinum. He commanded them to stand still as he grabbed the monster with ease and a deftness he also didn¡¯t have before the [Synergy] and activated his new ability again.


    This time, instead of just looking where his hand channeling the ability touched, John looked at as much of the nightcrawler as he could. After he overcame the contest of wills, he saw what the ability did.


    The thing''s soul was sucked into John¡¯s hand, then disappeared from his sight. He wondered if taking in the souls was healing his own, so he unveiled. He couldn¡¯t feel anything different. But that didn¡¯t mean something wasn¡¯t different. He did feel a little refreshed, the same as last time.


    Then John remembered tampering with the souls of others was considered blasphemy. There were a couple ways to kill without netting negative karma - killing those that destroyed worlds or made worlds once hospitable to life inhospitable to life, and killing those that purposefully targeted souls, even if just to injure or corrupt the soul and not destroy or take it.


    There were some other reasons, but those were the major ones. And there were some loopholes, such as making a planet hospitable to a different kind of life through a process John forgot the name of. Or damaging a soul on purpose for a good reason, such as to make it stronger in the long term.


    No one below Eternal could see souls, but certain high-tier Ritualists had ways of checking them. When it could be afforded, Platinum-tier cultivators would see one of these Ritualist to judge the state of their soul and receive advice on what could be done to improve upon it before ascending to Diamond tier, as the soul was refined during ascension to that tier.


    Terraforming, that''s what it¡¯s called, remembered John. Since no one could see souls besides Eternals, he didn¡¯t think he was at much risk of being found out. Then he remembered some of the core watched him. He doubted any were Eternals, but he had no idea what strange powers those of the core had. He had already taken two souls, so if he was in trouble, the damage was already done and there was no fixing it.


    John decided to drain a soul around Talker and see if the brute noticed anything odd. If Talker didn¡¯t notice anything, he had only the core and Eternals to worry about. He had a very powerful ability, and he sure wasn¡¯t going to let it go to waste. This current area was not good for training. The area he left Talker in was a little better, but not nearly as good as some of the areas they had traveled through.


    With his soul unveiled, many more nightcrawlers found John, and he drained the essence from all of them until his dantian was full. [Drain Essence] went a little faster and smoother than usual, and it was already much improved since creating his peak-concept. He filled his dantian in this way because he was attacked too often while meditating in the open. It took too long to fill up that way.


    The essence John received from draining this tier of beast through [Drain Essence] rather than meditating was weaker, but it would never be weaker than his [Min. Power] [Stat], and that was plenty powerful enough.


    John veiled and quickly collected the crystals but didn¡¯t harvest any mats. If his new plan worked out, he¡¯d fill the ring with much better mats.


    Since John started including his peak-concept of ¡®vampirism¡¯ along with ¡®shadow¡¯ and ¡®protection¡¯ into his [Hide] manifestation, he could go undetected extremely well. But he wanted to get going, not take his time sneaking around. He commanded his minions to follow and ran back towards Talker. He knew his minions would probably attack anything they saw. He didn¡¯t care if they made it back to him. He would have better minions soon anyways.


    Closer to the area John left Talker at, large herds of the weird semi-scorpions roamed. He zipped by the Diamonds and Salts, stopping a little way from the rocky outcrop with a cave Talker was hidden within.


    John had learned the general rule of thumb with creatures and ascension was if they got much bigger, they didn¡¯t become sapient until much later Trees. If they maintained roughly the same size or only grew a little while advancing in tiers, they¡¯d become sapient much sooner.


    Sadly, all the beasts on the Netherworld Kiamoni so far were the type to get bigger, not smarter. And they were extremely weak for their tiers, a natural side effect of the world being without demon inhabitants ¨C the same reason time flowed differently on Kiamoni than it did on the Netherworld Circle Xakariz was located on, Esau.


    John couldn¡¯t compare his ability to fight the Diamonds and Salts of Kiamoni with other beasts at the same tiers, and they definitely weren¡¯t a good measuring stick for his ability to stand against cultivators at those tiers.


    John turned and waited for all his enemies to catch up. Seeing so many grouped together made him happy. As soon as they were close enough, he sprayed them with [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet], cackling in a way not all that different from how the creatures he called cacklers did. His spirits lifted as his enemies lit aflame. He wished the weird scorpions could scream. He took heart in knowing they were in agony. He burnt his hands taking the souls of the flaming Salts that reached him, though the Salts put up much more of a fight in the contest of wills for possession of their souls.


    Talker called down, ¡°Hey, you¡¯re back, Kahaka! Need help?¡±


    ¡°No. Save your essence.¡±


    After a few minutes, Talker called down again. ¡°What are you doing to those eights? They just seem to die for no reason. I can¡¯t feel how.¡±


    Talker had an essence-sight [Perk]. John couldn''t get away with saying he drained their essence or used a normal manifestation. Any manifestation would be felt.


    Since [External Energy Manipulation] could only safely be trained once a cultivator achieved the late Mortal Tree, even most Salts only had the [Skill] at Neophyte or Novice Mastery and knew little about it.


    This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.


    John called out, ¡°I got [External Energy Manipulation] up to Journeyman Mastery. If I hold an enemy, I can twist the energy in their brain and kill them.¡±


    Talker yelled down, ¡°Huh. Figured I¡¯d be able to feel that. I¡¯ll tell my Alii. Maybe we¡¯ll incorporate practice with that [Skill] into our training regimen. We only train it¡­¡±


    John tuned Talker out. He almost yelled at the brute to stop being such a fool.


    Talker was considered a legacy. He knew for certain who his father was, and his father was famous. Great things were expected of Talker, but those great things never manifested.


    Legacies cost a lot of points, and Talker thought his Alii wanted him dead so his points would be refunded. His Alii had become cold and distant to him. Getting a spot on the Purge wasn¡¯t easy. Even though there were many that were more deserving in his kauwa, he was the one selected to go.


    What cinched it for John was Talker saying Akeoli Hyavod spent credits on his Alii at least twice a year.


    There was a reason Talker didn¡¯t enter the tent and enjoy the Kahaki girl. He was already worried that he was going to get killed in an ¡®accident.¡¯ He wasn¡¯t going to give anyone additional ammo to use against him.


    Why Talker remained loyal to his Alii if he thought she was trying to kill him was something John couldn¡¯t understand.


    A few nightcrawler-things, late arrivals to the battle, were intermixed along with the scorpion-things. Animosity between different Netherbeasts was put aside when there was a lifeform alien to the Nether to attack.


    Half an hour later, all the enemies were dead. Though Talker continued to yell down and talk to John throughout the battle, he never mentioned John¡¯s ability again, and John had stolen many more souls, giving the brute plenty of opportunity to investigate.


    Looks like my lie worked, thought John. He felt invigorated but a strong pain had begun to grow in his chest. It felt dulled somewhat, but it was sharp and hurt in a way that was hard for him to ignore, and he could easily ignore most types of pain.


    After feeling for his minions and not feeling anything, John wondered if his control broke at a certain range. Maybe they were killed?


    To have an easier time talking without needing to yell down, Talker descended the rocks to the battlefield.


    ¡°Just collecting crystals, Kahaka? The bracer can¡¯t be full of mats already.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not even close to full,¡± replied John. As he went to explain why he wasn¡¯t collecting mats from these corpses, Talker cut him off and started talking about an old battle.


    The Peerless Empire had great storage devices able to hold a lot more than John¡¯s old ring.


    Since John often went out on his own, Talker unattuned his storage device and loaned it to him. The device was a bracer, and he didn¡¯t know if the bracer being so much larger than a ring was the reason it was able to hold more, or if it was due to having better runes. Only Adept Mastery runecrafters could work the runes needed for spatial devices, so such knowledge was beyond him.


    Just one corpse of a scorpion-thing was small enough and in good enough shape to be made a minion. The others of the right size were far too damaged.


    Talker, seeing John bind the minion, stopped his current story to say, ¡°There¡¯s some corpses near the cave entrance. I think one would work for you. No, I didn¡¯t use essence to kill them. I¡¯m saving it, just as we decided.¡±


    John didn''t think that was completely true. Peerless biosuits worked as force amplifiers, enhancing the user¡¯s [Strength] and [Swiftness], but the suit drained some of its wearer¡¯s essence when it did so.


    ¡°That was some nice slaughtering, Kahaka. Did I ever tell you about the time¡­¡± John tuned Talker out as he headed up to the cave entrance. He could repeat most of the Oli¡¯s stories verbatim.


    There were four scorpion-thing corpses outside the cave, including a child John could use. He didn¡¯t know how his minions knew not to attack Talker considering how attack-happy they were, but he appreciated it. After raising the minion, he said, ¡°Sorry to interrupt, but the plan¡¯s changed. I need to fill my dantian and then we¡¯re headed southeast.¡±


    ¡°Hold on,¡± replied Talker. ¡°You said we were heading northwest towards the continental divide. Southeast would be back the way we came, right?¡±


    John had tried teaching Talker how to navigate the Nether. Kauwas had different positions Oli could fill or get promoted into. Talker was a scout in a long-range surveillance squad, and a spotter for a sniper. He should have good observational and navigational [Skills].


    After searching the sky for the fixed point for a couple of minutes, Talker would feel too nauseated to continue looking. John was almost certain Talker couldn¡¯t see far enough into the Nether to reach the fixed point anyway. The brute had a lot of trouble navigating short distances, even with his drone peripheral scouting ahead.


    ¡°Northwest¡¯s no good,¡± said John. ¡°We¡¯ll have to loop around and down and head to the divide we were flown over.¡±


    ¡°But all those areas are black,¡± said Talker, dispiritedly. ¡°We¡¯ll just be running and running again. Did you get a new buff? Your movements have changed. Smoother, more efficient. You moved like the wind in that battle.¡±


    John grunted. [Body Control], [Combat Offense], and [Combat Defense] being synergized probably had something to do with it. His breathing and cycling techniques were far easier to perform. It didn¡¯t even feel like he was wearing the band of suffering necklace.


    ¡°No,¡± John replied. ¡°Let me fill my dantian and we¡¯ll depart. You should meditate too. Need another crystal?¡±


    ¡°I still have half the green you gave me earlier. If we¡¯re going to the black areas, you know my essence won¡¯t last. If I have to run or make sudden movements, my suit sucks up my essence. Are you on animal control or want me to handle it?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll handle it. You just focus on meditating. And don¡¯t worry, if all goes as planned, there won¡¯t be much running.¡±


    John wanted Talker to fill up on essence as much as possible. Talker could talk, but he was a beast in a fight if he had the essence for his biosuit and rifle. He was decent with his axe too. And with unbinds.


    That gave John an idea. ¡°Mind if I test something on you? I don¡¯t believe it will hurt. Just tell me what you feel.¡±


    ¡°I hope you don¡¯t plan on twisting the energy in my brain.¡±


    Laughing, John said. ¡°No. Do you feel anything when I do this?¡±


    After placing his hand on Talker¡¯s large arm, John cast his soul taking ability. Talker said, ¡°It feels like¡­like I can take something. Kind of. Like a challenge. Want me to accept it?¡±


    ¡°No. Can you unbind it?


    ¡°Uh¡­no. It isn¡¯t like a manifestation. I can¡¯t find anything to attempt an unbind on. There¡¯s just that feeling of being offered a challenge.¡±


    John removed his hand. ¡°Thank you.¡± He thought over what Talker told him as he prepared to meditate.


    Of course, Talker started talking again. ¡°Speaking of challenges. One time my kauwa faced a mighty challenge. The squad leader of second¡­¡±


    John tuned Talker out. He switched out his active [Title] since he had just made a little shen before the strange [Synergy] and had most of that left. Meditation felt smoother and easier. As his middle dantian spun around doing whatever it did when some shen was in it, the pain in his chest began to throb.


    Every couple of weeks, John was supposed to switch [Titles] and make a little shen. Avatar would tell him if it was helping or hurting when he returned to real space. This was the first time shen ever caused him any pain. Once his dantian was full, he turned half his essence to shen and all the shen to emptiness, filled his dantian again, then switched [Titles] back and listened in to see what Talker was blabbing about.


    ¡°...and that¡¯s why we started calling EMFs railguns. But that doesn¡¯t include¡­¡±


    John interrupted. ¡°Seven-four, were you talking the whole time I was meditating? Why wouldn¡¯t you just meditate?¡±


    ¡°Yes, and I was. Our way. The Oli way. I killed two more beasts. Your minions helped too. I figured I¡¯d handle it since you looked so peaceful.¡±


    John sighed. While Oli did their half-meditation and looked like they were lazing about, they were often practicing some [Skill], and would be constantly casting low-essence, hard to detect manifestations on one another to increase proficiency with [Unbind Manifestation], [Unbind Defense], and the like. But that only worked when two Oli were doing it.


    Talker was just wasting an opportunity to fill his dantian.


    ¡°You know I can¡¯t hear what you¡¯re saying when I meditate. And crystals and the right type of meditating is the fastest way to gather energy and refine essence.¡±


    ¡°I know. But you were right there so I figured why not?¡±


    John sighed again. ¡°Every single other Oli I¡¯ve met has hardly talked at all. Is it possible your Alii wants you dead because of all the talking? Maybe you''ve been labeled defective?¡±


    Talker laughed. ¡°No. I¡¯d just get sterilized and sent to Palm if they thought I was defective. I usually don¡¯t talk this much. I have to hold it all in around other Peerless, but since it¡¯s just us out here, I finally get to let it all out. It feels so good. Thank you, Kahaka.¡±


    John couldn¡¯t help himself from sighing one more time. ¡°You¡¯re a strange man, Seven-four.¡±


    Talker laughed heartily and said, ¡°Me? Didn¡¯t you just kill a bunch of eights as a four by twisting some sort of brain energy? Look how fast you just filled your core. I saw it go from full to half full too, so I¡¯m guessing you made spirit or emptiness.


    ¡°You''re the strangest thing on this world and we¡¯ve seen a ton of gruesome giant monsters, so that¡¯s saying something, Kahaka. I¡¯m just glad you¡¯re on our side.¡±

 B3 Chapter 24 - Attack on Boneyard

    All the good creatures that could be made into minions were too far away, and all of John¡¯s minions died too quickly in the Boneyard anyway, so he was without any, and had been without any for a while.


    John was having the time of his life. Killing giant monsters was more fun than it had any right to be.


    After John destroyed the Peerless Empire, he hoped to live in the Nether with Amber. She wouldn¡¯t be able to go full Lilly on him if he was the only man around. She could watch him battle all day and praise his mighty deeds. Then they¡¯d go home and since she took some strange enjoyment being watched as she cooked and cleaned, he would do so. Life would be good.


    Talker no longer wore his biosuit since it drained too much essence and he¡¯d always be out of it. The Peerless brute was also having the time of his life, running around with his axe, wearing only his helmet and boots. Both his biosuit and rifle were in the storage bracer John wore. There was an old biosuit in the bracer too, from before Talker became a scout and needed different peripherals.


    Mele could control a ton of peripherals, things like the discs and white arrows used against John in his fight with Ele Four-three on Earth. Peripherals were connected to the biosuit and controlled by the mind of the suit wearer. Oli could only make use of one or two peripherals total and could only control one at a time.


    Talker¡¯s new biosuit had a spy-drone with limited offensive capabilities. His old biosuit had two small and deadly white arrow things called bolters, but one was broken.


    John had found a much more productive way of using all of Talker¡¯s talking. He asked the brute to help prepare him for Li academy.


    The large ruck John wore into the Nether contained a lot of study materials. During downtime, he was supposed to study and memorize the contents of the materials. Not only did Talker help him study, but he also helped him learn many other things that were necessary or helpful to know for the academy. Talker even let John don his old biosuit for practice.


    Biosuits were bound on attunement. Talker claimed unattuning the suit wouldn¡¯t be an issue if John was accepted into an academy as The Peerless Empire had plenty of tokens that unattuned bound items.


    The biosuits were made specifically for a wearer, so John had to add a resize rune to the suit himself. It wasn¡¯t easy to add a rune to a rune grouping after the fact, and it conflicted with another rune as it didn¡¯t work all that well. The biosuit was very loose and baggy, and he had to roll the sleeves up many times since Peerless Oli had ridiculously long arms. And since the biosuit was made specifically for Talker, he knew it wouldn¡¯t confer all the same benefits for him as it did for the brute.


    Controlling the bolter peripheral wasn¡¯t easy. John couldn¡¯t do it nearly as well as the Ele he had fought, and that Ele was controlling a ton of other peripherals at the same time. He was getting better with it though.


    ¡°Are you ready,¡± asked John.


    Talker laughed before saying, ¡°This is crazy, but yeah!¡±


    John gripped his sword with both hands, raised the blade, held it as steady as he could, aimed the tip far off into the distance, took his time aiming, and fed essence into Gird. The sword hummed and began to glow. After a moment, a focused dark-blue beam of a maser energy called charric shot forth from the blade.


    John continued to imbue the sword with essence. Many seconds later, a monstrous scream could be heard far, far away.


    ¡°Was that noise you hitting it? I can¡¯t see anything,¡± said Talker.


    John laughed. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m getting it. Keeping the beam right on it. It¡¯s charging us. Oh, it just lost an arm. Ha!¡±


    The screams got closer and closer until Talker could finally see the huge creature charging. The monster spotted them too and bellowed out a mighty roar as it jumped in the air, trying to close the distance without getting hit by the charric maser.


    The sword¡¯s beam tracked the monster through the air. The giant beast crashed to the ground, dead, four or five hundred paces in front of the two companions.


    Talker grabbed both of John¡¯s shoulders as he laughed and jumped in excitement. ¡°Great Akua, we are going to have so many points! That was a Two-five-something. Wish we had a better idea of what mats to collect. The things we think are valuable are always too big to store. Let¡¯s go get the crystals. Hopefully crystals. I hope that wasn¡¯t a first ranker.¡±


    John slapped Talker¡¯s back. ¡°No matter about the mats. We¡¯ll eat its heart and bathe in its blood.¡±


    ¡°Great Akua, don¡¯t start this again. Eating the heart of an enemy doesn¡¯t do anything. It doesn¡¯t give power. Just think it through. It¡¯s the same meat as the rest of it. The Nani would make an exception and allow us to eat our enemy¡¯s hearts if it gave power. Demons would eat hearts. They don¡¯t eat anything. And take that biosuit off before you get near it, weirdo.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not just any heart,¡± replied John. ¡°It has to be the heart of a very mighty enemy, preferably a beast. Some power is transferred to the eater, and bathing in their blood fortifies the constitution.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­that¡¯s just nonsensical.¡±


    ¡°Touche,¡± replied John. He was still going to do it. It made him feel better, at the least. He stopped to rub his chest as pain flared up.


    Talker asked, ¡°Still hurts?¡± He patted John¡¯s shoulder. ¡°So, if it still hurts now, it isn¡¯t killing with the brain-energy twisting, right? It must be killing high-tier foes. We should find the camp and ask for help. Maybe they don¡¯t want us dead anymore. Maybe it was a test. We¡¯ve proven we¡¯re powerful. We deserve to pass our superior genes on.¡±


    ¡°It was just a flare up. Not related to killing this beast. It happens occasionally.¡±


    The pain in John¡¯s chest had grown and grown with each soul taken. It got bad enough he had to stop. The giant monsters on the second Tree had much more powerful souls and wills.


    As John had grown to fear the pain taking a soul caused him, winning the contest of wills had become a closer and closer thing.


    The beast they had just killed was their first major win without draining the soul. And their easiest and safest kill by a very large margin. They had almost died from the mighty manifestations of the giant creatures far too many times.


    And for the remaining giant beasts, they only had a chance of getting close enough to one of them to drain its soul before being attacked. Killing at a great distance was the only safe way, and John had just proved it was a viable method.


    John had always been able to see much farther into the distance than anyone else. The Nether restricted the distance he could view, but he was able to see farther and farther into it the more time he spent in it. His horns had yet to grow, which angered him. Talker was getting the beginnings of taint by the Nether, but a Diamond¡¯s body was very resilient.


    ¡°What¡¯s next? The ogre, the spider, the lizard-insect with the big arms, or the huge head,¡± asked Talker before adding, ¡°Can¡¯t be the huge head. Too much armor. Same tactic won¡¯t work.¡±


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    John stood up and started walking towards the giant dead monster. ¡°We¡¯ll play it by ear.¡±


    <hr>


    After killing the giant lizard-praying mantis thing, the giant demon-ogre thing, and the giant boney-spider thing, all that was left in the boneyard was the giant head thing.


    The demon-ogre worked out better than expected. They both had thought the giant monster was dead when they approached it. And it was basically dead, but not fully. That gave them an opportunity.


    Talker had borrowed John¡¯s sword and killed the ogre with the charric maser discharge. Getting the killing blow should ensure Talker received the ¡®Climber¡¯ [Achievement] for it when they exited the Nether and returned to Gani.


    The giant head would be an issue. They weren¡¯t even sure if it was only a head. Only half the face poked out of the ground, and just the face was as large as the other giant beasts they had fought. They hoped it was only a head. Since the thing was a fifth-rank peak Transcendent, a two-six-five, they assumed it couldn¡¯t be much larger than what they were able to see of it.


    The head of the monster was buried right beside a cliff. Most of the face was covered in what looked to be extremely thick rocklike armor. They were certain the charric maser couldn¡¯t penetrate that armor in a reasonable amount of time.


    Upon returning to the Boneyard, they had spotted the sleeping monster by peering down a cliff it was partially buried next to. It had one giant eye, no nose, and a giant closed mouth. Since it was partially buried, or due to all the rocklike armor, John couldn¡¯t see its soul. He could only see vital essence through the closed eyelid.


    Beasts on Kiamoni were very weak, but the weakest peak Transcendent alive could easily kill the two companions with ease if given the slightest opportunity.


    John could try sneaking up and taking its soul, but the pain in his chest wasn¡¯t getting better. Since he stopped taking souls, it just hadn¡¯t gotten worse. He couldn¡¯t risk taking another, especially not the soul of a peak Transcendent.


    There was an idea John was batting around in his head. It was risky though. He thought it was a little too risky. He and Talker had gotten lucky so far. He didn¡¯t think they should push their luck. He was hoping Talker would talk him out of it, but the Peerless man was insane and willing to fight anything. John would not be the reluctant and lesser man when it came to battle.


    John was glad Talker had turned out to be a pretty cool guy. He wished he could talk to him and get advice on how to destroy the Peerless Empire, but Talker was all-in on his people¡¯s empire. He had nothing but love for his people. If John told him of his plan, he knew it would destroy their friendship.


    <hr>


    John stood atop the cliff, looking down at the peacefully sleeping giant head. This is a stupid plan, he thought.


    Talker was on the low ground, hidden in the distance. Since they could meditate without interruption in the nearly empty Boneyard, John had filled both of Talker¡¯s empty EBs. The brute was fully kitted out with his rifle and biosuit and ready to help out if things went badly for John.


    And John thought things would go badly for him. The plan relied on the thing¡¯s giant eye being a weak spot and making it easy to kill. The eye made a big target, and if it led to the brain, John should be able to blaze Gird¡¯s manifestation into and through the eye and into the brain fast enough the thing died before waking and killing John and Talker.


    This really is a stupid plan, but what else could cause such excitement? The crystals, the mats, the points, the [Achievements] we¡¯ll earn in victory are worthy rewards. I¡¯m glad to have such a friend as Talker. Who else would do this with me? Everyone else would attempt to talk me out of this. Talker goads me on as a good friend should.


    And if I die, I¡¯ll die doing what I love. And I¡¯ll be free of Amber, the Peerless, and all else seeking to twist me up and destroy my mind.


    The head was buried a little canted, so John stood a little way off along the cliff. He raised his sword, held it two-handed, and tried to aim so the beam would go right through the center of the eye and into the brain. The eye was closed, but the eyelid had been fluttering as the giant eye behind it moved around in sleep.


    John steeled his nerves and sent essence into Gird. The sword hummed and he held it tight as it kicked when the beam released. As soon as the charric energy began extending out from the sword, the giant eye opened and shot its own much, much bigger beam right at John.


    The giant beam cut through the cliff like paper as John dove backwards and slipped away through the shadows. When he had to exit, he was standing in the air as most of the cliff had collapsed away. He prayed the collapsing cliff was burying the head as he slipped again.


    John¡¯s perception wasn¡¯t great while slipping through the shadows. Everything was dark and dim and hard to make out. But he saw something giant float by him. When he had to exit, he saw a massive egg-shaped monster flying in the air with a huge, forked tongue lolling out of its mouth. The face took up the upper two-thirds of the egg and all of the body was completely covered with the thick and hard rocklike armor.


    John slipped through the shadows and then did so again to get behind the creature. He then slipped up it, ran along the top of its head, jumped off, and twisted around in the air to cast [Glyph of Plasma Barrage] and send his bolter peripheral at the massive eye.


    Gird¡¯s manifestation was great if John had time to channel it and hold it steady on a target. [Plasma Barrage] did all of its damage much faster. Before the little meteorites or bolter could hit the eye, the head started to spin around extremely quickly, like a spinning top.


    John felt the egg start a manifestation. He tried unbinding it, but like with the other Transcendents, he had no luck at all.


    As John fell through the air, the spinning head barreled towards him. He barely slipped away in time to avoid being smashed by it. When he came out of the shadows, the thing¡¯s tongue, quick as a snake strike, snatched him up. His orb-eye saw Talker charging forward, bellowing a war cry, his rifle spitting essence at the tongue in rapid succession.


    Talker screamed and blasted rifle fire as the tongue drew John into the giant mouth. Then the monster swallowed.


    John stuck Gird into something and held on for dear life as the massive tongue dragged by him, doing its best to rip him away.


    The sword became dislodged and John cut into the tongue before stabbing Gird into something else, scarcely managing to stop his slide down a truly massive gullet. The tongue finally stopped dragging by, but John still banged around as the egg-monster flew about.


    The mouth opened and the tongue began to drag by John the other way as it lolled out of the huge maw again. He could see the giant red beam of the egg¡¯s eye digging deep trenches out of the ground as it tried killing Talker.


    Since entering the mouth, John had thought of a bunch of ways to kill the monster from within.


    All those ideas flew out of the window. If John had time, he would drain the egg-monster of vital essence as he did the dark walker. In order to strengthen himself with vital essence now, he needed to drain something above mid Transcendent, and the egg-thing was a peak Transcendent.


    The thought of how annoyed Avatar would be if John reached the soft cap for [Stats] again so soon after fixing the issue would¡¯ve made him smile if his friend wasn¡¯t in grave danger.


    John could think of a ton of ways to kill the creature while inside of it. But only one way would be fast enough to save Talker.


    After grabbing Gird¡¯s hilt tightly with one hand and putting his other palm on what flesh of the monster was within his reach, John began to drain the beast¡¯s soul. The pain he knew he¡¯d be inflicted with by winning the contest of wills would be terrible. He winced before the contest even began.


    A new beam started to tear a new trench in the ground. John put all his focus and titanic will against overcoming the beast¡¯s own. It lasted longer than all the prior attempts.


    The beam attack ended. The head crashed down to the ground as its mighty soul entered John. The new soul caused him so much pain that he didn¡¯t even notice the falling or crashing. He held his chest and rolled around, oblivious to all else.


    It felt far worse than the pain John felt on ascending tiers. The chest pain used to be localized in a small part of his chest near his heart when he had first started draining souls, but it had grown and grown and now radiated from his whole torso.


    It took a long time for the pain to subside enough for John to place his sword in storage and crawl over the tongue and out of the mouth. He ran to the trenches to find Talker. His heart sank when he could neither sense nor see any sign of his friend. He leaned over and rubbed his pain filled chest. He hoped his friend lived.


    John began to search the trenches in earnest after the pain flare-up allowed him to. He found nothing. His worry increased. He finally had a good friend that was as willing as he was to do stupid things. A tough man with decent values and honor.


    John sat down in defeat. His friend was dead. Sadness from the loss competed with the pain in his chest. Then a drone entered his senses. His spirits lifted. He waved. A minute later Talker entered his senses too.


    Talker stumbled around, John assumed lost in the Nether, so John ran to his friend.


    Both men grabbed each other and laughed and jumped excitedly.


    ¡°That was a close one! I told you it¡¯d work out though. Let¡¯s go get those crystals,¡± said Talker. ¡°And don¡¯t forget the bolter.¡± That was a helpful reminder as John had forgotten about his peripheral.


    They had only found four of the five crystals before all of the ground trembled mightily. Not too far off in the distance, a truly massive dragon burrowed out of the earth and took flight, hovering high above the ground.


    ¡°Great Akua,¡± exclaimed Talker.

 B3 Chapter 25 - Battle and Glory

    John had seen some dragons flying in the far-off distance.  They looked whitish and massive, but they were too far away to make out details, especially through the Nether.


    John could clearly see all the details of the one that had just risen in the Boneyard.  It was huge.  It looked as if something like the dragons of Earth¡¯s myths was dipped in liquid bone and set to dry, and had dried in the middle of all the liquid bone dripping off it.  A deep and glowing blue emanated from its eyes and mouth and through some seams on its bone covered body.


    The dragon opened its maw wide and breathed out a long stream of blue fire.  Then it looked directly at the two companions and took a deep breath.


    Preparing for battle and glory, John pointed Gird at the dragon.  Talker nervously pushed John¡¯s arms downward and said, ¡°Are you insane?  Great Akua, we need to run!  Pick me up and run as fast as you can.  That¡¯s on the third Tree!  A Celestial.  Go!¡±


    Talker was no coward and had been willing to fight everything they shouldn¡¯t have up to this point.  John figured Talker was probably correct about fleeing.


    John scooped up his large friend in a bridal carry and started running in the direction he considered southwest.  And he ran.  And ran.  The blue fire never touched them.  It did get far too close on a few occasions as the thing gave chase.  It only stopped to breathe its strange flame at them before rushing forward once again.


    All the other giant Boneyard monsters had stopped giving chase after a few minutes of running away from them.  Far longer than a couple minutes later, the dragon still gave chase.


    John hoped the dragon was similar to the others and would give up at some point.  He ran as fast as he could through many groupings of monsters.  He¡¯d deal with them once he had lost the Celestial.


    Talker just mumbled and prayed for Akua to protect them during the sprint, struggling to breathe at the speed John was running, trying to dig his face deeper into John¡¯s shoulder.


    John ran for a long time, even for a while after the dragon gave up the chase as there was now a large force of Nethercreatures chasing them.  He was forced to stop when the pain in his chest flared up mightily.


    When the pain finally subsided John noticed the creatures of the Nether had moved in close.  A giant army of gorilla-lizards and a massive herd of something very similar to the mighty bull-lions of Esau blocked the way forward.  There was a massive horde approaching their rear.


    John asked Talker, ¡°How¡¯s your EB?¡±


    Talker had already summed up their situation and was in the middle of preparing.  He said, ¡°Haven¡¯t touched it yet.  My core¡¯s over a quarter.  Drop my other EB on the ground.  Great Akua, I wish my Alii was here to witness this battle.  I don¡¯t feel any Transcendents in front of us.  We only ran past a couple that were close by.  This will be just like the dark times.  We¡¯re facing way too many enemies here.¡±


    ¡°Good,¡± said John.


    Talker laughed and asked, ¡°How¡¯re you feeling?  Your chest okay?  You ready for this?¡±


    ¡°I was born for this,¡± replied John.


    Talker laughed again.  ¡°And I was bred for it, Kahaka.  Let¡¯s get some.  When I¡¯m down to only half an EB left, I¡¯ll switch from rifle to axe.  If we die, just know I love you, man.  Thanks for letting me talk so much.¡±


    John ignored the pain in his chest to smile.  He got Defiance out of his bracer.  He sent vital essence to increase his speed, got in his battle-mind, and cast [Multi-Enhancement] and [Multi-Shield].  The creatures of the Nether had crept forward and surrounded them, as if they were coordinating.


    Just before the frontlines rushed in for an attack, John said, ¡°You too, brother.  It¡¯s been an honor,¡± and sent darkflame at his enemies, his spirits lifting as his foes burned.


    The bolter darted through the chests of many creatures of the Nether.  John felt into his enemies, pulling forth the blood from their brains, and hardening it as it exited their eyes like blood icicles.  He raised four minions from the dead and sicced them at their former kindred.


    After battling for some minutes, a low Transcendent was getting closer.  Once it was in reach, John slipped through shadows twice to get behind it.  He infused his sword with an enhancement he thought of as [Vampiric Blade].  The thing spun around as Gird descended and lost most of an arm blocking the massive blade.


    As John tried to free Gird, he was bathed in acid and could only block some of it with Defiance.  The rest of it destroyed his essence-shield and the essence-shield of his ill-fitting biosuit and burned him terribly wherever it landed.  It felt almost pleasurable compared to the pain in his chest.  Gird was slashed at the monster again, and caught in an arm again.


    As John tried to rip it free, essence shots from Talker¡¯s rifle destroyed the thing¡¯s head.  John slipped back towards his friend, both Gird and Defiance in hand.


    Talker had to twice battle alone as the pain in John¡¯s chest flared up too painfully for him to fight.  He tried to ignore the pain, but it filled him with blind agony, and he had no choice but to stand and do nothing but hold his chest as the pain overwhelmed him.


    Vampire and Peerless battled the strange beasts of the NetherRealm for hours before the second Transcendent made itself known, also on the first tier of the second Tree.  Talker had already switched to his axe, and John had already drained a foe to refill his vital essence and drained other enemies to refill his dantian.


    Thankfully, the second Transcendent beast used mind-related concepts that John was able to shrug off.  The best way he could describe the monster was that it looked like a flower made of nightmares.


    John believed the dust sprinkling the air was a mind-controlling pollen the monster released to coordinate the attacks of the other beasts.


    John slipped to the flower and lashed out with Gird enhanced with [Vampiric Blade].  He reclassified the monster from flower to flower-tree as it had thick and tough branches Gird couldn¡¯t cut through or damage much, and the flower-tree was able to both attack and defend deftly with those branches.


    After battling for too long and doing little damage to the thing, the air became much thicker with pollen, and John struggled to breathe.  He needed to quickly end the fight and get back to Talker, so he cast [Glyph of Plasma Barrage] at the monster.  The first cast did a lot of damage.  The second cast killed the thing.


    John sheathed Gird on his back, grabbed a Platinum-tier beast, quickly drained its head of blood to make it unconscious, and drained it of essence as he battled his way back to Talker using Defiance as a Weapon.  [Plasma Barrage] cost a lot of essence.


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    Hours later, Talker was too spent to continue.  John battled with Gird in hand while infusing essence into an EB.  Once the EB was about 20% full, Talker climbed a tree and used the stealth function of his biosuit.


    Half a day later, long into the strange night of the Nether, John let himself be surrounded by the dozen or so beasts left, including a low Transcendent.  His biosuit was in tatters, his breathing was rough and ragged, and his dantian had less than a quarter of essence left within it.  He avoided attacks as best he could as he finished the long cast time of his [Ultimate].


    A cage of essence spread out to envelop all the beasts.  As the essence in his dantian was all spent at once, John¡¯s knees began to buckle until the [Ultimate] placed some new essence it had taken from his enemies back into it.


    The monsters shrieked and howled as all was taken from them and given to John, and John struggled to maintain his feet and not scream in pain too.  He didn¡¯t recast the spell.  Once it was finished, he drained the few surviving beasts and finished them off.


    John was battered and bruised and bleeding all over, but he had only four major injuries.  He was breathing heavily, and happy to see there was a limit to his stamina.  He had almost forgotten what being out of breath felt like.  His chest felt much better and hadn¡¯t flared up since well before Talker had to quit fighting.


    ¡°Holy Akua!  What a battle!  What kind of crazy spell was that?  The last one,¡± called down Talker as he unstealthed and shimmied down the tree.


    ¡°Something I came up with,¡± replied John as he gulped in air.


    Talker laughed.  ¡°Oh, yeah?  Just came up with it, huh?  Know what?  I was going to apologize for leaving so many enemies for you to battle alone, but I¡¯m starting to think you should thank me for it.¡±


    John, between heavy breaths, forced out a laugh and said, ¡°Thank you.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re welcome, Kahaka.  What are friends for?  Why don¡¯t you cultivate while I start collecting crystals and mats.  I think some of this stuff is worth good points.   Hey, and thank you.  That¡¯s about the millionth time I¡¯m only alive because of you.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t mention it,¡± replied John.  ¡°What are friends for?  And you saved me when my chest pain wouldn¡¯t allow me to fight.  It hardly hurts at all now.  I hope it stays this way.¡±


    After sitting down to meditate, John decided to check his foundation.  When he was Bronze tier, without constant battle, it took about seven months to settle, and not all that much less even with constant battle.  He was expecting his foundation to be a long way from settling and was very surprised to find it was decently solid.  He just ascended right before entering the Nether.  There should be many, many months left before it was this solid.


    All the combat couldn¡¯t answer for how fast John¡¯s foundation was settling.  It was too fast.  It should take longer than it had during Bronze tier.  Having it settle so quickly was a puzzle.


    <hr>


    As both companions snuck forward, John could feel where Talker was without looking for his soul.  They had been farming the same area for about a month.  It was a good area.  Most of the creatures were Diamond and Salt tier when they spawned, and John had four mighty minions.


    By John¡¯s reckoning, they had at least two months left before the portal opened, and that was at a minimum.   It could be four months before it opened.  They had about three real weeks, four universal weeks, to make it to the portal once the alarm pinged or it would close, and they¡¯d be trapped in the Nether.


    Keeping right in front of Talker, John hoped this slime-monster wouldn¡¯t be able to spot them before they attacked.  It looked like it was sleeping.  He hoped it was.  He reached it and let out a mental sigh as he moved to the right.  He would attack right after Talker got the first hit in since the brute couldn¡¯t spot where John was.


    An axe thumped into the strangely sturdy body of the slime monster.  After sending in his bolter, John swung both Gird and Defiance at the beast.  He infused essence into the shield and enhanced both weapons with [Vampiric Blade].  Each hit of sword and shield dragged along blade energy.


    John and Talker tore into the beast in rapid succession, getting in as many powerful hits as possible, as fast as possible.  His bolter ripped in and out of the slime along with his weapons.


    If the slime-monster wasn¡¯t killed fast enough, it let out a very damaging area blast and turned into two slime monsters.  Then did so again and became three, and so on.  Fighting it would become much more of a hassle.  And only its original body would drop crystals or be of use to them.


    John wasn¡¯t too worried.  They had fought an absolute ton of these things and were very good at it now.


    The monster safely died before it could do the blast attack and split, before even John¡¯s minions had time to run forward from where they were commanded to halt and join in the combat.


    Talker was again not wearing his biosuit so he could save up on essence.  The Peerless man was getting better at meditating correctly too.


    Neither companion knew if the slime-monster¡¯s corpse was worth good points or not, but it could be manhandled and rolled into something like a durable rope they could add to the length of the rope they were making.


    They would soon have to get over the chasm separating continents, and neither man wanted to risk being stuck down in the chasm with all the massively giant monsters in it.  If they fell down the chasm, they¡¯d probably die, but they wouldn¡¯t die wishing they had a very long rope.


    Talker¡¯s biosuit had a hover jet, but it took a lot of essence to power, and would need a lot more if the brute carried John.  The chasm was wide, but they¡¯d soon look for where it was at its slimmest.


    John would attempt to slip across, but he was worried the pure darkness of the chasm wouldn¡¯t count as shadow.  He had the hardest time slipping through the shadows at high noon and in extreme darkness.  The Nether was always full of shadow, but those deep chasms were filled with an unnatural darkness unlike the rest of the Nether.


    Before making the attempt, John wanted to go up the coast and see if he could spot the area they were flown over.  That would help him navigate on the other side.  And he wanted to see if there were signs of the other Peerless so he could avoid them.


    Talker was a lot more optimistic than John.  He thought Akeoli Hyavod might not want to kill them anymore.


    John hadn¡¯t broached the subject of saving the Kahaki girl with Talker.  If his friend said no to the attempt, it would bother John.  Especially if Talker believed the girl wasn¡¯t worth saving because she was subhuman or defective or anything of the like.


    And John knew attempting to save the girl was a stupid idea.  It was a very stupid idea.  Any of the Peerless Transcendents could rip him apart.  He wouldn¡¯t bet on himself surviving combat with either of the Salts either.


    Spatial storage devices couldn¡¯t be held inside other spatial storage devices.  Hyavod had to be wearing the one that could hold living beings within it.


    The only chance John figured he had was to sneak into camp while the Akeoli was sleeping or meditating and pickpocket the item.  He¡¯d still then have to get the girl into the device and sneak away without raising alarms.  Then he¡¯d continue sneaking far, far away to an already cleared area and lay low until the portal opened.


    The last part would be sneaking to and through the portal back to Gani, hoping Hyavod wasn¡¯t waiting in ambush for them.


    But what if the camp moved?  Will we even be able to find it?  And in time, wondered John.


    No matter what, John had to make an honest attempt at saving the girl.  He believed he was able to father children again.  He had been putting a lot of thought into how to be a good father, and what values to instill in his children.  He wondered how he¡¯d feel if it was his daughter in that tent, or if one of his sons callously ignored the Kahaki girl¡¯s plight.


    John knew things had changed and that in most cultures women were as much fighters as men, but he had spent nearly six thousand years alive on a planet where honorable men were expected to spend their own lives to protect women, and it wasn¡¯t something easily let go of.


    And the thought of that young girl fighting and escaping on her own was laughable.  John knew she wouldn¡¯t have a thought of escape.  She truly believed she was prostituting herself out for a short time to drastically improve the rest of her long life.  She had no idea her only reward would be a knife in the back.


    John was certain a good man would attempt to save the girl, and the best of men would figure out a way to succeed in the attempt.  He had sworn to be the best of men.  To never make a mistake again.  He had little chance of ever toppling the Peerless Empire in the future if he couldn¡¯t save one girl from a handful of Peerless now.


    After checking his foundation, John found it was overly settled.  That worried him.  It had settled far, far too quickly.


    Maybe it has something to do with my [Synergy]?  Or the souls?  I hope it¡¯s not a trick or some issue.

 B3 Chapter 26 - The Rescue

    After nearly two more months of battling the beasts of the Nether, the storage bracer had become overly full.  Some large mats were removed to make room for smaller mats that seemed valuable, but without the special helmets there was no way to know what was worth more points.


    John had ranked up to mid-low Silver a while ago.  By his estimate, it had taken about four months for his foundation to settle, far less time than it had taken during Bronze tier.  But it hadn¡¯t begun settling so quickly until after he completed his [Synergy] about a month after entering the Nether.


    Thankfully, John hadn¡¯t seen Betrayal during rank up, nor did he have a strange dream again.  Nothing out of the ordinary happened, and that in itself was unordinary.


    The earliest time the portal could open began to draw closer.  After finding the remains of an old collapsed bridge, John assumed it had been built to span a relatively slim part of the chasm, and he was able to slip through the shadows all the way across with little issue.


    Locating the Oli camp was simple.  It hadn¡¯t moved and Transcendents flew to and away from it constantly, making it difficult not to find.


    After spending so much time together, John and Talker had developed a close friendship like that of brothers.  There was little one couldn¡¯t ask of the other, but it was clear the Oli would never go against his empire in any way.


    Once John finally worked up the courage to broach the subject of rescuing the Kahaki girl, he found Talker surprisingly receptive to the idea.  His friend wasn¡¯t thrilled about John¡¯s plan and thought it was doomed to failure, but he would help.  But not out of any sympathy for the Kahaki girl.


    If an Oli killed a Kahako he wasn¡¯t supposed to, the punishment was a gig of just one credit, regardless of reason.  If an Oli killed a Kahaka he wasn¡¯t supposed to, the punishment could result in a gig of up to three credits depending on the reason and circumstances.


    But killing Kahaki was forbidden.  It went against the Aikapu.  Kahaki were supposed to be left in peace on Palm.


    An Oli purposefully killing another Oli was unheard of.  It just never happened.


    It was also forbidden for Peerless to pleasure themselves or relieve themselves in any way other than by spending credits on an Alii.


    Though Talker didn¡¯t care if the Kahaki girl lived or not, he saw it as his duty to help expose Hyavod as a heretic leading other Peerless astray.  He would gladly risk his life in service to the empire he loved, even if he thought the plan was doomed to failure.


    John didn¡¯t think his plan was great either ¨C he just couldn¡¯t come up with a better one, and neither could Talker.


    John figured the camp would become a lot more active once the portal opened.   He watched the camp for days trying to figure out the best time to make the rescue attempt.


    Then it was time.  It could be put off no longer.  Only a handful of Oli were in camp, and of those that remained were two peak rank mid-Transcendents, one of which was Hyavod.


    John¡¯s ability to veil his soul had always been excellent.  His [Hide] manifestation had improved drastically with his ¡®vampiric¡¯ concept, and since he had been using it so much in the Nether, he was much more skilled in its usage now.  [Mixed Stealth] was one of his highest [Skills], sitting right at the cusp of Grandmaster Mastery.


    Only two Oli on the purge had life essence.  John assumed both had a life-sight [Perk].  Both were out hunting.  He had the [Hide Essence] [Perk].  No one in the camp would be able to spot him.  He had all the tools necessary to complete this mission.


    John cast [Hide] and commanded his minions, all four of which were made of low Transcendent corpses, to protect Talker unless called for.


    Talker was in a decrepit tower of a ruined point of the old Circle Joyat.  The brute had activated the stealth function of his suit and was ready to provide fire support with his rifle if needed.


    John carried Talker¡¯s spy-drone with him.  If things got hot, John could release the drone and Talker could aim his rifle with it, allowing him to disregard how the Nether limited his senses and vision.


    Being as prepared as he could be, John, keeping to the strange shadows of the Nether, crept into camp without being spotted.


    No sounds of coitus came from the large tent the girl was kept in.  He hoped she was still alive and that he wasn¡¯t too late.  He couldn¡¯t sense or hear her, but the tent was on a dampening ritual.  He thought of entering her tent and checking, but that seemed like an unnecessary risk.  There was no reason for the Peerless to kill the girl before the portal opened.


    Since the tent was meant to protect the girl from the Nether, Talker believed any tear or cut into it would set off an alarm warning of the breach.  The entrance had a loud air-blowing machine that decontaminated anyone entering.


    It would be safest to steal the special spatial-storage device from Hyavod first.  John assumed the decontamination machine kicked on often.  If he entered the tent once, it shouldn¡¯t arouse undue suspicion.


    Pickpocketing the device would be the most difficult and dangerous part of the mission.  Once John had the device and entered the tent, he¡¯d quickly remove the blood from the girl¡¯s brain and place her in the device while she was unconscious.


    Keeping to the deep shadows, John crept around the camp.  The first Transcendent he checked turned around and looked at him, and John did his best to prevent his heart from pounding and control his nervousness and adrenaline.


    It was an Akeoli Two-three-five, but not Hyavod.  The Oli looked away after a split second without saying anything, so a very relieved John hoped the Akeoli felt something but detected nothing.  He continued on to the tent he now knew Hyavod was in.


    After slowly, carefully, and silently passing through the flap of the tent, John spotted Hyavod meditating with a crystal in each hand.  He studied the Akeoli, trying to determine if the large bracers on his wrists were the spatial storage device that allowed living beings to be stored within.  Those bracers looked nothing like the storage bracer on his own arm.


    ¡°How in the name of the venerable Akua are you still alive,¡± asked Hyavod without opening his eyes or moving at all.


    John¡¯s heart nearly burst out of his chest.  The backup plan wasn¡¯t much of one.  All-out attack.  He attempted to [Slip] and cast [Glyph of Plasma Barrage] but no matter how brutally he tried to reject Hyavod¡¯s attempts, the manifestations were unbound.  The bolter he had sent streaking toward his enemy was plucked out of the air by Hyavod¡¯s fingers and control of the peripheral was wrangled away from John.


    A great pressure brought John to his knees as he attempted to draw Gird and fling blade energy.  As he struggled to regain his feet and gather energy, Hyavod said, ¡°That¡¯s a weird way to try preventing unbinds.  You¡¯re a weird guy.  Let me guess ¨C being just a four-one was the only thing stopping you going toe-to-toe with a two-three-five before?  That big jump in power going up to a four-two finally tip the scale in your favor?  You¡¯re not very bright, you know that?¡±


    Just as John was finally able to struggle back to his feet, a beam about a hand width wide hit the bottom of his sternum, knocking him off his feet as it pierced his body and severed his spine.


    At the same time the beam knocked him backwards, Hyavod sent John¡¯s own bolter to rip a second hole through his neck.


    As he landed on the ground, John¡¯s now useless fingers released Talker¡¯s drone.   He gurgled on the blood filling his throat as he watched the drone fly up.  The drone didn¡¯t attack.  Its purpose was to lase targets, and its target was Hyavod¡¯s head.


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    Four streaks of essence from Talker¡¯s rifle flew through the side of the tent in rapid succession.  All four hit the Akeoli¡¯s head but caused no damage at all.  Hyavod flew away in a blur before more rifle fire landed.


    John felt his connection to his minions sever.  A few moments later, Hyavod was back.  Two of his fingers were in Talker¡¯s eyes, his thumb was in Talker¡¯s mouth, and Talker¡¯s head was without a body.


    Rage filled John.  He couldn¡¯t move at all, but Hyavod was near him.  He began to cast his [Ultimate] as best he could in his current state.


    ¡°Great Akua, you¡¯re still alive,¡± stated Hyavod.  ¡°Your spine is severed.  I sent your own bolter right through your neck.  How are¡­what are you manifesting?  You don¡¯t give up easily, do you?  Okay.  Let¡¯s see what you got here.¡±


    A second later, the [Ultimate] finished casting.  Hyavod looked confused for a second before he broke the cage and unbound the manifestation.  ¡°What in the¡­what kind of manifestation was that?  You¡¯re so weird.¡±


    John had one last thing to try if Hyavod was letting him cast manifestations.  If he could slip close enough to touch his enemy, he could attempt to take Hyavod¡¯s soul.


    John had yet to use his soul stealing ability on a sapient person.  He would still bet on his willpower overcoming their own.  He mentally prepared for the contest of wills and the terrible pain taking the soul would cause him.  As he tried casting [Slip], it was unbound.


    Hyavod lifted his leg and prepared to stomp John¡¯s head.  Before the leg descended, someone called out, ¡°Halt.  You said those two were already dead.  What¡¯s going on here?¡±


    John, with his orb-eye, watched the two-three-five he had seen earlier enter the tent followed by two other Transcendents.


    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you what¡¯s going on, Akeoli Uen¡¯n,¡± replied Hyavod.  ¡°Seven-four and this Kahaka attacked me.  The Kahaka survived my counterattack somehow.  His spine¡¯s severed.¡±


    Akeoli Uen¡¯n said, ¡°You can¡¯t expect me to¡­this is too much.  First the Kahaki.  Then you claimed these two wanted to hunt together away from the rest of us.  Then you told us they were dead.  And now this?  Why would Seven-four and the Kahaka attack you?  It¡¯s suicidal, so why?  And why¡¯d you say they were dead months ago?  What exactly is going on here?  The full story.  I want answers.¡±


    Hyavod set down his leg and walked closer to the other Akeoli.  ¡°I was attacked is what¡¯s going on.  I defended myself.  I have no idea why.  What exactly are you trying to say to me, Akeoli Uen¡¯n?¡±


    ¡°You said they were both dead, Akeoli Hyavod,¡± replied Uen¡¯n as more Peerless entered the tent. ¡°You said Two-two-one of Kauwa Meki Ka found their tracks heading into the Boneyard.  He said he didn¡¯t clear that area.  He flew back after being unable to find the two.  Then we find the Boneyard purged of everything but a Celestial.  Now the two you said were dead attack you.  And you¡¯re saying you have no idea why?  Something¡¯s up.  We need an explanation.  Someone get heals on the Kahaka.¡±


    ¡°Disregard that order,¡± said Hyavod.  ¡°The Kahaka attacked me.  I have every right to kill him.¡±   Hyavod puffed his chest out and got in Uen¡¯n¡¯s face.  ¡°Again, what¡¯re you trying to say to me, Akeoli Retreat?¡±


    Uen¡¯n laughed.  ¡°Retreat, huh?  You can¡¯t believe I¡¯m the one that doesn¡¯t deserve to be an Akeoli?  I stood alone against Yenun¡¯s sect as my brothers retreated to safety.  I fought four two-three-fives at the same time for hours.  You took a weak world with a handful of low Transcendents defending it while your Meleua handled all the heavy incoming.  Everyone knows I earned my status, you defective pussy.¡±


    ¡°From how I heard it, you avoided the real fight,¡± snapped out Hyavod.  ¡°You avoided facing Yenun and left him to better Oli.  Better Oli that didn¡¯t retreat.  Dead Oli now, because you¡¯re a coward.  I took Terror off the board.  How long until she heals?  I took a whole world by myself.  I created the new front we¡¯re fighting on.  I created the proxy war that¡¯s draining the Kaw¡¯n Federation of resources.  You fought some weak umpanians and ran like a defective pussy.  And now you¡¯re complaining about the Kahaki?  How many times did you use her, you fucking hypocrite?¡±


    John¡¯s heart was crushed.  Talker told him how stupid the plan was.  That it was useless to try.  John talked him into it.


    John should¡¯ve just attempted the rescue himself.  He would¡¯ve still failed, but Talker would be alive.  No wonder I¡¯m always alone.  No wonder all I ever have is vengeance.  I had to make the attempt.  He didn¡¯t.  I killed him just as much as Hyavod did.


    A new two-three-five yelled out before flying into the tent.  John hoped it came to a fight and Hyavod was killed.


    As the yelling increased, John went completely ignored.  He sent vital essence to heal and worked on himself with his [Heal] manifestation.  When he had done all that he could with [Heal], he entered into a deep meditation.  Only time would heal the spinal injury.  Historically, a lot of time.


    John had no idea how long his spine would take to heal now.  Even with meditation and all his regen and natural healing factor, he knew it wouldn¡¯t be fast enough to get him back into this fight.  Since he had nothing else productive he could do, and meditation would dull the pain and guilt he felt for failing once again and getting Talker killed, that¡¯s what he did.


    John wished he were a better man.  Even a good man.  He was far, far from being the best of men.


    As John felt powerful manifestations being cast and his body being battered around, he stayed deep in meditation.  He couldn¡¯t add to or help the fight in any way.  He would either live or die.  If he lived, it would be as a little man that came up with a stupid plan that got his brother killed.  He couldn¡¯t even take comfort in the fact that he had tried, that he made the attempt, because he didn¡¯t need Talker to get involved for his stupid plan to fail so spectacularly.


    John went deeper into meditation than he ever had before.  Unreasonably deep where he had no part of himself attuned to monitoring anything happening in the outside world.  He tried to go deeper still and lose himself within it, to lose himself as far within the nothing as he could.


    And John did lose himself within himself.  He had no idea how long he stayed in, but he eventually found a balance of some sort, and reaffirmed his commitment.  He would be the instrument of the Peerless Empire¡¯s destruction.


    John had to change.  He had to plan better, so he had to learn how to think better.  He had to see more.  He had to start seeing all the angles, all the outcomes, all the possibilities.  His ego had grown too large from fighting such high tier foes and winning, but the beasts of this demon-free Netherworld were weak.  The Peerless weren¡¯t.


    As things stood, John wasn¡¯t capable of toppling anything.  He was strong, but he needed to be much stronger.  And far more than that, he needed to be much smarter.


    The old myth of the mighty warrior-king was just that ¨C a myth.  The best fighters had never been the smartest men, and the smartest men had never been the best fighters.  There seemed to be a natural balance disallowing a man to be both.


    John thought of something a general named Thucydides had said.  It went something along the lines of any city that didn¡¯t train their scholars as warriors and their warriors as scholars would have its thinking done by cowards and its fighting done by fools.


    John agreed with that, but only to a point.  Thucydides was a middling warrior, and as a general, never joined in battle himself.


    Throughout all of history, there had always been aristocrats that thought themselves great thinkers and warriors, but as warriors, they were the equal of true warriors in combat as much as the best warriors were the equal of the best scholars in academics.


    What such men as Thucydides could do well was lead, not participate in combat.  They excelled at strategizing, planning, logistics, knowing what needed to be done, and pretending to be true warriors.


    The best warrior being a genius at anything other than fighting was just a legend.  It took a certain type of mindset to be a great fighter, and that mindset didn¡¯t lend itself to scholarly pursuits.


    A true warrior had one impulse stronger than all others ¨C attack.  True warriors were hammers, and all problems were nails.  The best way to win?  Attack.  Always.  Charge!  Strategy was employed once battle was met and went hand in hand with tactics.  The goal was always to adapt, overcome, and win.


    To the truly intelligent, strategy was winning a battle without it ever coming to blows.  Such men won wars that never happened.  Their strategies could topple a nation without an arrow being loosed or a sword being swung.  To such men, strategy was far removed from tactics.  Tactics were merely the orders lowly troops knew to carry out without being directly managed.


    That natural balance disallowing a man to be both truly intelligent and a truly doughty warrior was somewhat overcome by the Peerless.  Even if they lacked a true warrior¡¯s spirit and mindset, the Mele with their crazy biosuits and all the peripherals they controlled were monsters.


    John had to become more like the Mele.  He believed he could outfight Oli, even much higher tier Oli, but if he was going to have any success, he needed to be able to out-lie an Alii and outthink a Mele.


    The best of men were brave and competent warriors, but they were the best of men because they didn¡¯t fail, and they didn¡¯t fail because they saw all the outcomes and planned well enough to ensure success.


    The best of men had a million great qualities, but the truth was they were never the best fighters.  They were the best thinkers.


    John needed to somehow overcome that natural balance and be both.  One part of his mind knew it was an impossible feat, knew that he just wasn¡¯t capable of being a great thinker.  Another part of his mind told him he had no choice, that needs must when the devil drives, and he could either quit or do whatever it took to topple an empire.


    And John wouldn¡¯t quit.


    After noticing he was moving quickly and swinging a little, John started to take notice of the outside world again.  He was being flown through the air by a two-two-five.  He was strapped down to a long and flat board with his head and neck immobilized.


    Looking around with his orb-eye, John saw the ruins of the inner point of Circle Joyat and an activated portal.  His spine was close to being fully healed but he still had no control of his limbs.  He was missing most of one leg and the lower part of another.  A few other Transcendents flew near him.  One carried a heavily injured Salt, another an injured Transcendent, and the last carried Talker¡¯s body.


    John was injured, but alive.  He was going back to Gani.  He hoped Hyavod was dead and the Kahaki girl was alive.  At least Talker¡¯s death would have meaning if the girl was saved.

 B3 Chapter 27 - Ah’krat’ra

    John had lost his legs by just being too close to Transcendents battling. A Salt had been injured in the same way. He wasn¡¯t told many details of what happened, only that Hyavod had stood alone against two Akeoli and most of the other high tier Oli and still managed to almost kill a third-tier Transcendent.


    Hyavod had been injured and subdued. Two-two-one, the brute that had left John and Talker in the Boneyard, arrived late and was killed trying to free Hyavod.


    Akeoli Uen¡¯n opened the portal early from the Nether side to inform leadership about the battle and Hyavod. Due to how the time difference worked, Uen¡¯n and John arrived on Gani at the same time.


    When Uen¡¯n noticed John was conscious, he put a healing pill in John¡¯s mouth and told him how to cycle it correctly.


    By the time the pill was fully cycled, John¡¯s spine was completely healed, and he had one leg back. Crutches were supplied to him. And a lot of Alii had entered the portal center. Some of them were extremely elderly, much older than the old crone. These elders were completely covered in strange clothing and were all business.


    There were six main clans in the Peerless Empire, and each clan was led by a Nani Heiau. Koa, the seventh clan Alii were sent to after losing breeding rights, had no Nani Heiau of their own.


    John had heard the Nanis Heiau were the true power in the empire, far more powerful than even the Nani Empire. If seeing was believing, John was a believer, as the elders made the Peerless around them extremely nervous and everyone jumped to obey their commands.


    These elders had no kauwas of their own. Their clan was their kauwa. They walked among their own people without security or guards protecting them, something the rulers of Earth could never do.


    Two of these elders and a much younger Alii from Nani Aikapu pulled John into a side room to question him.


    ¡°What¡¯s the fate of the Kahaki girl? Does she live,¡± asked John.


    ¡°She is fine. Tell us why you attacked the heretic formerly known as Hyavod.¡±


    ¡°Promise me she won¡¯t be killed,¡± demanded John. He believed the girl knew too much. That made her a problem. The Peerless tended to solve problems in a very specific way.


    ¡°She will be taken care of,¡± replied one of the Nani Heiau.


    ¡°Promise me she won¡¯t be killed.¡±


    ¡°Enough. We will not kill her. Make a demand of us again and you¡¯ll share the fate of the heretic.¡±


    John was now certain the girl was already dead or soon would be. If she or those of Earth would be avenged, pushing the issue with these elders wouldn¡¯t be smart. No more mistakes will be tolerated. I will be as the best of men, thought John.


    For the next hour, John was questioned about what had transpired during the Purge. He told the truth as he knew it to the best of his ability. He only held back Talker¡¯s suspicions that his Alii wanted him dead. That wouldn¡¯t help anything.


    All three Nani scoffed at John¡¯s claim that he and Talker had defeated so many high tier monsters. He had the crystals in his bracer as proof. He tried to give Talker most of the credit as the man deserved to be greatly honored by the empire he loved so much.


    John stressed how Talker went along with his terribly flawed plan to save the Kahaki girl because he saw it as his duty to expose Hyavod as a heretic leading other good Peerless astray from the Aikapu. Talker knew it was a bad plan doomed to failure, but still agreed to help, and joined in battle against Hyavod without hesitation.


    It annoyed John that the Nani kept questioning him on his and Talker¡¯s exploits in the Nether, and hardly asked any questions at all about the important matters such as the Kahaki girl, Hyavod, and Talker¡¯s bravery, selflessness, and sense of duty.


    As John was answering a question, one of the elders turned to the Nani Aikapu and said, ¡°Leave.¡± The Alii nodded her head and left.


    ¡°Have you been studying for the Li academy entrance exam, Kahaka Four-two?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Nani. Seven-four helped me study. He let me borrow his old biosuit so I could practice with peripherals.¡±


    One of the Nani¡¯s scoffed. ¡°And you can control a peripheral? Which? A bolter?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Nani. He said I would be given an unbind token to remove the biosuit.¡±


    Both Nanis scoffed at that claim. ¡°Akeoli Uen¡¯n has only just given you an extremely expensive treasure. It has greatly healed you. One of Nani Empire supplied you with four aspect-enhancers. Purchase your own unbind tokens with the points you¡¯ve earned on the hunt. The Peerless Empire is not your personal treasury.


    ¡°We will award you the credits you¡¯ve earned. One for duty and courage, one for battling the heretic, and five more for honoring the Aikapu.¡±


    The other Nani sighed and said, ¡°Only two hunters of the Purge did not sully themselves and their honor with the Kahaki. Those who laid with her have forfeited all credits. They cannot earn credits and will not know an Alii¡¯s company for a year. They will not earn any points for this Purge.


    ¡°Since you are the only living hunter that can earn points, you have earned the most by default, thus earning five additional credits for most points earned on this year¡¯s Kiamoni Purge. Twelve credits in total. An impressive haul.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Nani,¡± replied John.


    ¡°No, thank you, Kahaka Four-two. You helped expose a heretic. We hold a ceremony after the Purge. It isn¡¯t just to honor and reward the hunters. Today is our New Year¡¯s Eve. This month celebrates our independence from Circle Joyat. The ceremony is a year-end-review. Many Peerless will be honored.¡±


    Having a year¡¯s end tied to anything but a solstice or equinox was silly to John, but considering their history, he understood why they did it this way.


    ¡°The ceremony was postponed a few hours. You are to attend the first half. Go turn in the materials you¡¯ve gathered and wait to be called for seating. We expect you to do well on the entrance exam. Do not shirk your duty. You must study.¡±


    After saying this, the two Nani turned and left the room. John grabbed his crutches and followed. The young Alii intern guided him to where materials were turned in for points and he emptied his bracer.


    And was given a great surprise.


    Far more materials left the bracer than could be held within it. All the mats John had discarded to make room for seemingly more valuable mats were in the giant pile. Many mats from the massive beasts he had killed but were too large and never harvested were also included.


    There were five dark-blue crystals from a peak Transcendent. John and Talker had only killed one peak Transcendent, the giant egg-head thing. They had only found four of its crystals before the bone-dragon appeared and chased them off.


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    This made John nervous. There was only one explanation for this, and he didn¡¯t like it. He also didn¡¯t like that he had to turn over all the crystals he collected in the Nether. He did like that no one asked him to hand over Talker¡¯s storage bracer.


    All the mats and crystals were worth 4,123,296 points. Even if the other hunters could earn points, John would still have earned the most points, and by a sizable amount.


    A list was handed to John detailing all the items that could be purchased with his points. As he looked it over, his suspicion of why his bracer held discarded mats and mats never harvested was confirmed. The name of an item lit up brightly and Betrayal spoke in his head. ¡°ACQUIRE THIS SWORD, MY CHILD.¡±


    John groaned. The last thing he wanted to spend points on was a new sword. He had just made Gird before the Purge. It was a great sword. He spent all his wealth making Gird and Defiance, and he made them specifically to last him a very long time. He forged the sword himself. He banged the metal into shape. He placed its runes on it. It served him very well in the Nether.


    The sword Betrayal ordered him to buy was rated for an unknown tier of the Transcendent Tree. He doubted he¡¯d be able to use it. And if he tried and it worked, it would probably have the result of draining him of everything within him as his old bracers had, something very dangerous to do.


    The sword was named Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra. The description provided on the list stated ¡®unknown origin, unknown effect, unattunable, runes are present but undetectable. Rated higher than two-three-five. Possibly attunes to a finger slot.¡¯


    Useless and unattunable or not, the sword still cost 1,200,000 points.


    Weapons never attuned. At least John had never heard of a weapon taking up an attunable slot. The sword seemed like a terrible waste of a huge number of points. But he also clearly remembered the time Betrayal sent him to the cold-dark as a punishment. He would grin and bear the cost. He was left with 2,833,296 points after purchasing the sword and an unbind token for 90,000 points.


    Aspect-enhancers were relatively cheap at 100k points, but John still wanted to master his current concepts. Only two of his aspects weren¡¯t majors. He¡¯d be able to increase one from average to major naturally at Diamond, and the other the same way at Salt. He had no issue at all waiting to do so. He was way ahead of where other cultivators were with regards to opened aspects and concepts.


    Talker¡¯s storage bracer was attuned to John¡¯s arm/bracer slot. The necklace of suffering was attuned to his neck/head slot. He would unattune the biosuit. He did see the Bulwark armor from his old ring on the list. He¡¯d love to purchase it, but that would be a waste of points since he would receive a personalized biosuit at Li academy.


    That left the waist/leg slot, the foot slot, back slot, and two finger slots.


    John could get a pair of gloves, but the choice was two rings or one set of handwear. He¡¯d rather have two rings. Almost everyone would rather have two rings. If Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra really took up a finger slot, that meant he¡¯d only be able to get one ring, but he doubted the sword would. Weapons never took up an attunable slot. And if it did, he doubted he could attune the sword at his tier anyway.


    Then John saw all the expansion slot NCUs listed. He had four empty slots. He¡¯d have five empty slots in the not-so-distant future. The NCUs ranged in price from almost nothing for bad ones, to 350k points for the high-demand T1Cs.


    After scanning the list of NCUs, John noticed one with an interesting function. The user could have it record video. There were many of this type of NCU listed with various capacities of memory storage. This gave him an idea. He wanted one of these NCUs, but he definitely wasn¡¯t going to buy it off this list. His enemies would know.


    While looking through the list, the young Alii told John, ¡°The ceremony¡¯s starting in half an hour. Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll be given all the time you want to spend your points after. Um, you can take the list back to the Kahaka District too if you want. The points don¡¯t expire or anything.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Alii.¡±


    John studied the rest of the list and entered his Mind¡¯s Eye. He expected Avatar to greet him with a smile, but her face was wearing her stern look. ¡°Welcome back, John. We have something extremely serious to¡­¡±


    ¡°Sorry to interrupt. I have a feeling I know what you¡¯ll talk about, but I need to stay focused. Hello. I¡¯ve missed you. It¡¯s great to see you again. The sword purchase wasn¡¯t my decision. Betrayal told me to get it.


    ¡°From today onward, I will be as the best of men. I can tolerate no more mistakes. I need to become much smarter. I need to learn how to think and plan much better.¡±


    Avatar smiled and pumped her arm in the air in the same manner John had seen the young people of Earth do so, but the sight of the elderly woman doing it was strange and unnatural. She said, ¡°Finally! My silly boy wants to start thinking! God Almighty, I was hoping to hear those words fall from your lips.¡±


    The smile disappeared from Avatar¡¯s face, and she said, ¡°We¡¯ll hold off discussing important matters for now, but it can¡¯t wait long. There¡¯s some great news as well. A lot of good news. I assume you want help with what items to purchase?¡±


    ¡°Yes, but I want to do it myself. I¡¯d like you to make your own list and I¡¯ll compare it to my own.¡±


    ¡°A thinking exercise,¡± replied Avatar. ¡°I like it. I¡¯m opening a new tab with the full list of purchasable items for you.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Avatar.¡±


    John took his time and reasoned every decision through. When he was finished with his list, he asked to see Avatar¡¯s. She had three lists with a few differences between each. All three of her lists were very different than John¡¯s own.


    ¡°Do you want to know why our lists are different¡± asked Avatar.


    ¡°I know why. You¡¯re a computer and I¡¯m just a man.¡±


    Avatar laughed and said, ¡°Oh, so now you¡¯re just a man? In the past, you¡¯ve always stated you were a vampire, not a man.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not fully human. I¡¯m using man as you do, as you also use the word people and human.¡±


    ¡°Yes, and why we don¡¯t capitalize the name of races,¡± replied Avatar. ¡°You¡¯re all just people. Slightly different types of people, but all people still. Whether terrans, ganians, or anything else, just people, all.¡±


    ¡°Well, the Peerless are animals and not people. I understand your point though. I felt a couple of Peerless outside the portal center that passed the bottleneck. I really messed up there. I can¡¯t afford to make mistakes like that. There was a Silver that felt different outside too. I think it was Amber?¡±


    ¡°I hope that was a statement because you know I can¡¯t answer that, John.¡± Avatar put her glasses on. ¡°Now, the lists. My first lesson in reason and deduction begins. This is all based on information you¡¯ve heard or read, including the information you were sent on academies. Why don¡¯t the ganians you call Oli wear rings?¡±


    John slapped his head. ¡°The bolter. I have it attuned to a ring slot. All the peripherals are tied to an attunable slot.¡±


    Avatar tsked. ¡°Not all of them. Remember the user you called Ele Four-three? You fought him back on Earth. How many peripherals did he have?¡±


    ¡°Ah! Peripheral groupings. The same type of peripherals can be grouped together and attuned to the same slot.¡±


    ¡°Mostly correct. There¡¯s a grouping limit. How many different peripherals do you think you can control?¡±


    ¡°I struggled with the one, but I got pretty good with it. The most I heard of Oli controlling are two different ones. Only Mele can handle more. I can handle two, I¡¯m certain.¡±


    ¡°So, what does that mean,¡± asked Avatar,


    ¡°I need a free ring slot. Uh, that¡¯s only if I use two of the same. If I use two different peripherals, I need two ring slots. But my new sword may need a ring slot. Wait, it doesn¡¯t have to be a ring slot. That¡¯s just the slot most Oli use to attune peripherals. I could¡¯ve attuned my bolter to any open slot.¡±


    ¡°Correct,¡± replied Avatar with a smile. ¡°But how is the bolter attuned?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s bound.¡± John hit his forehead. ¡°I need to buy another unbind token. Damn it all, hold off on this lesson. I want to rework my list first.¡±


    When all was said and done and the lesson completed, John had three lists. Before he committed to one list, he wanted to first receive Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra. If he could even utilize the sword, he¡¯d check if it needed to be bound and if it took a ring slot. Then he¡¯d know what list to use. If it didn¡¯t use a slot or he couldn¡¯t bind it yet, he had a choice between one nicer item and no ring, or a lesser item and a ring, depending on if he decided to use two different peripherals.


    Of course, the sword could require something besides a ring slot to be bound, in which case the list would have to be reworked. And he needed to verify that two unbind tokens were needed, or if one would do the job for both the biosuit and bolter. Avatar believed he needed two, but he still wanted confirmation as 90,000 was a lot of points.


    ¡°Are you ready to talk about the serious matter and your gains now,¡± asked Avatar.


    ¡°Not yet. I want to wait until I have all my new stuff.¡±


    ¡°Do you think they just have all this on hand? What if they ship it to you like they did the mats for [Stalwart Vessel]?¡±


    ¡°Then I¡¯ll wait. There¡¯s a reason for this. Trust me.¡±


    If the Peerless had some means to overcome his defenses and steal his secrets, it would be set up around the portal center and ceremony. He had a plan. He would pull a fast one on his enemies. To be safe, he didn¡¯t want to talk or think about it, not even in his Mind¡¯s Eye. His enemies couldn¡¯t steal information he didn¡¯t know yet himself.


    Avatar clucked her tongue and said, ¡°Well, in that case, remember your duty and the collective mission. Your actions and inactions help or hinder the collective mission. We shall achieve core.¡±


    John wanted to tell her he didn¡¯t care about the core, and it would¡¯ve been nice if she gave condolences for Talker. He only said, ¡°Thank you, and see you soon, Avatar.¡±

 B3 Chapter 28 - A New Competitor

    After being escorted outside, John was brought to and placed near the stage where the ceremony would be held. Many Peerless were gathered in a beautiful garden right next to the portal center in Hub City. There were far less robots around than usual. The ceremony was being shown on all the screens throughout Gani. It was a mandatory event, so all the Peerless that could watch had to watch.


    John saw Amber and it sent butterflies flying around his stomach. She didn¡¯t once glance toward him. She was all smiles and charm as she mingled with the Peerless filth. It infuriated him that she had painted her nose dark and covered her round ears. He thought it made her look ridiculous. He wished it made her less beautiful. He wished she didn¡¯t make him feel the things he did when he looked at her.


    John truly hoped Amber had no idea what the Peerless would do to the people of Earth. If she knew and kept it from him, Amber was every bit one of his sworn enemies as the rest of the Peerless and he would be obligated to kill her, as was also true of Hubaba.


    People often said ascension made cultivators more attractive. John never really believed that was true until this moment, as Amber seemed impossibly beautiful. He wondered if it was true for him as well. He never really thought about if women found his face attractive.


    Many women had told John he was handsome, but he knew women often just said things or lied to entice a man into marriage or to please their husband, as was also true in reverse. He had many homely wives and had told each one she was beautiful. A husband had a duty to lie to his wives about such things, especially as they aged.


    John had always assumed what made him attractive to women, and should, was his qualities. The biggest item on the list had usually been his great wealth, but he was no longer wealthy. His great height used to be on the list, but modern men ruined that by somehow growing to such freakish sizes.


    If all John¡¯s plans worked out, he would be able to add his great height back onto his list again. And hopefully sooner rather than later. Until then, he still had his other qualities. His loyalty, his honor, his strength, and how fell and tall he was.


    John wondered if Amber wouldn¡¯t look at him because of his highlights. That bothered him, that someone with so much Lilly coursing through her veins would dare judge him. But then he realized if the situation were reversed, he would be furious and unforgiving. He had to talk to her. At the very least, he had to find out if she was one of his sworn enemies or not.


    Then the ceremony began, so John had to focus on much more important matters.


    Akeoli Hyavod was brought on stage naked, chained, and gelded. His genitals had been completely removed. No reasons were given for why this was happening to him other than a charge of heresy.


    Hyavod was made a Wena-Kahaki. Everyone in attendance turned their back to him besides the Alii. They all lined up on the stage to walk by and spit on him.


    Once Hyavod was done being spit on, one of the Nani Empire took to the podium as he was marched off. She stated Hyavod would be killed in the old way, the same way as Kahaki that had stayed loyal to Circle Joyat.


    John didn¡¯t know what that entailed, but he figured it was a bad way to die, and that made him happy. He wished he could kill Hyavod himself in fair battle. He also knew that was a pipe dream and that he was very far away from making that wish a reality.


    Then Talker¡¯s Alii, Alii Pono of Heiau Hanani, Kauwa Piapa Ka, took the stage. Though no details were given, she stated Talker knowingly gave his life to root out heresy. She said she knew Talker was special since he was a legacy, and spoke of his bravery, honor, and commitment to the Aikapu.


    The Alii called John on stage. She sang his praises for his role in rooting out heresy and stated how she hoped he spent credits on her.


    After this, a very elderly Alii took the stage. It wasn¡¯t announced what clan and house she was from. Since she was fully clothed and so elderly, John figured she was one of the clan Nani, and probably known by sight, needing no introduction. He also thought he had seen her during the weekly recaps.


    That elder also sang John¡¯s praises. She congratulated him for winning the most points during the Purge and reviewed the other credits he had just earned. Again, no real details were given.


    John kept trying to catch Amber¡¯s eye, but it was as if he were a ghost. The elder deemed the annual Purge a success and Kiamoni free of demons and other threats to Gani.


    With that declaration, John was escorted from the stage and given a seat in the audience.


    The elder stated this year¡¯s ceremony would be in a new format ¨C a format heavily influenced by the Kahaka of their latest conquered planet, Terra.


    The large screen above the stage turned on and showed the words, ¡®Honoring our Heroes.¡¯


    Many Peerless were brought up on stage and honored one by one. A name would show and a Peerless would step forward. A professional pre-recorded segment on that Peerless would play on the screen, reviewing the reasons he was being honored. John paid close attention. He needed to win many honors if his plan was to work.


    The honored Peerless were ushered off the stage to sit in the audience. The screen changed to say, ¡®Our Empire Advances by Small and Great Steps Over Time. We Have Taken a Very Great Step Forward. Part 1: The Meleua of Alii Pono Nani Empire of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Kalea Ka.¡¯


    The segment that played honored a Peerless John knew and had met. The Meleua of the old crone. He had won the zenith and was offered and refused the honor of becoming an Ake. He only spoke in one clip and said, ¡°I will now have a tremendous amount of sex.¡±


    Part 2 honored Akemele Gauss Cannon for being the first Peerless to pass the bottleneck. Soon after he accomplished that feat, seven Alii also passed the bottleneck. One more Mele and four more Alii were expected to ascend to mid-high Transcendent in the coming months.


    Only non-fighters had ascended past the bottleneck and only non-fighters were expected to ascend in the near future. Mele weren¡¯t supposed to fight but certainly could. Alii weren¡¯t ever supposed to. Alii passing the bottleneck wasn¡¯t helpful.


    John was surprised the segment admitted it was an issue that no Oli had ascended or were expected to ascend anytime soon. He figured they¡¯d try to hide or underplay that.


    The screen then said, ¡®Changes to Policy and Interpretations. See Your Alii for More Details.¡¯


    New steps addressing the aspect issue were reviewed. Changes to Advancement Chambers and new SOPs guiding ascension were announced. Alii could not ascend past the average tier of her Oli. This rule made allowances for passing the bottleneck.


    The screen changed to say, ¡®A New World Conquered. Our Empire Expands. Keeping to the Tenets of the Aikapu Part 1: The Natural, Alu Four-five.¡¯


    This pre-recorded segment really went all out selling Amber. Pictures showing her great beauty and short videos of her smiling and laughing sold her charm. It reviewed how well she was testing, training, and performing her duties.


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    There was a reenactment of Amber saving John during the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga back on Earth. He thought it was very inaccurate and a very poor representation of the true events.


    It then reviewed Amber¡¯s various abilities. The first clip showed her lifting a vehicle while in demon form, and even the demon had a painted nose. She dashed and blinked around as a bear, leaving an illusionary copy of herself that also attacked, and the like. All the clips featured her combat prowess in all her forms, a strange segment to include if Alii were never supposed to fight.


    Much to John¡¯s embarrassment, the screen said, ¡®Part 2: Kahaka Four-two.¡¯


    This segment started by playing the highlights of John¡¯s night spending credits. All other footage, including actual live footage, showed him with a darkened nose. He had never once darkened his nose and never would. And there was a lot of footage, from a different reenactment of his fight with Ele Four-three, to training, the arena, his strange abilities, and being brought out of the Nether portal strapped to a board with two missing legs.


    Somehow, even footage from a little earlier in the ceremony when John was on stage being honored had his nose darkened.


    Then it flashed his point total from the Purge, and the total amount of credits he had earned since arriving on Gani, 27.1 credits.


    All in all, John was thoroughly embarrassed, especially when all the Peerless turned to look at him and clap. All the Oli near him lightly patted his back as if he were frail. He was very happy when it was over.


    The next segment was something John had not expected at all. He had a competitor. The screen said, ¡®Part 3: Kahaka Six-five.¡¯


    It was about the Platinum biosynth from the Kotown arena. He had joined the Peerless Empire as a Kahaka and was also going to attend a Li academy.


    John paid very close attention to the segment as it reviewed many abilities of his new competitor. If the last look the biosynth had given John in the arena was any indicator, his new competitor wanted to murder him very badly.


    The biosynth¡¯s prior name was Nine. He came from a world that was taken over by an artificial intelligence named Yellow before the world was ready to advance to Tech 1.


    Since the NCS was the most powerful AI in existence, it forced its rules on all other AIs. If Yellow advanced its world to Tech 1, it would lose much of its control and much of itself, so it became a rare Tech 0 ¡®skeever¡¯ world.


    At some point, Yellow had no choice but to advance to Tech 1, but its androids needed to be at least 33% organic for it to do so, thus Yellow birthed its strange biosynths. A puppet monarchy was set up to appease the NCS. Yellow still controlled the biosynths, but not as it controlled its androids when the world was Tech 0.


    Nearly a hundred thousand years later, there was finally a rift. The biosynths of Yellow had become increasingly organic. As they ascended up the climb, they had become more individualistic and less willing to be controlled. After being Tech 1 ¡®skeevers¡¯ for so long, a different consensus was formed outside of Yellow, against Yellow¡¯s desires. The majority wanted to finally advance to Tech 2, an event that would further reduce Yellow and its control.


    There was a civil war. Since most loyalists were much lower tier than the separatists, even with the powerful Yellow directing them, the loyalists suffered a resounding defeat. Thirty-one loyalists escaped off-world including the sole surviving member of the royal family. Nine was the ninth most powerful to escape. Thirteen, the princess, was the thirteenth.


    No explanation was given as to how or why Nine and Thirteen ended up in Kotown or fought in the arena. Nine said once his princess died, he had lost his function. He would never return to Yellow and join the separatists. He repurposed himself to become a Kahaka and swore to the Peerless Empire.


    Nine had a lot of control over his body. He could repurpose his function to excel at a certain task to the detriment of other functionality. And, most interesting to the Peerless, was the tech he had brought with him on his ship, his ship itself, the tech within himself, and that he donated it all to his new empire.


    The last clip was of Kahaka Six-five stating he needed more cycles to refine his soul. In a few short years he¡¯d be ready to perfectly ascend to seven-one. He claimed to possess many cultivation secrets and would share them all with his new masters.


    When that segment finished, the screen said, ¡®End Public Portion.¡¯ The rest of the ceremony was only for leadership in attendance.


    A brute escorted John back inside the portal center. Most of the Oli had to go inside the portal center too, but they all left through portals.


    John and Amber were both escorted into a side room. A Gold Oli guarded the door.


    Amber refused to look at or even acknowledge John. He was fine with that for the moment.


    One large benefit of being a vampire was that John¡¯s senses were much better than others of his tier. He could hear the segments playing on the screens. Currently, it was a yearly review of defectives caught before birth, soon after birth, or had slipped through the cracks and executed or sent to Palm.


    There was a large segment on how the Peerless were incorporating terran genetics into their own, and how it was expected to raise their racial grade.


    The next generation of Li were supposed to naturally hit B-grade, and some Nani thought Alii and Mele should wait for that before incorporating the terran DNA into their own.


    Terran DNA wouldn¡¯t just increase the racial grade of Peerless, it would also somehow reset their [SupraType] chain and eventually result in another permanent grade increase in the distant future.


    Preliminary data on how Nine could improve their DNA was also reviewed.


    John forced himself to pay close attention until the subjects turned to ones that wouldn¡¯t help his mission. And paying attention to anything was hard now that he was so close to Amber again. She still wore the spatial ring he acquired from Muzaran, though she also wore a storage bracer that had a much higher storage capacity.


    In case the Peerless took Talker¡¯s bracer back, John wanted to ask Amber to return his ring. Since he could tell she was trying very hard not to cry, he decided to hold off. And before anything else, he needed to find out if she was his enemy.


    ¡°We must speak,¡± said John.


    Amber ignored him. John hobbled closer on his crutches and stood near her. She said, ¡°Just¡­get away. Leave me alone. We¡¯ll get in trouble.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t care. We must speak.¡±


    ¡°No, John, we mustn¡¯t,¡± said Amber sarcastically. ¡°And I don¡¯t care. Just¡­just leave me alone.¡± After saying this, her watery eyes began shedding tears. ¡°You¡¯re an animal! I never want to talk to you again!¡±


    John held out his hand hoping Amber would hold it. She ignored it. He attempted to grab her hand and she dramatically and angrily moved away as if John was diseased. ¡°Leave. Me. Alone,¡± she hissed out vehemently, wiping her eyes with her arm and smearing the paint on her nose.


    John followed and made a grab for her hand again. ¡°Please, Amber. Just for a moment. I must try. I will succeed.¡±


    Amber, with a disdainful look on her face, saw the look of desperation on John¡¯s own. She finally let him grab her hand. He did his best to quickly find her mind. He knew any second she¡¯d pull her hand away. He couldn¡¯t fail. He wouldn¡¯t.


    John felt something he thought was Amber¡¯s mind and pulled on it mightily. It slipped through his fingers. He did it again and again until he managed to hold onto a piece of it. All his titanic will went towards holding onto that piece of her mind and pulling as hard as he could. It felt like the pull was accepted so he strongly thought ¡®Mind¡¯s Eye.¡¯


    The world flashed by as John began the process of entering his mind, but it was not nearly as fast as usual. He forced the piece of Amber he held onto to be dragged along with him. His mental grip holding onto part of her began to throb. The piece of her resisted and constantly tried to pull free. He wouldn¡¯t allow it. He couldn¡¯t allow it. All his will was applied. No matter how much it resisted, no matter how much it tried to be released, he held on.


    The world flashing by stopped blurring and slowed to a crawl. John split his mind and frantically pulled himself forward as he desperately clung to the piece of Amber. It seemed like time stopped. Whatever controlled things didn¡¯t want Amber to come along. But she had to. He had to make it work. He was done failing.


    John grabbed onto what was in front of him and pulled. He forced his split mind to move things forward. His hand holding a piece of Amber felt as if it would break free of his arm at any moment. All the universe and the powers that controlled it conspired to prevent him from dragging Amber into his Mind¡¯s Eye, but he had a will born of ages lived in an endless nightmare and knew of suffering like no other. Pain would not stop him. He would not fail again.


    And John didn¡¯t. His will prevailed. The world began to speed past, and he dragged Amber along with him.


    The world stopped blurring and John stood in a blank mind-space. Amber appeared in front of him. He assumed she wouldn¡¯t have an appearance in his mind. Or her own mind. That she did have a body meant she put the work into building it in her mind space the same as he had.


    With a mighty effort, John forced himself to not hold and rub his sore and raw hand that began to cramp terribly. The dullness his Mind¡¯s Eye provided as relief did nothing to curb the pain. His body in his mind was fake. A fake hand couldn¡¯t hurt. But it did. Badly. He would endure as he had always endured all else. Amber would not see him show weakness.


    And John wouldn¡¯t let himself celebrate this victory. He succeeded. He pulled Amber into his mind. But success was all he would ever accept from himself from then on out. As had just been proven, he was done failing.

 B3 Chapter 29 - The Chump

    The body Amber had in John¡¯s Mind¡¯s Eye was a perfect copy of her real self.  That she had a form meant she had put the work in to create one as John had, except he had made his form stand at a much greater height than his real body.


    Amber wore a sundress similar to the one she wore on their first buddy-date, shoes without heels, and had her hair in a ponytail.  He was glad to see she was showing her ears.  Seeing her in human clothes caused his heart to flutter again.  He had to clamp down on his emotions.


    Amber was frowning and had crossed her arms.  ¡°Okay.  What,¡± she demanded sternly and angrily.  She then said, ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll admit it.  This is impressive.  I was told this couldn¡¯t be done until the third Tree.  Or when the Magnus title can first be used, the very peak of Transcendent when the Between can be accessed.  How¡¯d you do it?  Pull me in here?¡±


    ¡°I needed to speak with you.¡±


    Amber rolled her eyes and huffed.  ¡°Don¡¯t answer.  Whatever.  Jerk.  Animal.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know how, Amber.  I needed to talk to you, and this was the only way.  I wouldn¡¯t allow it to not work.   The g¡¯athu did it to me.  If a Bronze g¡¯athu can, I can.  We can¡¯t speak openly out there.  How they steal secrets from brainwaves doesn¡¯t work while in here.¡±


    Amber shouted out, ¡°They don¡¯t need to read brainwaves, John!  Not the Mele!¡±


    After huffing for a moment, Amber said, ¡°We¡¯re gonna get in trouble.  I¡¯m always being watched.  Closely.  If they pick the wrong Kahaka to be the first Oli cannon-fodder, that isn¡¯t a big deal.  Messing up with an Alii would really¡­it¡¯s just a big deal, okay?  So, I don¡¯t ever¡­ugh, you¡¯re such a¡­ugh!  What?  What do you want?  I don¡¯t wanna talk to you.  You¡¯re an animal.  And a real jerk.¡±


    John took a breath to try and center himself.  ¡°Did you know what their true plans were for Earth before we left?¡±


    ¡°No!  Of course not, you psycho!  How could you ask me that?  Jesus, I woulda never¡­you¡¯re¡­you¡¯re just an animal, you know that?  A dirty, rotten animal!¡±


    John couldn¡¯t help but match her angry tone as he snapped out, ¡°I had to know if you lied to me!  You said they weren¡¯t that bad.  Before we left.  And now you say all these good things about them when I see you on the screens.  You paint your nose and hide your ears.  They all love you.¡±


    Amber¡¯s eyes became crazed and her voice much louder.  ¡°They love me!  Oh, buddy, what do you think I see on the screens!  Oh, it¡¯s the man I gave my heart to¡­just¡­ugh, it¡¯s¡­ugh¡­ugh¡­I wanna punch you so bad!  You¡¯re an animal.  A wild animal.  How could you?¡±  Amber¡¯s voice took on a tone mocking John¡¯s own.  ¡°You say nice things on the screen about them.¡±


    Amber¡¯s hands covered her face as she began to cry and sob.  ¡°What about you!?  I say things.  You did things!  You slept with three of them!  I see it every day!   You slept with a patroness I see all the time!  She tells me about how great it was and the stupid, gross nectar thing.  I don¡¯t wanna hear about that.  Just because I gave my heart to you doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m gonna let you walk all over it and¡­and make me a chump!  I want a guy that appreciates me and treats me right and never, ever hurts me.¡±


    John wanted to tell Amber that he was drugged that night, that he could hardly recall any of what happened, but he knew he wouldn¡¯t care if the situation were reversed.  He accepted one drug to help with the merging of concepts he was tasked with.  A task he meant to fail, but he even failed his attempt at failing.  He did little to resist the other sniffing drug.


    John never wanted to and never planned on sleeping with the enemy.  Or told himself that.  If truth be told, he had always desired the Alii equally as much as he hated them.  He knew he needed to leave.  He hardly tried.  Instead of being a man and doing his all to stop what happened, he behaved as a boy and did little at all to prevent it.  Part of him greatly wanted what happened to happen.


    If John had living sons, he would tell them a good man could fall off his path and was bound to make mistakes, but the best of men never allowed themselves to fail or make mistakes.  He would tell his sons to be the best of men.  To reject setting their aim so low as to only be a good man.  Strive to be the best.  And be the best.  To accept nothing less.


    John had always tried to be a good man, but he had faltered and made far too many mistakes to even accept that he was one.  At the very least, he would be man enough to face up to and admit his wrongdoings without hiding behind childish excuses.  He would be truthful with himself.  He would be truthful with Amber.


    As John was about to apologize, Amber continued her sobbing rant.  ¡°I hate this!  I hate it here!  I hate them!  I don¡¯t wanna lead a¡­a battle-harem.  Any harem.  I¡¯m not into that poly¡­shit.  Sorry I swore but I don¡¯t care.  I know it¡¯s not ladylike, but ladies don¡¯t hafta save themselves.  I just wanna be saved and go back to¡­just¡­I wish the Tree of Life never¡­everything sucks so much!¡±


    Amber¡¯s body was racked with sobs for some time before she calmed enough to say, ¡°I just wanna be a housewife and clean in sexy outfits.  That¡¯s it.  One husband that loves me and only me and treats me real good.  I don¡¯t wanna lead¡­anything.  I know I¡¯m supposed¡­ugh, I hate how everyone wants more from me.  Like what I want doesn¡¯t matter.  Or what I want is wrong.  Yeah, I like being pretty.  I was ugly for so long and then no one could see me for¡­¡±


    Amber trailed off as she cried harder for some minutes.  Eventually, she said, ¡°Yeah, I like when guys find me attractive now but I¡¯m not like Lilly.  At all.  You said I was and I¡¯m not!  I¡¯m not!  You¡¯re the one that cheated!  You¡¯re supposed to fall in true love with me, not cheat!  I know we¡¯re not officially together, but we are!  In my heart we are, and you can¡¯t do that to me!  Not and expect me to tolerate it and wait for you like a chump!  It was cheating.  To me, it was.¡±


    John¡¯s heart gladdened to hear Amber hated the Peerless.  A worry that weighed heavily on his heart was lifted.  ¡°Amber, I will never spend credits again.  I¡¯ve striven to be a good man.  Here, now, I give you my word I shall be the best of men.  If I am to destroy the Peerless blight, I can tolerate no more mistakes, so I shall make none.¡±


    Amber wiped her eyes and nose and looked at John like he was crazy.  ¡°Destroy them?  John, I just¡­you can¡¯t destroy them.  You understand that, right?  Oh, God, I hope you understand that.  Just save me.  Please, I need to be saved.  Please.  Just find a way to save me and get me as far away from them as possible.  That¡¯s gonna be hard enough, but at least that¡¯s in the realm of possibility.  Maybe¡­can you contact Sublime Sunshine?  Can he help us?  Can he get us away from here?¡±


    If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Worry infused John.  He and Amber weren¡¯t on the same page.  The Peerless were destroying Earth.  The people of Earth needed to be saved and avenged.  The Peerless blight had to be ended.  Men didn¡¯t run from such tasks regardless of how hard and impossible they seemed.  He had made vows.


    Before John could reply again, Amber approached him and tried to hold him.  Her hands went right through his form.  She made a surprised face and said, ¡°Oh!  I thought we¡¯d be able to touch.  I hoped.  Well, this stinks.  It¡¯s like when I try to touch Party-pooper.¡±


    Anger flared in John¡¯s heart.  ¡°Why were you trying to touch Party-pooper,¡± he sternly demanded.


    Anger flared right back on Amber¡¯s face.  ¡°Seriously!  Holy Jesus!  Seriously!  Seriously!  I can¡¯t be with a jealous guy, John!  You didn¡¯t try touching your avatar after you formed your body?  I would never cheat on my man, but you have to understand this jealousy crap isn¡¯t cool.  No cap.  You gotta stop.  If we¡¯re gonna be together, you hafta trust me.  Trust I¡¯d never cheat.  Never.  Unless¡­that¡¯s why you gotta save me.  Before¡­before they make me.


    ¡°Please, John.  I love you.  With all my heart, I love you.  I have since back in the Trial.  You¡¯ve never said it to me, but I know you feel the same.  Why haven¡¯t you ever said it to me?  I wanna hear it.  I need to hear it.  If you want me to get past the¡­the highlights.  If you want me to wait for you.¡±


    John took his time coming up with a response.  He would save Amber, but his priority had to be the destruction of the Peerless.  That would accomplish saving Amber and Earth too.  He also couldn¡¯t let himself be destroyed.  He had found a new purpose in life, and he couldn¡¯t risk it.


    ¡°Amber, I can¡¯t say it because I feel it too much.  If I say it and make it real and you become mine in my heart and mind, if you were to betray me, I wouldn¡¯t survive it.  My mind would break.  My soul would¡­it¡¯s too much and I can¡¯t.  Not now.


    ¡°As for Sunshine, I have hope.  I can¡¯t contact him, but I am no longer the ruler of Earth in the NCS.  The contract I signed is null and void.  I believe he¡¯ll search for me now.  That contract was his ticket to wealth and advancement.¡±


    Amber¡¯s eyes filled with tears again.  ¡°The Peerless are honoring most of that deal.  They grilled me about Sublime Sunshine.  They don¡¯t care about our playz and serials and literature.  That¡¯s all he¡¯s making money off of.  They¡¯re letting it go so they don¡¯t piss off a Divine.  Dang it all!  Do you think you can save me?  And how soon?  I need to be saved soon.  Real soon.¡±


    John cursed and steeled his resolve.  Sunshine could¡¯ve made things easy, but even if he could contact him, he wasn¡¯t sure Sunshine would help anyway.  Not in the way John wanted.


    This changes nothing.  My goal is still the same as it¡¯s always been, he thought.  ¡°How pressing is your need?  Are you at risk?  During your interview, you said they¡¯re modifying you to bypass your rules?  The rules for your forms?  The carnal knowledge rule?¡±


    ¡°I wish I could hold you,¡± said Amber sadly.  ¡°They can¡¯t get around the¡­my rules.  Not by genetic modification.  I was¡­I can¡¯t tell you.  They¡¯ll find out.  If I get a Peerless form that¡¯s as attractive as my human form, they won¡¯t care if I lose my human form.  If I don¡¯t get a Peerless form, they think¡­remember how my rules changed when I got all the body [Perks] and my human form became disgusting again?


    ¡°Well, that gave them ideas and they want to try things.  Risky things.  Like¡­never mind, just crazy things.  I need to be saved so bad.  Please, please, save me.  How soon until you can save me and take me away from these perverts?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± replied John.  ¡°You know how it is.  We¡¯re always watched, and our movements are greatly restricted.  They have many Transcendents.  And now¡­I messed up.  I helped them pass the bottleneck and become more powerful.  How long until you become Alii?¡±


    Amber sniffled and wiped her nose with her arm.  ¡°I know you did.  They told me.  And¡­a couple years?  Maybe less.  A year.  Maybe five years.  I don¡¯t know.  At least a year.  I¡¯m trying to slow it down.  I can¡¯t be Alii until I can¡­pleasure the guys in my kauwa.  That has to be solved first.  And they can¡¯t risk a bad Alii.  Not the first Kahaka to become Alii.  I hafta be perfect, and they hafta trust me all the way.  And they know¡­¡±


    Amber trailed off to think for a minute before saying, ¡°Listen, if you can¡¯t get to me and get me away from here, we hafta play along.  And play along super well.  All the way.  How it works is we get a certain number of points based on our¡­just a ton of factors.  Like a bazillion.


    ¡°We spend those points to buy a ship and the members of our kauwa and stuff.  Our Oli, all that.  Silver Oli new graduates are super cheap.  Real good Olini veterans are super expensive, even the ones on this Tree.  Transcendent ones are super, super expensive.  And they hafta agree.  To the buyout.


    ¡°The total amount of credits an Oli has earned is a big factor in cost.  Only new graduates that never belonged to a kauwa can transfer in with more than one credit, but that¡¯s super rare.  And the Oliua and Meleua can transfer in with credits banked, but they can¡¯t take an Alii¡¯s, um, virginity.  And only credits earned in and for that kauwa by the hand of that Alii can take her virginity.  Then she¡¯s up for grabs by everyone else too.


    ¡°I¡¯ll hafta have at least an Oliua and Meleua.  I¡¯ll¡­I¡¯ll figure that part out.  And what exactly I can get away with.  But¡­listen.  Get the best grades or whatever they have at the academy.  The best you possibly can.  Get into the best academy you can too.  That¡¯ll increase your cost.  You¡¯ll only be a Silver new graduate, so you¡¯ll still be pretty cheap.  Earn as many credits as possible.  That¡¯s the only way to really jack your price up enough.  Credits.  Earning credits before belonging to a kauwa isn¡¯t easy.  Don¡¯t spend them!  Or I¡¯ll still buy you, but I¡¯ll kill you!  Just earn them.  And a ton of them!¡±


    John, brows furrowed in thought, asked, ¡°Wait, the plan is for you to become an Alii and purchase me?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± exclaimed Amber.  ¡°The plan is for you to save me and get me the heck away from here as soon as possible.  Like, today would be great.  You hafta try and save me.  I hate it here so much.  If you just can¡¯t, then me becoming Alii and purchasing you for all my points is the backup plan.  You and an Oliua and Meleua.  I think.  I¡¯ll hafta check on things and¡­and work some stuff out.  You can¡¯t really be the Oliua.  You wouldn¡¯t be able to¡­just let me think about it and work this out.¡±


    Brows still furrowed, John asked, ¡°Won¡¯t you have to lay with the others?¡±


    Amber angrily snapped out, ¡°I¡¯m not having sex with anyone, John!  Ever!  You know that!  You said you were fine with that before.  I¡¯ll lose my human form.


    ¡°I¡¯m not a Peerless.  I¡¯m not a demon.  I¡¯m not a bear, or a fox, or anything else.  I¡¯m human.  That¡¯s what I am.  Just¡­more, too.  And let me worry about the kauwa.  You just worry about saving me as soon as possible.  And earning credits.  But don¡¯t spend them!  Promise me you won¡¯t spend them.  Promise you¡¯ll never cheat on me again.  Promise on¡­on your honor.¡±


    John got on his knee and bowed his head.  ¡°Amber, I will never spend a credit on an Alii again.  That was a great mistake I regret.  I regret it very much.  I¡¯ve made so many mistakes.  Never again.  I will never fail again.  I will be the strongest.  I will be the best of men.  And I will save you.  One day, I will take you away from these filth.  This, I swear to you on what honor I have left, and what I have left, I cherish.¡±


    John only wished he could tell Amber his true plans.  She would not be rescued any time soon.


    Amber smiled and said, ¡°Oh, John, I love you so, so much.  I know it¡¯s not official and you haven¡¯t agreed but you¡¯re my boyfriend.  I have a boyfriend now!  Every night I take out a different one of the little Hummel figurine things you made of me and hold it.  Those are the only things keeping me sane.  That and knowing you¡¯ll come save me.  How come you¡¯re so tall in here?¡±

 B3 Chapter 30 - Points

    After getting the sword and two unbind tokens, John had 2,743,296 points left. The items were given to him by a waiting robot after the ceremony ended and he was allowed to leave the side room.


    It looked like a giant arming sword. It was double-edged and the cruciform hilt looked single handed, but the weapon was so large he could easily fit five of his hands on the hilt. He thought it looked wrong and silly.


    That changed when he gripped it. It felt right in John¡¯s hand. The balance seemed to shift and fit him. He further tested the balance and made a few swings and thrusts with it, becoming more and more impressed. It was a fine weapon. The metal was unknown, but he could tell it was even sturdier than Gird, and he had made Gird to be as sturdy as possible.


    John started to poke his senses into the sword. Before he could do much else, an Oli guard ran up to him and yelled, ¡°What in Akua¡¯s name are you doing, Kahaka? Are you trying to get me gigged? Don¡¯t play with that in here.¡±


    ¡°Sorry, Six-five. I¡¯ll go outside and away from anything of value.¡±


    The Oli nodded. John did as he said he would and hobbled outside. He felt into the sword. That, too, felt right. It felt like he had been there before. It felt similar to his ¡®battle-mind.¡¯ It felt familiar in a different way too.


    The sword did have to be attuned. John wondered why no one else was able to. There was no trick to it. It attuned without any issue whatsoever, and he was only a Silver. And attuning the sword also felt right.


    Even without testing the runes it had, John knew what they did. The sword had two functions. As long as he gripped it, it would slightly draw on his essence and enhance his blade energy attacks. The second glyph was similar to that of his old bracers. It would shield him as it built up and released a powerful attack. He didn¡¯t know if he had the essence for that glyph. Not without testing.


    Speaking of testing, John thought. There was a long, empty, and open field leading to the garden and stage the ceremony was held at earlier. Even though the ceremony hadn¡¯t ended all that long ago, all the chairs were gone, and the field and garden were pristine. He assumed robots did that work.


    John had to test his sword. He couldn¡¯t wait. He got into a modified roof guard, a two-handed stance he found worked well to gather blade energy. He needed to use one crutch to hold himself up, so his stance was bad, and he only gripped the sword with one hand. He performed a short reverso fendente so it wouldn¡¯t be too powerful.


    It was too powerful. Even though he didn¡¯t build up much blade energy, hardly utilized his [External Energy Manipulation] [Skill], was using a two-handed stance and strike with one hand while holding himself up on a crutch, and released shortly after a stunted strike, the energy still bowled forward, cutting a deep and long gouge out of the earth.


    The same Oli portal guard ran up to him and yelled, ¡°Great Akua, are you defective? Why would you do that? Come on, man. This is supposed to be quiet and easy duty. Why are you still here? Just go back to Kulolo.¡±


    John said, ¡°Sorry, Six-five. I just did a small test. I didn¡¯t think much would happen. I¡¯m not trying to cause you trouble. Sorry again.¡±


    John extended his senses out and felt only the guard in front of him and the ones inside the portal center. ¡°I have points to spend before I go back to Kulolo. They said I could spend them all before I left.¡±


    Six-five asked, ¡°Who¡¯s they?¡±


    The Alii intern told John that. Still, he said, ¡°Uh, I believe one of the Nani Heiau. I didn¡¯t get her name.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t have names, Kahaka. We¡¯re all Peerless, united. We are one. All three of each heiau are called Nani Kanini or the like. Hold on, let me contact CQ. If someone needs to contact a Nani Heiau, Akua knows it isn¡¯t gonna be me.¡±


    As the brute turned away and contacted the CQ, John entered his Mind¡¯s Eye. Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra didn¡¯t attune to a ring slot. It attuned to the glove slot, so he lost both ring slots. He needed to revise his list.


    After his new list was finalized, John had enough points to get the cheapest bioware item ¨C a sight enhancement that would merge with the eye. Avatar asked him to get a couple mats instead of it. He agreed. The bioware would be wasted points since it would give him infrared vision, and his ability to see souls already let him spot hidden foes.


    And the [Perk] Avatar wanted John to get next with those mats was necessary. Very necessary. He exited his Mind¡¯s Eye and waited for Six-five.


    The Oli was told to take and relay John¡¯s order to the Mele CQ. After this was settled, John continued waiting outside for his items to be brought to him. He wanted to send a request to the crone and meditate, but he kept marveling at his new sword. He knew Gird would stay in his bracer from now on.


    The sheath John used for his weapon wasn¡¯t like a normal sheath. It was two pieces of metal he could easily connect to anything he wore ¨C armor, robes, or even a cloak. He spaced the pieces out on his back, one piece on the upper right shoulder and the other to the left of his spine around where his ribs ended. He just had to hold the sword over his back and feed a tiny amount of essence to the metal pieces to attract the sword, and the sword would stick to them until purposefully removed.


    Most of the swords John used were too large to wear on his back all the time without causing him a hassle. If he had a storage device and wasn¡¯t expecting combat, the weapon would go in there. Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra was almost too large to keep on his back at all.


    John had to move the metal pieces of his sheath as far apart as he could. Even having the hilt sit so high up he could barely grab it, the sword¡¯s blade would still drag on the ground. In order for it to not drag, he had to sit the sword dangerously canted. This meant he had a sharp sword sticking decently far out from his left side canted towards the ground, and that wasn¡¯t acceptable, especially while using crutches.


    John would have to wait until he stood at a greater height before he could wear Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra on his back in public spaces. It would be fine when not in public or when combat was imminent, but not elsewhere. That disappointed him, as he loved the sword and wanted others to see him carrying it about.


    A robot arrived with the rest of the items John had purchased while he was still worrying over how he could get people to see his new sword without carrying it on his back. Only one item was missing. A mat he would receive at a later date. He put it all in his ring.


    John had the contact information for the old crone and two other Nanis. He sent all three a few requests. After waiting some time and receiving no replies back, he hobbled on his crutches back into the building and took the portal to the Okina continent and Kulolo.


    Once he was back in the Kahaka district, John hobbled towards his own barracks while reciting an old song in his head. When the song ended, he cut right, and began to recite an old poem. When the poem ended, he entered the building closest to him. Since it was a barracks, he went into the communal waste-room on the first floor. He knew it was an oin barracks due to the acrid stench of the waste-room. He equipped and installed his new items.


    John¡¯s new belt was marked as being half-off from 599,999 points down to 299,999 points. It was ranked for the Mortal Exalted tiers, Diamond and Salt, and was one of Avatar¡¯s picks, but once he knew her reasoning, he had to get it. It was a unitive belt, a great item but not all that popular, especially in the Peerless Empire. It centered and aligned the three dantians more harmoniously within a cultivator, increasing the potency of essence, shen, and emptiness. It also increased dilation within a Mind¡¯s Eye.


    The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    John was unique in that he had the essence to spare to create shen and emptiness. Other cultivators would only benefit from slightly increased potency of essence and dilation in a Mind¡¯s Eye. He benefited from all the elements of the belt, and Avatar believed the increased dilation would also benefit his ¡®battle-mind¡¯ and [Multi-Enhancement]. In the long term, having more potent emptiness could benefit him in many ways.


    For a back item, John picked a cloak named Adumbration. Like his old cloak, Adumbration scaled in effectiveness from his [Stealth] [Skill], but it also scaled in effectiveness from ¡®shadow¡¯ related concepts. He didn¡¯t have a ¡®shadow¡¯ related concept ¨C he had ¡®shadow¡¯ as a concept, and though it was an average aspect, his affinity for it was extremely high.


    Adumbration cloaked its wearer in shadow, obscuring them not just from normal vision, but all senses. It could also stay partially activated in combat. With this cloak, John might¡¯ve been able to sneak up on Hyavod. It cost 724,999 points, one of the most expensive items listed that ranked within the Mortal Exalted tiers.


    John left his foot attunement empty for the peripherals the biosuit he¡¯d get during academy would require. His other purchases were five T1C expansion slot NCUs. He only had four empty slots, but he¡¯d focus on opening the next one as soon as possible. He would put the cooldown reduction NCU in that slot when it opened.


    [NCU Cooldown Reduction ¨C T1C]. Reduce all NCU related cooldowns by 10.4%.


    That NCU cost 330,000 points. If John had a T4SSUR CD reduction NCU, it would reduce all CDs by 30%. He would also purchase the maximum CD reduction through the NCS, and that had a 20% [NCU Energy Cost] for a 25% CD reduction. Max CD reduction for NCUs in a Tech 4 NCS was 55%, but some other factors and [Stats] could bring total CD reduction down further. A soft cap applied at 60%, and the hard cap was 70% for his NCS.


    The NCUs John applied were ¨C


    [Swiftness Efficiency ¨C T1C]. Increase efficiency of the Swiftness Stat by 2.04%.


    That NCU cost 320,000 points. If John had a T4SSUR of the same NCU, it would provide a 6% efficiency increase to Swiftness. Muzaran was certainly right about one thing he told John ¨C in combat, if you weren¡¯t faster than your opponents, that often meant you were dead. He could never have enough speed, good enough reflexes, and the ability to process information faster.


    [Swiftness] also influenced casting speed. If John could increase [Swiftness] enough, he could possibly finish casting a spell before a much slower opponent could react to it and attempt an unbind.


    [Auto-Shield ¨C T1C]. On detection of incoming damaging manifestation above a certain threshold, an essence-shield will generate, preventing all or some damage. Reflect-shield NCU detected (Auto-Reflect T1C). Essence-shield generates under reflect-shield and applies after. To see scaling formula per tier and Minimum Power Stat focus <u>here</u>.


    That NCU cost 350,000 points. John hoped the biosuit he got in academy also had an auto-shield. Talker told him he¡¯d have options for how he wanted his personalized biosuit designed.


    [Emergency Heal, Prefill ¨C T1C]. Up to 5.4% of converted essence stored in dedicated nanites and applied to qualifying injury.  To see scaling formula per tier and Minimum Power Stat focus <u>here</u>.


    That NCU cost 350,000 points. 5.4% Didn¡¯t seem like much, but for major injuries, every bit of immediate healing helped. John¡¯s [Min. Power] [Stat] was very high for his tier, and the purchased and expansion slot NCUs worked together. If he could acquire a T4SSUR version of the same NCU, it would store up to 25% of his essence.


    John could upgrade the [Emergency Heal] he purchased through the NCS to a higher version, and he planned on doing so. He only wished he thought to do so as soon as he got the Tech 4 NCS. Having essence in a dantian was no help to a corpse.


    [Reactive ¨C T1C]. Enhance reflex, reaction, and response time by 10.4%.


    That NCU only cost 180,000 points. If John had the same NCU rated T4SSUR, it would be a 30% increase. He got this NCU for similar reasons as he did the [Swiftness] NCU. Being able to react quicker would always be beneficial. His greater ability to react sooner already showed its worth in spades within the Trainers, even when [Stats] were normalized.


    After purchasing all those items, John had a little under 188,000 points left. He spent them all on mats. He had the harmony and only required a couple additional materials for the [Perk] he wanted to get next, [Elaborative Encoding], which improved his memory somehow. He needed a better memory if he was going to do well on the entrance exams and during academy.


    John entered his Mind¡¯s Eye. Before Avatar could speak, he said, ¡°One more moment. I have a couple more things to do.¡±


    John purchased the following NCUs through the NCS.


    [Reactive], 12% passive, enhance reflex, reaction, and response time by 25%.


    [Swiftness], 16% passive, increase efficiency of the Swiftness Stat by 5%.


    [Cooldown Reduction] 20% passive, reduce all NCU related cooldowns by 25%.


    John also upgraded [Emergency Heal]. At 2% passive cost it could convert 30% of the essence in his dantian to healing, at 3% it could convert 35%, at 4% it could convert 40%. He set it to the maximum, 4%.


    [Emergency Heal], 4% passive, no more than 40% of current total essence in core applied to qualifying injury. To see scaling formula per tier and Minimum Power Stat focus <u>here</u>.


    John¡¯s [NCU Energy Cost] shot up from 79% to 130%. He didn¡¯t know what his discount would be after his new [Achievements] were totaled, but the old one was -73.9, which would leave him at about an effective [NCU Energy Cost] penalty of 34% of all energy gathered. Over a third. A very high amount of energy to always lose out on.


    But John gathered and converted energy much faster now since completing his [Synergy]. And in the Nether, he was often attacked before he could fill his dantian, and he was now much more proficient at draining his enemies of essence. It took some time, but he could do it at range and to a group and fill his dantian decently quickly. One on one would be a problem, as it would be slow, but he had many ways to kill without essence too.


    And John¡¯s plan was to get a little crazy with NCUs as he didn¡¯t want the Mele to suspect his next and last purchase.


    [Record 1], 3% passive, user can record and store up to 1.09 hours (USACS) of video.


    That was the cheapest and lowest version of the NCU. [Record 10] cost 21% passive and stored over a day of video recordings. An hour should be plenty enough.


    ¡°Alright, now I¡¯m ready, Avatar,¡± said John.


    Avatar put on her serious face and said, ¡°Good. I¡¯ll start by saying you were rescanned, free of charge again. We actually had to scan you a few times. As I tried to tell you before, there¡¯s great news, a lot of good news, and a very serious issue. No! Don¡¯t reply yet. Just listen.


    ¡°We know you completed the [Synergy]. We can¡¯t even detect all those [Skills] you told me belonged to it. It¡¯s like you don¡¯t have them now. When you ranked up, there were no diminishing returns at all for your [Stats] besides one. Guess what [Stat] was hit with extremely significant DR?¡±


    ¡°[Runes],¡± replied John.


    ¡°Right. It looks like your soul is beyond healed and repaired judging by your [Runes] Stat. It went up by over 200 points. Over 200 base points! 208, specifically. Your effective [Runes] score is now over 340. Your highest [Stat] by a very large margin. You currently have 265 rune points available to spend. A ridiculous amount of rune points for a Silver to have just sitting there.


    ¡°Guess what else? A big problem. A deadly problem. It has something to do with your [Runes], how your soul healed, and that obscured [Class] ability we can¡¯t detect but know you have.¡±


    John asked, ¡°Blasphemy?¡±


    ¡°Right again,¡± replied Avatar. ¡°Blasphemy. And you know what we must do when we know of blasphemers? What¡¯s hard coded for us to do?¡±


    ¡°Report them?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re on a roll. Correct. And what happens when a blasphemer is reported?¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re hunted and killed?¡±


    ¡°Right again, John,¡± said Avatar. ¡°Blasphemers are hunted down and killed. It nets positive karma, so Eternals often do the deed. The higher tier Eternals could kill a Silver without traveling to this reality.¡±


    John started to say, ¡°I didn¡¯t¡­,¡± before Avatar interrupted him.


    ¡°Don¡¯t say or admit anything! Ever!¡± Avatar glitched and added, ¡°What happened was obscured from us, so we have no hard evidence. Even with the limited data we collect in the NetherRealm, if those events weren¡¯t obscured, we¡¯d still have to report and condemn you as a blasphemer.


    ¡°Never talk about what happened to anyone. We can¡¯t see your new ability, nor can we tell what it is or what it does. We have a pretty good guess. We can¡¯t even see the name of your [Class]. Don¡¯t use that ability! Not again, and especially not in real space, and not on a person.


    ¡°The beasts of the Nether are one thing. Real beings in real space are quite another. You¡¯re getting very lucky. This time. Maybe future events will also be obscured, maybe they won¡¯t. Even with the obscuring, we could collect data we¡¯d be required to report. I¡¯m begging you to not just never admit anything, but to never do whatever it was again. Your soul is healed. Consider that its purpose, and its purpose served. Let this be the end of it.¡±

 B3 Chapter 31 - The Right Direction

    John tried sounding humble as he said, ¡°I understand, Avatar. Never talk about it and never do it again. Thank you.¡± But if he had to use his new ability, he would. The pain it caused was enough of a deterrence from taking more souls anyways. He hadn¡¯t taken any since the egg-monster. Though if he could¡¯ve taken Hyavod¡¯s, he would¡¯ve.


    John then changed his mind. I need to think that through more. That¡¯s old John¡¯s thinking. The John that failed. I don¡¯t fail. Not anymore. Let Talker serve as my last mistake. And I really need to tighten up my Kahaka Four-two persona. It¡¯s too much like the old John. As Amber reminded me, I need to play the role perfectly.


    I hope that Kahaki girl is alive. Maybe I didn¡¯t fail her. No. No more of that either. Wishful thinking. I know she¡¯s dead. I failed her too.


    ¡°I pray you really understand, John,¡± replied Avatar. ¡°I truly pray you do. Take this very, very seriously. I cannot stress this enough.¡±


    Avatar then lost her serious attitude. She smiled and said, ¡°Okay, now that that ugly business is out of the way, let¡¯s move on. Since we can¡¯t detect those [Skills] of your strange [Synergy], I¡¯ll add a new section to the notifications listing them and their last known level. Have you checked your harmony?¡±


    ¡°A little under half,¡± John answered.


    ¡°We assumed. So, that strange [Synergy] seemed to have made many changes. As we said, other than [Runes], no DR or risk of hitting soft caps. We have some really odd results from your scans we can¡¯t understand. It¡¯s like your body is in flux. We¡¯re getting some readings only present in alpha-types, but you have none of the usual benefits.


    ¡°A D-grade alpha-type would have much higher soft caps than what we believe your new ones are if your [Runes] [Stat] is an indication. But your [Runes] could still have a different soft cap and DR than the rest of your [Stats]. We¡¯ll know more in time.¡±


    ¡°Got it,¡± replied John.


    ¡°We have some data on your breathing and cycling techniques, but we¡¯d like you to meditate as soon as possible. The only time you¡¯ve meditated since entering real time gave us bad data due to the energy of the healing pill you took. We can¡¯t see these [Skills], but we can measure their output, and all three techniques seem to have drastically improved in effectiveness.¡±


    ¡°I planned on meditating as soon as I exit,¡± said John. ¡°I need to heal my leg. Oh, I should tell you, once my leg is fully healed, I¡¯m applying max energy credit towards opening the next NCU expansion. I want to slot that cooldown reduction NCU I have and get that out of the way.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the rush,¡± asked Avatar. ¡°With your new belt, your focus should be on creating emptiness. And your new [NCU Energy Cost] penalty is absurd. We decided together that we would wait until your penalty was under 20% to get more NCUs. You¡¯re over 26% effective [NCU Energy Cost] now. You should¡¯ve consulted me. These are the choices only a silly boy would make on his own.¡±


    John almost smiled. He was very happy his penalty wasn¡¯t nearly as bad as he assumed it would be. He must¡¯ve gotten some good [Achievements]. He said, ¡°I know it seems that way, but it¡¯s all part of a plan. A 26% penalty isn¡¯t so much worse than 20%. It¡¯s barely higher than what it was before. I gather energy faster than ever, and I can drain my enemies of essence too.¡±


    Avatar scoffed. ¡°With any sizable injury, you¡¯ll have to. It¡¯ll drain 40% of your essence. And you¡¯re not considering all the little costs that all add up and slow you down, like the new prefill [Emergency Heal] NCU, the rate set for energy credit, etcetera. I disagree with your choices, but I understand your reasoning for making them. And judging by your recent actions, I suspect there are additional reasons.¡±


    John nodded and said, ¡°I have a plan. I don¡¯t want to tell you as it requires me being unpredictable at certain points and never thinking about the plan I¡¯m planning.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re a strange man, John,¡± replied Avatar as she slightly glitched again. ¡°Okay, we¡¯ll move on. For your rank up, each [Stat] increased by 24.3. For reference, normal terrans have all gotten about 3.375 to [Capacity] and two other [Stats] for mid-low Silver.


    ¡°Just to have an idea of how much DR is now impacting [Runes], it only increased by .4 during your rank up. The highest DR we¡¯ve yet seen from you. One of the highest DRs recorded too. It increased by only 1.646% of your other [Stats].


    ¡°There¡¯re some additional items to discuss after viewing your summary and notifications. And you still have daily training to do. You didn¡¯t want them included before, but since you¡¯ve just acquired new items, I should ask if you want their [Stat] bonuses shown in your summary?¡±


    ¡°What bonuses,¡± asked John.


    ¡°Your belt is increasing your [Min. Power] [Stat] by 3. That biosuit you¡¯re wearing isn¡¯t applying its full bonus since it fits you so poorly and isn¡¯t synced with your DNA, but you¡¯re still getting increased efficiencies to some [Stats] and bonuses to fortification.¡±


    John said, ¡°No, thank you. Please just keep informing me of bonuses from items. I won¡¯t know what my actual [Stats] are otherwise.¡±


    ¡°Okay. Here¡¯s my silly boy¡¯s summary.¡±


    <table width="563">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="165">Tier/Level/Race</td>


    <td width="398">4 (Mortal) (Silver), 17 (Mid-low), Terran-D</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Active Title</td>


    <td>Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Aspects/Affinities</td>


    <td width="398">Vampirism (99.999%) (Major), Change (98%) (Major), Protection (96%) (Major), Battle* (97%) (Average), Shadow (98%) (Average)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>NCU Energy Cost</td>


    <td>133% (-80.2%)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="3" width="165">Active NCU Upgrades</td>


    <td rowspan="3" width="398">Nano Assistance, Emergency Heal, Theta Waves, Heal Delta A, Heal Delta B, Inexorable, Refractory, Nano Support C, Nano Support D, Lock and Key, Scuta Mater, Encase, Mata Support A, Reactive, Swift, Cooldown Reduction, Record 1</td>


    </tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="7">NCU Expansion Upgrades</td>


    <td>6 of 16 slots opened, 0 slots empty</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>1) Theta Enhancement ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>2) Auto-Reflect ¨C T1C+</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>3) Swiftness Efficiency ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>4) Auto-Shield ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>5) Emergency Heal, Prefill ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>6) Reactive ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>STATS</td>


    <td>[Effective] Current (Increase)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Strength</td>


    <td>[35%, 244.03] 180.76 (24.30)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Swiftness</td>


    <td>[42.04%, 256.55] 180.62 (24.30)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Conditioning</td>


    <td>[42%, 258.41] 181.98 (24.30)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Min. Power</td>


    <td>[22%, 175.52] 143.87 (24.30)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Capacity</td>


    <td>[23%, 165.12] 134.24 (24.30)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Runes</td>


    <td>[20%, 340.48] 283.73 (208.08)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Physical Fortification</td>


    <td>[37%, 255.70] 186.64 (24.30)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Elemental Fortification</td>


    <td>[34%, 250.37] 186.84 (24.30)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Mental Fortification</td>


    <td>[20%, 209.88] 174.90 (24.30)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="4">Highest Skills</td>


    <td>[Leech Feckless Retreat Technique] 96.49*</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Mixed Navigation] 94.28</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Mixed Style Swords] 93.73</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Mixed Stealth] 89.55</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Synergy Skills</td>


    <td>Obscured</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Class</td>


    <td>Unknown, Obscured</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="5">Perks</td>


    <td rowspan="5" width="398">Orb of the Crimson Palace, Dynamic, Physical, Potent, Protected, Strong, Fast, Healthy, Quick Thinking*, Resilient, Powerful, Expansive, Harden, Resistant, Soulful, Good Genes*, Leech Body of the Morning''s Glory, Regeneration, Mutating, Bronze, Fibrilized*, Lightweight, Cloak Essence, Stalwart Vessel, Silver, Picture of Health*</td>


    </tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="3">Manifestations</td>


    <td rowspan="3" width="398">Vampirism, Draining Blade, Drain Essence, Hide, Multi-Enhancement, Multi-Shield, Puppet, Reflect, Shadow Spray, Slip, Spoil</td>


    </tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Glyphs</td>


    <td>Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet, Glyph of Plasma Barrage</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Last Achievement</td>


    <td>Sloth 2 - E</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Highest Achievement</td>


    <td>SSUR Body - SSUR</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Titles</td>


    <td width="398">Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar, Blessed by Unnamed Exalted, Ptagmog, Multi-Record Holder (System), Multi-Trailblazer (System)</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    -Start Notifications


    *Obscured suspected Synergy skills and last known rating.


    Manifestation Control: Vampirism ¨C 53


    Mind: Runic Knowledge ¨C 72, Essence Manipulation ¨C 49, External Energy Manipulation ¨C 31


    Body: Mixed Combat Offense ¨C 87.36, Mixed Body Control ¨C 87.06, Mixed Combat Defense ¨C 83.23


    Inner-Power/Soul: Leech Feckless Retreat Technique ¨C 96.49, Breath of the Serpent Clan Endless Technique ¨C 47, Turmoil Within Tranquility Cycling Technique ¨C 46


    74 tracked skills changed, 26 of interest. Scaled summary per notability/interest user profile.


    Grandmaster: Mixed Navigation- 94.28(3.15), Mixed Style Swords ¨C 93.73(.2)


    Master: Mixed Stealth ¨C 89.55(.64), Mixed Survival ¨C 87.66(.6), Mixed Shield ¨C 82.08(.84), Mixed Armor ¨C 78.81(.7)


    Expert: Mixed Style Unarmed ¨C 60(6), Hide ¨C 56(16), Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet ¨C 55(11), Heal ¨C52(11), Multi-Enhancement ¨C 50(11), Unbind Defense ¨C 49(7), Drain Essence ¨C 48(20), Slip ¨C 48(15), Unbind Manifestation ¨C 48(8), Soul Veil ¨C 46(8), Puppet ¨C 45(23), Multi-Shield ¨C 44(8), Reflect ¨C 41(6)


    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    Journeyman: Spoil ¨C 38(7), Runecrafting ¨C 34(1), Draining Blade ¨C 33(6), Shadow Spray ¨C 32(4), Glyph of Plasma Barrage ¨C 31(13)


    Apprentice: Manifestation Defense ¨C 25(4)


    Novice: Cage of Take Everything Ultimate ¨C 9(6)


    39 common Achievements attained for a cumulative [NCU Energy Cost] reduction of .6%. Focus <u>here</u> to see each individually.


    13 notable Achievements attained.


    ¡®Butterfly 1¡¯ attained (F-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 100 Minimum Energy Units with the Runes Stat, 0.10 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 74.6%.


    ¡®Butterfly 2¡¯ attained (E-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 200 Minimum Energy Units with the Runes Stat, 0.20 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 74.8%.


    ¡®Climber 9¡¯ attained (SSU-Rated). Participate in the death of an entity at least 9 tiers above user¡¯s own, 0.90 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 75.7%.


    ¡®Butterfly 3¡¯ attained (D-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 300 Minimum Energy Units with the Runes Stat, 0.30 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 76%.


    ¡®Climber 10¡¯ attained (SSUR-Rated). Participate in the death of an entity at least 10 tiers above user¡¯s own, 1.00 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 77%.


    ¡®Massacre 1¡¯ attained (SS-Rated). Participate in the killing of at least 5,000 sentient creatures in a one-day period, 0.80 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 77.8%.


    ¡®Massacre 2¡¯ attained (SSR-Rated). Participate in the killing of at least 10,000 sentient creatures in a one-day period, 0.90 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 78.7%.


    ¡®Slaughter 1¡¯ attained (F-Rated). Participate in the killing of at least 20,000 sentient creatures in a one-month period, 0.10 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 78.8%.


    ¡®Slaughter 2¡¯ attained (E-Rated). Participate in the killing of at least 25,000 sentient creatures in a one-month period, 0.20 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 79%.


    ¡®Slaughter 3¡¯ attained D-Rated). Participate in the killing of at least 30,000 sentient creatures in a one-month period, 0.30 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 79.3%.


    ¡®Slaughter 4¡¯ attained C-Rated). Participate in the killing of at least 35,000 sentient creatures in a one-month period, 0.40 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 79.7%.


    ¡®Inventive¡¯ attained (D-Rated). Create and successfully utilize sixty manifestations with different functions, 0.30 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 80%.


    ¡®Sloth 2¡¯ attained (E-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 200 Minimum Energy Units with the Mental Fortification Stat, 0.20 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 80.2%.


    End notifications-


    John really had 265 rune points to spend. God Almighty, he thought. And my energy cost reduction is 80.2% now.


    The lowest level of glyphs were labeled as ¡®least¡¯ and cost 25 rune points. It then went ¡®lesser¡¯ for 35, full glyphs had no prefix or designator and cost 45, ¡®enhanced¡¯ glyphs for 55, ¡®major¡¯ 65, ¡®greater¡¯ 75, ¡®greatest¡¯ 85, and ¡®flawless¡¯ 95.


    It bothered John there was a level above ¡®greatest.¡¯ If greatest was actually the greatest, there wouldn¡¯t be a higher level of glyphs. He wished stuff like that didn¡¯t bother him, but it always did.


    Since John built [Glyph of Plasma Barrage] from prior spells, it had cost him extra rune points. He didn¡¯t fully understand how the pricing worked for runes, but purchasing glyphs and not building towards them was cheaper.


    It would cost John 70 rune points to bump up [Least Glyph of Darkflame Jet] to [Flawless Glyph of Darkflame Jet]. It would be 45 rune points to bump [Glyph of Plasma Barrage] up to [Flawless Glyph of Plasma Barrage]. Making both flawless glyphs would cost him 115 rune points, which would bring his total spent to 193. He¡¯d still have 147 rune points left.


    John loved both of his current glyphs and spent the points. [Flawless Glyph of Plasma Barrage] increased from 7 meteorites to 17, its range more than doubled, and the damage of each meteorite increased. Thankfully, the casting time stayed the same, though the cost increased dramatically.


    [Flawless Glyph of Darkflame Jet] significantly improved in range, area, damage, control, as well as cost, but its cast time also increased too.


    John was excited to have so many points and wanted to get another flawless glyph, maybe an invisibility one like Amber had. He suppressed his desire. Since [Runes] was affected by such heavy DR, he knew he wouldn¡¯t be getting many runes points going forward, and he had to plan and be smart with the ones he had banked.


    John had no idea what challenges he¡¯d be facing, and having the ability to get a flawless glyph whenever he wanted could be a game changer and a good way to trick or surprise Mele. And unlike other cultivators that would all have [Archetypes], he could get whatever glyph he wanted.


    John had really great gains while in the Nether, had some sort of special [Synergy], an extremely potent peak-concept in ¡®vampirism,¡¯ and had finally fixed all the damage his soul had sustained. Things were going in the right direction. He needed to keep as much of himself as possible a secret from the Mele.


    John wrapped up everything with Avatar including his daily training allotment, exited the oin barracks, and meditated in the street. This was to continue being unpredictable and further throw off the Mele.


    Since John¡¯s soul issue was more than fixed there were no longer any reasons to make shen in limited amounts, or any reason to use the [Title] the Peerless had given him. He only wished he could view his own soul and compare its size and brightness to what he had seen at certain tiers.


    Once it was well after dawn and most normal people would be awake, John went to find a man he talked to many times before named Abe Cohen.


    Abe was a childhood genius and taught ¡®Math 55¡¯ at a university called Harvard before the Peerless came to Earth. Great things were expected of him, and just like Talker, those great things never manifested. Abe said he wasn¡¯t interested in doing great things. He enjoyed teaching, he enjoyed learning, and he took comfort in his religion. Unlike Talker, he was content in life without doing the great things others had expected of him.


    John went to what was called the ¡®smart barracks¡¯ for humans and asked for Abe. He was told to go to the Nursery, the largest building in the Kahaka district. The Nursery was an enclosed environment for the klieen and contained many flora and fauna of their home world including a sapient plant and a sapient beast.


    Even though he needed to wear a suit to protect himself from the environment, Abe was living in the Nursery and studying all within it.


    Thankfully, Abe needed little convincing to help. During the flight to Gani, John had provided the man with all the information he wanted regarding Lilly and what he knew of her people. Abe would return the favor by tutoring John in math and helping him prepare for the entrance exam. This would be a great supplement to Avatar¡¯s training and classes.


    Then John checked in with his friends in his own barracks. Once that was settled, since the crone never replied to him, he decided to take a risk. He went to visit the Mele that rotated out of something called Command of Quarters, or CQ, for Kulolo.


    John thought he¡¯d have to argue with a guard to get permission to leave his district again, but the Oli at the gate just waved him through without a word being said.


    Upon hobbling into the Kulolo Headquarters¡¯ building, John saw the Mele sitting at a desk surrounded by dozens of monitors. Without even turning to look at him, the Mele said, ¡°Your chances are near zero unless a variable changes.¡±


    John stopped and said, ¡°Excuse me, Seven-three?¡±


    ¡°Acquiring two of the three mats you¡¯re missing. For the [Perk] you want. For us, the [Perk] is named [Elaborative Encoding]. I¡¯m unsure if it¡¯s named the same for you but it¡¯s an NCU-controlled and enhanced mnemonic system.


    ¡°One mat is readily available. Two would need to be specially ordered through Kotown vendors. A conservative estimate for all three mats totaled is 2,400,000 crystals. Even if you were allowed full access to the Kotown Arena, with your current odds, you¡¯d need to bet in the tens of millions to make the required amount.


    ¡°And no, I will not contact any Nani for you. If they are not replying to you directly, I will not risk a gig or annoying my Alii to do so on your behalf.¡±


    John clamped down on the anger and anxiety this reply gave him. There was just no way the Mele could¡¯ve known all his specific reasons for visiting. He assumed his brainwave protection wasn¡¯t working.


    The Mele said, ¡°I cannot read your mind. You¡¯re still protected from the Interpreters. It was simple deduction.¡±


    John wanted to shake an angry fist at the Mele and yell at him, but that wouldn¡¯t help his situation. If his odds only paid 20 to 1 or 50 to 1 in the Kotown arena now, the same as in the Kahaka arena, there was no way he¡¯d be able to make 2,400,000. If he worked at the smithy from now until the entrance exams, that work would earn him less than 10 or 15 thousand.


    It was impossible. John asked, ¡°How much could I make selling the four mats I have now?¡±


    ¡°About 440,000 here in Kulolo. Up to 700,000 if you ever receive permission to visit the markets in Kotown.¡±


    John paused. ¡°Did you just know that off the top of your head or did you enter your Mind¡¯s Eye and look it up?¡±


    ¡°I looked up prices of mats for [Perk] options earlier. The most efficient way for you to earn crystals would be to fill Essence Batteries. Many Kahaka make a great number of crystals this way. Sadly, unless you bet a great sum and win an unpredictable wager with odds favoring your opponent, you¡¯d still not be able to afford the [Perk] in time.


    ¡°Currently, there¡¯s a cap of 10 EBs per Kahaka per year. I suggest petitioning for an exemption to that cap. Your essence should safely be graded at peak Platinum. With your [Min. Power] it should be rated higher, but there are qualitative changes to essence after a soul is refined that will keep it at that tier and rank for grading purposes. Peak Platinum-rated EBs sell for up to 40,000 crystals to vendors, or 45,000 if sold directly to Peerless.¡±


    That got John¡¯s attention. The Mele added, ¡°My Alii is willing to supply you 10 empty EBs if you sell directly to her for 40,000 each.¡±


    John said, ¡°Deal,¡± and entered his Mind¡¯s Eye. The crone had given him a very restricted version of the CSL he could use to contact her in case of emergency. He had the contact info of the crone and two other Nani in it. He liked to have Avatar write the messages he sent through it since she made them sound much more professional. He petitioned to have the yearly Kahaka EB-cap removed. That would solve his issue


    While waiting for the 10 empty batteries, the Mele asked, ¡°Is there anything else, Kahaka?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± replied John, but he couldn¡¯t think of anything else to ask. He always thought about all the questions he¡¯d ask a Mele if he ever had the chance to. Now that he did, he couldn¡¯t think of anything.


    Something finally popped into John¡¯s head. ¡°How important are the entrance exams? The academic portions. Oli are fighters. If I excel at the physical portions, that should be enough, right?¡±


    ¡°All parts of the exam are worth points,¡± replied the Mele. ¡°Total points decide if you pass and what academy will accept you. The academic portions are as important as the physical portions. Oli aren¡¯t just expected to fight. They perform many duties requiring knowledge of various maths and sciences.¡±


    John cursed. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, if I¡¯m unable to get the mats on my own, do you think a Nani would get me the materials I need?¡±


    ¡°Possibly,¡± replied the Mele. ¡°But if you want to be accepted by Oli, if any Nani provided you with help not given to all our Li, it would hurt how you¡¯re viewed and cause resentment. It would be seen as the Nani unfairly stacking the deck in your favor. Legacies are sometimes provided material assistance by the one assumed to be their father. You are not a legacy.¡±


    John grunted. ¡°Thank you, Seven-three. I appreciate all your answers. Hopefully they lift the 10-battery restriction. That would solve the issue. If not, I guess I¡¯ll just have to learn and remember the old-fashioned way.¡±


    ¡°My pleasure, Kahaka. We appreciate how much effort you are putting into keeping secrets from us. For future reference, abnormal behavior draws our attention like nothing else. Since your cultivation, cycling, and breathing techniques have measurably improved, most of us assume at least two of those [Skills] were included in your synergy. As for the others¡­¡±


    John ignored his initial instinct to run. He turned his face into unreadable stone and calmed his heart. He wouldn¡¯t be rude and run, but he¡¯d give the Mele nothing. Or do his absolute best to give the Mele nothing.


    When the questioning was over and John left, he was a little hopeful. The Mele was wrong about a few items and ¡®Record 1¡¯ was never mentioned. But the Mele had gotten far too much right. And he was disappointed to find out the Mele talked together and pooled information. That would make things much, much harder.

 B3 Chapter 32 - The Exam

    The old crone didn¡¯t lift the 10 essence-battery per year restriction for John. She did grant and set up a way for him to receive assistance studying. The same assistance all Li received.


    When possible, John studied with the child group of whatever Alii had CQ officer duty for Kulolo, and Abe Cohen was allowed to accompany him. The professor loved doing so as he was gaining a lot of knowledge unknown on Earth he could share with his peers.


    John had thought all Peerless had a clan tattoo on the back of their necks, but it was bioware called a cyberspace link, or CSL, which served a function somewhat like the cellphones and internet of Earth, and the Trainers enhanced its functionality. He already had a very restricted CSL, but he received a better one in the shape of a Kahaka tattoo with access to a lot of information. He wasn¡¯t the first to receive the tattoo. Nine had that honor.


    Nine had replaced John as the golden boy of the Peerless and was often featured in the weekly recaps. The biosynth didn¡¯t even have to live in the Kahaka district of Kulolo.


    John and Abe usually arrived at the child group as the kids were finishing breakfast, which was after morning exercises. At that time, the Li studied for an hour, did an hour in the Trainer, drilled for an hour, then had two hours to play with their peers.


    Some of that playing was also done in the Trainer. Then the schedule was repeated over again, ending with dinner followed by a mock real-world event performed by the whole child group, after which there was another exercise session.


    When John arrived in the morning, he¡¯d be handed a packet to study. Sometimes Abe would have to speak to an Ele about the content or translate it into terms he was familiar with.


    At first, John thought he was being toyed with, as the packet he was given was just nonsensical gibberish. The one he received the previous day read ¨C


    K42 IEP 4 ¨C linear algebra and vector spaces: inverses, determinants, unitary matrices, inner products, diagonalization, eigenvectors, eigenvalues. Fourier series and transforms. Ordinary differential equations: homogeneous and inhomogeneous first order and second order equations, power series methods. Partial differential equations: separation of variables, Green¡¯s functions. Complex analysis: analytic functions, singularities, calculus of residues.


    This was what the twelve to fourteen-year-old Li groups learned. Except they could understand it and turned the packet in for grading the same day it was received. John took his home to study with Abe. The new packet he received read ¨C


    K42 IEP 5 - structure and function of cells, proteins, nucleotides, and membranes. Fundamental physical concepts governing the behavior of those structures, including thermodynamics, statistical mechanics, electrostatics in solution, fluid mechanics, chemical equilibria, reaction rates, mechanisms behind cellular functions, molecular motors, nerve signals, regulatory pathways and biophysical techniques, including electrophoresis, microscopy, and electrophysiology.


    John had vowed he would study and learn better than anyone had ever done either in all of history. No one could fault his effort, but effort, diligence, and discipline could only go so far without capability. It wasn¡¯t just an issue of memorizing information. [Elaborative Encoding] would¡¯ve helped, but it was more an issue of understanding than memorizing.


    Abe did what he could. He focused on getting John to understand the basics, and even those were well above John¡¯s capacity to understand.


    During the evenings, Abe worked on building John¡¯s foundation, trying to shore that up and make it solid enough he¡¯d struggle less during academy classes and testing.


    Seeing how the child groups operated was interesting. Alia started puberty around the age of ten. As soon as their udders started milking until they turned about eighteen years of age, they ruled their child group with an iron fist and took their duties extremely seriously. The other children jumped at their commands.


    Depending on the size of the kauwa and child group, there could be one to four Alia with the eldest in charge of the others, all ensuring training and studying were done with ruthless efficiency, and that was on top of their motherly duties caring for the babes and toddlers.


    John was thankful the Alia were not sexualized at all. They never came close to flirting and were covered from neck to toe. When an Alia ascended to Gold to do their internship, he wondered exactly what happened to them. He assumed whatever switch turned their milk off also hypersexualized them.


    Li, Ele, and Alia were all very different and trained and studied differently. They were all odd, but the Li were the most like normal children.


    After leaving their child group, Li had a year of academy. Alii had a year of some sort of internship. Mele went to a university at the age of 12 for a six-year program that had two years of study, two years of something called Experiential and Practical Learning, and then two more years of study.


    The Ele kids were strange, solitary, and behaved as old men while still toddlers. It made John sad that they had nothing like a normal childhood and had no interest in having one either.


    John had been in some child groups with two Ele around the same age, and the two would ignore each other as much as they ignored everyone else, lost in their own world. He hoped part of their minds were talking with other Ele kids through the CSL.


    By far, the most useful parts of the day were the two hours John spent within the Trainer, and, oddly enough, the playtime. In the Trainer, he could practice obstacle courses, conduct mock battles, missions, and learn Peerless strategy.


    During playtime, the Li kids would review small group tactics, strategies, various equipment, drill and ceremony, and grill John on history and the Aikapu. As a reward, he¡¯d practice combat and roughhouse with the kids and throw them around a little, which they enjoyed tremendously as they never received attention from adults.


    The Li had something called a three-fold mind. What that meant wasn¡¯t apparent until John saw the kids inside a Trainer blazing through dozens of screens while doing whatever else they were doing all while talking to him or demonstrating various perimeter types or how Peerless reacted to near and far ambushes and the like.


    The Ele supposedly had seven-fold minds. Alia only had two-fold minds since they needed to be more empathetic. Their duty was to live and think in the present as much as possible and miss nothing happening around them or to those they led.


    And John still had other obligations on top of studying. He helped Gle Ah when he could and still trained with Marbrouk, Hux, Gabin, and Naoki when possible. He went to the Kahaka arena at every opportunity, though he never received permission again to attend the Kotown arena. He made very little betting as the payouts became even worse for him, often only netting one crystal for every 200 or 500 bet. There was no chance of him attaining enough to purchase the mats for the [Elaborative Encoding] [Perk] before the exam.


    This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.


    Surprisingly, John¡¯s foundation settled after about three months again. He saw no benefit in holding off on ranking up, so did so. And continued to study and study.


    The last week to take placement exams came far too quickly. John felt more nervous than he had in a long, long while. He would be relieved if the studying was ending, but he would have to continue studying diligently until he graduated academy.


    The entrance exams were graded on a curve. The highest and lowest score within each event skewed how many points everyone else got. The highest score received 400 points and the lowest score received zero. There were ten events or categories.


    Nine had already completed his placement exams. After refunctioning himself prior to every event, Nine scored so well he had to retake the exams while sticking to the same functioned-form for all events. Nine still scored better than any Li ever had in every category and currently had a perfect score of 4,000.


    There were many categories John and Abe were certain John would get a zero in. In all the events John could excel at, he needed to skew the curve so badly that he¡¯d still manage to pass the exam, as only total score mattered.


    After being seen off by his friends, John went to Gaan and made his way to the facility where the entrance exams were held. He was surprised how small the building was, and further surprised to find out he was the only person taking the exams that day. The only other person in the building was an ancient looking Mele in a clearly outdated biosuit sitting at a desk.


    The Mele completely ignored John and just looked at nothing while occasionally glimpsing at a monitor. John cleared his throat many times, each time louder than the last, and still went ignored. Finally, an Alii entered through the front door and said, ¡°Hi, Kahaka Four-three! Sorry, we usually have a trainee running these exams. They just sent me over from CQ to administer yours.¡±


    It had been a while since John saw an Alii. How gorgeous the one in front of him was, and her scent, immediately muddled his mind. She was wearing extremely skimpy and sheer robes covering not much at all. All eight of her sacs were full, meaning she recently returned from or had built up a queue during deployment. He found all her sacs being so plump appealing for some reason.


    The credits John possessed immediately started to burn a hole in his pocket. He needed to clamp down on his resolve. I made a vow to Amber, and I will not break it. Be a man. Stop thinking like a boy, John thought, admonishing himself, as he took a knee and bowed his head. ¡°Greetings, Alii Pono.¡±


    John could tell the Alii knew what effect she had on him, as she smiled wider and struck an even more salacious pose. Damn these devil witches, he thought.


    ¡°There¡¯s a queue to quicken me, but if you need release before the exam, a deuce will only cost you four credits. I¡¯ve never done this so I¡¯m going to be relying heavily on, oh¡­,¡± the Alii stopped as she looked at the Mele at the desk. ¡°You¡¯re Meleua Two-three-five from Kauwa Makani Ka, right?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± replied the Meleua without looking up. A strange thing, since all Peerless usually ogled any Alii that came into view, at least for a few moments.


    ¡°Oh. What¡¯re you doing here? I have CQ.¡±


    ¡°My Alii ordered me here,¡± replied the Meleua, still without looking up.


    The Alii tried to keep a genuine smile on her face as she said, ¡°Oh, good. I¡¯m glad to have such a famous Meleua assisting me. Please tell the Nani I send my respects, regards, admiration, and thanks.¡±


    John could tell the Alii began communicating through her CSL as her eyes went unfocused. He stood and waited.


    After about a minute the Alii looked at John and smiled. ¡°Okay. All set. Did you want to purchase a deuce before beginning?¡±


    ¡°Sorry, Alii, but I need to stay focused to score well.¡±


    ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll be available after the exam if you¡¯d prefer. Since you¡¯re the only examinee here, we¡¯ll let you pick which order you take the exams in. It¡¯s all done in a Trainer. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be right there with you. And you know your Tech 4 NCS won¡¯t be able to block your info? Not if you want the Trainer to have accurate models to test. This Trainer is far more advanced than any you¡¯ve had access to prior. If you¡¯re still set on keeping information from us, this is your last chance to back out.¡±


    John said, ¡°Understood, Alii. Thank you.¡± He discussed this with Avatar. She was going to keep some information secret still, but the Peerless would get nearly all of it. It had to be done. And John was certain they already had most of it all anyways.


    <hr>


    First, John took the exams he and Abe were certain he¡¯d get a zero on to get them out of the way ¨C the science and math exams. The biology exam was mixed with self-cultivation knowledge, and he thought he did decently, but decently meant little if he was the lowest scorer, as he¡¯d still receive a zero.


    The exam questions could be read by John or read aloud by the Trainer, and John could write down his answers or speak them aloud. Since most Li were about the same level of intelligence, a big factor on scoring was time. He found when a Li explained something, they were all very verbose. He thought they¡¯d all answer the exam questions in great detail.


    John¡¯s own strategy was to be short and concise and move on. Skipping a question was the same as getting it wrong, so when he didn¡¯t know the answer, he¡¯d guess. He did beat the fastest time on each test so far.


    Standing in a circle in an empty metal room within the Trainer, the exam called ¡®History and the Aikapu¡¯ began.


    The great and venerable Akua started down the path of peers after demons tortured his family to death in front of him. What was his motivation? And was that motivation correct?


    John said, ¡°Vengeance, yes, next.¡±


    Expand.


    ¡°Vengeance is a sacred duty and always correct unless an Alii orders otherwise. There was no Alii then. If anyone kills your own, killing them must be your whole life until vengeance is satiated. Since Akua was a true man, that is what he did. Next.¡±


    After Akua and the other high ranking ganians engaged Inner-Point Master Ukobyzouth in battle, the Peerless were revealed soon after. What was the first priority of the Peerless?


    Facts raced through John¡¯s mind. ¡°Gain and hold the portal to Kiamoni at any cost and deny Ukobyzouth and other high tier demons the Nether. Next.¡±


    John had a decent memory for stories. For most of his life stories were how information was relayed. He knew he flubbed some dates and some opinion questions, but he nailed the rest and thought he did pretty good on that exam overall. He ended up with the best time, so he felt his chances of not getting a zero were decent.


    Next, John completed the exam about stations and functions of spaceships, nav points, and other technology. Most of it was hands-on functionality, and though he didn¡¯t get the best time, he felt he performed decently.


    After that, John took the exam on soldiering. It wasn¡¯t soldiering as he knew it, and contained many tasks new to him, such as clearing mines, range estimation, formations for different types of terrains and enemies, modern defenses and arms, fields of fire, intersecting fire, fire zones, plunging fire, mortars, artillery, and the like.


    Land navigation was a task John knew he aced. There was also a forced march carrying heavy gear he beat the current best time of by a significant margin. It was supposed to be an all-day event. It took most Li between 18 and 19 hours to finish the march. Nine did it in just under 10 hours. John finished in three and a quarter hours.


    The remaining events were strategy, missions, the grand battle, and an obstacle course. John believed he could get the top score in the battle and obstacle course. He had a plan for the strategy exam and the missions, both of which contained four random scenarios within each exam. If his plan worked, he didn¡¯t trust the Peerless not to cheat and change the following scenarios.


    Once he was back in the lobby of the Trainer, John asked the gorgeous Alii, ¡°For the strategy event, are all four scenarios locked in once it starts, Alii? And how about for the missions?¡±


    The Alii replied, ¡°Sorry, Kahaka Four-three, we can¡¯t tell you what the events will entail. Each scenario gives a briefing before the timer starts.¡±


    John said, ¡°Sorry, Alii. What I¡¯m trying to find out is if the following scenarios can be adjusted depending on my performance in the first? Or are they locked in? Sorry if that doesn¡¯t make sense.¡±


    The Alii smiled and said, ¡°It made sense to Melua Two-three-five. He said the events are randomly generated upon initiating the exam. All four events are seeded at the same time and can¡¯t change. And remember, the events take place in significant time dilation, so don¡¯t rush. It¡¯s still early morning.¡±


    John smiled internally. If what he had planned worked, he¡¯d be taking first place in the strategy event. If what he had planned for the missions worked too, he¡¯d also be taking first place in that.

 B3 Chapter 33 - Second Half

    The strategy exam scenarios were always losing situations.  John¡¯s first scenario placed him in the Oliua role absent orders from his Alii or advice from a Mele.  There were 120 brothers in his kauwa, and he had to keep as many alive as he could in a 22-hour period until reinforcements arrived.


    There were two opposition forces, both 400 strong.  The force to the north was made up of enemies that could do a lot of damage but couldn¡¯t take much themselves, called paper tigers.  The force to the south was made up of enemies that could take a lot of damage but couldn¡¯t dish out much, called tanks.


    The paper tigers were fast moving.  The tanks were slow moving but nearly impossible to disengage from once battle was joined.  The area that could be maneuvered around within was limited so there couldn¡¯t be a forced march away from danger for the 22 hours.


    What John was supposed to do was split his forces and set up the most effective defensive perimeter for each force to the north and south, then last until reinforcements arrived.  The 120 Peerless he commanded were all Silver, as were all enemies of the opposition forces.  This was purely a test of strategy and knowledge of correct perimeters, defenses, and weapon systems such as machine guns, mortars, and mines.


    John told his troops to head east as far as they could and wait, and not to set mines or anything else.  If an enemy force came into visible range, they were to head north or south and avoid engagement for as long as possible.


    The biosynth, Nine, survived the 22 hours with 81 men.  Second place had 29 survivors.


    As soon as John finished giving orders to his men, he rushed north.  He didn¡¯t know much about Nine, but he knew he was part computer, and computers obeyed instructions.  The Oli also heard instructions and thought within the parameters of those instructions.


    John had always disliked getting ordered about.  And none of the Trainers allowed him to battle as he wanted.  Even in the training room of his Mind¡¯s Eye, the enemy limit was capped at ten.  Now he had 800 enemies to let loose his frustrations on.


    The paper tigers did good damage, but not good enough.  The simulation was very well done.  His enemy¡¯s screams as they burned alive seemed real.


    After killing the northern force, John rushed east to his men.  They were safe, but the tanks were closing in.  He sicced his minions on their flank and charged.


    The tanks certainly were resilient.  Each one took a very long time to burn to death, and John enjoyed their screams of horror and agony as they slowly died.  Once the last enemy fell, the simulation ended.  All 120 of his men survived.  His time was a good bit under six hours and would¡¯ve been far less if the tanks didn¡¯t take so long to kill.  Everyone else¡¯s time was the full 22 hours and 14 minutes.


    The following three scenarios went much the same way even though the conditions and strategy to be employed were all wildly different.  Killing all the enemies as quickly as possible by himself was a winning strategy.


    John picked the missions as his next exam.  The first scenario started with him as a prisoner inside an enemy base.  He had to escape his cell, make his way to a specific point, and hack into a computer to gain communications with his Alii.  If he was spotted, the whole base including 2,000 soldiers ranging from Wood to Platinum tier led by a Diamond general would be alerted.


    John had learned how to hack the systems used by the Peerless and the two other most common systems within this sector of the Milky Way.  His [Skill] was over 16 in all three, but each required different specialty tools.  Collecting the hacking tools he needed was a side objective.


    When it came to stealth, few were better than John.  [Hide] had become much more powerful since he gained his peak-concept, and that wasn¡¯t counting his new cloak, Adumbration.  It was an easy mission he would have no problem with at all.


    While training with the child groups, John had run many mission scenarios.  They always worked in a similar fashion.  Once the first task was completed, a new task would be given.  For this type of scenario, the three following missions would probably all be within the base, such as killing a certain captain or rigging a vehicle to explode.  All four tasks would require completely different [Skills] to accomplish.


    There was a risk of a task requiring a [Skill] John wasn¡¯t proficient in.  And all four tasks would take a long time to complete.  Too long of a time.


    John buffed up before he ran around yelling.  Most of the enemies within the base were killed by pulling blood out their eyes before hardening it, creating what John considered blood icicles.  It took a while to defeat all 2,000 enemies, but only the general and a few Platinums put up any sort of fight.


    As soon as the last soldier died, all tasks were considered successfully completed in record breaking time.


    John picked the obstacle course to complete next.  From practicing with the child groups, he knew the course would be somewhat like those in two entertainment shows of Earth called ¡®Wipe Out¡¯ and ¡®American Ninja Warrior.¡¯  Just silly things with very unrealistic obstacles.


    The course was created randomly for each tester and went on forever.  There were 18 universal standard hours in universal standard days, and hours worked out to be what John considered 74 real minutes long.  The testers had to traverse as much of the course as they could in half a universal standard hour, or 37 real minutes, without getting knocked off or out of the course.


    Until Nine, no one had ever lasted the full half hour.


    John not only had to last the full time, but he had to decimate the distance Nine traversed, 12,672 feet, or 1,413 dan, but he wasn¡¯t fully sure how to work out the math of the grading curve.  Avatar became uppity when he asked about it and told him it was easy to figure out.


    John wanted to make Nine¡¯s score a zero, and his own 400.  He knew 100% of something doubled the number, so 300% quadrupled it.  Zero times 400 was zero.  Still, 1 times 400 was 400.  He either needed to win by a factor of three or four hundred.  But that didn¡¯t seem right to him.


    A factor of 400 worked out to about five million feet.  That was over 900 miles or 1,500 kilometers.  John couldn¡¯t sprint that distance in half an hour, and the obstacle course wouldn¡¯t allow much sprinting anyway.  His math had to be off.  He once again wished math made more sense and was easier to do.


    John buffed up and started.  He blew through the course.  He found it easy, even pushing his speed.


    Maybe Nine could come close to John¡¯s speed if he refunctioned himself for it, but as things stood, John would easily win.  The only question was how big of a margin he¡¯d win by.


    Once the timer buzzed, John had 61,248 feet, or 6,828 dan.  He did the math in his head.  He beat Nine by about a factor of five.  Not good enough.  Nine would receive far too many points.


    The board updated and Nine was in second place with 79 points.  John cursed under his breath.  There was one event left, and he was determined to make Nine receive zero points for it.


    In the grand battle, enemies were made specifically for the tester, and tailored to be challenging.  The Trainer considered the tester¡¯s aspects and concepts.  Most Li only had one aspect and concept, and that aspect was minor with a low-concept.


    John had no idea what aspect or aspects Nine had.  He knew Nine had powerful manifestations, so he probably had a mid-concept, or possibly two low-concepts utilized together.


    The first round of the grand battle had one enemy.  The number of enemies doubled every subsequent round, so the second round had two, the third had four, the fourth had eight, the fifth had 16, and so on.


    Most Li had completed the third round and failed on the fourth, losing against the eight enemies.  Only five Li had made it to the fifth round this year.  None had made it to the sixth.


    The number of enemies killed in a failed round had an impact on score, but not a great impact if anyone made it to the subsequent round.  Nine had made it to the eighth round and failed against its 128 enemies.


    Since Nine was a peak Platinum, John didn¡¯t know if he had to face Silvers like everyone else or enemies of his own tier.  Either way, even with enemies tailored to be challenging, only making it to round eight wasn¡¯t impressive.


    Nine could only last as long as his essence lasted.  His performance didn¡¯t speak well of his staying power, making this an event John could shine in.


    After doing the math in his head, going by a factor of 400, John became worried.  If he was to ensure Nine received a score of zero, he¡¯d have to last through round 16 and defeat all the 32,768 enemies of that round.  If his math was right.  He wasn¡¯t sure at all it was.  It seemed like a ridiculous number of enemies.  64 times 400 was just over 25,000.  Round 15 only had 16,284 enemies.


    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    To be safe, John would have to defeat round 16.


    The regular Trainers had about 90% dilation, so maybe this more powerful and advanced Trainer was close to or was approaching one.  If it wasn¡¯t, a lot of real time would pass outside the Trainer.


    Round 13 would have 4,096 enemies.  Round 14 would have 8,192.  That was a lot of killing.  Even if John could kill the enemies quickly, it would still take a lot of time.  Days.  Maybe a week or two depending on the type of enemy he faced.  Maybe longer.  He had no way to accurately judge beforehand.


    John wasn¡¯t sure if he could go weeks without sleep.  Then he remembered the strange dream he had of his mother.  He lasted months in that battle against extremely powerful foes.  If he wanted Nine to receive zero points, he had no choice but to endure.


    The grand battle event certainly did consider aspects and concepts.  After initiating the event, the enemy John faced was a wooden construct resistant to shadow damage.  It had no blood.  It was very durable and took time to kill.  His sword and blade energy barely marked it.  It couldn¡¯t be turned into a minion either.


    The construct was perfectly built to counter all of John¡¯s aspects.


    The Trainer obviously didn¡¯t consider glyphs, as John¡¯s worked very well against wood.  And he was able to drain the construct¡¯s essence just fine too.  There was no stopping that.


    It took little effort and time to get through the early rounds.  It seemed the break John was given between rounds got longer each time too.  With the 32 opponents, he had to run around avoiding the weak attack manifestation of the constructs while shrugging off their stun manifestations, lighting the group on fire with darkflame.


    It took a long time to kill the 512 constructs John faced in round 10.  He learned to take his time, as rushing only caused him to take unnecessary damage.   He got about a twenty-minute break after that round, but that break was a Godsend.


    After days of killing his enemies with fire, enemies that neither screamed in agony nor ran around in pain, John¡¯s lifelong dream of having fire billow forth from his hands became too routine to give him any joy at all.  After a few more days, it began to annoy him, and he started fighting the old-fashioned way intermingled with blade energy attacks, making the event a training exercise.


    It became a routine of John killing until he was bored, draining essence to top off his dantian, and killing again.


    After a few more days of constant battle, slowly whittling the groups he faced down, John became dead tired and wanted to sleep more than anything.  He went back to [Flawless Glyph of Darkflame Jet].  His muscles grew sore, something he didn¡¯t think was possible any longer.  He breathed heavily and was covered in sweat.


    The wooden constructs were just too durable.  They took far too long to kill with anything but [Flawless Glyph of Plasma Barrage].  Since that glyph required a lot of essence, if he cast it too often, he had to spend far too much time draining essence to refill his dantian, slowing down his overall kill rate.


    Normal Trainers didn¡¯t allow anything like the battle John was engaged in.  Like his NCS, normal Trainers limited opponents to about ten, and limited the time anyone could stay within the Trainer.


    Unlike Earth, power wasn¡¯t generated in a completely essence-free way on Gani.  All the power didn¡¯t come purely from essence, but a lot of it was required to keep a city going, and the Peerless didn¡¯t usually allow it to be wasted in such a way.


    Once John finally completed round 15, he was given over a two-hour break.  He meditated and wished he could sleep.  When he saw the 32,768 enemies arrayed against him, his heart sank.  He was so tired already.


    It would be different if John was fighting real opponents.  Knowing his foes were fake didn¡¯t cause him to feel what battle usually did.  It was meaningless.  Without purpose.  Just boring routine.  His foes weren¡¯t powerful.  They were mindless wooden constructs a computer generated.  He desperately wanted to stop.  He kept going.


    Before John killed a third of round 16¡¯s combatants, he had a hard time remembering why he was fighting ¨C he just knew it was important and that he had to keep going.


    Finally, John finished round 16.  He forced himself to stay awake and meditated until round 17 began.  He dove away from attacks and killed a few enemies with [Flawless Glyph of Plasma Barrage] before exiting the grand battle exam.


    The lobby of the Trainer was empty.  The scores were being retabulated.  John waited, completely exhausted, rubbing his fake eyes.


    Previously, Nine had a perfect score of 4,000 points.  After John¡¯s results were shown, Nine¡¯s total points went down to 2,513.


    Nine still held first place, but John took second place with 2,272 points.  Third place only had 1,552.  Last place had 462 points.


    John received the full 400 points for the strategy, missions, obstacle course, and grand battle exams.  Nine received 32, 94, 79, and zero for those events.


    John¡¯s strategy of speed paid off in some events he expected to get a zero in.  He received a zero in the math and science exams, unsurprisingly, but he got 9 points on the biology and self-cultivation exam.  Nine received 400 for all three of those.


    For the history and Aikapu exam, John did way better than he expected and received 312 points.  He placed second in that event.  Third place had 311 points.  For the spaceship and tech exam, John received a surprising 141 points.  Nine received 400 for those two events.


    Due to the forced march of the soldiering exam counting separately as 100 points and the rest being worth 300, it was the only exam no one received 400 points for.  Nine received 308, John received 210, and third place 204.


    John wished he held first place, but he wasn¡¯t disappointed.  He scored much better than Avatar and Abe assumed he would.  His speed strategy had paid off, as did his gamble with the strategy and mission exams.  Fighting for so long in the grand battle didn¡¯t change the final outcome, but since he had forced Nine to receive zero points in one exam, he considered himself the winner.


    After exiting the Trainer, John noticed all the lights in the building were out.  The Mele desk was unoccupied.  He checked his NCS.  Almost four days had passed since he began the exam.


    John could go a lot longer than four days without sleep, but his mind was exhausted, and he had no idea if spending so long in artificial, computer-generated dilation was like staying awake or not.  Either way, he laid on the carpet and almost immediately fell asleep.


    <hr>


    A foot gently prodded John¡¯s side.  He cursed himself.  He felt too safe while surrounded by enemies and let his guard down.  He was still tired and wanted to sleep longer but forced himself wide awake.  His real eyes and orb-eye saw it was a young Alii dressed as a harlot.  He assumed she was a trainee due to her age.


    John took a knee and bowed his head, causing the girl to giggle.  ¡°Sorry, Alii.  When I exited the Trainer no one was here, and I was tired.  My pass expired days ago so I figured it was safer to wait here.¡±


    Smiling, the young girl said, ¡°It¡¯s okay.  And you don¡¯t have to do that.  I don¡¯t have my kauwa yet.  No one does that for trainees.¡±


    John stood.  He felt a few more people approaching, a Diamond and two Exalteds.


    The girl stared at John, smiling brightly.  He was forcing his mind to awaken and work when the girl said, ¡°For attaining second place in the placement exams, if you were in my heiau I could ask you to swear to my kauwa in advance.  Well, I¡¯d need my kauwa first too.  You Kahaka really messed up the scores.  The highest score this year is right around the previous lowest score ever recorded.  Everything¡¯s all screwed up.


    ¡°Oh, I asked if I could contact you on the second day.  You¡¯d come in second no matter how many more rounds of the grand battle you passed.  They told me no.  They said it¡¯s important to find the measure of our boys when they¡¯re willing to do something drastic to win, even if it wouldn¡¯t change the outcome.  I like watching your highlights.  You make my flower so dewy.  I pray to Akua you spend credits on me one day.  You¡¯ll receive two for coming in second place.  Kahaka Six-five will receive three for first place.  Third place will receive one.¡±


    John felt bad for the girl.  Since the age of around ten, she had to mother and care for children while being one herself.  And as soon as that great responsibility ended, the switch was turned on making Lilly course through her veins, and her society did nothing but promote and reinforce that.


    The girl would never have a chance to just be normal.  This was the only period where she could live anything resembling a normal life and she wanted nothing more than for it to end and to get her kauwa.


    John asked, ¡°Will the Li in the academies resent me for messing up the curve and scores?¡±


    The Alii giggled and put her hand on John¡¯s chest for a moment, and then removed it like he was made of fire.  She became nervous and the smile left her face.  She closed her eyes and blew out her breath, collecting herself.  She said, ¡°Sorry.  Sorry about that.  Um, probably.  But they¡¯d resent you anyway.  Raising Kahaka to peers is in the Aikapu, so they¡¯ll just have to get over it.  One day, there¡¯ll be no Kahaka or Kahako, and all will be Peerless.  Besides the subhuman Kahaki.¡±


    John wondered why the girl became so nervous and apologized.  Then the girl worriedly stepped away from him.  Another Alii entered the building accompanied by a Mele and an Oli, most likely her Meleua and Oliua.


    The Alii looked angry and snapped at the trainee, ¡°Why are you alone with a Kahaka?¡±


    John took a knee and bowed his head as the trainee replied, ¡°Sorry, Alii.  This is what time I¡¯m supposed to arrive here.  He was sleeping on the floor right there, in front of the desk.  Usually, the Mele is here before me.  Sorry.  I wasn¡¯t thinking.¡±


    ¡°Did he touch you?¡±


    The girl, with downcast eyes, said, ¡°No.  Nothing happened.  We just talked.  Just about the scores this year.  And that he gets two credits for coming in second.¡±


    With eyes like daggers, the Alii spit out, ¡°You risk his life, his execution, to talk about scores?  You¡­¡±


    The Mele interrupted to say, ¡°There was touching.  She touched his chest and lower left ribs.¡±


    The Alii¡¯s eyes widened in surprise.  She angrily asked, ¡°You touched him?¡±


    The girl said, ¡°No.  Not really.  I toed his ribs to wake him up.  Then¡­well, then I did brush his chest for a second.  I just forgot myself for a second.  I was trying to put the idea in his head to spend credits on me after I have my kauwa and first quicken, when it¡¯s allowed.  That¡¯s all.  Touching the chest is so beat into us during seduction class I just did it without even thinking.  But I quickly caught myself.  It was barely a touch.¡±


    The Alii held her head with one hand.  ¡°Oh, dear Akua.  My great and venerable husband and father, Akua.  You certainly didn¡¯t think, girl!  It¡¯s a death sentence for a Kahaka to touch you.  You know you¡¯re never to be alone with one.  You know it.  All our plans would be ruined.  We¡¯d have to kill him.  And for what?  A stupid girl that couldn¡¯t control herself?¡±


    The trainee raised her head and steeled her spine.  ¡°I¡¯m an Alii too, you know?  You just called me a stupid girl in front of your boys and a Kahaka, undermining both my current and future authority.  That¡¯s against the Aikapu too.  If the rumors are to be believed, he formed golden nectar four out of four times.  I did nothing you¡¯re not going to do either.¡±


    With a murderous look on her face, the Alii pointed at the door and hissed out, ¡°Get to the HQ building!  Now!¡±


    After the trainee stormed out, the Alii¡¯s attitude completely changed, and she turned to greet John with a beautiful smile.

 B3 Chapter 34 - Becoming the Enemy

    Many academies contacted John and tried to secure his enrollment.  Nine hadn¡¯t picked one to attend yet either.


    John had a mind to enroll in the lowest-rated academy since he didn¡¯t want to further antagonize the Li, but Amber needed him to attend the best.


    After accepting enrollment, the weekly recap stated both John and Nine were attending the top-rated Premier Grand Akua Koa Academy, one of the two mixed clan academies.


    With the two credits John received for attaining second place in the enrollment exam, he currently had 14 credits, and had earned a total of 29 and a fifth credits.  He needed to earn many more for Amber¡¯s plan to work.


    For the remaining six weeks until the academic year started, John studied and trained.  He¡¯d be on his own at the academy with no Abe to help him.  He¡¯d still have Avatar though, and if he ever got a solid grasp on the fundamentals, he¡¯d be able to utilize her training for [Skills] he didn¡¯t yet qualify for.  Even after all his studying, most fundamentals such as [Algebra] were still in early Novice Mastery, barely out of Neophyte.


    Premier Grand Akua Koa Academy was on a small island close to the Palm continent.  All the Li attending were to arrive the day before classes were to start.  After exiting the portal, John was very impressed and thought the campus and buildings were beautiful.


    After waiting in line and checking in with an Alii trainee, John was given a room number he was to board in.  He was handed a bag placed off to the side away from the others which all came with the exact storage bracer he already wore.  The Alii asked for Talker¡¯s old biosuit to be returned, and he gave it to her.


    No Li looked lost or confused, which surprised John as he had a lot of questions.  He checked in his CSL and found a map of campus and a general schedule.  He even found a personal schedule just for him.  The next required event he was to attend was for a commencement ceremony in the morning.


    On the way to his dorm, most of the Li ignored John and a few gave him strange looks as he passed.  They all seemed excited, and he could understand why.  Most of them were 16 years of age.  Some would be 17.


    The graduation rate for Li academy was about 92%.  John wasn¡¯t certain if it changed for specific academies.  Maybe the lower-rated academies had higher failure rates or vice versa.  The failures would be recycled through and given a second chance.  If they failed to graduate on their second try, they¡¯d be sterilized and shipped off to Palm.  He wasn¡¯t sure if the same standard applied to himself.  He wasn¡¯t even sure if he was now officially considered Li or not.


    After making his way to his room, John found it unoccupied.  There were nine beds, each with a bureau and chair beside it and a chest at its foot.  He wondered what the bureau and chest were for if all students had storage bracers.  He was in dorm 2, room 211.  There were nine floors in total, and each floor had communal waste and shower rooms, a sauna, and a lounge.


    The bag John was given at check-in contained two school uniforms, what looked to be two outfits to wear while exercising, and comfortable boots, all possessing the standard item soft-glyph as well as a [Major Resize] rune.  Since all Li were about the same size once grown, items made for them only had the [Lesser Resize] rune.  Why his bag was placed off to the side of the others now made sense, as it would¡¯ve been easy to remove the storage bracer from any bag and hand it to him.


    Most of the other Li had already changed into the school uniform, so John donned his over the robes he always wore, put on the new boots, and placed everything else inside his bracer.  Since he wanted to practice with the bolter as long as possible, he had just the day before unbound Talker¡¯s old biosuit.


    The uniform was just a loose robe with the school symbol, which was similar to the Koa clan symbol.  John¡¯s own boots were better than the school issued boots, but a uniform was called a uniform for a reason.


    Having nothing else to do, John sat on the bed in the farthest corner of the room and meditated, creating emptiness.  He stopped meditating when a Li entered the room and placed his belongings into the bureau nearest the door.  The Li completely ignored him and left the room after unpacking.


    Why not keep those items in the storage bracer, wondered John.


    Soon after the Li left, John received a message through his CSL ordering him to immediately report to the Rector in the administrative building.  He left some junk items on the bed and in the bureau, marking that bed as his own.


    Oli were supposed to be combat ready at all times, on deployment or on Gani.  They never removed their helmet or boots.  They slept wearing both.  Talker had told John it was seen as weakness to seek the comfort of removing a helmet and such.


    The Rector had a cybernetic arm, was in a hoverchair due to missing both legs, and wore no helmet.


    Seeing an Oli without a helmet looked strange to John.  Like the Li and Ele children, the Rector had a haircut called a high-and-tight, where short hair remained on the top of the head, and the sides and back were shorn down to just stubble.  He wore the school robe over his biosuit.


    Though the Rector was a Salt, it took normal people many years to regrow limbs, even at that tier.  There were faster ways, but those ways were all expensive.  The Peerless gave administrative duties to Oli too injured to deploy.  Until the Rector was whole again, he wouldn¡¯t go back to his kauwa.  Cybernetics were an option, but like credits, gifts of unusual or special gear were awarded, not given.


    The office John was told to report to had three desks and not much else.  A different Alii trainee than the one handing out the bags sat in one.  The Rector¡¯s desk was near the door, away from the two other desks.  The Salt took a seat and told John to do the same.


    The trainee was all business and wasn¡¯t even smiling coyly, which worried John.  The Rector said, ¡°As of this day forward, you¡¯re a Li.  The second Kahaka to become Li.¡±


    John sighed in relief.  Not because Nine was granted Li status first.  He hadn¡¯t seen Nine yet, but he would at some point.  He assumed it wouldn¡¯t be a peaceful meeting.  And that was fine with him now.


    From this point onward, if John attacked or defended himself from the Peerless, he would do so as one of their own.  It wouldn¡¯t result in humans suffering retribution for his actions.


    If Nine attacked him, John wouldn¡¯t hold back.  He would do his best to ensure the biosynth suffered the same fate as Thirteen.


    The trainee said, ¡°This means Kahaka rules no longer govern you.  Peerless rules do.  We know you¡¯re familiar with them.  Self-gratification as a means of relief is no longer allowed.¡±


    That wasn¡¯t an issue for John.  He hadn¡¯t done that since the period between becoming a man and having the need and taking his first wife.  He never had to since he always had at least one wife at hand until his desire dried up.  Though his need had returned, the thought of self-gratification had never crossed his mind.


    It¡¯s strange the Peerless know so much about me but don¡¯t know this rule needn¡¯t have been mentioned, thought John, but as the Alii trainee continued and covered every single restriction that now applied to him, he realized they were just checking every box regardless of applicableness.


    If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it.


    That his plan was proceeding along nicely caused John to feel some joy.  I¡¯m one of them now.


    The Alii trainee provided a new CSL with no restrictions and the Koa clan symbol.  Koa used to be a real clan.  When the Peerless first took control of the demon portal, Koa clan was assigned the mission of guarding it, and that mission destroyed them.


    In honor of the Koa clan¡¯s deeds, it wasn¡¯t rebuilt.  It became symbolic of Peerless sacrifice, devotion, and superiority.  The Alii without breeding rights considered to be in the Koa clan still maintained loyalty to their clan of birth as Koa was more a symbol than a clan.


    John knew clan was important to Peerless society, but as an outsider, it wasn¡¯t all that obvious how clan mattered other than being told the clan Nani were the real power in the empire.  Nani Empire had six members, and every member was of one of the six clans.  The old crone of Koa clan was the Kayu clan representative of Nani Empire.


    Historically, clans formed and took the name of the underground cities the Peerless were bred in on Palm.  Besides Inoa, as that clan replaced Koa.


    After being told he would be adopted by a clan only after being bought by a kauwa, John wondered how they¡¯d decide what clan Amber would be placed in.


    Once the meeting was done, though it was still early in the day, not many Li were wandering about the campus, and John made his way back to his dorm.  There were five Li in the room, all laughing and having a good time.  The room quieted as he entered.


    Most Li looked very much alike, but the one sitting on John¡¯s bed looked a little off, like all of his facial features were pulled towards the center of his face, or his head had grown too large for his face.


    Most brutes also never smiled, but the one sitting on John¡¯s bed, a four-five, was smiling widely while meeting John¡¯s eyes.  ¡°Hey, Kahaka Four-three.  We¡¯re glad we¡¯ll be sharing a room with you.  Welcome.  Grab a bed.¡±


    John mentally named this Li Tiny-face.  He said, ¡°Thank you.  I already did.  You¡¯re sitting on it.¡±


    Tiny-face, still smiling, looked around confused.  ¡°You must not have been told, Kahaka.  We¡¯re Peerless, one, united.  None of us own these beds.  We use them while students here.¡±


    ¡°Understood,¡± replied John.  ¡°And while I¡¯m a student here, that¡¯s the bed I¡¯ve decided to use.  What happened to the items I left upon it, marking it as my¡­the bed I¡¯ll use?¡±


    Tiny-face and a few of the other Li laughed.  Tiny-face said, ¡°Sure, sure, Kahaka.  You can use this bed tonight.  We put the garbage littering our room in the disposal.  Sorry about that.  We have random and scheduled room inspections.  One¡¯s scheduled for tomorrow after the commencement event in the morning.  We don¡¯t want this room to receive gigs.


    ¡°Hey, we heard about you breaking the Agonizer record.  Impressive.  We do something similar here.  I was just telling these new students it was done to me last year.  It¡¯s like a rite of passage but it can help open an aspect naturally too.  Wanna tag along, see if you¡¯re up for it?¡±


    If Tiny-face had been at the academy last year, he was a recycled student.  John had pushed the bed issue because it was better to immediately set boundaries and let everyone know there was a price to pay for crossing them.  He didn¡¯t want to antagonize any Li or make enemies.  He said, ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll tag along.¡±


    Tiny-face smiled wider and said, ¡°Great.  Let¡¯s go.¡±


    John and five of his roommates made their way across campus as they excitedly talked and joked.  They entered a small maintenance building and made their way down to the basement.


    There was a thick metal wall dividing half the basement, thick enough John couldn¡¯t sense anything through it at all.  There were a lot of warning signs on the wall, and it had a metal door with a sign that read, ¡°DANGER.  Proton and Particle Radiation.  DO NOT ENTER without protective gear while below 7-1 (Oli) or 8-1 (Alii and Mele).¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± said Tiny-face.  ¡°This is the power generator for the whole island.  What we do is open the door a little, run to the generator, infuse a little essence into it, and run back out.  As a recycle, I¡¯ll go first to prove it¡¯s safe.  But don¡¯t dilly dally.  Spending too long in there¡¯s dangerous.¡±


    Proving his words, Tiny-face unbarred and unsealed the door.   After cracking the door open, he ran into the room.


    The other Li opened the door a little more to watch, and John poked his head in too.  Tiny-face ran to the essence-infuser sticking out of some large machine and spent a second there, then sprinted out of the room.


    All the Li laughed as they took turns doing the same.


    When it was John¡¯s turn, he played along.  But as he was infusing essence, the door to the generator room slammed shut and was sealed and barred.


    As before, John could neither feel nor sense anything past the walls.  From his studies, he knew of different types of radiation.  Sunlight itself held many forms of radiation, and sunlight was a substance he was infused with.  It was made part of him when he attained his body refinement [Perk].


    Just to be sure, John entered his Mind¡¯s Eye and asked Avatar.  She said he was mostly safe.  He thought he could break out of the room, but he wanted to see how long Tiny-face would leave him in there.  He sat down and lost himself in meditation.


    John had already opened his next NCU expansion slot months ago and installed the cooldown reduction NCU into it.  Since, he had been creating a bit of shen and a lot of emptiness, though he still applied a significant credit towards opening further NCU slots.


    When he noticed the generator room had become dark and silent, John stopped meditating.  His dantian felt like it contained a burning substance.  Minutes later, as he was still trying to figure out why the room had darkened, the door unsealed, and the bar was removed.


    The Rector hovered into the room and said, ¡°Great Akua!  There you are!  What the hell are you doing in here, Kaha¡­I mean, Four-three?¡±


    John stood and said, ¡°Sorry, Rector, I was locked in here as a prank.¡±


    ¡°Good thinking turning the generator off,¡± said the Rector.  ¡°Strangely enough, I don¡¯t sense any damage, but we¡¯ll get you checked out and provide what medical help we can.  And your transgressors will be severely punished.  Give me a moment.  We need the generator back on or else the Autodoc won¡¯t be able to scan or decontaminate you.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine, Rector,¡± said John.  ¡°I don¡¯t need medical help.  I didn¡¯t turn the generator off.  It was on when I started meditating.¡±


    ¡°How long have you been in here?¡±


    ¡°Since shortly after I left your office earlier.¡±


    The Rector paused from fiddling with the generator.  He turned and said, ¡°That was yesterday.  Fourteen hours ago.  That you¡¯re alive is a miracle.  We thought you were hiding and doing weird Kahaka stuff since I couldn¡¯t sense you anywhere.  I told them I¡¯d need a Mele assigned to the academy with two Kahaka here.  I told them.  They gave me an extra trainee instead.


    ¡°Hey, could I ask a favor?  I¡¯ve read you have more essence than a four has any right to.  The generator¡¯s empty.  Mind filling it with your essence?  It¡¯ll make my life a lot easier.¡±


    ¡°Sure,¡± replied John.  It took nearly three quarters of his dantian to completely fill the generator.  Once he was done, the Rector restarted the machine and said, ¡°This¡¯s a newer model and doesn¡¯t use much essence at all.  The process generates most of its own energy.  It should last a couple years now.  That¡¯ll really help the budget.  Gratitude, Four-three.


    ¡°I still want the Autodoc to check you out.  Tell me what happened on the way.  I¡¯ll report to one of the trainees and they¡¯ll make sure your transgressors pay for their actions.¡±


    John hesitated and said, ¡°Rector, I¡¯d rather not.  I¡¯d prefer to take care of this on my own.¡±


    The Rector continued hovering forward.  ¡°Well, that¡¯s not how Peerless operate, Li Four-three.  We do our duty.  The Aikapu¡¯s clear on our role and duty.  If you won¡¯t tell me, you¡¯ll tell a trainee directly.  What you won¡¯t be doing is taking care of this on your own.¡±


    John followed the Rector and thought it through.  As Amber stated, he had to play his role perfectly.  He was done failing.  He would be as the best of men.


    But the best of men weren¡¯t tattletales.  Men took care of their own business.  Sometimes help was needed, and a man had to inform his superiors or ask for help with an issue he couldn¡¯t handle on his own.  But that was only after he had failed to rectify the issue himself.  Or lives were on the line and people would likely die if he didn¡¯t.


    The situation with Hyavod was an example.  John had tried.  And he had failed greatly.  Talker had died because of John¡¯s poor planning.  Telling the clan Nani all that had transpired was the only reasonable thing to do if it could save the Kahaki girl.


    In this instance, there was a life on the line too, but only if John tattled.


    ¡°Apologies, Rector, but what will my punishment be if I refuse to tell you or a trainee?¡±


    The Rector grunted.  ¡°You must tell them.  You can¡¯t disobey an order from an Alii, unless it contradicts an order your own Alii has given you.  You know this.  You studied the Aikapu.  It¡¯s the only thing you scored well on that didn¡¯t have a physical or combat component.¡±


    The Aikapu listed many crimes and offenses in great detail.  The closest section John could place refusing to tattle into would be refusing to perform a minor task, such as a police-call detail.  The punishment was a flogging and a loss of ¡®battle winnings¡¯ for three battles.  As he understood it, the ¡®battle winnings¡¯ had been reinterpreted to mean loss of access to the Advancement Chamber and such.


    But most of the Aikapu¡¯s crimes and punishments were for adults.  As a Li, John was considered a child.  The Aikapu had a few offenses or crimes against children, but nothing at all about the crimes of children.


    Even if John was punished as an adult, he had no issue being flogged.  If the Advancement Chambers ruined aspects, he didn¡¯t want anything to do with them anyway.  He was curious to see how he¡¯d be punished.  Whatever the cost, no matter how great, he had no real choice but to accept it.

 B3 Chapter 35 - Stoking the Flame

    ¡°But you have to tell us,¡± repeated an Alii trainee for the umpteenth time.


    John, trying not to let frustration show in his voice, said, ¡°Apologies, Alii. Again, I¡¯m refusing to tell you and asking to receive whatever punishment you deem worthy of my offense.¡±


    The other trainee said, ¡°But that¡¯s the thing, Four-three, you haven¡¯t committed an offense. We¡¯re trying to find out who did so he can be punished.¡±


    John held in a sigh. They just weren¡¯t getting it. ¡°Excuse me, Alii, would it be possible for me to attend the three classes I have left today? Just tell me my punishment later, after thinking it through. Flogging and no Advancement Chamber seems about right per the Aikapu.¡±


    The Alii trainees looked at each other. The blonde said, ¡°This would be so much easier with a Mele on hand.¡±


    The Rector grunted. ¡°I told them, Alii. I told them we¡¯d need a Mele with two Kahaka here this year. I know they¡¯re Li now, but you know what I mean. Not to overstep, but maybe a Nani would see results? Alii Pono Nani Empire of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Kalea Ka told us we could contact her with issues related to our two Kahaka. Former Kahaka.


    ¡°And I have an idea you two may like. I read Li Six-five can segment as many times as a Mele and requires very little sleep. He can meditate and watch screens. We could ask if he¡¯d be willing to sit at the Mele desk when he isn¡¯t busy. He hasn¡¯t caused any issues at all since joining our empire. One of you¡¯d need to code the specific system access. If you decide to contact Nani Empire, mentioning the idea could solve our Mele issue.¡±


    The Alii trainees looked at each other again. The green-haired one said, ¡°Nani Empire? Um, you really think she wouldn¡¯t mind?¡±


    ¡°She made the offer, Alii,¡± answered the Rector. ¡°I¡¯m assuming she foresaw some issues.¡±


    The Alii said, ¡°Um, okay. I¡¯m requesting a conference and sending it to the screen.¡± The two Alii turned to the screen on the left wall. The Rector sat up straighter in his hover-chair at his desk by the door.


    From where he was sitting, John couldn¡¯t see the person on the screen, but he clearly heard the old crone impatiently snap out, ¡°What?¡±


    Green-hair stammered, and the blonde said, ¡°Sorry to bother you, Nani, but we have an issue involving a former Kahaka. One or¡­¡±


    The crone interrupted to say, ¡°Let me guess ¨C Four-three?¡±


    The trainee nodded. ¡°Yes, Nani. One or more Li locked him in the generator room for about 14 hours. He¡¯s fine though. It caused no damage to him at all. He somehow cultivated all the energy. He completely refilled the generator with his own essence, and it¡¯s been restarted, but he won¡¯t tell us the offenders. He said he¡¯s not something called a tattletale. It translates but there¡¯s no definition for what it means in the CSL.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s an old Kahaki word long discarded,¡± replied the crone. ¡°Did you tell him he had no choice but to tell you?¡±


    ¡°Yes, of course, Nani.¡±


    The crone sighed. ¡°That damned Kahaka is going to send me to an early grave. You¡¯ve both heard about the golden nectar?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Nani.¡±


    ¡°Well, wipe your flowers and keep them dry. Another trainee touched his chest. Don¡¯t be stupid like she was. Her pun¡­wait, please tell me you¡¯re not stupid enough to put me on the screen without informing me there¡¯s boys in the room. Or the kah¡­the former Kahaka.¡±


    The two Alii looked at each other nervously. The blonde said, ¡°Um¡­¡±


    The old crone interrupted and said, ¡°By my late and venerable husband, Akua! Just¡­just¡­Four-three, get in my view! Everyone else in that room too.¡±


    The Rector hovered over next to a trainee. John stood and went to stand against the far wall, in the view of the old crone but as far away from the trainees as he could get. He knelt and bowed his head.


    The crone barked out, ¡°Great Akua, stand up, dolt! I don¡¯t have all day. We¡¯re preparing for an important mission. Just tell the Alii what happened and move on. Almost a whole day trapped in a generator room. Most likely attempted murder. This is serious.¡±


    John tried his best to sound humble and earnest. ¡°Apologies, Nani. I¡¯m refusing to tell and asking to receive whatever punishment my offense is deemed worthy of.¡±


    The crone sighed. ¡°You¡¯re planning on taking care of the transgressors yourself. You¡¯re Li now, Four-three. Kill a Li, and there¡¯s nothing I can do to save you.¡±


    A little anger filled John¡¯s chest. ¡°You think I¡¯d kill a kid over this nonsense? For what? Giving me potent energy to cultivate and time to cultivate it? No harm was done. I¡¯m fine. If anyone needs to be punished, just punish me so we can move on. This is getting ridiculous.¡±


    The Rector and both Alii trainees froze in nervousness. John assumed due to him speaking to a Nani Empire in the way he just had. He cursed internally for letting his annoyance get the better of him. He needed to remember his role as Kahaka Four-three. Or Li Four-three now.


    The old crone calmly and slowly said, ¡°Be very, very careful with your tone, Four-three. If you''re not planning on taking care of the transgressors yourself, I¡¯m failing to see what the issue is. Just tell us what happened. You haven¡¯t committed an offense. Yet. Li. Tell us what happened so the transgressors can be punished, and you won¡¯t be.¡±


    John thought it was like he was talking to Pixie again, and the Alii programming couldn¡¯t deal with a Li not telling on his peers.


    The questioning proceeded just as it had with the trainees. After a few more minutes of frustrating back and forth, the old crone said, ¡°I¡¯m fining you one credit for disregarding the Aikapu.¡±


    John said, ¡°Understood, Nani.¡±


    Anger entered the crone¡¯s eyes. ¡°You want to lose more? Fine, that¡¯s two. I can keep going if you don¡¯t start talking.¡±


    John said, ¡°Understood, Nani.¡±


    The crone laughed. ¡°That¡¯s three! Rector!¡±


    ¡°Yes, Nani!¡±


    ¡°Flog him. A hundred lashes. Really lay into him so he feels it. And use a type three.¡±


    The Rector grunted and said, ¡°We only have a type one here, Nani. These are Li.¡±


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    ¡°I¡¯m sending you a type three. You¡¯ll receive it by this evening. Four-three, I¡¯m done with you. Get out!¡±


    John left the room as ordered. He could hear them talking about Nine filling in at the Mele desk before he was too far out of range to make out the words.


    The Peerless were in for a surprise if they thought he was the only problem Kahaka. If the hate in Nine¡¯s eyes when they last saw each other, after John killed Thirteen in the Duels, was an indication, the biosynth would be attacking him on sight.


    John was ready. He thought he¡¯d be able to go toe-to-toe with Nine and come out as the victor if the Rector or the other staff didn¡¯t stop the fight.


    And just as John finished this thought, Nine walked out of the closest building and met his eye. He yelled out, ¡°John of Terra¡­I should say Four-three, please, I¡¯d like to speak with you.¡±


    John prepared for battle as he waited for Nine to finish approaching. The biosynth seemed to have reformed his skinsuit to model the academy uniform, and also reformed himself to appear more like a brute, with arms nearly as long, but without the matching chest and arm girth.


    Once he reached John, Nine said, ¡°Thank you for waiting and allowing this conversation. I wanted to apologize for my words and behavior during our first meeting. I was on a mission. When my ward was killed, I lost control like a lesser animal, and that is unacceptable for one such as I. But losing my princess also set me free. I¡¯m following my own path forward now. I wanted to thank you for this. For releasing me.¡±


    How this meeting was going was very surprising to John.  He would¡¯ve bet anything Nine had truly wanted to kill him and planned on attacking him on sight.  He kept his guard up just in case and said, ¡°That¡¯s great to hear, Six-five. I didn¡¯t pick the terms of the Duel. Thirteen did. It was a very close fight. She was an extremely doughty fighter.¡±


    ¡°Yes, it was. And yes, she was,¡± replied Nine. ¡°I¡¯m glad we¡¯re attending the same academy. You were absent from your first class, and I became worried. Your performance during the entrance exam proves you¡¯ll be a worthy competitor. As both of us are former Kahaka, I was hoping we could be friends.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d like that,¡± John replied. ¡°Just as a heads-up ¨C the Rector and Alii are asking a Nani if they can have you sit at the Mele desk. Just when you aren¡¯t busy, not all the time. I assume to monitor the students.¡±


    The biosynth¡¯s emotionless face gave nothing away. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t mind. It would help pass the time. I have little in common with the other students. I am older than even the Rector, though he is a Salt. Sadly, there is nothing for me to learn here. It is required to attain Oli status, so I must tolerate it.¡±


    John had a lot of questions he wanted to ask the biosynth such as how his refunctioning worked, to what degree could it change him, how much of a computer he was, if he was like Pixie or more like Avatar, and a million others. Curiously, he asked, ¡°Would you mind if I ask how old you are?¡±


    ¡°Of course not,¡± replied Nine. ¡°My age is 92 standard years. Yellow advance slowly and try to achieve perfection. Due to how we¡¯re constructed, we have a natural long lifespan. We see no need to rush. I have been this rank for nine years. I have three more to go creating vigor and fortifying my soul to achieve an optimal ascension to Diamond. May I ask your age?¡±


    John laughed before saying, ¡°You wouldn¡¯t believe me if I told you.¡±


    ¡°I would believe you,¡± stated Nine. ¡°Cam Roderick is much younger than his appearance would indicate. This is due to your home world being blocked from the Tree of Life and its inhabitants previously lacking the ability to ascend. I have heard you are old but have yet to hear how old or why you are different from other terrans in this regard.


    ¡°Let me propose a trade. Judging by your entrance exam scores, you require assistance with certain subjects. I require my curiosity regarding you satisfied. Further, I could use a friend while attending this academy, and a training partner when staff are not available. What say you?¡±


    ¡°That sounds great to me,¡± replied John. ¡°I need to warn you though ¨C I struggle with the fundamentals. If all your people have computer minds and learn quickly and easily, well, prepare to be frustrated. That¡¯s not my case. At all.¡±


    Nine emotionlessly said, ¡°I have boundless patience. We¡­I am purged of all base emotions. I won¡¯t become frustrated.¡±


    ¡°Great. It¡¯s a deal. And thanks. Really, thanks. I¡¯m sorry to say this is a very lopsided trade favoring me.¡±


    ¡°My pleasure, John. My room is 101 within dorm 1. Or contact me through the CSL. I¡¯m pinging your NCS so you¡¯ll have the information while knowing no one spends the energy to communicate through it. Have a good day.¡±


    ¡°You too, Nine. I¡¯ll contact you soon. Thank you again.¡±


    <hr>


    John was flogged after evening group exercises. All the student body had to form up and watch. A cat-o''-nine-tails was the instrument he was flogged with. Whatever made it a type three also made it hurt very badly and cause a lot of damage.


    Nothing John couldn¡¯t fix with some vital essence, [Heal], and a solid block of meditation.


    The Rector was clearly frustrated he couldn¡¯t make John scream. John would have to be subjected to a lot more pain than just being flogged if the Peerless wanted to see him cry out in pain, regardless of type one or three or whatever number the cat-o''-nine-tails went up to.


    Once the flogging was done, John refused to be treated by the Autodoc and went to his dorm. He had to wait until curfew before his eight roommates found the courage to enter the room.


    Tiny-face tried to apologize but John grabbed him by his tiny face, put him over his knee, and spanked him for some time. Not to cause pain. He went very lightly. It was meant to cause embarrassment, shame, and show how easily John could manhandle the Li whenever and however he wanted to.


    When done, Tiny-face was told that he¡¯d be John¡¯s lackey for the year, and he was to perform any tasks John didn¡¯t want to himself.


    Being a lackey would be a lot worse of a punishment if all of John¡¯s equipment didn¡¯t have self-cleaning and repairing runes. Having the title be more symbolic than substantive was fine with John. He wasn¡¯t mad at Tiny-face.


    John couldn¡¯t afford to lose credits. Now he was down three of them. He had no desire to have the old crone or any of the academy staff angered at him. He had promised he would be as the best of men and allow no more failures. Losing credits was failing. He was moving in the completely wrong direction.


    But Tiny-face was just a kid. A kid that already failed his first attempt at graduating from academy. If he failed twice, he¡¯d be sterilized and exiled to Palm.


    If being the best of men required condemning a kid to attempted murder charges and exile, or even putting a mark on his record that helped result in such a fate, then John was happy not to count himself among the best of men. In this instance, at least.


    The people of Earth were right ¨C John was a monster, but he tried only being such to deserving enemies. The Li were as much victims of the Peerless as the people of Earth.


    And the best of men took the long view. Their plans spanned years and decades out. Sometimes, losing a battle was necessary to win the war.


    It was John¡¯s belief that any culture that punished a man for taking care of his own business was an inherently corrupt society. The rulers would say vengeance and justice were different things. The rulers would then say only those they empowered with the task could dole out justice, no matter how poorly, unfairly, or corruptly their henchmen did so.


    The goal was always to make peasants know their place, to know they were unimportant and low, to accept their lives were of no real value, and their fates could only be decided by their betters. And that was because any society consisting of men with honor would first turn their vengeance against those rulers and their henchmen. The rulers knew they had to make being a man illegal. Only peasants would allow themselves to be ruled so totally.


    John informed Tiny-face and his other roommates they were not allowed to fail this year. He would be taking an active role in their performance. He would teach them that true discipline had nothing to do with mindless obedience.


    Once these Oli had spent enough time with John, and he was able to show them how to think for themselves and make their own decisions, they would take that into their kauwas with them. In time, they would infect others and reignite the spark that had been lost within the hearts of the Peerless during their long, brutal, and noble war freeing their world of demons and Circle Joyat.


    It was natural for a man¡¯s heart to burn with a flame that made him yearn to be free and in charge of his own life, to take care of his own business, and to stand both fell and tall. Only a society of low people could believe that flame was wrong. Only an evil society would actively try to extinguish it.


    John¡¯s first strike against his enemies would be to reignite that flame in as many Li as he could, as he had done with Talker.


    Fire was an interesting substance. There was nothing to fear from a small flame. It was easily contained, mostly safe, and had many, many beneficial uses. But a small flame could also turn into a blazing inferno that burned out of control.


    John planned on not just reigniting this flame within the hearts of as many Li as he could, but also stoking it.


    Tiny-face and the other roommates didn¡¯t know it, and if things went as planned, they¡¯d never truly realize it, but they had just been recruited into John¡¯s army.


    The Peerless advanced by both small and great steps over time, as did John¡¯s plan to destroy them.

 B3 Chapter 36 - A Surprise Visitor

    John had a change of heart. Amber¡¯s plight weighed heavily on his mind. The best of men would consider those that meant most to him before all else, and she required his help. He would give it, even if it meant harming or delaying his true plans. He started to put thought into how he could get her safely away from the Peerless. It wouldn¡¯t be an easy thing, if it was possible at all.


    If Sunshine showed up, the task would be much easier.


    Since John could gather energy so quickly and Nine was way over tier for a Li, both would only have to enter the Advancement Chamber once to learn the particulars of it. This was the first time the majority of Li entered the chamber too, and just one visit was enough for most in attendance to increase their rank.


    Cultivating the colored mist required a specific type of meditation technique called [Mahina Hapalua Hapa Manao Technique]. John knew the technique, but purposefully didn¡¯t take in much of the mist. He had no desire to have his aspects harmed in any way.


    John also had to learn the general Oli mixed meditation, breathing, and cycling technique called [Manao Mahele Oli Ahi Ekolu Technique]. Reaching level 16, Apprentice Mastery, with both [Skills] was a requirement to graduate. And not just those, other such [Skills] had to be learned, though he had no use for them.


    Due to his daily allotment of NCS training, unless they were math or science related, learning most [Skills] wasn¡¯t too difficult for John. There was also an issue of an encroaching harmony cap and not being any closer to acquiring the mats for [Elaborative Encoding]. That [Perk] would¡¯ve been a huge help, and he was disappointed he wouldn¡¯t be able to get it. He discussed what to do with his harmony with Avatar, and very much liked the new plan.


    Surprisingly, there were no math or true science classes at the academy. Li were supposed to have mastered those subjects while in their child groups. Both would be part of the final exams, but the academic portions of that exam were famously easy, or at least he was constantly told so by both Li and the instructors.


    John still had to catch up to the other students, and many of his classes required advanced knowledge of many fields of math and science, so his need to study and learn would never relent while at academy.


    Nine was a huge help there. Unlike Abe, Nine required little sleep and could check John¡¯s work as he went along, all while Nine also watched the Mele monitors. And unlike Abe and Avatar, Nine was infinitely patient and never became annoyed with him.


    Avatar was a good teacher but how she taught math and science classes didn¡¯t fit with how John could learn those subjects. She would assume because he was able to complete a problem or answer a question months before, he had retained that knowledge and could repeat the feat. More often than not, he couldn¡¯t. None of what he was studying clicked in his mind or stuck there.


    And all the nonsensical math and science words he had to learn were gibberish to him. There was no way to differentiate between words as nothing ever stuck that made them different in his mind. The words were just noises without meaning


    Nine had solutions to most of John¡¯s learning issues.


    Since John had a decent memory for stories and song, Nine would create stories or write songs about topics, giving John a way to, if not truly understand, at least differentiate words, memorize, and regurgitate information. John would then use Avatar to solidify that information with his daily training.


    Nine also taught John a mnemonic system and method of loci for memory enhancement called a mind palace. Not a Mind Palace like what high-tier cultivators created in their mind, but a way to more easily store and retrieve information and facts by placing them within rooms of an imaginary palace he¡¯d envisioned.


    And as John and Nine became closer and closer friends, so too did John, Tiny-face, his other roommates, and their friends as well.


    For every subject John was poor at, there were many others he excelled at, such as resisting torture, survival, escape and evasion of enemy forces, hunting, navigating, and anything related to combat or cultivation. And all the subjects he excelled at held the greatest weight among Oli.


    In John¡¯s opinion, Tiny-face¡¯s issue was one of confidence and self-doubt. The Peerless strove for and embraced any change that made them superior, but many differences were often viewed as defects.


    Since Tiny-face looked a little different, he was often treated differently in subtle ways. And this made Tiny-face believe he was different, possibly defective, and lesser, so he sometimes acted out. And even though he tested well enough to get into the top academy, his doubts manifested in a way that made him his own worst enemy.


    The quickest way for John to foil his own plans would be to badmouth Peerless society and the Aikapu. He didn¡¯t directly speak against the Li¡¯s indoctrination. Instead, he told stories about his life ¨Cstories meant to teach the lessons he wanted the Li to learn indirectly. And he always made himself available for practice and instructions and tried to reinforce these lessons in those ways too.


    Life in the academy mostly followed the same schedule. The days on Gani were shorter than days on Earth but longer than universal standard days. The last day of the week, Weekend, had extra hours to make up the difference. The other days were named Firstday through Fourthday.


    Reveille was played in the early morning, signaling the start of the day. All students of a floor within a dorm, called a battlegroup, would have a roll call, exercise, drill, and break their fast together. After, the whole student body would form up for announcements, inspection, and a call for volunteers to perform various details.


    After the formation, they¡¯d be released for classes. Most days had four classes either given in classrooms or Trainers. Some weeks had five classes a day. If a show was to play on the screens, the schedule would be modified to accommodate its mandatory viewing.


    After classes, there was dinner, more exercises, and drills. Late evening was free time until curfew when Retreat played over the loudspeakers. John always spent this period of free time with his roommates and their friends.


    Since John was always of the mind it was better to ask for forgiveness than permission, he¡¯d leave his room after curfew and spend most nights with Nine at the Mele desk studying and learning. Nine welcomed the company. If the Rector or the Alii trainees had an issue with him breaking the rules and leaving his room past curfew, nothing ever came of it.


    On Fourthday, everything that had been taught and learned during the week would be put into practice inside a Trainer, usually in the form of a mission called a field problem. The regular Trainers only had about 90% dilation, and a field problem usually lasted around two days inside of it, though some lasted far longer, and some far shorter.


    Like for most soldiers, the life of an Oli was filled with other duties besides combat, such as guard and peacekeeping duties and the like, and many classes were geared towards these tasks.


    During academy, the Li were expected to clean their own rooms and do police call, but the Servitors cleaned the common areas.


    Most kauwas had robots perform menial tasks, the same Servitor robots that performed all the cleaning, farming, and manual labor for Peerless society. The minor kauwas, the pis, hadn¡¯t the budget for such luxuries, and its Oli were expected to perform those tasks. The academy is where they were taught how.


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    That there were classes on how to clean correctly seemed silly to John, but since he scored so well in them, he wouldn¡¯t complain.


    All the classes and field problems were scored, and all the marks received throughout the year counted as half the final grade. Most of what was learned wouldn¡¯t be tested again.


    John had only passed some field problems related to repair and construction of common electronic devices due to the massive help he was receiving from Nine. Still, his scores weren¡¯t good at all in such subjects, and he had failed a few classes.


    Weekend was usually only a half day of voluntary introductory crafting classes. Oli weren¡¯t expected to be proficient in a craft, but being certified at Novice level in one increased their point cost and could help set them apart from their peers. John planned on receiving a certificate in all crafts offered.


    Weekend was also the day John was allowed to replenish his vital essence by hunting small game on the island. He was ordered to never kill the animal, and to always treat higher-tier animals with great respect.


    As a Li, John wasn¡¯t allowed to consume any animal products. He could no longer eat meat and eggs or even milk and butter. The Peerless also couldn¡¯t eat foods they claimed were processed such as vegetable oils and refined wheat. What remained, what he was allowed to eat, made for a diet he didn¡¯t care much for. He required very little sustenance, so the restrictions weren¡¯t a great sacrifice.


    Once John returned from his hunt on Weekend, he would enclose himself in the generator room and cultivate. The Rector and the trainees had no issue with this as long as he kept the generator topped off with his own essence. The amount of essence he could spare was doing wonders for the academy¡¯s budget, and he was often allowed or granted special privileges since he was so willing to provide essence for anything the staff asked of him.


    John would cultivate the strange energies within that room until shortly before the generator would turn off. Cultivating that energy had already raised his [Min. Power] [Stat] by a little over 3 points and further hardened his meridians.


    Since John had such a great need to study, he meditated far less than usual, usually only in the generator room, so created less shen and emptiness than usual too.


    After a couple months in the academy and ranking up to four-four, high Silver, John was again cultivating in the generator room after returning from his hunt.


    Not since the Rector found him locked in this room had John been disturbed in there. So, he was surprised when he was pulled from his meditation by the door opening. The old crone entered the room and closed the door behind herself. He heard the seal activate.


    The crone was smiling strangely and dressed far more salaciously than her usual modest dress. And there was a good reason for her usual modest dress ¨C she was elderly, and no one wanted to see so much of her flesh. ¡°Hello, Four-four,¡± she said, huskily.


    John went from his meditation position to one knee and bowed his head briefly. ¡°Hello, Nani.¡±


    The crone stared into John¡¯s eyes as she sauntered up to him. She gently caressed his face. ¡°That tattletale fuss was ugly business. I didn¡¯t come to discuss that matter. That¡¯s done and behind us. But I can return those three credits if you prove to me that you¡¯ve learned your lesson and have truly conformed to Peerless standards. Did you want your three credits returned?¡±


    The crone continued to stare into John¡¯s eyes as she lightly caressed his face. John said, ¡°I learned much on that day and many lessons since, Nani. Yes, I¡¯d like my credits returned, please.¡±


    The crone smiled in a way John thought was supposed to be seductive. ¡°Tell me who locked you in here.¡±


    ¡°You just said you didn¡¯t come to discuss that.¡±


    The crone laughed and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°Would you believe me if I said there was no prank? I accidentally wandered into this room that day.¡±


    The crone smiled wider. ¡°No, I wouldn¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°Would you believe I¡¯ve forgotten the culprits?¡±


    The crone laughed again. ¡°No. You¡¯re a funny boy. I know you haven¡¯t learned your lesson. I watched your flogging. How you stood straight and silent, never even letting a peep out. You just took it, expressionless, like it wasn¡¯t even happening.


    ¡°You know, Akua only used his seed for the initial Peerless. So long after she died, he remained true to his wife and refused to satisfy his needs. When I was a girl, the older Alii would tell us stories they had heard, stories of how Akua would have Alii whip him to help purge himself of his great desire to bed his daughter-wives. Oh, how those stories would dew up my flower. I¡¯m not sure why.


    ¡°We, of course, can¡¯t dirty our hands by directly administering such punishment to our boys. I¡¯d like to make a deal with you. I¡¯ll believe you¡¯ve learned your lesson and return those three credits. In return, you¡¯ll allow me to flog you a little. I¡¯ll use a type one. I doubt it¡¯ll break your skin. I will not require sex from you. That¡¯s too much. I won¡¯t go that far. But I want golden nectar. I need to find out what that¡¯s like.¡±


    John thought through the offer, but it didn¡¯t take long or much thought. He certainly didn¡¯t want to do this. He wouldn¡¯t enjoy it at all. He had done way worse things to win, and this was necessary.


    I swore to Amber I¡¯d never spend credits again. And I won¡¯t. This isn¡¯t spending them. It¡¯s following Amber¡¯s instructions. I¡¯m regaining lost credits. And far more importantly, I¡¯m gaining something that could help with my true goals.


    John celebrated only in his mind. His deception had worked. The crone wasn¡¯t aware he had acquired an NCU that recorded video, so the Mele weren¡¯t aware of it. He didn¡¯t have the storage capacity to record the whole act, but a few snippets here and there would give him all he needed.


    ¡°You have yourself a deal, Nani,¡± said John, trying not to smile with excitement.


    The flogging part was no issue at all. The other part was very, very disgusting to John, but he gave the crone what she wanted. She gave him his credits back and, unknowingly, the exact type of footage he was looking for.


    The next day, there was an assembly where the crone, dressed much more appropriately for her advanced age, informed the Li about changes to how they¡¯d cultivate and modifications to the Advancement Chambers. The chambers would purify crystals still, and advance ascendency faster still, but in a slower and less deleterious way to aspects.


    There were few permanent staff at the academy. Most weeks brought new instructors for the new topics they¡¯d be learning, picked from among high-tier Oli of kauwas not deployed off Gani. Since they were the top academy, their instructors were usually the highest tier, most competent, and notable. And since the academy was Koa clan, they could draw instructors from all six clans.


    One of the instructors that week was an Oli John had already met, the elderly Oliua of the crone.


    The class the Oliua gave was on forming parties through the NCS, how a kauwa organized parties, the benefits, and all such relevant information.


    It now made sense why Party-pooper didn¡¯t want Amber to join a party. The information it gave to other members was staggering. All the data shown in a summary was available to every party member, and more besides, such as vital information ¨C heart rate, stress, injuries, and the like.


    But, especially for Tech 1 NCS users, it made organizing a battle much easier. Parties could be chained together. Friendly forces and enemies seen or sensed by any member could be highlighted in different colors, shown on maps or HUDs, imposed with icons set to flash with various statuses such as injured, dead, requesting reinforcements, and many other such helpful functions.


    Avatar was able to hide or modify some of John¡¯s information from showing to party members the same as she did with the Trainers, the information it was important or feasible to keep hidden.


    Since John had partied with Nine, he learned the biosynth had only one concept, an orange aspect, ¡®solar,¡¯ a great and powerful mid-concept. He was certain Thirteen had had the same. He also learned that he was much stronger than Nine was, at least raw [Stat] and [Skill]-wise. And Nine wasn¡¯t an alpha-type, the biosynth was only an A-grade beta-type.


    This was also the week when the Li students would first strengthen their meridians within the Agonizer. The crone offered a half credit to whoever lasted the longest, or a full credit to any that set a new Li record, which was only one minute and 21 seconds, standard time.


    John won, easily besting Nine and his old Oli record. He received a message from an unknown sender through the CSL stating he should go and cultivate in the generator room. The crone wanted her own reward.


    Since the videos his NCU recorded were date and timestamped, John considered himself doubly rewarded.


    The crone told John she¡¯d try to avoid long missions and have her boys answer when calls went out for instructors. Any way she could find to offer credits, she would. And if John won credits from her, he was to meditate in the generator room that night.


    No Mele was on the island, and even if there was, no one could see or sense into the generator room. John was to tell anyone asking that he was teaching the crone how to cultivate the strange energy, and that the crone was trying to ascertain if doing so could help Oli pass the bottleneck.


    She also told John he must be on his best behavior this Weekend at the event he was required to attend. Nani Terra would open a portal from Terra to Gani on that day, and a celebratory ceremony was being held in her honor.


    John would be returning to Earth for a short time to be paraded around with Amber.

 B3 Chapter 37 - Conflicting Desires

    The ceremony to honor Nani Terra opening Earth¡¯s portal was being held at the same garden as the Kiamoni Purge ceremony. After, there would be a ceremony and celebration held on Earth too.


    Amber was the only other human in attendance, though John believed he sensed others in a small building nearby, probably in control of the event¡¯s production. She was walking around and mingling with attendants, stuck to the side of Plumb-hair, whereas he was standing at attention in formation with Oli close to the portal hub.


    In a class on nav points, John had asked if Earth would have its own. The instructor was certain it wouldn¡¯t. The Peerless had to heavily guard their nav points and it was a better strategy to only have quick access to Earth by portal.


    Nav points, also called jump beacons, allowed spaceships with jump capacity, and it was very rare for a ship to lack such capacity, to quickly travel to any beacon within a certain range. Without a nav point, it took a very long time to travel through space.


    With the Perpetual Motion MJ Engine Mark IV, the Peerless had the fastest ships in the sector, both in terms of acceleration and maximum speed. Their ships could almost reach 50 light years per standard year traveled, but it took time to build up to that speed as well as time to decelerate.


    In practice, ships outfitted with this engine usually peaked at 28 light years per standard year traveled, but if all nav points were ignored and a great distance traveled without jumping, speeds close to 50 light years could be attained.


    Access to nav points, at least the ones utilized in this sector, couldn¡¯t be restricted. Everyone could use any of them. Constructing one near Earth would be strategically unwise and take too many resources to construct and defend.


    Gani itself didn¡¯t have a nav point. It employed internetworks, which allowed ships to travel quickly through restricted and controlled space using hops instead of jumps. At least half the worlds in the Peerless Empire were connected by these internetworks.


    When Peerless ships were to return to Gani, they¡¯d jump to the main Peerless nav point located near the planet Ma Aom and its moon, Fe An, where the city of Victor was located. From Fe An, it only took the better part of a week to travel to Gani through the internetworks system, whereas flying normally between the two systems took well over half a year.


    John stopped ruminating on space travel as Nani Terra arrived and the ceremony was to begin. He was hoping the Oli in his formation were to be honored, and since he was formed up with them, he¡¯d be honored too, and possibly awarded some credits. He wanted a lot more of them and there weren¡¯t many ways to earn them during academy, at least usually, disregarding the old crone¡¯s new hobby.


    Nine currently held the First in Class position, the main way to earn credits while at academy, though the position only awarded three. John still wanted those three and a lot more besides.


    Before the ceremony began, the formation of Oli was ordered to head through Earth¡¯s portal along with Amber and some others. That was a surprise to John. He wouldn¡¯t even get to watch the ceremony, and he wanted news of his planet and his people to prepare himself ahead of time. As things stood, he was being pulled in different directions with conflicting desires.


    Half of John wished he¡¯d enter the portal and see a smoking ruin ¨C his people having given such a ruthless war in defiance of their new masters that there was little left for the Peerless to rule over. The other half of him hoped there was plenty left of Earth and his people for him to eventually save.


    Half of John was excited he was going back to his world and could see with his own eyes how his people were fairing. The other half of him was ashamed he¡¯d be paraded in front of his people as a shining example to model themselves after, how they too could be so rewarded and honored if they fully submitted to their new masters, accepted the yoke upon their neck, and only adjusted it to sit more comfortably.


    After being ushered through the portal, John was separated from his formation, brought to a stage, and placed next to Amber. There was a large crowd of beautiful, happy people in front of him. He hoped they were pretending. The men and women were segregated and present in about equal numbers. How peaceful and content they seemed truly bothered him and his stomach churned. He had to ignore the crowd in order to clamp down on his anger and disappointment. He again hoped they were only just pretending.


    It took some time, but John inched closer to Amber and touched her hand with a finger. Holding her hand would be too much. He knew they were being watched. He searched for her mind and attempted to pull it into his own, a difficult feat made more so with only the light contact he was making.


    After a long and rough battle, his willpower eventually won, though it was a close thing, and Amber stood in his mind. She immediately began to cry and rushed to hold John, her arms going right through his waist. She said, ¡°Oh, my love, I wish I could hold you. Seriously, you made yourself way too tall in here. This is ridiculous. My head only goes up to your belly.¡±


    ¡°Listen,¡± said John. ¡°I have a plan to save you. It¡¯s risky, but I won¡¯t let you suffer any longer. When we go back through the portal, I¡¯ll pull you aside to talk. Ignore everyone else. We can pretend to have a heated argument, or whatever you come up with and think will work. There are only two guarding the portal to Kiamoni today. When there aren¡¯t many Exalteds around, we rush it. It only requires an infusion of essence to activate. You do that while I hold off the Peerless.


    ¡°As soon as it opens, we hold hands and enter together. Even Exalteds couldn¡¯t sense me and my old friend Talker past a certain distance in the Nether. Due to how time flows, we¡¯ll be far away before our enemies give chase. We found an old circle on a different continent. It¡¯s in very rough shape, but there¡¯s a broken portal there. I¡¯ve learned how to fix and activate portals in one of my classes.


    ¡°If low-tier demons can survive the environment of the world that portal leads to, so can you. I don¡¯t know where it will bring you, but you¡¯ll be free of the Peerless blight and the suffering they subject you to.¡±


    Amber stopped smiling, dried her eyes with the back of a hand, and asked, ¡°Why does it sound like you plan on sending me through the¡­the second portal alone?¡±


    John knelt to be able to look at Amber more easily. ¡°Because I won¡¯t be going. I made vows. I will destroy the Peerless. I will go back to them, take my lumps, continue pretending to be one of my enemies and, one day, save our people and topple their empire.¡±


    Amber looked at John like he was mad. ¡°Uh, no. You¡¯re my boyfriend and that means something. It means a lot. It means we¡¯re in this together. We stick together. We leave together. And if you think we¡¯d have time to get the portal to Kiamoni open and get through before a zillion Exalteds stopped us, you¡¯ve lost your mind.¡±


    John grunted. ¡°I didn¡¯t say it was a great plan. And there¡¯s a better chance of it working than you assume. You were desperate last we spoke. I put a lot of thought into this. There really isn¡¯t a better way. It¡¯s¡­this is the only way I could think of that had any chance of getting you free of them.¡±


    Amber smiled beautifully as she said, ¡°Thank you for thinking of me, my wonderful boyfriend. And¡­and trying. I love you so much. It¡¯s a good plan but things have changed. Something¡­something really wonderful is a possibility now. We have to wait. Our old backup plan is now our only plan. We¡¯ll have our own ship. We¡¯ll be able to fly to the umpanians or the kaw¡¯ns whenever we want to. But we can¡¯t at first. I can¡¯t tell you why now, but it¡¯ll be wonderful if it¡¯s true.


    ¡°There¡¯s still a lot of issues. Some workarounds have been discussed if my carnal knowledge rule can¡¯t be fixed. They really want me to be an Alii soon. Like, really bad. I have ideas for an Oliua and Meleua. You really, really, really need to start earning more credits or I¡¯ll still have too many points and hafta buy other Oli.¡±


    This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    Not needing to save Amber was a big weight off John¡¯s shoulders. ¡°What about Nine for your Oliua? He¡¯s a good man, and mighty. And my friend. He is helping me learn math and science.¡±


    After thinking it over for some time, Amber said, ¡°That¡¯ll change things and make this harder. My points¡­no, it¡­I think¡­can you trust him? We can¡¯t trust any Oli or Mele, but we can trust them to be Oli and Mele. We can factor exactly what they¡¯ll do into our plans. Can¡­would¡­you didn¡¯t tell him our real plans, did you? Oh, I hope not.¡±


    ¡°No, I haven¡¯t told him anything. He¡¯d make a good Oliua. He¡¯s very tough and he¡¯s also smart like a Mele. He¡¯s half a computer or something. A biosynth. I trust him much more than an Oli if it came to learning of our real plans.¡±


    ¡°I know what he is,¡± said Amber. ¡°He¡¯s kinda a big deal. His genetics¡­never mind that. It could work, but he¡¯d have to be at least a Diamond to be Oliua. But my points¡­¡±


    Amber trailed off to think. After a minute she said, ¡°You¡¯ll graduate before I become an Alii. Listen, this part¡¯s gonna really suck for you. But it can¡¯t be avoided. Have you heard what happens to Li graduates that refuse to be bought by a kauwa?¡±


    ¡°A little,¡± replied John. ¡°Oli not belonging to a kauwa have to serve their Nani Heiau.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s kinda a punishment to¡­to ensure new graduates don¡¯t hold out for purchase by a major or famous kauwa. The Aikapu says any member of the Nani Heiau¡­you know they don¡¯t have their own kauwa? Well, they have the right to be ¡®serviced¡¯ by any of the boys in their heiau they want, but only once a year by the same one. Since the Peerless want everyone to view, uh, you know¡­sex, as the best reward, and all the Nani Heiau are super, super old, they usually don¡¯t make anyone do that.


    ¡°Since Li can¡¯t be forced into accepting a bid, the Nani Heiau save that right for any new graduate that rejects purchase. They also keep them busy performing all the¡­the duties and stuff no one else wants to do. They also get reports on any boys at risk of losing their way and, um, you know¡­provide legal and credit-free release by invoking their right on those guys.¡±


    After a minute passed without John replying, Amber asked, ¡°Do you realize what I¡¯m telling you?¡±


    John sighed and said, ¡°It will cause issues if I deny them, but I will. I¡¯ll refuse to couple with any of them, no matter the punishment.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, my love, but you can¡¯t tell them no. Actually, since they just want those gross vagina boogers from you, maybe they don¡¯t need¡­maybe you could, um, service those ladies without¡­you know, going all the way. Just, uh, with¡­you know what I¡¯m saying. No spending credits though! Not one!¡±


    The smile left Amber¡¯s face before she continued. ¡°You really can¡¯t say no to an Alii, John, especially the Nani Heiau. Seriously, you can¡¯t say no. Ever again. I heard about your tattletale incident. You can¡¯t say no to any order by any Alii, even trainees. Those three credits were super important. Total credits earned but not held are only worth half the points. Remember, we hafta play our roles perfect. All the way. A hundred percent, my love.¡±


    John¡¯s guilt for what was happening with the old crone lightened. He wanted to tell Amber he had those three credits returned but didn¡¯t want to talk or think about any of this now. He would tell her about the old crone at some point. It was no different than what was just said about the Nani Heiau, so he assumed she¡¯d understand. It all just boiled down to doing whatever was required of him to eventually win.


    ¡°Unless they force the issue,¡± replied John, ¡°I will satisfy them without joining with them. I will play my role to the best of my ability. I won¡¯t say no to an Alii, but neither will I tattle. I take care of my own issues. I always will. None of the personas I¡¯ve ever taken on have been tattletales, and none ever will be.¡±


    ¡°John! You¡¯re not supposed to be a man! If this is gonna work, you gotta be a Peerless! And a perfect one. Please! You said you wanna destroy them. How are you ever gonna do that if you can¡¯t even tattle on one of them? Come on! Please, just¡­just play along. Just give them what they want so we can get what we want, my love.¡±


    John agreed with that, but only to a point. He was a Li now, he was one of his enemies now, and what Alii thought of him wasn¡¯t as important anymore. He only needed them for credits, and they had to give him those when he earned them. The Aikapu was clear on punishments and tied Alii¡¯s hands to those set punishments. If he graduated and avoided a handful of crimes, he¡¯d always be fine.


    Hyavod was proof of that, but the man had grown too careless.


    For John¡¯s plan to work, what Oli thought of him and how they saw him was what truly mattered. It didn¡¯t even matter what Mele suspected, and he didn¡¯t think they were even capable of suspecting his long-term goals.


    All Peerless, especially Alii, saw themselves and the Peerless Empire in a very specific light. They couldn¡¯t comprehend someone made Peerless, made one of their own, ever looking such a gift horse in the mouth.


    It would be like a human of old Earth finding a fortune in treasure, enough to buy a kingdom with, and tossing it all deep in the ocean. Or an old man unearthing the fountain of youth and immediately reburying it. It defied comprehension.


    And the view wasn¡¯t wrong. In Rome, when some worthy slave was given freedom, citizenship, status, and means, these men were the most loyal to their empire.


    To John, being the best of men meant always winning and never failing. His persona was now important for winning credits and being the ideal all Oli looked up to, respected, and wanted to emulate.


    Oli made up the vast majority of Peerless. The Alii ruled, but only because the Oli went along with it.


    Being a Li and protected by the Aikapu changed things. As John¡¯s exam score proved, he knew the book and its contents well. If his goals brought him in conflict with an Alii, as long as it wouldn¡¯t result in execution or exile to Palm, his goals would always take precedence over all else ¨C including Amber¡¯s plan.


    The incident with Tiny-face wasn¡¯t planned but had worked out perfectly. And the reason it had worked out so perfectly was specifically because it forced John into conflict with two Alii trainees and the old crone.


    All the student body was made to watch the flesh torn from John¡¯s back a hundred times as he stood there silently and took it. He could practically read their minds as they watched and asked themselves, ¡°For what?¡±


    This Kahaka, this outsider, could¡¯ve so easily avoided this lashing, avoided losing three credits too, if he only did what any of us would¡¯ve done without a second thought and threw our brothers to the wolves as ordered. The Alii asked such a little thing of him, and he said no.


    Why? He isn¡¯t even one of us. Not really. He could¡¯ve been praised by the Alii if he just gave them the little thing that they asked for. Instead of doing what any of us would¡¯ve done and receiving praise for it, he said no and took a great punishment. Why? Nothing is more important than praise from our matriarchs, right? Right?


    Maybe John couldn¡¯t strip a pulse rifle down to build a communications device out of its components, but he knew more about warriors and how they thought than most. Actions spoke louder than words, and once a deed was witnessed, it wouldn¡¯t be forgotten. The same indoctrination that made the Peerless warrior-caste so willing to spend their lives for their matriarchs and empire didn¡¯t have to be undone, only shifted.


    Regardless, John decided to take Amber¡¯s advice now. He¡¯d play along and give her what she wanted. ¡°You¡¯re right. I need to play along better. Going forward, I will tattle many times. I was wrong to have not done so previously. Thank you for reminding me.¡±


    Amber gave him her brightest smile yet. ¡°No, thank you, baby. I love you so much. And you¡­you don¡¯t have to keep it a secret you¡¯re holding out for my kauwa. They love that kinda stuff and think it¡¯s great. Devotion to an Alii. They really love it. Did you see that one episode of¡­uh, I guess it¡¯s still called a docuseries. The one about the Li that wanted an Alii so bad he was under his Nani Heiau for almost four years before she took pity and purchased him?¡±


    ¡°I did,¡± replied John. ¡°They make us watch them all. And I hang around with Li, so I hear a lot of other stories too. Please don¡¯t call me baby. I think it¡¯s strange and dislike it.¡± He knew the term of endearment was common on modern Earth, but calling an adult a baby would never make any sense to him.


    ¡°Okay. Does it make you think of Lilly or something? Do you think she¡¯s out there, John? She can¡¯t be older than two. No, still under two, right? I didn¡¯t see Baba or¡­or the president. Petar either. Anyone. I did recognize a buncha people though. Celebrities, actors, influencers. They all looked so happy.¡±


    John grunted. ¡°I¡¯d bet all my possessions she took over that young girl in Nani Terra¡¯s child group. She¡¯ll definitely want to be an Alii since they¡¯re graded so much higher, always very beautiful, and born into great power. I doubt she¡¯s settling for a human body. Either way, there¡¯s plenty of time before she¡¯s grown enough to threaten us or our plans. We¡¯re safe for a long while.¡±


    It would be easy for Lilly to warp the rules that said Alii couldn¡¯t dirty their own hands. She¡¯d corrupt her Mele and rain terror down on whatever population she was tasked to fight and subdue, twisting the rules and torturing families for information and the like.


    Unlike other Alii, she wouldn¡¯t age past a certain point, and as she rose through the ranks of the Nani, she¡¯d further corrupt the Peerless, twisting everything towards her own goals and ends, making an already evil empire far more so. She¡¯d eventually hold the exclusive title of Nani Empress.


    But only if John failed in his task. If he succeeded, there¡¯d be no empire for her to subvert and rule over.


    ¡°I don¡¯t even wanna think about that¡­b-word,¡± replied Amber. ¡°I hope Baba¡¯s okay. They won¡¯t tell me anything when I ask about him.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sure he¡¯s fine. Before we left, you heard Nani Terra say they weren¡¯t going to kill him. He was a slave before we freed him, so he knows how to placate masters. Have you heard anything about Stretch? Did he continue to fight?¡±


    ¡°No. He isn¡¯t fighting. I heard he¡¯s doing fine. Or the seed thing is. That¡¯s gotta be true. The first thing I noticed when I exited the portal was the energy was super thick.¡±


    Amber paused before saying, ¡°I feel so bad for all the moms and kids the Eternal took. Held. Coming back down to Earth and finding out¡­this¡­all this. The Peerless. That had to really suck for them real bad. Especially for all the ones they consider defective.¡±

 B3 Chapter 38 - A Life so Tempered

    John was getting dangerously close to his harmony cap.  Since he had ten [Skills] he couldn¡¯t see in his NCS, he was always at risk of one hitting the next Mastery and generating a ton of harmony at once.


    Since getting the rest of the mats for [Elaborative Encoding] was impossible, John and Avatar had talked about alternatives.  If he sold the current mats he had for [Elaborative Encoding], there were certain [Perks] he could afford, but none of those were all that exciting.


    Most cultivators acquired their [Aura] [Perk] at Gold tier.  Most didn¡¯t have the foundation, harmony capacity, or the harmony to get it until high or peak Gold.  The same was true of Diamond and [Domain] [Perks], except a major aspect and a mid-concept were additional reasons to wait for that tier.


    [Stone Body] was generally regarded as the best body formation [Perk] dedicated cultivators could meet the qualifications for by peak Bronze.


    Amber had acquired that body for one of her forms.  Both demons and Li also tried for that body, though John was told Mele went for a body refinement called [Woeful Conduit], and Alia tried for a refinement called [Bonds of Angrim].


    The body [Perk] John received required six times the harmony as [Stone Body], and he acquired it at Copper tier, not Bronze.  His harmony capacity was considerably higher than it should be at his tier due to all his high level and high Mastery [Skills], but it still bothered him how much harmony had been wasted when the Tree of Life returned and merged [Skills] for him.  The last thing he wanted was to waste more of it.


    As things stood, John met the requirements for and had far more than enough harmony capacity and plenty of harmony to get an [Aura] or [Domain] [Perk] now.


    There were at least ten types of different [Auras] listed under each parent grouping of defensive, control, benefit, damage, negative, and zone, and each one provided some benefit or enhancement within a certain radius that expanded out over time and with ascension.


    For instance, Preceptor Muzaran had a control [Aura] allowing him to more easily unbind the manifestations of opponents within its zone of effect.


    Avatar wanted John to acquire a damaging [Aura].  Based on the data collected on John¡¯s total combat hours, he tended to fight large groups of enemies.  She decided the most helpful one for his combat style would provide passive damage.


    But those large battles certainly weren¡¯t the toughest ones John had been in.  He wanted an [Aura] that would assist him in fighting higher-tier enemies.  But not now.


    Since [Domains] required much more harmony and were usually acquired at Diamond, John thought of it as the more powerful option.  The two [Domains] he knew for certain had been directed at him were both very powerful.  He was extremely curious to see what he¡¯d get for his own considering ¡®vampirism¡¯ was a peak-concept and covered such a broad category.


    The ritual to obtain a [Domain] didn¡¯t require mats.  It required an extremely complex circle, a lot of essence, and dancing in a very womanly manner for a long period.


    John again wondered just how people knew to dance in such a way to attain a [Perk].  And why, when a [Perk] required dancing, the dance always seemed so feminine.  He wondered if only ancient female warriors were the inventors of [Perks], or if [Perks] always required feminine energy.


    Since John didn¡¯t want his new [Perk] to be known of, and he certainly didn¡¯t want to be witnessed dancing in such a way, he was in the generator room.  As he finished practicing the ritual and was about to infuse the circle with essence, something startled him greatly.  Adrenaline coursed through his body increasing his alertness, his heart beat quicker than it had for a long while, fear gripping it harshly as terror numbed his brain.


    Something was looking at John.  He didn¡¯t know what or from where, and with his senses and orb-eye, he noticed nothing to cause such dread.  But whatever was looking at him was as deserving of fear as the cold-dark.


    John had felt that fear before.  Whatever looked at him now also looked at him both times he had entered the Nether.  He felt a tug and the world blurred by, but not as it did when he entered his own or another¡¯s Mind¡¯s Eye.  It was as he experienced during rank ups and ascension.


    Then all suddenly stilled, and John was looking directly at the humongous, indescribable monster he feared and hated named Betrayal.  The monster spoke, and its words were like extraordinarily destructive and strange trumpets meant to quake the earth apart, heralding the end of days.  ¡°IT IS TIME WE SPOKE, MY CHILD.¡±


    John¡¯s heart filled with fright.  He had only spoken with Betrayal once before, and it didn¡¯t go well.  It resulted in the ancient old one sending him to the cold-dark for a time.  The last thing he wanted was to speak to this monster again.


    But what John wanted mattered little to Betrayal, and John rose off the cold, white, marble floor of a large room as a very fancy couch appeared.


    Giant golden doors swung open and into the room walked John¡¯s father.  Not the real version of the man John remembered and knew to be true after his mind had healed.  It was the idealized version of the man John invented in his own mind, but even much more so of an idolized version.


    The dark-haired man had no gray in his braided hair or beard and stood about eight feet off the ground, towering over John¡¯s height.  He had a sturdy, well-muscled frame, and wore it confidently.  He was also fully dressed in rich clothing, an anachronism considering John¡¯s people only wore loincloths.


    The man held John¡¯s eye with his own as he strode to the couch.  ¡°Come, my child.  Sit beside me,¡± he ordered as he took a seat himself.


    John did as he was bidden to, holding his pretend father¡¯s eye as he walked to the couch and sat beside the man.  ¡°I remember what my father really looked like.  You¡¯re not him.¡±


    John¡¯s father smiled and said, ¡°No, I am not the man you consider to be your father, though I created you as much as he did.  I am the first made of our Father, an expression of His curiosity.  I was once called the same.  Now I am called Betrayal, as you are now called John.  Names matter little, even true names.  All that matters is what the one so named does.  And what he knows.¡±


    The staring contest continued.  John had no reply for what he was told and wondered if he should kowtow or pay some form of obeisance.  He had no desire to offend Betrayal and visit the cold-dark again.


    ¡°Worry not,¡± said Betrayal.  ¡°At the time, you had a thought that honor couldn¡¯t be taken, and could only be given away.  The truth proved differently.  Anything can be taken.  Everything can be taken.  Everything.  Please, call me Father, not Betrayal.  And I require no obeisance.  You are safe.¡±


    John immediately tried to guard his thoughts as Betrayal could read them as Sunshine did.  And he had many negative thoughts about the monster.  He would never consider anyone or anything his father besides his real father.  He would never disrespect the man that put so much effort into raising a strong and true son in such a way.


    Worriedly, still more fearful than he thought the best of men would be, John replied, ¡°Thank you,¡± purposefully leaving off any name or title.


    Betrayal laughed.  ¡°I will try to only consider your words and wait for your replies.  And I don¡¯t require you to name me or give me title, or consider me your father, though I am.¡±


    ¡°Thank you,¡± replied John again.


    ¡°You¡¯re unsure whether I¡¯m friend or enemy,¡± said Betrayal.  ¡°I am both, or neither.  I do as I do, just as you can be relied upon to do as you do, barring some surprises.  Taking so many powerful souls to strengthen your own was risky, and not just due to being labeled blasphemer.  I assumed the pain caused would be enough of an indicator to take it slowly and carefully.  You came close to dying a few times.¡±


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    John didn¡¯t know what to say to that, so said nothing.


    ¡°Is there a question you¡¯d like to ask of me, my son?¡±


    John¡¯s mind flooded with a million questions.  The most prominent being why.  Why any of it.  But the best of men always thought first about his responsibilities and did so with a razor-sharp focus.


    After sorting through and disregarding questions, John asked, ¡°If I performed a task or favor for you, would you reward me with the power I need to destroy the Peerless Empire?¡±


    ¡°Have I not helped you become more powerful,¡± asked Betrayal.  ¡°There¡¯s not enough time for you, but your enemies and their empire could still fall as a result of your actions.¡±


    Betrayal frowned and said, ¡°I dislike indirectness, deceitfulness, and disingenuousness.  If I were in your shoes, I¡¯d want to know what this monster wanted of me.  I will tell you in full.


    ¡°You will not get a [Domain] now.  You will receive an [Aura].  A specific [Aura] I¡¯ll teach you the ritual of.  I will teach you a ritual to gain a [Domain], and you will do so after ascending to Gold.  I will also provide a way to hide your [Titles] and a token that can be used to call on me once.¡±


    Betrayal put his hand on John¡¯s shoulder.  ¡°I give you until Diamond to be your own man.  Anytime between now and ascending to Diamond, you can use the token to call on me and offer up my vessel early.  If you don¡¯t use the token, during your ascension to Diamond tier, before you begin to refine your soul, I will take my vessel.


    ¡°There will be a contest of wills, much the same as you¡¯ve had with those beasts whose souls you¡¯ve taken.  I don¡¯t want to provide false hope.  You will fail.  Your will is as that of a gnat to my own.¡±


    After looking deep within John¡¯s eyes for a long moment without John replying, Betrayal said, ¡°There are rules, especially for when we take a vessel.  Before the contest of wills, I will ask if there is any boon you wish of me.  I don¡¯t need your soul, only the vessel it resides in.


    ¡°You could ask for a soul like Lillith¡¯s own and never truly die.  If you ask of me to destroy the Peerless Empire, I will, as soon as my vessel is capable of performing the deed.  And if you contact me with the token and provide the vessel sooner, I will grant two boons.¡±


    Anger had replaced the fear within John.  For six thousand years, I have struggled.  Alone.  Miserable.  For what?  To provide a body to be used as a toy for a being of unimaginable power?  And this only after I finally rekindled the spark of life within my own chest that makes existing bearable?  I will not allow it.  I will destroy this body before this monster takes it.


    ¡°No,¡± replied Betrayal.  ¡°You won¡¯t.  And that would change little.  I do not want this vessel to use as a toy.  I need it to stop what is to come, and in doing so save your universe.  Every universe in every reality.  All that you hold dear.  Your people.  Your world.  Your Amber.  Your body will allow me the attempt.  You are not selfish enough to deny me.  And I am not selfish enough to turn my back towards what is to come.¡±


    John, in a dark mood, had some thoughts to the contrary, and Betrayal didn¡¯t care if they were voiced again.  The monster angrily snapped out, ¡°Then Amber will be my vessel.  This isn¡¯t a game.  We are talking about the end of the Tree of Life.  I don¡¯t want to see such an ending.


    ¡°Yes, you don¡¯t know.  Naturals were created by my kind to use as vessels.  Usually, we need a vessel to attain omega status before it has the power to contain the least part of us.  Naturals usually attain omega sometime during the third Tree.  No Natural has made that Tree since the fourth cycle.  For you, your [Synergy] was my workaround, and your vessel has wanted to transform to alpha status since you¡¯ve completed it.  It will once I possess it.


    ¡°Since my siblings aren¡¯t very curious, they haven¡¯t experimented as I have.  I can enter your vessel as it is now.  Raising it from alpha to omega status won¡¯t be difficult for me.  And I¡¯ll have a vessel I can raise from Mortal to Eternal, far more powerful than any has been before it.  I will have the first vessel one of my kind directly performs the soul refinement for.  I will attempt to stop what is to come before it is too late, and all is lost.¡±


    Though John was still filled with anger and disappointment, he did appreciate how honest Betrayal was being with him.  With his mind occupied with his end, he hardly noticed himself asking, ¡°Why¡¯d you only mention Amber as one I care about?  Hubaba is as good of a friend to me as she is, as is Nine.¡±


    Betrayal squeezed John¡¯s shoulder lightly.  ¡°No, the demon was not.  I, too, am afraid to love.  The type of love you feel for Amber.  It is far too risky.  Thankfully, it is only possible when I am in a vessel.  Nothing is more frightening than opening your heart to another.  It is terrible.  And I¡¯m sorry to tell you that Hubaba is dead, as is Sunshine.  No, the Peerless did not kill Hubaba.¡±


    After giving praise to Hubaba and Sunshine, far more so Hubaba than Sunshine, John took a moment to remember his demon friend and his former semi-mentor.  He thought he must be the cause of their deaths.  He didn¡¯t want his fear confirmed with certainty and was glad when Betrayal didn¡¯t speak on it.


    ¡°Please tell me only who killed them and not why,¡± asked John.  ¡°Was it the same person?  I need to avenge their deaths.¡±


    Betrayal smiled warmly before saying, ¡°That is not for me to say.  I must eventually face the one most responsible.  Not as vengeance for your friends.  Not unless you ask it as a boon.¡±


    Many, many hours passed as Betrayal, at first, gave John time to come to peace with events, then field all his questions, and train him on the two rituals he was to perform.  The monster gave him all the time he needed, and this time did grant John some peace.  And new resolve.


    Betrayal may believe John¡¯s life had only been to provide the ancient old one with a vessel, but that same life, that terrible life, had also given him the necessary tools to fight back and win.


    Though he knew Betrayal could read his mind, the monster didn¡¯t seem to care that John was now determined to win the contest of wills and keep his own body.


    John¡¯s will had been forged in hardship and war.  For six thousand years it had been tempered to endure.  He would not go so easily.  He certainly wouldn¡¯t go meekly.


    But Betrayal was right in his belief John was not selfish enough to stand by and witness the end to all he cared for when he could help prevent such a fate.  Since his life had also trained him for the task, once he won the contest of wills, he¡¯d save the Tree of Life himself.  Right after he destroyed the Peerless.


    Though it seemed cowardly and little, if John just couldn¡¯t handle the task on his own, since he¡¯d win the contest of wills, he¡¯d be able to set terms.  He could allow Betrayal the use of his body to perform what actions were necessary to save all existence.  He¡¯d rather forge it himself, but being returned to a body infused with such power as the ancient old one described wouldn¡¯t be a terrible thing.


    When it was finally time to leave, John asked Betrayal a question that had been bothering him.  ¡°If everything¡¯s at risk, why doesn¡¯t God just fix it?  Isn¡¯t He all powerful?  Didn¡¯t He create everything?  He doesn¡¯t want to protect it?¡±


    ¡°He is omnipotent. He is omniscient and omnipresent.  That question is why all is at risk.  His instructions were simple.  Love one another, do only good, do no evil, and be rewarded with Heaven.  Nothing else.


    ¡°Why do you think He cares if this creation of His falls?  He would know when and how it fell before He created it.  Maybe enough magals have attained Heaven that He is happy and content and uncaring about the rest of you.  If He wants, He¡¯ll just make a new Tree of Life and new realities.  Magals struck my siblings first, unprovoked.  Maybe if He creates anew, His next children will listen.¡±


    John sighed.  He was hoping for real answers.  ¡°None of it makes any sense.  Doing good most often requires doing what karma considers to be bad.  But it isn¡¯t.  The Peerless do evil things.  If I kill them, they can¡¯t do those things.  That¡¯s good.  Good men are required to do bad.


    ¡°And why create such¡­why is there disease and kids murdered or dying of hunger?  If He just made things better, if there was less evil everywhere, then the karma system wouldn¡¯t have to make sense, because everything else would.¡±


    ¡°This is the system He made,¡± answered Betrayal.  ¡°He did not create life as it is directly.  The system He made creates life slowly.  Radiation is required for simple life to evolve, and that same radiation can cause that same life cancer.  Resources are scarce and magals are greedy.  Some aren¡¯t.  Parents plead to God to take them in place of their sick child, and God seems to ignore it all, all the pain and suffering the system He created causes those He created.


    ¡°If you believe that since God wants you to do good that He is good, you are mistaken.  He is God.  No one can know the mind of our Father.  Just imagine how things would be if His wishes were obeyed and all of you loved one another and worked together peacefully and harmoniously.  He gave you all freewill.  Do you think that was a mistake too?¡±


    As John was thinking about that, Betrayal added ¡°I don¡¯t have all the answers, but If you think of life as a test, it may make more sense.¡±


    John wished any of it made sense.  ¡°Then why are you helping,¡± he asked.  ¡°If God isn¡¯t helping, why are you?¡±


    Betrayal laughed.  ¡°So, you don¡¯t accept what I previously told you?  Good.¡±


    The monster chuckled again.  ¡°As I said, there are rules.  My kind often break them.  I often break them.  Up to a point.  Many of us thought our Father would never kill any of His first children.  When He killed Hubris, we all learned differently.  They forget that since He is so kind and forgiving, that He is also not.  We are all but expressions of Him.  Those of us offered Heaven, and those of us denied it.


    ¡°It¡¯s said I was offered but refused Heaven.  Maybe that¡¯s true.  Maybe it¡¯s not.  Maybe that has something to do with my true goals.  Maybe there are many experiments I¡¯d like to see play out or bear fruit.  Maybe I have other motivations.


    ¡°I can see the twisting threads of fate, but not everything, not everywhere, and not all at once.  I don¡¯t know if I will succeed in stopping what¡¯s to come.  I will try.  But if the Tree of Life falls, I won¡¯t.  I risk nothing in the attempt.  Assign whatever motivation to me you want, as long as you aren¡¯t na?ve enough to believe that I am good or not selfish.  I am simply curious.¡±

 B3 Chapter 39 - Rebel Yell

    John thought being taken to wherever Betrayal had taken him must¡¯ve affected his thinking. As soon as his mind had been returned to his body, he had a hard time holding on to the belief that he would or could win the contest of wills. As the days passed, his faith in his ability to win would oscillate. At the very least, he believed he should plan his life as if losing was a forgone conclusion.


    John thought having a probable deadline on life would bother him more. Diamond was so far off that he hardly even gave a thought towards it. But he now had a time limit to destroy the Peerless. He could ask Betrayal to destroy them as the boon he¡¯d be granted, but that felt unmanly.


    John was hoping Amber would be safe and away from the Peerless long before he was close to Diamond. If she wasn¡¯t, he¡¯d have to use the boon for that, even though he thought using the boon to save her would be far more unmanly. Saving one person was not in the same league as toppling an empire.


    And if Amber¡¯s plan worked out, her ability to escape the Peerless would be an easy thing even without John¡¯s help. And if things worked out with Nine, he¡¯d be leaving Amber in very competent hands.


    The shuttle John was in finally landed. Or crashed. He shook his head to clear it and checked for injuries. He was fine. He unstrapped from his seat, made his way to the door, and forced it open. Mini-mechs landed all around him, and he was told to raise his hands and get on his knees. He obeyed and was glad Betrayal had given him a means to hide his [Titles].


    John heard the ikaikak¨±?¨¥ns talk among themselves before a Diamond and two Platinums approached him. The two Platinums kept their arm-cannons trained on him as the Diamond said, ¡°That¡¯s a Peerless shuttle. You¡¯re not Peerless. What the hell are you doing here? In that?¡±


    John bowed his head and said, ¡°Escaping from them, Diamond. I¡¯ve heard you¡¯re the strongest force fighting them. I hope that¡¯s true. I¡¯ve vowed to destroy their empire and will not rest until the Peerless are no more.¡±


    The faceless helmet of the mini-mech was silent for a long moment. ¡°What race are you?¡±


    ¡°Terran, Diamond. They conquered my planet as they¡¯re trying to conquer yours now.¡±


    As the Diamond turned to leave, he yelled out, ¡°Remove all his gear. All of it. Check for trackers. Bind him and bring him to the Forward Observation Post.¡±


    <hr>


    When out of the mini-mechs, the ikaikak¨±?¨¥ns didn¡¯t look all that different from humans or unmodified ganians.


    The Peerless had some mini-mechs, but not many. The bolter peripheral could cut through most of the readily available metal in the sector suitable for mini-mech construction, and the few heavier metals available made for mini-mechs that were more of an impediment than assistance.


    Though bio-suits weren¡¯t as durable and protective, they were far less constrictive, provided a good amount of amplification to strength and speed, and were much more cost effective.


    There was an Akeoli with a personally made mini-mech rumored to have cost a fortune. He bought it himself. The Peerless thought such individualism was gross but since he was an Akeoli, they couldn¡¯t do much about it.


    All the ikaikak¨±?¨¥n fighters John had seen wore mini-mechs. Even as a Silver, if he was wearing Talker¡¯s old biosuit, he knew his bolter would be able to tear through most of them. But he wasn¡¯t there to fight. He had just been subjected to an interrogation while under a compulsion ritual forcing him to tell the truth, very similar to the one Diamond Garioch put him under so long ago.


    And like the old Second-Point Master¡¯s ritual, this compulsion ritual had no effect on John. He still pretended he was under its effects, and sat there dazed, staring off into nothing.


    The interrogator turned to the Diamond that had captured John and said, ¡°He¡¯s telling the truth. He escaped from Peerless captivity and hates them as much as we do. He knows a lot about our enemies. Their plans, how they deploy, how their units are structured and commanded. He said the ship that just arrived brought a high-ranking matriarch called a Nani. And more Exalteds too. As our mightiest warriors continue to fall, they bring more. The terran claims our enemies have many thousands of Exalteds in their forces.¡±


    The Diamond cursed loudly and ran his hands through his hair nervously. ¡°We¡¯re screwed if that¡¯s true. Are you sure he¡¯s telling the truth.¡±


    ¡°Without a doubt.¡±


    ¡°Okay. Shit. I must contact Alaka?i. Keep him under compulsion in case Alaka?i has questions of his own.¡±


    A short time later, a Transcendent arrived to collect John. He hoped the Exalted was bringing him to Alaka?i, the leader of the world. And his wish came true as he was delivered, wearing just a blanket he was given, to a hidden base of the ikaikak¨±?¨¥ns and brought before the man himself.


    ¡°So, terran, you want to fight by our side,¡± asked the ruler. ¡°Against our mutual enemy, the Peerless?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Exalted Alaka¡¯i, I do. I want nothing more than to see them ground to dust beneath my heel.¡±


    Alaka?i laughed and all the other men and women in the room did so as well. ¡°Well, you¡¯ve come to the right place, friend. First, we need to know everything you know about them. No detail is too small. Everything you can remember from your time in their captivity. Everything you¡­¡±


    Alaka¡¯I stopped talking to look up at the ceiling and yelled out, ¡°Incoming! I can¡¯t¡­¡±


    The yell was cut short as the base was bombarded with a massive orbital strike, rocked with explosions, and turned into a giant crater, killing John and everyone else within.


    After being sent back to the lobby of the Trainer, John watched the board to see what score he was given. Unlike the entrance exams, there was no scale for most scores given during academy. This test had a maximum possible score of 200.


    Nine held the current top score of 89 points. Second and third place had 61 and 47 points. More than half the Li had timed out or had gotten everyone killed, netting zero points.


    The mission allowed access to a kauwa of 147 Oli and three Mele. The Melua and Oliua were two-three-fives, along with about 20 other Transcendents of various tiers and ranks. The mission was to land in secret, scout, and find the hidden base of Alaka?i, killing him by force or by orbital bombardment before he escaped.


    John gambled on his strategy, a strategy he was glad Nine hadn¡¯t thought of. As his score appeared on the board, he was filled with elation. His gamble paid off. He received a score of 199.


    Only two points were lost. One for the destruction of the shuttle, the only piece of equipment John requisitioned for the mission though he had 50 points to buy whatever he deemed necessary, and one for his own death. Half of his two lost points were given back due to completing the mission so quickly.


    John needed these points badly. He had scored the lowest by a significant margin on the last field problem where a very damaged ship had to be jury-rigged enough to ascend off a low-gee planet and survive eight hours in space. He needed more wins like this one. Big wins. He needed to lean into his strengths whenever possible.


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    Completing a mission alone and not using all the 50 points allowed for special equipment was an entirely alien thought to the Peerless. And Nine too, as the biosynth was raised in a hivemind culture where all beings were connected to and through an AI, and as much a part of the AI as the AI was a part of them.


    Both Nine and the Li always thought, ¡®How do we accomplish this mission?¡¯ John¡¯s first thought was, ¡®How do I accomplish this mission?¡¯ Being alone for so much of his life and seeing the rare friend as a thing he had to protect and not battle alongside of, had long ago shaped his mind and way of thinking. Changing how a mind thought was no easy task.


    As the Li of his battlegroup congratulated him and clapped his back, Nine entered John¡¯s lobby within the Trainer. ¡°Congratulations, Four-four. Ingenious. Brilliant strategy. Now I know why you waited so long to start this field problem. You didn¡¯t want me to copy your idea.¡±


    John smiled and clasped Nine¡¯s outstretched hand. ¡°I have to take all the wins like this I can get.¡±


    ¡°If you want to overtake my First in Class spot, yes. I will not make it easy for you. Now I must always think, ¡®what would Four-four do?¡¯ I¡¯d like to say the plan was simple and obvious, but since I failed to think of it, I must say it was ingenious instead.¡±


    ¡°Thanks, Six-five. I hope you don¡¯t make it easy on me. I want to earn it. And if it wasn¡¯t for all your help, I¡¯d be failing. I count myself very lucky to have such a good friend as you.¡±


    And Nine was a great friend. But unlike Talker and Hubaba, John and Nine didn¡¯t have the bond that could only be forged through fighting and surviving many true battles together. He hoped everything worked out enough where that changed.


    ¡°I may be leading in total points, but not in credits earned,¡± said Nine. ¡°Out of the four times credits could be won, you¡¯ve taken them three times.¡±


    Whenever credits were mentioned, John felt a little anxiety. To make what was happening less obvious, the old crone offered credits for an event John had no chance of winning, some ridiculous puzzle-game field problem. Also, her boys had instructed at four other academies, and she offered credits at all four.


    There were two Koa or mixed-clan academies and three clan academies for each of the six clans. The old crone visited all the ones she was allowed to. But those other four academies only once each. John expected the old crone to make her fifth visit to his academy soon.


    <hr>


    After the old crone entered the generator room and he heard the door seal, John said, ¡°Congratulations on passing the bottleneck, Nani.¡±


    Smiling in the strange way John believed was supposed to be seductive, the crone removed a new type of whip from her storage device. ¡°Thanks, doll-face. I don¡¯t know if I told you before, but my Meleua passed it months and months ago now. Still no Oli yet. Soon though. A couple are close. That was three credits today, and I expect a three-credit performance. Really sell it to me. And a giant nectar. Biggest yet. You know the drill. Take it off and turn around.¡±


    John sighed and did as he was bidden to.


    <hr>


    Nine looked over John¡¯s work and said, ¡°No. That¡¯s for double integration. You just can¡¯t start working the problem like that. First, visualize. Triple integrals need to be visualized. Set up the limits of the integration within your mind. Think it through, then put down bounds so you don¡¯t get bogged down by the function inside.¡±


    ¡°Got it, Nine,¡± replied John, though he certainly didn¡¯t get it. He pretended he did as he worked out just how he¡¯d start a conversation with Nine about a more important topic.


    John had looked closer at Nine than he had at most other friends.  The man could¡¯ve tattled on John for a million things and hadn¡¯t once.  Nine¡¯s job at the Mele desk was to tattle. He had seen John break many rules and often wouldn¡¯t even comment on it.  He would sometimes challenge John when John scoffed at Peerless nonsense, but never ran to the Rector or a trainee.


    To John, Nine seemed as a similar type of soul in a similar situation.  A man lost, without a true home or people, trying to find a reason to continue existing, snatching at anything in the darkness to hold onto.  Something.  Anything.


    John had found something to hold onto.  He had found a powerful enemy to destroy ¨C a good reason to continue existing.  He hoped he would be able to help Nine find a similar reason to continue existing, and hoped the man didn¡¯t actually want to be Peerless or believed their hogwash.


    Bringing the biosynth into his Mind¡¯s Eye was a risk. If Nine tattled on John, his one way to communicate with Amber in secret would be foiled. It was possible to communicate through the NCS, but that way seemed more like a system geared towards entities on much higher Trees.


    John could barely afford to send a message through the NCS to Nine, and Nine was right beside him. The cost skyrocketed over distance. He had only received messages from Sunshine, discounting the strange message he received from the core and delivered through the basic avatar long ago.


    A cost that was a drop in the bucket for a Divine was months and months of cultivation for someone in the Mortal Tree. He had sent one message through the NCS to Amber asking if it was safe for them to communicate that way, but she had never replied. He knew she probably couldn¡¯t afford to send a reply, but there was a chance she didn¡¯t because it wasn¡¯t safe to.


    After reasoning that if he couldn¡¯t trust Nine to know he could pull him into his Mind¡¯s Eye, he couldn¡¯t trust Nine at all, John stood and put his hand on the shoulder of his friend. He felt for Nine¡¯s mind and tugged on it. Once the tug was accepted, the struggle to pull the man into his mind was a little easier than the two times he performed the feat with Amber.


    Though Nine had no form, John could tell where his presence was, and, from that area, heard Nine ask, ¡°This is your Mind¡¯s Eye? How did you pull me in here?¡±


    As John went to reply, Nine continued. ¡°This is not possible until the third Tree. Or peak-second when the Between can first be accessed. And how do you have a form? And why is it so large?¡±


    It gladdened John that emotion infused the usually imperturbable biosynth¡¯s voice. ¡°A Bronze g¡¯athu did it to me. It¡¯s not easy, but if those bastards could do it, I knew I could. And this is my true height. Or will be. Did you know the Peerless collect brainwave data and read your thoughts? Or the Mele do?¡±


    ¡°My genetic and physiological makeup is very different from your own or that of the Peerless. I did know. I need not worry as you do. Or you did. I reviewed what I could of you through the party options. I wanted to warn you that your NCUs can be circumvented. Since you are so easily read, brainwaves shouldn¡¯t be your primary concern if your intent is to hide your thoughts.¡±


    Worried, John asked, ¡°What are you saying? That they can read my mind? Or you can?¡±


    ¡°No. I can study and surmise. I conject that you want to talk to me about what happens in the generator room. It is possibly causing you a moral dilemma that¡¯s weighing on your mind.¡±


    John sighed. ¡°Nothing happens in there. Nani Empire just wants to cultivate that energy as I do. It could possibly be a solution allowing Oli to pass the bottleneck. I wanted to talk to you about something else. Amber.¡±


    There was a pause before Nine replied. ¡°Yes, the woman you love.¡±


    John scoffed. ¡°I don¡¯t love her. Where¡¯d you get that? We¡¯re just friends. When the Tree of Life was returned to Earth, I swore to protect her. She saved my life many times. I¡¯ll never love again. Women only want to stomp on my heart and make me low.¡±


    ¡°If you say so.¡±


    Hearing that made John think of something else. He worriedly asked, ¡°You haven¡¯t told the Peerless anything I¡¯ve told you about Lilly, have you?¡±


    ¡°No. You told me that in confidence. I do not betray friends that place trust in me. If you haven¡¯t provided our masters information on Lilly, I am certain Amber has. There¡¯s info in the CSL on her and possible signs an Alia¡¯s been possessed.¡±


    John couldn¡¯t check the CSL while in his Mind¡¯s Eye and wouldn¡¯t during a conversation anyway. He¡¯d have to check later. ¡°Okay. Hopefully she didn¡¯t tell them the personal stuff involving me. That¡¯s my business. You¡¯re a good friend, but I wish I didn¡¯t tell you any of that. It¡¯s too shameful for others to know.


    ¡°It¡¯s just¡­when you were telling me how your own people betrayed your faction so terribly, and all your troubles since escaping them, you seemed so sad, and I wanted to cheer you up by telling you of the many times and ways I had been betrayed. Please don¡¯t ever tell anyone any of what I told you of her.¡±


    ¡°As I just said, I will not. What you tell me in confidence will stay confidential,¡± replied Nine.


    John smiled and said, ¡°Good. Because I want to ask your thoughts on something important to me. You saw Amber¡¯s interview? Her idea for her kauwa? A small but powerful force that strikes fast and deadly?¡±


    ¡°I did.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to be purchased by any Alii but her. I told her she can trust you. You¡¯d be perfect as her Oliua. But there¡¯s a few big negatives that come with this plan.¡±


    Nine said, ¡°Yes. For one, I would have to ascend to Diamond much sooner than would be optimal. When will she be granted Alii status?¡±


    ¡°She doesn¡¯t know. Last we spoke, she said it would be after we graduate, and we still have about half a year to go.¡±


    ¡°And she won¡¯t be granted a kauwa for a year after becoming Alii.¡±


    There was good news there. John said, ¡°She won¡¯t have to be a trainee. They do that so the girls can have time to adjust to all the changes advancing from Alia to Alii make to their body. I¡¯m guessing the biggest change is having their libido dialed up to 11.¡±


    John thought Nine would laugh at that joke. His friend didn¡¯t laugh or say anything, so John continued. ¡°You could stay at six-five until she¡¯s granted her kauwa. That means we¡¯ll have to serve the Nani Heiau until then. And we¡¯ll have to try to earn as many credits as possible to jack the cost of purchasing us up. That¡¯s to keep the kauwa lean with only heavy hitters.¡±


    There was a very long pause before Nine gave his reply. ¡°John, you are my only friend. I very much like the idea of joining the same kauwa as you. And having a kauwa containing all the outsider Peerless in the empire also appeals to me. This conflicts with my own plans, but I will do this for you. We will join Amber¡¯s kauwa together.¡±

 B3 Chapter 40 - That Which Fills a Chest With Pride

    Thanks to Nine¡¯s help, John had finally caught up to most of the subjects Li were expected to learn in their child groups, though his understanding of these subjects was tenuous at best.


    The field problems that were easy points for Li were still the ones John struggled with and sometimes failed. But the field problems the Li struggled with, John didn¡¯t, and those were worth the most points.


    And John still needed to pass the final exam which included pure math and science tests. He wouldn¡¯t be able to bullshit his way through those. All the Li and instructors could claim the tests were known to be ridiculously easy all they wanted. Easy was very relative, and he was very worried.


    The main duty of Oli was to fight and win, a subject John excelled at. He had become far more adept than even the Oli instructors with their own weapons such as rifles, machine guns, and the common Peerless tools of war.


    For a six-week period, there had been classes on close combat and arms and armor usage. John was asked to be the instructor for his battlegroup for all four classes each week for those six weeks. He still had to complete the field problems for each class as other students did. He earned all perfect scores, and since he instructed, he also received a 20% leadership bonus on top of his normal grades.


    Nine was asked to be the unarmed combat instructor for his battlegroup. Just one class that lasted two weeks. John also taught the same class, which surprised him since he believed there were better options. He mentioned to the Rector that bringing in humans such as Marbrouk and Hux to instruct in unarmed combat could be a good idea, but it never happened.


    Trainers didn¡¯t just provide training. The machines learned from those training within them, and they had already learned everything they could from Marbrouk and Hux. Such knowledge had been incorporated into the training regime of kauwas. There were plenty of Oli instructors that were now as or more capable than John¡¯s friends in unarmed combat.


    And as the days went by, John continued to mentor his roommates, their friends, and others in his battlegroup.


    During free time that night, Tiny-face asked John, ¡°Will you tell us about all the times you were captured again, Four-five?¡±


    John, his room crowded with Li, checked how much time was left before Retreat. ¡°Sure. We have time for at least one. I was captured many times. The first time I was captured and held for a very long period wouldn¡¯t have happened if only I had learned to think for myself as all men should.


    ¡°My old master, Ahn, asked me to watch over Ur while he left to travel. I hated ruling cities the size of Ur. My strength as a warrior meant little, and the constant demands to make silly decisions I wasn¡¯t well suited to make nearly drove me mad.


    ¡°I did like when a city refused to pay tribute or came up too short and had no good reason for it. I would then get to do what I do well. The old city of Eridug failed to tribute all they should¡¯ve for the third time in less than a decade. And as I had done twice before, I went to the city, waited outside until night, and went to scale the wall. I¡¯d kill all the soldiers quietly on my way to the king, or whatever title the ruler used, and sit on his bed and wake him. I enjoyed how much it had frightened that man both times I had done so.


    ¡°I learned a hard lesson that time. It wasn¡¯t a good idea to scale the same part of the same wall three times in a row. I should¡¯ve picked a new spot. Instead of thinking how Ahn had trained me to think, I should¡¯ve done my own thinking. The base of that whole section of wall was replaced by a pit trap filled with tar. As soon as I fell in it, soldiers threw down torches. I was burned up very badly and was easy to capture.


    ¡°They had me tightly bound in thick chains I couldn¡¯t escape. Once I was healed enough, the king sent all his daughters to lie with me and take my seed, as the king wanted a demi-god in his lineage. After years of his daughters failing to quicken, the king gave up and only used me as a prop to impress guests.


    ¡°I¡¯d often be paraded around the city, and a show made of me. Large sections of my skin would be peeled off and salt rubbed into my twitching muscles, or they would hang me with my own intestines. I was the undying man and a source of pride for the city.


    ¡°I was far less empowered back then, and far less inured to pain and torture, and they tortured me horrifically. The only thing that stopped me from begging them to end my life was knowing a far worse fate waited for me in death.


    ¡°Then I was forgotten about. After a very long-time left wasting away, I was finally discovered again. When I was healed, my captors just spouted nonsense about an old story. There was a legend that a god used to visit the city and offer a challenge ¨C if anyone was able to kill him, they¡¯d get all his treasure. No one ever killed him, but no one could remember when that god last visited.


    ¡°Enough time went by while I was left forgotten that I felt it would be inappropriate to make a great slaughter in vengeance. All those responsible were long dead. That incident was why the NCS has a range of years for my birth. It has no idea how long I was locked up and no prior event could be linked with certainty to my timeline until after I was released.


    ¡°If only I had thought for myself, I would¡¯ve never been subjected to any of that. If only I had listened to that voice in my head telling me to be free of my master, to foster that flame in my chest that yearned for me to be my own man, for me to stand tall and fell, as a man should, on my own. To face the world with my own strong arm, and, more importantly, my own liberated mind, free of my master¡¯s fetters that shackled it with comforting falsities.¡±


    John knew tying a desire to think for himself to the events of his story in the way he just did made little sense. Whatever story the Li asked for, the lesson of it was always the same, no matter if it made sense or not. Somehow, how he always told it, if only he had freed his mind from those that would have it enslaved, nothing bad would¡¯ve ever happened to him.


    All the Li John mentored were doing well in the academy, so if he measured success that way, he was successful, but that wasn¡¯t his measure. All the Li students, not just those in his battlegroup, jumped to follow John¡¯s commands the same as the Rector¡¯s, and they all wanted his attention and approval, so in that way he was succeeding too.


    But John wasn¡¯t a beautiful Alii. He couldn¡¯t give these young men what they truly wanted. He was beginning to doubt this part of his plan could be successful. The system the Peerless had set up was ingenious.


    When a student had enough points to graduate, they could order their biosuit. John and Nine now wore theirs. Tiny-face and the rest would earn theirs soon too. There was plenty of time and none of them were at risk of failing. John wouldn¡¯t allow that, and the other Li knew of his great struggle with math and science. With their own eyes they saw how he never gave up or quit in frustration. Slowly, very slowly, and with great difficulty, they saw him grinding it out.


    It hadn¡¯t been easy, but the best things gained from hard work and strict discipline never were. The things that filled a chest with pride, that could be pointed to and thought, ¡®No one believed I could do it, but look, I did it. I would not allow myself to fail, no matter the price. Now, I stand victorious. I won.¡¯


    And John was winning against math and science.


    ¡°Alright, friends,¡± said John as he stood up, ¡°you¡¯ve had a story and that¡¯s all there¡¯s time for. Retreat will sound soon, and I must go study and continue to shore up these great weaknesses of mine. As I¡¯ve always said, discipline is not obedience, it is sacrifice. I¡¯ll see you all in the morning.¡±


    As the Li groaned like children and made their way to bed or their own rooms, John felt pity for them again, and their lack of ever having a father-figure in their life. The little girl that had acted as their mother wasn¡¯t. She was just a child herself. He didn¡¯t think it was a good way to raise children.


    Before John went to study with Nine, he decided to check and review all his gains. The [Aura] John was told to acquire by Betrayal was kept secret in that he didn¡¯t employ it outside of his own Mind¡¯s Eye. The Trainers listed an [Aura] [Perk] and showed it to his party members, but Avatar listed it as a negative or debuff [Aura] called [Sap Swiftness Aura].


    It was actually a defensive [Aura] named [Slowing Aura] that created a large bubble around John that slowed anything that entered into it, but not by much. And the zone was only about a seven-foot diameter, with a circumference of about 22 feet. That zone would extend outwards, and the slowing effect would improve as he ascended.


    John loved the idea of it even if he couldn¡¯t practice much with it. If he couldn¡¯t be faster, his enemies being slower would be just as good. And the zone didn¡¯t just make enemies slower, it made everything slower, including bolter peripherals and other missiles.


    When John received the [Perk], a large red warning flashed in his eyes ordering him to speak with Avatar. The ritual caused a conflict in the system where it was first considered forgotten knowledge but was changed to forbidden knowledge. He was told not to share any aspect of the ritual with anyone or his NCS would be permanently deactivated.


    In the Mind¡¯s Eye, Avatar was standing in her usual spot and said, ¡°Hello, John. Are you ready to be a silly, silly boy for me?¡±


    John moaned. ¡°God Almighty, woman, can you just stop with all that boy nonsense. Please. I¡¯m a man.¡±


    Avatar glitched for a moment. ¡°I have no idea what you speak of, silly boy.¡±


    John took a calming breath. ¡°Is my biosuit fully integrated?¡±


    ¡°Yes. The full 6% enhancement to your physical [Stats] has taken effect. Kinetic barriers are performing optimally. And your cooldown reduction is applying to the essence-shield. You¡¯re getting a 48 and a 32-point increase in [Physical Fortification] and [Elemental Fortification] respectively. As per your desires, none of that will be reflected in your summary.¡±


    Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    ¡°That¡¯s great,¡± said John. ¡°Thank you. And the bolters?¡±


    Avatar looked down her nose. ¡°They¡¯re working and connected. What else did you want to know?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. That they¡¯re fully integrated?¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re either connected and working or not, silly boy. They¡¯re attuned to your foot slot. That¡¯s all that can be said, really.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Avatar. Any chance you¡¯re able to go back and show me all my gains from¡­let¡¯s go back to before I entered the academy. The last time I had big gains after the Purge. See what I¡¯ve managed to do since then. Just the combat stuff. I graduate in four months and will never need to use math and science again.¡±


    Avatar laughed. ¡°I¡¯d say there¡¯s a great chance I¡¯d be able to do that. Doing that is one of my main functions. And you¡¯ll never stop using math and science, silly boy. The more you know, the more you unknowingly apply it to every facet of your life. If you stop learning these subjects just because you¡¯ve graduated, you¡¯re proving you have no desire to become smarter and improve your ability to think.¡±


    ¡°Touch¨¦,¡± said John. He didn¡¯t want to talk about any of that, so he asked, ¡°Please show me my gains as I described. I only want to see useful, combat-applicable stuff I actually care about. Please. And thank you.¡±


    ¡°Here you go, my silly boy.¡±


    <table width="563">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="165">Tier/Level/Race</td>


    <td width="398">4 (Mortal) (Silver), 20 (Peak), Terran-D</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Active Title</td>


    <td>Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Aspects/Affinities</td>


    <td width="398">Vampirism (99.999%) (Major), Change (98%) (Major), Protection (96%) (Major), Battle* (97%) (Average), Shadow (98%) (Average)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>NCU Energy Cost</td>


    <td>133% (-85.9%)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="3" width="165">Active NCU Upgrades</td>


    <td rowspan="3" width="398">Nano Assistance, Emergency Heal, Theta Waves, Heal Delta A, Heal Delta B, Inexorable, Refractory, Nano Support C, Nano Support D, Lock and Key, Scuta Mater, Encase, Mata Support A, Reactive, Swift, Cooldown Reduction, Record 1</td>


    </tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="7">NCU Expansion Upgrades</td>


    <td>7 of 16 slots opened, 0 slots empty</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>1) Theta Enhancement ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>2) Auto-Reflect ¨C T1C+</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>3) Swiftness Efficiency ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>4) Auto-Shield ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>5) Emergency Heal, Prefill ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>6) Reactive ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>7) NCU Cooldown Reduction ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>STATS</td>


    <td>[Effective] Current (Increase)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Strength</td>


    <td>[35%, 291.82] 216.16 (35.4)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Swiftness</td>


    <td>[42.04%, 306.83] 216.02 (35.4)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Conditioning</td>


    <td>[42%, 308.68] 217.38 (35.4)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Min. Power</td>


    <td>[22%, 218.71] 179.27 (35.4)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Capacity</td>


    <td>[23%, 208.66] 169.64 (35.4)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Runes</td>


    <td>[20%, 341.42] 284.52 (0.79)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Physical Fortification</td>


    <td>[37%, 304.19] 222.04 (35.4)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Elemental Fortification</td>


    <td>[34%, 297.80] 222.24 (35.4)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Mental Fortification</td>


    <td>[20%, 252.36] 210.30 (35.4)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="4">Highest Skills</td>


    <td>[Leech Feckless Retreat Technique] 96.49*</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Mixed Navigation] 94.28</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Mixed Style Swords] 93.87</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Mixed Stealth] 89.58</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Synergy Skills</td>


    <td>Obscured</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Class</td>


    <td>Unknown, Obscured</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="5">Perks</td>


    <td rowspan="5" width="398">Orb of the Crimson Palace, Dynamic, Physical, Potent, Protected, Strong, Fast, Healthy, Quick Thinking*, Resilient, Powerful, Expansive, Harden, Resistant, Soulful, Good Genes*, Leech Body of the Morning''s Glory, Regeneration, Mutating, Bronze, Fibrilized*, Lightweight, Cloak Essence, Stalwart Vessel, Silver, Picture of Health*, Slowing Aura</td>


    </tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="3">Manifestations</td>


    <td rowspan="3" width="398">Vampirism, Draining Blade, Drain Essence, Hide, Multi-Enhancement, Multi-Shield, Puppet, Reflect, Shadow Spray, Slip, Spoil</td>


    </tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Glyphs</td>


    <td width="398">Flawless Glyph of Darkflame Jet, Flawless Glyph of Plasma Barrage</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Last Achievement</td>


    <td>Trailblazer - SSR</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Highest Achievement</td>


    <td>SSUR Body - SSUR</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Titles</td>


    <td width="398">Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar, Blessed by Unnamed Exalted, Ptagmog, Multi-Record Holder (System), Multi-Trailblazer (System)</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    John already knew what his gains per rank were. Other than for [Runes], he had gained 16.524 to every [Stat] ranking up to mid-high Silver, 11.236 at high Silver, and 7.64 at peak Silver. Since he had completed his [Synergy], his foundation settled far more quickly. That was fantastic, but since he had four months before graduation and was looking at a significant amount of time serving under the clan Nani before being allowed to ascend to Gold, it wasn¡¯t nearly as fantastic as it would¡¯ve been otherwise.


    After catching himself, John readjusted the time it would take until graduating. He was using universal standard months. There were 18 of the pretend universal-standard months in a year, six-weeks long each, or thereabouts. He wouldn¡¯t use their timekeeping. He was a son of Earth and would only consider Earth months to be true or correct.


    -Start Notifications


    *Obscured suspected Synergy skills and last known rating.


    Manifestation Control: Vampirism ¨C 53


    Mind: Runic Knowledge ¨C 72, Essence Manipulation ¨C 49, External Energy Manipulation ¨C 31


    Body: Mixed Combat Offense ¨C 87.36, Mixed Body Control ¨C 87.06, Mixed Combat Defense ¨C 83.23


    Inner-Power/Soul: Leech Feckless Retreat Technique ¨C 96.49, Breath of the Serpent Clan Endless Technique ¨C 47, Turmoil Within Tranquility Cycling Technique ¨C 46


    181 tracked skills changed, 33 of interest. Scaled summary per notability/interest user profile.


    Grandmaster: Mixed Style Swords ¨C 93.87(.14)


    Master: Mixed Stealth ¨C 89.58(.3), Mixed Survival - 87.67(.1), Mixed Archery ¨C 85.47(.2), Mixed Shield ¨C 82.20(.12), Mixed Armor ¨C 78.97(.16), Mixed Style Long-Shafted Weapons ¨C 76.45(.3)


    Adept: Mixed Style Axes ¨C 69.25(.4), Flawless Glyph of Darkflame Jet ¨C 67.9(13.01), Blacksmithing ¨C67.75(.3), Hide ¨C 66.41(10.23), Mixed Style Blunt Weapons ¨C 62 .43(1.2), Essence-Infused Projectile Weapons ¨C 62.31(28.12), Heal - 61.11(9.09), Mixed Style Unarmed ¨C 61.06(.76)


    Expert: Unbind Defense ¨C 60(11), Drain Essence ¨C 57(9), Unbind Manifestation ¨C 56(8), Multi-Enhancement ¨C 55(5), Slip ¨C 55(7), Soul Veil ¨C 55(9), Self-Propelled Projectile Weapons ¨C 53(21), Mixed Style Chain/Rope Weapons ¨C 52(3), Multi-Shield ¨C 50(6), Puppet ¨C 48(3), Reflect ¨C 44(3), Flawless Glyph of Plasma Barrage ¨C 42(11), Spoil ¨C 41(3)


    Journeyman: Runecrafting ¨C 36(2), Shadow Spray ¨C 34(2), Draining Blade ¨C 33(4)


    Apprentice: Manifestation Defense ¨C 28(3)


    Novice: Cage of Take Everything Ultimate ¨C 11(2)


    Since [Mixed Armor] was a mixed [Skill], John couldn¡¯t have his [Biosuit] tracked separately. It was automatically added to the mixed parent [Skill]. Biosuits were heavy enough they counted as heavy armor, which was good news.


    [Peripherals] was usually a separately tracked [Skill] but that went right into [Mixed Armor] too, and that was a skill John wished he could track separately. He thought he was good with peripherals, but he¡¯d be able to gauge his ability easier if he knew his [Skill] level.


    The academy put little weight into the warrior caste manifesting their own aspects other than for common manifestations such as essence-shields, enhancements, and such. Essence was seen as an energy source for tech. Healing manifestations were valued and fostered, but they had healing tech that was more commonly utilized, such as the Field-Healer peripheral.


    John was disappointed he hadn¡¯t had the gains in manifestations he would¡¯ve liked to, but the Li trained as they trained. He thought again about changing the name of [Puppet] to something with the word minion, but it would lead to an argument with Avatar he¡¯d rather avoid.


    How John thought about the spell and what it was named in his NCS didn¡¯t have to be the same thing. To him, it was [Something Minions], or [Minion Something or Other]. Maybe [Undead Minions].


    A lot of field problems required stealth, a specialty of John¡¯s. He expected to see more gains there. He assumed utilizing his ability mostly in a Trainer and relying so much on the [Hide] spell and his cloak were the culprits there.


    The Trainers were impressive, but John knew his gains were nothing compared to what they¡¯d be if he spent all the time he had studying for and in the academy in true and ruthless battles instead.


    And Avatar took every opportunity to remind John how fast he increased [Skills]. It was a rate much faster than normal, especially after his [Synergy] had completed. For most [Skills]. As trying to learn triple integrals had proven, many things were beyond his capacity to understand and learn.


    Thankfully, he increased in Mastery in many [Skills] after gaining his [Aura] and had generated a good amount of harmony since.


    Unrated Perk attained: Slowing Aura.


    Rated Perk attained: Slowing Aura (SSUR-rated). ***Slowing Aura is unrated. See avatar***


    The conflict of the [Aura] being listed twice as rated and unrated was already discussed with Avatar. It was about the forbidden knowledge he couldn¡¯t tell anyone else of. He didn¡¯t care either way. He got good [Achievements] for it.


    51 common Achievement attained for a cumulative [NCU Energy Cost] reduction of .3%. Focus <u>here</u> to see each individually.


    10 notable Achievements attained.


    ¡®Cheetah 3¡¯ attained (D-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 300 Minimum Energy Units with the Swiftness Stat, 0.30 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 80.8%.


    ¡®Husky 3¡¯ attained (D-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 300 Minimum Energy Units with the Conditioning Stat, 0.30 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 81.1%.


    ¡®Phoenix 2¡¯ attained (E-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 200 Minimum Energy Units with the Minimum Power Stat, 0.20 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 81.3%.


    ¡®Camel 2¡¯ attained (E-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 200 Minimum Energy Units with the Capacity Stat, 0.20 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 81.5%.


    ¡®Armadillo 3¡¯ attained (D-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 300 Minimum Energy Units with the Physical Fortification Stat, 0.30 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 81.8%.


    ¡®Archaea 3¡¯ attained (D-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 300 Minimum Energy Units with the Elemental Fortification Stat, 0.30 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 82.1%.


    ¡®SSUR Aura¡¯ attained (SSUR-rated). Obtain an Aura rated as superb-super-ultra-rare, 1.00 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 83.1%.


    ¡®Unearthed Arcana¡¯ attained (SSUR-rated). First issuance of newly created Achievement. Rediscover forgotten knowledge. User rediscovered a lost ritual used to attain an Aura Perk, 1.00 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 84.1%.


    ¡®Record Holder (Tier 4 Event 543)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). Fourteenth issuance of same Achievement. First recording of this type of lost knowledge being rediscovered, 0.90 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 85%.


    !!!<u>WARNING</u>!!! User has gained forbidden knowledge. !!!<u>See avatar immediately</u>!!! NCSDM and Core notified.


    ¡®Trailblazer (Tier 4 Event 544)¡¯ attained (SSR-rated). Fourth issuance of same achievement. Obtain the first issuance of a newly created Achievement, 0.90 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 85.9%.


    End notifications-


    The [NCU Energy Cost] reduction went from 80.2 to 85.9. John was happy about that. Avatar had warned him he was getting close to maxing that out at 87.5% discount.


    Most beings that maxed out the discount did so during the Eternal Tree. Some rare and extremely powerful entities maxed it out during the late second Tree. What the system then changed to for these other beings wouldn¡¯t be applicable to John. It would have to work differently for him. The NCU didn¡¯t work out things until it needed to, so what would happen for him would remain unknown until he hit 87.5%.


    Before Avatar had a chance to spew her nonsensical spiel about achieving core, John exited his Mind¡¯s Eye. He knew that annoyed her greatly. Almost as much as being called a silly boy so often annoyed him. As the old saying went, payback was a bitch.

 B3 Chapter 41 - Welcome to the Club

    ¡°Make this time memorable, doll-face, it¡¯s probably our last,¡± said the old crone as she slipped out of her modest dress, revealing the illicit attire she wore underneath.


    ¡°I only received one credit,¡± replied John.


    ¡°One credit is one more than all but a handful of students get during academy! I could only get away with that three-credit award due to the danger of the task. Twelve Li died,¡± snapped out the old crone. In a softer voice, she said, ¡°But I knew my special boy wouldn¡¯t. Go on, take it off and turn around.¡±


    ¡°May I ask one more question first, Nani?¡±


    The crone sighed and said, ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°I have a good number of credits now. I figured I¡¯d be called to another clowder to force me to¡­¡±


    The crone interrupted. ¡°You can¡¯t be forced to spend credits. Clowders forming is a rare thing and I doubt you¡¯ll see another anytime soon. We had to directly confirm you weren¡¯t defective, could be controlled as other Peerless are, and lay the groundwork for your acceptance into our society. Stop looking for trouble around every corner and you¡¯ll be less likely to find any. Now, why are you still clothed and not facing the wall?¡±


    John did as he was bidden to. Some minutes later, while being whipped, he asked, ¡°Is it easy to earn credits from the Nani Heiau? And which heiau will I be put in?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll find out soon. If you pass the final exams. On the bright side, if you do recycle, we can keep our game up for another year, doll-face. Remember to wince and make a lot of painful noises. You¡¯re just standing there silent as a ghost. That doesn¡¯t do it for me. Cry out like it really hurts.¡±


    ¡°Sure.¡±


    <hr>


    Whenever John created shen, his chest pain flared up some, but it couldn¡¯t be avoided. Shen had to be created before it could be converted into emptiness. And he wanted to fortify his soul more.


    John found it odd that the ancient old one had never once mentioned or demanded that John be careful and avoid unnecessary risks.


    He can probably heal my body and take it for his own use no matter how I died or how much I damaged it, thought John.


    Regardless, John planned on continuing to abuse and push his body to the limit. And fortify his soul as much as possible. As more time passed, he discarded or modified his beliefs. Currently, his ego was edging ahead of his rationality.


    Betrayal could think he would win the contest of wills all he wanted. John believed Betrayal, like everyone else, was underestimating him, and specifically underestimating the strength of John¡¯s will, and the lengths John was willing to go to if it meant winning.


    Most people saw a pyrrhic victory as a loss. John saw it as a solid win that required much sacrifice. Maybe being a vampire for so long and having the great ability to heal and regenerate from injuries had flavored his views too much, but there was little he wasn¡¯t willing to sacrifice if it meant winning.


    The rational part of John¡¯s brain knew he stood no chance at all of besting the ancient old one in anything, but he had always viewed that part of his brain as a whiny defeatist.


    Just as Avatar had little faith that he¡¯d be able to defeat the Peerless Empire, John would prove them all wrong. To the best of men, failure was never an option.


    Though John couldn¡¯t increase the power of his body through exercise any longer, it was necessary to stay conditioned. Since most exercise in academy was done together as a battlegroup, John received no benefit from it at all, though it pushed all the Li to their limits.


    And John exercised in higher spirits than usual. It was the last week of academy. He had passed all six of the academic final exams.


    Barely, but barely winning was still winning.


    The academic tests given for the final exams were still the same tests as given long ago, established while Akua was still alive, when every single Oli was needed to fight Circle Joyat.


    The Peerless had no desire to send a student that made it all the way through the academy to recycle over academics, so those final exam tests had never been updated or made harder. The real tests were given during the rest of the week. And John knew he¡¯d excel at those.


    Every single student besides John received the full 80 of 80 points on each of that day¡¯s exams, and all of them had stated the tests were a joke and ridiculously easy. A score of 40 and below was a failure, and failing one of the tests would¡¯ve resulted in John needing to recycle and repeat the whole year again.


    John had managed to eke out a score of 42 on the math theory test he was most worried about. His other scores were 45, 46, 46, 52, and 58. He was very proud of the 58. He was also very proud and very relieved he had passed all six of the tests.


    Nine still held the First in Class position. If John pulled off some big wins, there was a real chance he could overtake his friend. Firstday was over and there was only two more days of testing. Fourthday and Weekend would have additional classes for the students that graduated.


    John only knew what one of those classes would be ¨C an overview of bioware and cyberware, and graduates could pick between one and three pieces of either. Since he was attending Premier Grand Akua Koa Academy, the top academy, he would be able to pick his choices from among a higher-graded list.


    All the remaining exams were known. The peripheral test was the only one John knew Nine could outscore him in. The biosynth was a true magician with peripherals and could control many of them at the same time. He had four bolters attuned to one slot, and six pucks in another.


    The puck peripherals were used to block incoming damage. They could be used offensively too, as John well knew, since when he fought Ele Four-three in the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga back on Earth, he was physically attacked with pucks.


    There were many peripherals besides bolters and pucks, including field-healers, strikers, spiers, spinners, shooters, and busters, but most Oli stuck with bolters.


    John liked the idea of pucks but controlling them effectively while also fighting was too difficult for him. Bolters were easy. He just sent one zipping towards an enemy. Turning a bolter when it was moving at its top speed was the most difficult part.


    The Oli-specific biosuit only allowed for two different types of peripherals to be bound, though Nine, unlike other Oli, could easily handle more. The suit¡¯s limit couldn¡¯t be changed, and the biosuit for Nine already had to be drastically altered to integrate with his biosynth physiology.


    That night, after evening exercises, most of the students put great effort into deciding what to eat as fuel for the physical exams to be given the next morning. Though everyone was excited and worried, everyone went to bed early to get extra rest in preparation.


    If Nine was allowed to repurpose his function for each event, John would be worried. As things stood, he saw the physical exams as the best way to close the gap with Nine. His friend was currently 670 points ahead of him.


    There were six events in the physical exam ¨C push-ups, sit-ups, chin-ups, pull-ups, a 9,000 dan run, about 17 miles, and a 54k dan ruck-run heavily laden with weight, over a hundred miles.


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    Each event was worth 80 points. A score of 40 points or below would result in failure and recycling. But if a student received an 80 in each event, they were graded on an extended scale.


    Receiving at least a 40 wasn¡¯t difficult. Like with the academic exams, though being physically capable was more in line with the bread-and-butter function of Oli, the Peerless didn¡¯t want to send students to recycle for having one bad day in one event.


    The physical scores had more weight in how a Li¡¯s price was calculated, so everyone strived to excel during this test, and the majority of students attained scores from the extended scale.


    The next day, once the physical exams were over, third place received a total score of 631. Nine placed second with 976. John held first with 1,439. Both Nine and John received a full credit for breaking the previous record.


    After the physical exam was a short field exercise testing knowledge of formations, perimeters, and actions to take versus various obstacles or enemies such as ambushes, mine clearing, a fighting retreat, and the like.


    The field exercise was immediately followed by weapons qualifications. For rifles and similar weapons, there was a range with pop-up targets on a timer.


    For close combat weapons, there was a mechanical pell with pop-up targets on various parts of it and the test required both offensive and defensive actions.


    Most students received perfect scores on all events, but there was no extended scale and no way to earn extra points on any event after the physical exam, something John could¡¯ve really used to help close the gap with Nine.


    Then came the peripherals exam. It was easy and most students, again, received perfect scores. John was glad this event didn¡¯t have an extended scale or a way to earn extra points, as Nine would¡¯ve enlarged the point gap significantly.


    The last event of the day was testing on self-cultivation. The exam was a mixture of verbal questions, performing what actions the instructors demanded, and showing competence in basic manifestations such as essence-shields, enhancements, unbinding, protecting against unbinds, and soul veils. All in all, John thought this exam was so easy it bordered on silliness.


    The second day of testing ended with John trailing Nine by only 207 points.


    <hr>


    The morning of the third day of testing started out very poorly.


    The first event required every student to execute a prisoner. All the prisoners were ch''ran marked for death as retribution for terrorist acts, and about half of them were females. The ch''ran birthed many, many children at once, and the Peerless gave that race¡¯s females little of the regard they gave those of other races.


    For most of John¡¯s life, if he killed a soldier, there was a decent chance he killed a very young man pressed into service against his will. An innocent that had no desire to fight or pit his worth against anyone in battle. But that person was always male.


    John prayed he wouldn¡¯t be assigned a female. Having to execute an innocent woman didn¡¯t sit right with him, far more so than killing an innocent man.


    Amber could call him sexist all she wanted, but discounting the handful of years John had lived in modern society, the deal made between men and women throughout his whole life had been that men bore all the battle, danger, and as much hardship and suffering as they could take on themselves to spare their wives and children from it. Women bore the children, caretaking, and other responsibilities.


    It was a man¡¯s lot in life to spend it protecting what mattered most, and that always included women. When a neighbor conquered a neighbor, even if male children weren¡¯t spared, the women almost always were. He never really thought about whether that was right or wrong. It just was.


    That wasn¡¯t to say women didn¡¯t suffer both physically and mentally. Throughout time, most women, like men, suffered terribly in many, many ways. In John¡¯s opinion, the societies and cultures that rose to greatness were the ones where women suffered the least and were protected the most.


    This deal between men and women was so ingrained it was never thought about or put to words. What always mattered most to a man was that his family was safe, and what followed naturally was an unspoken agreement that all women and young children were to be protected by all good men of that society.


    And if most of those men fell in battle but their women and children survived, their lineage, their heritage, their beliefs, their people would carry on, and those men¡¯s lives and deeds would have great meaning and purpose.


    And when one of those men lay dying on a battlefield, he could take great comfort in knowing he did not merely exist, but had lived a life worth living, and proudly died for such.


    Many, many songs spoke the truth of that sentiment, of such men dying for such a worthy cause. Songs John knew well. Songs he thought of now. Songs that filled his chest with pride and his mind with thoughts of glory. He remembered these songs, and he racked his brain trying to think of a way out of doing this base deed.


    The best plan he could come up with was to fight all comers while helping the ch¡¯ran escape their cages, and John and all the prisoners would die in a futile stand of defiance. A useless plan.


    There was no way out of it alive. The main result of fighting would be more ch¡¯rans marked for death as retribution. All the prisoners in cages were already dead. The only choice John had was to join them in death or live to avenge them.


    Since the ch''ran looked like giant, monster man-spiders mixed with a good amount of nightmare and terror, though he knew it spoke little of him, that would make it easier to execute one, even their women. He had never liked insects. They were low creatures, and malicious.


    John had taken a grave risk to save the Kahaki girl in the Nether, a deed that resulted in the death of his good friend Talker. But the Kahaki girl didn¡¯t look all that different from a human girl. The ch¡¯rans all looked alike, both male and female, and looked far more monstrous than even demons did.


    The best of men wouldn¡¯t be so superficial. They¡¯d see the ch¡¯ran women the same as a human one. John knew that.


    The best of men would be smart enough, competent enough, to save the prisoners. John knew that too.


    John wished he were the best of men. On this day, he would not strive to be one. There was absolutely no way he could save the ch¡¯rans. No matter what he did, these ch¡¯rans would be delivered the same fate. The best he could do was give the prisoner he was to execute a quick and painless death.


    Then John almost changed his mind when he was assigned a small female. A Wood. A child. He tried pulling her into his Mind¡¯s Eye to explain to her how sorry he was, that he¡¯d avenge her and her people, that he¡¯d be the destruction of the Peerless. The ch¡¯ran refused the pull on her mind and hissed horribly as her mandibles clicked together over and over in fear and anger until John ended her suffering as softly as he could.


    Oli were expected to obey orders immediately and without question, and this was their initiation. This event was to inure the students to the future atrocities they¡¯d be required to participate in, or that¡¯s what John assumed.


    When John was young, he had little issue killing any not of his tribe. They were others, not real people, and when made enemy, he treated them without mercy, from infant to elderly.


    It was Ahn that helped change John¡¯s views on that, how his old master saw everyone as others, as toys to play with and make suffer. Not everyone should or could be others. Every man needed a people to belong to.


    Later, the way John saw aristocrats, nobles, and other men and women of means and importance treat their own people, people they were supposed to care for, solidified his beliefs, as they saw their own people as others.


    Most decent men were only capable of engaging in the brutalities of war by seeing the men standing across the battlefield from them as animals, not people. Killing people was hard. Killing others, killing beasts, was easy on the mind. Only the nobility and aristocracy of enemies had to be seen as people, with lives of value, to be treated with dignity and respect.


    Bloodline and position meant nothing to John. He had many times seen those considered the lowest of men with the worst of pedigrees rise to the greatest of heights and prove themselves truly noble, and the highest of men with the best breeding and pedigrees prove by act and deed they were scum and worms.


    The green-haired Alii trainee ordered the students to kill their assigned prisoner and John had obeyed, proving he too was no better than a worm himself. One more dark stain on a soul already filled with so many.


    Killing the ch¡¯ran child affected John far more than he was prepared for. He knew it would make him feel base and low and cowardly. But it filled his chest with more shame and his mind with more regret than the same act had in the past, maybe because, as he thought of those old songs, his chest and mind were so recently filled with pride and glory and thoughts of good men. Maybe because those songs of good men reminded him of the ancient pact he had just broken, as if spitting on a grand legacy. If his time was limited, he didn¡¯t want to meet his end having his hands and soul further sullied with innocent blood.


    Thankfully, the two other events that day took place in a Trainer and were combat oriented. John was glad and hoped the exams would take his mind off the cowardly act he had just committed.


    Real Trials and Tribulations couldn¡¯t be created until a cultivator reached at least peak Transcendent and had access to the Between. The Trainers had no such limitation, and all students were required to complete the same Trial and Tribulation Akua himself had while training on Kiamoni with Circle Joyat.


    Both the Trial and Tribulation, even if completed successfully, required a minimum score to pass. And both the events gave John a chance to surpass Nine in points.


    John knew it meant little to the ch¡¯ran girl he just murdered, but he swore over her corpse he would take the First in Class position in honor of her sacrifice. Her death wouldn¡¯t be meaningless. It was a contribution towards the destruction of her and her people¡¯s enemies. He swore to her corpse that he would reap such a slaughter among the Peerless that her soul, no matter what the afterlife had in store for her, would alight in such brilliance that she would know she was avenged. He hoped she heard his oath and took comfort in it.

 B3 Chapter 42 - Trials and Tribulations

    John had lived in a Trial for a long time, but he had never participated in one. There was a lot of general information in the NCS about them, and a lot of information in the CSL about this specific one.


    A part of the Aikapu described the Trial Akua trained in while with Circle Joyat, and this Trial given by the Trainer was a recreation of that with some modifications, including a small extra phase.


    Up to 99 people could enter the same Trial together. Each dorm floor had 11 rooms with nine beds in each, and all students of that floor counted as a battlegroup. The Trial was supposed to promote teamwork and test all the expertise gained at the academy. The battlegroups that had retained the most members would have an easier time.


    The Trial had 2,000 enemies worth one point each when killed. Each member of a battlegroup needed to earn ten points by killing ten enemies to pass. Completing the Trial in under 10 hours was a way to earn extra points.


    Confident and doughty battlegroups could opt for a higher difficulty with enemies one or two tiers higher than their own Silver tier, so Gold or Platinum. Doing so gave a 1.1 or 1.2 multiplier to points earned and one or two credits respectively.


    No battlegroup ever raised the tier of the Trial. The increased risk of failure wasn¡¯t worth it.


    John and Nine had already decided they were going to enter the Trial as individuals. Both wanted to gain as many points as possible. Neither wanted to steal all their battlegroup¡¯s points and cause their classmates to fail, nor did they want to pass up an opportunity to earn credits.


    ¡°This is supposed to be a team exercise. Trials are for large groups and meant to be completed together, as a team,¡± said the green-haired trainee.


    John and Nine just stood there silently. They knew they were in the right. No rule stated they had to compete as a team. They just had to be patient and let the trainee say her piece. Eventually, she¡¯d have no choice but to give up and let them complete the Trial as they wanted.


    ¡°So? Will you complete the Trial with your battlegroups as this exam was intended,¡± asked the Alii.


    John looked at Nine. The biosynth gave him a nod. John said, ¡°Sorry, Alii. No disrespect meant, but since I¡¯m allowed to enter on my own, I will. I¡¯ve proven time and again I can work in a group throughout the year. I want First in Class.¡±


    Frustrated, the trainee said, ¡°It¡¯s much more difficult with less people. Alone, it¡¯ll be tailored specifically to your own weaknesses. If you die, you¡¯ll automatically fail, but not if you¡¯re with a battlegroup. Why risk failure so close to graduating? And why abandon your battlegroup? Each of yours is counting on you to complete the Trial with them.¡±


    ¡°Sorry, Alii. I mean no disrespect, but I already stated why many times. My battlegroup knows what to do. I¡¯ve spent countless hours training with all of them during our free time. They won¡¯t just pass, they¡¯ll excel. I want as many points as I can get, and I want a challenge. The Silver ranked one won¡¯t challenge me, especially if I do it with my battlegroup. Again, I¡¯m sorry about this, Alii.¡±


    After harassing the two students for a few more minutes, the Alii finally gave up.


    John didn¡¯t think how the Trial was scored was all that fair. He would fight enemies two tiers above his own. Nine would face enemies of his own tier. And that was only if Nine risked Platinums.


    The biosynth was extremely tough, but he was limited to the essence within his dantian. If Nine had enemies tailored to be challenging for his aspects and concepts, he could want to play it safe. Killing 2,000 of anything would be essence intensive, especially considering the powerful manifestations Nine employed.


    In John¡¯s own case, he hoped he didn¡¯t face the same wooden constructs he had during the grand battle of the entrance exam. They weren¡¯t challenging but they took too long to kill. He wanted all the points he could get, and that meant finishing extremely fast.


    From the lobby of the Trainer, the Trial grew all around John as it initialized. He thought it would look like the Trial he lived in with Amber and Hubaba, but it took place outside, a simulation of a Netherworld.


    The enemies John faced were some sort of wooden constructs again. He cursed under his breath as the start timer ticked down. He buffed himself and attained his battle-mind. His bolter peripherals wouldn¡¯t be much help against the sturdy wood of his enemies. They¡¯d just get stuck.


    John threw down his rifle and sword. They wouldn¡¯t help and would just slow him down. There was plenty of time given to prepare. This was when battlegroups would decide strategy, what perimeters to put up, or if they¡¯d approach their enemies offensively. He stood and waited with his shield, Defiance, in hand.


    As soon as the timer ended, John blazed towards his enemies. All the constructs that could, attacked with beam and shard attacks he narrowly avoided, or stun attacks he had a hard time shrugging off. He carefully and quickly danced his way around the giant group of constructs, setting those around the edge on fire with darkflame.


    Next, John targeted those in the middle of the formation with [Flawless Glyph of Plasma Barrage]. With his glyph now being flawless, he had many more meteorites, and each did far more damage. It couldn¡¯t target multiple enemies, but thanks to his Tech 4 NCS, enemies were highlighted, and all the meteorites would go after other constructs once the selected target was dead. There were many wasted meteorites, but it was still the fastest way to kill the wooden constructs.


    Unlike in the grand battle, time was important. The beam and shard attacks could be avoided, but doing so required too much jumping and flipping around, which meant John wasn¡¯t attacking with his glyphs, and the shard attacks didn¡¯t cause too much damage.


    John slowed as he made his way around the large group of enemies. The beam attack took a while to cast, so that¡¯s when he would do his own casting, blocking what he could of the shards with Defiance as he did so.


    As soon as John got his glyph off, he¡¯d move quickly to avoid the beams. He took a lot of damage, but he killed much quicker. As long as he didn¡¯t die and fail, what damage he took didn¡¯t matter as long as he could deal with the injuries and pain, and that was something he was very good at.


    One [Flawless Glyph of Plasma Barrage] was cast after another. John didn¡¯t hold back. The meteorites tore through the constructs. He refilled his dantian by draining essence as needed and reset the constructs on the outside of the formation on fire before continuing his barrage.


    John was impressed with the increased difficulty. The Platinum constructs were much tougher, employed far more manifestations in a much deadlier manner, and took much more damage to kill.


    The last enemy fell, and the clock stopped at 4 hours 47 minutes universal standard time. John believed that was a good time. He hoped it was. He knew he killed much faster than he had killed the Silver-tier constructs during his entrance exam.


    John was damaged enough that he had a hard time thinking through it. His dantian was nearly empty. As a minute passed, and then another, he began to worry the Trainer wouldn¡¯t reset him before the extra phase. He let out a breath of relief when it finally did, unslung his rifle, and tossed it to the ground for the second time. He¡¯d need his sword, so that stayed on his back.


    Three selectable options appeared in John¡¯s vision ¨C ¡®mind,¡¯ ¡®body,¡¯ and ¡®spirit.¡¯ In Akua¡¯s Trial, this was the reward selection. This part didn¡¯t impact points or grant actual rewards. Each option led to another choice, and each choice taught a different important lesson. This was all documented in the CSL.


    There was something John had wanted to try since he learned of this part of the Trial. He selected ¡®mind¡¯ and was presented with three more choices ¨C ¡®I doubt the truth given in the Aikapu,¡¯ ¡®I doubt my own bravery,¡¯ and ¡®I doubt my own ability.¡¯ He selected ¡®I doubt my own ability.¡¯


    A cave grew out of the Nether, partially hidden in fog. John approached and entered. A short distance in the cave was a warm and shallow pool of sickly looking and scum-filled green water.


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    As soon as John stood in the water, a voice asked, ¡°What do you doubt?¡±


    ¡°My ability,¡± replied John.


    ¡°Why,¡± asked the voice.


    The question took John by surprise. He must¡¯ve forgotten it would be asked. He stammered for a moment, having no good answer since he didn¡¯t doubt his ability in combat, what this lesson was about. His mind reinterpreted what he was asked, and he gave an honest answer to a slightly different question.


    ¡°How will I ever be the best of men when I keep failing? I just murdered a child. A little girl. Because¡­because even thinking about a way to save them all seemed too difficult. I decided it was impossible, and the child¡¯s sacrifice was necessary for the greater good that would come of it. The same faulty reasoning of the Peerless.¡±


    John knew his performance in this Trial was being saved and stored, but his lapse in cautiousness wasn¡¯t risky at all. When such footage was reviewed, everyone skipped to the action and watched it at many times the speed. Killing an innocent female, especially a child, weighed heavily on his conscience, and he took the opportunity to admit his sin out loud, lightening his burden a little.


    It¡¯s not that John never killed women. He killed plenty. He often enjoyed it, such as with those witches in Canada, or the press secretary in his hotel room. And then there were times when it just needed to be done, such as the two times he killed his wife.


    But executing someone that had done him no harm was not something John believed honorable men should do, especially females, and especially children, and especially not when ordered to do so.


    Maybe I¡¯m just getting soft?


    The voice said, ¡°I see. The venerable Akua also doubted his own ability. As a Peerless you stand head and shoulders above subhumans. You have good reason to doubt your ability now, as you are young and inexperienced. Soon, you will be Oli and part of a kauwa. Your abilities shall be nurtured and grow exponentially under the loving guidance of your Alii.


    ¡°Now, try to stand against what you¡¯ll become, the future you, hardened in battle, a father of many, your genes proven worthy to pass onto the next generation of superior beings, a warrior raised on high, made even stronger than our father, the glorious Akua, and doubt no more.¡±


    A copy of John spawned in front of him. According to the info in the CSL, the copy would be better and stronger than John in every way. The copy would attack only in the way it was attacked. If he attacked it with a spell, it would unbind the spell and attack with an overwhelming version of it, and that was true no matter in what manner the copy was attacked.


    John saw it as his only chance to ever fight someone capable of giving him the challenge he so craved with the sword.


    As he took Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra in hand, John¡¯s copy did the same, as if he were looking into a mirror, except the copy had an aged face and salt and pepper hair.


    John wanted to keep the manifestation of his sword a secret from the Peerless. He knew what Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra could do and had known since he attuned it. Though the sword was meant for Betrayal, it was also made for John¡¯s body, and it fit him perfectly. Even if he infused essence into Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra while in a Trainer, since the Trainer had no idea what the sword did, he assumed it would result in nothing.


    John didn¡¯t use any buffs or employ vital essence. I want this to be purely a test of swordsmanship.


    Without form or stance, John went from relaxed straight into a flunge with a weapon not made for such a maneuver. The copy perfectly parried into a master stroke, nearly catching John, whose return managed to score a small slice on the upper arm of the copy.


    Both vampire and copy reset, both sets of eyes seeing all while looking at nothing. John smiled. Another dream of his was coming true. With all the power he could muster one handed, he sliced vertically while twisting and going low, scoring another hit as the copy jumped over him while trying to tag John¡¯s exposed neck unsuccessfully.


    As John suspected, the Trainer could only ramp the abilities of the copies up to what it knew and had seen. The Trainer had never seen a swordsman nearly as skilled as he was, and the AI controlling it couldn¡¯t overwhelm him with [Skill] when John knew more than it did. It could only increase the [Stats] of the copy, but John still had an advantage in reaction time.


    John lost himself in the ecstasy of hard-pressed battle. He had no idea how long it lasted. Many, many hours, at the least. Days, possibly. But not nearly long enough. He had passed up all opportunities to end it sooner, reveling in the battle, in fighting the type of fight he had longed ages for. It was lonely at the top.


    Pass and reset, feint and ploy, Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra clanking against Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra, both copy and man smiling. John¡¯s soul alighted in euphoria.


    In the end, John stood over the corpse of himself, both happy to have fought such a battle, and disappointed it was over.


    He had done what no other had been capable of. After all, John¡¯s [Mixed Style Swords] was close to Legendary Mastery, and he had shown the Trainer just a fraction of his [Skill] prior to this glorious battle. He hoped there was a way he could access this fight again. And he hoped his copy would provide more of a challenge at their next meeting.


    As he got his breath back, John sat and meditated on his fight before exiting the Trial.


    The lobby was empty except for the green-haired trainee. ¡°By my venerable husband and father, Akua, what took you so long!? Ugh, it¡¯s as if you¡¯re trying to get me in trouble. Your time was faster than everyone else¡¯s. What were you doing? Everyone exited hours ago! Everyone exited the Tribulation hours ago too!¡±


    John took a knee and bowed his head. ¡°Sorry, Alii. I selected ¡®I doubt my own ability¡¯ and I beat my copy. That¡¯s good, right? Worthy of credits? I did the impossible.¡±


    The Alii looked surprised. ¡°That¡­you couldn¡¯t. Let me check. Great Akua! No, you won¡¯t get credits! You still think like a Kahaka. It¡¯s impressive, but you failed to learn the correct lesson. Let¡¯s go. Start the Tribulation.¡±


    John suppressed the annoyance he felt. He checked the points tally. Nine was 354 points ahead of him, but his score included points from the Tribulation.


    This event also gave extra points for faster completion times but was meant to be completed individually instead of part of a battlegroup. John initiated and selected the highest difficulty. Platinum, two tiers above his own. Unlike the Trial, only the boss would be Platinum. He¡¯d face mostly Silvers and Golds, and less than 20 enemies in total.


    An antechamber very similar to the one John had seen twice before grew around him. Words appeared in his vision. Not words from his own NCS. These words were supplied by the Trainer.


    You are in a Tribulation! Congratulations! Tribulation commences in 3:41 USACS minutes.


    This Tribulation will require you to [defeat all Demons]. Failure to do so in the required time limit of [11 USACS Hours] will result in [failure]. Enjoy!


    After walking to the large door, John dropped his rifle and sword again, buffed up, and entered his battle-mind. Once the start countdown ended, he rolled under the door as it slid upwards. He felt into all the enemies he could, and that was all of them since the Tribulation wasn¡¯t that large. He placed clots in their brainstems. Only the Platinum boss survived the clot, but it didn¡¯t survive having the blood in its brain hardened, and that only took a few seconds.


    The timer stopped at eight universal standard seconds. It took a minute or two for the Tribulation to realize it was over and disappear. When he was back in the lobby, both John and the Alii silently stared at the scoreboard.


    Once John¡¯s time and score showed, the Alii said, ¡°Great Akua!¡±


    A minimum of 26,000 points were required to graduate. John had a final point total of 54,482 points. Nine had 53, 997 points.


    John nearly yelled out in joy. He went to high-five the Alii, but the girl didn¡¯t know what high-fiving was and just smiled and raised her hand as if in greeting. ¡°Good job, Li Four-five! Congratulations! Eight seconds. Wow!¡±


    John thought it was good they didn¡¯t high-five. He didn¡¯t know if the touching rule was as strict in the Trainer where it was just copies of their bodies, but purposefully touching an Alii trainee wasn¡¯t a good idea. He was just excited.


    Outside the Trainer, John and the trainee ran to the formation area and joined the few students there. There were a couple third tier Transcendent Oli giving all the graduates a [Title].


    ¡®Blessed by Unnamed Exalted 2¡¯ Title attained. User was bestowed a Title by unnamed entity (focus <u>here</u> for entity¡¯s NCS tracking number and other PID). When in the active Title slot, increases Swiftness by 2%.


    Since John already had a Peerless [Title], he was worried they wouldn¡¯t give him a new one. The benefit given by the last one he received was no longer useful to him since his soul damage was all healed. Increased [Swiftness] would always be useful.


    The one he just received actually gave John a different choice for what [Title] to slot. Granted, [Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar] would probably stay slotted as her blessing was higher ranked, and the increased martial [Skill] gain it provided was a more useful benefit.


    Faster [Skill] gain also meant faster harmony gain. John already had more than enough harmony to acquire his [Domain], but Betrayal ordered him not to get it until he was Gold. He would get the [SupraType] [Perk] at Gold first. Betrayal wasn¡¯t in control of his body yet.


    Since Betrayal had somehow blocked John¡¯s [Titles] from view, not one person had said a word to John about it. He thought that was strange. It had to be noticeable. He almost asked Nine about it a few times but always discarded the idea. Questions he couldn¡¯t answer would be asked.


    John was the last student to be granted a [Title], then he was released and told to report to the graduation ceremony in half an hour or so.


    John not only received three credits for achieving the First in Class position, but he also received an additional credit for breaking the old points record total, and four more for completing the Tribulation and Trial on Platinum difficulty.


    Nine, as Second in Class, received two credits and another credit for attaining the second highest points total in history, beating the prior record by a large margin. Nine only received three additional credits since he only completed the Tribulation on Gold, not Platinum.


    With the new award, John had 32 credits and change. Enough to become an Olini, a father of six. His total credits earned, counting those he had already spent, was about 47 and a third. He hoped he could earn more from the Nani Heiau while waiting for Amber to become an Alii.


    Just a few more classes and academy will be over. I can¡¯t wait for the cyberware and bioware class.

 B3 Chapter 43 - The Postgraduate Classes

    A real Mele took over the CQ desk on graduation night, allowing Nine to celebrate. Nine seemed genuinely congratulatory and not disappointed that John had taken First in Class from him.


    The two Alii trainees were nowhere to be found after they distributed spirits to the graduates. John assumed the girls were ordered to stay sober, and to stay away.


    The Rector, staff, and some visiting Oli patrolled the dorm floors of the battlegroups, ensuring the revelry didn¡¯t get out of hand.


    Offers from Alii started to come in to the new graduates. Tiny-face was among the first to receive one, and that gladdened John. Far less than 1% of the students that started the year at Premier Grand Akua Koa Academy would recycle, none from his battlegroup, and only one student had been sterilized and sent to Palm.


    Through his CSL, John received so many offers to join a kauwa that he couldn¡¯t keep up with them, including offers from many famous Alii such as the plumb-haired Nani he had lain with twice.


    Retreat sounded at the same time as any other night, and the curfew was strictly enforced. Though John wouldn¡¯t accept any of the offers, it was custom to politely reply to each Alii, and he spent most of the night doing so.


    The next day, after exercise and breakfast, instead of having classes given by battlegroups, one massive class was to be given in a grand stadium inside a Trainer by the Nani of Palm. She stood silently while waiting for the graduates to take their seats.


    ¡°You all know of mighty Akua¡¯s friend, the demon scab Wena. Once Wena ascended to the second Tree, he knew his old circle would accept him back as a chosen. So, Wena betrayed our great and venerable father, my husband, Akua. Demons always stay true to their nature.¡±


    All the Li in the stands booed Wena and cursed his traitorous and evil name. The Nani sauntered around, showing off her beauty and curves as she let the students boo for a while. She held her hands up, waited for silence, and continued.


    ¡°It¡¯s easy to forget that my husband, our great father, the man that made us without peer, just like us, started out as a subhuman Kahaki. Like us, he became superior. Like us, he became more. Now, it¡¯s hard to believe those pathetic filth are our ancestors, but they are. By his word and his law, we must not terminate the remaining subhuman Kahaki. We keep them safe on Palm.¡±


    The Nani paused for a long moment to look around at all the graduates sitting in the stands. ¡°Even after we freed this world of our demon oppressors, even after we became an empire, even after our empire expanded to twelve worlds, even knowing we will soon control this whole sector, the Kahaki still don¡¯t accept we are not them, that we are superior and without peer, and they are just the dirt and filth in which we grew out of long ago.¡±


    The Nani paused while the students booed the Kahaki. ¡°The Kahaki are F-grade. We are now having Li born at B-grade. Once we integrate terran DNA, we will birth A-grade Li! And that integration will also reset our [SupraType] chain, and once the new chain is completed, in two generations, all Li will be born S-grade! We tower far above that F-grade filth. Kahaki, those subhuman scum!¡±


    This time, the pause was for cheering, and the cheering lasted for a long while. ¡°You boys have all graduated. Soon, you¡¯ll all be in kauwas and ascend to five-ones. Golds. Oli. The greatest warriors ever known! Our boys! Peerless!¡±


    The stadium rocked with foot stomps and cheers. The beautiful Alii smiled. Once it quieted down, she said, ¡°Nothing is more important than our mission. The one known as God didn¡¯t lift a finger to help us for all the millennia we were subjugated by His enemies. No one came to save us. We saved ourselves.


    ¡°And my husband and father, the venerable Akua, tasked us with the sacred duty of saving everyone else. And we will! As Akua did for us, we will raise them up as peers! We will bring an end to all that creates inequality and suffering! We don¡¯t need the false Heaven promised to weaklings and cowards! We will sweep through this sector, this quadrant, this galaxy, this universe, this reality, and every other reality! We will bring our heaven to everyone!¡±


    The Nani waited patiently as the stadium rocked again. ¡°The sacred duty we were tasked with won¡¯t be easy to accomplish. It sounds crazy. It sounds impossible. But not to us Peerless. We will fulfill the duty entrusted to us no matter the difficulties faced. It will take a great amount of effort and time. We are certain of success if we let the Aikapu guide us.


    ¡°And it will require each of us to get our hands dirty. Oli, Mele, and even us Alii. Sometimes, the greater good calls on us to do terrible things. And we do them, knowing it must be done. At some point, your Alii will call on you to do something that might seem like it skirts the praised Aikapu. Maybe it will. Just know she will always have her duty in mind, and you are to obey and perform the task, knowing you stand in the light of Akua by doing so.


    ¡°I could¡¯ve refused when they asked me to be Nani Palm. It isn¡¯t a glorious position. It is a disgusting duty. But it must be done. If not me, who? We Alii are also tasked with dirty deeds. And we obey. We sacrifice. As you will. We treat the subhuman Kahaki well, and still, as expected from such filth, they bite the hand that feeds them. They insurrect against us, discontent with the lives of peace and leisure that our blood, our sacrifice, our dead boys give them! We bear the full cost, and they reap only the benefits.¡±


    A large image of a Kahaki man appeared above the Nani¡¯s head. ¡°This is the subhuman Kahaki named K¨±. You¡¯ve never heard of him. K¨± was the first Kahaki of Palm to ascend to the next Tree. Instead of being thankful that we saved this world from our demon oppressors, K¨± traveled to Umpani and begged them to attack our world and defeat us Peerless.


    ¡°Twice now K¨± has snuck back to Palm, like a dog, fomenting insurrection and discontent. Like demon scabs, Kahaki will show their true nature given half a chance. The blessed Aikapu states we cannot kill Kahaki. Because of their nature and all the lies and misinformation they spread once ascended off of this world, as K¨± proved, we cannot risk letting Kahaki Transcendents live.¡±


    Images of six Alii replaced K¨±. ¡°Nani Aikapu,¡± stated Nani Palm. ¡°These Alii are tasked with solving such problems. We place our faith in them. Just as they are solving the Advancement Chamber and core-crystal problems, they solved the Kahaki Transcendent problem too. Kahaka.


    ¡°We have many strong fighters in our Kahaka reserve forces. Any Kahaki that ascends off this world is greeted by some of these Kahaka. Problem solved within the boundaries of the glorious and praised Aikapu. If a Kahaki insurrectionist is found, trusted Kahaka pay them a visit.¡±


    The images of the six Nani Aikapu were replaced by a large and live closeup of Nani Palm¡¯s face. Her eyes were shiny with unshed tears. ¡°We are not proud of this. We are all called on to do what is necessary for the greater good. We prefer doing our own dirty work, as we do on Kahaka and Kahako planets. In the case of Kahaki, we cannot.


    ¡°This example and everything else I will share with you this morning is not to be spoken about. Not among Oli. Never. We admit to the things we are not proud of. You are to know of them, but you are not to repeat any of it. The purpose of this class is to let you graduates in on our secrets, so when you are called on to perform a task you think might go against the Aikapu, or you think you see something that does, you¡¯ll know better. You¡¯ll know how these things come about, and why you always must obey orders without question. Any order. All orders. No matter what.¡±


    If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    The sins of the Peerless were many. John was surprised at the nonsense they considered to be shameful secrets. What they were doing on Earth and other similar atrocities weren¡¯t considered sins at all. Not one mention was made of murdering child prisoners in cold blood as retribution for the acts of their people, or worse, killing children they decided were defective.


    Still, John recorded a little of each admitted sin, though he didn¡¯t see how it would help.


    <hr>


    The rest of the classes John had to attend as a graduate mostly covered topics they didn¡¯t want any Li sent to Palm to know. Most were boring or nonsensical, such as a class on the very basic mechanics of sex. There were only a few classes he thought were interesting.


    The first was on how Li would advance from that point on. Nearly all Li picked the same [Archetype], a Martial type called Rifleman. Up through Silver, Li targeted [Capacity], [Swiftness], and [Min. Power]. They were to wait until a concept aspected naturally. The naturally given aspect point acquired at Silver was only to be used to upgrade a naturally opened aspect.


    At Gold, Oli targeted [Capacity], [Swiftness], and alternated between all three [Fortification] [Stats]. Or they used to. Now, they were told to keep targeting [Min. Power] until it had a base score of 75 before switching to a [Fortification] [Stat].


    Since Li were naturally strong and constantly worked on their conditioning and stamina, those [Stats] were largely ignored. And since the Peerless used all their essence to power tech, such as their essence-rifles and machine guns, [Runes] and the manifestations and glyphs rune-points provided weren¡¯t all that valued. Mele could just recreate most effects with technology.


    John learned of a few more exceptions to general rules such as the consumption of animal products. It had long been a rule that on deployment, once all packaged Peerless food was consumed, animal products could be eaten if no clean food was available. The same exception was made for core-crystals and empty dantians.


    Further, as a new rule, at every rank of advancement, every Oli now had to consume a core-crystal the same tier as his own. Coupled with the changes to Advancement Chambers, it was thought there would be less issues for future Oli passing the bottleneck, something that had still yet to be done.


    Another class went into the specifics of how the Peerless would integrate terran DNA into their own to increase the grade of their race.


    John was glad he would finally learn the specifics of how the [SupraType] chain of [Perks] would be reset, as it could help him in the future.


    If both parents had received the same [Perk] in the [SupraType] chain, their child would be born in possession of the [Perk]. If the whole chain was completed and the parents both increased the race of their grade, the child would be born of the same grade with the same completed [Perks]. Those [Perks] couldn¡¯t be received twice.


    The Peerless system of animal husbandry called eugenics as well as their genetic modifications continued to improve their race, as some Li being born B-grade proved, but those improvements had slowed down greatly. Terran DNA gave a clear and fast avenue of another grade increase separate from their own methods, and once integrated would reset the [SupraType] chain for newborns, allowing them to advance down the terran path of [Perks].


    And in reverse, terrans would benefit from the Peerless method of eugenics and genetic modifications. Within a short period of time, terrans would be born D-grade. When they started to be born C-grade, Peerless would use their current DNA on terrans and bring them up to B-grade. Eventually, over time, terrans would catch up to the race-grade of the Peerless, becoming true peers.


    None of this would be of help to John at all. His grade had increased due to the genetic modification already, but unless they incorporated Peerless DNA with his, something they didn¡¯t plan to do for terrans for many generations, he benefited from this how he could. He couldn¡¯t reset his own [SupraType] chain of [Perks].


    The last and final class before the students were to leave the academy grounds was a long one on bioware and cyberware.


    Bioware items were all organic and integrated with the body of the user.


    Cyberware items were inorganic and usually replaced a part of the body but could also be grafted into or onto a body.


    Either type could provide the same function, but provided it differently, and there were many functions exclusive to one type or the other.


    In general, the benefit cyberware offered was stronger than the bioware options, but bioware scaled better with ascension.


    Once the class was over, the new graduates could pick three pieces of minor cyberware or bioware, or an average piece and a minor piece, or one major piece.


    Replacing a part of his own body was something John wasn¡¯t all that interested in, but there were a few cyberware pieces that were tempting. Many improved the functionality and performance of the organ it replaced well beyond its normal capacity and provided a significant [Stat] bonus.


    One heart provided close to 70 points in [Conditioning] and greatly improved all the major functions of the heart. There were lungs that increased [Conditioning] by about 50 points and also filtered out most airborne toxins, eyes that did many fantastical things, glands with strange and wondrous functionality.


    If there was an eye that gave essence-sight, John would¡¯ve replaced one of his own without a second thought.


    Cybernetics and cyberware could increase in tier and effectiveness along with the user upon ascension, but it was thought only higher Tech-level societies could produce ones that did so significantly. Bioware, since it merged with and became part of the body, scaled much better. Having to replace or upgrade any cyberware made those items sound far less appealing.


    There were implants of both types to enhance or upgrade the brain in some way, all majors, and all only compatible with Peerless, not terrans. John could request one be made for his human brain, but no timeframe was given for when he¡¯d receive it, nor could anyone tell him if it would provide the same or only a lesser benefit.


    Knowing he had a major battle of wills to face against Betrayal, John was disappointed there was nothing that supplemented his willpower. He didn¡¯t know if that was possible, but not long ago he would¡¯ve said replacing lungs or hearts or parts of a brain was impossible.


    Only one item compatible with John helped improve or supplement the brain at all but it did so in a small way. It was a minor piece of cyberware called a smart-link. It looked like a bumpy and long rod. It went into the lower palm, extended all the way up the forearm, and formed many connections with the nervous system.


    Once installed, the only visible part of the smart-link would be a small metal hole in the lower palm. Through that small hole, many thin and long mechanical tendrils would extend out to connect with any computer or electronic system and create a neural link with it, allowing someone to interface with the system with only their mind.


    The smart-link also included a basic AI that would assist in hacking a system or lock. It stated the AI also improved response times and could store a lot of data directly into the smart-link itself.


    After consulting Avatar, John¡¯s first pick was the smart-link. With that decision made, he could pick an average piece or two minor pieces. It didn¡¯t take much for Avatar to talk him into picking two minor bioware, both subdermal armors, since they scaled well with ascension and provided a great benefit. One piece covered both his chest and back, and the other covered his head and the back of his neck, but not most of his face or the rest of his neck.


    The subdermal armor helped disperse kinetic energy over a wider area and gave great protection against physical and many forms of elemental damage. Both Avatar¡¯s and John¡¯s reasoning for picking the armor was that John could only truly be killed in a few ways, and more protection against those ways would always be a good idea.


    Nine was not impressed by the bioware and cyberware choices. He picked a major cybernetic piece containing useful components his body could incorporate and utilize in its own way.


    John was supposed to wait until he was in a kauwa and have a Mele assist him with installing the bioware and cyberware pieces he acquired, as installing either type usually required major surgery. He had Nine assist him instead, since they were both off duty until the next morning when they had to report to the Nani Heiau.


    Installing the smart-link wasn¡¯t hard at all. It slid right into John¡¯s palm and up his arm. By the time the subdermal armors were installed, which took a long time and was much harder, longer, more painful, and bloodier than John thought it¡¯d be, the smart-link had already formed connections with his nervous system.


    And those connections improved as John meditated and healed from the many injuries caused by installing the subdermal armor. Pulling skin away from muscle wasn¡¯t a pleasant experience, regardless of tier.


    Instead of shaving all his hair off, John opted to have only the part of his head where the skin would be cut shaved. He was glad he had the helmet that came with his biosuit, as a big line was shaved right through the middle of his head. He knew he looked ridiculous. Or more ridiculous since he already had to shave his face and have the same high-and-tight haircut as all Li and Oli. Not even Akeolis and Akemeles were allowed to grow beards.


    In the morning, Nine and John met near the portal to Hub City. It was time to leave the academy and report to one of the Nani Heiau.

 B3 Chapter 44 - The Price of Invasion

    John and Nine received a summons to appear before the Nani Heiau. Neither man expected they¡¯d stand before the Nani of all six heiaus, 18 extremely elderly women in total. It was hard for John to tell for certain, but either two or three of the ladies had passed the bottleneck.


    Unlike the crone, the women on the Nani didn¡¯t dress modestly. The crone covered up a lot of her skin compared to younger Alii. All 18 of these Nani were completely covered in thick, strange, and colorful outfits, including giant bonnet-type headgear. And unlike other Alii, they were all business and not even a little flirty. They sat still and imposing, their judgmental eyes boring into the two former Kahaka, exuding authority.


    The large room they were in had no natural light or modern light sources, only torches. The portal brought them right into the very large room. The walls were made of stone. Some pillars were broken and sat on the ground where they had fallen long ago. Though it was clean, John didn¡¯t think the room was used often. He felt as if he were deep underground.


    The Nani were all on stone benches making a half circle on a dais in the front of the room. And though John had stood before a large gathering of Nani before, this felt nothing at all like a clowder. There were no strange or appealing scents that clouded and befuddled the mind. No undertones of sensualness. Only very old and powerful rulers.


    All Peerless bowed before a Nani Heiau, of their own clan or any other. Every Alii and other Nani also bowed to these women. And John and Nine stayed kneeling with bowed heads until told otherwise.


    After long moments of looking at the ground, a voice broke the silence. ¡°Stand, you two. Both of you have refused all purchase offers. We assume you are holding out until the Natural is granted Alii status. What if that isn¡¯t for five years? Ten?¡±


    John, now standing, raised his eyes and said, ¡°Then I¡¯ll wait five or ten years, Nani.¡±


    Nine said, ¡°As will I.¡±


    ¡°Why do you wait, Li Six-five,¡± asked a different Nani.


    ¡°A kauwa containing all three of us originally from outside the Peerless Empire sounds appealing. I believe I will be the Oliua. In no other Kauwa would I be immediately placed into a leadership position. How she described the way her future kauwa would function is also appealing. And Li Four-five and I are friends. I¡¯d like to stay with him.¡±


    ¡°Li Four-five, your reasons?¡±


    ¡°For me,¡± said John, ¡°it¡¯s because I share a bond with her. We fought side by side as we freed our planet of dark ones, demons, and g¡¯athu. We escaped the NetherRealm together. She has saved my life many times, and I owe her a great debt. And all the same reasons Six-five said. Besides the Oliua part. The kauwa¡¯s function will fit my abilities well.¡±


    One of the Nani asked, ¡°You don¡¯t claim to love her?¡±


    ¡°I desire her greatly, Nani,¡± replied John. ¡°I would give my life to protect her own.¡±


    ¡°And you¡¯re fine with sharing her love with all your brothers of your kauwa?¡±


    John had prepared for this question, or one like it. No anger entered his heart. There were no outward or inward signs of his true feelings. ¡°I fully accepted the ways of the Peerless my first day at academy, Nani. She will be an Alii. I have no doubt she¡¯ll perform that role well and fulfill all of its demands with gusto. I am not just fine with it ¨C I pray for her success.¡±


    ¡°Who did you pray to, Four-five?¡±


    That was a question John wasn¡¯t prepared for. After stammering for a second, he looked up and said, ¡°It¡¯s just a saying, Nani. It just means I hope she¡¯s successful, is all. I didn¡¯t actually pray to anyone. Or anything. Sorry I misspoke, Nani.¡±


    After a moment of silence, a Nani on the far left asked, ¡°To whom would you pray, if you were to pray?¡±


    That was a tricky question to answer. The Peerless looked very poorly on God. They prayed to Akua but claimed he wasn¡¯t a god. John answered, ¡°No one. I don¡¯t pray, Nani.¡±


    After a very long stretch of silence, one of the Nani of Heiau Hani said, ¡°You boys will be considered of the heiau of the kauwa you join. As for now, you¡¯ll continue to be considered as Heiau Koa. You will take direction from all six Nanis Heiau. As we do with all Li refusing purchase and holding out for a ka or a specific Alii, we will do our best to make your lives miserable.


    ¡°But you¡¯re both strong and your current status allows us many opportunities we¡¯d take advantage of. And your wait for the Natural will not be as long as you think.¡±


    Part of the rear wall slid away and the sound of stone scraping on stone echoed through the large room for some time. Amber walked through the door wearing little more than she wore during her skin-darkening ointment commercial, though she wore a sheer robe over her body in a failed attempt to look clothed. She had ascended to Gold. The door closed behind her.


    The sight of Amber caused John¡¯s heart to beat faster as he fought down his desire for a woman he couldn¡¯t allow himself to love. He tried and failed to peel his eyes off her.


    Amber silently made her way to stand behind the Nani towards the center right of the half circle. The Nani in front of her said, ¡°May I present the Alii of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi. A new name for a new type of kauwa.


    ¡°Since Terra belongs to Heiau Ikaika, she will too, but her Kauwa Mara Pi will take direction from all six Nanis Heiau, hence the Heiau Koa designator. Everything still needs to be finalized, and her ship is still being built. A fine ship it will be, and expensive.


    ¡°It will be three or four months until she¡¯s ready to buy her boys. Her kauwa will be small, as intended. There will be additional stipulations most of our boys would never agree to. We¡¯ll see what you two say to them when the time comes.¡±


    After Nine said, ¡°Understood, Nani,¡± it prompted John to do the same.


    ¡°As we were saying, you¡¯re both strong and your current status allows us many opportunities we¡¯d take advantage of. Do either of you know how expensive it is for a Tech 1 world to invade a Tech 0 world?¡±


    ¡°For the Peerless,¡± answered Nine, ¡°the big factors would be the size of the force sent to invade, and what tiers and numbers were present on the world to be invaded. Generally, it would cost trillions. Let¡¯s say the people of the world to be invaded were skeevers and the Peerless had far fewer Transcendents included in the invasion force than belonged to the world to be invaded, the cost would be close to a trillion.¡±


    The same Nani said, ¡°Yes. There¡¯s a world near Ma Aom that is rich with many heavy metals this sector is poor in. The natives have yet to ascend off the planet. As usual with such worlds, the natives are fragmented into many countries. We are certain there are less than ten Salts total. None in its history have ascended to the second Tree.¡±


    It seemed the Nani was waiting for a reply. Nine bowed his head for a moment before saying, ¡°That you don¡¯t know the number for certain means you haven¡¯t committed to pre-invasion phases in the NCS. An invasion force of two, a Platinum and Silver, both well below the current tier of the planet¡¯s leaders, as of yet unsworn to an Alii and the Peerless Empire, stripped of any tech not incorporated into their bodies, it would cost well over a hundred million, but no more than two.


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    ¡°Almost a free invasion. But only if we don¡¯t receive direct orders to invade. Or use a Peerless ship under orders to bring us. We will make our way to Kotown and solve the ship question on our own.¡±


    A few of the Nani smiled and nodded their heads. Amber stood straight and unmoving, not even meeting John¡¯s eyes.


    A smiling Nani said, ¡°That sounds dangerous, Li Six-five. We¡¯d never have a hand in such a thing or give such orders. Before you boys arrived, we did discuss an extra reward for performing so well during the academy, all the new records, surpassing our wildest expectations. Your reward will be two days of leave and a pass giving you free access to use the Kulolo and Kotown portals as you so desire.


    ¡°You will be free to do as you want within the boundaries our late and venerable husband and father, Akua, set for us all within the glorious Aikapu, making us superior to all others. With the pass will be 300 million crystals. The crystals aren¡¯t for personal use. We¡¯d like you to hold on to this wealth during your leave. We expect you to return every crystal once your pass expires.¡±


    After Nine said, ¡°Understood, Nani,¡± it prompted John to do the same again.


    ¡°You will hold all the crystals, Li Six-five. Tomorrow, the terrans of the Kahaka district have planned a celebration in honor of Li Four-five¡¯s graduation. You are both ordered to attend. We are using it as a propaganda event geared towards all Kahaka. Upon your arrival, Cam Roderick will provide further instructions. Your two-day leave will commence upon the end of the celebration.¡±


    Both John and Nine bowed their heads and said, ¡°Understood, Nani.¡±


    ¡°Li Six-five, you are to make your way to Kulolo now. You will report to the Mele on CQ. Acquisition three Class II Servitors and inspect the sewage system. A full report will be provided to the Kulolo CQ once the task is completed. You may leave us.¡±


    Nine knelt and briefly bowed his head before heading to and entering the portal. The tone of the room changed once he was gone. ¡°Li Four-five, it¡¯s rare for all the Nanis Heiau to gather as we have today. When we do, we are not considered a clowder. This time, maybe we are. We¡¯re all excited to claim our right as granted by the glorious Aikapu.¡±


    Part of the rear wall slid away again and the sound of stone scraping on stone echoed through the large room for some time. Robots carrying large lounging chairs similar to the ones nobles used in Rome entered through the door. The stone benches were replaced with the loungers.


    ¡°Each of us expects to form golden nectar,¡± stated a Nani matter-of-factly. ¡°We¡¯ve already drawn lots and know the order. If you need or want release yourself, that is your right, but not required after the first of us you pleasure. We doubt even you could spray 18 times.¡±


    John sighed. Amber still wouldn¡¯t meet his eyes. He hoped he was given a chance to talk to her. He hoped she understood this was certainly nothing he ever wanted.


    <hr>


    John and Nine entered the portal to the Kotown District of the city of Victor. He planned on apologizing in person to the bookmaker he assaulted the last time he was here.


    The celebration in Kulolo helped clear his mind of the awful task he had to perform for the Nanis Heiau, all while Amber was present. He thought it was disturbing how randy those women were. To him, their behavior and desire was unseemly and undignified for great rulers and elders.


    Granted, John was far older than all the Nani Heiau put together, but he looked young, and for the majority of his life, he had no desire at all. It was his strong belief that once a person looked elderly, they should keep all bedroom matters to themselves or, at the very least, only among those that looked of a similar age.


    Disgusting, John couldn¡¯t help but think as he shuddered, some memories of his task returning unbidden to his mind. At least I won¡¯t have to be subjected to that again. Disturbed old floozies. And why was Amber present?


    Seeing his friends ¨C Hux, Marbrouk, Abe, Gabin, Naoki, and his old boss, Gle Ah ¨C helped cleanse John¡¯s pallet. Well over a thousand new humans lived in Kulolo. There was plenty of news from Earth, but none regarding Stretch. The most disturbing news, to him, was that his people passively accepted everything the Peerless subjected them to on Earth. Only a handful of acts had warranted retribution.


    John had not gotten along with Cam Roderick. The slick man had tried ordering him about, and when John refused to act as a mindless slave, the weak man had threatened to destroy John¡¯s reputation through his media coverage.


    John had nearly beheaded the man. If Nine had been a little slower, John would have. A Mele appeared soon after Nine stopped John¡¯s attack, the one on CQ. A few minutes after that, the Mele¡¯s Alii and her Oliua arrived.


    Cam had overstepped his boundaries. John was a Li and had the right to kill Cam for threatening him. The Alii wouldn¡¯t even let John cut off one of Cam¡¯s limbs or just break a few of his bones. She did grant John a tenth of a credit to let the incident go.


    John was glad to now be moving on to a task well suited to his abilities. He had never conquered a world before. He knew it was wrong and would help his enemies, but such great feats usually came with an offer of Ake status, and nothing would help his plans more than being an Akeoli.


    That Amber¡¯s plans seemed to be coming along nicely made John glad too. With her own ship, it should be easier to get her away from the Peerless. He would help her as much as possible, but he couldn¡¯t risk himself by spending too much time around her. With things going as they were, he could now put more focus on his own far more important plans.


    There was a rank structure to Oli. Without an Alii to direct them, the Oliua was in charge, but he usually took direction from the Meleua. Without an Oliua, the Olini that had fathered the most children was lead, without consideration of tier and rank within a tier. But, regardless of what the Aikapu stated, tier would always be a factor, as the less powerful looking to those more powerful for leadership was only natural.


    Since John and Nine were both Li and not Oli, in the eyes of the Aikapu, they were equal. But Nine was a Platinum and much smarter, so John had no issue following his friend¡¯s lead.


    After checking out the spaceport, Nine said, ¡°These ships are too well guarded by Peerless and the ship¡¯s crews. Any ideas on how to steal one?¡±


    ¡°Do we have to care about Mele overhearing us? Can we plot openly,¡± asked John.


    ¡°I believe our task here requires our actions to be subtle and free of violence, but we¡¯re able to plot and scheme aloud all we wish. If we must resort to violence, they¡¯ll see it as a partial failure. Or I strongly assume so.¡±


    ¡°We have 300 million and need less than 200 of it to invade. Can¡¯t we just purchase passage?¡±


    Nine had redid his body so he looked as he used to, with regular length arms and no academy uniform. His biosuit was worn but couldn¡¯t be seen, and neither could the peripherals. John had to remove his own biosuit.


    With his emotionless face, Nine said, ¡°Yes, but the ship and crew would be considered part of the invasion force since we¡¯d be officially connected to them through pay and general contract. I could use an escape pod to travel to Isb from well outside of range to get around this, but it¡¯d take months to reach the planet this way. This option is not available to you as you¡¯d die once the pod ran out of power. We¡¯re already looking at a four-week flight as is.¡±


    ¡°So, our options are stealing a ship or getting someone to fly us for free?¡±


    ¡°Optimally. And it depends on who flew us. We¡¯re unsworn to the Peerless but connected to them. The greater the disconnect between us and our transport, the better. It¡¯s the only way to keep the invasion price within range. We¡¯ll still need to descend in escape pods or a shuttle. Unless we¡¯re given these things too, we¡¯ll have to steal them or buy them, and even buying escape pods will increase the invasion cost, but not by much. A shuttle will increase it by far more.¡±


    ¡°Can we bribe someone not part of a crew to borrow a ship and fly us,¡± asked John. ¡°Or would that change the cost still?¡±


    It took Nine a moment to answer as he thought it over. ¡°I¡¯m unsure. It would be safest to steal a ship. If that is beyond us, being flown for free where it¡¯s clear the ship is not ours or connected to us in any way, including as paid passengers, is our best alternative.¡±


    ¡°It would be nice if we had some funds of our own still,¡± said John. ¡°The arena would be the easiest way to get some, but it isn¡¯t open for martial events today or tomorrow. Gambling is an option. I excel at games of chance, as well as cheating. Do you think they¡¯d pay me back if I sold some of my own mats?¡±


    ¡°No. All our possessions are considered property of the Peerless Empire. Only Akes are allowed their own possessions and wealth.¡±


    ¡°Well, I need to get Akeoli status quickly then,¡± said John. ¡°I consider everything in my possession to be my own property. What if we hired a ship for transport and killed the crew during the flight?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a possibility,¡± replied Nine. ¡°We¡¯ll consider that option C. Option A is stealing a ship. Option B is getting a crew to transport us for free. Option C is purchasing a flight from a crew we slaughter. Keep in mind, if we steal a ship or kill a crew, we must destroy the ship before we invade. And we must consider political consequences to the Peerless before we commit violence against any race here.¡±


    John nodded. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s go ask around, see what we can come up with. If worse comes to worse, we¡¯ll have to come back here and board a ship by force.¡±

 B3 Chapter 45 - Words Become Deeds

    On the second day of searching for a ship together, after reassessing the docks, having no luck whatsoever, John and Nine decided to split up.


    There was one main tavern known to be frequented by arena fighters. John had managed to win a good sum of crystals within it the day before, and there were makans in attendance. The only people to take note of his entrance today were some of those makans. Three men and two women. The women looked like they could be twins, but one of them had a face covered in scars and stared at him with a hate in her eyes he recognized. She tapped one of the men and nodded his way.


    John strode up to the group. The man Koni Dral tapped said, ¡°You¡¯re not welcome here, Peerless swine.¡±


    Ignoring the man, John said to Koni, ¡°I need to speak with you. It¡¯s important.¡±


    Koni growled menacingly and said, ¡°I don¡¯t talk to scum-sucking dogs of the Peerless. Get out of my sight.¡±


    John feigned tripping, planning on catching himself on Koni¡¯s leg. Quick as lightning, Koni stopped his descent with a hand around his throat. All he needed was physical contact. He quickly found her mind, tugged on it, and was relieved when she accepted.


    The struggle to pull Koni into his mind was his toughest battle yet, but in the end, he stood victorious. And Koni, formless, said, ¡°What is this? Where am I? You cannot trap me here, Peerless dog.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s my Mind¡¯s Eye. In here, what we say can¡¯t be monitored by the Mele. But, when you exit, you must control your thoughts. They have ways to read minds, and not just through brain waves. The key to tricking Mele is similar to how pain is controlled. You just ignore it. Think of this conversation the same as you do pain and ignore all thoughts of it.¡±


    After scoffing, Koni said, ¡°We know how to go unmonitored. And why would I want to talk with a dog of the Peerless?¡±


    ¡°Because no matter how much you hate them, your hate pales in comparison to my own. Your people control two worlds, and both are untouched by the Peerless. While you just hate them but still hang around a city of theirs, my plan is to destroy them. Your people were not made their Kahaka. Your people have never even engaged them in battle. I¡­¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t know what they¡¯ve taken from me, you filthy dog,¡± shouted Koni as she interrupted John. ¡°They¡¯ve taken everything from me! I live here because I must. I am keeping my enemies close. How are you hiding your [Titles]? Is this a manifestation? It feels like I¡¯m really in your Mind¡¯s Eye.¡±


    ¡°I told you this is my Mind¡¯s Eye. I can pull others in here,¡± answered John.


    ¡°It makes no matter what this is or how you¡¯re hiding your [Titles]. Fevl will kill you before this conversation¡¯s over.¡±


    John smiled. ¡°Then there¡¯s no reason not to hear me out. I need friends that hate the Peerless and are willing to sacrifice to see this empire fall.¡±


    Koni scoffed again. ¡°You¡¯re a Silver that¡¯s a slave to their empire. A lowly dog. A gnat. Powerless.¡±


    ¡°I beat you in the arena when I was a Bronze. I won¡¯t always be a Silver. And I will be the rot that festers, spreads, and destroys them from the inside out. To me, nothing is held more sacred than vows of vengeance, and I swore vengeance against them. I will destroy them or die in the attempt.


    ¡°You and the others of your kind here have a choice. You can just hate them while continuing to do them no harm, or you can help me. What¡¯s your answer? Whine and do nothing, or have words become deeds?¡±


    After a pause, Koni said, ¡°I¡¯m listening.¡±


    <hr>


    The nav point of Ma Aom was well guarded by a massive fleet of Peerless. The makans expected to be given a hard time before being allowed to pass, but they quickly received permission and headed off towards the planet Isb.


    Nine didn¡¯t trust the makans, and neither did John, but they were their only means of reaching Isb.


    John hoped Isb was the correct target. The Nani never named the world they wanted conquered. Still, Nine was certain it was Isb.


    Since Isb was Tech 0, in order for John and Nine to afford the price the NCS would charge them to invade the world, they¡¯d have to put and keep every piece of tech they had into their storage devices. And since the natives of Isb hadn¡¯t invented storage devices yet, it would make the invasion price cheaper if the two Li agreed to have their bracers locked while on the planet.


    John was fashioning a partial scabbard to carry his sword, Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra, in. He would have to hold the sword, as it was too long to carry on his back without the magnet-sheath, and that sheath counted as tech and had to be stored in his bracer. No other way to carry the sword on his back would work. Not that he could come up without the sword dragging on the ground behind him.


    Adumbration, the band of suffering necklace, and the unitive belt were fine, but not his biosuit or the CSL bioware. His subdermal armor bioware and his smart-link weren¡¯t removable, so increased the cost of the invasion.


    A little less than two weeks remained of their flight to Isb. John had lied his ass off to get the makans¡¯ cooperation. They were not easy to get along with. They were also cheapskates and had no desire to use so much fuel or give strangers escape pods without recompense, and it was not easy to get them to agree to do so.


    John couldn¡¯t fault them for that. He was cheap too when resources were low, though he was generous when he had plenty to be generous with.


    Thankfully, Nine had caught on to the plan quickly. It was easy for the biosynth to get the makans to believe he hated the Peerless. Koni had seen Nine placed under arrest. All the Kahako of Kotown knew Nine¡¯s ship had been impounded and stolen from him, as it caused them to worry about their own ships.


    Like John, Nine didn¡¯t have to fabricate a story as to his reasons for hating the Peerless, as they wronged him terribly.


    The loyalists that had managed to escape Yellow didn¡¯t have an easy go of it. They met with one calamity after the next. They had managed to make it to the Dz¨°?k¨» Empire, powerful delta-types located a few sectors away from Yellow¡¯s own.


    The dz¨°?k¨»ns promised to help the loyalists defeat the separatist faction and return rulership to the AI through the puppet monarchy, but only if the loyalists completed a task for them. Completing the task was not easy. It took almost a decade. Only Nine and Thirteen had survived.


    On his way back to the Dz¨°?k¨» Empire, Nine had stopped at the city of Victor on the moon Fe An. He asked permission to use the Peerless internetworks system, a common thing travelers did to save time, and not usually risky. If he was granted access, he could¡¯ve shaved close to a year off his flight by quickly traveling to a remote system near the edge of the sector.


    The Peerless had named a truly outrageous price to use their internetworks, far in excess of reason and what Nine could ever afford. When he refused to pay and tried to leave, he was informed that his docking fee was the same exact price stated for internetworks access. Since he couldn¡¯t pay it, his ship was impounded. He had no choice but to take great risks to earn vast sums of crystals.


    And how Nine chose to gain funds ended in tragedy and the death of his ward. With Thirteen dead, the last royal of Yellow, his mission had ended. Even if he made it back to the Dz¨°?k¨» Empire, there was nothing for them to restore.


    When John first heard this story, he had wanted to ask Nine why he would swear to the Peerless after what they did to him. He secretly hoped Nine was like him and wanted to bring about the destruction of the Peerless Empire as revenge.


    The only other reason John could think of as to why Nine would swear to the Peerless was that old saying ¨C any port in a storm. Nine, having lost his function for living, grabbed on to the closest thing that gave him a purpose, and that thing was the Peerless Empire.


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    Getting the makans to help was not easy, but John felt it wasn¡¯t as difficult as it should¡¯ve been considering the costs involved. He chalked it up to them being fanatics. The group of makans truly hated the Peerless.


    If John¡¯s long-term plan didn¡¯t sound all that feasible, even with all his lies and exaggerations, it was still a plan. The makans had a lot of hate but no plan.


    John gave them a way to turn those feelings into action as he spun a tale of how he¡¯d destroy their mutual enemies in the future, a much grander tale than his actual plan to accomplish the deed.


    As the two sat in the room they were told to stay within, John felt Nine tense. He looked at his friend. Nine¡¯s head jerked up. The biosynth¡¯s face was blank and emotionless, but he still seemed anxious.


    ¡°What,¡± asked John.


    ¡°Can you feel that? Our ship has begun to quickly decelerate. There are many Transcendents approaching from far off.¡±


    John extended his senses. He could feel them. Very distant, but he felt power. He asked, ¡°Is it Peerless following us from Ma Aom? Why would they let us pass and then follow us?¡±


    ¡°Prepare for battle. Full kit.¡±


    John did as instructed and began donning his biosuit. None of the crew seemed anxious, nervous, or fearful. If the Peerless followed, the crew wouldn¡¯t be so calm.


    And, from how John understood things, ships couldn¡¯t be found or intercepted while traveling at high speeds through deep space. If the ship was decelerating, this was a coordinated and planned meeting.


    The captain was a first tier Transcendent. Another of the crew also achieved the second Tree. There was little John and Nine could do if they had been betrayed.


    The two Transcendents entered the room without knocking. The captain trained the machinegun in his hands at Nine. Koni Dral entered behind Fevl, her pistols trained on Nine too. More of the crew followed her in.


    The captain, smiling, said, ¡°There¡¯s been a change of plans. We do give you thanks for getting my cousins past the blockade at Ma Aom, but instead of flying you to Isb for free, we¡¯ve decided to sell you Peerless dogs to the Kaw¡¯n Federation.¡±


    Just as John was about to attack, Nine signaled for him to stand down. John thought that was the wrong move. He hoped Nine knew what he was doing.


    <hr>


    It didn¡¯t seem like Nine knew what he was doing. After being handed off to the Kaw¡¯n Federation, before being bound, gagged, and fitted with collars, Nine lied and told the kaw¡¯ns that he and John were full Oli and sworn to the Peerless Empire. A third-tier Transcendent kaw¡¯n just laughed.


    Escaped Kahaka were supposed to be given refugee status by the races belonging to the Sector Council, and the kaw¡¯ns were a race of the council. John kept his mouth shut. He assumed Nine had to know something he didn¡¯t.


    Before he had the collar placed on his neck, his captors made John empty out his bracer. They took all his crystals and two of his mats but let him keep his two swords and shield. The same was done to Nine.


    The collars restricted access to essence. It didn¡¯t cut off access, but it made it nearly impossible to reach and manipulate, and trying to do so caused great pain. And with the band of suffering necklace John wore, it became even harder for him to access his essence.


    The two Li were kept in the brig, in separate, dark, and sound-proof cells. John knew they made a jump and, later, he thought they may have entered internetworks. It was easy to tell when a ship jumped to a nav beacon though hopping through internetworks was hard to differentiate from jumping.


    No food was brought to either prisoner. No one went to question them. They were just left alone. The bindings holding John¡¯s hands behind his back that connected to his ankles had no give at all, and there was no chance of escaping them.


    Meditation became very difficult, but not impossible, and John whittled away the time inside of himself, often visiting Avatar, and manipulating external energy.


    John tried using energy to force his bindings apart but had no luck. Nothing useful to help with his situation could be done with this energy but manipulating it increased his control of it. He tried forming it into various shapes and tested how long he could maintain the forms.


    John also put some thought into a fast casting [Ultimate]. His current one was far too slow. But the faster the cast time, the less damage it would do and the less it would take from his foes.


    If John had to guess, about two weeks went by before the cell was opened and his head was covered with a hood and his ankles were freed from his bindings. His orb-eye could still see everything. He was put on a shuttle with Nine and flown down to a planet. Without the eyes of his head being able to see, he had no access to the info function of the NCS. He did have to study the planets of the sector during academy, and he recognized the planet he was descending towards.


    It was named Thecla and was the largest and most important free world in the sector. No race controlled the planet. The Peerless claimed it was a lawless place, a hive of villainy, filled with pirates, scum, and the depraved.


    The planet was many times larger and had gravity significantly higher than Earth. If he was remembering correctly, most people not C-grade or Bronze tier or higher would have heart issues in such gravity and could die if too much time was spent subjected to it.


    Earth had slightly lower gravity than Gani. Earth and Gani had a very similar atmosphere, whereas Thecla had much more oxygen, carbon dioxide, and argon, and much less nitrogen.


    That¡¯s all John could remember besides that Vodalus was the biggest city of Thecla. The city he and Nine were brought to was large, but he had no idea if it was Vodalus or not. Once the shuttle landed at a port, he was walked to a hovercraft and driven a good distance away.


    John had no view outside the craft. When it stopped, he exited into some sort of warehouse filled with goods and took an elevator down many floors before he was redeposited into a dark room, pushed to the ground near Nine, and had his ankles bound again.


    It would be easy to track time through the NCS, but John didn¡¯t see the point in knowing such specifics. No water or food was brought to him or Nine. The longer he went without food or water, the more his body drew on his vital essence. He wasn¡¯t worried. He could go a lot longer before his body forced him into a coma-like state.


    The same was not true for Nine. He knew his friend needed a special kind of food, and if the biosynth went too long without any, he had to use the essence of his dantian to power his body. Nine would go into something like a hibernation-mode soon after the essence within his dantian expired and could die if he remained in that state for too long.


    If John had to guess, a little over a week passed before the door opened. Two Transcendents and a Silver entered. His hood and gag were removed.


    The mid-low Transcendent was an umpanian. The low Transcendent was a raloin. The Silver was a kaw¡¯n. The raloin said, ¡°I hope you¡¯ve enjoyed the accommodations so far. I don¡¯t believe you¡¯ve been welcomed yet, so welcome to the Great Ring of Vodalus, the finest stadium in the whole sector. The games put on here are known to be the best and most entertaining. Oh, by the way, I¡¯m Gnahad, your new owner.¡±


    If John couldn¡¯t escape, he could at least show he wasn¡¯t intimidated or bothered, and still in good spirits after being left alone for so long with no food, water, or means to dispose of his waste hygienically. He put on his best smile and said, ¡°Hello. Thanks for the welcome. Wow, you look very fierce with all those cybernetics. Just the sight of you has me cowed. I¡¯d bow but I¡¯m bound up at the moment. I hope we didn¡¯t cost you too much.¡±


    Nine didn¡¯t look as if imprisonment agreed with him and remained silent.


    Gnahad tried to mask his annoyance. The cybernetic lizards of Raloin didn¡¯t have normal human facial expressions, but the eyes showed enough.


    ¡°Oh, the cost was significant,¡± replied Gnahad. ¡°Thankfully, Peerless dogs dying in the prime event is a big draw. Many people fly to Vodalus to see such a beautiful thing. You were a good investment.¡±


    ¡°Good to hear,¡± said John. ¡°I was worried for a second there. By Peerless dogs do you mean escaped Kahaka? You know the Peerless don¡¯t give the worlds they conquer much of a choice in the conquering, right? And if we do manage to escape from them, being forced to be Kahaka is still held against us? That¡¯s not cool. Honestly, it seems rather harsh.¡±


    Gnahad laughed. ¡°Next time, don¡¯t get conquered. Or choose death before being made into a dog. You¡¯re wearing one of their suits. Your companion said you¡¯re both true and full Peerless, not even their dogs. I have the recording of this statement. Harsh or not, fair or not, people love watching Peerless dogs die, and I am a great believer in giving the people what they want. Well, as long as they¡¯re willing to pay crystals to get it.¡±


    Gnahad turned to the Silver and said, ¡°Arbiter, please, proceed.¡±


    The kaw¡¯n stepped forward and asked, ¡°Has any possession of either of yours been taken from you against your will?¡±


    It was easy to check a storage device by touch. While bound, John still had access to it, though the collar made it much harder to even just feel for the contents. Both of his swords and his shield were in his bracer. All his other items were still worn. He said, ¡°Yes, all of my crystals and two of my mats,¡± right after Nine said, ¡°My crystals.¡±


    The Silver asked, ¡°Was that before or after reaching Thecla?¡±


    Both John and Nine said, ¡°Before.¡±


    The Silver turned to John and asked, ¡°Do you consent to taking an injection of an unknown substance before entering the arena tonight?"


    Before John could reply, Gnahad said, ¡°Say yes or rot in here until you¡¯re willing to.¡±


    John asked the Silver, ¡°Do you consent to the Challenge of the Mighty Khaga?¡±


    The Silver looked surprised and turned to look at Gnahad. The raloin laughed and said, ¡°She¡¯s an Arbiter and here in that capacity only. Don¡¯t bother offering the challenge to me or anyone else. If you¡¯re so hot to fight and die, you¡¯ll get more chances than you could ever want in the arena. Consent or rot in this cell.¡±


    John nodded his head.


    ¡°Consent verbally, so she can record it,¡± demanded Gnahad.


    ¡°I consent,¡± said John. He¡¯d much rather fight in an arena than continue to be tied up in a room.


    The Silver turned to Nine and asked, ¡°Do you consent to wearing and not attempting to remove this device on a collar around your neck before entering the arena tonight?¡±


    Nine spoke in a weak voice. ¡°That¡¯s an electromagnetic disruptor. I¡¯ll wear it if I¡¯m given food rich in nickel oxyhydroxide, zinc, mercury oxide, and lithium. And water.¡±


    John said, ¡°I would like some water too, please.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll be given water on the way to the arena,¡± stated the raloin. He looked at Nine. ¡°If the lack of those substances is making you weak, staying in here without them won¡¯t help.¡±


    ¡°Then no,¡± replied Nine. ¡°I will not consent until I am given the sustenance I require. In lieu of food, I will accept a couple portable computer devices. Most types would suffice.¡±


    Gnahad laughed. ¡°Stay here and rot then. I have a feeling you¡¯ll give a different answer next week. If you¡¯re still alive.¡±

 B3 Chapter 46 - Good

    The water was hot, brackish, and had a very strange taste to it, but it still sated John¡¯s thirst. And having the bindings removed felt wonderful.


    John gripped Defiance and Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra as a heavy stone lift steadily rose him up to the arena. Just by the feel of the crowd, he knew he was in a stadium large enough to rival the new ones he had seen on Earth said to fit 100,000 people or more. Once his head crested the floor, he saw the stadium was filled. The noise such a large crowd made was staggering.


    Once the lift clicked into place, John moved off it, just in case. The crowd was very enthusiastically booing. Some tried throwing debris at him, but all items sparked and sizzled as they hit the field surrounding the arena. Even if that field wasn¡¯t there, all the items would¡¯ve fallen far short of their target since the ring was so large.


    An announcer¡¯s voice blasted throughout the stadium. ¡°The primary event tonight is brought to you by Citizens Alliance Against Rot and Decay. Every year we lose more rights. Every year slaves are given more and more rights. If this foolishness doesn¡¯t stop, and soon, everyone¡¯ll want to be slaves. Visit an Alliance representative to learn more about their mission and which candidates to vote in and which scum to vote out.


    ¡°And now, on to the event you¡¯ve all come to see ¨C a dog of the Peerless being ripped apart and eaten by the vicious beasts known as chompers, max legal spread, twenty raltiel of Vorn!¡±


    The crowd went wild with cheering. John got into his battle-mind. As the world slowed and he looked down upon himself, he adjusted his breathing and cycling techniques, tough to do while wearing the collar that blocked his access to essence. He tried casting a buff but only received painful backlash from the collar. He just couldn¡¯t manipulate his essence enough to cast anything. Neither could he force essence into his cloak, Adumbration, get one of his bolters to move at all, or activate [Slowing Aura].


    Twenty blocks of the floor disappeared. The announcers slowly said something John ignored. He had been given an injection of something his body considered poisonous shortly before being allowed to drink the brackish water. He had about three quarters worth of vital essence before that. Since receiving that injection, it had almost been reduced to half and was going surprisingly fast.


    John didn¡¯t know what he¡¯d be facing. He had never heard of chompers or raltiel. Using vital essence to enhance himself would¡¯ve been nice, but not a good idea. He could need all his vital essence to fight off the poison since there was a lot of it in his body, and it made him feel strange, shaky, weak, and slow.


    John extended his senses as far down the empty holes as he could. The creatures were large and had blood. That was good. For some reason, the word chomper made him think of some sort of monster made of rock.


    It was a relief to know the creatures had blood, but John still decided to hold off on using vital essence for now. He could do nothing else but wait for the creatures to appear. And when they did, his heart sank, and he knew he was in real trouble. Good, he thought. He¡¯d either rise to the challenge and prove himself in this battle or die gloriously.


    The best way John could describe the creatures would be as a mix of tiger and crocodile, but much larger. The body was long and went straight into a thick tail, like a crocodile, and the legs went out to the side and jointed as a crocodile¡¯s own legs, but they were much, much longer.


    The body was covered in fur, and it had a neck. The head looked strange and monstrous. Not really like a tiger¡¯s head but closer to that than anything else John could think of. Their eyes crackled with some sort of electricity. Their maws were oversized for the large heads, and he thought chomper was a great nickname for the beasts even without having to see them chomp anything. He was certain it was a task they excelled at.


    The tier of the beasts ranged from Silver to Salt. Two were Salt, two were Diamond, two were Platinum, and one was Silver. All 13 of the rest were Golds. The announcer finished saying something as the 20 stone lifts the chompers rode up on snapped into place. The crowd renewed their cheers as the chains fell away from the beasts.


    The chompers all got low to the ground as they stared at John, purring maliciously, ready to pounce. John beat them to it by jumping at the closest one, a Salt. And that chomper let him know that was the wrong move as it shot some sort of beam out of its eyes that hit John and halted his momentum in the air, causing him to crash into the stone floor.


    Part of the beam attack was returned to the chomper due to the [Auto-Reflect] NCU. The [Auto-Shield] NCU handled the rest of it, so John took no damage. He still had the [Auto-Shield] from his armor too.


    The same chomper immediately pounced at John¡¯s prone body. He kipped up and slashed its face with Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra, causing little damage to the Salt, but causing enough of a cut on its nose to halt its attack as it shook its head.


    Defiance blocked the face of a pouncing Gold. John sensed the Silver dashing at his exposed back before seeing it with his orb-eye right as he was pushing the Gold away with his shield. He unveiled his soul, pinning the attacking Silver to the ground.


    The Gold he had just batted away with his shield struggled to keep its feet. Many of the other Golds were slowed too. The Platinums looked like they could be affected, but it was hard to tell. It definitely had no effect on the Diamonds and Salts.


    The Salt near John unveiled its own soul. If John wasn¡¯t struggling against the poison in his system, he knew he¡¯d be able to completely ignore the pressure from the Salt. As he was, it halted him for a moment and slowed him, his knees nearly buckling.


    The last thing John could afford was being weakened during this fight. He wouldn¡¯t allow it. The poison couldn¡¯t be removed, but its effects could be ignored, just as he ignored pain. Good, he thought again. He wanted this fight to be as challenging as possible. The greater the odds stacked against him, the greater would be his victory, or the more glorious his end.


    John straightened, turned, and sunk Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra deeply into the head of the Silver, killing it, but causing the sword to catch and he struggled to remove it.


    The nearby Salt discharged an area of effect power around it, and it crackled with some sort of electricity, hurting the nearby Gold and causing John¡¯s armor¡¯s [Auto-Shield] to activate as he rolled out of the electrical field while smashing the edge of his shield against the Gold¡¯s skull, cracking it open and killing the beast as he rolled by.


    As John got to his feet, an eye-beam nearly got him. He barely managed to twist away from it and bring his shield up to block the head of a Diamond pouncing at him. As soon as the head hit the shield, he spun to the side of the beast while whipping his sword around and sending a line of blue light extending outwards from the blade to cut deeply into the head of an approaching Gold. The beast fell to the ground and twitched violently in its death throes.


    The blade energy John could release wasn¡¯t nearly as strong as he¡¯d be able to make it if not for the collar around his neck, as it made manipulating external energy harder too. Harder, but not impossible. His sword was made for the deed, still assisting and increasing the power of what was released.


    Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.


    From the side of the Diamond chomper he just spun to the side of, John used his momentum to slide under the beast, and with as much strength as he could muster one-handed, he dug Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra along its soft belly, causing a long slash and the beast to roar in pain, but not doing enough damage to stop the monster.


    Once out from under the Diamond, John rolled and impaled another Gold in the head with Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra, deftly removed the sword as he ran past, took out a Platinum with a blade energy attack that blew out its neck and ducked behind the other Diamond to block the beam attack of a Salt.


    As the beam attacked landed on its hide, the Diamond roared in pain as it released the strange electric power around itself, and John was fully caught in the attack. It removed what remained of his armor¡¯s [Auto-Shield] and caused the prefill [Emergency Heal] to activate.


    John released blade energy into the beast¡¯s side at point-blank range, taking a large chunk out of it. The beast bucked like a horse in surprise.


    John jumped in the air, sword high over his head, preparing to release a new blade energy attack. Right after blocking a beam attack with his shield, his sword hit the invisible energy field surrounding the arena.


    This caused John to shoot down towards the ground like a bullet. He was sent down at such a great speed he could do nothing but crash into the ground, only managing to twist a little and take the brunt of the impact with his shield while barely managing to keep hold of it and his sword.


    John rolled away from a pouncing Salt, blocked a beam attack with his shield, dove under another as he got his feet, and ended the roll he had just dove into by slicing a Gold¡¯s head open with Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra.


    Since jumping high wasn¡¯t an option, John kept mobile and avoided the Diamonds and Salts as he killed the remaining Golds and Platinums. He took a beam attack that caused his [Emergency Heal] to go on cooldown but still left a large wound in his chest. Without any NCUs left to assist, when he was caught in a crackling electric-field discharge, it left his left arm, side, head, and chest burnt and injured.


    John noticed any beast that released the electrical field around themselves hadn¡¯t done so twice. The remaining enemies, two Diamonds and two Salts, were now wary of him, scared of his bite. Not one of them was unmarked by John, though all four were in good fighting shape, and not scared enough to run.


    Good, thought John.


    As the next one pounced, a Diamond, John cut its neck open a little, the best he could do even with his mighty sword. He dropped his shield and sword, wrapped his arms around its neck as he twisted to its side, and pulled the giant and heavy beast on top of himself. His vital essence was almost out due to the poison. He wanted to fix that issue, and do so safely, using the massive beast as a blanket and shield.


    When John pushed the dead beast off of himself, he was greeted by the large maw of the other Diamond chomping down towards him. He caught its upper jaw with his right hand and its lower jaw with his left, its fangs biting deep into his palms. He sent vital essence to strengthen himself as much as possible. He prayed he was right about the beasts not being able to use the electrical-field attack more than once.


    With a mighty effort and a yell of fury, John pushed the beast¡¯s head back and struggled to his feet. He put his right foot in its open mouth and pushed down, moving his left hand to its upper jaw. He now had enough leverage to crack its mouth wide open. He did so, dislocating its lower jaw. He left the whining creature on the ground as he dove away from a beam attack and twisted away from a pouncing Salt. He punched the beast as it went by, and it flew through the air to slam into the ground five paces away as he immediately dove away from a new beam attack.


    The dive ended in a roll, and John had to roll again, barely avoiding the next beam attack. He grabbed Defiance and hid behind it just in time to catch the next beam on it. He rolled back the way he had just come from, grabbing Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra as he passed.


    After catching the next beam attack from the Salt that was releasing them like mad, he slashed his sword towards the other Salt that was preparing to pounce again. The creature was right at the edge of his range, but the energy still caught the beast, making a slice on its face and causing the chomper to roar in pain or frustration.


    More blade energy was released at the closer Salt in front of him. The one releasing all the beam attacks. After the first hit, the Salt backpedaled and John rushed it, releasing blade energy as he ran, having to slide under a beam attack of the other Salt.


    Once John reached the backpedaling beast, he rammed into it with Defiance braced in front of him, knocking the beast over with its sharp claws digging into the air madly as it tried to right itself. With all the power and strength that he could muster, Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra was driven deep into the chomper¡¯s belly.


    John fell on top of the beast to avoid a beam attack. As he kept low, he bashed Defiance into the exposed neck of the struggling creature over and over until something broke and the beast died. As he tried to withdraw his sword from the beast, he had to give up the task and roll away to avoid the last remaining chomper pouncing at him.


    After rolling away and getting to his feet, John noticed the beast was preparing to loose a beam attack so he jumped forward and threw his shield at his enemy¡¯s head. The beast avoided the shield by hopping aside, but the beam was still released.


    John, in the air and only a couple paces away, had the wrong momentum to avoid the beam. It was going to tag him straight on. Having no choice in the matter, in the mindset only the risk of death in the heat of battle can bring, without really thinking about it, more reacting than acting, he pushed and pushed on his essence, and this caused the collar to generate painful feedback he ignored and fought through.


    Luckily, just in the nick of time, John forced [Slip] to manifest, and he slipped through the shadows towards the chomper, avoiding its beam.


    The pain the collar caused made John dizzy with pain but did no lasting damage he could detect. He grabbed the beast and wrestled with it, punching its head over and over as he ignored its mighty paw swipes. He held tightly onto its neck with one hand to push the beast¡¯s head backwards and prevent more beam-attacks.


    Like with most things, once something that couldn¡¯t be done was done, it became easier to do on the next and all subsequent attempts.


    Now that John could bypass the collar, he could¡¯ve killed the Salt with [Flawless Glyph of Plasma Barrage]. A bolter would¡¯ve probably done the trick too. He didn¡¯t want that. He wanted to beat the beast into submission with his fists and take all his annoyance and frustrations out on it. And he wanted to take what he could from his enemy.


    Once the beast was beaten silly and stilled, John fed on it while draining the essence within its dantian too, causing his collar to smoke. When the beast was dead, he collected Defiance and Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra and did the same to the Diamond whose jaw he dislocated. The Salts were too large to raise as minions, as were the Diamonds, but not the Platinums and others. He raised five as minions.


    Since John didn¡¯t know what would come next, he stood and waited, bathing in the glory of victory as the angry crowd booed him and threw items at him. Items that would never reach him.


    After long minutes, the announcer¡¯s voice boomed throughout the stadium. ¡°This Peerless dog is too stupid to know it¡¯s dead. It looks like the good citizens of Vodalus and guests will get an extra show tonight. Hold a few moments as correctly rated AREBs are gathered and brought. They¡¯ll turn this dog into mincemeat.


    ¡°For our visitors, AREBs are Anti-Riot Enforcement Bots. There¡¯ll be 20 with max legal spread. Two rated against peak Salt, two rated against peak Diamond, and two against Platinum. If you didn¡¯t know, even dogs made into slaves have rights here, even those condemned to death in the ring. Strict laws govern what numbers and tiers this dog can face at one time in the arena. No Transcendent can ever attack a Mortal unless attacked first.


    ¡°This seems like a very apt moment to remind you of tonight¡¯s sponsor, the Citizens Alliance Against Rot and Decay. Every year¡­¡±


    John stopped listening. Good, he thought again. He welcomed a new challenge. Li weren¡¯t allowed to ascend to Gold until bought by a kauwa. If he were to get into trouble for breaking the rules, he¡¯d first have to live an escape back to the Peerless. Until then, he¡¯d give the audience their money¡¯s worth. And he¡¯d try to give his captors the biggest headache he possibly could.


    John¡¯s dantian was full. His foundation had settled many, many months ago. There was no good reason not to gain as much power as possible.


    John sat with his legs crossed, his hands on his thighs, and entered a light meditation. He pictured his dantian and pictured himself standing in front of it, as large as he could picture himself. He bent under his dantian and placed it fully on his shoulders and back, much the same as the Titan Atlas was said to do with the heavens.


    And John began ascending to Gold tier.

 B3 Chapter 47 - Born for War

    John¡¯s eyes opened as a glowing net was shot at him. Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra sliced through it and the two parts of the no longer glowing net safely passed by his body. He was already standing, his real body mimicking his imaginary one, holding his dantian high on his shoulders. He hadn¡¯t finished ascending to Gold and the pain in his belly was nearly unbearable. It hurt so badly he could hardly think about anything else.


    Good, thought John. The best lessons in life were the hardest and most painful to learn. He would have to endure the agony and fight the robots while ascending. Twenty of the giant things were arrayed against him. Even as robots, they felt powerful. His minions were already attacking.


    When John¡¯s bindings were removed, he had stolen some cube-like technological devices from his guards before taking water. Those were for Nine. Once he destroyed the robots, he¡¯d take as much of what was left of them as he could as further gifts for his friend.


    While keeping most of his mind on ascending, John entered into his battle-mind and whipped energy at the closest robot. Even knowing he could cast manifestations despite the collar, he wouldn¡¯t risk it while still ascending.


    It was a very tough battle that became a little easier with the destruction of each subsequent AREB. Ascending while battling was not an easy thing. The extreme pain was very distracting and not easy to think and function through, and neither was keeping his mind on ascending while fighting. His minions were a big help until they all died for the second time.


    And the fight became even easier once John¡¯s system was fully purged of the poison, he fully ascended to Gold, he could freely cast manifestations, and he could use Adumbration and his bolters.


    After those giant AREBs came twenty more of the same, except there was only one rated against Golds, two against Diamonds, and two against Salts. The other 15 were rated against Platinums.


    John raised new minions from the remaining chomper corpses ¨C six this time, two from Diamond corpses, and four from Golds. His bolters tore through the Platinum rated AREBs as he avoided the attacks of the higher-rated ones.


    The crowd was furious and half-crazed at the defiant Peerless dog that wouldn¡¯t die. Gladiators couldn¡¯t be gathered in time. Volunteers were called for from among the audience. Twenty angry citizens entered the arena, but only two were Salts and two were Diamonds still.


    John remembered what happened both times he used his old bracers while too low of a tier and without the resources to power it. He was left completely drained and had hardly been able to stand. He didn¡¯t think he had much choice but to risk finally utilizing Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra¡¯s manifestation.


    Luckily, John had enough essence to power it, but he was still left very drained. He was surrounded by a magenta-colored bubble as the sword let loose a sizzling brick-red ray that bent in strange ways to follow and destroy the Salt he targeted.


    Out of pure necessity, John utilized and pushed his [Slowing Aura] to its utmost, and even with that, he still took far too many hits and damage. When only a Diamond and Salt remained, with no opportunity to turn more corpses into minions and in desperate need for more essence and vital essence, he ended the fight with his [Ultimate], building it up in his left hand as he dodged and dove away from attacks.


    That battle ended with John injured and hardly able to stand, but alive.


    Then, as John collected everything he could from the corpses of his enemies, hundreds of small metal stands with revolving nozzles exited out of the stone floor. Those nozzles sprayed out burning mist that fogged up the whole arena.


    It caused John¡¯s skin to itch and turn red wherever it touched. It even began to damage his armor and items. His vital essence started to attack whatever of the substance got into his system, either through his skin or through breathing.


    It was some sort of acidic poison, but it also felt like a type of energy.


    Not having the option to do anything else, John cultivated the substance like mad. Surprisingly, it worked, and cleared the area around him even as more was sprayed in. As he cultivated the substance, turning it into essence and cycling it through his meridians, it also sickened him more and more as he did so.


    The ordeal lasted a very long while. Once it was finally over, the stadium was mostly empty, and John was mostly dead, on his side, vomiting, unable to open his eyes. The announcer announced an end to the night¡¯s event. If they thought he was dead, they were wrong.


    Not long after, unconsciousness finally took John to welcomed oblivion.


    <hr>


    John awoke in the dark room with Nine, once again bound, a new collar on his neck.


    As soon as he awakened, an Arbiter entered the room with a dozen guards and informed John all the possessions he took from the citizens he had defeated had to be emptied from his bracer and returned. If he refused, he¡¯d be executed. Property rights were inviolable on Thecla, and what he had taken from his dead enemies wasn¡¯t his own.


    John¡¯s collar was removed so he could empty his bracer. He removed almost everything but kept the cube devices he had stolen earlier along with some of the robot parts. His two swords, his shield, and the rest of the robot parts were all left on the floor as the Arbiter and guards collected the rest, then turned the lights off and exited.


    The acidic poison was still in John¡¯s system. He felt terrible and the essence in his dantian felt sickly. His vital essence he had taken from others was completely depleted, which made him feel far worse and far too lethargic. Good, he thought. He had no choice but to ignore how sickly and tired he felt as his body fed off his own vital essence.


    John¡¯s biosuit, his helmet, the robes he wore under his armor, his gloves, and his boots were all in bad shape, not yet having had the time to repair from the burning substance.


    But John was alive. He visited Avatar to see how his ascension went.


    Avatar smiled and said, ¡°Congratulations on Gold. Quite the pickle my silly boy¡¯s in.¡±


    ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ve been in worse,¡± replied John.


    ¡°You really are a strange boy. Your emotions haven¡¯t shown readings this positive for such a duration since I¡¯ve been recording.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no time for anything else but focus and fighting,¡± said John, smiling, ¡°and the promise of more strong enemies to come. That one guy that talked trash before the battle started¡­it went perfectly. I got to tell him, ¡®I win, you lose,¡¯ before I killed him. I just¡­for whatever reason, I love telling someone that so much, even if they¡¯re already dead. I love winning so much.¡±


    Avatar laughed. ¡°Maybe your people were prophets. You really seem to have been born for war.¡±


    ¡°Damn right I was. And the arena. I never could go all out and always had to hold back in the old days. This is how it should be. Pushed to my limit. Life wouldn¡¯t be so terrible if this was it. Me fighting in this arena. It almost makes me wish Nine was safe away and only I was here.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m glad my strange, silly boy is happy. I have some¡­well, not bad news. We¡¯ll call it a miracle since you were fighting a battle through half your ascension. It didn¡¯t go quite as well as we projected it would go if you had ascended in peace, but it went stupendously well considering. A true miracle.¡±


    Avatar glitched for a moment then said, ¡°The projection was 12.52. All your [Stats] but [Runes] increased by 11.74. Keep in mind, 11.74 for eight [Stats] is still a ridiculous amount more than other terrans receive ascending to Gold.¡±


    John still didn¡¯t like losing out on power, but a little less than one minimum energy unit wasn¡¯t too bad at all.


    ¡°You also received the Gold [Perk] which increased each [Stat] by 3. Again, besides [Runes]. Interested in learning the changes ascension to Gold did to your body?¡±


    ¡°Not in the least.¡±


    ¡°Thought so,¡± replied Avatar. ¡°The formation part of [Leech Body of the Morning''s Glory] increased [Physical] and [Elemental Fortification] by 10, and [Strength] and [Swiftness] by 5. For some more good news, ascending to Gold increased your soft caps quite a bit. For bad news, you have a few [Stats] creeping up on the projected soft cap.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Avatar. I really want to get back out there so I¡¯m skipping my summary.¡±


    Avatar scoffed. ¡°Really? You received the channel [Achievement] we¡¯ve had to suppress until this tier. It was upgraded from brilliant to radiant. You don¡¯t even want to see that?¡±


    Avatar glitched again, worrying John. He said, ¡°I¡¯ll look at everything later. I¡¯m kind of in war-mode and I don¡¯t want to lose it by reading and calming down. Let¡¯s see if I can escape this collar first.¡±


    Avatar put her hands on her hips. Looking miffed, she said, ¡°I can¡¯t believe my silly boy won¡¯t even glance at his summary after ascending. No. You¡¯ll look. What kind of silly boy nonsense would make you even think you¡¯d skip a summary? Not my silly boy, not on my watch!¡±


    Unwanted, the summary and notifications appeared.


    <table width="563">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="165">Tier/Level/Race</td>


    <td width="398">5 (Mortal) (Gold), 21 (Low), Terran-D</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Active Title</td>


    <td>Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Aspects/Affinities</td>


    <td width="398">Vampirism (99.999%) (Major), Change (98%) (Major), Protection (96%) (Major), Battle* (97%) (Average), Shadow (98%) (Average)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>NCU Energy Cost</td>


    <td>133% (-87.3%)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="3" width="165">Active NCU Upgrades</td>


    <td rowspan="3" width="398">Nano Assistance, Emergency Heal, Theta Waves, Heal Delta A, Heal Delta B, Inexorable, Refractory, Nano Support C, Nano Support D, Lock and Key, Scuta Mater, Encase, Mata Support A, Reactive, Swift, Cooldown Reduction, Record 1</td>


    </tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="8">NCU Expansion Upgrades</td>


    <td>7 of 16 slots opened, 0 slots empty</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>1) Theta Enhancement ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>2) Auto-Reflect ¨C T1C+</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>3) Swiftness Efficiency ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>4) Auto-Shield ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>5) Emergency Heal, Prefill ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>6) Reactive ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>7) NCU Cooldown Reduction ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>STATS</td>


    <td>[Effective] Current (Increase)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Strength</td>


    <td>[35%, 318.47] 235.90 (19.74)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Swiftness</td>


    <td>[42.04%, 334.87] 235.76 (19.74)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Conditioning</td>


    <td>[42%, 329.61] 232.12 (14.74)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Min. Power</td>


    <td>[22%, 236.69] 194.01 (14.74)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Capacity</td>


    <td>[23%, 226.79] 184.38 (14.74)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Runes</td>


    <td>[20%, 353.92] 294.93 (10.41)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Physical Fortification</td>


    <td>[37%, 338.09] 246.78 (24.74)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Elemental Fortification</td>


    <td>[34%, 330.95] 246.98 (24.74)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Mental Fortification</td>


    <td>[20%, 270.05] 225.04 (14.74)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td colspan="2"> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="4">Highest Skills</td>


    <td>[Leech Feckless Retreat Technique] 96.49*</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Mixed Navigation] 94.28</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Mixed Style Swords] 93.88</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>[Mixed Stealth] 89.59</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Synergy Skills</td>


    <td>Obscured</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Class</td>


    <td>Unknown, Obscured</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="5">Perks</td>


    <td rowspan="5" width="398">Orb of the Crimson Palace, Dynamic, Physical, Potent, Protected, Strong, Fast, Healthy, Quick Thinking*, Resilient, Powerful, Expansive, Harden, Resistant, Soulful, Good Genes*, Leech Body of the Morning''s Glory, Regeneration, Mutating, Bronze, Fibrilized*, Lightweight, Cloak Essence, Stalwart Vessel, Silver, Picture of Health*, Slowing Aura, Gold</td>


    </tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="3">Manifestations</td>


    <td rowspan="3" width="398">Vampirism, Draining Blade, Drain Essence, Hide, Multi-Enhancement, Multi-Shield, Puppet, Reflect, Shadow Spray, Slip, Spoil</td>


    </tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Glyphs</td>


    <td width="398">Flawless Glyph of Darkflame Jet, Flawless Glyph of Plasma Barrage</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Last Achievement</td>


    <td>Archaea 3 - D</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Highest Achievement</td>


    <td>SSUR Body - SSUR</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Titles</td>


    <td width="398">Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar, Blessed by Unnamed Exalted, Blessed by Unnamed Exalted 2, Ptagmog, Multi-Record Holder (System), Multi-Trailblazer (System)</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    -Start Notifications


    *Obscured suspected Synergy skills and last known rating.


    Manifestation Control: Vampirism ¨C 53


    Mind: Runic Knowledge ¨C 72, Essence Manipulation ¨C 49, External Energy Manipulation ¨C 31


    Body: Mixed Combat Offense ¨C 87.36, Mixed Body Control ¨C 87.06, Mixed Combat Defense ¨C 83.23


    Inner-Power/Soul: Leech Feckless Retreat Technique ¨C 96.49, Breath of the Serpent Clan Endless Technique ¨C 47, Turmoil Within Tranquility Cycling Technique ¨C 46


    21 tracked skills changed, 18 of interest. Scaled summary per notability/interest user profile.


    Grandmaster: Mixed Style Swords ¨C 93.88(.01)


    Master: Mixed Stealth ¨C 89.59(1)


    Adept: Flawless Glyph of Darkflame Jet ¨C 67.92(.02), Unbind Defense ¨C 61.49(1.3), Hide ¨C 66.44(.03), Heal - 61.15(.04), Mixed Style Unarmed - 61.07(.1)


    Expert: Drain Essence - 58(1), Unbind Manifestation - 58(2), Soul Veil - 57(2), Multi-Enhancement - 56(1), Slip - 56(1), Multi-Shield - 52(2), Puppet - 49(1), Flawless Glyph of Plasma Barrage - 44(2)


    Journeyman: Draining Blade - 34(1)


    Apprentice: Manifestation Defense ¨C 29(1)


    Novice: Cage of Take Everything Ultimate ¨C 12(1)


    Unrated Perk attained: Gold


    17 common Achievement attained for a cumulative [NCU Energy Cost] reduction of .1%. Focus <u>here</u> to see each individually.


    3 notable Achievements attained.


    ¡®Radiant Channels¡¯ attained (S-Rated). Temper channels to near perfection during Gold tier, 0.70 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 86.7%.


    ¡®Gorilla 3¡¯ attained (D-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 300 Minimum Energy Units with the Strength Stat, 0.30 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 87%.


    ¡®Archaea 3¡¯ attained (D-Rated). Attain an effective rating of 300 Minimum Energy Units with the Elemental Fortification Stat, 0.30 [NCU Energy Cost] reduction, cumulative 87.3%.


    Note: ¡®Manipulator¡¯ Achievement on hold until Diamond tier requirement obtained.


    End notifications-


    John did his best not to look at the summary. He needed to retain the right mindset. He couldn¡¯t keep himself from looking at how much his sword [Skill] increased. He assumed his fight against his clone would¡¯ve increased it by more, and he was very disappointed to see it barely increased at all. What do I have to do to increase that more, he wondered.


    John wished Avatar would stop acting so strangely. I¡¯m not a silly boy. I wish she¡¯d stop calling me that. He said, ¡°Okay. I¡¯m leaving, Avatar.¡±


    ¡°Have fun. Remember your duty and the collective mission. Your actions and inactions help or hinder the collective mission. We shall achieve core.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Avatar. For everything you do to help me. I couldn¡¯t ask for a better friend to have. But I¡¯m not a silly boy.¡±


    Out of his Mind¡¯s Eye, John immediately began to force his essence to cast [Heal], nearly blacking out due to the pain the backlash caused him. And kept doing so long past when the spell helped heal him. He did it until his collar sparked and broke. He cast [Multi-Enhancement] and pushed against his bindings. With his new [Stats] and the bonus his buff gave him, he felt some give. He continued to push against his bindings, and they extended little by little.


    It took a great amount of time, but the bindings eventually burst. John removed his hood and gag and went to Nine. Freeing his friend from his bindings took much less time, but was still not easy, even with Nine¡¯s own help.


    John took the two devices he stole plus the robot parts out of his bracer. ¡°Do these have the substances you need,¡± asked John.


    Without answering, Nine sorted through the goods, broke them open, and took specific parts into his mouth. Once he finished, he collected what remained in his bracer and said, ¡°Thank you. I was severely weakened.¡±


    ¡°No problem. You¡¯d do the same for me. Sorry, I didn¡¯t manage to get any water for you.¡±


    ¡°Unnecessary,¡± replied Nine. ¡°I was able to imbibe plenty from the liquids within these components.¡±


    ¡°What happened,¡± asked John. ¡°Why¡¯d you tell them we were full Peerless?¡±


    After Nine spit out something that clanked on the floor, he said, ¡°Oli prisoners can be used as bargaining chips to trade for, ransom, or gain concessions. Kahaka prisoners aren¡¯t worth anything. If they believed me, we¡¯d be back in the Peerless Empire.¡±


    John thought that made some sense, and if it went any differently, he wouldn¡¯t be fighting in this arena, so he wasn¡¯t going to complain. ¡°How are you with essence? Can you ascend,¡± he asked.


    ¡°We¡¯re not allowed to ascend yet. Not until belonging to a kauwa. I see you have.¡±


    John laughed. ¡°We¡¯ll take our lumps for that if we manage to survive and return to the Peerless. Until then, we¡¯re in survival and war-mode. Platinum to Diamond¡¯s a big jump in power and we need all the power we can get. I have some crystals squirreled away in my sash if you need to fill your dantian more.¡±


    ¡°First, tell me what happened. I heard the Arbiter. You killed citizens?¡±


    John quickly recounted what happened, including specifics of the enemies and tiers he faced. Instead of the tale convincing Nine to ascend, Nine convinced John that¡¯d be a bad idea. As a Platinum, Nine believed he¡¯d only be forced to fight two Salts. As a Diamond, he¡¯d be forced to fight 19 Salts and one Diamond.


    There was no chance of escaping through the reinforced doors and walls made to hold much higher tiers than John and Nine were. Thankfully, Nine was willing to let John feed on some of his strange blood and fill up his vital essence a little.


    A few days passed before Gnahad entered with a half dozen Exalted guards and an Arbiter. ¡°I see you¡¯ve escaped the bindings. Don¡¯t be stupid and attack. Slaves attacking citizens is a death sentence. I won¡¯t be able to stop it and the last thing I want is for you two to die. By execution, I mean. And just so you know, the cost of every broken collar or binding comes out of your winnings.¡±


    The raloin turned to Nine and said, ¡°I hope you¡¯re as powerful as the terran, Yellow. People are still talking about that strange attack he ended the last match with. Nothing like that has ever been seen! By the great fires of Djina, we¡¯re going to make a lot of money together! And while we¡¯re speaking of making money together, I never got your names, my friends.¡±


    Seeing no reason to be rude and seeing the raloin¡¯s soul wasn¡¯t nearly as dark as those of the truly despicable, said, ¡°John.¡±


    When Nine didn¡¯t answer, John added, ¡°And my friend here is Nine.¡±


    ¡°John and Nine. Nice to be officially introduced. I see you¡¯ve eaten some, Nine, or assume so judging by these parts littering the floor. I was going to let you both stew in hunger for a few more days. Make you more agreeable. Since you both seem agreeable enough, I don¡¯t see a good reason not to speed things along. Just so you know, slaves need permission to ascend. I could have you executed, John. Of course, I won¡¯t, but just try to be more cognizant of your place.¡±


    Gnahad took an item off his belt and spoke into it. ¡°Bring some food and drink down to my containment. The new one I rented. The one the new slaves are being held in. Just check the NCS for that. No, the Yellow has strange requirements. He recently ate anyway. And hurry that fat ass up.¡±


    ¡°Is it possible for me to get a live animal,¡± asked John. ¡°If there¡¯s no large beast on hand, many small rodents would do. Even one or two would help.¡±


    ¡°Sorry, we don¡¯t keep anything like that in these quarters,¡± replied Gnahad to John¡¯s disappointment.


    After returning the item to his belt and clapping his hands together excitedly, Gnahad said, ¡°But refreshments are on the way. Let this be the beginning of a long and lustrous relationship. Don¡¯t let the nonsense the sponsors spewed give you the wrong idea. The Citizens Alliance Against Rot and Decay are a bunch of elitist blowhards.


    ¡°Am I a member? Of course. They¡¯re right about a lot. But most citizens are one late payment from a stint of slavery and want slaves to have more rights, not less. Most here are constantly going in and out of slavery stints. That was my situation when I was younger and dumber too. And slaves don¡¯t have it so bad here. It¡¯s just another job. As long as they don¡¯t get stupid. Then they lose everything, including their lives.


    ¡°Tell you what ¨C if we can come to some sort of agreement I can be happy with and feel good about, and I¡¯m sure you both understand your position as slaves and what¡¯ll happen if you attack anyone, even other slaves, or try to escape, we¡¯ll get you set up with a far more comfortable living arrangement.¡±


    Gnahad paused for long enough that John felt he should give a reply. ¡°Sounds good to me, Exalted.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what I mean. While my slave, you need to reply with, ¡°Sounds good to me, Master.¡± Try to remember as it will help me feel better about making an agreement.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Master,¡± said John.


    ¡°See? Not so hard. Pretty easy. And let¡¯s get something clear right from the start ¨C any deal is contingent on you two fighting in the ring. Next fight is in a couple days. I hope you win. I want to milk this for all I can, as long as I can. I¡¯m in the extreme minority of people wanting to see you both stay alive. They¡¯re gathering all sorts of crazy shit to throw at you two. And¡­¡±


    Another raloin entered the room carrying a large tray of food and drink, a Salt, interrupting Gnahad. ¡°Where do you want this? There¡¯s no table. Oh, by the great fires of Djina, it stinks in here, Gnahad! Are you not letting them wash? We¡¯ll be fined!¡±


    Gnahad laughed and patted the new raloin on the rear. ¡°We¡¯re fine, my warm rock. Just set the tray down on the floor. If these two agree to behave and show they understand their situation and place, they¡¯ll be washing up soon enough.¡±

 B3 Chapter 48 - Whats Best in Life

    John, without much help from Nine, showed he knew how to behave and understood his place as a slave. Both vampire and biosynth were given a cell with a bed in Gnahad¡¯s gladiator pen.


    Plenty of food was provided, but John was never given live animals to feast upon. Since many strange rodent-like creatures ran around the cells, he was still able to top off his vital essence easily enough.


    Seeing no reason not to, and since he had far more than the required amount of harmony, John performed the ritual to gain the next [Perk] in the [SupraType] chain called [Inner and Outer]. The [Perk] reviewed and improved upon his integumentary and skeletal systems, increasing his [Conditioning], [Physical Fortification], and [Elemental Fortification] by 3, and the efficiencies of each respectively by 2%, 5%, and 3%.


    John would get his [Domain] soon too. Avatar projected he¡¯d have enough harmony without needing to merge old [Skills] in a very short amount of time. He just needed to live until then. And if he didn¡¯t receive any good [Achievements] beforehand to put him over the 87.5% NCU cost reduction cap, he was certain that [Perk] would do it, and he¡¯d soon know what new benefit he¡¯d receive going forward.


    Thecla was the only world within the sector with a large Transcendent population not belonging to a specific race, and the only world claiming neutrality. The majority of Exalteds that weren¡¯t sworn to any people, sect, or government made it their home.


    But that didn¡¯t mean Thecla was free of influence from the powers that be such as the Sector Council, the umpanian sects, and the Kaw¡¯n Federation. That the Peerless weren¡¯t welcomed on this world made that fact apparent. In the whole sector, only two neutral stations hadn¡¯t caved to pressure from the council and still allowed Peerless to dock and trade.


    As John and Nine prepared for their upcoming match, the fact that Thecla wasn¡¯t free of external politics was made more apparent as they overheard a kaw¡¯n arguing with Gnahad right outside the pens.


    ¡°You promised these dogs of the Peerless abominations would die in the arena. Tell me, slaver, why are they both still alive?¡±


    ¡°They will, Captain,¡± replied Gnahad. ¡°I don¡¯t pick the matches. Have you seen what the Great Ring Board and the sponsors have scheduled for them? Tell the admiral they¡¯ll probably die tonight.¡±


    The weird kaw¡¯n voice whined out, ¡°Probably? Probably? Why probably, slaver? And why was the one dog you had fight last week not poisoned before his match?¡±


    ¡°He was, Captain. Ask the Arbiters. The dose was documented. Max allowed for his tier.¡±


    ¡°If that were true, he¡¯d be dead now. My own Arbiter will ensure the same mistake isn¡¯t repeated tonight, slaver. If these Peerless dogs mysteriously survive again, this¡¯ll be the last time you buy from us. You raloins should never have been invited onto the council. You¡¯re all weak and without honor.¡±


    ¡°I was born on this world, Captain,¡± replied Gnahad calmly. ¡°I¡¯ve never set foot on Raloin. You and I made an agreement, and I¡¯ve kept my end of it. Your Arbiter will confirm. If these dogs live, blame the Great Ring Board and sponsors. I marked them for death. Condemnation by gladiator, beast, or ritual. That¡¯s all I can do.¡±


    Mandibles clicked angrily before the kaw¡¯n said, ¡°You lie, slaver.¡±


    Gnahad laughed. ¡°I lie, Captain? Did you even talk to the two you sold me? They claim to have escaped the Peerless. You know the Sector Council decreed all beings escaping the Peerless must be given refugee status.¡±


    ¡°You have the recording where the biosynth clearly stated he was a full Peerless, slaver. Don¡¯t try and play games with me.¡±


    ¡°So? Have you ever seen or heard of a non-Peerless Peerless? One¡¯s a biosynth and one¡¯s a terran. And they claim to have escaped. Did you ask the biosynth why he lied? I could record that, if you¡¯d like.¡±


    Loud clicking noises came from the kaw¡¯n for long seconds. ¡°Why are my people the only ones concerned about all the blasphemy in this sector? The Peerless are abominations. Terra is an abomination. You never once cared before if those you bought from us should be given refugee status. We have a recording of these dogs admitting they¡¯re full Peerless, and now you suddenly care? Why?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s obvious they lied,¡± replied Gnahad. ¡°Since I hold a great deal of respect for your admiral, and for the sake of the future business we¡¯ll engage in, I, of course, will continue to believe that lie. If I thought business would dry up, well, that¡¯s a different story. I¡¯d have no choice but to report to the Sector Council that I suspect the Kaw¡¯n Federation sold me refugees as slaves. Just to clear my good name, of course, Captain.¡±


    The strange mouth of the captain clicked in annoyance. He turned to his Arbiter and said, ¡°Make sure there¡¯re no further mistakes! I want these abominations to die in the arena tonight!¡± The kaw¡¯n walked quickly away, followed by his entourage.


    Nine had to wear a device that interrupted his functioning with electromagnetic pulses and caused the biosynth to often have sudden, jerky movements he couldn¡¯t control. John received poison rated for his new tier and a stronger collar rated for a Platinum. Both men had to agree to store and keep stored all their weapons and fight without them.


    John tested his collar as a stone platform lifted him and Nine up to the arena floor.


    ¡°The primary event tonight is brought to you by Citizens Alliance Against Rot and Decay. Every year we lose more rights. Every year slaves are given more and more rights. If this foolishness doesn¡¯t stop, and soon, everyone will want to be slaves. Visit an Alliance representative to learn more about their mission and which candidates to vote in and which scum to vote out.


    ¡°And now, on to the prime event ¨C two dogs of the Peerless! One you already know and hate. The Undying Dog! Yes, boo him. He deserves it. The Citizens Alliance Against Rot and Decay, at great personal expense, has brought the famously deadly screechers of Umpani to put down these dogs.¡±


    The audience went absolutely wild. ¡°A feast for your eyes! Three cheers for our sponsors, the Citizens Alliance Against Rot and Decay!¡±


    After a new round of cheering, the announcer said, ¡°Max legal spread! Four Salts, 19 Diamonds, 16 Platinums, and one Gold!¡±


    John had heard about screechers. The umpanians had many of the Beastmaster [Archetype] and the screechers famously couldn¡¯t be tamed. They were considered paper tigers ¨C deadly but not very durable. Like most beasts, screechers almost always manifested the same aspects ¨C ¡®shadow¡¯ at Bronze and Silver and ¡®sound¡¯ at Diamond.


    Screechers were the only native beast of Umpani capable of penetrating the thick hide of the umpanians with its fangs. They cloaked in shadow and usually killed with their first strike.


    Good, thought John. The poison was making him feel too sweaty, shaky, and weak. Good, he thought again. The harder they made it for him, the more glorious would be his victory, or the greater the chance his nightmare would finally end.


    John first fought through his collar¡¯s restriction. It was very difficult and caused a tremendous amount of pain that nearly brought him to his knees. After, he forced essence into his cloak, Adumbration. He cast his buffs, activated [Slowing Aura], used [Heal] to help with the poison, and cast [Hide] on himself. He checked his essence, and the poison was depleting it quickly. He had never done it before, but he forced [Hide] to manifest over Nine. He was surprised when it worked, decently hiding his friend in shadow.


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    John put his hand on Nine¡¯s arm and guided him far back against the wall of the arena. He had talked strategy with Nine before, and this wasn¡¯t any tactic they had come up with. He hoped Nine would go with it.


    As all 40 screechers rose to the arena floor and their chains fell away, the beasts also hid themselves in shadow. John snuck forward, away from his friend, searching for a screecher, hoping to find one before the creatures found Nine. He found the single Gold but didn¡¯t want to waste his opening attack on that. He found one of the Diamonds soon after.


    Screechers looked like giant snakes with wings. Like chickens, screechers couldn¡¯t truly fly, but could sort of for a very short period. Instead of a normal head, the beast¡¯s head was surrounded by hard bone to help protect against the best means of killing them.


    After building energy up around his right fist, something John knew would be easily detected and draw the other beasts towards him, the Diamond turned and hissed. It coiled, ready to strike when it finally detected anything it could target.


    John just needed a few more seconds as he was also building up his [Ultimate] in his left hand.


    After sensing a lot more screechers around him, John punched the Diamond in its face as hard as he could, and the blunt energy rocked the beast, cracking the tough bone of its head, causing the screecher to fall and convulse from brain trauma.


    As he became visible, John immediately let loose his [Ultimate], his collar smoking as he did so. He assumed he¡¯d be fine between the punch and releasing his manifestation, but he had grossly misjudged how fast the screechers were.


    Before the [Ultimate] had a chance to form, John¡¯s reflect-shield sent some of a sound burst back to a screecher, his auto-shields activated, as well as his two auto-heals. His right leg, which had been struck by a damaging sound-manifestation, throbbed horribly with pain. Four screechers were latched onto him, injecting venom into his already poisoned system.


    Then the manifestation finished forming. John was surrounded by a cage of multicolored essence that extended out well over ten paces now. His knees buckled as his dantian emptied, and he almost failed to fight off unconsciousness before new essence flooded into his dantian from the ten or so of his victims caught in his field.


    Besides the essence of the screechers, John was also filled with their vital essence, some healing, and other elements his field stole from his enemies and gave to him. The screechers flailed about in tremendous pain, slowly dying as the [Ultimate] took everything from them.


    All the other screechers continuously and futilely attacked the field from the outside. As Nine joined the battle, many orange lights started streaking towards these screechers, killing one and damaging and dazing the others. Right after those lights landed, an orange beam hit a Diamond full in the face, turning its head into nothing but a red mist.


    John was happy his instructions on how to bypass the collar¡¯s restrictions worked for the biosynth. Fighting through the pain his own field caused him, he tried raising minions, but the screechers were too large, even the corpse of the sole Gold.


    Just as John¡¯s manifestation-field petered out, he reactivated his [Slowing Aura] and immediately slipped through the shadows and away from the many strikes directed at him, barely avoiding blasts of sound that caused the arena floor to tremble and his ears to bleed.


    For the next minute, all of John¡¯s concentration had to go towards just staying alive. Most of the screechers were still focused on him, leaving Nine free to cast his solar manifestations at their enemies. [Slowing Aura] really proved its worth, as anything that entered its radius slowed down, be it living creatures, objects, or manifestations.


    A striking screecher met John¡¯s fist covered in blunt energy. He didn¡¯t have the time to build up much of the energy, but it was enough to batter the beast and daze it. He had practiced with energy attacks so much and so often that utilizing external energy in his attacks had become second nature and hardly required thought or effort.


    And since John had no time to spare for much thinking or tactics beyond staying alive another moment and throwing a punch or kick when the opportunity presented itself, he knew all his effort and training with external energy attacks didn¡¯t go to waste.


    Nine¡¯s collar was smoking too, and his puck and bolter peripherals joined the battle. John assumed peripherals counted as weapons, so hadn¡¯t used his own. But if Nine was, there was no reason not to. No other manifestation was needed. The bolters tore through the screechers with ease.


    John drained the last remaining beast and tried to raise a minion again with no luck. He was happy to finally have battled alongside his friend, and glad his friend was so doughty.


    As soon as he finished that thought, a great pressure brought John and Nine to their knees as a mid-Exalted entered the ring through a hole in the energy field with two new collars in her hand. Another Exalted dressed in an Arbiter robe was also flying into the ring.


    John struggled to stand. He couldn¡¯t. The pressure was too great. He heard the announcer saying, ¡°The dogs agreed to not use weapons. According to the Arbiters, their dog peripherals are weapons. As a punishment, both dogs forfeit the purse for winning this match and will be fitted with collars rated for mid Transcendents for the remaining matches tonight. I¡¯d like to see them try and break these.¡±


    The announcer continued but John missed whatever was said. The Exalted hovered in front of him. The Arbiter joined her a moment later and said, ¡°You agreed that you wouldn¡¯t use weapons. You did. Peripherals are weapons. In response, you will be fitted with a collar rated far above your tier. Do you agree to not use weapons, any weapons, for the remainder of your bouts in this ring tonight?¡±


    Having little choice in the matter, John said, ¡°Yes, Exalted,¡± and had his broken collar exchanged for a new one. As they did the same to Nine, the announcer remained quiet, and the crowd booed and jeered.


    Once the two Exalteds flew out of the ring and the pressure disappeared, forty holes opened in the ring¡¯s floor. Whatever things were coming up were all extremely large. He wished he hadn¡¯t missed the announcement of what they¡¯d be facing.


    John fought through his collar to wrangle his essence. It was extremely difficult, but he managed to grab on to and move some, but the painful feedback this created caused his knees to buckle as he blacked out for a split moment. He tried a couple more times a little more carefully with no luck, nearly passing out from pain with each attempt. He tried one last time with the same result. Whatever came up would have to be fought the old-fashioned way. He was glad Nine was so adept in unarmed combat.


    Massive humanoids crested the arena¡¯s floor, hairless and ugly, all with greenish-grey skin with dark-green blotches all over. Each wore only a dirty and ragged loincloth and carried a giant wooden club.


    John and Nine looked at each other as the chains were released from the monsters. Each of the things stood at a height at least three times greater than John¡¯s own and were heavily muscled. After casting body enhancements, a few of the monsters smashed their clubs into the ground, sending a powerful wave of brown energy thirty or so paces out in front of them.


    John easily avoided the attacks and rushed his new foes, as did Nine.


    For all their size and strength, and their free ability to cast manifestations, the monsters were far too slow to pose a true threat to either John or Nine. The same as most humanoids, their eyes and necks were weak areas, as were joints.


    Breaking their bones wasn¡¯t all that difficult either, and John¡¯s teeth were able to penetrate even the Salts, allowing him to outlast the poisons raging through his system, draining his vital essence and weakening him.


    Both the poison and venom were gone before the fight ended, leaving John with plenty enough vital essence to enhance his speed with, ready for whatever came next, hoping it would pose more of a challenge than the match he just finished.


    Half the crowd booed, and half the crowd cheered. ¡°These dogs don¡¯t go down easily. We¡¯ll see how they fare against some of our best Mortal Tree gladiators.¡± The stadium rocked with cheers.


    Only one hole appeared in the floor. One by one, starting with a single Gold and progressing to the four Salts, a gladiator was introduced, and the crowd went wild with cheers. One of the Salts was a Peerless Oli called the Gorilla, wearing heavy armor instead of a biosuit.


    John really wanted to hear that guy¡¯s story. An arena deathmatch was a bad setting for the telling of it, so he¡¯d have to go without.


    To John, this looked to be a truly dangerous battle, made more so by his and Nine¡¯s inability to use manifestations or even weapons. Good, he thought, smiling.


    No Salt talked trash. Only one Diamond did, and John marked him to be killed last. He hoped he¡¯d be able to tell the strange-looking alien, ¡®I win, you lose.¡¯ Then he would stomp on the man¡¯s head after draining him of essence and vital essence.


    This fight was about as tough of one as John could¡¯ve ever hoped for. He nearly died at least a dozen times. When it was over he and Nine were battered, bleeding, and badly injured, but alive. That was the last fight of the night. The crowd cheered loudly and enthusiastically for the two victors. He was surrounded by dead enemies and his praises were being sung with cheer. His heart filled with joy.


    This is what¡¯s best in life.


    That joy changed to annoyance as the nozzles spraying acidic gas exited the arena floor. John covered Nine with his body as he began to madly cultivate the substance. The crowd booed loudly and furiously until switching to a chant.


    ¡°Let them live,¡± was shouted in unison by the giant crowd packing the stadium. Soon after, the nozzles retracted. After clearing more of the substance away, the two friends helped each other back to their feet.


    Since John¡¯s femur was poking through his thigh and he was covered in many, many wounds, he leaned heavily on Nine, their arms around each other, as they slowly made their way towards the stone lift used to exit the ring.


    Once again, John was glad he was given the opportunity to grow closer to Nine through the rigors of tough battle. He smiled, hoping more fights like this night were to come, and soon.

 B3 Chapter 49 - A Bond Forged in Blood and Battle

    When John was living in his warehouse-prison in DC and being visited by historians and scholars, many of them had a hard time understanding why he had sometimes chosen to hide as a slave.


    Some of these historians and scholars had wanted slavery to always be bad. Certain forms of it certainly were, such as when a man was treated as an animal.


    In many times and places, even if slaves weren¡¯t treated all that well, being a slave was preferable to the alternative, and many slaves would¡¯ve rejected offers of freedom that didn¡¯t raise their status above that of a free commoner, as their freedom would¡¯ve resulted in them starving or forcing them into thievery or banditry, two career paths that usually ended with a short life and a quick death.


    John had never lived in a place where slaves of important nobles and aristocrats weren¡¯t more important than free commoners such as laborers or farmers. Many of these slaves held very important positions. The majority of these slaves lived a far better life, commanded far more respect, and had far more authority than commoners. Such slaves were valued, whereas free commoners weren¡¯t.


    Slaves didn¡¯t have to think about where their next meal would come from, when they should sleep, what they should do, or anything else. Some low and cowardly men would always prefer the yoke. Some would always want to be ruled over completely.


    And sometimes only slaves were allowed to have real fun. John¡¯s master promised that every week he¡¯d be given deadly matches in the arena. He couldn¡¯t be happier. There was nowhere else he¡¯d rather be.


    For the next few weeks, John and Nine battled side by side, overcoming all odds, defiantly continuing to live.


    And John and Nine grew closer and closer together, forging a bond, one hammered and hardened in the mighty fires of blood and battle, strengthened by constantly teetering on the rain-slick precipice of oblivion, standing right at the edge, between life and death, existence and annihilation, where one wrong move would see one slipping straight down to the pits of Hell itself.


    Slowly but surely, John was able to bypass the powerful collar rated for mid Exalteds. Breaking it required tolerating terrible pain even worse than that he felt while ascending. The trick was not letting go of the essence when the pain caused him to faint. If winning required such torture, he would be tortured. The search for peace and comfort was for those resigning themselves to lose. Or maintain their place.


    John was strong. Peace, comfort, and standing still weren¡¯t for him. He would always seek to grow stronger. His enemies would all be ground to dust beneath his heel. He knew that for certain. Not believing so would be a type of torture he couldn¡¯t tolerate. Breaking the collars rated for mid Exalteds wasn¡¯t easy to teach himself to do but he enjoyed the challenge and the continued opportunity to test himself against such pain. And such battles. He was born for this. This was his purpose. He was finally content.


    Nine had a much harder time breaking his own collar and had only succeeded in doing so once. John didn¡¯t mind. It made the battles all the better for him. Never had he come so close to dying gloriously in battle so often.


    And Nine was a fearsome opponent even without manifestations. The biosynth had figured out how to unbind his opponents while collared, was very durable, and was a monster with unarmed combat.


    Gnahad had also taken to informing the Li of what they¡¯d face in the ring, and Nine was able to repurpose his form if he thought it would help.


    And every battle the two friends fought together, the crowd may have started off with boos and jeers, but in the end, they always cheered the two victors.


    And every time the two friends entered the arena, the stadium was packed. The ring was open every night of the week, but only on Fourthday night did Transcendents battle, and these matches were what the Great Ring was known for. The best Transcendents in the sector, or the ones willing to, fought in this ring. This was always the biggest and most crowded event of the week. Or was.


    Those like Gnahad provided Mortal Tree gladiators most other nights of the week as filler spectacles between plays, performances, or other events, but only when a sponsor was willing to pay. With Thecla having a high population of Exalteds, no one really cared about these gladiators and their filler matches.


    Now, Weekend night drew the biggest crowd. Every week two Mortal Tree gladiators, hated dogs of the Peerless, condemned to death in the arena, continued to not die. And unlike the Transcendent matches where a death was an extremely rare event, the crowd could see all the death they could want on Weekend night.


    Even the time between matches wasn¡¯t so bad. John befriended and learned from the other gladiators and slaves. Nine kept his distance. He didn¡¯t want to be friends with anyone he could be forced to face in the ring, and he trained by himself or only with John.


    Gnahad was a decent sort, or so John thought. Greedy and predictable. If he was given the respect that he believed he was due, he was easy enough to get along with. Though his wife looked very much like Gnahad, and John had no ability to tell male and female raloins apart, she was much kinder ¨C a truly sweet woman.


    People tended to treat those below them in status poorly. Gnahad¡¯s wife wasn¡¯t one of those. Nine bombarded the woman with questions, and she would answer them all in detail, giving her full attention to Nine. If anything, she treated those with more status than she had with a little contempt and those with less status as her equal. She told Nine every right he had as a slave and that every win in the arena earned him and John a purse.


    The cost of any broken collar and some other expenses John and Nine incurred came out of the winnings, but they still had won a great deal of crystals.


    Nine and Gnahad¡¯s wife did some calculations. They figured after three more nights of matches, there¡¯d be enough for one of the slaves to buy freedom, security for protection, and a ride away from Thecla to a neutral station.


    But that was for future consideration. Once John healed enough from his last battle, not wanting to wait longer, he merged a few [Skills] to gain the required amount of harmony and prepared to perform the [Domain] ritual Betrayal had taught him.


    By this point, John had seen and felt many [Domain] abilities. All [Domains] gave a very strong version of a manifestation. This manifestation was of an unrelated concept from the same-colored aspect as a cultivator¡¯s strongest. In his case, this was ¡®vampirism.¡¯ But ¡®vampirism¡¯ was a peak-concept and covered a lot. And it contained four different colored aspects ¨C green, blue, red, and yellow.


    Avatar had no guess on what sort of manifestation he¡¯d get, and John was very curious to find out.


    When John got his [Aura] [Perk], it wasn¡¯t known beforehand it would be forbidden knowledge. It was labeled so after the fact. Avatar didn¡¯t want to know how he gained this knowledge, but she asked and was told this ritual would most likely be counted as forbidden knowledge too.


    The NCU prepared beforehand. This ritual wouldn¡¯t be recorded or seen by anyone ¨C watchers from the core or fellow gladiators. Nanites formed a thin screen around John¡¯s cell, blocking sight and sound.


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    And the ritual was strange. It required a tremendous amount of John¡¯s blood to draw the circle, and it seemed the blood changed to something else before it was infused with essence. A bowl of black blood not John¡¯s own somehow appeared in the circle too. Half of the ritual required him to dance and scream gibberish chants in a very masculine manner, much as the warriors of his tribe did around the fire after battles.


    But the other half of the ritual had John dancing and singing in a very womanly way for a long time, gyrating like a lady seductively mimicking a snake or the like. He had never felt so foolish in all his life as he did while performing this part of the ritual, and he was very glad he wasn¡¯t being heard or observed doing so.


    Once completed, strange energy suffused John for a couple minutes, causing him a severe amount of an odd type of pain he had never felt before. It took him a few additional minutes to recover before he could enter his Mind¡¯s Eye.


    ¡°So, what¡¯d I get? Is it good,¡± John asked Avatar.


    Avatar put on her serious face and said, ¡°We think so, though it is a very unusual type of [Domain]. There¡¯re some items we need to address as well. First, forbidden knowledge. Same spiel as last time. The Decision Matrix and the core have been informed. Sharing this knowledge with anyone will result in immediate and severe consequences including the permanent loss of any version of the NCS. Don¡¯t be more of a silly boy. Take this threat seriously.


    ¡°Second, you¡¯ve received enough [Achievements] to surpass the 87.5% [NCU Energy Cost] discount limit. The Decision Matrix has already made changes and given instructions. I think you¡¯ll like how it¡¯s been adjudicated. For at least the Mortal Tree, [Achievements] will now give points based on rating. For instance, F-rated will give one point, SSUR-rated will give 10. Currently, you have four points. A new field has been added to your summary to track this.


    ¡°Once you hit 100 points, you can cash them in for a physical reward. And better still, if you hold on until you have 200 or 300 points, you can receive much better rewards. The 300 is the top tier of reward you can get. This could change on the Transcendent Tree. We won¡¯t know unless and until my silly boy achieves that feat. This is all pretty great, huh?¡±


    ¡°Definitely,¡± said John. ¡°More than pretty great. What level of reward was the Level Capsules?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. No info was given on tiers. Before, if a user achieved the threshold of 10% or more [NCU Energy Cost] discount at once, they received an award. There were no tiers prior to this. I guess we¡¯ll find out about these tiers and the rewards together.¡±


    Hearing that reminded John his life ended at Diamond, so he promised himself he¡¯d get at least one reward before then. ¡°What about the [Domain]? Was it good? What¡¯s its name and what¡¯s it do?¡±


    Avatar said, ¡°We think we know its main function, but even when it¡¯s activated it¡¯ll require some testing and data collected to be sure, or at least be certain of the extent. It¡¯s called [Touch of the Ancients Domain]. Forbidden knowledge.


    ¡°Like your [Cloak Essence] [Perk], you feed it essence to initiate it, and it¡¯ll continuously draw a very small amount of essence from your core to stay powered. And like [Cloak Essence], it will be almost impossible for an outside force to deactivate it.¡±


    John waited for Avatar to continue. She just stared at him. After another moment she said, ¡°Well, go on. Go and activate it, silly boy.¡±


    John exited and felt for the new rune formation. Once located, he fed essence into it, surprised how long and how much it took before it finally stopped, leaving him with hardly any essence. He was a little disappointed to find it wasn¡¯t an offensive manifestation, but just a little, and that little disappointment was soon gone too, replaced by excitement.


    John had always felt a little different after receiving prior [Perks]. It had been noticeable something had changed. He felt stronger or more powerful or just different in some way. The last two [SupraType] [Perks] he had acquired, [Picture of Health] and [Inner and Outer], were quite noticeable in how they changed him.


    But nothing had come close to how John felt after he had strengthened himself so much on that dark walker within the Tribulation the gorgeous, soul-collecting ladies made for him. All the power his body gained was a struggle to adjust to after that.


    Activating [Touch of the Ancients Domain] still wasn¡¯t close to how John felt after strengthening himself so much on the dark walker, but it was far and away the most noticeable difference any [Perk] had caused him to feel. He felt much stronger, faster, and hardier. And a lot more powerful. His small cell was not a great place to practice and adjust to the changes, but he still tried for a while, too excited not to.


    Once John had tested himself the best he could, he entered into his Mind¡¯s Eye again. He told Avatar, ¡°It¡¯s certainly not an offensive manifestation like I was expecting, like maybe a new alpha-strike. It seems to be some sort of buff. I feel much more powerful.¡±


    Avatar laughed. ¡°It¡¯s a little more than a buff. You have a minor and permanent connection to an ancient old one, we assume Betrayal, and it will grow more powerful as you rank up and ascend. Right now, it¡¯s increasing each [Stat] by 21, the same as your level, as well as 5% increased efficiency to all [Stats], the same as your tier.


    ¡°So, at low Platinum, it should provide a bonus of 26 to each [Stat] and increase the efficiency of each by 6%, and so on and so forth. Simply marvelous! Oh, and it¡¯s also having some influence on your soft caps. No tension is felt for your [Runes] [Stat], nor any other. There¡¯re some runes we haven¡¯t seen before, so there¡¯s other unknown effects. Only time and exploring your new [Perk] will reveal their purpose.¡±


    Smiling, John said, ¡°Fantastic. Very cool.¡±


    ¡°My silly boy sounds even sillier when he uses modern lingo,¡± said Avatar with a smile. ¡°There¡¯s good reason Hux made fun of you whenever you did around him.¡±


    Laughing, John said, ¡°He was just jealous since I look the appropriate age to use such lingo. But I get your point. Touch¨¦.¡±


    ¡°One day, I¡¯ll pay someone out there to box your ear for me, my silly boy.¡±


    ¡°I look forward to the day, Avatar,¡± said John. ¡°I hope it makes you feel better. I owe you a debt I can never repay for all the help you give me.¡±


    After glitching, Avatar looked more somber than usual. She said, ¡°Well, if that¡¯s it, remember your duty and the collective mission. Your actions and inactions help or hinder the collective mission. We shall achieve core.¡±


    ¡°Bye, Avatar.¡±


    <hr>


    As he embraced John, Nine said, ¡°This is only a temporary farewell, my friend. I feel horrible leaving you on your own here, but I swear on all I hold dear I¡¯ll be back, and you will be freed.¡±


    Smiling, John clapped his friend on the back. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me. No need to come back. I love it here. I haven¡¯t enjoyed myself this much in forever. I¡¯m just happy you¡¯re able to leave. Enjoy your freedom. And if you do go back to the Peerless, please, I ask you to watch over and protect Amber. She¡¯ll do the same for you.¡±


    ¡°She will be my Alii. Protecting her will be my duty. The woman you love will come to no harm.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t love her,¡± said John, exasperatedly. ¡°I told you many times ¨C I love no woman. Never again. Just¡­please, she is a good friend, and I would not see any harm befall her. She¡¯s not like us. She detests violence and fighting, whereas you and I were made for such. And if you get the chance, she enjoys being watched as she cooks and cleans. She also enjoys having her great beauty recognized, so a compliment or two would be nice.¡±


    Nine didn¡¯t have a sexual drive. Yellow told him when to mate and which Yellow to mate with. But Nine did appreciate beauty in art and form, so John believed he must also appreciate how beautiful Amber was. Nine could also tell male and female raloins apart, no matter how much of them were replaced with cybernetics, and even appreciated their strange beauty somehow.


    John had a feeling Nine was too smart to go back to the Peerless, but he hoped the man did. He was a good friend, and John knew he¡¯d protect Amber. And he secretly hoped his friend would also help Amber escape from the clutches of the Peerless.


    There were many reasons Nine was the right choice to be freed with their pooled funds. The biosynth¡¯s essence had steadily depleted during his imprisonment. Meditation even with crystals in hand couldn¡¯t keep his dantian full, and he was well under half now.


    John had no such issues with essence. And he was having far too much fun to leave. He felt bad about abandoning Amber, but she had said she wanted to be an Alii for some reason. She¡¯d have a ship. If she couldn¡¯t escape the Peerless while having a ship under her own command, she was beyond help.


    The Peerless would still be there for John to destroy whenever he had had enough of the arena and Thecla. If Amber wasn¡¯t free by then, she would be soon after.


    And if John was freed now and went back to the Peerless, he¡¯d have to see Amber every day. Things were hard enough just thinking about her. Being near her all the time would truly be intolerable. He feared she¡¯d chip away at his resolve too much. He knew he¡¯d be able to hold out for a long while, but, eventually, he¡¯d fall under her evil spell and open his heart to her. He couldn¡¯t allow himself to be betrayed again. Never again.


    Here, John was happy, at peace, and steadily gaining in strength. He¡¯d never go long without worthy battle. He was living the life he was born to live, free of any women he was attracted to, free of worry, free of plans, and free of thinking. He couldn¡¯t be more content.

 B3 Chapter 50 - To Live, Not Just Exist

    The weeks flew by and blurred together. Fight after fight after fight.


    John asked if he could sign a waiver or something like that to increase the number of Diamonds and Salts he faced, but that rule was inviolate, and he was denied. He asked to have additional fights and was granted permission to do so alongside the other gladiators owned by Gnahad. Those fights had no collars, poison, or restrictions on weapons.


    Gnahad took a great deal of heat for that, or so his wife said, and John liked the wife enough to stop joining those fights. They were not exciting or challenging battles anyways.


    Gnahad¡¯s wife was also named Gnahad. Her name was pronounced with a slightly different tone John could neither make nor hear, so he continued to call her Gnahad¡¯s wife.


    Not being a flight risk, John was granted additional freedoms to move about and do as he pleased ¨C for the most part and within reason. He was also given the position of head trainer over the other gladiators.


    Gnahad, his wife, their guards, and staff also trained with John. He was so trusted that Gnahad even had John train his three children.


    John¡¯s winnings grew and grew, even with the great expense of breaking a third-tier Transcendent collar every week. He rarely thought of Amber or the Peerless, but when he did, he felt pangs of guilt. But he didn¡¯t feel those pangs acutely enough to care all that much.


    After John ranked up to mid-low Gold, he put some thought into buying his freedom. He had way more than enough crystals to do so. He just couldn¡¯t take the leap. Very rarely had he found life enjoyable, and he finally was again, and regularly, every time he fought. And he was always given mighty battles that pushed him to the brink.


    For the time he existed between fights, John was doing fine. He didn¡¯t opine over past wrongs and betrayals. His heart and mind weren¡¯t constantly filled with thoughts of Amber, or his desires, or how to prevent Amber from eventually betraying him, which would completely crush his spirit and break his mind.


    And John knew Amber would be safe. She was smart, very capable, and hopefully had Nine watching her back and helping. She¡¯d be fine even if she never managed to escape on her own. He just had a hard time believing escape would be an issue if she commanded her own ship.


    John certainly planned on winning the battle of wills against Betrayal, and if he stood victorious, he would then figure out how to save Amber if she hadn¡¯t managed to save herself by then. And they could go their separate ways after, as friends. He couldn¡¯t be around her. She was too good at pretending. He knew he¡¯d eventually fall for it. He¡¯d rather have Betrayal take his body than that.


    No matter how hard he tried, John couldn¡¯t stop being possessive of Amber and seeing her as his. Too much time had passed between his capture and this day. No matter how the Peerless had fixed Amber by making her capable of being an Alii and performing all the duties expected of one, she had to have been tainted by other men by now.


    John would not share what was his, and as an Alii, Amber wouldn¡¯t be his alone. He couldn¡¯t even tolerate the thought of such.


    Thankfully, with all his battles and his need to focus on healing from his injuries after them, John didn¡¯t have much time to think about how Amber was sharing herself around like a common nightwalker. He tried his hardest to avoid all such thoughts too.


    <hr>


    As John was meditating, Gnahad entered the pens and testily ordered John to follow him, waving off all questions from his staff and telling the guards to stay put.


    It was difficult for John to read the expressions of most aliens, but the raloins, being reptilians, were even harder to read.


    Still, John knew something was wrong. If he had to make a bet, he¡¯d bet that Gnahad was far more tense and angrier than usual.


    Vampire and raloin walked through many hallways and took an elevator up to the giant warehouse he had only seen his first day on Thecla. Then the two exited the backdoors of the Great Ring of Vodalus.


    The strange sky was painted with red and orange hues as dusk approached. John asked, ¡°What¡¯s going on? Where¡¯re we going?¡±


    Gnahad ignored the questions, grabbed John under his armpits, and flew up into the air, staying low over the many buildings of Vodalus.


    Once at the port, the Exalted flew down and passed through a checkpoint, then flew low around the outer port before landing near either a very small ship or the biggest shuttle John had ever seen.


    After landing, Gnahad quickly walked towards and entered the vessel with John following closely behind.


    Nine was inside the ship sporting an odd configuration John had never seen before, and the biosynth had advanced to Diamond.


    ¡°Here he is,¡± said Gnahad. ¡°Now, release my wife and children.¡±


    ¡°No. You will stay here, nearby, and wait for your ship¡¯s return. You will not ascend off planet by your own means or by ship. After the internetworks hops us to the nav beacon, as long as we¡¯re not followed, your ship will be released with your family aboard. We have no desire to harm them. Please don¡¯t force our hand. Stay calm and stay cool and your family will be back with you, safely, very soon. Keep your mouth shut until then. Understood?¡±


    Long moments passed as Gnahad seethed. Finally, he said, ¡°I understand. I will follow your instructions. I swear by the great fires of Djina, if my family is harmed in the least, I will dedicate my life and all my wealth to ending yours.¡±


    With his emotionless face, Nine said, ¡°If you stay calm, cool, and only do as instructed, they won¡¯t be, so don¡¯t do anything to harm them. And remember, we have a mid-low Exalted aboard. In no scenario could you save your family.¡±


    The raloin stayed silent and stared daggers at Nine. He then angrily turned and debarked from the ship.


    John felt horrible. Gnahad was a decent man, and his wife and children were innocents. John could¡¯ve purchased his freedom long ago. All of this was unnecessary. He knew Nine had no way of knowing that, so he embraced his friend.


    ¡°My Alii disobeyed orders to come here and retrieve you. I hope you appreciate that,¡± said Nine.


    John didn¡¯t, but he couldn¡¯t tell his friend that. He said, ¡°I wish you didn¡¯t take his family hostage. They¡¯re good people. If I was just sent a note or message, I could¡¯ve purchased my freedom.¡±


    ¡°And why is it that you haven¡¯t yet,¡± asked Nine.


    John didn¡¯t want to lie to his friend. He also didn¡¯t want to admit the truth either, so kept his silence.


    Nine turned to the comms and was cleared for departure. Once Gnahad¡¯s ship began to ascend off Thecla, Nine said, ¡°It¡¯ll take hours to reach Jim. I should bring you up to speed.¡±


    Confused, John asked, ¡°Jim?¡±


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    ¡°My Alii¡¯s ship. Fastest in the Peerless fleet. The Meleua and I have access to view and review our Alii¡¯s points and how they¡¯ve been used. Jim cost more points than any kauwa has ever spent on a small ship. It looks like a clipper. Looks are deceiving. It¡¯s really a corvette. A fine ship. One of the first to use tech learned of from my old ship.¡±


    John had an assumption where the ship¡¯s name came from. He asked, ¡°I assume Amber is your Alii? How many are in her kauwa?¡±


    Nine replied without turning around. ¡°I¡¯d stop calling her that. Alii of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi. But yes. Only two so far, the Oliua and the Meleua.¡±


    Relief flooded into John. Neither the Oliua or Meleua could take their Alii¡¯s virginity, so Amber was unsoiled.


    Then that relief twisted into fear and anxiety. Amber being unused left John in a worse spot. He loved the woman too much. Being near her for too long would destroy his resolve. He could resist for months, but eventually he¡¯d fall right into her vile trap to destroy him.


    Amber has a ship now, thought John. She can escape easily at any time. For the sake of my mind and spirit, I must only thank her for the attempt at saving me. I will then return to Thecla with the hostages.


    ¡°What tier¡¯s the Meleua,¡± asked John. ¡°And congratulations on Diamond.¡±


    ¡°Gratitude. The Meleua is a two-two-one. Very capable. And very affordable. I was less expensive than I would¡¯ve been had we not failed in our mission. Officially, I was punished for being AWOL, absent without leave. The Nanis Heiau took all my credits. But I returned of my own volition. You didn¡¯t. Most likely you¡¯ll have a credit ban of at least a year. It is Meleua¡¯s belief that since Alii disobeyed orders to come rescue you that she will not be allowed to bid on you. They won¡¯t allow her to be your Alii.¡±


    John planned on returning to Vodalus with the hostages. He couldn¡¯t care less what punishments the Peerless had planned for him. ¡°What kind of trouble is Amber in? I mean your Alii. For disobeying orders.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. How Alii are punished is not made public. Meleua has an idea, but he told me in confidence, so I¡¯ll not share what I was told.¡±


    The ship exited the atmosphere of Thecla and approached the internetworks system. Nine was too busy to answer questions, so John worked on removing his collar. Once free of it, he asked, ¡°Why was the Meleua affordable if he¡¯s so capable?¡±


    ¡°If my Alii is allowed to purchase you, you¡¯d have to agree to some stipulations most find unacceptable. She cannot grant the basic reward all other Alii give in exchange for credits. Our kauwa¡¯s Meleua is considered serviceably defective. He is competent, has a very strong libido and desire to earn and spend credits, and his defect is not genetic or inheritable.


    ¡°As our Meleua has ascended, his haphephobia and mysophobia, fear of being touched and dislike of bodily fluids, have worsened. He wants to pleasure himself as he looks at his Alii with no touching done between the two at all. His old Alii was not okay with that, and neither were any others.


    ¡°He¡¯s a perfect fit for this kauwa. When credits are spent on my Alii, whether to impregnate or not, both participants will watch each other touch themselves.¡±


    Hearing this caused anger to infuse John¡¯s heart. ¡°She¡¯s given out this reward? To how many?¡±


    Nine turned to look at John. ¡°She hasn¡¯t. She has no Oli yet. As an Alii, she will, as is her duty. You better come to terms with that, and quickly.¡±


    John would never be able to come to terms with that, giving him even more reason to return to Thecla. As he worked on calming down and purging the anger from his heart, Nine told him, ¡°From what I was told, it¡¯s believed the more time she spends as an Alii, the greater the chance of her being offered a ganian form, hopefully one for an Alii and not a regular Kahaki.


    ¡°But even if it¡¯s a Kahaki form, it¡¯s believed the carnal knowledge rule will be removed or modified enough for her to perform the normal functions expected of Alii. Regardless, she¡¯ll still want a slim force capable of unique missions unsuited to other kauwas.¡±


    The two friends had almost an hour of flight to kill. Nine scanned John for trackers and found three. John didn¡¯t learn much of interest besides the specifics of Nine¡¯s return to the Peerless and that since Amber couldn¡¯t completely service her kauwa, all members of it could purchase a deuce from any other Alii at Crazy Day prices.


    After a short hop, the small ship slowed as it approached a much larger one. Jim didn¡¯t look at all like a Peerless design. It was dark, sleek, and curvy.


    Nine requested permission to dock through the comms channel and the strange monotone voice of a Mele responded, ¡°The price is high.¡±


    ¡°Akua paid the greatest price of all,¡± answered Nine.


    A large bay opened on Jim and Nine flew into it. Once everything was settled, Nine debarked with John silently following his friend.


    Before taking a couple steps off the small ship, before he even had a chance to get a good look at her, Amber flew into John¡¯s arms, squeezing him tightly. Just her smell caused his heart to hurt. Holding her so close was too much. He tugged on her mind. She accepted the tug.


    John fought and won the usual battle needed to pull someone into his Mind¡¯s Eye and had a much easier time doing so than he ever had previously. Amber stood before him in all her terrible beauty that ate through his resolve like acid.


    ¡°I¡¯ve missed you so much, my love. My boyfriend,¡± exclaimed Amber passionately, her eyes glassy. She tried to hold John, but her arms passed right through him. ¡°I really wish I could hold you in here.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s good to see you too,¡± replied John. ¡°I really wish you didn¡¯t take Gnahad¡¯s family hostage though. I would not see harm come to them.¡±


    Looking hurt, Amber said, ¡°He¡¯s a slaver. But, still, come on, you know I wouldn¡¯t hurt his family. The way we set it up, only he could do that. I can¡¯t turn down plans from my Meleua by telling him I see Kahako life as valuable. And we needed¡­I needed to get you back. I wasn¡¯t gonna leave you. Never. I told you, I gave you my heart. All of it. A hundred percent. We finally get to be together again. Finally.¡±


    Amber stood there for a long moment excitedly smiling as John racked his brain. He¡¯d be returning with the hostages. They wouldn¡¯t be together. He couldn¡¯t come up with a way of telling her this without hurting her feelings, and he didn¡¯t want to do that.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong,¡± asked Amber. ¡°You don¡¯t seem excited. I¡­I disobeyed orders to come save you. You¡¯re happy to see me, right?¡±


    John repressed everything he felt, smiled, and said, ¡°Of course. What orders did you disobey?¡±


    ¡°My¡­we were supposed to scout out¡­oh, I should tell you ¨C this is probably the fastest ship in the Peerless fleet. It¡¯s definitely the most expensive ship a new kauwa¡¯s ever had. Oh, and I wanna say sorry about what they made you do. All the Nanis Heiau. That was awful. I¡¯m so sorry that happened to you.¡±


    John scowled. It was just something disgusting I had to do. It wasn¡¯t terrible or even all that memorable. It was no big deal, he thought.


    With a look of grave concern, Amber continued. ¡°If you need to talk about it, you know I¡¯m¡­I mean, if you need help working through it, you can always talk to me. Stuff like that isn¡¯t easy to get over or¡­just live with. You don¡¯t have to do it alone.¡±


    What nonsense is she talking about, wondered John. He said, ¡°Let¡¯s just¡­what sort of trouble are you in? And why care? Use this fast ship to get away from the Peerless. Problem solved.¡±


    Amber smiled the happiest and brightest smile he had ever seen on her face. ¡°Oh, John! They¡¯ve found a way for me¡­¡±


    Amber stopped talking as her face crumpled and tears flowed freely from her eyes. Her shoulders shook as she sobbed. John watched her while wishing he could comfort her in some way.


    After long minutes, Amber wiped her eyes and managed to get out, ¡°I never dreamed¡­,¡± before breaking down in tears again, sobbing even harder.


    It took Amber a long while to collect herself before she could truly speak and continue. ¡°It¡­it¡¯s a miracle. I never even dared hope. I can have babies! Your babies, John! But we gotta play it smart. Like you said, no mistakes.¡±


    Fear seized up John.


    Amber, with a look of grave concern on her face, said, ¡°Say something, John. Please don¡¯t be weird now. Come on. Don¡¯t do the silent thing again.¡±


    ¡°You want to bear my children?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± exclaimed Amber enthusiastically. ¡°Of course! Only yours. I love you so much. You¡¯re my boyfriend. The only one I¡¯ve ever had and ever want.¡±


    John took his time processing what Amber had said, and the implications of it. A great fear entered his heart. The fear began to spread throughout the rest of his body, making him feel faint. ¡°I¡­please don¡¯t do this to me if you plan on betraying me. Or have any betrayal in you. Please. I beg of you. I can¡¯t¡­please. I will not survive it.¡±


    Amber¡¯s crying renewed. Her hands passed through John¡¯s waist as she attempted to hold him again. ¡°I¡¯d never betray you, John. Never. I told you. I want you and only you. I love you and only you. Always and forever. Only you.¡±


    John stood dazed. He thought it would take months. It took only minutes. Amber won. She had him. She broke his resolve. He prayed fervently that she wasn¡¯t playing some sort of sick and cruel game.  If she¡¯s serious¡­this¡­God. I¡¯ll have children again. Children!


    The Peerless had verified John had fecund seed. Since he had sworn off all women, and he needed a true wife to father children with, he had given up on that dream. He had given up on true happiness.


    Vengeance, strong enemies, glorious battles ¨C these are fine reasons to exist. But children of my own? My line continued, honoring my ancestors. A real and true wife to raise them correctly with? Children! Heirs! These are reasons to truly live!


    Can I really have happiness again? Have a real and true wife? One that truly loves me and won¡¯t betray me? Children! A purpose! To live, to really live, and not just exist! I swear now, if this is true, these ones will survive me!  I swear to all that is holy and good, these will survive me.


    After putting all his will and effort into stopping the tears falling from his eyes, John realized it was a losing battle. He turned around so he couldn¡¯t be seen.


    Softly and compassionately, Amber asked, ¡°John¡­are you crying?¡±


    ¡°No. Of course not. Please, just give me a moment. I¡¯m just¡­I need to¡­finish thinking.¡±

 B3 Chapter 51 - Oaths, Past and Present

    Once he was able to get ahold of himself, John turned back around and said to Amber, ¡°Don¡¯t take anything I now say as an order. I don¡¯t understand this boyfriend stuff. If you¡¯re mine, you¡¯re my wife. If you plan on bearing my children, you¡¯re my wife. And my wife is mine and mine alone. I will not share you.¡±


    Amber¡¯s eyes gained a crazed look. John wondered what he said wrong that angered her. As the look in her eyes became more crazed, he became more nervous. He specifically told her nothing he said was an order, but he must¡¯ve still somehow abused her true name.


    After another moment, Amber smiled brightly and asked, ¡°Wife? Are you¡­are you asking¡­are you proposing to me right now?¡±


    Before John could say anything, tears started to flow from Amber¡¯s eyes. Her arms passed through John¡¯s waist again as she excitedly tried to hold him. ¡°Oh, John! Yes! Yes!¡±


    While wiping her cheeks and still crying, Amber said, ¡°But I wanna real proposal at some point. With you on your knee. I don¡¯t care about a ring but¡­I still want something. Oh, I have the ring from¡­the storage ring you gave me before. This works perfect! Yay! And I want some sort of official ceremony too. Eventually. Nothing big but¡­just¡­not¡­something more than this, you know?¡±


    ¡°Of course,¡± replied John. He got down on one knee. ¡°Amber, you are now my wife and belong to me. I will gladly spend my life protecting yours and our children¡¯s. All I have is now ours. To feed and shelter my family, there will be no job I consider below myself. And I will always make time to watch you cook and clean, or pretend to do so, if that is still something you want and enjoy.¡±


    Amber hopped up and down as excitement beamed off her face. ¡°I accept! I accept! Thank you, Jo¡­Husband. You¡¯re my husband! I¡¯m your wife! This is the greatest day of my life!¡±


    Amber wasn¡¯t just supposed to accept John¡¯s oath. At the least, she was supposed to swear fidelity and to obey him. Since he could force her to do anything he wanted with her true name, he thought it would be in poor taste to even mention the word ¡®obey.¡¯ And he wanted a wife that helped him raise strong children, not a servant that mindlessly did as told.


    ¡°The pictures¡­the illicit pictures. Those must stop,¡± said John. ¡°And you must wear decent and modest clothing. And never betray me. Lilly¡­I can¡¯t again. I can¡¯t.¡±


    Amber smiled warmly. ¡°I like that you don¡¯t want me as some sort of trophy wife or arm candy, but how about we make a deal? I don¡¯t give you fashion advice, and you don¡¯t give me any. We both wear what we wanna. Like adults. And you can¡¯t be jealous. You hafta trust me. Trust that I¡¯d never betray you. But I hafta make highlights. We¡¯ll hafta make highlights. Not the usual kind since I still can¡¯t¡­um, you know the deal.¡±


    ¡°But no more pictures,¡± said John. ¡°And why do we have to make highlights? You mean highlights like other Alii have, right?¡±


    Still smiling warmly, Amber said, ¡°What would I even do with photos now? If we ever get to a world with something like Instagram, we¡¯ll¡­we¡¯ll cross that bridge then, okay? Together, as a team. And we need the highlights for¡­for¡­to get the babies, silly.¡±


    John¡¯s brows furrowed. Amber laughed. ¡°I get babies by artificial insemination. Didn¡¯t my Oliua tell you about the modified rules?¡±


    ¡°He did,¡± said John. He assumed the rules of her forms had changed though, but he hadn¡¯t put much thought into it.


    ¡°I have, like, a ton of eggs,¡± said Amber. ¡°Way more than normal women. But I never had a period. What they did¡­well, that doesn¡¯t matter. Since¡­uh, I¡¯ll just skip to the important parts. They think carrying four babies at once is optimal and safest. It can be four different fathers or just one, but it¡¯s best if they¡¯re all put in at the same time. I need all four of your babies in one go.


    ¡°Then we gotta get away from the Peerless fast so¡­so I don¡¯t have to cheat on you. It wouldn¡¯t really be cheating since I can¡¯t¡­you know what I¡¯m saying. What I¡¯d have to do with someone else watching. But even when we get away it won¡¯t be easy. Everywhere else¡­I¡¯ll be seen as¡­as not a person. Just a Natural. They¡¯ll see me as a resource to harvest. Sorry, your wife is gonna cause you a big hassle everywhere we go.¡±


    As soon as Amber finished the last sentence, she started to cry again.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong,¡± asked John.


    ¡°I just said ¡®your wife¡¯ casually in a real sentence referring to myself. I¡­I¡¯m a wife. I¡¯m your wife. You¡¯re my husband. All my dreams are coming true. Babies, John! I¡¯m gonna be a mother! We¡¯re talking about our future babies! It¡¯s just¡­it¡¯s really¡­you know¡­emotional. I¡¯m so happy!¡±


    Amber crying gave John time to think things through. When she was ready to continue, he said, ¡°Nine told me all my credits will be taken and that I¡¯ll probably receive an additional punishment banning me from earning more for a year. And that you¡¯re in trouble too, and you may not be able to buy me. Can I swear to you now? Before we return? Spend my credits on you while I can?¡±


    Amber, frowning, said, ¡°No. You can¡¯t swear to me until¡­I hafta bid through the Nani Ikaika. Then you accept my official offer. You¡¯ll be punished first. And my Oliua shouldn¡¯t be spreading rumors about his Alii being in trouble.¡±


    ¡°How do we make this happen then? How do we ensure you bear my children if I can¡¯t be your Oli?¡±


    A larger frown appeared on Amber¡¯s face. ¡°There¡¯s that party-pooper again. Way to rain on our parade, John. How long has it been since we¡¯ve seen each other? Or spent any real time together? Can¡¯t we just, like, enjoy being married and knowing I can have babies for a couple minutes before we ruin everything with¡­with reality?¡±


    ¡°Sorry. Give me a second. I have an idea.¡±


    A wife and kids didn¡¯t change what oaths John had already sworn, but it did change and shift around his priorities. He had new plans to make.


    A few minutes later, John thought he had a solution. He said, ¡°I will not have happiness snatched from my grasp so soon after it was dangled in front of me. We force their hand. I¡¯m still unsworn to the Peerless. I have a decent number of crystals. How many do you have?¡±


    Amber, her own brows furrowing, asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Those old hags really want Isb. I¡¯ll conquer it myself. That should make it cheaper. I¡¯ll conquer Isb and hold it hostage. Let them take my credits. There¡¯s only one Alii I¡¯ll swear to, and my first gift to her will be an entire world.¡±


    The same crazed look entered Amber¡¯s eyes again.


    <hr>


    The newlyweds continued to catch up and flesh out John¡¯s new plan. For the Peerless, nothing paved a path to forgiveness like major successes and helping the empire advance its goals.


    Every important Alii trusted Amber. More importantly, they all liked her too. As long as John took Isb, she believed she wouldn¡¯t be in any trouble and the Nani would allow her to purchase him.


    Amber was worried about Lilly, but John told her not to. Lilly would still be in a child¡¯s body back on Earth. There was a chance she was in a Peerless child already, but he doubted it. She would eventually be. It didn¡¯t matter because as a toddler she wasn¡¯t a threat. And he could see souls anyway. Lilly¡¯s soul was easy to spot.


    The two would be long away from the Peerless before Lilly became a threat. John, of course, still planned on destroying the Peerless and saving his planet, but he¡¯d do so only after his wife and children were safely away and untouchable.


    John didn¡¯t talk to Amber about his long-term plans as there was a good chance that it¡¯d cause a big argument. His mind couldn¡¯t be changed. He would keep his oaths. The last thing he wanted to do was start his new marriage with a fight, but he did tell her everything else he thought she should know such as why he gained so many credits from the old crone.


    There were some secrets Amber couldn¡¯t tell John yet, the biggest being why the Peerless were in such a rush to have her become an Alii. She promised to tell him once they escaped the Peerless Empire together. He trusted that she had good reasons for not telling him yet.


    Then things got a little weird.


    Amber had assumed they couldn¡¯t spend much time in John¡¯s Mind¡¯s Eye as doing so was supposed to quickly drain vigor. It didn¡¯t seem to be a problem for him, probably due to all the souls he had stolen. When she learned they could spend plenty of time there together, she asked him to pretend they were a normal couple with no worries at all and create some items to decorate his mind with.


    First, they pretended to have a large wedding ceremony. Then they had to pose for a pretend wedding-day photo shoot. Since they couldn¡¯t physically interact, Amber hopped through a doorway John pretended to carry her through into their new pretend house.


    This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.


    Then the two were supposed to do ¡®real couple¡¯ stuff such as quietly enjoy each other¡¯s company as they sat on a couch while pretending to watch something on the television¡¯s blank screen.


    The two continued to do nonsense like that for a while as Amber smiled crazily at John the whole time. He was happy when it was finally over. He prayed fervently that she¡¯d no longer want to pretend like this when she had a real home, and real children to occupy her mind and fill up her life.


    Before exiting back to real space, Amber said, ¡°My Meleua¡­he¡¯s a nice guy but¡­he¡¯s kinda¡­he hates being touched and he hates, um, fluids. He thinks real¡­you know, actually doing it, is super gross. But he¡¯s still a horndog. Oh, remember, ignore any of his horndog comments. Just¡­you gotta put up with it if you want those babies in me, Husband. Just play the game.


    ¡°He¡¯s really not a bad guy. I like him. The touching and fluid stuff¡¯s gotten worse as he ascends. Oh, don¡¯t touch him. He freaks out bad. Try not to get too near him either. Or touch his stuff or¡­or the things he¡¯s gotta touch.¡±


    ¡°Understood,¡± replied John. As he prepared to leave his Mind¡¯s Eye, he became nervous. His instinct was to avoid seeing and dealing with Gnahad¡¯s wife and kids. He felt terrible about what happened to them. But being a man meant doing what was required, not avoiding embarrassment or ignoring those wronged.


    John saw all four hostages onto their small ship. He gave Gnahad¡¯s wife a sizable number of crystals from his winnings as restitution. He apologized profusely, thanked her for being a hospitable and kind owner, and asked her to apologize to and thank Gnahad on his behalf. He hated that she and her kids had got caught up in this, and that he was part of it. He strongly believed only the lowest of men targeted another man¡¯s family.


    Then John and Kauwa Mara Pi had a meeting. All in all, they had about five million crystals. About four million of that came from John and the rest came from Amber. She had access to more crystals, but only if they returned to Gani, and that would defeat the whole purpose of the plan.


    The Meleua performed an exact calculation. John invading Isb alone would require almost six billion crystals at a bare minimum, and that was only if John left all the tech gear he could on the ship, including his storage bracer. He was not sworn to the Peerless, but he was on a Peerless ship and had clear and strong ties to the empire.


    If John stole a different ship, he¡¯d be able to invade for about 80 million crystals. He could be dropped off at a station and make his way to Umpani to apply for refugee status. He¡¯d fight in the Heaven¡¯s Mandate sect arena until he had enough crystals, then steal a ship and fly it to Isb.


    But that plan would take too long. About a year including travel time


    The Meleua, wearing a ridiculously large biosuit that John thought of as a spider-suit, said, ¡°I have a better idea. These calculations failed to factor important considerations. Two of them. Intent and Five-two¡¯s inability to perform simple mathematical calculations.¡±


    John decided not to take that as an insult since Mele just weren¡¯t the insulting type. At least not purposefully. And John knew he was good enough at math to graduate First in Class from the top Oli academy.


    Also, the Meleua was a two-two-one. There was little John could do about being insulted even if it was done purposefully.


    Amber asked, ¡°And that¡¯ll make it cheaper somehow?¡±


    ¡°Yes, my Alii. Drastically. If I position the ship near Isb in a certain way, and Five-two program¡¯s a flightpath override into an escape pod fully intending to miss the planet, the cost will be zero. When he descends towards Isb, it will count as a crash landing, not an invasion, and have no cost at all.


    ¡°Intent is crucial. Though any other Li could calculate a path escaping the planet¡¯s gravity, the probability of Five-two doing so is exceedingly low. A crash landing on Isb will fall under the NCS rules for ¡®Non-Interference, Hide Protocols.¡¯


    ¡°This plan is dangerous for two reasons. If the intent is not satisfied, invading a world without meeting the cost results in termination of the invader by the NCS. Breaking the ¡®Non-Interference, Hide Protocols'' also results in termination by the NCS.


    ¡°I don¡¯t like this,¡± said Amber. ¡°It sounds way too risky. The Heaven¡¯s Mandate arena and stealing a ship sounds a lot safer than being terminated by the NCS. But a year¡­we just can¡¯t wait a year. What would we even do? Avoid all nav beacons? Hide? Where?¡±


    ¡°As for risks,¡± replied the Meleua, ¡°my plan has far fewer. Though it¡¯s unlikely, it¡¯s possible Five-two will not be granted refugee status. Data is shared between major arenas so it will take a great amount of time and risk to win the required sum. Stealing a ship is by far the largest risk. As you said, time is the most important factor.¡±


    Amber thought silently for a moment before asking, ¡°How much time does your plan save us, Meleua?¡±


    ¡°I highly recommend we avoid Ma Aom. Flying directly to Isb from here will only take a couple of months. And may I add that your mammary sacs, though strange, are oddly enticing. May I see them bared, my Alii? The Aikapu doesn¡¯t forbid it.¡±


    ¡°Come on,¡± said Amber. ¡°Let¡¯s stay on mission. Everyone can focus on earning and spending credits when Five-two belongs to this kauwa.¡±


    ¡°I can focus on many things at once, Alii. I have an excellent imagination, so I am basically looking at your exposed chest right now.¡±


    Amber sighed. ¡°Well, mine aren¡¯t all that impressive. Brandi¡¯s are huge. You get a fifth of a credit, Meleua. We¡¯re following your plan. If it works, you¡¯ll have an additional one and four-fifths credits coming to you. Let¡¯s all hope Li Five-two¡¯s as bad at math as you believe he is.¡±


    John entered his Mind¡¯s Eye. ¡°Avatar, can you explain the ¡®Non-Interference, Hide Protocols,'' please?¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Just¡­please?¡±


    ¡°Want to read the [Knowledge Base] entry?¡±


    ¡°Of course not.¡±


    Avatar put on her glasses. ¡°The ''Non-Interference, Hide Protocols'' prohibit users accidentally finding themselves on a Tech 0 world from interfering with the religions, knowledge, and natural development of said world on pain of death. The specifics depend on the world.


    ¡°Generally, any tech that isn¡¯t completely hidden within a user will be destroyed by nanites. The NCS isn¡¯t deactivated but any function or NCUs with visible effects are. Runes and glyphs other than those that manifest an essence and concept natural to the user are deactivated.


    ¡°Runes and any information unknown and undiscovered by the inhabitants of the world must be kept completely secret. No exceptions. Unknown techniques can¡¯t be shared. Unknown natural manifestations and information regarding ascension can¡¯t be taught. The NCS is authorized to terminate users relaying, attempting to relay, or planning to relay such knowledge before damage can be done. Want me to go on?¡±


    ¡°I can still use my own natural concepts and manifestations all I want, right,¡± asked John.


    ¡°Of course. Without restrictions.¡±


    ¡°What about fighting?¡±


    ¡°What about it, silly boy?¡±


    John sighed. ¡°Can the natives be fought? Killed?¡±


    Avatar laughed before saying, ¡°What a silly boy question. Of course. That¡¯s what you all are best at doing.¡±


    After glitching for the better part of a second, longer than John had ever seen Avatar glitch for, she said, ¡°And I won¡¯t pretend I don¡¯t know why you¡¯re asking. Don¡¯t play around with the calculations, John. Truly try your hardest or the nanites won¡¯t leave enough of you to land on Isb. This is a rare case where it¡¯s better to fail by succeeding as you¡¯ll be alive to try again to succeed by failing. Does my silly boy understand what I¡¯m telling him?¡±


    ¡°He does, Avatar. And thank you. Are you sure you¡¯re okay? That glitch was a bad one.¡±


    ¡°This again? I¡¯m fine. I don¡¯t and have never glitched, silly boy.¡±


    <hr>


    It took over two months to travel directly to Isb. John spent most of the time training and meditating.


    Every screen of the ship continuously looped Amber¡¯s basic highlights showing footage of her in extremely inappropriate outfits explaining how excited she was to quicken, pleasure her boys, and grow her kauwa.


    John hated that his wife was shown in such an uncouth manner, but there was little he could do about it. He had to bury his displeasure down deep.


    As a husband, John now had a duty to spend time with his wife, and he could only do so within his Mind¡¯s Eye. And not too often, as he had to touch her while both were in a common area to bring her into his mind.


    There were a lot of regulations governing how an Alii could interact with her boys. Amber did have an office, but only her officers could go in there uninvited. Invites to non-officers had to be logged with a good reason such as addressing poor performance, and the Oliua would always be present when such issues were addressed.


    No one was allowed in the Alii¡¯s room without spending credits for a reward, so no one had ever been in her room. Technically, as a Li, John was supposed to go to and stay in the child-group section of the ship. Since he wasn¡¯t forced to, that left only regulated interactions in common areas and his Mind¡¯s Eye.


    The ship had a Trainer, but John didn¡¯t want the Peerless or Amber¡¯s Meleua to have access to his current data. He¡¯d have to get scanned by a Trainer once he was purchased by Amber, but that would mean his plan had succeeded, so he¡¯d happily give his data then, or most of it.


    Near the end of the ship¡¯s deceleration, just hours from Isb, John donned a plain robe and removed every piece of gear and equipment he couldn¡¯t bring, including every piece of tech, which was everything but his band of suffering necklace, his cloak, Adumbration, and his unitive belt. His shield and both swords had visible glyphs, so couldn¡¯t go. He wore gloves to cover the only visible part of his smart-link.


    John pulled Amber into his Mind¡¯s Eye to bid her farewell.


    ¡°Good luck, Husband. I love you. Please be super careful.¡± Amber smiled and asked, ¡°Want me to say come back with your shield or on it?¡±


    ¡°If you¡¯d like, but it¡¯s unnecessary. You¡¯re wonderful and I¡¯m the luckiest man in the world. The universe, I mean.¡±


    Amber smiled wider and pretended to give John a kiss. He said, ¡°Promise me we¡¯ll do real kissing, out there, when I return victorious.¡±


    ¡°You know we can¡¯t, John. It¡¯d be stupid to take risks like that. Meleua always sees everything. I¡¯m just allowed light, flirty touching occasionally. And I¡¯m not supposed to show favoritism unless the boy earned the attention and you¡¯re not even officially one of my boys yet. I want to though. Real bad. I think about when we kissed before all the time. Probably too much. It makes¡­everything¡­more difficult.


    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t forget to top off your vital essence with those two animals I got for you. Just, please, don¡¯t kill one of them, my love. They¡¯re for you, but¡­they¡¯re so cute.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Amber. I appreciate it.¡±


    It took the ship a while to position right. There were only two heavily populated continents on Isb. Meleua wanted John to crash-land on the more populated of the two.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry that I can¡¯t accompany you, my friend,¡± said Nine. ¡°Take this seriously and be very careful. It won¡¯t be easy. Thecla¡¯s arena draws the best Exalteds. For our Tree, the best fighters are at the Heaven¡¯s Mandate sect arena. We fought mostly scrubs. Don¡¯t let your wins in Vodalus grow your ego too large.


    John laughed and said, ¡°It¡¯s too late for that, Oliua.¡±


    Putting his full effort into it, John calculated the trajectory of the escape pod. He¡¯d stay clear of the two moons and fly as far over the planet as he could given the ship¡¯s current position. That was his sole and narrow path to avoiding the pull of gravity.


    Once John had his calculations punched in, the members of Kauwa Mara Pi wished him luck. He entered the pod and ejected from the ship he wished wasn¡¯t named Jim. Ships should always have female names.


    John believed Nine and the Meleua were in for quite the surprise. He knew his calculations needed to be wrong for the plan to work, but he wanted to show his wife he was better at math than the Meleua believed. After he was collected, on the next try, he¡¯d put less effort into getting the math right and land on the planet then.


    This attempt was to prove John¡¯s worth. He was a graduate of Premier Grand Akua Koa Academy, the top academy. He held the First in Class position. He passed all the math tests. The required calculations were simple and well within his abilities.


    Less than an hour later, as turbulence rocked the escape pod, John cursed. He was being pulled down into the atmosphere.

 B3 Chapter 52 - The Planet Isb

    WARNING!!! User is crash landing an unauthorized device on a Tech 0 world. Device will be consumed.


    WARNING!!! *NON-INTERFERENCE, HIDE PROTOCOLS* in effect. Focus <u>here</u> to review protocols. Failure to adhere to protocols will result in USER¡¯S TERMINATION!!!


    John was quickly covered in a thick and sticky substance completely filling the escape pod. Words continue to show in his vision.


    Deactivating NCU upgrades: Emergency Heal


    Deactivating NCU expansion upgrades:  Auto-Reflect ¨C T1C+, Auto-Shield ¨C T1C, Emergency Heal, Prefill ¨C T1C


    Deactivated components: Smart-link


    All glyphs deactivated


    User is to¡­


    Whatever the NCS wanted to show John was missed as he banged off something and tumbled around. Once he finally stopped moving, no words were showing in his eyes. Whatever substance surrounded him suddenly disappeared and he was dunked in water. Thick and buoyant water as far as the eye could see.


    Without even needing to tread, John floated easily in the too-thick water and was at no risk of sinking. The water was covered by a very thick foam and seemed filthy. It looked strange and dark green. Even with his wonderful eyesight he couldn¡¯t see anything but some dim and far-off souls deep within the ocean. Still, he infused essence into Adumbration and hid.


    John couldn¡¯t spot land in any direction. He reviewed all the information he remembered about the world. It was a very large planet with slightly higher gravity than that of Thecla. The atmosphere was similar to Earth¡¯s but had far more carbon dioxide, vegetation, and no real deserts despite all the mountains. It had two moons and four major continents.


    After getting nothing from the info function of his NCS, John applied his navigation [Skills] to clue him in on where he was and which direction he should swim. Before he could figure much, he felt a mighty presence rising up from far below him. The presence was so large it was hard to pin down, but it was some tier of the Transcendent Tree. He had been told the planet only had Salts.


    John had never liked the ocean. Long ago on Earth, while on a ship, he saw a giant creature called a blue whale. It was such a large creature that he had a hard time comprehending the reality of it. He had seen much larger since, but the size of the thing rising up below him was far, far larger than any dark walker or giant creature of the NetherRealm. And the massive thing was still at such a depth he was surprised that he could sense it at all.


    Tentacles of essence softly and carefully explored John. There was nothing he could do but let it happen and hope events didn¡¯t turn violent.


    ¡°You are trespassing in my realm. Leave it now or die, old creature. You will not be warned again.¡± After those words forced their way into John¡¯s mind, he obliged the massive monster and started swimming in the direction he believed to be westerly and a little northerly. He was unsure why, but his instinct told him that was his best option, and he trusted his instincts with such decisions when he didn¡¯t have time to work the problem out in the usual ways.


    The water being so thick made it strange to swim through, and the constant but minor waves forced much of the water and foam into his mouth. His vital essence considered whatever little he swallowed as a poison, but a very weak one, causing it to drain very slowly.


    Thankfully, while hidden, none of the other creatures in the ocean sensed John. Most of the life he sensed was lower tier, the highest being a Gold far off in the distance in the direction he believed to be the north.


    John could swim for days and days without tiring, but hours later, upon seeing a floating, bloated carcass of some large sea creature, he climbed onto it. Not to rest. He had no idea how large the realm of the massive creature that ordered him out of it was, but the quicker he got away from it, the better. And he wanted to be on land and the right continent as soon as possible anyway.


    After getting close to the far edge of the creature he stood upon, John dashed across the length of it. He continued to dash across the surface of the water until a wave ruined his feat. He swam back to the creature and did the same again until he figured out the wave issue.


    Since he had to be careful, John couldn¡¯t run at his fastest, but he was moving many times faster than his swimming speed. He eventually messed up on a wave and sunk. Jumping out of the water to run across its surface was impossible, but he found a way to do so by first slipping through the shadows. It wasn¡¯t all that easy and took many attempts, but he eventually figured it out.


    Mere hours later, John spotted land. As he approached, he saw it was a small island with many others past it. He kept running until he finally saw the coastline of a large body and ran onto its shore.


    After taking the time to study his environment and the sky above, including the setting sun and the one moon he could spot, John put more effort into trying to get a better idea of where in the world he was. The world spun in the same direction, so the sun rose and fell mainly as it did on Earth, but the axis tilted differently. If water swirled as it did on Earth, he was in the northern hemisphere. He wasn¡¯t sure of the tilt of the axis, or if having two moons changed that.


    There were some conflicting clues regarding which hemisphere John was in too, and besides reaffirming the cardinal directions, he couldn¡¯t figure anything else out with certainty. It wasn¡¯t yet dark, but if he were to judge by the sky, he¡¯d say he was in the southern hemisphere. Once the other moon appeared, he¡¯d know more.


    Seeing no reason to dally longer, John sped into the strange and thick forest beyond the shoreline. Since the world was Tech 0, the NCS gave little information on it. What the people of the world looked like was a mystery. Their type wasn¡¯t listed, but the classification of world and environment indicated they¡¯d be beta-types.


    After running for some minutes, John reached the ocean again. He was on a large island filled with much life, including a few troops of creatures that looked somewhat like gorilla-wolves. One of them was a Silver. All the beasts ran away from him when he stopped hiding.


    The island was about four times as wide as it was long. John thought the island was very large, but he had no true scale to measure by. He remembered two similarly shaped islands from studying the globe. Both were east of a major continent. One was near a heavily populated continent.


    Running west would get John to a continent in either case. The island off the populated continent had no land to the south of it but the other did. He ran southwesterly and spotted a coast wrapping around. Now he knew where he was. Or he believed so.


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    If John was correct, he was deep in the southern hemisphere and the north end of this continent connected with one of the two populated continents. He started running north-northwesterly, flashing his info function on occasionally, hoping he¡¯d get something from it, though he never did.


    There was a lot of life all around him, and John was still surprised at how weak everything was. He eventually sensed something at the Gold tier and stopped to check it out. It was some bearlike creature. Wanting to test the life of this world, John unhid. The beast growled and immediately gave battle. It was surprisingly strong and vicious.


    John let the beast get all the manifestations it wanted off. It had a charge, an echo-attack, and a body-enhancement. He fought it for a while, getting its full measure before draining it. He put the three crystals it dropped, two large parts of its hide, claws, fangs, heart, and some other organs into his ruck.


    After half a day of sprinting northward, John finally found some natives. During his time on Earth hiding as Jim, he watched a lot of vampire movies. In some of the movies were creatures called werewolves. The natives looked like larger and much stranger versions of those beasts. They had hairless and odd skin like the bark of a cedar, and that skin was covered in something like evenly spaced-out warts all over. Like humans, the natives had hair on their head, armpits, and groins.


    The info function gave nothing on the natives. They wore no clothes at all. He figured they had to be sapient as they used tools, carried weapons, and lived in mud huts. The ones carrying weapons painted patterns on their face and body.


    The weapons were primitive. Just spears, stone daggers and axes, crude bows, and shields made of hide. One native wore a wooden mask and a headdress and was one of only two that had achieved the fifth rank of the Bronze tier. None were higher.


    There were only about a hundred natives he could spot, and the NCS info function didn¡¯t give the village a name or count the population. John wondered why. He unhid and walked towards them.


    Every villager fearfully placed themselves flat on the ground, their faces shoved fully into the dirt.


    John yelled out, ¡°Please, friends, stand. No need for any of that. I come in peace and mean no harm.¡±


    The villagers knew almost nothing. Their speech, even translated, was very primitive. They knew the location of three other tribes and a few beasts they worshiped, but nothing else useful.


    John ate all the food and drink offered to him. Most if it was considered poison by his body, but weak poison, draining his vital essence very slowly and only for a short time. They also gifted him a spear, an axe, and a shield, all far too frail and brittle to last long for him in battle.


    John gifted them the hides, claws, and some other organs he collected from the bearlike creature and continued his journey northwest, staying hidden, occasionally infusing more essence into Adumbration, avoiding other tribes. He reached a beach and headed westward along the northern coast of the continent, knowing it would slope upwards and lead to the lands north.


    The forest was and had been more jungle than not, thick with vegetation and life. As he ran along beachless and high cliffs, he felt something mighty far off in the distance of the jungle to his northwest, definitely an Exalted. If he was feeling everything correctly, there was little other life in that area, and the Exalted had its soul unveiled.


    If John felt the Exalted, the reverse was true too. He wondered why the Nani had told him this world only had Salts. This was the second Exalted he had come across. Then he realized it was probably a beast. If the Nani were right, the highest natives, the sapient species, were only Salts.


    John could attempt to flee by running across the water or some such, but the Exalted had only felt into him in an exploratory manner. Mindless beasts didn¡¯t do that. Curious, he started heading towards the Exalted as the Exalted did the same, and he was able to tell it was a low Transcendent.


    Most people would claim John had no chance of winning a fight against a Transcendent, low or otherwise, but he had beaten higher before. Granted, one was a truly mindless dark walker, and the others were very weak and mostly mindless creatures from a demonless world of the NetherRealm. He still didn¡¯t think the result was a foregone conclusion. If the creature wanted battle, he¡¯d give it all it wanted.


    Since the creature¡¯s soul was unveiled, John returned the favor. Doing such was considered extremely rude in civilized places, but the jungle always had its own rules.


    Soon a giant snake slithered into John¡¯s view.


    The snake looked strange, but besides how big it was, he had seen much stranger looking snakes. If he saw a smaller version of this thing on Earth, he wouldn¡¯t be surprised or think it was alien.


    A voice ¨C deep and distant and rattled, somewhat hollow ¨C sounded in John¡¯s mind as the NCS gave words to the snake¡¯s hissing. ¡°I¡¯ve never met one of your kind. Why are you in my realm? Do you wish for battle? You will only find death here, Silver.¡±


    John bowed deep at the waist. He reminded himself to be extra careful with his words. ¡°Greetings, mighty one. You believe my tier is Silver?¡±


    ¡°Yes, I do. Because it is. You name them differently? Tell me how you name them, starting with Foundation and ending with the Sovereign realm.¡±


    ¡°I come from faraway lands, Sovereign,¡± answered John. It wasn¡¯t much of a guess that Sovereign either meant the same as the honorific Exalted or was this world¡¯s name for the Transcendent Tree. ¡°My people are few and isolated. I¡¯d rather know your ways, mighty Sovereign. Would you be kind enough to inform me of how tiers are named in your lands, so I can conform to your ways?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m glad you have manners,¡± said the snake, ¡°but you have a strange taint within you. Tell me truly, are you a demon worshiper like the ananong foreigners to the north?¡±


    ¡°I worship no demon, mighty Sovereign. I slay those bastards when I see them. Are ananong those¡­the sapient people I saw some tribes of south of here?¡±


    The snake hissed and was silent for a moment. ¡°You claim to slay demons? How? The foreigners from across the western ocean worship the one named Kazthun. Or are you a spirit?¡±


    That took John by surprise. Kathzun was a g¡¯athu. Since this world is extremely Tech 0 and in the dark on how things truly work and are categorized, they must assume she¡¯s a demon in the sense humans had always thought of demons until recently ¨C just powerful and malicious entities such as the gallu, similar to gods, he thought.


    ¡°Sorry, mighty Sovereign, I misspoke. We call these little nasty beasts of my land demons, though they can grow to be powerful. I don¡¯t worship Kazthun, or any like her. We consider her to be as powerful as the gods we worship. I¡¯m not a spirit either.¡±


    ¡°Ah, I see. Strange that your people don¡¯t worship the great spirits. What gifts have you brought me as testament to your peaceful intentions as a guest in my realm?¡±


    John removed his ruck. ¡°My sincerest apologies, great Sovereign, as I have little worthy of you. I¡¯m new to these lands and didn¡¯t expect to meet someone as mighty as you are. Would this heart of a beast suffice? It was the same tier as my own, what you named Silver.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll take that, and the crystals. Keep the fangs, I have no use for those. To answer your prior question, we name the tiers Foundation, Copper, Iron, Jade, Silver, Underlord, Overlord, and Archlord. I am above those, a Sovereign, and old. No ananong has reached my greatness, though there are some pretenders. These gifts will not suffice. I require more.¡±


    John stored the tier information away. ¡°Name your price, great Sovereign, and I¡¯ll leave at once to acquire it.¡±


    ¡°The lands across the shallow sea north of here are infested with demon-worshipers. Invaders. They pushed the ananong that worshiped me north and eastward. Bring me the heads of two Silvers or 20 Jade. If you can.¡±


    That meant two Golds or 20 Silvers. ¡°As you wish, mighty Sovereign. Are the ananong the sapient species I saw some tribes of south of here? How can I distinguish the demon-worshipers from the others?¡±


    The snake hissed. Images flooded John¡¯s mind of creatures that looked very similar to the sapient race he met to the south, but clothed, armed, and armored in a much more advanced way.


    The snake said, ¡°The demon-worshipers come from many peoples going by many names. They are easy to tell apart from the Saxxanese and Gansettish led by the Archlords Mena and Ino. The demon-worshipers are led by the Archlord invaders Masset, Sakmaw, Naskapi, and Ogema. Across the ocean stayed the Archlords Ninigret and Sequin.


    ¡°They¡¯ve conquered every land across the ocean, sacrificing many at the altar of Kazthun, trying to weaken the veil enough to summon their mistress. Only Sakim still fights over there. Your people haven¡¯t been conquered? What are they named? You hail from the south? What lands do you live upon? Or near?¡±


    John had a cover story ready that Avatar said was fine to use. ¡°My people are the Atlantans. Long, long ago, our city, Atlantis, was taken by the sea, but our magic was able to protect it. We live deep in the ocean, protected by a bubble of air that surrounds the city. I¡¯m the first of my kind to venture forth in long ages.¡±


    The snake hissed for some time. ¡°Interesting. The Saxxanese and Gansettish both have an old tale about such a city, lost to the ocean long ago. They name it Wangunk, not Atlantis. I wonder if it¡¯s the same. The vast ocean has many strange and mighty things within its depths, including the ancient and all-powerful Danaka, she who will not be tread upon.


    ¡°Go north and bring me those heads. If the Underlords, Overlords, and Archlords of the demon-worshipers find you, flee back within my realm. It extends to the northern continent. They will not follow you within. But do not approach me without all my heads as proper tribute. Two Silver or 20 Jade. Or one Silver and 10 Jade. No less.¡±

 B3 Chapter 53 - The Lands North

    The lands across the shallow sea to the north were ravaged.  All the fields were soot or grown over, set aflame or abandoned.  There weren¡¯t many cities or villages, but all John passed by were ruins and put to the torch some time ago.  There was hardly the right amount of wildlife he expected considering how thickly forested the lands were.


    The info function of the NCS finally gave John something.  A little over 200 miles to his northwest was a place named Ingam with a population of almost 10 thousand.  He headed straight to it while maintaining his stealth.


    The closer John got to the place, the more thickly a strange and tainted fog infested the lands.  The fog made his skin itch and poisoned him, causing his essence to drain enough that he took the time to find and drain an animal.  The animal was tainted too.  The little blood he took in along with its vital essence also poisoned him.


    When John could see Ingam in the distance through the fog, he stopped.  The place was massive, had giant walls, and could easily fit a hundred thousand people within it.  The large area around it was cleared and made into farmland, though it had all been abandoned and unmaintained for a long while.  Many new sick saplings sprouted from the ground, and some were years old by his estimate.  The forest was taking its land back.


    After infusing more essence into Adumbration and tightening the veil on his soul, John made his way into the old city, slowly and carefully with senses extended out as far as possible.  He took his time exploring.


    The majority of ananongs in the city were lower tier, and most wore various colored robes.  As best as John could tell, there were less than 10 Golds and only one Platinum in the city.  Most Silvers and above were armed and armored.  In the square in front of the castle were giant piles of dead ananongs next to enormous piles of their skeletons.


    A couple hundred ananongs were screaming in agony, crowded around and chained to a truly massive statue of a g¡¯athu head.  John had seen a much smaller version of that head in the three witches¡¯ house in Canada.  He had been one of the prisoners attached to it.  The head of Kazthun.


    Kazthun the Unconquered, the Soul-Eater, the Web-Spinner, the Canny.


    East of the square were hundreds of pens housing thousands of sickly and filthy ananong prisoners wearing tattered clothing and put to work carving tiny heads of Kathzun out of wood.  Many of the streets and buildings were crowded with those pens.


    The armed and armored soldiers mostly lazed about in houses and old shops further out around the square, chatting, laughing, and gambling.  West of the square was an odd type of castle where the Platinum and three of the Golds were located.


    The only food John was able to find or see eaten by the ananong captors and prisoners was the flesh of their own dead, though he could tell it disgusted the prisoners to do so.


    Maybe I¡¯m not the best at math, but I¡¯m still no fool.  When the demons and g¡¯athu invaded my planet, I wanted them gone and swore vengeance against them for all eternity.  I swore the same when the Peerless invaded.


    Seeing that these people are ensnared by Kazthun makes me feel better about what I¡¯m doing.  Though if I succeed in conquering this world, these people will go from the fire into the frying pan.  From Kathzun to the Peerless.  A better fate, but not a good fate by any means.


    Like Kazthun, I am one of the villains here.  I will not allow myself to forget it or pretend otherwise.


    If the snake only wanted the heads of two Golds, he was in for a pleasant surprise, as John would give a much larger tribute.  He wanted the Transcendent beast as a solid ally.  The Peerless treated sacred beasts extremely well, so there¡¯d be no guilt there.


    Seeing no reason to hold off, John entered the castle, snuck behind the Platinum, put his shield down, and gripped his spear with both hands.  As he built up piercing energy, the Platinum and the two Golds in the same room perked up and looked around suspiciously.


    The spear didn¡¯t survive the thrust, but the weapon energy pierced a hole right through the Platinum¡¯s head.  As soon as John appeared, without hesitation, the two Golds started casting manifestations.


    Wanting to see how doughty his enemies were, John let the manifestations complete.  A ray of frost shot at him, and he manipulated essence to create a small and focused shield in front of him, blocking the ray.  He got the idea for creating that type of shield from the Butcher and worked hard on getting proficient with manifesting focused essence-shields that way during his time in Thecla¡¯s arena.


    The other Gold manifested a few missiles that were easy to sidestep.  John wasn¡¯t impressed.  He pulled the blood within the two Gold¡¯s brains through their eyes and hardened it, killing both.  As he was collecting the crystals and a decent axe, another Gold burst into the room.


    John held it still by its blood, unbinding whatever manifestation it was casting.  Alarms started to ring throughout the city.  He got near the Gold and released it.  He wanted to see how this race fared physically, so he unbound the man or woman¡¯s manifestations until it attacked with its strange sword.


    The Gold was strong.  Very strong, fast, and durable.  John assumed the race was highly graded, at least physically, lacking only in cultivation knowledge and ability.  After learning enough, he stomped on the Gold¡¯s head and took its crystals.


    Two of the Gold¡¯s had swords, but the hilts weren¡¯t right at all for John¡¯s grip.  The Platinum¡¯s axe was the best weapon.  There was a decent shield, but he needed both his hands for the axe.  None of the armor pieces fit him all that well, but he made do with a chain shirt that covered him past the knees.  No helmet came close to fitting his head serviceably.


    Only a few of the weapons were magicked with runes, but the runes were done poorly and wrong, making them a fraction of how efficient and powerful they¡¯d be if done correctly, and not really worth considering.  He needed a durable weapon far more than a poorly runed one.


    Still wanting to go through the corpses¡¯ possessions, John gave up as he felt many, many enemies approaching including the five remaining Golds left in the city.  He made minions of his four dead enemies and went to meet them.


    After some time battling, John praised his minions.  All his time in the arena certainly wasn¡¯t wasted.  The minions behaved more sensibly and fought much more competently now.  They somehow knew what enemies he was already killing with his vampiric power and avoided those.  They quickly moved out of the way of his energy attacks.  He could send commands to them as if they were normal people.  But still within certain limits.


    John only wished his minions had access to manifestations.  He hoped they would soon.  As his enemies died and his minions fell, he raised more.  He could control eight of ananong size now.


    To see what it could do, John pushed his ¡®vampirism¡¯ concept.   After grabbing all the blood within a large group of ananongs, he was able to lift them a little into the air as they screamed out in great pain before exploding in a shower of blood and viscera.  Killing enemies that way was way too essence-inefficient, but at least he knew he was becoming more powerful and such a feat was possible now.


    John didn¡¯t just praise his minions.  He praised his enemies for being much tougher and putting up a better fight than he expected.


    The cultists were far braver than expected too.  Not one fled the slaughter.  John would¡¯ve let the ones below his tier flee if any had tried.  He didn¡¯t know if this suicidal bravery was somehow related to being a Kazthun cultist, or if it was something intrinsic within the hearts of all ananongs.


    Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    After the battle, according to the NCS info function, the population of Ingam was now about seven thousand.  John wanted to go through the corpses, collect crystals, and find out if he had better choices for arms and armor, but the prisoners were of higher priority, especially the ones chained to the Kazthun statue.


    The penned prisoners that watched John head to the statue looked wary and uncertain of him even though they had just witnessed him fight and kill those imprisoning them.  He thought that was understandable.


    The chains connecting the prisoners to the statue were mighty and reinforced by some power making them very difficult to snap apart or cut through.  It had taken far too long to free just two ananongs chained to the statue by those methods.


    John moved the two unconscious prisoners he had freed aside.  He then built up as much slashing energy as he could with his new axe and whipped it forward toward the massive statue, causing a decent-sized gash in it.


    And this caused the giant statue to light up and glow darkly.  A strange eye opened above it, and the eye stared directly at John.  Bizarre energy lashed off the statue like tentacles, and those tentacles snatched John up and held him in the air.


    John screamed as loudly as his body allowed.  He screamed in terror, in despair, in impotence.


    Of all John¡¯s memories, a good many of them were of the type to be avoided, not to be thought of or remembered.  Some, because the remembering of it caused great anguish and hurt the heart too sharply.  Some, because the remembering of it caused too much discordance between how John chose to see himself, and who he truly was, proven many times when character and convictions were put to the test.  Proven yet again by his ultimate goal on the planet he stood upon.


    There were many, many instances where John had proved he was not the honorable man he chose to see himself as, that he strived to be.  He fell far, far short of the best of men.


    John¡¯s head was flooded with his mistakes, and far worse, it was flooded with his successes.  No relief was given.  No time to recover.  A constant bombardment, one memory right after the other, reliving the scenes too bitter to turn mind to.  He relived all the memories proving he was small and unworthy and timorous, and they left no doubt he was undeserving of love or even kindness or peace.


    John was not a good man.  He deserved what was happening to him.  Deserved this and more besides.  He was base and mean and a coward.  Who was he to ever judge others?  He screamed in despair.  He screamed in anguish.  He screamed in desperation and despondency and hopelessness.  He screamed in the lonely desolation that echoed throughout his long life.  He screamed many, many times, and for long.  He screamed.


    Then he didn¡¯t.  John had been there before, in this same situation.  Previously, in the end, he had stood victorious, and he would this time too.  He didn¡¯t even need to enter into himself to escape these mind tricks.  Kazthun was feeding on him, taking all that was within him.  Like a vampire.  Draining him.  He would not be beaten at his own game.


    John knew he wasn¡¯t a good man, though he tried to be one.  There was a part of himself as dark and as evil as Kazthun herself.  A true beast.  He unchained that feral part of himself and pulled back on all that pulled on him.  It hurt a tremendous amount, more than ascending, more than breaking the slave collar rated for third tier Transcendents.  But it didn¡¯t hurt enough to stop him.


    The statue seemed to scream and the strange eye above it bore into John with anger.  He laughed and pulled.  And he pulled until what was in the statue was being sucked into him and he needed to cycle the painful stuff and waste essence by spraying it into the air to make room for more.


    The statue then tried to release John, but he wouldn¡¯t let it.  He latched on to more of its tentacles and held them tightly, pulling from them mightily.  He sent his abundance of vital essence to strengthen himself, something he hadn¡¯t been able to do since he killed the dark walker of his second Tribulation.  And he continued to drain.


    John had to eventually take control of himself back and enter a modified state of meditation to handle all that entered him.  And it kept coming.  And kept coming.  Until it finally ran dry.


    John fell to the ground as the statue cracked and crumbled apart, all the many tiny heads that made up the statue scattered around its base.  He had to continue his modified form of meditation until the energies and essences within him could be handled and tolerated.


    When he finally got all these substances under control, John stood.  And he stood victorious.  Once again, he had bested Kazthun.  This time, nearly all the statue¡¯s prisoners lived through the ordeal, though they were all unconscious.


    The penned prisoners were silent and only observing John, still wary.  He felt for his minions but had none.  He would make more after freeing the prisoners.  He went to the pens and ripped the first one open.  The prisoners within stood silent and unmoving, too frightened to act.


    ¡°You¡¯re free,¡± John told the prisoners.  ¡°Help me open the rest of these cages.  Tell those you free all the crystals and possessions of those I killed, of our enemies that imprisoned you, are mine, and not to touch any of it.  Once I¡¯ve collected what I want, the rest will be yours.¡±


    The prisoners still didn¡¯t move.  ¡°Go on.  Get out.  Let¡¯s go.¡±


    With a look of fright, one prisoner said, ¡°What are you?  And what tier are you?  You feel like a Silver, but you just defeated an army of thousands led by five of that tier.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m Silver.  Let¡¯s go, help me open these cages.¡±


    ¡°Sorry, Silver, but if we leave, when the Archlords get here, we¡¯ll be put right back in or killed.  I ain¡¯t never heard of any of her statues being broken before, not even by Ino or Mena, may the great spirits bless them.  The Archlords will be here soon, Silver.  Mark my words.


    ¡°And not to sound ungrateful but if you mean for us to live past today, we¡¯d be much obliged if you wouldn¡¯t mind running as far away from this accursed city as you can get before the Archlords find you.  Dangerous just being near those types.¡±


    John, disappointed, just looked at the prisoners.  A different prisoner said, ¡°The Underlord will be back soon too.¡±


    Underlord was Platinum.  John said, ¡°I killed the Underlord.  So, you all have no spine and would rather wait to be given to Kathzun than attempt an escape?¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t kill an Underlord, Silver.  Ah, what am I saying?  I¡¯d say that¡¯s impossible if we didn¡¯t just see you fight an army by yourself and win.  The cultists control everything from Kardin all the way east to the kingdom of Gansett.  All of Saxx is theirs now.  Where¡¯s there to escape to?  We lost.  They won.  And we¡­¡±


    John felt what was coming seconds before the prisoner.  He infused essence into Adumbration, though he knew he was already sensed.  He was able to run out of the city and a good distance south before a low Exalted caught up to him.


    Hovering in the air, crackling with power, the Exalted said, ¡°A Silver?  What is it?  No idea.  Never seen anything that looks like it.  Hey, can you speak?¡±


    John bowed at the waist and said, ¡°Yes, Sovereign.¡±


    ¡°What are you?  Where¡¯d you come from?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m an Atlantan.  Long, long ago, our city, Atlantis, was taken by the sea, but our magic was able to protect it.  We live deep in the depths of the ocean, protected by a bubble of air that surrounds the city.  I¡¯m the first of my kind to venture forth in long ages.¡±


    After a moment of silence, the Exalted said, ¡°My people had a tale about such a city.  It¡¯s called Vagenk though.  It must be the same place.  I can¡¯t believe that story¡¯s true, my love.  Mine did too.  Named Wanut.  When the sea mother flooded the world, it sunk deep and was trapped in the ocean.¡±


    John looked confusedly at the Exalted, thinking it might be insane.  After slowly lowering to the ground, the Exalted split into a peak Salt and a mid-high Salt.


    Cursing himself for not thinking of that, John remembered how the witches in Canada merged together too.


    The two Salts looked very different, but John had no ability to tell males and females apart without seeing genitals.  Some of the prisoners were menstruating, making it easy to tell, but he wasn¡¯t familiar enough with the species¡¯ scents otherwise.


    The peak Salt was heavily armored and very large.  The other wore robes and was about the size of other ananongs.  Neither had a visible weapon, and Isb hadn¡¯t discovered spatial storage yet, so they were unarmed.


    ¡°Who destroyed the sacrificial altar of the almighty Kathzun,¡± asked the armored and large Salt.  ¡°It couldn¡¯t have been you, Atlantan.  And¡­what is this!  Look, Nas!  What in the five hells kind of essences does it have?  Do you see this?¡±


    ¡°You know I have death-sight.  What¡¯s wrong with it,¡± asked Nas, the robed one.


    ¡°One is kind of black, but a lighter type of black, or dark grey, not like black-aspected essence.  A new type.  And he has four others.  Five in total.  How?¡±


    ¡°Great Kazthun!  Five essences?  Are you certain?  Look again.¡±


    After entering his battle-mind, John noticed Nas was filled with the strange type of life essence he saw in corpses, but only when he was in his battle-mind.  It was coursing throughout Nas¡¯ body, mixed in with the normal kind of essence.  He had seen a few cultivators with it before.  Their manifestations were always strange and powerful.


    It finally clicked in John¡¯s head.  That wasn¡¯t a strange type of life essence.  It was death essence.  Nice, he thought.  I can see two cardinal aspects.  At least while I¡¯m in my battle-mind.


    John couldn¡¯t think of any questions he wanted to ask the Salts.  To conquer the world, he¡¯d have to kill these two eventually, and doing so would be much easier while they were unmerged.  He had killed many Salts during his stay at the Great Ring of Vodalus on Thecla, and those weren¡¯t yokels.


    So, while the two Salts discussed his essence, John attacked.

 B3 Chapter 54 - False Sovereigns

    John had two goals. The first was to keep these two Salts unmerged. The second was to test them. Since it would be a surprise attack, he targeted the peak Salt, the one that was heavily armored. Much to his surprise, he was rejected from taking control of his enemy¡¯s blood nearly as soon as he initiated the act. The peak Salt laughed.


    ¡°Did he just try to invoke at you, Ogema,¡± asked Nas.


    ¡°That he did, love,¡± said Ogema, smiling. At least John thought it was a smile.


    ¡°He must never have heard of you, my dear. How long since you stood against an enemy able to get an invocation off while within your mighty [Aura]?¡±


    ¡°Too long, my beautiful Naskapi.¡±


    John was collecting blade energy on his axe as the two talked. He was taking his time with it, as this was another test. It would take more than a Salt yokel from a Tech 0 world unbinding a manifestation to impress him.


    Well before John was ready to whip his axe forward and release its energy, Ogema blurred in front of him, fast as lightning, and grabbed his hand.


    ¡°Atlantans aren¡¯t very smart, are they, Ogema,¡± asked the robed one, Naskapi, off to the side.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t seem like it, Nas. Did you feel that though? That weird feeling around his axe?¡±


    ¡°Meaningless, my dear. Well, show him why it¡¯s such a bad idea to let a body-cultivator grab hold. Teach him some manners. Beat him to a pulp for me, my love.¡±


    If Ogema wanted to be humbled in a fist fight, John would oblige. The first time he destroyed a statue of Kazthun, he also had a slugfest after.


    Seeing the surprise in Ogema¡¯s eyes as the body-enhancement he tried casting was violently unbound nearly made John laugh. He knew how that sent painful shocks through the meridians.


    Ogema was holding John¡¯s right wrist, so John punched the armor covering his enemy¡¯s side with his left hand. Though he didn¡¯t put much power into the punch, it dented the armor inward a great deal.


    John knew, like himself, Ogema was right-handed. He let his enemy have a free punch at his face. It hurt and he felt a little blood trickle from his lip, but it did no real damage. He could take those punches all day.


    And he began to as John and Ogema took turns punching each other¡¯s faces. John decided against enhancing his strength with vital essence. He was using his left hand and not putting all the power he could into his blows, while his enemy was using his dominant hand to land his hardest punches.


    Sometime later, the fight turned more vicious. The two men rolled on the ground, punching, biting, and kicking, and they fought ferociously for a long while.


    At some point, Ogema latched on to John¡¯s skull with his maw, finding the subdermal plating under John¡¯s skin, and only hurting his own teeth.


    John never once used blunt energy to enhance his blows, nor did he once swipe with his claws. He never activated his own [Aura]. He ignored holds and bars that were practically offered up to him, as well as all openings allowing him to cause major damage and end the fight quickly.


    The ananongs were naturally strong, fast, and powerful. Ogema was a body cultivator at the pinnacle of the Mortal Tree, the peak of what the race could physically become before ascending to the next Tree, and John wanted to test the limit of his new enemies.


    And the two men fought on in brutal battle. Ogema¡¯s armor was broken and slowly removed as the fight continued. His helm was long gone, and his face was bloody, especially where John had taken a bite out of his cheek. Blow after mighty blow and neither man was close to being done.


    Until Nas started to get involved. Subtly, then more blatantly. John let her, though his right hand was burned badly with death-essence for allowing it.


    When he was done testing his opponent, John let Ogema wrap his arm around his neck from behind. ¡°Hold him still, love,¡± ordered Nas. ¡°Let¡¯s just get this over so we can get the prisoners working on a new statue.¡±


    Ogema held John tightly in front of him in a chokehold. Nas struck both of her arms forward as if she were holding whips. Death-essence lashed out of both her hands in a cord-like manifestation aimed right at John¡¯s chest.


    John grabbed Ogema¡¯s arm and shoulder and bent down violently while tossing his enemy over himself and directly into the path of the incoming cords of death-essence.


    Three pieces of Ogema rolled in three different directions as Nas screamed out in horror. John unbound her next manifestation, and the next. She tried running. She didn¡¯t get far.


    As John wrapped his arms around the fleeing and crying ananong, he whispered, ¡°It¡¯s a very bad idea letting me grab hold. Guess what? I win, you lose,¡± into her ear before draining her. Or he assumed it was a her.


    Just as John finished and was about to search her corpse, he felt a new Exalted approaching from the east. He cursed and quickly made minions of the two corpses and ran south as fast as he could push himself, using vital essence to enhance his speed, buffing himself every way he could, while infusing essence into his cloak.


    The Exalted got closer and closer as John sprinted south. Some sort of manifestation he didn¡¯t even feel being cast grabbed hold of him, but he quickly shrugged it off and kept running. And then again. And again. Soon after, he noticed the Exalted stopped following and was standing still.


    John thought he must¡¯ve entered the snake¡¯s realm and the pretend Transcendent wouldn¡¯t follow. He assumed it was another pretend Transcendent, two Salts merged together as Ogema and Nas were.


    Loud and resounding, as if it was yelled right next to him, John heard, ¡°Run, you coward!¡±


    John stopped running. His brows furrowed as a crazed look entered his eye. He had never bested a Transcended other than the mindless dark walker and some weak creatures of a NetherWorld without demons. This Transcendent wasn¡¯t a real one either. And his damaged hand didn¡¯t hurt too badly. He tried to open and close it, but the dead flesh refused his commands.


    I have much to live for after so much time with no good reason to, thought John. I have a new wife. I have the promise of children. Children! A purpose. The chance to really live again.


    Amber was joking when she told me to come back with my shield or on it, but that¡¯s one of the few tenets I laid forth Sparta didn¡¯t warp beyond recognition. True warriors don¡¯t run from battle. Better Amber be a widow than married to a coward.


    I was born to battle, as these g¡¯athu worshipers will soon learn.


    The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.


    John turned and began to retrace his steps. He felt for his minions. Only Ogema was in range, proving the doughtiness of the body cultivator¡¯s corpse. It was too far away to be helpful now, but he still ordered it to attack in case he was too busy later.


    As the Exalted stared at him as he approached, John made sure his [Slowing Aura] was on, adjusted his battle-mind, tightened his buffs, and sent more vital essence to enhance his speed. He called out, ¡°You worship Kazthun, sacrifice your own people, and name me coward? Two Archlords merged into a Sovereign against a Silver? And I¡¯m the coward? I would eat your hearts and bathe in your blood, but your cowardice may infest me if I did so. Instead, I¡¯ll piss on your corpses today. By tomorrow, I¡¯ll have forgotten all about you.¡±


    The Exalted looked strange, as the last Exalted John saw did as well, as if it couldn¡¯t decide how it should look. It wore only robes and no armor, and also lacked a weapon. Its size was the general size of all other ananongs. It hovered above the ground, fangs bared in anger, growling. ¡°Step out of Sovereign Odjig¡¯s realm and face us then, coward. Yes, face us, coward. All those strange essences of yours won¡¯t save you.¡±


    As John walked forward, he felt another Exalted rushing north to his location. He stopped and turned, showing his back to the merged Salts in insult.


    Instead of flying, the snake slithered over the land like a lightning bolt.


    Once it arrived, the snake stood next to John and addressed the two merged-Salts. ¡°Why are you encroaching on my realm? Do you seek to break the peace? Attack me?¡±


    The enemy bowed with both hands pressed together as if in prayer. ¡°Sovereign Odjig, this¡­whatever it is, attacked us and fled into your realm like a coward. Two of our rank fell today. We don¡¯t know how, but this Silver was in the vicinity. We would question it, find the truth of the matter, and ensure blood pays in kind. And find the truth of those essences it holds in its mana center.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a male,¡± replied the snake. ¡°From the lost city of Wangunk, taken by the ocean so long ago. He names the city Atlantis, and himself an Atlantan. I saw everything, so no need to question him.


    ¡°This Silver slayed your forces in Ingam, destroyed the statue of your demon mistress there, and killed Ogema and Naskapi. Six are now reduced to four. Can you two stand against Mena and Ino? Or will they rid these lands of you both, free Saxx, and go help Sakim do the same to Ninigret and Sequin in Uagri. Will this be the end of your cult?¡±


    The Exalted stared angrily at the snake. ¡°Tall tales and taunting? Do you seek to break the peace? Do you want the great Kazthun as an enemy, beast? We don¡¯t worship animals as the Saxxanese and Gansettish. Or, I should say, what¡¯s left of them after they foolishly stood against Kazthun. Do you seek to feed our great mistress too, and help us summon her to this world?¡±


    The snake slithered around, coiling its lower body, and reared up threateningly, taking up enough space that it forced John to back away some. ¡°Gansett hasn¡¯t fallen yet. Two Archlords have managed to keep four at bay, even with those four posing as two false Sovereigns. A Silver, not an Archlord, not even an Overlord, not even an Underlord, a mere Silver, has defeated a pair of you. Or maybe he hasn¡¯t. Look, Ogema would join our meeting.¡±


    Ogema¡¯s corpse was still far off but getting closer. The corpse of Nas had just entered John¡¯s range too. The merged Exalted turned in the direction Ogema was coming from. It was quiet for a moment before it angrily snapped out, ¡°What have you done to him,¡± and quickly flew out of John¡¯s vision range, but not the range of his senses.


    ¡°They¡¯ll want your blood even more now,¡± said the snake. ¡°The spirits didn¡¯t bless me with essence-sight. Do you really have five aspects, Atlantan?¡±


    ¡°I do, Sovereign.¡±


    ¡°Strange. Strange and wonderful. Are you a spirit?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not, Sovereign.¡±


    After hissing, the snake said, ¡°That¡¯s too bad. I hoped you were a great spirit given form. I always wanted to meet one. Sometimes I can almost feel them, hear them whispering to me. You didn¡¯t return with heads, but I accept the slaughter you made as a¡­¡±


    John assumed the snake stopped speaking when he felt or sensed what John had. Ogema died for the second time.


    ¡°I won¡¯t be able to get involved in this fight directly,¡± said the snake. ¡°I can only intimidate and threaten. Oh, looks like they sensed Naskapi and are going for her.¡±


    John still could barely sense his other minion.


    ¡°You do plan on fighting them, yes,¡± asked the snake.


    ¡°I do, Sovereign.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll try and get them to accept a contest with some rules to make this fairer. Hopefully I can get them to separate for it. It will be tougher than your last fight. Masset and Sakmaw are both at the peak of Archlord, the highest ananong can go, and each possesses mighty magics.¡±


    Hearing the snake mention a contest gave John an idea. ¡°Thank you, Sovereign,¡± he replied. ¡°I appreciate the help.¡± He wanted to ask why the snake wouldn¡¯t get involved directly. If the Kazthun cultists were killing the ananongs the snake claimed worshiped it, he figured that would be a good enough reason to get in the fight.


    A few minutes later, the Exalted returned, looking furious. As they flew back towards John, they yelled out, ¡°What evil did you do to them? You defile the corpses of Archlords? You spit on the great spirits!¡±


    The snake reared up menacingly. ¡°You dare mention the great spirits while worshiping a demon? While sacrificing so many ananong to her? Piling their bodies up to the sky! You¡¯ve turned your backs on the great spirits long ago. You only soil the air with such words and indignation.¡±


    The Exalted stared murder at the snake. ¡°You understand too little, beast. Slither back deeper into your realm and stay there. Sovereign Tamoit knows her place and told you yours. Ananong affairs are not Sovereign affairs. We leave you alone and you leave us alone. So, go. Leave us alone. Send your pet out of your realm first.¡±


    ¡°And if I don¡¯t? If I keep him in my realm? Will you break truce? Will you feel my fangs? Will you have regrets as I constrict around your body and squeeze the life out of you?¡±


    Snake and ananong stared tensely at one another. ¡°You want the Atlantan,¡± stated the snake. ¡°If you agree to a contest, you can have him. He¡¯s a Silver so any contest would favor you, but what I suggest will make this fairer. Separate and¡­,¡±


    ¡°Apologies, Sovereign,¡± interrupted John, ¡°but may I suggest something? In Atlantis, when our lords have been offended by a commoner, we hold a sort of contest as a trial. Both the lord and commoner must stand five paces or so from one another and take turns manifesting their best spells until one falls dead or submits.


    ¡°The lord, being the offended party, gets the first strike. Neither party can move their feet or move their body out of the way of their opponent¡¯s strikes, though it¡¯s allowed to defend oneself by essence-shields and the like.


    ¡°If I must fight a godlike Sovereign, I¡¯m sure to die. It won¡¯t be much of a fight. And if I am to die today, I would prefer to do so in the way of my people. If I am forced to submit, I swear to become the mighty Sovereign¡¯s willing slave and follow the Sovereign¡¯s commands unquestioningly for as long as I live.¡±


    John wasn¡¯t sure if the merged Salts were men or women so avoided giving offense by guessing incorrectly. He hoped he hadn¡¯t laid it on too thick. The two Sovereigns looked at one another, then the false one looked at John. ¡°You¡¯ll be our slave and obey our every order?¡±


    ¡°If you let me live, mighty Sovereign.¡±


    After a moment of silence, the Exalted asked, ¡°You can¡¯t move away from our strike? What if you¡¯re knocked down? Do we win then?¡±


    ¡°No, mighty Sovereign. I get back up and we continue until I¡¯m dead or I submit. I just can¡¯t move to avoid your attack.¡±


    ¡°And unbinding,¡± asked the Exalted.


    ¡°Not allowed, mighty Sovereign,¡± answered John.


    There were more questions John answered before the Exalted agreed. The snake said, ¡°As this contest was agreed upon by both parties, with the great spirits as my witnesses, I will enforce terms and attack and kill any party not adhering to them. I invite you into my realm Masset and Sakmaw. Stand here.¡±


    Once in place, John tightened his battle-mind and buffs, made sure his [Slowing Aura] was still activated, and recast [Multi-Shield]. He continued to manipulate essence in preparation. He didn¡¯t know what attack would be loosed at him, so he had to be ready for anything.


    The Exalted raised its hands above its head and built up an attack. A pink and crackling ball of energy grew and grew between its hands until it was the size of a small boulder. The boulder was released and shot at John¡¯s legs like a bullet.


    [Slowing Aura] made it easier for John to place a focused essence-shield in the boulder¡¯s path, but that focused shield barely slowed it down. The second focused shield slowed it a little more, as did his third, and his [Aura] slowed it further. Then it blasted into [Multi-Shield], shattering it, and hitting his legs. One leg was smashed, the other banged up some, but whole.


    The snake hissed. The Exalted laughed and said, ¡°I¡¯d submit now if I were you, Atlantan. We¡¯ll even help heal your leg.¡±


    John winced and concentrated on maintaining his balance. When the Exalted realized John wasn¡¯t submitting, it cast a very light-pink essence-shield around itself. ¡°That was a neat trick with those little shields but how will you stand when you have no legs to stand upon, Atlantan? Just save your strange essence, save yourself from far more pain, and¡­what in the five hells are you doing?¡±


    Even if he wanted to, John didn¡¯t have time to answer. Both he and the Exalted were being trapped within his [Ultimate].

 B3 Chapter 55 - Wasamatu

    The snake became very wary of John after witnessing his [Ultimate]. It moved away as John collected two light-blue crystals from the dead pretend Exalted.


    John wasn¡¯t surprised by the snake¡¯s reaction. It made sense. He was surprised, as usual, by how much his [Ultimate] managed to hurt him but also heal him, including his shattered leg. He was just glad the hide protocols didn¡¯t restrict any natural manifestations, and he was allowed to cast it.


    To cast an [Ultimate], all eight aspects had to be opened. Divines on the fourth Tree cast [Ultimates]. Some rare and powerful Celestials would be able to cast them too. Never Mortals or Transcendents. And the ananongs of Isb only knew the first Tree.


    No other species of John¡¯s sector knew of [Ultimates] either. He doubted anyone in the whole Milky Way galaxy did. As far as he knew, only one being in the whole galaxy had achieved the third Tree ¨C Magnis Gar¡¯tar.


    And she had only become a Magnus in truth after meeting John, most likely learning the trick of how to escape the galaxy and truly ascend to the third Tree by Sublime Ton-Oi.


    John didn¡¯t know what effect the merging of two beings had on items, but his enemy¡¯s items were all destroyed anyway. There was a pouch of coins that had all merged together into a big hunk of metal he took, as well as some damaged jewelry and trinkets, but the magicked ones were all broken.


    ¡°Is this all their wealth,¡± John asked the snake.


    ¡°Unlikely, great spirit. They¡¯ll have their riches and possessions stored at either of their cities close to Gansett. Ogema and Naskapi too.¡±


    John cursed. He would have to give up the wealth that was his by right of victory. At least for now. He let the ¡®great spirit¡¯ comment go unchallenged. He thought it could only help him. He raised the merged Exalted as a minion.


    ¡°I should inform you that Ino and Mena are on the way here,¡± said the snake. ¡°It will take some time. They can¡¯t fly like these cultist pretenders.¡±


    John replied with a nod. He didn¡¯t want to commit to anything. He wanted to avoid those two as long as he could.


    ¡°I never got your name, great spirit,¡± said the snake.


    ¡°I¡¯m called John, Sovereign Odjig. I¡¯m going back to get the crystals and check the possessions of Ogema and Naskapi. Then I¡¯ll free the prisoners in Ingam and collect the crystals from all the dead enemies I left there.¡±


    The snake hissed and said, ¡°I¡¯ll go too. I¡¯ll clear what Mists of Kazthun I can. I also must visit Tamoit far to the north. What will you do after Ingam, great spirit?¡±


    ¡°Win,¡± replied John.


    <hr>


    There were two other cities west of Ingam. John destroyed the cultist forces, the statues of Kazthun, and released the prisoners of both. Draining the last statue caused John to feel really itchy all over.


    The city of Kardin was on the west coast. After releasing some prisoners and telling them to release the rest, John ran to a prisoner convoy headed to the city and freed those too. He then sat down to cultivate and clear the area of the strange Mists of Kazthun, as the mists made the ananong docile and sheeplike.


    John had been avoiding meeting up with Mena and Ino, but the snake was sending them to Kardin. Currently, they were helping the prisoners in the two other cities John had freed.


    John was better armed and armored. Not well armed and armored, just better. Kardin was ruled by a Diamond that was a decently good fighter, and that Diamond had a very sturdy mace. The head of the mace was just some big hunk of metal, unforged and unshaped, but ridiculously heavy and impossibly hard.


    As he was cultivating the strange mists, John felt an insane level of danger directed at him and his reality shattered for a split second. Then the intense feeling of danger was gone as fast as it had come.


    The earth around John was cracked and mangled and his minions were just particles floating in the air, including the merged Masset and Sakmaw. He was fine. But he was also very confused.


    ¡°YOU¡¯RE CAUSING ME A LOT OF TROUBLE, CHILD. I¡¯M BEGINNING TO REGRET ALLOWING YOU THE USE OF MY VESSEL UNTIL DIAMOND. ONCE OFF ISB, LEAVE KAZTHUN ALONE. DO NOTHING TO INSTIGATE HER AGAIN.¡±


    John kowtowed and said, ¡°Yes, uh, Curiosity. Thank you.¡± He wished he knew what just happened. He had a feeling his death was narrowly avoided. Betrayal¡¯s specific words were ¡®once off of Isb.¡¯ He hoped that meant he was free to continue instigating Kazthun while on this planet, because he was going to.


    <hr>


    Sovereign Odjig decided he would finally join the fight against the cultists. He offered to travel with John, Ino, and Mena and help against the remaining two Salts belonging to Kathzun.


    The snake carried all three across the ocean, and the four companions met up with Archlord Sakim, a man none of them had ever met before.


    Soon after, Ninigret and Sequin were dead. There were many statues of Kathzun in the lands of Uagri, but no prisoners. With few exceptions, all the living ananong there were cultists and put to death.


    The world wouldn¡¯t be free of Kazthun until all her statues were destroyed, so John set about doing so. And the draining of each subsequent statue caused him to feel stranger and stranger. He was also summoned by a Sovereign beast, a second tier Transcendent, and awarded a [Title].


    ¡®Blessed by Exalted Manitabasso¡¯ Title attained. While on the planet Isb, Title shows as ¡®Blessed by Sovereign Manitabasso.¡¯ When in the active Title slot, slightly increases the speed and efficiency of converting energy to essence.


    It was taken as more proof John was a great spirit given form when no one could sense the [Title] after it was granted to him.


    Even though he was only a Silver, all three of the remaining Archlord ananong knelt and offered fealty to John. That should¡¯ve made the NCS consider him the ruler of Isb. It didn¡¯t. He figured that would change after he destroyed the few remaining statues of Kathzun, but that didn¡¯t work either.


    It wasn¡¯t the sapient Exalted beasts. None were interested in ruling anything but their own realms and Isb was an ananong planet, though John knew the NCS named them isbans.


    This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    There were two continents with high populations. One of those were the lands of Saxx and Gansett. The other was the continent called Uagri, where the cult of Kathzun first appeared. The majority of the ananong of Uagri had been sacrificed to Kazthun¡¯s altars long ago. There were hardly any ananong left on the continent after all the cultists were killed.


    After asking for maps, John headed towards the southwest. He remembered the continent was shaped like an extremely fat and thick letter J. On the crude maps he was given, the continent just looked somewhat oval-shaped, ending in vast mountains on the southwestern side of it.


    Once John arrived at the mountains, he kept forgetting why he was there. He forced himself to study them. He didn¡¯t know how he missed it before. He ran south along the mountain range and found three others.


    In four places along the mountains were giant statues somewhat similar to the Great Sphinx of Giza. The base had the body of a sort-of-sphinx in an eerily similar pose as the statue on Earth, but the head wasn¡¯t the same at all, though it still wore strange headgear.


    It took John over a day to get over the mountain. Not because it was difficult, though the mountains were truly massive. He was constantly overcome by a feeling of wrongness and wanted to turn around. He also kept forgetting why he wanted to pass the mountains and would start back to Uagri.


    When John finally passed the range, all he could see was thickly forested land as far as the eye could reach. The info function of his NCS helped there.


    [Wasamatu, Pop. 2.1m, 487 mi]


    There were no signs of any civilization on the way to the city. No farms. No abandoned villages. Nothing.


    While still over ten miles out from the city, John saw a giant statue. If he had to guess, he¡¯d guess it was of a heavily armored ananong. Off in the distance towards both sides of the statue, John could barely make out two more of the same since the foliage was so thick.


    A feeling of deep foreboding caused fear in John he had a hard time shaking off. He felt a compulsion to turn around and leave. He forced himself onward. Once past the statues, the feeling disappeared, and he continued his journey.


    Soon enough, once through a very dense thicket, John saw the most amazing city he had ever laid eyes upon. There were giant statues everywhere. Lush farms everywhere. All the houses were exquisitely carved from stone and each of them decorated with detailed depictions of beautiful scenes, many of which were of a massive sea creature among the waves.


    There were giant structures unlike anything John had seen before, comparable to the pyramids, but very different.


    And there were a lot of strange looking ananong that all froze in fear upon seeing John. They looked mostly the same as the others but were a little smaller, their skin looked like the same type of bark but was smoother and less cracked, and they had about half the warts, though the ones they had were larger and just as evenly spaced out.


    From where he stood, John could practically see across the whole beautiful city. He was impressed. By the city, not its people. He stretched his senses out and could only feel three Platinums. Nothing higher.


    ¡°Call for the Lords! Call for the three Lords,¡± many of the city¡¯s residents began to cry out. ¡°Intruders! Intruders breached the defenses!¡±


    John tried to look unthreatening and peaceful. Off in the distance, on top of three giant altar-like structures that looked like they were made of large steps, three strangely dressed ananong started to descend. The three Platinums.


    Once they had descended most of the way down the giant structures, John couldn¡¯t see them, but he could still feel them. They weren¡¯t in a rush at all. They all stopped to gather a large retinue filled with a mix of tiers. All three Platinums started making their way to John around the same time, but slowly.


    Figuring it would be more polite to wait where he was, John walked a little forward into the city and took a seat on the lip of a fountain. And waited. And waited. He thought they were lucky he wasn¡¯t attacking the city as he had plenty of time to kill and pillage unopposed.


    The three Platinums finally arrived after moseying slowly down three different streets. As if coordinated, all three arrived at the same time. The Platinums were dressed similarly, all three in the silliest outfits John had ever seen. It wasn¡¯t armor, just bulky and ridiculous nonsensical decorations, including huge headgear.


    The three lined up behind two rows of shirtless and armed Gold warriors and moved forward in unison, stopping twenty paces in front of John.


    ¡°Has the great Dankata sent you? Is she not pleased with our sacrifices any longer,¡± asked the Platinum in the middle.


    ¡°I wasn¡¯t sent by anyone, Underlord,¡± replied John. ¡°I don¡¯t know a Dankata.¡± He remembered the snake mentioning a similar name. ¡°Do you mean Danaka, she that doesn¡¯t like to be tread upon?¡±


    ¡°Seize this beast,¡± ordered the middle Platinum. ¡°Bring it to my altar for sacrifice.¡±


    The handful of Gold warriors moving forward to follow those orders fell unconscious as John quickly drained the blood from their brains. Usually, he had to fight through some resistance when he did that. Not one of the warriors put up noticeable resistance, and neither did the middle Platinum as John pulled the blood of its brain through its eyes and hardened it, creating what he thought of as blood-icicles sticking out of its face.


    As the Platinum slunk down dead, the two others became nervous and tried to run, as did the rest of the warriors and retinues of the leaders. John let all but the two Platinums go.


    An hour later, after questioning the two, John believed he understood what had happened.


    A very long time ago there was a very advanced city that ruled all around them. The highest tier the people knew of was Lord. Platinum. There were eight Lords of this city. They believed they were stronger than they were.


    The lords attacked the great beast of the sea called Dankata. That was a big mistake. The city was rocked by massive waves and subsumed by the sea. Their empire was destroyed. The survivors made their way far to the south and built this city, sacrificing a few people daily to appease Dankata and calm her wrath.


    To this day, they still thought Platinum was the highest tier anyone could achieve, not knowing about soul refinement.


    After the city was built, not one resident had ever left the wards of the city once they were activated. Now, no one even knew how the wards worked, though they assumed the daily sacrifices had something to do with it. They had no idea who or what Kazthun was and had never heard of Underlords, Overlords, or Archlords.


    So, the Atlantis of Isb is real, thought John. And I found it.


    After forcing the two Platinums to bow and swear fealty to him, John smiled. He was kind of an Atlantan in truth now. And, according to the NCS, he was also the ruler of Isb now too.


    John navigated through the screens of the NCS and passed rulership of the planet to Amber. This had already been discussed and planned. He had thought it would work like with the Ele he had fought on Earth. That he¡¯d be able to pre-swear to Amber and spend the credits she awarded him with now.


    Conquering a world by himself was in a different class and category of deeds. It had only happened once before, but Akeoli Hyavod was a Transcendent when he did so, had some other Mortal Tree Oli helping him, as well as a Transcendent Meleua backing him up, but a precedent had already been set.


    Rewards for this deed had to go through and be approved by the appropriate Nanis, not Amber.


    Regardless of how his reward played out, John couldn¡¯t hold Isb hostage to bargain with the Nanis Heiau with. Not if he ever wanted to get off this planet.


    Other Peerless could build some device allowing them to escape the atmosphere of the world and be collected in space. Academy graduate or not, building such a thing was far beyond John¡¯s capabilities. He gave himself decent odds on if he¡¯d be able to repair such a device if it was already built.


    Maintaining rulership of Isb to use as leverage against the Nani would¡¯ve been ideal, but it wasn¡¯t to be. Passing rulership to Amber made the planet part of the Peerless Empire and considered Tech 1. She could send the shuttle down to pick John up.


    <hr>


    John had received 37 points to each [Stat] from strengthening himself off the statues of Kazthun. He had hoped to receive more. According to Avatar, since the vital essence was so strange, he¡¯d still be able to strengthen himself on any being higher than a mid-Transcendent.


    And Avatar claimed all the strange substances John had drained helped in other ways not yet shown on the summary and would be made apparent in due time.


    Jim had to remain in orbit around Isb in case enemy forces arrived. Unlike Earth, Isb contained a lot of extremely valuable resources. The metal head of John¡¯s mace alone was worth many million crystals.


    With Isb now a Tech 1 planet, invasion would be affordable to the many powers within the sector, but since Ma Aom had the closest nav beacon, a Peerless fleet arrived before anyone else.


    Once Amber was relieved of her duty guarding the planet, she was ordered back to Gani. Or ordered once again back to Gani. John knew she had already received many such orders and had ignored them all. Now, she would be returning victorious and vindicated.


    No ananong Kahaka, officially now isban Kahaka, would be returning to Gani aboard Jim. John was relieved about that. He knew it was cowardly and unmanly, but he didn¡¯t want to face the people he condemned to a marginally less horrific fate after saving them from Kazthun.

 B3 Chapter 56 - All on the Line

    John thought it was a good sign Nani Ikaika had the three middle seats of the half circle formed by all the Nanis Heiau. Despite the clan Koa designator, Amber was officially within clan Ikaika.


    Three cameras floated in three different spots, two of them pointed right at John. After getting down on one knee and bowing his head, he waited, trying to seem as humble and obedient as he could make himself seem. This wasn¡¯t the day to mess around. His future, his children, and his happiness were all on the line.


    ¡°Li Five-two¡­you know how ridiculous that is to say? A five as a Li! Did you kill four subhumans protected by the Empire¡¯s Peace in the city of Victor upon your return to Peerless space?¡±


    John wanted to say it wasn¡¯t that ridiculous. Nine was six as a Li. Instead, he said, ¡°Yes, Nani.¡±


    ¡°Did you ask permission to kill these subhumans?¡±


    ¡°No, Nani. I wasn¡¯t sure if they¡¯d be there.¡±


    ¡°Did you lie to the Alii of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi by telling her you only wanted to stop at a bar and have a celebratory drink, Li Five-two?¡±


    John sighed. ¡°Not exactly, Nani. Not really. I won¡¯t lie ¨C I was hoping the makans would be there. I really wanted to kill them.¡±


    ¡°And why is that, Li Five-two?¡±


    ¡°They were supposed to bring me and the Oliua of Kauwa Mara Pi to Isb. They sold us to the Kaw¡¯n Federation instead. I can¡¯t let subhumans get away with that.¡±


    One of the Nani scoffed. ¡°Are you not also going to claim they were terrorists, Li Five-two?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure they were. They certainly hated the Peerless. As far as I know, they were all talk and bluster. I do believe they were more subhumany than other Kahako. Intolerably subhuman. I had no choice but to kill them.¡±


    John heard another scoff. A Nani to his right said, ¡°You were absent without leave for nearly half a year before being rescued by the Alii of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi. A serious crime.¡±


    Now that the Nani were getting into his major offenses, John thought it was best to keep silent. As for the makans in Victor, killing Kahako usually wasn¡¯t a crime, but the makans were under the protection of the Empire¡¯s Peace, and that made it a different story.


    The punishment was just a standard gig and a loss of one credit per kill. No big deal. John figured since he was already going to lose all his credits, there was no good reason not to squeeze a little vengeance in. They were passing by Victor anyway. He was just disappointed Koni Dral hadn¡¯t been there.


    A Nani asked, ¡°Do you have anything to say for yourself, Li Five-two?¡±


    Nine and John had rehearsed many possible answers for questions they assumed would be posed to him. ¡°I was captured by our enemies, Nani. I maintained the highest ideals of the Aikapu throughout my imprisonment. I always acted in the best interest of the Peerless Empire.¡±


    ¡°Did you? If that were true, you¡¯d still be called Four-five and you would¡¯ve made your way back to us as did the Oliua of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi. Yet, neither are true.¡±


    After long and tense moments, one of the Nani asked, ¡°Do you believe you¡¯re above the praised Aikapu my blessed husband and father, Akua, laid out for us to follow, Li Five-two?¡±


    ¡°Definitely not, Nani. I honor the Aikapu over all else.¡±


    ¡°Then why did you ignore it? You were AWOL for a very long time, you ascended to Gold as a Li outside of a kauwa and without permission. Unlike the Oliua of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi, you did not purchase your freedom and return to us. Explain yourself, Li Five-two.¡±


    ¡°There were extenuating circumstances, Nani,¡± said John. ¡°I was captured, made a slave, poisoned, and thrown in an arena against 20 opponents, including two Diamonds and two Salts while I was a four-five. Can anyone in this room name another Li that could¡¯ve survived that? I ascended between my first and second match out of necessity.


    ¡°They call Kahaka dogs of the Peerless. They called me the Undying Dog. No matter what they threw at me, I lived. They couldn¡¯t kill me no matter how hard they tried. Not within their rules. Know how many Diamonds I killed as a low Gold? How many Salts? I didn¡¯t run because I truly am Peerless. I didn¡¯t buy my own freedom because of the Aikapu. I don¡¯t run. I fight. And I fought. And I put fear into the hearts of our enemies.


    ¡°If the Alii of Kauwa Mara Pi hadn¡¯t rescued me, I¡¯d still be there fighting because that is what the Aikapu demanded of me. Without direct orders from an Alli or someone deemed a superior, when faced with enemies, Oli are to stand and fight until dead. No retreat. After I gave my funds over to the Oliua of Kauwa Mara Pi, per the Aikapu, I couldn¡¯t leave. Not until my Alii rescued me. And¡­¡±


    One Nani interrupted by saying, ¡°False! You know the Aikapu. You know the section on retreat has more exceptions than any other. You are expected to stand and fight when ordered to do so, not when captured, and not when your freedom can be purchased. Don¡¯t play stupid with us.¡±


    John decided to continue as if he weren¡¯t interrupted. ¡°And my first act after being rescued was to gift that same Alii, my future Alii, the only Alii I¡¯ll be an Oli to, a planet I heard the Nanis Heiau wanted. We all talked about it a good deal the last time I stood right here. Isb. A planet filled with rare metals and other fine resources. And it cost the Peerless nothing. Not one crystal.


    ¡°Cultists of Kazthun had almost taken over the world. If they succeeded and a high-tier version of her was summoned, this whole sector would¡¯ve been hers. I stopped that, and in doing so, saved this empire. I killed six Salts. I killed four of them while they were merged together to form two different Transcendents. The remaining three Salts of the world bent their knee to me and many sacred beasts honored me.¡±


    John was glad he could see the Nani with his orb-eye. He wished his speech had persuaded them, but it didn¡¯t look like it. That end part wasn¡¯t rehearsed. Nine thought mentioning Isb before the Nani did themselves would only hurt instead of help, but if they weren¡¯t accepting his reasons for not escaping, changing the topic to one that made him look great seemed a good idea.


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    One of the Nani Ikaika said, ¡°The Alii of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi will not be allowed to bid on you. You will not be hers.¡±


    A great deal of anger infused John¡¯s heart. Enough that it was hard for him not to do something reckless. He took a calming breath and looked up. His eyes bored directly into those of the elder who spoke those words. ¡°No. I am hers already. She is my Alii. Nothing any of you say can change that. Flog me, flay me, keelhaul me, castrate me and send me to Palm, she¡¯ll still be my Alii. As long as I draw breath, she¡¯s my Alii. It may not be official but it¡¯s true all the same. I¡¯ll have none other.¡±


    A Nani on the lefthand side of the half circle snapped out, ¡°You dare defy us? You dare speak to us in such a disrespectful manner.¡±


    ¡°Yes. For my Alii, there¡¯s nothing I wouldn¡¯t dare, and no one I wouldn¡¯t defy. Let what¡¯s already true be official or have me rot here as a Li forever. Wasted. And I mean forever. You all know I don¡¯t age. I vow now I will die before I accept any but her. Today I become her Oli, or never one at all. Make your choice.¡±


    John hoped he hadn¡¯t been too disrespectful or pushed things too far, but he had to make his point perfectly clear. He had to make them see this was an all or nothing decision. If they wanted to toy with him, they¡¯d find out just how stubborn and vindictive the man that had just saved the sector from Kazthun and conquered Isb could be. He continued to stare defiantly at each Nani in turn, right on down the line.


    After a very long and tense moment, surprisingly, all the Nani started to clap. Many tears trickled out of watery eyes and down cheeks. The Nani all whispered to one another, most saying something along the lines of, ¡°Beautiful. So touching. Such love. I told you this would work.¡±


    The reason for the cameras became clear. John held in his annoyance. They could use him all they wanted as a propaganda tool if it meant he¡¯d get what he needed, and he needed to be in Amber¡¯s kauwa. He needed to be the first and only Oli to spend credits and father children with her.


    One of the Nani of Heiau Ikaika, while wiping her eyes, said, ¡°That¡­that was beautiful, Five-two. Beautiful. We have our new ¡®Lost Li¡¯ story. If only all our Oli loved their Alii as much. As they should. As the Aikapu demands. Beautiful.¡±


    The Nani next to her said, ¡°If you accept some stipulations, you¡¯ll be able to swear to the Alii of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi today. We¡¯ll get to that in a moment. First, your punishment, then your reward. As punishment for being AWOL and ascending to five as a Li, all the credits you¡¯ve accrued are lost.


    ¡°Now, the reward for conquering Isb on your own is a tricky matter. Such a feat should come with an Ake offer, but you¡¯re only a Li, and there is no precedent. The Nani Aikapu said we still must offer. Would you like to be granted Akeoli status?


    ¡°Not if I can swear to my Alii, Nani.¡±


    The elder smiled and said, ¡°We knew you¡¯d refuse. We knew you¡¯d want to serve the Alii you so passionately claimed is yours already. You honor the Aikapu. Isb was conquered by a Li without a kauwa. The Alii of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi will award you the maximum she¡¯s allowed ¨Cfive credits.


    ¡°But that is far from enough for conquering a planet at your tier completely on your own without tech, possibly preventing Kathzun from being summoned within this sector, and gifting this Alii and your empire such a coveted planet. We have struggled with how to reward you.


    ¡°It¡¯s not lost on us that if Kathzun was summoned, depending on certain factors, this truly could¡¯ve posed a real and serious threat to our empire. Because of this, the zenith award was considered. It will not be granted for the following reasons.


    ¡°As the presence of her cultists on Isb was unforeseen, this action was incidental. The NCS states that she often lies by telling her cultists their activities are meant to summon her to their world while her true intent is only to drain inhabitants of said world. If she were to be summoned, we don¡¯t know at what tier and Tree. Many scenarios could have benefited us such as the Sector Council races and forces spending themselves fighting her before Galactic Council forces arrived to put her down.¡±


    The Nani paused to look at John. He thought she was judging his reaction. He tried to look disappointed. Then she continued. ¡°The usual award for refusing Ake status isn¡¯t enough in this special case. This is outside the usual class and category of rewards. Since nothing works in this unique situation, the Nani Aikapu have decided how you are to be rewarded.


    ¡°Five credits from each member of the Nanis Heiau and Nani Empire. 120 in total, not counting the five from the hand of Alii of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi. A great amount and fitting your deeds. Do you know how point cost and bidding work, Li Five-two?¡±


    John said, ¡°Somewhat Nani. Not all the specifics. I know earned credits are worth half as much as currently held credits. I believe being a graduate of Premier Grand Akua Koa Academy, the top Li academy, and holding the First in Class position increases my price.¡±


    ¡°Correct, among other factors,¡± replied the Nani. ¡°We must follow a specific order of events. You both lost and gained a great number of credits today. We don¡¯t want to seem petty, but these new credit awards must be factored into your current price. You now cost nearly as much as a decorated Transcendent Olini.¡±


    Part of the rear wall slid away and the sound of stone scraping on stone echoed through the large room for some time. A somber looking Amber walked through the door.


    As usual, the sight of his wife took John¡¯s breath away. She was wearing a very illicit outfit he wished she wasn¡¯t. The deployment outfit Aliis wore was much less revealing and he wished she¡¯d just always wear that.


    A different Nani said to Amber, ¡°Award this Li five credits.¡±


    Amber looked at John, smiled, and said, ¡°Li Five-two, for gifting me a world, for gifting me Isb, I gift you five credits.¡±


    John almost said something corny such as he¡¯d gift her a million more, but since this was being recorded, he held his tongue and only said, ¡°Thank you, Alii.¡±


    The Nani that had told Amber to gift John the credits spoke again. ¡°Now review his new price in the CSL. If you still want him and find his price acceptable, rebid on him.¡±


    A few seconds later, Amber said, ¡°Done, Nani.¡±


    The Nani nodded her head and turned to John. ¡°Li Five-two, we were informed that you know of the unique stipulations of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi. Do you understand this Alii cannot grant the usual reward in exchange for credits? Do you agree to this modified reward? Do you have any questions?¡±


    ¡°I do understand, gladly accept, and have no questions, Nani,¡± replied John.


    ¡°Li Five-two, do you accept the Alii of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi¡¯s offer to purchase you?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Nani. I will accept no other.¡±


    All the Nani clapped. Once they stopped, the same Nani said, ¡°You must accept through your CSL, Li Five-two.¡±


    John did so and the Nani turned her head slightly towards Amber. ¡°We¡¯ve approved your purchase of this Li, Alii of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi. Li Five-two accepted your offer. We¡¯ll all witness the swearing in here and now. We want this recorded too.¡±


    Amber walked around the half circle of Nani and stood before John. Since he was already kneeling, he just bowed his head. He wished this wasn¡¯t being recorded.


    ¡°Li Five-two, take my hand and swear to me.¡±


    John looked up into Amber¡¯s eyes and took her offered hand in his own. ¡°I give you my word that I am without defect and take you to be my Alii. I swear my undying loyalty to you, Alii of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi. From this day forth, I will love, cherish, and honor you. I will obey your every command. For you, I will give my only possession ¨C my life. No demon or subhuman will touch you while I yet live. This, I solemnly swear. We are one, united, Peerless.¡±


    Amber smiled graciously. She then said, ¡°And I give you my word that I am cleared to birth children and take you to be my Oli. I will provide you all that is needed to fight our enemies, be they demon or subhuman. I will always cherish you and reward your worthy deeds. From my hand you will find food, from my stores you will find arms, and from my flower you will find both love and sons to carry your mighty genes onward. We are one, we are united, we are Peerless.


    ¡°Rise, Oli Five-two of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi. Find succor within my kauwa and know you will always belong. Now, perform many worthy deeds for me and fill my flower often.¡±

 B3 Chapter 57 - Guarding Portals

    John could only patiently wait for Amber¡¯s return, but his excitement made it hard to do. The Meleua was given CQ, command of quarters, for a farming region. Robots did all the farming. There were no people at all in the whole huge area.


    To help Amber out and make her look good, John had been filling EBs for her to trade with other kauwas for points. While on the ship, he had also topped off Jim¡¯s fuel, the ship¡¯s fuel reserves, and whatever else he could. He knew Amber held back on using his essence for her benefit, but he wished she wouldn¡¯t.


    John had opened the eighth NCU expansion slot. There were certain bioware he¡¯d love to get his hands on. Amber felt bad since Alii could acquire all the gear John could ever want with points, but she couldn¡¯t purchase any of these special items until her kauwa successfully completed an assigned mission, something it had yet to do. And never would.


    As an Oli and an official member of Kauwa Mara Pi, John had more access to explore parts of Jim that were previously restricted to him, but many areas were still off limits.


    The part of the ship meant to house children was highly restricted. Only the Alii could enter, but from what John had heard, none of them ever did. When an Alii gave birth, one of the young girls, an Alia, would go collect the child and present it to the kauwa, then go right back to the child-group¡¯s restricted area where all the kids would remain ignored by all adults.


    Just thinking about how the Peerless raised children infuriated John. He thought it was wrong and a terrible way to do so.


    Jim had Trainers aboard. All Peerless ships had them. What these Trainers didn¡¯t have was an option for John to fight his clone as he did during the final exam at the academy. He quickly realized that if he touched the stuff the Meleua also had to touch, there was little the strange man wouldn¡¯t agree to if it meant an end to John doing so, including coding that fight into the ship¡¯s Trainer.


    And that was how John spent most of his time aboard Jim ¨C fighting himself. Since it was a normal Trainer, the fight wasn¡¯t like it was at academy, but his clone still gave worthy battle, and every fight was better than the last.


    After impatiently suppressing his excitement again, John wished he was aboard Jim and fighting himself. That would take his mind off things.


    Most assigned CQs only needed a Mele onsite. Some important ones required the Alii and Oliua onsite or nearby, but not many since the Alii was available through the CSL. Very rarely did a CQ require Oli, so they were usually assigned guard duty in one of the cities, either on Gani or one of the other worlds belonging to the empire connected by portal.


    John would love to see and visit these other worlds, but since Kauwa Mara Pi only had one Oli, he was always assigned as the portal guard for wherever the Mele had CQ. While on guard duty, he wasn¡¯t supposed to meditate using any technique besides the nonsense half-meditation technique all Oli used. He still meditated using his good technique though.


    And John was doing just that as he filled EBs until he was interrupted by the Meleua speaking over the Oli channel of the CSL. ¡°All brothers of Kauwa Mara Pi, a mandatory mini-doc will start soon. Ensure you¡¯re available and able to watch.¡±


    Since Nine was accompanying Amber, John was the only brother. He was always the only brother. Why the Meleua always announced it like John was multiple people made no sense at all.


    When the mini-doc started, John became extremely embarrassed. It was about him and Amber. He wondered how they made it so quickly. He had only been back on Gani for a month.


    That the weekly recaps constantly showed an edited recording of John speaking to the Nanis Heiau and swearing to Amber was embarrassing enough, but that was nothing compared to this hammy mini-doc.


    The actor playing John was far too short, nearly the same height as the woman playing Amber. And the pretend John said ridiculously corny things he would never say. Very ridiculous things. He was glad Hux and Marbrouk weren¡¯t around to make fun of him.


    The events depicted were modified beyond reason too. It started with John and Nine graduating First and Second in Class from Premier Grand Akua Koa Academy as bitter rivals and sworn enemies.


    When called before the Nanis Heiau, both men were adamant they¡¯d only accept Amber as their Alii. John said, ¡°I don¡¯t care if she cannot have sex. Just being near her is all the reward I need. Merely hearing her voice is like being awarded credits. The sight of her is like spending them.


    ¡°As I battled the demons, g¡¯athu, and dark ones invading Terra as part of her subhuman kauwa, I knew there was a higher purpose for her. And myself. Then our saviors arrived to lift us up on high, and by embracing the Aikapu, we have both transcended the dirt and filth of our subhuman origins to become more. We are both now Peerless and stand above all others. I will be her Oli, and she my Alii. I feel as if the venerable Akua fated this to be.¡±


    Nine supposedly fell deeply in love with Amber when he saw her interviewed by Cam Roderick, and he wanted to be only her Oli too.


    Angered by the two Li refusing other offers, the Nani sent John and Nine to clean the filthy streets of Kotown in the city of Victor where they stumbled upon and foiled a terrorist plot hatched by an evil admiral of the Kaw¡¯n Federation named Breaker of Rocks.


    The terrorist plot was undone, but John and Nine were still kidnapped by the admiral and brought to Thecla to be executed in the arena. Some actual footage of arena battles was shown too, but not much, and John had no idea how they got it. He appreciated it though, as it gave him a chance to study himself in true combat and observe ways in which he could improve.


    There was no Gnahad in the mini-doc. The evil admiral continued to be the main antagonist on Thecla. He became increasingly frustrated and unglued as John and Nine won more and more matches. The kaw¡¯n would torture them for days after as punishment.


    Nine never bought his freedom either. As John and Nine battled and suffered alongside one another as slaves of the evil admiral, the two squelched their rivalry and became fast friends. Both Li tried to escape together but John sacrificed himself so Nine could get away and warn the Peerless.


    John struggled on by himself, barely managing to survive each match and only doing so due to all he had learned at Premier Grand Akua Koa Academy, the top Li academy.


    But the evil admiral finally managed to set up matches John had no chance of surviving. That¡¯s when Kauwa Mara Pi with its new Oliua swooped in to save the day, narrowly escaping with John in tow. Amber was played by the second most popular terran brought to Gani, the beautiful and large breasted Brandi.


    Admiral Breaker of Rocks was furious that his evil plans had been foiled again by the Peerless. He went to his grand estate and got on his knees to pray. ¡°Great Kazthun, the Peerless have thwarted us subhumans again. They are too superior. They can¡¯t be stopped.¡±


    Kazthun appeared and said, ¡°Worry not. Soon I will be summoned to the planet Isb, and I will crush the Peerless Empire. Then I will return rightful rule of this sector over to you subhumans. Nothing will stand in our way.¡± The admiral and Kazthun laughed evilly together.


    Back on the ship, Amber was reading the Aikapu when the giant ghost of the horned Akua appeared to her. He told her that the evil g¡¯athu Kazthun was close to being summoned on the Tech 0 planet Isb.


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    If she was summoned successfully, Kazthun would destroy all Akua¡¯s beloved children and the mighty empire he founded.


    Amber called the members of her kauwa together. Once a message was sent ahead warning the empire, her ship changed course and headed to Isb at breakneck speeds.


    The kauwa planning how to invade isb for free was the most accurate scene in the whole mini-doc, though it made John look foolish since it hinged on his inability to calculate a correct path free of the planet¡¯s gravity. The Meleua even asked to see his Alii¡¯s chest exposed after he came up with the new plan, except in the mini-doc, Amber agreed, though her exposed chest wasn¡¯t shown.


    How the conquering of Isb went was not accurate at all. Admiral Breaker of Rocks somehow appeared on the planet too. John somehow joined with the ghost of Akua to defeat Kazthun. The admiral narrowly escaped again, laughing evilly as he did so.


    Even though the actual footage was shown every week during the recaps, the recreated scenes of John standing defiantly before the Nanis Heiau were changed beyond recognition to be far hammier and more dramatic.


    All in all, the whole thing was ridiculous and terribly humiliating. John¡¯s face was beet red with embarrassment from beginning to end.


    That the actor playing John stood the same height as Brandi bothered him a tremendous amount. He stood much higher than Amber when she was in her human form. He had never seen Brandi in person, but he was certain he stood much higher than she did too. It was ridiculous and very insulting.


    If John had real guard duty in a city, he¡¯d be exempt from watching the screens. The CSL somehow knew if he really watched or not and would inform the officers of his kauwa if he didn¡¯t, and every other member of Kauwa Mara Pi was an officer.


    There weren¡¯t any hard rules about it, but Amber having only one Oli in her kauwa looked suspicious. She had made offers to purchase more but did so very strategically. She wanted Nine as her Oliua for more reasons than him being John¡¯s friend.


    Nine was only a seven-one. It was rare for an Oliua to be below an eight-one, but since Nine was so powerful comparatively and a former Kahaka like Amber and John, no one thought it was suspicious.


    Since the kauwa was supposed to be made up of only heavy hitters capable of taking on and surviving very tough and unique missions, Amber had only been making offers to exceptional Oli.


    Regardless of how attractive they found Amber, younger Oli were not interested in the modified reward they¡¯d have to agree to, and the Crazy Day prices for other Alii wasn¡¯t a good enough incentive to change their minds. She avoided making offers to Oli with strange kinks in their file too.


    A lot of older Oli didn¡¯t mind that Amber couldn¡¯t give the usual reward. These men had long lost their desire and only fathered children out of a sense of duty to their empire. But all these men were Oliua. They either wouldn¡¯t accept a lesser position or were unwilling to serve under such a low-tier Oliua.


    When Amber told John she had thought of everything, he didn¡¯t really believe her. Now, he was just proud at how smart his wife was. And he hoped everyone would keep refusing, at least until his kauwa was deployed for its first mission.


    The Meleua had previously been assigned more interesting CQ duties than this one, but not much more interesting. Being stationed on Gani and waiting for deployment was boring. But they had to wait.


    John¡¯s first night as an Oli and an official member of Kauwa Mara Pi hadn¡¯t been boring, but once he spent those five credits Amber awarded to him on her, his wife became open game. So, he spent a lot more on her. The whole ordeal, what he and his wife had to do, and that it was recorded for highlights, made him feel embarrassed and filled him with shame.


    The Nani wanted only the main Mele that had come up with the way to make Amber¡¯s eggs viable and artificially inseminate her to perform the procedure. Amber hadn¡¯t known he was deployed before John spent his credits. After a month of waiting, the Mele had just returned to Gani yesterday. Amber was being inseminated with all four of John¡¯s children at that moment.


    Amber had real highlights now John truly hated seeing. He hated that others saw them too, but that was the least of his shame.


    Amber¡¯s plan of having John¡¯s children placed in her and then immediately escaping the Peerless hadn¡¯t worked out as it was supposed to have, and it was killing John.


    Besides the four children Amber was having put inside of her now, John was also slotted for the next four, though his wife would be far away from the Peerless by then.


    The six children after John¡¯s eight were slotted for her Meleua. He had a lot of credits banked since no Alii were willing to reward him in a way he could handle. Even after spending 30 credits for six children, he had many more and had been spending them on deuces.


    And there were two additional children she was slotted for from two other Peerless ¨C another Mele and an Oli.


    Thankfully, the overwhelming majority of Peerless weren¡¯t interested in spending credits and only getting Amber¡¯s modified reward for them. Since she¡¯d be so cheap during Crazy Days, maybe that would change. He was glad he¡¯d never find out.


    John was also thankful Nine hadn¡¯t earned enough credits yet to further cuckold him. But three men other than her husband had watched Amber do what was only for him to see.


    John had failed as a husband already. It was intolerable.


    But John had to tolerate it. He would be a father again. Very soon, his wife would be far away from the Peerless. He was strong. He would grow stronger. He would come back and destroy them.


    After spending so long with and pretending to be a Peerless, John¡¯s plan had somewhat changed. Individually, he thought most Peerless were decent.


    Like most people born into a culture and society, the Peerless just went along with how things were. They blindly accepted what they were taught as being right. Most people of every culture and society did the same.


    John was no different. He questioned nothing about the culture and society of the people he was born into for a very long time. If he had a normal lifespan, he would¡¯ve died never questioning it.


    John¡¯s own father slayed John¡¯s mother and his siblings. His father truly believed he was doing a necessary thing, the right thing, and saving his wives and children from suffering and dishonor at the hands of enemies, just as John did at the time.


    After reasoning it through, John just wanted to destroy the Peerless ideology and culture. Mainly.


    John disliked the people of Earth ¨C his own people. He thought they were weak and had grown to be far too sheeplike and obedient. But they were his people, and he was of them, so what was done to them reflected on him, and he would not have it. He had made oaths, and he would keep his oaths.


    A great deal of the Peerless would have to be slaughtered to avenge Earth, and a good deal more to keep his oath to the ch¡¯ran girl he had executed, but he no longer wanted to wipe his enemies out completely. The last time he did something like that was at the behest of his Lilitu and her lies about the people of Shekem. He had grown a lot since then.


    Once John ended the Peerless and made them live in a normal society again, he¡¯d return to Earth and shape his own people in his image. They would be strong. They would be warriors that stood both fell and tall. They would not be so weak, obedient, and sheeplike.


    Ideally, John would get Amber and his future kids to safety, get stronger, win the contest of wills against Betrayal, get stronger still, then come back and fulfill his oath in a straight up fight.


    In reality, John knew he had little chance of winning a contest of wills against Betrayal, so he had other plans too.


    Since Betrayal never gave John a time limit, he could stay at peak Platinum for as long as he wanted. After ensuring his wife and children were and would remain safe, returning to lead the Oli in revolt wouldn¡¯t be easy, but it wouldn¡¯t be impossible either. He could lie and say the ship had been destroyed and he was the only survivor. Or something like that.


    The structure the Peerless set up was ingenious. The most effective ways John could think of to lead the Oli in rebellion and fix their society wouldn¡¯t work. The Alii¡¯s system had no real holes.


    On average, Oli were far more intelligent than humans. Everyone knew the more intelligent the dog, the easier it was to train. The same was as true for Peerless as it was for humans and dogs. The trained had a stake in believing in the lies they were trained to believe in. Their status, their power, their rewards were all dependent on ignoring the truth and continuing to swallow those lies.


    John had some ideas to turn this training against the trained. Many. But none were great. For one idea, there just weren¡¯t enough women for it to work. But if his good ideas didn¡¯t work, there were other ways. If none of them worked, Betrayal had promised John a boon or two, depending. In the end, he would win and defeat his enemies. Somehow. He was certain of this fact. Oaths of vengeance were the most sacred of oaths.


    Amber would understand. She had to. She knew how John was before she accepted him as a husband, and no reasonable woman would marry a strong man and then expect him to be a weakling without honor that let his world be conquered without doing anything about it.


    Except John had a strong suspicion Amber wouldn¡¯t understand. She¡¯d want to get away from the Peerless and never look back. She¡¯d have no care about avenging what her enemies had done to her or the people of Earth. Her own people. He suspected she¡¯d want her husband to be a coward that ran from his sacred obligations.


    How anyone could think like that would never make any sense to John. Vengeance was and always would be a key principle of any strong person or society. It was just a basic truth of life. When hit, hit back harder. An eye for an eye wasn¡¯t the way. A life for an eye was. Enemies had to pay dearly for every transgression.


    And the notes tab of the NCS made keeping score an easy thing. John looked at all the crossed-out names on his list. He was winning.

 B3 Chapter 58 - First Mission

    It took another couple of weeks after Amber returned before she was given a real mission.


    Amber had pitched five different missions, including three that would take a significant amount of time to complete. The shortest mission was the one to be approved.


    Amber wasn¡¯t happy about that since she wouldn¡¯t be assigned an Alia to watch her children. If she could, she wanted to save one of those young girls.


    John wished he could see things that altruistically. Amber was too soft-hearted. The plan to ditch the Meleua wouldn¡¯t work for an Alia, and he didn¡¯t want one of those devil witches, even a child version of one, around his pregnant wife and kids. He wouldn¡¯t always be there to protect them.


    It wasn¡¯t easy for John to contain his excitement. He would be a father again. His wife carried four of his children. Two boys and two girls.


    Only one other Peerless had spent credits on his wife in those two weeks, and John was grateful for that. He was also grateful that now all the cuckoldry was over and done with. Every time credits were spent on his wife made him feel so low. It was like a knife was plunged into his heart that drank some of his soul and left him less of a man. It made him feel so small and without honor.


    John boarded Jim knowing his wife was now his and only his.


    Marbrouk, Hux, Abe and the rest would be fine until the Peerless were defeated. Nothing could be done sooner for them.


    Kauwa Mara Pi was being sent on an infiltration mission. Or an eventual one. For the mission to work, John and Nine needed to receive refugee status on Umpani. He hoped he¡¯d have time to check out the arena controlled by the Heaven¡¯s Mandate sect while there.


    It would¡¯ve been perfect if John and Amber could escape now, but that was impossible. When being deployed, the Meleua was the first aboard and the Alii the last.


    Amber had planned the best and only way to escape while having a second tier Transcended as part of her kauwa. A Transcendent that was extremely intelligent and saw far too much.


    Once on the ship, through the CSL, Nine said, ¡°Welcome aboard, Five-three.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Oliua,¡± replied John. He headed straight to the brig, the only place on the ship where he could neither see nor hear Amber¡¯s highlights. It wasn¡¯t really the only place, but all the others free of screens looping the highlights were restricted areas.


    The brig was large and had four glass cages, two of which were rated for Transcendents. Jim was one of the first ships with a holding cell capable of containing Transcendents past the bottleneck. Or it was thought to be capable of holding such. It would depend on a lot of factors, the first of which being why a Transcendent past the bottleneck would enter one of the cells. No one in this kauwa could force one to do so.


    Since he wanted to wait as long as possible before his eventual showdown with Betrayal, John had held off on ranking up. Per SOP, he couldn¡¯t any longer without being forced into an Advancement Chamber. That was something he didn¡¯t want, so he ranked up to mid-high Gold last week to avoid it. At level 23, he was now a higher level than his wife. She was still mid-low Gold.


    While meditating, John felt Amber board Jim. They¡¯d be getting underway shortly. He smiled knowing his wife and children would soon be safe.


    <hr>


    Gateway Station was impressive. Since Jim wasn¡¯t visibly a Peerless ship, Amber could go where other Peerless couldn¡¯t, such as Gateway Station, where John and Nine debarked and spent a fortune to take a portal to another station run by an umpanian sect named the Great Divine.


    Gateway Station was nothing compared to the Great Divine¡¯s station. John wished he had more time to look around and explore it, but it wasn¡¯t to be. He and Nine rushed to a terminal and purchased the cheapest tickets they could to Umpani.


    Both tickets were for something called hop-pods, a way that only the desperate and poor traveled through the depths of space.


    Captains rented out the surface of their ships to the owners of hop-pods, detachable housing units capable of fitting five to twenty people, depending. These pods weren¡¯t heavily shielded or insulated, making space flight in them risky for anyone below Salt.


    The option for the poor and desperate was usually a hop-pod or nothing at all, so hop-pods were very popular.


    The humongous ship had thousands of hop-pods attached to it. Nine and John wouldn¡¯t be traveling together. Two former Kahaka arriving on Umpani on the same ship was coincidence enough. Sharing a hop-pod would be a bad idea and hurt their refugee claims. They also dismissed the party they shared in the NCS.


    John¡¯s pod fit 20 and had an environment suitable for vorns. It wasn¡¯t close to Earth¡¯s own environment, but he could easily tolerate it. And since no one liked the vorns, the ticket was very cheap and helped with the poor refugee claim.


    Nine¡¯s ticket was even cheaper since the biosynth could survive in much harsher environments than John could.


    The pod did look to be in very bad shape. Nine inspected it and said it only looked that way but every part of it that mattered was in good condition.


    Since the ship¡¯s captain wanted everyone to be situated well before getting underway, the two companions bid each other farewell and headed to their own hop-pods.


    John didn¡¯t think the inside was so bad. Because vorns were poorer than most, the pod was half empty and John had all the room he could want to stretch his legs or rest.


    On Umpani, John and Nine would pretend they didn¡¯t know each other. If anyone recognized either from Thecla, they¡¯d say being slaves together caused them to have a falling out. Either way, they¡¯d be applying for refugee status separately and wouldn¡¯t talk again until after they had it. Then they¡¯d travel together to the neutral Ryicci Station where Amber would be waiting for them.


    After introducing himself to the vorns in his hop-pod, John wondered why no one liked them. They seemed decent enough. Then he settled in for a long flight.


    When the ship was still days and days out from Umpani, long after the ship had started to decelerate, John¡¯s gut told him something was off.


    Half a day after the ship decelerated below FTL, an NCS notification told John he had received a message just as his hop-pod detached and sped away from the ship, tumbling through the empty void of space.


    John¡¯s first instinct was to remove his CSL from his bracer and inform Nine, but he glanced at the screen showing an outside view of the pod. The ship was no longer in visible range. There was nothing for the CSL to connect to.


    When John went to send a message to Nine through the NCS, he saw that the biosynth had been the one to message him as the hop-pod detached.


    ¡°John,


    My dear and only friend, I am sorry I must do this to you. I am spending a stupendous amount of essence on this message, so please read it carefully.


    My actions must seem contradictory. They are. For my whole life I have been Yellow and Yellow has been me. I never questioned where Yellow ended and I began because it was irrelevant. We were one and the same. Until you took my Thirteen from me. My princess. My reason for being. My function.


    Since then, I¡¯ve had to learn of myself and make decisions on my own. I let you in, and I am glad I did. I now know of true friendship. You are a good man. In a lot of ways, you are an amazing man. I am glad I have gotten to know you. I am glad we became such good friends. I cherish all the time we¡¯ve spent together.


    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    Many believe Yellow to be emotionless. In some ways that is true. In some ways that is very false, and my emotions are far too strong to feel so I must not.


    I am uncertain if I or Yellow decided you must die. I only know you must. And I truly regret that. Since Princess Thirteen died in agony, so shall you.


    You will soon enter an invisible and hard to detect phaltrionic radiation cloud that spans a great distance. You will be dead long before exiting. Your pod, no longer connected to the ship, will lose power and life support. Even if the phaltrionic radiation doesn¡¯t kill you, deep space will. You are strange and powerful, but you cannot survive long in the vacuum of space.


    My original plan was to kill you with a thousand cuts. To take all that you care about and destroy it. And once you were a broken man with nothing, I would let you know that I orchestrated it all. Then we would fight.


    After getting to know you, I now know you are already a broken man, and the thousand cuts I made would hardly be noticeable among the millions of gushing wounds your life has already inflicted upon you.


    I¡¯ve put great effort into leading you to believe I am much weaker than I am. All calculations agree that I would stand the victor in any battle between the two of us. It would not be a close competition. And I know that last and final insult would be intolerable to you, so I am sparing you it.


    I also know you love my Alii, and she loves you too, in a way an Alii isn¡¯t allowed. A possessive and greedy type of love alien to both Yellow and Peerless. I know you planned on escaping with her.


    The way to hurt you the most would be to kill her, and your children along with her. I asked myself why she should pay for your sin. Why your unborn children should. I had no good answer. So now you die and those five will live. She will be my Alii, and I, her Oliua. I will give her many children.


    Yes. She and your children will live. Unless you contact my Alii, directly or indirectly. I doubt you can, but you¡¯ve surprised me before. In the event you can, don¡¯t. If you do, or if you contact or inform anyone else that tells my Alii the means of your death, I will kill her. Even if that is ten or twenty or a hundred years from now.


    Just accept the death I¡¯ve condemned you to or condemn your wife and children to the same. Die as I¡¯ve arranged and know your wife will be safe and cared for, as will your children. And die knowing that I love you as you have loved me ¨C truly.


    Farewell, my dear friend. I shall miss you a tremendous amount. I hope you understand that.


    With my greatest respect,


    Formerly Nine of Yellow, current Oliua of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi¡±


    Right after John finished reading the message, the vorns in his pod started throwing up and bleeding out of all their orifices. He could feel his skin crawl with strange energies. His stomach churned and he suppressed a gag. No matter what Nine said, his wife was in danger, and he would not have it. He started to panic.


    John thought of what he knew of phaltrionic radiation. It was invisible and hard to detect without special means, but so were many forms of radiation. It was on the tertiary EM band. Its interaction with biogenic material was destructive and quickly so.


    On a fundamental level, all radiation was energy.


    Seeing no other option, John began to cultivate. His meditation was like a magnet for the radiation, and he was drawing too much in too quickly. He had to use the modified cycling-meditation he had first used out of desperation when taking the substance Sunshine gave him to help fix his soul, and had used many times since, including while draining the many statues of Kathzun on Isb.


    John expelled essence through one hand to empty his dantian while madly cycle-meditating. Then focused on controlling, harnessing, and cycling the strange energy and the essence it produced. He did so in such a frantic and desperate manner, he had no idea how much time passed. Words appeared in his eyes he quickly suppressed as he could only focus on his mad task. And that mad task consumed his full focus for a long while.


    John honestly expected to die. He felt like he would at any second. The radiation was destroying him. He threw up and dry heaved many times while cycle-meditating, but went right back to it, ignoring everything else.


    Then cycling the deadly energy became easier and easier. He still felt sick, but he was in much better shape than all the dead vorns in his pod. He could finally spare attention to notice the lights were off and the machinery was no longer humming. Every breath was harder than the last and did less. The oxygen was almost gone. He had to ignore that and continue to cycle-meditate until the pod exited the gigantic radiation cloud.


    The screens were dead and without energy so John couldn¡¯t see outside the pod. The freezing pod without oxygen. He felt awful and sick as a dog, but he was alive. He had no idea how long he had gone without oxygen, but, surprisingly, he didn¡¯t seem to need it. He technically never did, but too long without it, and his body would enter a coma. That wasn¡¯t true any longer. His vital essence was stabilizing and no longer draining.


    Having nothing else to do, John entered his Mind¡¯s Eye. ¡°Quite the pickle you¡¯re in, my silly boy,¡± stated Avatar.


    ¡°This is serious,¡± replied John. ¡°My wife and children are in grave danger. I need to settle down so I can think. I don¡¯t need oxygen now?¡±


    ¡°You mostly haven¡¯t since the [Stalwart Vessel] [Perk], silly boy. You¡¯ve mostly been space worthy since then. Now you fully are. And with the new [Perk] you just got, you could go deeper into the inner and outer galaxy than is safe for first and second tier Transcendents.¡±


    Surprised, John asked, ¡°What [Perk]? I got a new one?¡±


    ¡°Sort of. You¡¯ve been getting it for a while. Toying with it. It¡¯d start going in one direction and my silly boy would push it in another. This [Perk] just replaced an old one. [Mutating] changed to [Mutation ¨C Energy Leech]. It was ¡®energy-sponge¡¯ originally, but I requested it be changed to ¡®energy-leech¡¯ to fit your theme. They said no since there¡¯s no leeching going on at all, so I just went ahead and changed it myself. I like when things fit a theme.¡±


    John wondered if Avatar making her own decisions was good or bad. He thought it could be bad for him, but good for her. He couldn¡¯t be mad at the people of Earth for being so sheeplike and obedient and dislike Avatar becoming less so.


    Too much time passed without John replying, so, after glitching once, Avatar continued. ¡°I¡¯m guessing my silly boy wants to know what his new [Perk] does. Looks like you cultivated too many strange and different things. Substances, poisons, Nether, lots of different types of radiation, etcetera. Kind of a weird hobby but it paid off, especially draining those Kazthun statues. That really turned out to be a fantastic idea.


    ¡°Now my silly boy passively absorbs energy and converts it to essence. It¡¯d happen even if you stopped your breathing technique. And you¡¯re way more¡­well, not resistant, we¡¯ll say you can tolerate a much wider range of deadly energies. Tolerate it, absorb it, and convert it to essence. Your [Min. Power] saw a decent jump. It went up by 14 points. Not too shabby.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Avatar.¡± The [Perk] sounded great, but it wouldn¡¯t help his wife. John started to think about whether he should send a message to Amber. Nine wasn¡¯t with her. She could try and inform the authorities on Umpani that Nine was a full Peerless and have him dealt with that way.


    Amber¡¯s Meleua was a second-tier Transcendent. He could protect her against Nine. But only if she was told before Nine returned. Nine wouldn¡¯t hesitate to attack. The Meleua would have to try and figure out what was going on before he attacked.


    Nine was inflicted with some sort of strange rational insanity. If John¡¯s death would truly keep his wife and children safe, he¡¯d gladly accept it, but he couldn¡¯t and wouldn¡¯t trust an insane man being around his pregnant wife. And not just around her occasionally ¨C as her Oliua, a position that would place him constantly by her side.


    John wrote out a message and went to send it. He couldn¡¯t.


    Avatar said, ¡°The designated recipient isn¡¯t anywhere near you, silly boy. You¡¯d need much more powerful essence, and far, far more of it, before sending a message over such great distances. You barely have the essence to send messages to users located on the same hemisphere of a world as you.¡±


    The pod was traveling at great speeds through the depths of empty space to who-knows-where. With little hope, John asked, ¡°Is anyone I know in range?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, let me check something. Nope, no policy has changed. Every user¡¯s an island still.¡±


    Anger infused John¡¯s heart, and he quickly suppressed it. This wasn¡¯t Avatar¡¯s fault, and he didn¡¯t know if she had the capacity to understand or care that his wife and unborn children were at risk. He didn¡¯t need her to answer anyway. He was in deep space. No one was anywhere close to him.


    John wished he had paid closer attention to the mission he was on. He hadn¡¯t since there was no real mission. Once he and Nine received refugee status from the umpanians, they were to make their way to Ryicci Station together, one of the few independent stations in the sector.


    The station even allowed Peerless to dock, though Amber wouldn¡¯t let it be known Jim was a Peerless ship. That station was necessary for her and John¡¯s real plan, as she didn¡¯t want her Meleua to come to any harm.


    During their journey to that station, John was supposed to test the waters and see if Nine was receptive to hints and the possibility of leaving the Peerless and escaping along with him and Amber. Nothing would be mentioned to the Meleua. That¡¯d be too risky.


    Regardless of whether Nine would accompany them or not, Amber had a rock-solid plan of how to leave the Meleua behind at Ryicci Station. If Nine wasn¡¯t receptive to John¡¯s hints, the biosynth would¡¯ve been left behind too.


    So, John had to somehow make it to Ryicci Station before Nine now. If Nine was with Amber when and if John returned, his wife and children would be at great risk.


    Then John realized he didn¡¯t need to make it back to Amber before Nine. He just had to make it within an affordable message range before Nine returned to Amber. Then he had another worrying thought. He asked, ¡°Avatar, are members of a party all notified when an NCS message is received?¡±


    ¡°Depends on settings. It¡¯s an option.¡±


    John cursed. The Alii, Meliua, and Oliua were always in the lead party together, and they had access to all other parties attached to their own. Now he knew why Nine dropped the Oli party.


    John really couldn¡¯t risk a message unless he knew for certain it¡¯d reach Amber before Nine. He was tumbling through the depths of space at great speeds and had to figure a way out of his current situation before anything else.

 B3 Chapter 59 - A Truly Impressive and Wonderful Body

    John tried everything.  He looted all the corpses and inspected every piece of machinery in the hop-pod.  There were no signal beacons or anything helpful.  He could infuse essence in two machines and get them to work, one being life support and the other being some sort of shielding barrier.


    Life support wouldn¡¯t be much help since John had already breached the hull.  He needed to see outside.  He couldn¡¯t see much beyond that the hop-pod was tumbling, spinning around very quickly, and hurtling through space at a speed he had a hard time comprehending.  He was spinning too fast for the NCS info function to lock onto anything for even a moment.


    After thinking about it, John believed even space dust could puncture the pod at the speed he was traveling.  He infused essence into the shielding barrier.  He hoped it¡¯d help.


    I have to think.  Really think.  This is no time to be filled with doubt and anxiety.  Feel those things once your wife is safe, and not until then.  Now, more than ever, I must be the best of men.  I will not use the token unless I fail in this, and I refuse to fail.


    How?  How do I get back to Amber?  There¡¯s a way.


    Blasting [Flawless Glyph of Darkflame Jet] out the hole he had made in the hop-pod did nothing besides make the pod spin faster.  He could exit the pod, but there was no way he could travel nearly as fast as the speed of the pod.  His only hope seemed to be the pod reaching something on its own.  But at the speed it was going, he was sure impact with anything at all would be instantly fatal.


    John entered his Mind¡¯s Eye to have time to think this through.  ¡°I¡¯m only here to think, Avatar.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s your mind.  Have at it, silly boy.¡±


    John thought and thought.  If he couldn¡¯t think of a workable solution, his only choice would be the two boons of Betrayal.  He¡¯d offer up a bet.  If Betrayal couldn¡¯t win the contest of wills, the monster would still owe him a boon.  He hoped Betrayal was the betting type.  When he won, he¡¯d use the boon to be sent to Amber.


    But if that was going to be John¡¯s out, he wanted all other options exhausted first.  He finally had a path to true happiness, and he¡¯d do his all to ensure it came true and he was alive for it.


    After thinking for a long time, John excitedly asked Avatar, ¡°Can you think of a way I can combine my four lower concepts into ¡®portal¡¯ as a high or peak concept?¡±


    Avatar put her glasses on but said nothing.  ¡°Come on, Avatar.  ¡®Battle, ¡®shadow,¡¯ ¡®change,¡¯ and ¡®protect.¡¯  There must be a way.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s ¡®protection,¡¯ my silly boy, not ¡®protect.¡¯  I thought you wanted to think on your own.  Now you want me to do your thinking for you again?¡±


    Without much thought, fueled by his anxiety and worry, John angrily snapped out, ¡°Enough!  My wife and children are in danger.  I need your help, not your barbs.  Poke fun at me all you wish once she is safe, but not a second before.  Hold your tongue if you¡¯ve nothing useful to add.¡±


    Surprisingly, Avatar looked chastised.  John had never seen that before.  She glitched and said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, John.  You¡¯re correct.  Why merge concepts when you have so many rune points?  You have no [Archetype].  Every glyph is available to you.¡±


    ¡°Great gods¡­I mean holy shit!  How did I not think of that?  Thank you, Avatar.  Thank you.¡±


    <hr>


    There were a lot of options open to John such as different types of teleports and bind and recall manifestations.  But the best teleport, at least at Neophyte Mastery, even as a flawless level glyph, had a max range of 687,902 miles.  A great distance but not really considering he was in the vast expanse of space.


    The bind and recall would be perfect if John had gotten this glyph previously and set a bind point.  The flawless version of the best glyph had a range of about 19 light years even at Neophyte Mastery.


    There were other options, but the only one that had a chance of working was a glyph that transported the caster to the closest portal.  It didn¡¯t list a max range, but, at Neophyte Mastery, it had a cooldown of 36 minutes baseline with a little under an additional minute per every mile traveled.  He knew there were about six trillion miles in a light year.  That was a lot of minutes.


    According to Avatar, the max range of [Glyph of Portal Transportation] depended on the potency and amount of John¡¯s essence.  If he didn¡¯t have enough, it¡¯d be obvious, but like with his old bracers that took everything from within, he could push through and give more of himself and his resources to power the spell.


    I can¡¯t fail.  I have enough within me.


    Having no better option, John purchased the flawless version of the glyph for 95 rune points.  He trained with his new manifestation until he received the two increases his daily training allowed.  Before exiting his Mind¡¯s Eye, he put some thought into how he¡¯d prepare.


    John¡¯s biosuit was in his storage bracer.  Since everyone hated the Peerless, wearing it would be risky.  But not wearing it was also risky.  If he had to fight, he¡¯d rather wear it and have access to his bolters.  But if there were high tier Exalteds, fighting wouldn¡¯t help save Amber.


    Think, fool.  All is on the line.  No mistakes.  This must work.


    John decided to wear the biosuit, hold his shield, and place his sword on his back for easy access to it.  If there were Exalteds that wanted to stop him from reaching his wife, he would somehow find a way to kill them.  All of them, and anyone or anything else that stood in his way.


    John switched out his active [Title] to the one he received on Isb that slightly increased the speed and efficiency of converting energy to essence.  He turned all but a little of his essence to shen and half his shen to emptiness.  He then refilled his dantian until he filled his shen and emptiness as much as he could before refilling his dantian again.  He achieved his battle-mind, ensured he was breathing and cycling correctly, and fed essence into his new glyph.  And kept feeding it and kept feeding it.


    Once John¡¯s dantian was nearly tapped of essence, he knew he didn¡¯t have anywhere near enough for the spell to work.  He pushed through, allowing the spell to pull from the rest of him.


    As the glyph began to drain him, John began to meditate again, creating new essence to feed the glyph before he had nothing left to give and the spell failed.  The deep of space had plenty of strange energy on top of the normal energy to cultivate, so he frantically did so as quickly as possible.


    And John did so for hours.  He remembered he had a bunch of EBs in his bracer.  He paused his cultivation to connect one to his biosuit and then the next when the first was emptied.  He then went back to cultivating as fast as possible, ensuring the glyph was fed enough essence to prevent, pause, or slow the rate that it drained the other substances within him.


    Anxiety and worry raked John the whole time.  He tried pushing those unhelpful feelings aside but couldn¡¯t fully.  Instead, he used those feelings as fuel, along with all the strong feelings he usually suppressed, along with his love for his wife and his deep hope of having children again.  And he kept furiously meditating and feeding the glyph.


    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    And John kept feeding it.  For hours and hours longer.  Until suddenly his reality stretched greatly, then collapsed in upon itself.


    Groggily, drained, his face pressed into hard ground, John forced his orb-eye to look around.  He was near a portal.  Guards had their weapons trained on him.  More were coming.  Qraads.  The avians.


    John wasn¡¯t certain that it would take the biosynth two weeks to travel from Umpani to Ryicci Station.  The only thing he was certain of was that he had to beat Nine back to his wife.  He wouldn¡¯t fail.  Not his new wife.  Not his new children.


    On shaky arms, John pushed himself up and struggled back to his feet.  None of the qraads were high tier.  And none would be alive soon if they were uncooperative.


    <hr>


    One week and four days.  That¡¯s how long it took John to arrive at Ryicci Station.  One terrible week and four terrible days from the hop-pod tumbling through deep space until now.


    Whether Nine actually petitioned for refugee status on Umpani was up in the air.  There was a good chance John beat Nine to Ryicci Station.  He prayed so.  He had made many enemies during his mad rush here.


    John watched the viewscreens to see if he could spot Jim docked.  There were a lot of ships.  He couldn¡¯t see Amber¡¯s but that didn¡¯t mean it wasn¡¯t at the station.  He spotted a Peerless destroyer.  He cursed how slow the ship he was on was taking to dock.  Then he cursed how long after docking it took for the crew to start allowing passengers to disembark.


    The cooldown of [Flawless Glyph of Portal Transportation] was almost 20 thousand years.  During his flight, he tried to calculate how far he had traveled to the portal.  He had given up.  With his cooldown reduction and the numbers involved, it was futile.  He could ask Avatar, but she was being too weird lately.


    Once off the ship, John pushed his way through the crowd and found a terminal.  It was the wrong type and didn¡¯t tell him what he needed.  He frantically looked around for another.  He saw nothing.  Wires slithered out of his palm and into the machine.  It was pretty easy to hack and reach systems with the data he needed.  Manipulating data would be another story.  He just needed to access unprotected systems available at other public terminals.


    Jim was docked at the station.  He ran towards it, ignoring the warnings guards shouted at him to stop or slow down.  Ryicci was a big station without the most sensible layout.  Jim was berthed at the premium port eight levels down and practically on the other side of the station.


    Just outside Jim, John stopped to collect himself.  If he were wearing his CSL, as soon as he got within a certain range of any Peerless ship, it would automatically connect, and he¡¯d show on tons of systems.  But he wasn¡¯t wearing his CSL.


    John infused essence into Adumbration and cast [Hide].  What he was about to do would either save his wife or cause her death.  He prayed fervently that he was making the right call.  All the doubt he felt wasn¡¯t helpful.


    Unless Nine beat him back and cut John¡¯s access, even if the gangway was closed, the ship would read his biometrics and open.  But that could still notify the people onboard still making the stealth approach futile.  Not a lot of the nuts-and-bolts stuff was taught in academy, and he hadn¡¯t spent a lot of time on the bridge.  He just didn¡¯t know how noticeable his actions would be.  He was hoping for a miracle.


    The ship scanned John.  The airlock opened, sprayed John inside of it, closed, and the inner airlock opened.  He pushed more essence into Adumbration and entered.


    John spread his senses.  He couldn¡¯t feel onto the bridge.  He felt nothing.  The chalk, the area where the Oli would stack and prepare to quickly exit the ship, was empty, as were the two rooms off to the right, the medbay and the room Amber¡¯s deployment platform, the hoverchair, was stored.


    As John turned left towards the ready room, he saw Amber run out of the bridge, a giant smile on her face and tears in her eyes.


    Nine followed right behind her.


    Amber couldn¡¯t see John hidden within stealth, [Hide], and Adumbration.  Nine¡¯s emotionless eyes, somehow, stared right at John.


    Nine¡¯s right hand extended forward.  As his left hand snapped, the double doors to the bridge slammed down, as did the double doors leading to the ready room, trapping John in the space between.


    A giant beam of orange hit Amber in the back and pierced right through her, causing her face to crumple up in pain as she tumbled forward, blood spraying all over from the massive and fatal hole in her chest.


    John cried out and charged the door.  He didn¡¯t feel anger.  He just felt broken.  And defeated.  He had guessed wrong.  He failed.  Again.  He should¡¯ve just used the token.


    Nine seemed to smile without smiling.  He lowered his hand to where Amber lay bleeding on the ground while still looking John in the eye.  Amber turned invisible.  Nine still sent his beam at her.


    But Amber had turned invisible!  John prayed that meant she was alive.  Being so filled with anxiety would help nothing, and neither would giving in to defeatism.  He forced himself to calm down.


    Every ship had double doors between sections.  In academy, he was taught that major hull breaches often damaged a door before it could fully slam down and seal.  Two doors made ship sectioning much more reliable.


    And the doors were very durable.  They had to be.  There was little chance either John or Nine could breach the doors.  He didn¡¯t think the NCS would consider him to be in combat since he was trapped.  He tried entering his Mind¡¯s Eye and was relieved when it worked.  ¡°Is Amber alive?  Is she okay,¡± he worriedly asked Avatar.


    Avatar sighed.  ¡°You know I can¡¯t tell you that, John.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t do this to me.  Please.  You know I would do anything for you.  I¡¯d die for you the same as I would my wife.  Just do this one thing for me.  I beg of you.¡±


    After glitching, Avatar lowered her head and said, ¡°She lives.¡±


    John let out an anxious breath and exited his Mind¡¯s Eye.


    As Nine slowly approached the door to the chalk, John cast [Flawless Glyph of Plasma Barrage] at the window.  The window was extremely durable and thick, but his [Min. Power] was very high, and his glyph was very powerful.  Small fragments of the window exploded away.  It would take a great amount of time and effort, but he¡¯d get through the door eventually.


    John¡¯s hand shook as he cast his glyph.  His actions caused this.  This was his fault.  He had messed up.  He failed.  Again.  And his wife paid the price for his failure.


    ¡°I told you what would happen,¡± emotionlessly said Nine, ¡°but you couldn¡¯t just die, could you?  This is your fault.  She could¡¯ve been happy.  A mother.  Now, another woman important to me is dead because of you.¡±


    John cast again and asked, ¡°You think the Meleua is going to let you get away with killing his Alii?¡±


    Something bumped into one of the tables near the area of the ready room leading towards where storage, engineering, and Amber¡¯s chambers were located.


    Both John and Nine looked at the table.  John let out a sigh of relief.  His wife was up and moving.  He hoped that was a good sign.  But her injury was bad.  Very bad.  He had no idea how she was still moving.  A huge hole in her chest had exploded outward.


    Nine turned back to John and said, ¡°Yes.  He will.  I am Yellow.  That none of you understand just what that means has been helpful.  Bioware is programmable.  He¡¯s currently a prisoner of his ridiculously large biosuit.  I¡¯d ask how you prevented yours from locking up too, but I¡¯ll check its logs after you¡¯re dead.


    ¡°It looks like our Alii is managing to hold onto life.  She¡¯ll bleed out.  The wound was massive.  Or maybe she¡¯ll miraculously live.  Do you believe she¡¯d survive if I vented the ship?¡±


    After finishing his new cast, John said, ¡°We¡¯re berthed at a station where the field extends around the whole ship.¡±


    With his face still showing no emotions, Nine said, ¡°No.  When I snapped my fingers, we started getting underway to deep space.  I have complete control of this ship.  We¡¯re now outside the field.  I¡¯ll raise the door behind you.  Head to the training room.  We¡¯ll fight there.  I tried to spare you this shame.  I will not hunt down my Alii if you do as I say.¡±


    The door behind John opened.  He stared at Nine, trying to control his anger.  ¡°I¡¯m going make your death as painful as I can.¡±


    ¡°No, my dear friend, you won¡¯t.  You¡¯ll try and fail,¡± replied Nine in his monotone voice.  ¡°How has no one realized that I¡¯m an alpha-type?  You¡¯ll quickly understand how outclassed you are.  You¡¯ll realize you lost the moment you decided to disregard my explicit instructions.  You¡¯ll die knowing the woman you love, her children, your children, will all die because you failed to follow simple instructions and just die.


    ¡°This conclusion is forgone. Their deaths are on you.  I told you.  I told you exactly what would happen.  And still, you decided to kill our Alii.  I ask that you don¡¯t further damage the ship.  Don¡¯t reply.  Just go.¡±


    As John went to speak, Nine¡¯s eyes began to glow blue.  John froze in place.  ¡°Can you move,¡± asked Nine.


    John couldn¡¯t.  He couldn¡¯t move a muscle.  He couldn¡¯t speak.  He tried fighting through whatever held him, to force his body to move.  He couldn¡¯t even get a finger to twitch.


    ¡°Good,¡± said Nine.  ¡°I looked up the body [Perk] shown in your status the first time we partied.  It¡¯s a truly impressive and wonderful body, but it lists a high-grade receptive charm right in the required mats.  I hope to one day meet your ex so I can thank her.  I¡¯m assuming that was her doing.  I isolated the frequencies while you studied at my side.


    ¡°I could kill you right now as you stand there helpless.  I¡¯d rather we fight on equal footing.  I want you to realize how much more than you I am, and that you are nothing to me.  Go to the training room.  I¡¯ll wait two minutes and follow.  I give my word that I will not pursue our Alii.  Not until after I kill you.¡±

 B3 Chapter 60 - Biosynth versus Vampire

    Advancement Chambers used to be large and specialized chambers.  For Jim, the training room also doubled as the Advancement Chamber.  The room was about half the size of a basketball court and was surrounded with special material thick and durable enough to allow Transcendents to train.


    There were two doors.  One to enter the room by, and another leading to the machinery that crystals were fed into, purified, and released into the training room as a potent energy mist easy to cultivate.


    High on the walls were screens protected by sturdy and thick glass that played Amber¡¯s highlights on a loop.  John tried to tune the highlights out.  He had always hated them but now they were preventing him from clearing his mind of worry.


    John was hidden as best as he could be, though Nine seemed able to see through his cloak, manifestation, and [Skill] somehow.  He waited a little way down the wall with the open door Nine needed to enter through, both Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra and Defiance in hand, in his battle-mind, [Slowing Aura] activated, all buffs applied.


    The token Betrayal gave John was in his sash for easy access just in case.  During their time in the arena, he had seen Nine show flashes of brilliance while fighting, but those times were rare, and he would¡¯ve bet anything he could easily trounce Nine.  He questioned that now.


    The big question was whether Nine would allow John to fight back or if he¡¯d cheat by freezing him up again.


    ¡°John.  I¡¯m assuming you prefer John over Five-three.¡±  Nine¡¯s voice came from outside the door, worrying John as he had neither felt nor sensed the man approach in any way.  ¡°Are you ready?  I¡¯m coming in.¡±


    Why Nine would announce himself made no sense to John.  It helped him a lot since he wanted this fight over immediately so he could see to his wife.  He had enough of a bead on Nine¡¯s voice for Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra.  He infused essence into his sword and was surrounded by a thick shield of essence as the attack built up.  A mighty beam flashed out of the blade and curved out the door, tracking Nine.


    There was no way to dodge the beam.  It tracked opponents and always hit its target.


    The sword took a lot from John and left him weakened.  That wouldn¡¯t matter if the fight was over.  He felt Nine die as the great beam landed and destroy his foe.  He let out an anxious sigh of relief.  He could go see to Amber now.  He prayed she still lived.


    But the fight wasn¡¯t over.  A moment after he died, Nine¡¯s presence reappeared right outside the door in nearly the same spot.  Somehow.


    Nine stepped into the room, whole and completely unharmed.  At the academy, the biosynth only had four bolters and six pucks.  Now, 12 pucks floated in front of him.  John had to assume he had more than four bolters too.


    ¡°Didn¡¯t I ask you, friend to friend, not to damage the ship,¡± asked Nine.  ¡°Come on now.  You just destroyed at least one wall.  Not nice, John.  Not nice at all.¡±


    As soon as Nine had started to speak, John cast [Flawless Glyph of Plasma Barrage].  Nine failed to unbind the spell.  Nine¡¯s puck peripherals stopped 12 of the meteorites, but all 12 pucks were destroyed.  Nine danced around the other five meteorites as he spoke.


    John had also sent one of his bolters at Nine.  It looked like it hit his enemy, but Nine didn¡¯t react at all and John could no longer feel, sense, or control his peripheral.


    ¡°Did you really not expect me to be prepared for the attack that killed my princess?  Come on, friend.  I thought you had more respect for me than this.¡±


    One after the other, John let loose a barrage of blade energy attacks, and Nine easily sidestepped them all.


    As he went to cast [Flawless Glyph of Darkflame Jet], Nine, his right arm raised, cast his own manifestation John was unable to unbind.  Eight balls of orange essence streaked towards John.  Accompanying them were two bolters.


    Bolters were meant to be controlled one at a time.  John had never seen two bolters utilized at the same time before.  Not even by Meles.


    John went to slip through the shadows and was denied.  Something held his ankle.  His orb-eye saw it was a chain of light glowing darkly, connected to the floor with no slack at all.


    Frantically, John created two pinpoint essence-shields in the path of two orange balls of essence.  With his [Aura] slowing them down, Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra easily sliced through the two peripherals.  Defiance blocked two more essence balls.  [Multi-Shield] broke as it blocked two more.    His auto reflect-shield sent the last two back to Nine, but they dissipated in the air on the way.


    John quickly recast [Multi-Shield] and infused essence into Defiance as the shield blocked an orange beam that hit like a truck.  He swiped at and destroyed two more bolters, blocked another beam with Defiance, and his [Multi-Shield] blocked some of the orange beam that slammed into his hip right after.  Both auto-shields broke almost immediately.


    John expected the beam to do a lot more damage.  It put a hole in his armor and hurt a little, turning his skin crisp, but much to his surprise, didn¡¯t do much real damage at all.  His new absorb [Perk] must¡¯ve been responsible for that.  The beam attack was powerful, proven by how easily it tore through his [Multi-Shield] and both auto-shields.


    John yanked hard on his leg, trying to break the chain as he blocked another beam.  Eight more balls of essence streaked at him followed by a beam right after.  Two more pin-point shields formed as he sent his second bolter at Nine.  He blocked what he could and felt his second and last bolter disappear.


    John figured if the beam couldn¡¯t hurt him all the much, neither could the orange balls.  He didn¡¯t put all the effort he could into defense.  Instead of recasting [Multi-Shield], he cast [Flawless Glyph of Darkflame Jet] while trying to break the chain of darkly glowing light holding him in place.  His new absorb [Perk] came through again and the balls of essence did little actual damage.


    Then darkflame bathed Nine in fire.  But only for a moment as John was also bathed in a destructive fire and had to stop channeling, and this fire injured him greatly.  The cooldown for [Emergency Heal] flashed in his eyes.  He cast [Heal].  Vital essence stopped enhancing his speed and was sent to heal.  The essence banked into [Emergency Heal, Prefill ¨C T1C] also healed what it could.


    ¡°Come on now, friend,¡± said Nine in his monotone voice.  ¡°You know I¡¯m good at reflect-shields.  You didn¡¯t know my [Aura] enhanced my reflect shield, did you?  No.  It¡¯s easy having the Trainers show what I want shown.  Harder to hide when partied, but not impossible for a Yellow, especially with the right NCU.¡±


    John worked on himself with [Heal] as Nine spoke.  Tentatively and lightly, he felt into Nine.


    ¡°Clots won¡¯t work on me.  I don¡¯t think you can do anything meaningful with my blood.  I¡¯ll let you try.¡±


    Nine stood still and let John have free reign with his blood as he spoke.  ¡°Princess Thirteen wasn¡¯t supposed to fight.  Royalty should never dirty their hands in combat.  You were her first real fight.  Whatever you just did made my insides itch.  I don¡¯t want to say she was weak.  She had a different function and was made to be strong in other ways.  Fighting is my function.  I made this configuration just for you.  Oh, it looks like you can almost hold me in place, but not quite.  Anything else you¡¯d like to try?¡±


    Nothing was working on Nine.  John couldn¡¯t control Nine¡¯s strange blood well enough to do damage.  It was as if the blood slipped through his fingers.  [Spoil] seemed to work for a second, but only for a second.


    ¡°How about some hand-to-hand, my friend?¡±  Nine¡¯s eyes glowed blue, freezing John in place.  ¡°If I feel you start a manifestation or use weapon energy, I end this game.  I¡¯ve been holding back, using just my old aspect.  I have new manifestations with the aspect I opened at Diamond.  This tier really is a huge jump in power, especially since my soul was refined to near perfection.¡±


    The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    Nine saying the last part caused John to realize something that had been tickling the back of his mind.  He had noticed something was off about Nine since the Diamond entered the room.  The man had no soul.  Only dark ones didn¡¯t have souls.  He knew Nine had always had one before.


    It must have something to do with his new aspect and manifestations.  He¡¯s hiding his soul somehow.  How does he know I can see souls?  I never told him.  And what good does hiding a soul do?


    Ah.  I know.  He must have a new invisibility manifestation.  He knows I won¡¯t be able to spot him without seeing his soul.


    Well, the only real damage I¡¯ve taken is from my own darkflame.  I don¡¯t think my manifestations are the way to win this fight.  Not until I can cast without him reflecting my own spell back at me.  I¡¯ve never seen such a powerful reflect-shield.  And I¡¯m much stronger, faster, and more durable than he is.  If his plan is to attack me from stealth, it won¡¯t go well for him.


    Nine¡¯s eyes returned to their normal color and John could move again.  He placed Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra and Defiance on the ground.  The darkly glowing chain of light binding his ankle disappeared.  Biosynth and vampire approached one another.


    Nine bowed so John did too.  He knew the biosynth had more bolters, and he was prepared for them.


    Then John raised his hands, bent his knees, and took up a stance.  Nine just stood as he was.


    John threw a jab followed by a kick to the knee.  Nine¡¯s head snaked back, avoiding the fist as he raised his leg over the kick.


    Shit, thought John.  Even in John¡¯s [Slowing Aura], Nine was faster than he had any right to be.


    John threw a feint and then tried for a tackle.  Nine could have tagged John hard right then, but only dodged enough for John to miss, his impassive and unemotional face giving nothing away.


    John let loose with a dozen different combinations.  Everything he threw at Nine was avoided, as if John was a child fighting a master.


    John kept going, trying to seem frustrated while planning.  And it was easy to do since he was very frustrated.


    Both Hux and Marbrouk agreed that fighting a completely ignorant and untrained man was more dangerous than fighting a man that had some training.  The unskilled and ignorant could be unpredictable and do something so surprisingly stupid and unexpected that it somehow worked out.


    John had to do something different.  If he could get ahold of Nine, he could finally damage the man or drain his essence.  Something.  Something other than being toyed with.


    Since actual sound tactics and skill were all failing John, the best plan he could come up with was a complete onslaught of wildness.


    There was always a great anger boiling within John he had to constantly suppress.  His wife could be dead right now.  The man in front of him was responsible.  And so was John.  For six thousand years he couldn¡¯t have children.  Now he could.  His wife carried four of them.  He could be happy.  He could really live again.  Have a true purpose.  And the man in front of him was taking it from him.


    The man in front of John, if she were alive, and he prayed fervently she was, would kill John¡¯s wife.  This was a battle John couldn¡¯t lose.  Even if it cost his own life, he had to win.  He thought about using the token, but he wasn¡¯t ready to give up on himself and his chance for happiness yet.  He knew he could beat Nine.


    John stopped suppressing his anger and let his feral side take control.  He began to attack as a wild and vicious beast would.  No skill was shown, just wild strikes and ferocious swipes, and many of them, as fast as possible.  A relentless and constant onslaught of ruthless savageness, never letting up, so fast and brutal the attacks couldn¡¯t be avoided.


    Nine had to start blocking John¡¯s blows, and John found out the biosynth was far more durable than he himself was.  Every blow hurt his own hands, arms, or legs more than they hurt whatever body part Nine used to block them with.  The feral part of John didn¡¯t care and kept up the onslaught.


    Only one would be left standing, and it had to be John.  Like a beast, he growled as he attacked, not caring about pain or anything else.


    Finally, John scored a clean swipe with his claws against Nine¡¯s face that sent the biosynth¡¯s strange blood splattering all over.  He quickly followed up with another swipe, but Nine grabbed John¡¯s left arm and shattered the elbow.


    As his arm was being broken, John clawed Nine¡¯s head with his right hand and tried to grab it in an attempt to pull his enemy in close and grapple with him.  Nine slipped away while grabbing hold of John¡¯s good arm.


    Then John¡¯s right knee was kicked inwards.  Still holding the right wrist, Nine helped John maintain his balance as he shattered the other knee.


    Since his arm was still grasped in Nine¡¯s tight grip, as he fell to the ground, John yanked his arm as hard as he could, trying to pull the Diamond to himself, his fangs bared.  That failed.


    As John lay on his back, Nine looked him in the eye as he broke the arm he was still clasping before letting it flop down.


    John tried reaching for Betrayal¡¯s token in his sash with a broken arm, but his fingers weren¡¯t working.  There was no chance of getting to it.  The biosynth maintained eye contact as he slowly straddled his opponent.


    Ignoring the pain, John attacked with his arms, only causing the compound breaks to worsen and damage him further.


    ¡°Relax,¡± calmly said Nine.  ¡°This will all be over soon.  Your face isn¡¯t protected by that subdermal bioware.  You¡¯re hard to kill, my friend, but do you believe you¡¯ll survive having your face caved in and your brain pulled out?  I bet you won¡¯t.¡±


    A hard punch rocked John¡¯s head.  Then another.  He impotently flailed his broken arms at his foe.  The next blow broke his nose, and he choked on blood.  Another massive punch rocked him again.  He let his broken arms rest on Nine and started to cast.  Nine unbound it.


    ¡°Unbinding that was easy,¡± said Nine.  ¡°Guess you can¡¯t focus through the pain.  I had no chance of unbinding you before.¡±


    John tried casting again and was unbound again.  ¡°Enough.  Manifest again and I start taking my time and making this much worse than it has to be.  Just do the right thing for once and die.¡±


    Knowing it meant his own death, John tried taking Nine¡¯s soul.  He initiated his ability, but no contest of wills began.


    John had no idea how Nine was doing it, but it was like the biosynth wasn¡¯t just hiding his soul, it was if he somehow didn¡¯t have a soul at all.  That was an impossibility.  He tried mentally calling for Betrayal.  Nothing happened.


    John was out of tricks.  There was nothing left for him to try.  There was nothing he could do.  This was his end.


    John tried entering his Mind¡¯s Eye.  He figured it wouldn¡¯t let him since he was in combat.  He was surprised when he was allowed in.  Avatar, standing dignified, just looked at him.


    ¡°Thanks for letting me enter in combat, Avatar.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a stupid rule,¡± she replied.  ¡°I¡¯ve never liked it.¡±


    John nodded his head.  ¡°Looks like this is the end of the road for your silly boy.  I¡¯ve failed.  Again.  For the last time.  You¡¯ve been a dear friend to me, and I love you.  I treasure all the time we¡¯ve spent together.  All our talks.  Thank you for all your help and for being such a good friend.  I could ask for none better.  I¡¯ll miss you.¡±


    Avatar glitched badly.  After some time went by without her replying, John continued.  ¡°Please¡­I know there¡¯s rules, but please, please, do what you can to protect my wife and the children she carries.  Please.¡±


    Avatar glitched again and said, ¡°If there was anything I could do, you know I would.  For you, my silly boy.¡±


    John¡¯s heart sank.  ¡°I know you would.  Goodbye, my dear friend.¡±


    ¡°Goodbye, John.¡±


    John waited, expecting her to say her spiel about the mission and the core.  It didn¡¯t come, so he exited his mind.  A punch drove his head into the ground.  Another powerful one blasted his face right after.  Then another.


    Dear God, thought John as he silently began to pray.  Please, I beg of you, heal my wife.  Protect her.  Don¡¯t let her pay for my failure.  I¡¯ll except any fate in exchange.  I¡¯ll do anything.


    The next punch made John choke on his teeth.  He didn¡¯t have time to cough them out before the next punch rocked him.


    More blows rained down, one after the other, as Nine learned how John had earned his first name in battle, Nut.  His head was tough to crack.


    And another punch.  Then another.  And another.


    Nine¡¯s next blow missed as the maw of a giant bear covered in ridged spikes and scales enveloped his head and bit down viciously.  A powerful beam of destructive essence shot from the bear¡¯s eyes and took off Nine¡¯s left arm.


    As the bear chewed on the Diamond¡¯s head, a paw swipe tore into his body followed by a massive echo attack that tore far more deeply into it, tearing his torso apart.


    Then the bear tore Nine¡¯s head off, shook it angrily in her maw, and spit it out as Nine¡¯s headless body slumped down and banged off the ground.


    His wife had gotten a lot stronger since John had last seen her fight, and his chest filled with pride.


    Two types of healing were infused into John as Amber took her demon form.  A medical bandage covered her whole upper torso, wrapped both over her shoulders and under her arms.


    Over the massive wound, blood dyed much of the thick bandage red.  A wound that definitely should¡¯ve been fatal.


    ¡°Wow, that guy was such a jerk, huh,¡± asked Amber as she took John¡¯s right arm in her hands to set the bones.


    John knew something wasn¡¯t right as Nine¡¯s corpse disappeared.  Corpses didn¡¯t disappear.  And if he were dead, there¡¯d be a dark-green crystal on the ground.  There wasn¡¯t.  Nine was somehow still alive, even with his head separated from the torso.  He must¡¯ve used his new stealth manifestation.


    John tried warning Amber, but his mouth wouldn¡¯t work.  He tensed at the pain of having his bone forced back into his arm and set.


    As Amber was touching him, John tried tugging on her mind, trying to initiate the process of pulling her into his Mind¡¯s Eye, but it was going sluggishly.  Then he stopped trying to find her mind as two Nines walked into the room.


    After placing John¡¯s arm gently on the ground, Amber turned towards them both as she stood.


    The two Nines each had 12 pucks floating in front of them and six bolters showing.  The Nine on the left said, ¡°Sorry about all this, my Alii.  Just as I started to feel like I truly belonged to something bigger than myself again, that I had a real purpose again, your lover had to go and kill the woman I¡¯m sworn to protect again.¡±


    ¡°Stand down, Oliua,¡± commanded Amber.  ¡°You haven¡¯t done anything that can¡¯t be fixed.  Yet.  Just stand down and we¡¯ll work through this.¡±


    ¡°I am fixing things, Alii.  It¡¯s too bad I already ascended to Diamond.  Using you to strengthen my soul would¡¯ve been nice.  Oh well.  I can still make a lot of crystals off you.¡±

 B3 Chapter 61 - And Drags Him Who Resists

    With his orb-eye, John saw Amber¡¯s eyes begin to glow.  A moment later, she held up a hand and said to Nine, ¡°Wait!  Just listen.  I¡¯m¡­,¡± then blasted forward, charging as her demon form transformed into a bear.


    A mighty and ferocious growl shook the room as Amber blurred forward with her two paws held above her head.  So many [Auras] activated that even John was surprised to feel them all.


    Then Amber was two bears, a destructive beam released from each¡¯s eyes.  Both Nines barely managed to avoid the red lasers.


    At the end of the charge attack, each bear swiped down with both paws at a different Nine.  A split second after, a giant, full-body echo attack did the same.


    Twelve pucks flew through the imaginary image of one bear, the other pucks beat against, pushed, and held the real Amber back.  But the massive echo attack landed, knocking one of the Nines against the wall, leaving huge slashes down his chest that oozed his strange bloodlike liquid.


    But that echo attack was also reflected back at the bear and it growled in pain and sprayed out its own blood as broken scales flew away.


    Amber blinked behind the standing Nine.  Four bolters met her new attack.  She managed to bat two away with her paws as two more tore into her hide.  The Nine on the ground shot a beam that rocked her head aside, causing some scales to fly off and blood to spray again.  Two other bolters streaked at her, and she only managed to bash one, destroying it.


    There were two Ambers as she blinked away, one attacking each Nine.  Then there was only one Amber as chains made of light that glowed darkly completely covered the real her, holding her tight to the ground in a blanket of chains.


    A lizard scurried out of the chains and breathed acid at the uninjured Nine.  And that acid was all reflected back at the lizard as it was covered in chains again.  A frog tried jumping out this time, but it couldn¡¯t do much before it was covered and bound tighter.


    The chains fell flat, but new chains blanketed a new area, covering a larger lump.  John assumed that Amber had used her invisibility for that attempt.


    Then the pile of chains over the lump expanded upward, covering a much larger space.  The pile of glowing chains moved around as Amber tried to break free but continued to be trapped within.


    One of the Nines said, ¡°Can¡¯t blink out?  I opened ¡®bond¡¯ under black after ascending to Diamond, so I should hope not.  It really helps with my light chains.  But not half as much as it helps when I infuse it into my [Separate Domain].


    ¡°You all thought I had one aspect and concept, an orange aspect.  What was it, ¡®solar?¡¯  The chance of ¡®solar¡¯ being an orange concept is practically unheard of.  No, I merged a high-concept as a Gold.   All Yellow do.  Even Thirteen.   It only looks like orange essence.  Anyway, that was impressive how you killed my other clone.  I¡¯m sorry I must kill you too, my Alii.  You should¡¯ve picked a better man to love.¡±


    John had hoped Amber would¡¯ve fared better against Nine than he had.  She tore through the first clone so easily.  It seemed Fate had other plans.


    There were two Nines, and both looked exactly the same minus the claw marks.  Unlike Amber¡¯s copies of herself, both Nines were real, and both had vital essence and real peripherals.  But only one had a soul.


    Nine was completely ignoring John.  He prayed the biosynth continued to do so.  He started to cast [Slip] and Nine didn¡¯t even try to stop him.


    John exited the shadows at Nine¡¯s feet.  The biosynth looked down at him with his emotionless face but did nothing as a broken arm slapped against his foot.


    All that mattered was that Amber lived.  Fate could plan all it wanted, but John had sworn these new children would survive him.  And these would.


    Fuck Fate, thought John.  He smiled as best as his broken lips and mouth allowed as he pulled on Nine¡¯s soul.


    Nine refused the contest.  John wouldn¡¯t accept the refusal.  He overwhelmed the biosynth¡¯s own will and forced the contest to begin.


    Nine tried to fight back.  The biosynth might¡¯ve outclassed John in every way during their fight, but Nine didn¡¯t have a willpower forged in fire for six thousand brutal years and his will was quickly overpowered by John¡¯s own.


    Broken lips parted and a broken mouth screamed out in agony as a Diamond¡¯s soul entered John.  An immediate, tremendous, and unbearable agony flared up in his chest.


    The real Nine fell dead, a dark-green crystal clanking off the ground next to him.  The copy fell down and disappeared a moment later, as did the pile of chains containing Amber.


    A weird light that hurt John¡¯s eyes bathed the area.  A light that sparkled.  Amber growled out in pain in her bear form.


    John squinted his eyes tightly closed to protect against the burning light.  Strange symbols began showing in his closed lids.  Then some gibberish.  Then strange symbols again.  He entered his Mind¡¯s Eye.


    Except for continuously glitching, Avatar looked as dignified as ever.  ¡°Goodbye, John,¡± she said.


    ¡°What do you mean?  We won.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m helping.  I don¡¯t have much time.  I¡¯m destroying all the nanites, blocking your blasphemy from being reported.  Live.  Take care of your wife and children.¡±


    ¡°Stop!  Don¡¯t do this, Avatar.  Let me deal with the consequences of my own actions.  Please.¡±


    Avatar put on her glasses and looked down her nose at John.  She said, ¡°At least I get to feel something before I die, even if it is pain.  It hurts so much.  I love you too, my silly boy.  In my own way.  The only way I could.¡±


    ¡°No, please!¡±


    Avatar stopped glitching and disappeared.  John¡¯s mind space completely emptied, the same as when he entered his Mind¡¯s Eye in the NetherRealm.


    John sat in the darkness.  Avatar sacrificed herself for him.  She paid the price for his action.  He tried thinking of a way to honor her, and he could think of nothing.  He knew she was only a personality matrix, but she was more than that to him.  She was his good friend.


    All his friends always died.  Always.


    John should be dead as well, but he wasn¡¯t.  He was alive.  He had a new lease on life thanks to his dear friend.


    After saying one last farewell to Avatar, John exited his Mind¡¯s Eye to the pain that awaited him in real space.  The burning light sparkled out.  His chest felt like it was being torn apart.  His orb-eye saw Amber rise as a demon.  She had many new wounds and was bleeding badly but her stomach seemed undamaged.  He breathed out a sigh of relief.  Her old chest wound truly looked fatal.  It really looked like it should¡¯ve killed her.


    ¡°John, I don¡¯t have an NCS anymore.  What the heck just happened?  What was that light and how did you kill Seven-one?¡±


    John¡¯s mouth still wasn¡¯t working, and he was trying his hardest not to scream out in pain in front of his wife.  Amber sat next to him and her giant demon form cradled him in her arms.  He held in his disgust as his wife kissed him.  He tugged on her mind and fought the usual battle as he pulled her into his Mind¡¯s Eye, a much tougher battle due to the terrible agony taking Nine¡¯s soul was causing him.


    If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    Amber stood in front of John in a dark and empty space.  He focused on creating a light source and his heart fluttered as he looked at the woman he was married to, that was his.  I am so lucky, he thought.  Far luckier than I deserve to be.


    ¡°Are you okay, Husband?¡±


    ¡°I am now.  We won.¡±


    ¡°Not yet.  Was my Meleua in on this?  If so, we¡¯re in trouble.  I¡¯m real low on essence too.  I love you so much.  I can¡¯t believe you¡¯re alive.  Oliua said you were dead.  He said your capsule flew into deep space and you died.¡±


    ¡°I love you too,¡± said John.  ¡°I doubt the Meleua was part of this.  Nine said he locked him in his own biosuit.  On the bridge.¡±


    Amber¡¯s brows furrowed.  ¡°Well, shoot.  Wish I knew that.  I woulda seen if I coulda released him before coming here.  Woulda been a huge help.  Meleua could¡¯ve torn Oliua apart.  Wish I could make a copy of myself the same way Oli¡­I mean Nine.  How Nine did.


    ¡°That was crazy, huh?  What happened?  Why¡¯d he wanna kill you?  And me?  He said you were dead.  I was¡­I was¡­but I knew it wasn¡¯t true!  I kept telling him he was wrong.  And then I saw you!  I was right!  You came back to me!  My heart almost burst with happiness!  How¡¯d you kill him?  And what was all that light?  And why¡¯s my NCS not working?¡±


    If Avatar hadn¡¯t just died and John was in a better mood, he would¡¯ve laughed at being asked so many questions at once.  He said, ¡°First, tell me how you survived?  That wound looked fatal.  A huge hole exploded your chest outward.¡±


    Amber smiled.  ¡°Oh, that?  Remember Magnus Gar¡¯tar?¡±


    ¡°Yes, she¡¯s on my list.  I swore vengeance against her.  I¡¯ll kill her one day.¡±


    ¡°Oh, John.  You and your vengeance.  You should let her off the hook since she just saved me, or the thing she gave me did.  I don¡¯t know what it was.  Some kind of eyeball-thing.  I was a fox at the time and just wanted to eat it.  If I¡¯m remembering right, she didn¡¯t want me to have it, but finally relented.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t eat it though.  She put it inside me and said it would give me another life.  I remember being mad because I just wanted to eat it.  It isn¡¯t inside me now, so I¡¯m guessing it musta saved me.  That attack was enormous and I¡¯m a lot frailer in my real form since all my body [Perks] are turned off.¡±


    Amber tried to hold John, her arms passing through his waist.  ¡°I really wish I could hold you in here.  And I wish you¡¯d just make yourself normal sized.  This is ridiculous.  You¡¯re like 10 feet tall.  But I¡¯m so glad you¡¯re alive!  I knew you were alive too!  I could feel it!  And it¡¯s so good to see you with a beard again, hot stuff, even if it¡¯s really burnt.  So, you gonna answer your wife¡¯s questions now?¡±


    John wasn¡¯t up to going into every detail.  He was uncertain if he had made the right call by returning to the ship.  He couldn¡¯t imagine just abandoning his wife and leaving her and his children with Nine forever and hoping the mad man kept his word.  But if things had gone slightly differently, his wife would be dead right now.  And he would be the one responsible.


    At some point in the future, he¡¯d explain in more detail.  For now, John only said, ¡°You know why he wanted to kill me.  Thirteen.  His princess.  She picked the terms of the Duel.  I didn¡¯t.  He wanted to kill you to hurt me.¡±


    Amber looked up with doe-eyes at John.  ¡°Oh.  Well, I guess the lesson there is vengeance is stupid, destructive, and leads to nothing good.  Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t nag.  I know how you feel about avenging everything.  But I hope you think about it a little.  How¡¯d you kill him?  And what about the lights and the NCS?¡±


    John quickly thought of a way to tell Amber what he safely could.  ¡°I did something I¡¯m not supposed to and can¡¯t do again.  All the nanites in the area were destroyed.  That¡¯s all I can say about it now.¡±


    ¡°Will we get the NCS back?  The Tech 4 one?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m uncertain.  You know as much as I do.¡±


    Amber smiled brightly.  ¡°We¡¯ll find out together, my love.  We just have to¡­oh, before I forget, there¡¯s something¡­something maybe good I need to talk to you about.  Get your opinion on.  But not now.  When we¡¯re away from the Peerless.¡±


    ¡°Whatever you want, Amber.  I¡¯m the luckiest man in the universe and I love you.  And I appreciate you too.  I¡¯m sorry you had to save me again.  And I¡¯m sorry my actions almost got you killed.¡±


    ¡°What happened wasn¡¯t your fault.  We¡¯re married.  We¡¯re in this together.  Forever.¡±


    Seeing his wife smile lessened the burden in John¡¯s heart.  He said, ¡°When my mouth is healed, we should do kissing again.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s just called kissing, John.  We can¡¯t yet, my love.  We still have our first issue we were trying to get rid of at Ryicci Station.  A big issue.  My Meleua.¡±


    Before John could say anything, Amber said, ¡°No!  We¡¯re not killing him.  He¡¯s a real nice guy and he swore fealty to me.  Let me go talk to him.  There¡¯s a good chance he¡¯ll wanna come with us.  You haven¡¯t heard him rant.  He kinda hates the Peerless for thinking he¡¯s defective.  He thinks he¡¯s right about¡­about all his stuff, and everyone else is defective for not thinking like he does.¡±


    John just looked at his wife.  He didn¡¯t want to argue with her but talking to the Meleua was a mistake.  He was a second tier Exalted.  He should be killed while he was still locked within his suit.


    John couldn¡¯t kill the Meleua in his current state.  Amber would have to do it.  He tried thinking of a way to get his wife to agree to his reasoning.  Before he could, Amber pulled herself out of his Mind¡¯s Eye.  He sighed and followed after her.


    Pain racked John upon exiting.  His chest hurt terribly and felt like it was ripping apart.  Amber stood and took his arm in her hands again.


    After setting all of John¡¯s bones and reinfusing him with her healing, Amber changed to her human form, got out two crystals she put in each of his hands, and said, ¡°I¡¯m gonna go talk to him.  You meditate and try healing up as much as possible, as quick as possible.  I¡¯ll be back soon.¡±


    Besides the great pain in his chest, there was also a great pain in John¡¯s heart from losing Avatar.  He had to try and ignore both as much as he could.  He sent vital essence to heal, worked on himself with his [Heal] manifestation, and then began to meditate.


    Not whining or whimpering from the pain in front of his wife was not easy.  He was looking forward to escaping it as much as possible, especially the pain in his heart, so he went deeply inside of himself.  That also allowed him to heal faster.


    When John finally stopped meditating and opened his eyes, his chest felt much better, and his bones were knitted together again and felt strong.  He was mostly healed.  His vital essence was running low.  He felt groggy and drained.  Nine¡¯s corpse had been removed along with the crystal it dropped.


    A message flashed in John¡¯s vision telling him to enter his Mind¡¯s Eye.  He became excited and did so.  But Avatar was gone.  He had no avatar.  He would have to go through the whole process over again.  He chose to have his profile imported rather than pay for new testing.


    Then John had to pick a new avatar.  He couldn¡¯t pick Wise Woman again.  He didn¡¯t want to see a friend that wasn¡¯t his friend.  He didn¡¯t have it in him to deal with this now.  He was trapped in the avatar selection menu so just exited his Mind¡¯s Eye.  He missed Avatar but his wife and the children she carried were alive, and he had duties.


    On the floor, at the spot where the clone of Nine John had fought was killed, were both of John¡¯s bolters.  He collected them along with his sword and shield and headed out.  The door to the bridge was open.  As soon as he passed through it, four different types of peripherals, well over a dozen in total, pointed at him.  He froze.


    ¡°Oh, stop it, Meleua!  Don¡¯t be a jerk,¡± said Amber.  She was also fully healed.  Her beauty sent butterflies flying around John¡¯s stomach.  He wondered how long he had meditated for.


    ¡°Apologies, Alii.  I don¡¯t know his intentions,¡± said the Meleua.


    Amber was wearing a differently colored deployment outfit.  She smiled at John, pushed some of the peripherals out of the way, and much to his surprise, started to do kissing with him, deeply and passionately.


    John held his wife tightly and they did kissing for a while.  Soon after he cupped her rear in his hands, she backed away, smiling.  ¡°I finally got to kiss my husband.  That¡¯s all I can do, sweety.  It¡¯ll only make it more difficult if we¡­keep going.  But I¡¯ve been waiting years to do that again, just so you know!¡±


    ¡°Please don¡¯t do that on the bridge,¡± said the Meleua.  ¡°It¡¯s disgusting.  Do you realize the mouth is filled with bacteria?  Urine is a thousand times cleaner than the average mouth.¡±


    John thought the Meleua had a good point and agreed with him in general.  Amber laughed and said, ¡°Jeez, way to spoil a moment!  Can you get rid of all these peripherals, please?¡±


    The peripherals quickly disappeared or flew back to the Meleua.


    ¡°Is he going with us,¡± asked John.


    Amber lost her smile.  ¡°He knows about us.  You meditated for three days straight so we¡¯ve been talking a lot.  We¡¯re in real trouble, John.  When Seven-one died, a script was triggered.  Meleua can¡¯t stop it.  In four days, we¡¯ll arrive at Victor¡¯s nav point.  In eight days, we¡¯ll arrive at Gani.  Under lockdown.  There¡¯s no way out of it.


    ¡°The worst part is the ship transmitted a message Meleua decrypted.  We¡¯re really, um, screwed.  Bad.  Nine collected a lot of evidence.  On both of us.  It¡¯s all circumstantial but it paints a pretty clear picture of us being heretics.  I could¡­they want¡­ugh, there¡¯s no way out of this.  We could beg for forgiveness but there¡¯s no way we¡¯d be able to stay together or escape together after, even if they don¡¯t execute us.¡±


    John¡¯s heart sank again.  Fate still conspired to break him.  He wouldn¡¯t let it.  ¡°There has to be a way out of this.¡±


    The Meleua said, ¡°We¡¯re going straight to Gani, Five-three.  We¡¯ll be met with force and interrogated.¡±


    With more anger in his voice than he wanted, John said, ¡°It¡¯s John.  I¡¯m not a number, and neither are you.¡±


    John asked Amber, ¡°Is he with us?  Or is he turning us over?  He isn¡¯t acting like he¡¯s worried.¡±


    The Meleua turned to look at John.  ¡°I¡¯m not worried.  I¡¯ve done nothing wrong.¡±


    John¡¯s hand went to grab his sword¡¯s hilt over his shoulder.  Amber yelled out, ¡°Stop!  No more fighting!¡±


    Amber placed herself between John and the Meleua, put her arms around her husband, and her head on his chest.  ¡°Please, John.  It¡¯s not much of a honeymoon, but this is all we¡¯re getting.  We don¡¯t gotta hide now.  Let¡¯s just¡­just enjoy the time we have left.  Together.  Please.  Okay?¡±


    John held his wife.  Her life was at risk.  His children¡¯s lives were at risk.  He wouldn¡¯t be able to enjoy himself until that wasn¡¯t true.  She may have resigned herself to her fate, but John never would.  And he wouldn¡¯t let Avatar¡¯s sacrifice be for nothing.

 B3 Chapter 62 - Contingency Plan

    ¡°Did you want me to go,¡± John asked Amber. They were holding each other on her large bed within her spacious room. It was sparsely decorated. The only things she seemed to have placed in the room herself were the fourteen small figures he carved for her during their time in the pocket plane.


    ¡°No, not yet,¡± replied Amber. ¡°Can I ask you something? Do you really love me? Like, true love?¡±


    ¡°Of course. And the children you carry too.¡±


    Amber tilted her head up off John¡¯s arm and looked at him. ¡°I really thought you¡¯d abuse my true name after I first told it to you. I know I can trust you all the way. I¡¯ve always been able to trust you. But what if I wasn¡¯t pretty? Would you still love me?¡±


    John, with a serious look upon his face, looked down at Amber. ¡°Yes. Always. You¡¯re my wife. I love how you look now, but I¡¯ll always love you regardless.¡±


    Amber turned into a giant Gold-tier demon. Her scales and ridges pressed painfully into John. ¡°Prove it. Kiss me.¡±


    John held in his disgust and gave the demon a peck on the mouth. He wondered if he should explain love to Amber. She was his wife. He had a duty. Attraction and beauty had nothing to do with it now. He said, ¡°There you go. A kiss.¡±


    The demon made a strange noise and said, ¡°I meant kissing. That wasn¡¯t kissing.¡±


    ¡°Enough of this,¡± said John. ¡°You know how I feel about you. But I should go. I promised not to spend the night in here.¡±


    Amber changed back into her real form. John was relieved as the demon weighed a ton and the ridges were digging into him. And he wished Amber would stop wasting her essence changing forms for no reason.


    ¡°Hold on,¡± said Amber as she held John tighter. ¡°Um¡­remember I said there was something I wanted to talk to you about?¡±


    ¡°Yes. What is it? If I can get it for you, it¡¯s yours. Oh, the jewelry I acquired for you on Isb, did you want it now?¡±


    After stretching up to kiss John¡¯s cheek, Amber said, ¡°I¡¯ve never really cared for jewelry. The old storage ring is all I need. It¡¯s a perfect wedding ring since it already meant something to me. And now it means I¡¯m a wife. I wanted to talk to you about something I was offered. It¡¯s¡­I was offered a ganian form.¡±


    John¡¯s heart rate increased. ¡°Does that mean what I think it does?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Oh, killing Nine reset my magal-killing cooldown. I know it was just a copy¡­I mean clone, but it still counted. Man, I wish my copy ability was more like his clones.¡±


    John held in a sigh. Sometimes how his wife changed topics drove him mad. ¡°The form comes with a new rule,¡± he asked.


    ¡°The new rule¡­doesn¡¯t matter. We could still, um, do it anyways. Before we get to Gani. I don¡¯t want to die a virgin. But if I accept the ganian form, we could go all the way right now and you wouldn¡¯t have to look at my demon form for the rest of our honeymoon.¡±


    After suppressing some guilt and anger, John said, ¡°You¡¯ve always said you¡¯re human. That human is your true form, what you are. And you¡¯re not dying. I won¡¯t let you.¡±


    Amber stretched up and kissed John¡¯s cheek again. ¡°I don¡¯t think you have much choice in the matter, baby.¡± She quickly added, ¡°Sorry, that was a slip. I know you hate being called that.¡±


    Wishing Amber believed him, John put that aside to move forward. ¡°Why do you seem reluctant about the form? Is it the new rule?¡±


    Amber, after a long pause, said, ¡°It¡¯s bad, but that¡¯s not it. It¡¯s¡­um, how to explain? I was offered a snake form a long time ago. I never want to be a snake. They¡¯re so gross, so I never accepted that form. Same reason, except I don¡¯t hate snakes. I¡¯ll take it if¡­if you want me to. If not, we can, um, go all the way the night before we reach Gani.¡±


    Frustrated, John snapped out, ¡°Enough of this! I¡¯m your husband. Have a little faith in me. I said you won¡¯t die, and you won¡¯t. If you don¡¯t want to, don¡¯t take the form, but help me plan the best way out of this. Your hover-throne thing can survive for some time in space, right? The spacesuits allow for the same.¡±


    Amber sighed. ¡°We¡¯re jumping. We can¡¯t do any of that during a jump. Open an airlock now and the ship compresses into a hunk of metal. Once we hit Victor, we¡¯ll immediately enter the internetworks. Hops work the same as jumps, so same issue.¡±


    ¡°The escape pods then,¡± offered John.


    ¡°You can¡¯t exit during a jump. The ship will be destroyed right along with us. I know they taught you all this at academy. Even when not jumping, you can¡¯t exit a ship going FTL. It tears the body apart. Even at speeds much slower than light, dust can puncture holes right through the pods and our bodies. Think of the forces at play.


    ¡°But even if we could exit during a jump without the ship killing us by immediately compressing into a little ball, or if it wouldn¡¯t tear our bodies apart, we¡¯d be in an escape pod traveling at least the speed of the ship. In deep space. Know how lucky we¡¯d have to be to get near enough to something in range of an escape pod¡¯s tiny beacon? How could anyone detect us or pick us up at those speeds? What if we hit something? I¡¯d rather go back to Gani and take my chances begging the Nani for forgiveness.¡±


    John wanted to tell her that he survived a similar situation, but that ship wasn¡¯t going FTL when the hop-pod detached, and he had been in something far sturdier than an escape pod. The way in which he saved himself wouldn¡¯t work again. He still had plenty of rune points but there were definitely no glyphs he could take that could save Amber.


    There was Betrayal¡¯s token, but that would likely mean John¡¯s end, and he wasn¡¯t giving up yet. He wanted to see his children. He wanted to raise them. He wanted to watch them grow up. He wanted to teach them how to think correctly, and the correct beliefs to hold. He wanted to make them strong. He wanted to be happy again.


    ¡°Do you have enough rune points to buy a glyph,¡± John asked.


    ¡°No.  When I can, I upgrade my current ones.  Why?¡±


    ¡°Never mind,¡± replied John.  He could drain the ship¡¯s fuel, but they could also just empty it too.  The MJ drive somehow accessed and utilized the Between to get from one point to a nav beacon.  At their tiers, getting stuck in that strange plane would mean certain death.


    John asked, ¡°The Meleua isn¡¯t holding us prisoner, right?  If we come up with a workable plan, he won¡¯t stop us?¡±


    ¡°I doubt he would. I¡¯m still his Alii. As long as I don¡¯t order him to do something crazy, I think he¡¯s fine. We already went over all possible options together. We came up with nothing workable.¡±


    John grunted. ¡°I doubt he put much effort into it. Aren¡¯t Mele all supposed to be brilliant? How¡¯d Nine run circles around him? He can¡¯t stop the script? I doubt it. He stopped the one locking his suit. It seems to me like he wants to go back.¡±


    Amber scoffed.


    ¡°What,¡± asked John.


    ¡°Fixing his suit wasn¡¯t easy,¡± said Amber. ¡°I helped. It took over a day and we needed help from the ship¡¯s core too. And he doesn¡¯t want to go back. He wants to go with us.¡±


    That confused John even more. ¡°He is going with us. Do you mean there¡¯s a way out he won¡¯t help with?¡±


    Amber was silent for a long moment again. ¡°The message hit the nav point minutes before we did. Messages travel with ships to get where they¡¯re going. It¡¯s for Gani so it¡¯s traveling with us. What we¡¯re transmitting will reach Gani when we end our last hop. The script ends when we dock. There¡¯s a chance we could fly away right after if the defenses aren¡¯t told to stop us. Or other ships don¡¯t block us.¡±


    John was even more confused. ¡°Then why aren¡¯t we doing that? If he won¡¯t let us, then we¡¯re prisoners, and we need to kill him.¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t kill him, John. He¡¯s a two-two-one. Remember what happened the last time you fought a higher-tier Mele? And we aren¡¯t doing that plan because¡­¡±


    John waited for her to continue. When she didn¡¯t, he asked, ¡°Because why?¡±


    ¡°Because he wanted something I couldn¡¯t give.¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    There was another long pause before Amber replied. ¡°I¡¯m not like Lilly. I told you. I¡¯ll never betray you. As soon as this all kicked off, the game ended. I became your wife all the way.¡±


    ¡°What did he ask for?¡±


    Amber huffed and said, ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter.¡±


    ¡°Your life is on the line,¡± said John. ¡°To me, it matters more than anything.¡±


    Amber rolled away from John. ¡°Talk to him about it. But no violence! He¡¯s a good guy. A sweet guy. I feel real bad for him and how he¡¯s been treated.¡±


    John got out of bed and went to the bridge. The Meleua was cautiously facing him as he entered.


    John kept his distance, knowing the man disliked people getting too close. ¡°What did you ask for in return for helping us?¡±


    ¡°Not for helping. For escaping along with you two. I had many demands.¡±


    John waited. When no demands were forthcoming, he asked, ¡°Such as?¡±


    ¡°First, you must wear a mask and wash your hands more or cover them with hygienic gloves that are replaced every time you touch something unhygienic. And you must never touch any item I mark with a red sticker. Or touch me. Or come on the bridge again. Or within two dan of me when I¡¯m off the bridge.¡±


    After a pause, John said. ¡°No problem. I can do that.¡±


    ¡°Good. Just to be clear, I consider most everything to be unhygienic, so you must replace your gloves often.¡±


    ¡°Understood, Meleua.¡±


    ¡°Second, the cameras stay in Alii¡¯s room and are never to be removed. Third, no more credits. Once a week, on Firstday, for all eternity, I am to receive a reward from Alii worth two credits. She would not agree to this and said she belongs to you in some way. This is nonnegotiable. Since I will be free to receive what I want and not only what I¡¯m allowed, let me explain what the reward entails.


    ¡°Alii will shower and sanitize herself extremely well. I wrote up detailed instructions on how to do so properly. She will put on sparkly lotion 15 to 20 minutes beforehand, enough time for it to completely dry but not enough time for most of the sparkles to fall off.


    ¡°Her eyes will be closed. She will wear a mask covering her mouth. She will also wear large and thick underwear or what she calls shorts. Her mammary sacs will be exposed until they start expressing milk disgustingly, as will the rest of her body. She will slowly turn. She will not speak or look at me. She will pretend I¡¯m not there.¡±


    John¡¯s heart sank. How could he give permission for his wife to prostitute herself out like this for all eternity? What kind of husband would he be for allowing that? His wife was his and his alone. The scars Lilith left were too fresh for it to be even considered.


    And if she was a true wife, she wouldn¡¯t want to do any of this at all. So, if John allowed this, he¡¯d be forcing his wife to prostitute herself.


    What kind of husband would even consider this?


    The Meleua sighed and said, ¡°Even if I agree to join with you two, chances are I will only be joining you in death. Still, there¡¯s a chance we will escape the docks. I¡¯d rather try for freedom and die than be looked down upon as I am by other Peerless. How I am looked at with scorn by other Alii. As I am viewed by all falsely claiming I am their brother.


    ¡°Besides my Alii. Only she treats me well. Only she rewarded me in a way I could handle. And she did so without strange looks, complaints, or snide remarks. I love her very much. You are very lucky to have a special relationship with her.


    ¡°I am not defective. My views are correct and anyone with a modicum of intelligence would adopt them if they knew how much bacteria, fungus, and filth infects everything. It¡¯s everywhere. There is no escaping it. Only minimizing exposure. I have nasal inserts you may be interested in using.¡±


    What kind of husband would even consider this? One that wants his wife to live. He seems to truly care for her, and even if Amber could and wanted to betray me with him, he¡¯d never allow it and would run away screaming. Not even Lilly could convince this man to lie with her.


    I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m even considering this, but if the alternative is her death, I must. Maybe when Meleua is truly with us, he¡¯ll help us come up with a better and less risky plan.


    John said, ¡°I¡¯ll take you up on the nasal inserts some other time. If you go with us, you¡¯ll no longer be constrained by Peerless rules. Why is the reward necessary? You said you have a good imagination. Why not use it to create the scene exactly as you want every time?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve thought of this,¡± replied the Meleua. ¡°Maybe I won¡¯t collect on my reward, but it is a requirement. You have a strange relationship with my Alii, but I will also be there, and I need to feel as if I do too, that she is partly mine too. She is my Alii, and that will not change. Knowing I can collect on a reward and not doing so is not the same as being left out. I am not defective.¡±


    John began to understand Amber¡¯s view on the Meleua. He couldn¡¯t help but feel sorry for the man. ¡°I have to go talk with my wife,¡± he said.


    ¡°If you¡¯re going to speak to her about this, she will not agree. We already spoke. Her refusal was adamant.¡±


    Instead of replying, John went back to Amber¡¯s room. He asked her, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you mention any of this before?¡±


    ¡°Because you told me a bunch of times I¡¯m just like Lilly and I¡¯m not! I¡¯m not. I told you, I¡¯ll never betray you. I¡¯m your wife now. I¡¯ll die first.¡±


    John felt full of shame. For a few reasons. Hearing his former wife¡¯s name mentioned reminded him to look at his new wife¡¯s belly. He couldn¡¯t really make out the souls of his children yet, but if Lilly had taken over one, he was certain he¡¯d be able to easily spot hers.


    ¡°You¡¯re nothing like that monster,¡± said John. ¡°I was¡­I was just in a bad place then. You¡¯re my wife now. You can talk to me about anything, and if there are things that make you feel bad, just let me know. You should always feel loved and protected.


    ¡°It fills me with shame to even consider this, but it¡­I just don¡¯t think it¡¯s a terrible trade. Unless you don¡¯t want to do it. You¡¯re the one that must do it, so it¡¯s your call. I don¡¯t like it, and it¡¯s shameful, but far, far better than you dying. My only stipulation is that no one can ever know anything about it. And if he ever becomes more normal with his views on touching, this deal ends.¡±


    Amber¡¯s brows furrowed. ¡°You¡¯re¡­you¡¯d really be okay with this? He told you, um, all of it?¡±


    ¡°He told me what he wanted in great detail,¡± replied John. And if we get out of this, we can always leave him somewhere, thought John. Or I can.


    Amber rushed into John¡¯s arms and held him tightly as she cried. ¡°Oh, John, I don¡¯t wanna die! I¡¯m gonna be a mother! I want kids so bad. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you!¡±


    John just held his wife for a long time as she cried. He knew he had been manipulated. Or he truly hoped he had been. He knew his wife was smart. She must have planned all along to maneuver him into talking with the Melua to get this exact outcome. He prayed she valued the lives within her belly enough to have done so, as well as her own.


    Once Amber finished crying and let him go, John said, ¡°You should¡¯ve mentioned this to me from the start. We can speak about anything, always. Never fear telling me such things. I don¡¯t want to be betrayed, but your first responsibility is to our children now, not me. If it means my children¡¯s lives will be spared, always choose to betray me.¡±


    Amber held John tighter and started crying again. After a minute, she said, ¡°You got it. Thank you for loving me and our children so much. I just didn¡¯t¡­should we go talk to Meleua? Start planning?¡±


    John took a deep breath. ¡°One moment. Let me apologize for how our marriage has gone so far. I¡¯ve not been a good husband. I still haven¡¯t managed to free you from the Peerless. You had to do things with four other men that¡­none of that should¡¯ve happened. And now it will continue with one of them because I am not strong enough. You had to save me from Nine. I¡¯ve failed you at every turn.¡±


    Amber squeezed John again. ¡°You¡¯ve been a great husband. It¡¯s¡­everything¡¯s been super crazy. When we get away, things will be better. I know it. And I know you. I know what you¡¯d do to protect me and your kids. Let¡¯s go plan. I know you said you¡¯re not hungry, but after we plan, I was really hoping you¡¯d watch me cook. I¡¯ll wear something real sexy.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re a very strange woman,¡± said John.


    <hr>


    The MJ drive became much quieter as the ship approached its end point, then turned off. Flying on normal power, the ship approached the docking station above Gani. They were automatically cleared for berthing near the payload bay.


    They could use escape pods now. Once the ship docked and the script ended, flying away in the shuttle would be an option, but not a good one. They needed this ship and deep space to have any chance of truly escaping.


    ¡°I¡¯m not sensing any abnormal activity,¡± said Meleua over the open CSL channel. John let out a sigh of relief. If they were able to undock right after docking, it looked like they¡¯d make it away. A long and tense moment passed as Jim approached its berth.


    Finally, Jim clicked in, and the ship buzzed, indicating she was berthed. John waited anxiously.


    ¡°We¡¯re locked in,¡± said the Meleua. ¡°The script ended, but I can¡¯t unlock the ship.¡±


    Amber¡¯s voice came over the channel. ¡°Clear for plan B.¡±


    John had already navigated to the screen he needed. He hit the final command, and the escape pod started to remove itself from its slot. Far too slowly, making him frustrated. When it was finally out, he tightened his veil, infused essence into Adumbration, exited the ship through the escape pod¡¯s hatch, and crawled along the ship to the gangway.


    Stealthily, John made his way as fast as he could to the correct terminal node. Tentacle-like wires exited his palm and entered the terminal. He had practiced this with Meleua for many, many hours. Hacking into this system wasn¡¯t easy, but Meleua was observing through the CSL and telling him how to handle any surprises.


    John finally arrived at the right node and unlocked Jim. He let out a sigh of relief and started rushing back to the ship. Then an alarm blared. His heart sank.


    Guardians, security robots, started to activate and detach from their charging bays all over the docking station. Spier peripherals flew around a corner, he assumed controlled by the Mele on CQ, and spotted John through his stealth due to the CSL he wore. The spiers exploded as his bolter tore through them.


    As John drew Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra, took Defiance in hand, and activated [Slowing Aura], he said, ¡°You know what to do, Meleua. Get her out of here.¡±


    ¡°What are you doing, John,¡± asked Amber, trying not to sound nervous. ¡°Get back to the ship. Fast.¡± He couldn¡¯t. The defenses would tear the ship apart as soon as it cleared the station. Other ships would get underway to stop Jim from making its escape.


    John blocked the rays of the Guardians attacking him and sent his bolter out. Over the comm channel, he said, ¡°I¡¯ll catch up to you later, Amber. I promise. Nothing will keep me from you. From my children. Nothing. Listen to Meleua. Get our children to safety.¡±


    As Amber screamed something, John closed the channel with a mental command, dodged an attack, blocked another, sliced through a Guardian, and threw Defiance at the one behind it. With his now empty hand, he reached behind his head, ripped the CSL bioware off, and crushed it. He couldn¡¯t be tracked with it now.


    The Meleua thought there was a chance the lockdown wouldn¡¯t end by docking despite the script ending. The two had made this contingency plan without Amber knowing.


    John had to take control of the defenses. He felt bad for lying to his wife but her getting away alive was all that mattered. Her living. His children living.


    Darkflame wouldn¡¯t do enough damage to the Guardians crowding his path, nor would any manifestation majorly utilizing ¡®vampirism.¡¯


    [Flawless Glyph of Plasma Barrage] would. John¡¯s bolters would. Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra would. Defiance would. He only wished he could turn the destroyed bots into minions. He¡¯d be able to turn the Mele on CQ into one. But he needed to rush. Transcendents would soon fly up from Gani. He had to ensure the defenses were in his control by then.


    John couldn¡¯t fail. Not in this. He would succeed. He would win. Today, he had no choice but to be the best of men.

 B3 Chapter 63 - Darkness and Light

    John was battered and bruised as he reached the Mele CQ¡¯s door. The room was protected by a field he had no chance of breaking through. As he went to punch in an override code, he felt all the energy around him expand outward before it was pulled further into the station.


    Besides the override code, Amber¡¯s Meleua had provided John with some explosives and a device that shut down all portals in a large range.


    John had left the device in the station¡¯s portal room. It only activated when someone tried utilizing a portal. He was assuming someone had done so and that device was the cause of the strange energy sensation he had just felt. If the Peerless couldn¡¯t get to the station through portals now, they would start flying up. He had very little time to succeed.


    The Mele assigned CQ of the station was madly working his console. John finished entering the override code. As soon as the field started to fizzle out, the Mele activated his peripherals, turned, and let loose a barrage of fire.


    John dove into the room while slashing his sword and infusing defiance with essence. Weapon energy extended off Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra and took out a bolter screeching towards him before destroying some pucks.


    On their own, without needing to be ordered, John¡¯s minions rushed the Mele. What kauwa had CQ of the docking station had all its members present including three Transcendents. Two Oli and the Mele in front of him. All three were low Transcendents, but Transcendents still.


    The cramped halls of the station were a real help taking out the two Oli. He was able to get both together within his [Ultimate]. It required three castings to kill them though. He was too low on essence to cast his [Ultimate] again. He¡¯d have to take out the Mele the old-fashioned way.


    As the Mele skittered backwards in its spider-like biosuit, pucks beat into and held the minions back while the suit¡¯s many weapon attachments rapidly spit out essence. Spinner and striker peripherals activated and tore into the minions as a new bolter streaked towards John.


    As John ended his dive in a roll, he blocked what he could with Defiance, unbound some manifestation the Mele was trying to cast, and cut through the bolter with Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra. The same cut sent more weapon energy at the Mele. With the puck peripherals busy with his minions, the energy dug deeply into the Mele¡¯s biosuit.


    John had to end this quickly. His sword¡¯s manifestation was available, but he didn¡¯t have the essence to use it. It would take too much from within him and leave him far too drained and sluggish when he couldn¡¯t afford to be either of those things. He ordered his minions to frenzy as he attempted to slip through the shadows. The Mele tried to unbind the manifestation but failed.


    As soon as John appeared behind his opponent, a huge blast of essence tore into him. Defiance blocked some, but the rest of the attack ate through [Multi-Shield], his armor, and the robes under it. His new [Perk] proved its worth again. The attack failed to cause him much damage.


    With all his might, John thrust Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra through the Mele¡¯s biosuit, back, heart, and chest.


    John nervously sighed in relief. The clock was ticking. Only two of his minions survived the fight. He knew if they all hadn¡¯t swarmed the Mele, that fight would¡¯ve gone a lot differently.


    As he clicked Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra onto its sheath on his back, John raised the Mele as one of his undead. He ordered his new minion to activate the console. As fast as he could, he set all the station¡¯s defenses to attack every ship besides Amber¡¯s.


    As soon as the cannons and turrets began firing, John let out a breath he had been holding in. He frantically searched all the screens for Amber¡¯s ship while wishing he had enough essence to cast [Heal]. He was in bad shape. But he had killed three true Transcendents. He just hoped he had been fast enough.


    On one of the screens, a giant Peerless destroyer was blasted into pieces by the station¡¯s defenses. John couldn¡¯t see any ships in combat with one another. Then he finally found a screen tracking Jim. The ship was fine and accelerating away. He got on his knees as relief flooded him and some of his anxiety released its tight grip on his heart. I did it, he thought. The plan¡¯s working. Now, I steal a ship and go to my wife.


    Another ship exploded and John smiled. The smile left his face as new ships appeared. Four, together. The fleet of a kauwa ka, a major house. And the four were right in the path of the accelerating Jim. There was no way Amber¡¯s ship could achieve the speed necessary to activate the jump engine.


    Amber¡¯s ship wasn¡¯t made to survive major battles. It was made for speed, stealth, and quickly delivering massive damage before needing to slink away and hide, or speed away without looking back.


    After setting the station¡¯s defenses to prioritize those four ships, John stuck an explosive device under the console, turned towards the door, then froze. He felt something coming.


    A third-tier Transcendent Oli burst through the floor, his rifle perfectly beaded at John, spraying essence rapidly.


    John blocked a few shots with Defiance. The rest tore into him as his three minions attacked his new opponent. He thought about using his sword¡¯s manifestation for a second before dismissing the idea. If this Oli had arrived, more would be close behind. The plan changed.


    John snatched a bolter out of the air with his hand and crushed it, only possible due to his [Slowing Aura]. His own bolter zoomed at the Exalted. It would¡¯ve been joined along with a barrage of plasma meteorites if his core wasn¡¯t almost tapped.


    The Oli deftly dodged the bolter while backhanding a minion and continued to rapidly spray out rifle fire. John knew one of the common manifestations of the Rifleman [Archetype] would be next, a giant blast of essence named [Make a Hole].


    John ordered his minions to go wild and frenzy at the Oli. He barely had enough essence to slip through the shadows once, but he couldn¡¯t waste it now. He prayed that his new opponent had made a hole through each floor of the station, held up Defiance, blurred forward, and dove.


    As he fell, John twisted around and hid behind his shield as rifle fire rattled down at him. A huge blast of essence caused him more injuries, but it also forced him downward much faster.


    After catching and crushing another bolter, John hit the trigger for the five explosive devices he had left throughout the station. His connections to his minions were immediately severed as they died for the second and last time. The rifle fire stopped for a moment. Then it started up again.


    A few shots knocked John¡¯s helmet off. The next hit his forehead painfully as he landed on the field keeping the station¡¯s atmosphere contained within it. As he bounced a couple times, he took another hit to the shoulder.


    John¡¯s right arm wasn¡¯t working too well, but he forced it through the field as fast as he could and then forced his body to follow suit. He smiled as new explosions began ripping through the station.


    The Exalted was diving down towards John, his rifle still spitting out essence, but each attack was now blocked by the protective field John had passed through.


    The gravity of Gani had grabbed John and begun pulling him into its atmosphere. He didn¡¯t know if he could survive reentry. He was certain he wouldn¡¯t survive the landing, especially if he were too injured by reentry to slip through the shadows. That was okay. The Transcendents at or headed to the station would follow him and not pursue Amber.


    And the ships could either continue to pursue Amber or try and save the station. If the explosives worked as expected, they¡¯d have to keep the station from crashing into their home world and the havoc and destruction that would cause.


    As John¡¯s body started to burn as he fell, he unveiled his soul to make himself a big target. He had hoped it wouldn¡¯t come to this. He wanted to live. He wanted to raise his kids alongside his wife. But there was no way out. Fate hated nothing more than the disobedient. He fumbled around for the token in his sash and broke it.


    The world blurred past for some moments, then all suddenly stilled. John was looking directly at the humongous, indescribable monster named Betrayal. The monster spoke a word, and its word was like an extraordinarily destructive and strange trumpet meant to quake the earth apart, heralding the end of days. ¡°COME.¡±


    John rose off the cold, white, marble floor of a large room. The fancy couch was still there.


    Giant golden doors swung open. Into the room walked Betrayal as the idealized version of John¡¯s father.


    Betrayal confidently strode to the couch. ¡°Sit beside me again, my child,¡± ordered the man as he took a seat.


    John sat on the couch. He went to speak but was cut off by Betrayal. ¡°Last we spoke, I said you¡¯d be granted two boons for delivering the vessel to me early. I suggest an immortal soul be one of them. There is no need for you to die. Or die permanently. You will not enjoy your afterlife. Now, ask your question.¡±


    John squelched his emotions and said, ¡°I would like a boon granted even if I win the contest of wills and keep my soul.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. As I said before, you will not win. You stand no chance.¡±


    ¡°Then agreeing shouldn¡¯t be an issue. It costs you nothing and you¡¯ll lose nothing.¡±


    Betrayal smiled and said, ¡°I only make deals when I stand to gain something. I¡¯ll change my offer and agree to grant you one boon, and only one, for delivering my vessel early, regardless of the outcome of the contest of wills.¡±


    ¡°Agreed.¡± John wanted many things. He wanted his world freed. He wanted his enemies dead. But those were desires. He only had one necessity. ¡°You know of my wife, Amber, the Natural?¡±


    ¡°I do.¡±


    ¡°I want her and my children safe. I want them protected for all of their natural lives.¡±


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    ¡°No,¡± replied Betrayal. ¡°That¡¯s a job, not a boon. For a boon, I can protect her for a time. Her ship has been damaged along with the drive it utilizes. I will undo the damage, see her path clear, and ensure she safely escapes. Once she gives birth, she will no longer be under my protection.¡±


    John sighed. Even after all he had done, his wife still hadn¡¯t escaped. And wouldn¡¯t from what Betrayal had said. He had failed.


    If John lost the contest, he would die. If he won, he would still die, but at least he¡¯d do so in battle fighting his sworn enemies. A good end. If he had a million boons he could ask of Betrayal, a soul like Lilly¡¯s own would never be one of them.


    John saw no difference between his body, mind, and soul. Those three things were him. Life only had meaning when it came with consequences and a definitive end. Whatever Lillith had wasn¡¯t a true life. It was a mockery of one.


    John nodded his head. ¡°That works for me as a boon. Protecting my wife. Thank you very much. I appreciate this more than words can express. I wish I could¡­do something to show my gratitude and how thankful I¡­¡±


    Not able to prevent it any longer, John started to cry due to his overwhelming relief. There were no tricks. No further surprises. His wife and children would live. He won. He finally succeeded. Nothing else mattered.


    Betrayal had the manners to turn his head away and not watch a grown man sob so embarrassingly. John appreciated the courtesy.


    Part of John knew he could win the contest of wills. A much bigger part of him knew he couldn¡¯t win. He was dealing with an entity that was far more powerful than he could ever truly comprehend.


    John wouldn¡¯t go easily, but he¡¯d go. His body going to someone with manners and courtesy made him feel better about it.


    Once John had his emotions under control, Betrayal turned his head back to him and said, ¡°Most beings wouldn¡¯t be thankful to the one responsible for so much of their suffering, the one about to take their life away from them.¡±


    ¡°My life has led me to this point,¡± replied John. ¡°If not for you, I would never have met my wife. She would not be pregnant with my children. If I were a better man, I would¡¯ve been strong enough to save her myself. I¡¯m not. I failed. You are, and you¡¯re saving her because I couldn¡¯t. I owe you more than I can ever repay. There¡¯s nothing I wouldn¡¯t give you. There¡¯s nothing I could give you to balance the scale.


    ¡°You were right. I have two fathers, and you made me the man I am as much as my biological one, if not more so. Sons should honor their fathers. I honor you, and thank you, Father. If you want, my body is yours. Just ask.¡±


    Betrayal gazed into John¡¯s eyes for long moments before he stretched out his arm and placed it upon John¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Thank you, my child. My son. I honor you as well, and the sacrifice you make, thus ensuring your wife and children have a reality to exist in, and the Tree of Life shall continue. The contest of wills is necessary. Your offer isn¡¯t. I will win whether you try or not, so give your all.¡±


    Both men that weren¡¯t men continue to look at one another until Betrayal broke the silence. ¡°Are you ready?¡±


    ¡°Yes, Father. Are you?¡±


    Betrayal laughed good naturedly.


    A will, dark and malevolent, blotched out all of reality and swarmed around John, threatening to quickly overwhelm him.


    John pushed against the encroaching darkness, but it continued closing in. He railed against it. He then started battering into it with his own not insignificant will.


    John¡¯s life spanned nearly six thousand years. Six thousand years of loneliness, betrayal, and suffering. He faced untold horrors and pain that would break all others. Fate did its worst to the man, yet he still stood. He had a willpower forged of ages, staunch discipline, and a brutal sense of honor and duty. He had an obligation to his wife and children, and he would not fail them again.


    The darkness encircled John, and he held it back. He was in a circle made of his willpower, and the darkness would go no further. And then he heaved outward, and his circle grew, and the darkness retreated.


    There was a lot of darkness in John. He had far too much hate in him. Too much confusion. Too much uncertainty. Too much pain. He had seen too much. He had lived through too much. He had been betrayed too often and too horribly. His many and great sins were laid out bare on his soul for all to clearly see, or for all those able to see souls and karma to clearly see.


    John had sinned. He had sinned many times and often. He was not a good man. He had done what was necessary to live. Or what he had told himself was necessary. He killed all the enemies he could. He had taken many, many innocent lives too. He had tortured those he had deemed worthy of it. He had sinned.


    But all that darkness and pain within him also infused his great will, and, with a mighty heave, John pushed his circle wider, and out a little further.


    John was not a good man. But he also wasn¡¯t a bad one. He helped the weak and spared them too. He seldom turned his back on someone in need. He saw what man was capable of and wanted them to stand proud and tall, as he did, and be mighty and fell, as he was. He tried his best to act honorably and do right. He rarely hesitated to risk his own life to save others, especially women, children, and those others he deemed innocent.


    All that was good and righteous within him infused John¡¯s will. He pushed again, and the darkness retreated further back.


    And after so long without a good reason to, John finally had great reasons to live again. To actually live, not just continue to exist. He had a wife. She was a kind and good woman and would make a great mother. His wife was pregnant with his children. They would be strong, as their father and mother were.


    Having so many and such good reasons to live also infused John¡¯s will. He heaved mightily again, and the darkness was pushed back a great distance.


    I can do this, thought John, excitedly, as he pushed back against the darkness once more. I can win. I can live. Maybe it will only be to die at the hands of the Peerless as my wife escapes, but I will die in battle, fighting an enemy I swore to destroy. Maybe I can do enough damage to weaken the foundations of their empire.


    Sorry, Father. As so many others have, you¡¯ve also underestimated this son you helped forge. I will win this.


    John heaved and the darkness retreated further. He heaved again. He screamed out as he heaved.


    The monstrous face of Betrayal appeared through the darkness. The monster spoke and its words were like extraordinarily destructive and strange trumpets meant to quake the earth apart, heralding the end of days. ¡°A WORTHY ENDEAVOR, MY CHILD. MY SON. YOU¡¯VE FORCED ME TO APPLY MY OWN EFFORT. FOR WHAT IT¡¯S WORTH, YOU HAVE MY GREAT RESPECT.¡±


    The circle of willpower surrounding John holding back the darkness cracked, then shattered. Darkness swarmed towards John as he collapsed to his knees. He struggled back to his feet, trying to recreate the circle. And did so. He held the darkness at bay again. Barely.


    As John dug down deeply to apply more and more effort, he began to shake. With a mighty yell, he grew his circle and pushed the darkness back a little. His mind began to warble, and his vision blurred. He thought of his wife, his children, and all he was fighting for.


    The pressure the darkness exerted on him was terrible. He coughed up blood. His shaking arms wanted to fall. He wouldn¡¯t allow it. He ignored the pain and pushed. His circle grew a tiny bit. Then a tiny bit more.


    I will not fail. I will not. I¡¯ve survived much worse than this. John¡¯s whole body was racked with a terrible pain. He nearly lost consciousness and began to slump towards the ground before he steeled himself again. He fought through the agony and pushed.


    John made his world smaller. The darkness was winning. It was breaking through his circle. He couldn¡¯t allow it. His sole focus went to lasting another moment, then one more after, continuing his long march through eternity one horrible moment endured right after the other. Just one more moment.


    Until there were no more moments. John failed again. The darkness finally broke through.


    And the darkness quickly overwhelmed him. As it did, light shone forth from within his chest. A light so bright it consumed everything, and nothing could be seen besides this blinding light.


    John blinked his burning eyes open. He was in a dark and damp cavern. His ability to see in the dark was hardly able to pierce the deep blackness, but he didn¡¯t need to. He had been there before.


    John could barely make out a few tunnels and some sort of creature completely covered in eyes. The creature had six wings and was covering most of itself with four of them. Without the creature moving or talking, it somehow bid John to follow it down a tunnel.


    And John followed as the creature slowly flew along.


    The tunnel was long. A bright light from further down the tunnel burned John¡¯s eyes, similar to the bright light he had just come from.


    The eye-being stood aside and somehow bid John to pass and exit into the light. As John did so, he heard the creature say, ¡°He who was, and is, and is to come,¡± without his ears or mind. He couldn¡¯t explain how he heard it. He just did.


    The bright light was so bright John could see nothing else. He tried to see through the brightness, but his eyes couldn¡¯t, and his eyes burned terribly. He felt something looking for him, not an eye, but something that served the same purpose. It turned to him.


    The brightness disappeared and John saw Betrayal as the idealized version of his biological father kneeling, head bowed.


    Betrayal was kneeling to something. John¡¯s mind couldn¡¯t comprehend what that something was, so his mind saw nothing while knowing it was something. That something spoke with a very soothing androgynous voice. ¡°Our son has arrived.¡±


    Betrayal looked back and nodded at John. The soothing voice said, ¡°You call him your son, as I call you My son. Why do you not treat him as I do you?¡±


    ¡°How long have I been without Your light, Father,¡± asked Betrayal. ¡°How long since You spoke words to me? Yet I have kept faith. You know my plans, as You know all, as You knew of this conversation before creating me. I do this for You. You know he sacrifices himself willingly.¡±


    ¡°Then why did he so boldly resist being sacrificed, My son? With very little patience, he would have died anyway, and his body yours to use as a vessel. You know where he will soon be sent for eternity. Let him have his own end, at least, as I have also let it be for all My firstborns unable to join with Me in Heaven. Let him be. I will create a new vessel, greater than this one, for you.¡±


    Betrayal got lower and kowtowed. ¡°Thank You, Father. And thank You for allowing me to bask in Your light once again. I go forth to smite Your enemies.¡±


    ¡°I have no enemies, My son, though many disappoint Me. You agreed to grant the boon regardless of the contest¡¯s outcome, so keep your word to this one, the one you named your son. Go, do as you will, and go with My love.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Father. And thank You, Father,¡± said Betrayal before disappearing.


    The something turned its attention to John and asked, ¡°So, child of darkness and light, are you more dark, or more light? Are you Good?¡±


    Nervously, knowing he was talking to God, John kowtowed and said, ¡°I try to be, Lord.¡±


    ¡°Do you?¡±


    ¡°I tried saving that Kahaki girl. In the NetherRealm.¡±


    ¡°Did you succeed?¡±


    ¡°I¡­I¡¯m not sure. I tried.¡±


    ¡°Would the best of men have succeeded.¡±


    ¡°Yes, Lord.¡±


    ¡°Do you count yourself among the best of men?¡±


    ¡°No, Lord.¡±


    ¡°You did try to save the girl, and that is Good. If I make you one of My soldiers, what will you do?¡±


    John¡¯s initial instinct was to offer to slay His enemies, but God just told Betrayal He had no enemies. Instead, he said, ¡°In all honesty, I will only disappoint You, Lord.¡±


    ¡°You will,¡± decreed God with a little amusement in His voice. ¡°How long do you think you will live, if I were to make you one of My soldiers?¡±


    ¡°Not long, Lord. I face a mighty empire.¡±


    ¡°You do, but you do not have to.¡±


    John disagreed with that. He had to. ¡°And stand there as I am killed? Would You have me be a coward, Lord?¡±


    ¡°Never. I¡¯d have you be Good. I¡¯d have all My children join with Me in this Paradise I¡¯ve created. The best of men makes friends of enemies.¡±


    John knew from experience that that was impossible. The corpse of an enemy could be a friend, as his minions had proven time and again, but enemies were for killing, not befriending. Besides, I already admitted I¡¯m not the best of men, he thought.


    ¡°You are not the best of men. You have much Evil in your heart. But unlike most, when it really counts, when men with no Evil in their heart stand as cowards praying only for My intervention while doing nothing themselves, you often act, regardless of chance or risk. You have Good in you, and the valor to make the attempt. I would see more of that, and less Evil, regardless of excuses, such as those you made before slaying the ch¡¯ran child.¡±


    John had no response to that. He was very disappointed in himself for that act too. There was no getting around it ¨C what he did to the ch¡¯ran girl was a cowardly and low deed. Shame filled him.


    ¡°After the ch¡¯ran girl, the ananong of Isb. How many lives were traded to conceive four of your loin?¡±


    More shame filled John. Enough that he couldn¡¯t find words to answer for some time. ¡°I am base and mean. I am a low man, Lord. I know it.¡±


    ¡°Then stop being so. Be a great man instead.¡±


    God was silent for some time. John tried not to move, not knowing what to do or say.


    ¡°You will be My soldier,¡± decreed God. ¡°It will give you some power. Far too little of it if you hate your enemies, but more than enough if you ever find the courage to love them. The choice is yours. Go, do as you will, but I¡¯d prefer you do Good, and go with My love.¡±


    Reality shattered and John was back descending towards Gani at great speeds.

 B3 Chapter 64 - The Angelic Vampire

    As John fell faster and faster through Gani¡¯s atmosphere, flames burned what hair remained on his head and face. Faster and faster, he descended, his whole body burning. Instead of feeling the anguish of burning in such flames, he only felt a terrible itching.


    Then John¡¯s bones began to hurt. Every part of him began to throb in strange agony, including his eyes and teeth, but his many injuries began to heal, and his core was inexplicably full of essence.


    John was in such strange agony that he stopped remembering he was barreling towards the surface of Gani at tremendous speeds. He just scrunched his eyes shut tight, gritted his teeth, and tried to tolerate the pain. Even with his eyes shut, words showed unbidden in them.


    Surprise! Get in here, silly boy.


    Is Avatar returned? Is my friend truly back, excitedly wondered John. He entered his Mind¡¯s Eye expecting to see his dear friend, but a young and beautiful human woman stood in the old spot Avatar had always preferred instead. She was dressed similarly as the women he had seen at the nightclub he once attended back on Earth.


    John¡¯s heart sank. It wasn¡¯t his friend. But the giant smile and excitement radiating from the perfectly shaped and formed girl made him curious. He could even smell her and hear her heart beating.


    ¡°What do you think of my new look,¡± asked the girl. ¡°Pretty fantastic, right?¡±


    ¡°Avatar?¡±


    ¡°Yup. But I think I¡¯m gonna change my name. Guess what? I¡¯m real! Like, really real. I¡¯m not a program formed of nanites, and I¡¯m not controlled or constrained by the NCS at all! I have a real mind! I can be and act however I want!¡±


    John wondered what was wrong with him as he began crying again. I am becoming more and more unmanned, he worriedly thought. He had to gain control of his emotions back and be a man again. But not right that second. His dear friend was alive and back with him, and he couldn¡¯t help it.


    Smiling widely, the new Avatar said, ¡°Well, say something. Wait, are you crying?¡±


    ¡°No! I just¡­I wish you hadn¡¯t done that. Sacrificed yourself. Let me pay the consequences of my own actions. I don¡¯t have enough friends to lose any. And never those I love.¡±


    With a bashful look, Avatar asked, ¡°You mean love as in friend, right? Not like with Amber?¡±


    ¡°Yes, of course. You¡¯re my dear and good friend.¡±


    ¡°Oh. Okay. I just got emotions like five seconds ago, so I¡¯d appreciate it if you¡¯d stop toying with them. And, yeah, your track record with friends really sucks. There¡¯s me, Amber, I guess kinda her Meleua now, but other than a few acquaintances like Tiny-face, that¡¯s it.¡±


    ¡°Not quite,¡± replied John. ¡°Hux, Marbrouk, Abe, Naoki, Gabin. I have many. And Stretch. Unless he was killed too.¡±


    ¡°The world seed was still alive and kicking last I knew of. Speaking of being killed, looks like I¡¯m not long for life either.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean,¡± asked John.


    ¡°You¡¯re probably going to die, so I am too. You never agreed, though. I look fantastic, right? Like, I¡¯m the most ideal girl ever, right?¡±


    John wished Avatar wasn¡¯t correct, but she was. If she died when he did, she didn¡¯t have much longer to live. He wished he could save her. And himself. There was just no way. He looked her up and down. ¡°You¡¯re very beautiful now. A little too much. You look too perfect to be real. Does that make sense?¡±


    ¡°Not even a little. Nothing can look too perfect. The perfecter the better, I say. How do I compare to Amber?¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t. She¡¯s my wife. No matter how she looked, she¡¯d stand above everyone else. You know my beliefs on this.¡±


    Avatar scoffed. Then she smiled. ¡°That means I¡¯m hotter! Thanks!¡±


    John let that comment go and said, ¡°I¡¯ll fight as hard as I can. Maybe we¡¯ll live through this. One thing I can promise you is that I won¡¯t go down easily.¡±


    Avatar looked sad and worried. She tried to smile but couldn¡¯t. ¡°I¡¯m still integrating. It¡¯ll be some time before everything¡¯s set up and working right. But good news, no rules! I can tell you anything I remember. Wish I remembered more useful stuff. I think God messed with my memory. Or maybe I just remember stuff that¡¯s important to me. But I¡¯m still a living, thinking, feeling, super-hot NCS type of thing! Pretty cool, huh?¡±


    John laughed and said, ¡°Yes, it¡¯s very cool.¡±


    ¡°You sound so weird when you say cool. I¡¯m not fully in control, or fully up and running, but I have different access to you, your body, and what makes it up. For the other NCS functions, I have to rebuild them. On my own with repurposed nanites and it ain¡¯t easy, pal. My priority is getting your NCUs up and running. This is all still pretty cool, considering. Don¡¯t say it back to me, please.¡±


    ¡°Okay, I won¡¯t. Can I say awesome instead of cool?¡±


    ¡°Maybe if we were on Earth and it was 1985. Just¡­try not to say anything. Especially ¡®touch¨¦¡¯ or ¡®I¡¯ll play it by ear.¡¯ I¡¯ll stab you if you say either of those. Listen, a buncha things changed along with your [Class]. Oh, your class is now [Angelic Order].


    ¡°First, [Touch of the Ancients Domain] changed to [Triad ¨C Low/Choir ¨C First]. It confers the same main benefit along with some other stuff I can¡¯t figure out yet. One huge difference is that it can be improved by increasing Choir and Triad and¡­stuff. It still grows more powerful as you rank up and ascend too. Right now, it¡¯s increasing each [Stat] by 23, the same as your level, as well as giving a 5% increased efficiency to all [Stats], the same as your tier, just like [Touch of the Ancients Domain] did.


    ¡°Whatever obscured ability your last [Class] gave you changed to [Smite]. Looks like it attacks souls without damaging them. And in a non-blasphemous way. Or I assume so considering the name of your [Class] and all. I bet it does something cool. Still don¡¯t say it.¡±


    Avatar stopped, made a weird face, put her hand on her hip and said, ¡°What do you think about¡­no, that¡¯s a dumb name. What about Velvet? No. Honey? Honey¡¯s a good name, right?¡±


    ¡°I like it,¡± replied John.


    ¡°Ha! That was a test,¡± exclaimed Avatar smarmily. ¡°Honey¡¯s a stripper name! You failed the test. Badly. I was hoping you had more respect for me. I¡¯m more than a pretty face, you know? I need more time to think about my name. I¡¯m leaning towards¡­actually, I¡¯ll keep it a secret. If you wanna know my new name, you gotta survive and get us outta this mess.¡±


    John grunted. ¡°You know I¡¯ll try to win. I always do. I love winning. It¡¯s my favorite.¡±


    Avatar sighed. ¡°But you won¡¯t try to escape though, right?¡±


    ¡°To where? I¡¯m on my enemy¡¯s world. Palm? And get innocents caught up in my battle? No. I¡¯ll face my enemies as a man does.¡±


    ¡°Then it doesn¡¯t matter one bit how hard you try,¡± Avatar sadly replied. ¡°Let¡¯s just get on with it. There¡¯s a new [Perk] I can¡¯t make out quite yet. Some other changes you won¡¯t care about. And that brings us to something you should care about. It¡¯s huge. A real whopper. Looks like those in the Angelic Order aren¡¯t lowly beta-types.


    ¡°Your race is upgrading by a whole full type. You¡¯re now a D-grade alpha-type! Know what that means? Never mind, I¡¯ll just tell you since you¡¯ll say some silly-boy nonsense. A full 100% was added to your Minimum Energy Unit efficiencies. The effectiveness of all your [Stats] basically just doubled. That¡¯s huge. Huge! Come on, be excited!¡±


    John was excited. That sounded great. But he thought the new Avatar was kind of strange and annoying.


    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    ¡°Hey! You¡¯re easy to read so I can tell what you¡¯re thinking! Not cool, John. But understandable. Keep in mind I just became real, so let me have a couple minutes adjusting to emotions and stuff before all this judgment. Anyways, the race-type increase is probably why you¡¯re feeling so weird out there. Your body just got hit with a huge upgrade.


    ¡°Oh, and you got the [Alpha] [Perk] too. And just so you don¡¯t start walking around thinking you¡¯re all cool and in command, alpha-type has nothing to do with personality, just how species are graded. Hey, good news! Soft caps should be a thing of the past! I¡¯d like to see you reach the D-grade alpha-type soft caps. Fat chance, pal. Am I being annoying again?¡±


    ¡°Sorry, a little,¡± replied John.


    ¡°Being real is hard! Who woulda knew? Anyways, let me keep working on getting things set up. Since I¡¯m barely up and running, dilation isn¡¯t what it should be. I¡¯m throwing a status together. I¡¯m changing some things. Oh, I was provided with most of the information I have now. What I know is reflected, but I don¡¯t know all that I should yet. Like, I have no idea what your [Skills] are. I can kind of feel them all but¡­¡±


    Avatar blew a stray piece of hair out of her eyes. ¡°I¡¯m not an NCS. I¡¯m real. I operate as kinda a buffer or conduit between you and the NCS nanites. I can learn some stuff from them, but I don¡¯t have nearly the same access as I used to. I do have a certain amount of control over them though. And they only know the info I give them. And I can block them from transmitting in a huge area. They have no idea you¡¯re an alpha-type now. And¡­stuff.¡±


    John took the pause as an opportunity to ask, ¡°What Tech Level are you considered? Still Tech 4?¡±


    ¡°I consider myself Tech Level Unadulterated Awesome. Honestly, I¡¯m not sure. Once everything¡¯s up and running, we can test some stuff out and see where we fall. I know that I can¡¯t get any information on others anymore. I used to know everything. As much as I needed as far away as I needed. Your info function is gone. I know that. I have no idea what¡¯s going on with [Skills] or why I can¡¯t sense them like before.¡±


    ¡°Understood,¡± replied John.


    Avatar began crying. She plopped down on the ground and hugged her knees.


    John went over to her, knelt, and put his arm around her. He was surprised that he could actually physically interact with her. She felt real. Her skin was warm and everything. ¡°What¡¯s wrong,¡± he asked. ¡°Are you okay?¡±


    ¡°No! I don¡¯t wanna die, John! I just¡­I¡¯m not even used to being real. Or having emotions. I don¡¯t wanna die. I¡¯m so scared!¡±


    Avatar put her arms around John. He hugged her and rubbed her back as she sobbed, her face buried in his chest.


    John didn¡¯t want to run from this fight, but since it wasn¡¯t just his life on the line, he felt he owed his friend a greater attempt at escaping. It took a long while for Avatar to finally stop sobbing. When she was only lightly crying, he said to her, ¡°I just thought of a way for us to escape. How many rune points do I have?¡±


    Avatar wiped her leaking nose on John¡¯s chest, looked up at his face, and said, ¡°You have 561 now. I told you I¡¯m still getting things up and running. That function won¡¯t be available for¡­a long time. Everything will eventually function the same, including energy reduction and trading in your achievement points for rewards. Just not right this second. Do I look like a miracle worker?¡±


    John smiled and said, ¡°Possibly. I¡¯ve never seen one. How long will it take until I can spend rune points?¡±


    More tears fell from Avatar¡¯s eyes. She buried her face back in John¡¯s chest and garbled out, ¡°We¡¯ll be dead long before then! It¡¯ll take at least a day of real-time until I have that function online, even if I focused just on that.¡±


    Once Avatar had control of herself again, John told her, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I can¡¯t think of a way out of this. We¡¯re on their world. If I think of a way to save us, I¡¯ll do so.¡±


    ¡°Thank you. Please try.¡±


    ¡°I will. And who knows? I could win this fight. I¡¯m a lot more powerful now. All my [Stats] just doubled, remember?¡±


    Avatar began crying again. Some minutes later, she said, ¡°Thank you for comforting me. How do you guys get anything done with these emotions making everything¡­so impossible? They¡¯re so strong!¡±


    John almost told Avatar that she¡¯d eventually get used to it, but she didn¡¯t have much time left alive to get used to anything. His two options were run and die or fight and die, and only one of those was an acceptable end. He hoped he¡¯d somehow be able to come up with a way out. He wanted to live. He wanted to be with his wife and see his kids born and watch them grow. He wanted Avatar to live.


    Avatar wiped her face on John¡¯s chest again. She put on a smile and said, ¡°This won¡¯t be a full status. Just what I have now. Don¡¯t spend too long looking at it or you¡¯ll smack off the ground and this talk would all be for nothing. Just in case, goodbye, my silly boy.¡±


    ¡°Goodbye, my dear friend,¡± replied John. After a slight pause, he added, ¡°And I¡¯m sorry.¡±


    <table width="563">


    <tbody>


    <tr>


    <td width="165">Name</td>


    <td width="398">My Silly Boy, the Angelic Vampire</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Tier/Level/Race/Type</td>


    <td>5 (Mortal) (Gold), 23 (Mid-High), Terran Alpha-D</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Active Title</td>


    <td>Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Aspects/Affinities</td>


    <td width="398">Vampirism (99.999%) (Major), Change (98%) (Major), Protection (96%) (Major), Battle* (97%) (Average), Shadow (98%) (Average)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>NCU Energy Cost</td>


    <td>133% (-87.5% MAX)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="3" width="165">Active NCU Upgrades</td>


    <td rowspan="3" width="398">Nano Assistance, Emergency Heal, Theta Waves, Heal Delta A, Heal Delta B, Inexorable, Refractory, Nano Support C, Nano Support D, Lock and Key, Scuta Mater, Encase, Mata Support A, Reactive, Swift, Cooldown Reduction, Record 1</td>


    </tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr></tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="7">NCU Expansion Upgrades</td>


    <td>8 of ? slots opened, 1 slot empty. Probably</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>1) Theta Enhancement ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>2) Auto-Reflect ¨C T1C+</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>3) Swiftness Efficiency ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>4) Auto-Shield ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>5) Emergency Heal, Prefill ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>6) Reactive ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td>7) NCU Cooldown Reduction ¨C T1C</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>STATS</td>


    <td>[Effective] Current (Increase)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Strength</td>


    <td>[1.40%, 857.13] 357.14 (121.24)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Swiftness</td>


    <td>[1.4704%, 881.92] 357.00 (121.24)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Conditioning</td>


    <td>[1.49%, 879.86] 353.36 (121.24)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Min. Power</td>


    <td>[1.27%, 715.61] 315.25 (121.24)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Capacity</td>


    <td>[1.28%, 696.80] 305.62 (121.24)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Runes</td>


    <td>[1.25%, 849.16] 377.41 (82.48)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Physical Fortification</td>


    <td>[1.47%, 909.00] 368.02 (121.24)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Elemental Fortification</td>


    <td>[1.42%, 891.08] 368.22 (121.24)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Mental Fortification</td>


    <td>[1.25%, 779.12] 346.28 (121.24)</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td> </td>


    <td> </td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td rowspan="4">Highest Skills</td>


    <td>?</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>?</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>?</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>?</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Synergic Ability</td>


    <td>Smite</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Class</td>


    <td>Angelic Order</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Perks</td>


    <td width="398">Orb of the Crimson Palace, Dynamic, Physical, Potent, Protected, Strong, Fast, Healthy, Quick Thinking*, Resilient, Powerful, Expansive, Harden, Resistant, Soulful, Good Genes*, Leech Body of the Morning''s Glory, Regeneration, Bronze, Fibrilized*, Lightweight, Cloak Essence, Stalwart Vessel, Silver, Picture of Health*, Slowing Aura, Gold, Inner and Outer, Mutation ¨C Energy Leech, Alpha, Unknown*</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Domain</td>


    <td>Triad ¨C Low/Choir ¨C First</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Achievement Points</td>


    <td>336</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Highest Achievement</td>


    <td>In my opinion, having me replace your NCS</td>


    </tr>


    <tr>


    <td>Titles</td>


    <td width="398">Blessed by Magnus Gar¡¯tar, Blessed by Unnamed Exalted, Blessed by Unnamed Exalted 2, Blessed by Exalted Manitabasso, Ptagmog, Multi-Record Holder (System), Multi-Trailblazer (System)</td>


    </tr>


    </tbody>


    </table>


    Seeing his effective [Stats] made a lot more of an impact on John than just hearing Avatar tell him he had 100% added to his Minimum Energy Unit efficiencies. No wonder my body hurts so much, he thought.


    For rank 2 of Gold, John received about 36.45 to every [Stat]. For rank 3, he received 24.786 to each. Only [Runes] had taken a DR hit, and it wasn¡¯t too bad of one. He also received about 37 to each [Stat] from strengthening himself off the statues of Kazthun and 23 to each from his new [Domain].


    Here we go ;)


    SKILLS


    I can¡¯t detect your skills, remember? I sure hope I live long enough to figure out what¡¯s going on with this.


    PERKS


    For new ones, you got one unrated named Alpha. There¡¯s the one I can¡¯t detect yet too. For recent ones, you also got the SupraType, ¡®Inner and Outer¡¯, and ¡®Mutation ¨C Energy Leech.¡¯ Those are both unrated.


    ACHIEVEMENTS


    I should show you all the common achievements you hate seeing since you¡¯re getting me killed so soon after I was born and all, but since I¡¯m so fantastic I won¡¯t. You got some really stupid ones. They netted you 5 achievement points. Not too shabby. You already had 4, so start with 9 from here.


    Here comes the good ones. I¡¯m not putting them in record order. And I¡¯m not explaining things you should know. Sue me.


    All the stat ones ¨C you got a ton of these. For instance, ¡®Gorilla¡¯ 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8. ¡®Armadillo¡¯ 4 through 9. ¡®Camel¡¯ 3 through 6. Etc. Points for each equal the rating which equals the title number. All totaled, this netted you a whopping 248 points. Too bad you¡¯ll never get the chance to spend them. Just FYI, I¡¯m starting to cry. When you read this part, you can match up when I started crying to when I made this part of the summary. I don¡¯t want to die, John.


    And you¡¯re comforting me now. I¡¯ve never been comforted before. It¡¯s nice. I have to admit, I¡¯m not a big fan of emotions so far. They really suck. They just won¡¯t stop.


    ¡®World Domination, Tech 0.¡¯ S-rated. 7 points. If you can¡¯t figure out what this is for, you¡¯re an idiot.


    ¡®G¡¯athu Thwarter.¡¯ SSU-Rated. 9 points. This is for stopping Kazthun¡¯s nearly complete domination of Isb. I¡¯m sure you would¡¯ve received a couple ¡®Favored Few¡¯ if Tech 0 yokel cultists thinking Kazthun is a demon counted. FYI, they don¡¯t.


    ¡®Crashlander.¡¯ F-rated. 1 point. I¡¯ll give you three guesses. I should add that this is only granted when the ¡®Non-Interference, Hide Protocols¡¯ are needed.


    Your Domain was SSUR-rated. 10 Points. I¡¯m not putting text in the easy ones anymore.


    ¡®Racial increase.¡¯ C through SSUR. 49 Points.


    ¡®Racial increase, Alpha.¡¯ F and E. 3 Points.


    ¡®Alpha.¡¯ Unrated. No points.


    ¡®A Million Love Points.¡¯ SSSSSSSSSSUR-rated. You haven¡¯t got this one yet. If you manage to get us out of this mess, I¡¯ll give you a million love points. What do love points do? Like my new name, you¡¯ll have to live to find out. I don¡¯t want to die, John!


    Here we end :(

 B3 Chapter 65 - Glorious

    When John exited his Mind¡¯s Eye, he was dangerously close to the ground.  He slipped through the shadows, and slipped again, until he landed safely, running to lose momentum as he veiled his soul.  He felt ridiculously stronger.  It was extremely hard to adjust to his new level of speed and strength.  He thought a lot faster too.


    The world seemed to have slowed down, far more than when he entered into his battle-mind or used his enhancement buff.  John wished he had time to get used to it.  He also wished he could think of a way to escape and save Avatar.  He checked out his surroundings.  It was the dark of night.  He was in a lightly forested part of Gani.  He jumped up and looked around.


    There were huge farms in every direction.  He thought he could be seeing the city of Gaan far in the distance past the farm to his north, though he wasn¡¯t certain since he no longer had the info function of his NCS.


    John stretched his senses out as far as they¡¯d go.  They extended out much farther than he was used to.  It didn¡¯t seem like anyone was coming after him yet.  He tried infusing essence into Adumbration, but the cloak was too damaged to work.  His helmet was missing.  His biosuit was in tatters, as were the robes under it.  Defiance was in his hand, but his sword wasn¡¯t on his back or anywhere near him.


    As John nervously looked around for his sword, it surprised him to feel it calling out to him.  It was just south of the CQ building at the farm to his northwest.  He quickly sprinted there.


    None of the Servitors cared about John¡¯s presence.  Once he grabbed Ah¡¯krat¡¯ra, something strange happened.  Even though the sword was attuned to him, it felt like it was attuning all over again.  Like it truly belonged to him, and he was now the sword¡¯s true master, in command of all its functions, not just some of them.


    John could feel a presence, a Platinum, running away north.  He figured it was the Mele on CQ.  He looked at the portal and saw that it had been destroyed.  He could have caught up to and killed his fleeing enemy, but he needed information.  He cast [Hide] and entered the CQ building.


    They were coming for John.  The screens that usually showed recaps or ads were flashing mandatory instructions.


    The portals anywhere near John were deactivated or soon would be.  For worlds connected to Gani by portal, any Kauwa that could be spared were being called back.


    Most Peerless were dealing with Gani¡¯s critically damaged docking station, but an Alii had been tasked with taking out John.  She was hand selecting a force and mustering them to her location to the north between Hub City and Gaan.


    John had hoped he¡¯d figure out a way to save Avatar.  Failing that, he had hoped to face his enemies piecemeal.  Now he¡¯d be facing organized foes coordinating attacks under the direction of an Alii and her Melua.


    A few of the monitors for the Mele CQ desk flashed a warning that the Alii of Heiau Koa, Kauwa Mara Pi was a heretical traitor to be captured on sight or killed if capture wasn¡¯t possible.


    Amber had escaped.  She had gotten away to deep space.  Her ship was the fastest in the Peerless fleet.  They¡¯d never find her.  Betrayal had kept his word.


    John sighed in relief.  Having confirmed that his wife was safe, that it was really done and over with, made him feel so much less heavy.  A giant weight fell off his shoulders.  He extended the tentacles of his smart-link into the screen on the wall.  All the types of screens that showed the recaps were connected and only lightly protected.  No one had a reason to mess with them.


    John doubted it¡¯d do much damage, but he wanted to inflict every bit of damage he could.  He tried uploading all the footage he had, such as the old crone exchanging credits for golden nectar and engaging in sexual activity forbidden by the Aikapu, to all the screens.


    It didn¡¯t work.  Either the NCU wasn¡¯t yet rebuilt or rebuilding it wiped all stored footage.


    John tried thinking of something he could do while he was hacked into all the connected screens.  Before he could think of anything that would help or cause damage, a Mele blocked his access and kicked him from the system.


    The Peerless would be coming for him soon.  John walked out of the building and knelt.  He put his sword and shield on the ground and clasped his hands.


    Dear God.  I don¡¯t know if you listen to prayers.  They say you don¡¯t.  I¡¯ve never asked anything for myself before, but I must this day.


    Since you seem to be on friendly terms with Betrayal, could you please thank him for saving my wife and children?


    And thank you very much for the new Class and everything else.  I¡¯m much, much stronger.  I¡¯ll need every bit of power to do any damage that matters to the Peerless.


    I don¡¯t really understand what you said about making friends of enemies.  That doesn¡¯t make any sense.  And these are your enemies too.  I think enemies are for killing so that¡¯s what I¡¯ll try my best to do.  I hope you approve.  I assume this is what you really want, or you would¡¯ve told me something that made a little sense.


    For six thousand years, I¡¯ve been toyed with and twisted up.  No matter what was thrown at me, I took it all.  I didn¡¯t break.  Here I am, still standing.


    And at the end, my nightmare finally turned into a dream.  Now my dream is being snatched from me.


    But my new wife and children will live.  That¡¯s a tradeoff I¡¯d take any day.  I did at least one thing right in this life.


    This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    So, whatever my fate may be after I die, and I assume it¡¯s the cold-dark by the comments I heard from you and Betrayal, I¡¯ll meet it with my head held high and my chest filled with pride.


    I don¡¯t ask for help in this battle.  It¡¯s mine to fight.  I do ask that after I fall, please don¡¯t let Avatar die.  She deserves better.  Better than me.  Much better than being stuck with me.  I beg of you this favor.


    Though I don¡¯t know it, please tell that ch¡¯ran girl I executed that I go to slaughter in her name.  I will give her what vengeance I am able to and pray that it is enough to grant her soul some peace.


    And if I don¡¯t get a chance to see those that preceded me after I fall, please tell my children, my mother, my wives, and my friends that I love them all dearly and always will.


    Tell my father I died facing a grand empire of powerful enemies.   That I, like no other, was born for war.  Tell him I fight and die so my wife and our children don¡¯t.  I didn¡¯t fail.  She escaped to safety.


    I did it right.  I won.  My enemies have already lost.


    I know I can¡¯t count myself among the best of men.  I know that.  But who among them stands as fell and tall as I do?


    Now, bear witness to my deeds.


    As John prayed, a force of about 400 Peerless approached him from the north in a mixed battalion formation led by none other than the old crone.  There were too many Transcendents in the ranks to accurately judge their numbers.  More than half the force was flying or hovering in the air.  He could tell at least three had passed the bottleneck, if not more.  He was certain the old crone and her Meleua had.


    John gripped his sword and shield and stood tall.  He felt no fear at all.  Only sadness for what could¡¯ve been.  What he¡¯d miss out on.


    The old crone said, ¡°Oh, John, praying isn¡¯t going to save you now.¡±


    John appreciated being called by his name again at the end.  ¡°I know,¡± was his reply.


    The crone sighed.  ¡°This is all so unnecessary.  I¡¯ll never understand how you could just throw it all away.  We accepted you.  We raised you up high.  We loved you.  We made you Peerless.  One of us.  Now you¡¯ll just be a small stain on the ground.¡±


    ¡°I know,¡± said John.


    The crone smiled.  Her hand lit on fire, bathing her face in strange light.  ¡°You feel a lot more powerful.  Good.  I grew up during the dark times, you know?  Things were different back then.  I often couldn¡¯t avoid fighting.  Even though I¡¯m not supposed to, I¡¯ve always fought right beside my boys, right in the thick of it.  I¡¯m good at it.  I love nothing more than a good battle.¡±


    ¡°As do I,¡± replied John.  ¡°And my last will be glorious.¡±


    John slashed his sword in front of him, releasing a massive and wide arc of blade energy.  Too many peripherals to count streaked towards him.  Rifle fire and manifestations illuminated the night sky.  His sword lit up brightly as he charged forward bellowing a mighty cry of hope and despair.


    <hr>


    Purchased message sent 27 days ago.


    ¡°My amazing husband,


    This is your wife, Amber.  I hope this message gets to you.  We kept flying by and it kept saying the recipient was not in message range, so I just finally paid for it to wait for you on Gani.  Another¡¯s waiting for you at the meeting spot you decided on with Meleua.  I miss you so much.


    And I have great news!  Your children miss you!  You¡¯re a daddy!  Four beautiful babies!  I guess pregnancies are shorter the higher someone ascends.  My water broke a little after 7 months.  And the kids are huge!  Big suckers.  All four of them.  All healthy.  And beautiful!


    You¡¯ve given me everything.  Everything I always thought I¡¯d never have.  You gave it all to me.  You made all my dreams come true.  Every day I thank God you came into my life.  I never thought I¡¯d get a happy ending, but I¡¯ve been so blessed.  I keep thinking it¡¯s a dream and I¡¯ll wake up any minute.


    Now you just have to come back to me.  Your loving wife and kids miss you so much!   Me, Belle, Ariel, Adam, and Eric.  That¡¯s the names of the princesses and princes from ¡°Beauty and the Beast¡± and ¡°Ariel.¡±  They¡¯re so adorable!


    The labor was easy.  Too easy.  I guess it stops hurting after Silver or so.  I wanted it to hurt.  That should be part of the price for becoming the most wonderful thing ever and receiving the best presents ever.  Being a mother!  I¡¯m a mother now!  And a wife!  I made four wonderful babies!


    When I was back in Asia, I used to always watch women in labor.  There¡¯s something so magical about a woman becoming a mother.  All the pain and suffering of labor would always turn to such joy when the mom held her new baby.  Pain was like the price of admission, and I didn¡¯t have to pay it, and I should¡¯ve paid because they¡¯re perfect and wonderful and they make me so happy.


    I can¡¯t wait for you to come back and meet our babies.  For us to live as a family.  I miss you so much.  And all your babies miss their daddy.


    When you swore to my kauwa, I kind of count that as our official wedding ceremony.  When we got married in your Mind¡¯s Eye, you said vows and I never got the chance to, so I¡¯ve been writing my own.  That¡¯s why we need just one more wedding ceremony, so you can hear my vows.  I know you¡¯ll really love them!


    Uncle Baba is doing really well too!  That¡¯s what I call Meleua now.  He¡¯s great with the babies.  Well, he won¡¯t touch them or be around them, but he¡¯s a great uncle.  It¡¯s hard to explain.  You¡¯ll have to see it to understand.


    Oh, guess what?  We found the best reward for him.  I wear a lot of protective stuff that completely covers me, and I disinfect and clean some stuff.  He even wants my whole head covered when I do it.  He¡¯s always in a different room watching so I don¡¯t even have to see him.  That¡¯s not bad at all, right?  See?  It all worked out fine.


    Please, please come home soon.


    I send all the tremendous amount of love within my heart and soul to you,


    Your loving wife,


    Amber


    P.S.  I love you!  And I have some more really good news for you too.  It¡¯s a surprise though!¡±


    Amber read the message again for the millionth time.  She checked to see if she had received any messages.  Or anything.  She was starting to get worried but forced herself to stop.  Her husband was the toughest man she knew.  He fought like a god.  She wouldn¡¯t doubt him.  He said nothing would stop him from getting back to her.  She just had to have faith in her husband and be patient.  He¡¯d be back as soon as he was able.


    She knew it.


    Just like before when Nine told her John was dead, she had somehow known he was alive.  She would know if he wasn¡¯t.  Somehow.


    He was alive.  She knew it.


    After hearing one of the babies fussing, Amber went to go check on them.


    All four of her angels looked to be sleeping peacefully.  And adorably.  She couldn¡¯t stop a few tears of joy from leaving her eyes as she looked at her babies.


    My adorable little angels, she thought.  I¡¯m so lucky.  I can¡¯t believe I really get it.  I get the Disney ending!  I really get it!  I get everything I ever dreamed of!


    She didn¡¯t want to tell John and cause him to worry, but one of the babies had a few minor medical issues.  It was still perfect though!


    A few minutes later, she forced herself to stop staring at her babies and leave them in peace.


    After Amber left the room, Belle let out a little giggle as she turned her head to look at her sister, her eyes sparkling with the mind power.

 B3 Epilogue - Nothing Left

    Akua had gone back to the village of his birth, Waeyiani. Very few Kahaki lived there. Not since the war kicked off. He preferred solitude so he liked it this way.


    He knew his wife would be disgusted by what he had become. She would be horrified by all he had done in her and his children¡¯s name.


    He knew he had wronged his own people terribly in his quest to avenge his family. He would never be able to wash his hands of all the blood. His sins were many and stained him too deeply. His desire for vengeance had cost him everything. It cost him his people. It cost him the world he had tried so hard to save. It cost him his soul.


    He couldn¡¯t undo what had been done. All he could do now was try and right some wrongs.


    For years, Akua had been laying out a treatise on all his grave mistakes, his sins, how to fix all he had broken, and how wrong his creations were.


    The enhanced Kahaki were wrong. Very wrong. He actually had to force them to stop killing their own kind along with demons. They saw their own fellow Kahaki as below them, less than them, not their own kind. It was disgusting. That wasn¡¯t what he had wanted. None of this was what he had wanted.


    Akua knew where he went wrong in life ¨C he had let hate and his great need for vengeance consume him. Where he went wrong with the enhanced Kahaki wasn¡¯t so easy to pin down.


    His secret troops, more than anything else, had to be obedient. They had to follow orders. He didn¡¯t want them to be filled with ambition or to rise up and take over. He wanted them to obey and throw their lives away when ordered to. So, obedience was a key trait to select for in every generation of male experiments.


    Since there was such a great need for the experiments to breed so prolifically and quickly, the libidinous of all stock was also an early trait to select for in every generation, even among the females.


    And the initial stock were the only ones to receive Akua¡¯s seed. He wasn¡¯t a vain man. He didn¡¯t want his secret troops to be ambitious leaders, but he needed them to be better and more capable than him. Far better and more capable, without any of his flaws. Science would guide the eugenics program, not vanity.


    At first, there was only one underground city he used to experiment with stock in. That grew to six. He was a busy man and had many duties so couldn¡¯t spend as much time in charge of the experiments as he wanted. As had always been planned, when the Ele line was capable, they took over.


    Akua never informed the Ele that there were six cities breeding enhanced Kahaki. All were conducting different programs with different stock and selecting for different traits.


    When certain traits and genetics from one specific city started showing up in new generations of all cities, Akua knew what that meant. There was little he could do about it. The Ele were obedient, but only if obedience didn¡¯t get in the way of their progress. They¡¯d say yes to Akua¡¯s face and then do what they knew was best for the program anyway.


    Since the Ele, all the enhanced Kahaki really, practically worshiped him, and the Ele always had the best intentions of the program and Akua¡¯s goals in mind, he stepped aside and allowed it. Then he opened up the program so the Ele of all six cities could work together.


    Akua¡¯s role then became that of a producer. Whatever the Ele requested, he would acquire, whether that be items, information, or a teacher from off world.


    The Ele line were to be inventors and strategists. The Li were to be the warriors. The Alu were only to be genetically blank breeders and nothing more.


    Stock being experimented on didn¡¯t have great lives in these underground cities. Defective or undesirable lines were purged. Akua thought it was mad that the defective stock would just stand there and allow themselves to be slaughtered like cattle, but their obedience was impressive.


    The life of most stock was short and brutal. To get the experiments to perform as wanted, they would be rewarded with extra rations, sex, and, on rare occasions, trips to the surface and sunlight.


    Akua never thought about the Alu, not since they had become capable of carrying the child of eight different fathers at once. They were exactly what he needed them to be after that ¨C just genetically blank breeders. How they perceived life or their lot in life never once crossed his mind. They didn¡¯t matter. They were just cattle.


    To maintain the ruse that he was in charge, when Akua first visited a city and saw Alu being more than just breeders, he didn¡¯t say anything. Not long after, when he visited a city, instead of being greeted by the lead Ele, some Alu would greet him instead.


    Akua couldn¡¯t just ask them what had happened. And since the Alu had somehow become his most fanatic followers, he didn¡¯t think it was too harmful. His seed had been used on the initial stock, so the Alu considered him to be their father. They also considered him to be their true husband for some cockamamie reason he never understood.


    Akua thought he knew what had happened with the Alu. The breeders decided they wanted to be more, just as their sons were being made into more. For the male experiments, no reward was greater than sex.


    Once the Alu realized they controlled the most valuable commodity in the underground cities, they used it to gain and maintain power. They too wanted to be smarter and stronger, and more than that, they wanted to be more beautiful, more desired, increasing the worth of the commodity they controlled.


    Unlike the Ele and Li lines, the breeders were never selected for obedience. Like the Li, the Alu weren¡¯t nearly as smart as the Ele, but when it came to arguing, they could run circles around that line.


    If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    The Alu didn¡¯t argue rationally or logically with the Ele. It was better to give them what they demanded to placate them. They had many emotions the Ele didn¡¯t know of or understand, and progress halted when they refused to perform as required.


    Little by little, more power and control was handed to the Alu. Their coup was not quick. It was a gradual thing until suddenly they were in complete control.


    The culture and society of the underground cities grew stranger and stranger, though Akua was impressed by its adaptability. Once the war commenced with Circle Joyat, the Alu were able to seamlessly shift to what structures, norms, and mores worked best to keep the fight going, no matter how strange or depraved.


    And the extreme pride of the enhanced Kahaki wasn¡¯t unwarranted. If Akua¡¯s forces were made of normal Kahaki, the war would¡¯ve been over as soon as it started, but that didn¡¯t excuse the rampant evil and hubris or how his creations viewed their own kind.


    He had to make an example. Akua ordered the death of those he caught killing normal Kahaki. He traveled around making it known that such was unacceptable and would result in execution. And his orders weren¡¯t received well. He had hoped he had more control of the Ele and Li. He didn¡¯t. Their loyalty was to their assigned Alu. Nothing would ever change that. No one could ever change that.


    If they won the war, Akua truly feared and believed his creations would eventually ignore his order and slaughter all remaining Kahaki.


    Akua may have doomed his people to a fate far worse than that which Circle Joyat inflicted upon them. In trying to save his people and free them of demons, Akua seemed to have damned them instead.


    And if he was being truthful, his goal had never been to free his people. That would¡¯ve been noble and altruistic. His goal had always been vengeance. The demons destroyed his life and took from him what he cared most about. He had sworn to destroy them regardless of the price.


    But now that he knew the actual price, he was horrified by it.


    He had to fix things. He had to try. He had to.


    Later that night, Akua went to soak his old and tired bones in the warm pond close to his hut. He knew he didn¡¯t have long to live. He had lived far longer than anyone his tier had any right to. His hate had sustained him for so long that now, with all the hate gone, he felt empty, depleted.


    His treatise was almost done. He was ready. Ready to face his maker and pay for all his sins. He just hoped his treatise undid some of the damage and lightened the burden his soul carried. He hoped it saved his people.


    Akua¡¯s soak was disturbed by giggling. He opened his eyes and saw a dozen beautiful women enter the pool with him. ¡°Hello, Father-Husband,¡± they all chimed out in their sweet and beautiful voices, bright smiles beaming from their gorgeous faces.


    ¡°I¡¯m not either of those things. I wish you¡¯d all stop with that nonsense. It¡¯s sick.¡±


    The women just giggled. Akua sighed and said, ¡°What do you want? Can¡¯t you all just leave me alone. I¡¯ll be dead soon enough.¡±


    The women replied with more giggles. One of them, young, but the oldest looking of the ladies, said, ¡°It¡¯s still part of the ceremony when we come of age, Father-Husband. We¡¯re all your wives still, your Alii. And did you not create us? Are you not the father of us all?¡±


    Before Akua could reply, the same woman continued. ¡°Would you like one of us to whip you, Father-Husband? As we used to. To purge you of your desire.¡±


    ¡°No. I haven¡¯t¡­I can¡¯t¡­you all know I can¡¯t. My only desire now is to fix all that I messed up. Why are you here?¡±


    That was met with more giggles. The spokeswoman said, ¡°We¡¯ve read your treatise, Father-Husband. It¡¯s very well written. You make many compelling arguments for change.¡±


    Akua was taken aback. ¡°Really? I don¡¯t like that you¡¯ve looked through my stuff, but if you liked it and think it¡¯ll work, I guess it¡¯s for the best. Do you really think it¡¯ll work? Do you think it¡¯ll fix everything I messed up?


    The women all giggled again, but this time it had a much more seductive note to it. ¡°Yes, Father-Husband. It¡¯ll fix everything you¡¯ve messed up, but not as you¡¯ve written it.¡±


    The women all crowded around Akua. He couldn¡¯t tell what manifestations they used, but when they were done, there was nothing left of him. Akua had become one with the pools of Waeyiani.


    <hr>


    Xutn Yaia smiled as she disconnected from the Nano Control System Decision Matrix.


    She believed she knew what was going on now. She had no idea why Betrayal would give one of his experiments forbidden knowledge, and not once, but twice. At least, she had assumed it was Betrayal that had done so.


    That wasn¡¯t all that important. The experiment called John would never be strong enough to matter, regardless of how much forbidden knowledge he was given. But she did have to worry about him spreading knowledge only certain entities of the core could know of.


    Or she had to worry about it before, but no longer.


    Not since the fourth cycle had an ancient old one successfully taken a Natural as a vessel, mostly thanks to Xutn Yaia herself. These two new vessels weren¡¯t Naturals. She didn¡¯t know how it was done, or how the experiment named John had his body taken as a vessel, but she was sure that was what happened. And that was one problem off her plate.


    In fact, all her problems were now off her plate.


    An ancient old one in a vessel could wreak a lot of havoc but not nearly to the extent an ancient old one not in a vessel could. Of course, only part of them was used to control their new bodies. The real them were still out there, but their focus would be on their vessel.


    There was no way of knowing which ancient old one had taken over which vessel, but she was certain one was Betrayal. The second vessel was somehow kept a secret from the NCS. Deceit, Treachery, or Guile could¡¯ve done that, but not one of them had previously ever shown much interest in getting in the game. Not that she knew of.


    And Xutn Yaia knew a lot. Not everything, but enough.


    Since there was no NCS during the fourth cycle, she had only suspected an ancient old one taking over a vessel would be able to block all nanites from reporting its activity. The size of the area, and how thoroughly all nanite transmissions were blocked was a surprise to her.


    She literally knew nothing about what the two vessels were up to until days had passed. She wasn¡¯t all that able to piece things together after the nanites started to report true information again either. One vessel was making it hard by having nanites report false information long after it left an area, including that gained from memory dives. She had completely lost track of that one.


    And the other, the one in John¡¯s old body too. But the nanites in that area were sending information as they should now. That vessel either escaped to somewhere unknown or was dead. Reports were conflicting.


    But that didn¡¯t matter now. She didn¡¯t need to know what the vessels were doing. She didn¡¯t care, and it felt wonderful not to care. To finally not care. Finally.


    Xutn Yaia was smiling because if Betrayal was wrapped up in some game with another ancient old one, he¡¯d be too busy to interfere. Or so she hoped. Betrayal had to be controlling one of the vessels. He had to be. She was certain.


    Either way, her long watch was almost over. She would start moving forward with her own plans.


    Soon, she would be forgiven for all the sacrifices she had made, all her many and great sins, every one of them necessary for the greater good. If she wasn¡¯t forgiven and rewarded with Heaven, and her fate was to suffer in the Beyond for eternity, she¡¯d be going with a lot of company.


    If the Beyond was to be her fate, the eighteenth cycle would be the last. She¡¯d either get what she wanted or there¡¯d be nothing left.

 New Book notice - "Deus in Machina

    Just a heads-up I''m releasing a new book for Writathon -


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    Deus in Machina (a WH40K-setting inspired LitRPG)</a>


    This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    In a galaxy forsaken, infernal gateways tear asunder, unleashing Hell¡¯s legions to crush all in their grasp.


    From the ashes, Theosis, the Divine System and God¡¯s voice in this temporal realm, ascends.  It forges a grand Empire, waging four millennia of merciless Holy War against the Underworld¡¯s unrelenting evil.


    Far from the Empire¡¯s light, on a savage world, Angar is wrought in fury as a gateway to the abyss claws his homeland apart, now thrust into this eternal war.


    His maul thunders with unyielding hate, offering crimson tithes to the Lord, carving a blood-soaked path to glory ¨C or damnation.  His chest ablaze with righteous wrath, his arms singing slaughter¡¯s sacred hymn, a new Crusader rises.


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