M’tru’julah.
As I repeated the na within my mind, my Fla flared—a new hidden truth revealed. The ntion of ‘sister’ had envisioning a slew of these demonic creatures, each of them threatening to destroy the remaining cores of the Hell Worlds.
But I’d be damned if I was going to allow that to happen.
“I don’t know how many more of you creepy, insect bitches there are,” I said, pointing my axe head at her with [Fear the Fla]. “But I’m vowing to kill every damn one of you right now.”
As M’tru’julah reacted to my technique with a piercing screech, I flew towards her with [Lightning Drill of Fury], corkscrewing through the air. I slamd into her massive body but there was no resistance at all, and I was reminded that I was a spirit fighting flesh and blood right now.
The [Lightning] did its work however, damaging her body just barely as I passed through. I went into a volley of Glaive and Axe techniques next, enhancing them with both [Lightning] and the power of my soul.
M’tru’julah screeched again and I could sense I was causing pain, but there was anger there as well. ~Foul gnat. Thou art but an annoyance. A re echo in the void~
Her enormous body spun and I braced myself to take the hit.
Her body passed straight through .
No pain.
Nothing.
As I backed off with [Lightning Walk] I recalculated the battle in my mind. She couldn’t hurt physically while in this form, but I was barely hurting her as well. She was easily ten tis the size G’hru’julah had been. Did that make her older? Stronger?
Probably.
One thing was for sure, though…my Frenzy was slowly draining just to maintain my projected [Spectral Form], and it might take forever to wear her down using my [Lightning] Techniques alone. I looked at the Axe and Glaive in my hands, my [Spectral Weapons]. They were images of my true weapons, but images only. My real ones were defending Earth back ho. These were a part of . My spirit. My [Sacred Soul].
And if that were the case…
I summoned [Mark of the Colossus] and as my body grew, so did the [Spectral Weapons] within my hands.
Hell yeah!
“Alright you giant, bitch. You want to see stop being a re annoyance?”
M’tru’julah reared upwards, her mandibles glowing with purplish light and Cursed Frenzy. ~Wicked and traitorous Fla. A greater shadow is but a shadow still~
She lunged forward, striking like a cobra.
I deflected her attack with my axe, and felt only the slightest bit of resistance as her massive head passed straight through my [Spectral Weapon] and the glowing mandibles sank into my chest. White hot pain radiated throughout my soul as the Frenzy within my Dantian drained by nearly a quarter.
Shit!
I fought back with a double strike from my Axe and Glaive, releasing a [Three Log Chop]. As my weapons cleaved into her body, I felt the satisfying tug of physical resistance as my [Lightning] technique exploded against the armored scales of her back and then broke through. Mind-bending screeches filled the cavern as her pain spiked, black blood and Cursed Frenzy flowing everywhere.
~Sacrilege!~ she cried, reeling. ~What art thou truly?~
“I’m your end…”
I said the words with stone cold [Indifference] and [Struggler’s Resolve], backed up with [Tornt of the Frenzied Fla]. The spiritual attacks seed to stun her for a mont, and I used the opportunity to lay into her with a series of Axe and Glaive combinations that had her flailing across the surface of the Aetherite crystal like a dying cockroach.
~Enough!~
She flared with Cursed Frenzy and from each segnt of her body, a set of dark luminescent wings appeared. Her entire body glowed with the sa purplish hue, and I realized then that she was activating her own version of [Sacred Soul] projection.
~[Moth to the Fla]…~
Her body ignited with tongues of purplish flas as a stream of glowing Dark Frenzy and venom spat my way. There was no way to dodge the attack as my current size, so I rely braced myself instead. It burned like acid as it cut through my [Spectral Form] and I cried out as my Dantian was drained to just below half.
M’tru’julah flew off the crystal, becoming a new sort of creature, like a dragonfly with too many wings. She moved like one too, zipping around the massive cavern at incredible speed. I did my best to keep track of her, deflecting her spitting venom where I could, but her entire body was a spiritual weapon now, covered in flas and each strike took a sliver of my Frenzy reserves with it.
I knew where this was headed.
I wouldn’t die when my Dantian fell to zero, but my spectral manifestation would. Then I would need to stop and cultivate, to top it back up again. It was a battle of attrition that I could probably win. But what I didn’t have…was ti.
I needed to kill this monster the first go.
I fell back on my martial training, fighting her more like a cultivator than a monster. I held back from attacking, keeping track of her movents and studying her patterns. My Dantian was hovering at less than a quarter now and one big hit would take out.
The [Odds were Against ] and the rush of new Frenzy kept topped up a bit, but not enough to get true gains. Desperate minutes went by as I played more defensively, learning, studying. I eventually found an opening, right after she attacked and flew in with [Ride the Lightning] to strike her right behind the head.
M’tru’julah screeched in pain as my blades cut through the thick carapace, threatening to decapitate her. Her flas flared in response, taking my Dantian down to a sliver.
Shit!
It was a good hit but not enough for a kill. Her massive body flexed, spinning towards and one of her wings flew straight at my face. I blocked instinctively but it was already too late. I prepared to be severed from the spectral domain, but as the wing hit, a flash appeared and the wing was deflected away like it had struck sothing solid.
I hovered there, stupefied, wondering what had happened, when a golden hue surrounded my arms and shoulders. It solidified, taking on the appearance of armor that floated a few inches above my spectral skin.
What the hell is this? I thought.
And then new words entered my mind, the voice familiar and soothing.
~Fight on. I shall shield thee~
T’huet?
But I didn’t have ti to figure out anything else. M’tru’julah was still spinning and another slap from her wings was a second away. I blocked again and the ‘celestial armor’—I decided to call it—took the brunt just like before, shielding my Dantian.
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The battle shifted in my mind again.
I could almost fight like I was there physically now.
I charged at her, more emboldened in my approach, using the armor to protect my core as I hacked into her flaming body with abandon. Black offal and putrid flesh flew as I successfully cleaved her body in two. The screech that filled the chamber was almost deafening and as the bottom half of her hit the ground, it flipped and thrashed, clearly sohow still alive.
M’tru’julah reeled backwards, spinning her massive head towards , brimming with anger and pain.
~Cursed Spawns of the Traitorous Fla. I shall undo thee both!~
I sensed sothing else coming from her then.
A buildup of Cursed Frenzy.
~[Cleansing Fla of the Father]!~
Her mandibles spewed venom that instantly ignited as if she were a fla thrower, hurling a stream of purplish fire my way. I crossed my forearms against the blast, hoping this new armor or whatever it was could stand up to the cursed technique.
The flas molded about my body, hitting the armor like a shockwave.
I held fast even as the armor began to splinter and crack.
~She is strong. Mine protection for thee falters~
I could see that even without the warning.
I had to act quickly.
Summoning the last of my Frenzy, I launched myself forward in a spin.
“[Lightning Drill of Fury]!”
I led with my weapons, the armor next, spiraling through the breath attack that ended at M’tru’julah’s throat. I punched straight through, driving through her mandibles and tearing her massive head apart as I burst through the other side.
Her death cry echoed throughout the chamber, a mixture of a scream and a moan.
~Father, saveth !~
But her prayers to her dark god went unanswered as her body hit the floor. The presence of Cursed Frenzy ceased imdiately and with it my own Frenzy reserves began to stabilize. I looked down at the dissolving corpse and cultivated the [Bloodlust] it produced, replenishing myself further.
Two down, I thought.
And who knew how many more to go.
With the Deep Dweller now gone, I wasted no ti pressing my palm to the glowing Aetherite crystal itself, desperate to check on T’huet’s condition. I prayed that I had aided her in ti.
That I could do for her what I couldn’t do for Fhae I’ung.
* * *
The world flashed with colors as I made the transition and instantly I found myself within a new spiritual plane. I was inside the crystal again. The interior of it lood high above like a vaulted cathedral made entirely of glass. T’huet herself stood before , radiating brilliantly and nearly filling the entire space within the crystal with her massive form.
Her face was similar to that of Fhae I’ung but not quite.
A slightly different species of human had existed on her planet perhaps?
But human, nonetheless.
She perford a deep bow, bending at the waist. “I thank thee, oh Frenzied Fla. Thou hast freed of the foul pestilence.”
“Are you alright, now?” I asked. “Can you still live?”
“Yes. I still live.”
I smiled as she repeated the familiar phrase. “Thank you for that save. With the armor. I wouldn’t have defeated her without it.”
“I understandeth thee not, oh Frenzied One. Indeed, thou art strong. Yet thou seeketh not to gird thyself?”
I had to think a mont about what she’d said before I replied. “Yes, my path discourages the use of things like armor, but what you gave was helpful. Thank you.”
“How wilt thou survive in the next realm without such? Canest thou truly endure?”
“I can take a real beating in my true body, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“True body?”
“Yes. My real body. My physical body.”
She paused a mont and then nodded. “I doth now understand. But for the true realm, thou should gird thyself still. I beseech thee. Taketh this strength which I doth now bequeath unto thee.”
Her massive hand reached out to and began to glow.
Instantly new thoughts filled my mind.
Shuras of ancient text.
I recognized them right away. It was the [Spectral Armor] technique, but slightly evolved. Not that I had ever used [Spectral Armor] before. I relied on my enate abilities for defense. Like [Diamond Skin] and [Diamond Lightning] along with [Diamond Core]. But I had to admit, her ‘Celestial Armor’ had co in pretty clutch just now.
And then I rembered sothing.
Seeing Threja in her Lesser Deity Form, she’d had similar armor if I recalled. Translucent traces of pauldrons and bracers that hovered just above her red-hued skin.
Can I do the sa now? I wondered.
I committed the shuras to mory, reciting them internally, with plans to etch them onto sothing permanently when I had the chance with [Brand of the Frenzied Fla]. But in truth, I knew the technique already.
It just needed a na.
“[Armor of T’huet]…”
As I spoke the words, the armor manifested again, a set of vambraces and pauldrons combined. But they were no longer the golden color of T’heut’s crystalline form. The were like crimson glass, stained with the essence of my own Frenzied Core.
I marveled at the new upgrade.
And with it only covering my arms, it didn’t feel like an impedint to my path. They were almost like extra weapons I could employ. An excitent to try them out in my Lesser Deity Form had thinking how much more formidable I would have been against those Behemoths.
But that next bout would have to wait.
As excited as I was now, my real body was in no shape to even move.
I took a peek through my real eyes and saw my n still at it. A fair amount of ti must have passed because the sky looked fiery on the horizon, with the Cursed Sun soon to rise. I craned my neck to see that only four skiffs were being protected now. Which ant four must have already been tethered by the orbital skiffs and taken back to the Xing Long.
Which ant my ti here was close to ending as well.
“When wilt thou now aid us, oh Frenzied Fla?”
I raised my brow at T’huet curiously, wondering if I misunderstood her ancient tones. “Um… I just did, didn’t I?”
“Thou hast rid of the pestilence upon the mortal realm, where the First Fla doth seek to sever our strength. But the true battle rages still. When wilt thou aid us, oh frenzied Fla?”
“True battle?” I said. “You an against the Cursed Stars?”
She paused a mont more.
Thinking perhaps.
“Thou doth glean through but the mortal realm. Knoweth thee not, that such is but a shadow. A re reflection of that which is true? It matters not as much as thou doeth believe.”
What the hell was she saying?
“What do you an? I’ve killed the Deep Dweller. Cleared an army of Behemoths just to reach you. You’re saying none of that matters?”
“Forgiveth . For I speak not of the mortal realm of which I too am weakly tethered. I speak of what doth lay beyond. When wilt though venture here, oh Frenzied Fla to aid us?”
“I don’t understand what you an. I’m battling the Deep Dwellers and the armies of the cursed stars already. Is that not helping you?”
She paused again.
“I shall bequeath to you one last gift. Yea thou it may prove a curse. A glimpse of the true…brace thyself.”
I barely had chance to do anything before she reached her glowing palm to again.
My mind scread as I was abruptly pulled to soplace else.
My eyes opened to a sea of stars, but it was clearly no place in the universe that I could tell. The stars were different, less pinpricks of light and more symbols for sothing else. Sothing I knew but didn’t recall.
An oppressive omnipotence glimpsed .
A recognition that ‘I’ was ‘here’.
My Fla flared in resistance to it, but when I looked, there was nothing to see.
And then my vision shifted further.
To sothing lower than the presence I had felt.
The darkness split open, broken apart by a massive Cursed Star that looked ready to consu the entire galaxy. My mind froze with both recognition and incomprehension. Beams of brilliant golden light pushed back against it, each one emanating from a human form that was dwarfed by the massive star.
There were at least twenty or so and I saw T’huet among them, her hands stretched towards the Cursed Star while radiating beams of brilliant light streams from them. The others held their palms towards the Fla as well, but their light was nowhere near as bright as hers. I noticed then the creeping darkness strewn across their bodies. The pestilence brought on by a Deep Dweller.
That fearso presence ‘sought’ again and quickly the vision ended.
I was thrust back into the crystal domain, breathing heavily, my mind struggling to adjust to what I’d seen—my understanding of the universe now stretched to its limits.
“We needeth thee here to fight the Cleansing Fla. We can but hold it while we have yet strength. But it plucks us by the root, severing our attachnt to the mortal realm.”
Sothing shook and I realized it was Kwan Li in the real world, trying to wake up. I had so many more questions now. About what I had seen. About what I had interpreted it to an. It was almost too much to take in. But I had to ask sothing more.
“Where is I’xol’ukz? Where can I find him to kill him for good?”
“The child spawn of the Cleansing Fla is here, yet it is but a detraction. A pestilence that gnaws at the mortal tethers of the celestial realm, the sa as the pestilence that seeks to sever us from our mortal cores.”
“What?”
Kwan Li pushed again and I could hear her shouting at . “Marshal, we must go now! Wake up!”
“Just tell how to reach him. How to defeat him! How do I keep him from destroying the entire world?”
T’huet began to fade as I was pulled awake, but her final words reached still.
“If thou wishes to preserve the mortal realm. Ascend here to what is true. For the true battle is not within thy realm. The true battle remains in the true.”
* * *
I opened my eyes to the world spinning—violence and screaming all around.
I was vaguely aware that I was being carried by multiple people. Pain returned with mind numbing agony and now the pain in my body matched the sa in my spirit and soul. My mind had seen sothing that nearly broke it. The entire revelation was sothing I still couldn’t co to grips with.
As I felt myself rising upwards, I caught glimpses of the predawn sky.
“We’ve done it!” Kwan Li was shouting at . “We’re headed ho!”
I barely managed a nod as I began to lose focus, my thoughts spinning as my consciousness waned.
The focus of our mission, as monuntal as it was, suddenly paled in comparison now. I’d just seen the true battle of the Cursed Stars. What the planetary cores of the Hell Worlds were fighting against within the Celestial Realm.
For all my efforts, I now knew the truth.
That no matter how hard I fought, it wouldn’t matter.
Because the true battle was not here.
The true battle lay beyond the stars.
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