Elysium's Multiverse

Chapter 317

Chapter 317

When Riven had asked his great grandmother about a means to bring Kara back to Panu from the Abyssal Descent, the old vampire had raised a skeptic eyebrow - but had answered all his questions concerning possible outcomes.

His staff would not work regardless of the Portal Master trait it had because it could not cross universes.

“It would need to be within the A-grade at least, and your staff is still an F-grade item.” She’d said with a shake of her head. “You could try it, but I guarantee the portals will fail.”

He’d then asked about the potential of hiring Kara onto the guild hall. To this, his grandmother gave a half-shrug. “It is possible. As long as you’re willing to keep her confined to your guild hall’s borders then I’m sure Elysium would allow it, just like you contracted Fay’s brother - but you’d need to pay the system fee as well as the regular pay to the hired servant.”

“Any chance I could have an escorting ship pick her up?”

Nephridi snickered. “We could certainly do that, but not for someone like her. The ships we have that are able to transcend galaxies alone are more valuable than her life ten thousand times over, and you’re speaking of sending a higher class vessel - risking it and the crew against the dangers of the outer dark - and blowing through blockades of fighting religious factions that’ve quarantined your world to drop her off? No, I think not.”

Riven had completely forgotten about the blockades. He’d been told once a while ago that battles frequently occurred around Elysium’s barrier surrounding Panu, usually between entire armadas of various factions that both supported and opposed Gluttony’s return. He could only imagine that it’d gotten worse or would get worse considering Allie’s timely ascendancy. But he was also somewhat removed from the entire thing in many aspects as - should he and Allie succeed in Panu’s conquest - they’d likely be moving the planet anyways per Elysium’s prize.

The armadas would only be a concern if Riven and Allie failed in their attempt. He was doubtless that The Blood Moon Requiem would intervene alongside the Church of Gluttony and the Church of Wrath in full force should that happen and an escape attempt be made off Panu - but that was still years away.

He honestly didn’t know.

The talks continued on for a time and He came to the conclusion that the guild hall way of bringing Kara over by hiring her would probably be best, though the distance fee would no doubt be astronomically high. Even he may have to raise some cash if the distance was too great, his grandmother told him, but it was otherwise possible. She did however say that he’d been rather stupid for putting up 3 billion for an F-grade mortal, and chided him thoroughly for it before buying him an item to help him descend and then disappearing as the communication lines were cut. It was unfortunate that Elysium limited their buys to only one item, and didn’t allow Riven his own access to buy anything else from the external options. But by the time she left, the rest of his team was up and about, having recovered from the archbishop’s potent presence.

[Your time with High Queen Nephridi, of The Blood Moon Requiem, Universe 10 - is now over.

High Queen Nephridi has bought your group the following:

• Map Layout of All Shortcuts up to Floor 45 (5.2 million Elysium Coins): An addition to the Abyssal Spirit Guide you’ve already been gifted: this 3-dimensional map shows all paths to shortcuts downwards into the floors below. This map will burn up and destroy itself after finishing Floor 45.

The Unholy Archbishop Prek An-Gash has bought your group the following:

• E-grade Abyssal Cultivation Array (12.7 million Elysium Coins): An array that draws on the powers of Sin, the Abyss, and all the branches of the Unholy Foundational Pillar to help expedite your cultivation. Drastically improves your foundations when creating your Soul Lattice to move into the E-grade. This device will shatter once your ascension has completed.

The Court of Emperor Adali has bought your group the following:

• 1,000 Tickets to the Abyssal Descent (These tickets have been directly removed from Emperor Adali’s spatial bag and have been transferred to you, cost averted): These tickets allow entry into the Abyssal Descent, one ticket per person.

King and Queen Rantali have bought your group the following:

• Abyssal Spirit Guide (3 million Elysium Coins): A spirit guide that has walked the halls of the descent for a long, long time. The spirit will remain with you while descending, and can guide you to the fastest possible routes to further levels. Faster, however, does not mean safer.

You’ve completed Floor 22: Ocean of Wrath. Proceeding to Floor 23: The Silent Chamber.]

Before Riven knew what hit him, he and his friends were all standing in the next floor. A tall totem shrine twice his height with unholy green light was the only source they could go off of to see into the surrounding darkness, and a circular stone carving in an otherwise perfectly smooth stone floor was projecting a barrier around the shrine with flickering wisps of gray. Outside the circle and beyond the barrier, bodies numbering in the many dozens lay in various mutilated positions - some of them very old, and some of them very new.

But his eyes, even with vampiric sight, could not penetrate that deep black curtain in the depths of their surroundings. The land appeared to just fade away, there was no sky, and soon enough a system notification hailed the start of the next event.

[Floor 22, The Silent Chamber, is now open to you. On this floor, the cursed enemies you encounter will be unkillable. They will not know where you are unless you make noise, and are completely blind. Your goal, along with each member of the team that is not a minion, will be to find soul lattice enhancement pills hidden in the outer darkness. Each of your members will need to collect their own set of three before moving on, you cannot give pills to one another. The only safe zone is within the barrier surrounding this altar you currently stand by. Good luck.]

The notification snapped closed, and he turned around to view the rest of his party.

Along with the abyssal spirit floating off to his left holding a cube that projected rotating three dimensional images. It appeared to be a wraith of some kind, though was made out of black abyssal energy instead of the normal kind of plasma seen with most undead.

“It appears you’re still with us, Prince Rantali.” Riven said with a smirk as the other prince looked around dubiously. “You look like you just came out of a bad nap.”

“Don’t think you’re funny!” Athela remarked, snapping her own notifications closed with a scowl and putting her hands on her hips. “You were the only one that managed to stay awake through the last two encounters, weren’t you!? That’s so unfair!”

Riven shook his head. “I was knocked out by Prek as well, but I did recover far faster than anyone else and spoke to High Queen Nephridi. Elder Thune has been labeled a heretic and a traitor, so there’s that, and Kathrine was saved by Allie.”

“Oh good! Yay! I’m glad Kathrine’s alright!”

Prince Rantali grunted and interrupted Athela’s cheers. “I wish I’d been able to speak with your grandmother, she’s a legend both figuratively and literally. Damn it all…”

Some of the vampire knights nodded in agreement nearby with mutters of their own.

Riven ignored them. “The question becomes just what we can learn from this wraith and his map, and then how we’re going to proceed with this next level. I can’t continue to take much more time here and am wanting to speed up progress to reach Lillith. I need to get back to Chalgathi’s trials soon, and want to be done with this descent within two weeks at most.”

He turned to the wraith with the cube. “So, spirit guide… Is it possible to reach Floor 50 within 2 weeks?”

The abyssal wraith slowly nodded while wisps of its ethereal black body moved in and out of the physical plane. It rotated the cube, ripped it in half, and a flood of neon teal energy laid out a three dimensional map that sprawled out for many meters in all directions.

When the abyssal spirit guide spoke, his voice was raspy - like he’d smoked too many cigarettes in his life. “The Abyssal Descent is always changing with a few noteworthy exceptions, but even so - the floors that do change always hold some kind of relative similarities. They also hold means to expediting your way down, if you know what to look for, so I would say yes. It is very possible to make it to the 50th floor within a time of 14 days… but you must be willing to take big risks to do so.”

The wraith held his hands out to the side. “And my name is Barbos. You may call me as such.”

***

Dark clouds hung over Brightsville, but that was the norm now. Only rarely did the sun ever peak out over the Death-attuned lands.

Allie’s inner circle had now expanded, and they filled the stadium alongside Tre’Zix who was here acting as a representative of Riven’s Gluttonous forces. The concentration of Sin and Death here was so potent due to their presence, that she wasn’t sure a normal mortal person would be able to survive for more than a few seconds.

Once again wearing the sleek platinum crown of spikes, she sat on Tyranus’s head next to Mara and scratched her undead drake’s scales that produced pleasurable moans from the giant beast. It was funny how much like a dog he was, aside from the vastly improved intelligence and power. The draconic beast had also leveled up quite a bit, reaching level 197 in large part due to her own power leaking through to him as he continued his fights on the battlefronts for The Thane Necropolis in her absence. He’d become something of a symbol for the press to focus on, with numerous scars now marring his bones and singed areas marking his flesh. Nor was he the only undead drake in their army either, not after Retesh’s forces had fled the northlands across the sea to come here - and there were even a few of the larger dragon variants too. Tyranus was now most often seen flying over the seas in the north, skirmishing against the merpeople and naga - or against Judith’s forces that pursued the fleeing undead peoples as they tried to escape genocide.

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To say that Allie was proud of Tyranus’s accomplishments during her time away was an understatement.

Fimrindle was there too, as still as usual while in lotus position next to the drake’s head.

Barktarus the Wrathful, the giant bone-wraith devil was there with neon flames rippling out of his skull face, while he hunched over the body of a slaughtered ox that’d been delivered at his request. Barktarus was one of three commanders that followed Wrath’s banishment into the abyss, and according to Wrath - Barktarus was the most violent and slaughter hungry of them all. The devil had a wraith’s outline wrapped around his spiked bone body much like Allie’s own body whenever she chose to transform into the Angel of Wrath - as opposed to the angel of death form she wore now.

Jebil of the Horror-Crux was Wrath’s second commander. An ancient tiefling lich, his body’s skin had long lost the red color and had turned a stark black, with lines of gray light filtering out of cracks where the skin had been sewn back together with magical threads; very reminiscent of her friend Mara’s own ghoul body. Jebil also lacked any lips, which made him look like he was constantly smiling in a grotesque manner with yellowed teeth, and he’d chosen to gauge out his own eyes in favor of using mana sight - which left craters in his head where the eyes should have been. Wielding dual bone wands, he was renowned for his ability in magical duels and was far faster than most other casters in both agility and his movement skill sets.

Then there was Amelia Deathfeather, an archangel of death that was the commander of all other angels of death now sitting, standing, or floating within the stadium. She never removed the metal mask on her face, which was a plain porcelain white without any holes for the eyes or nose. The mask wrapped around her face and clung there without issue, allowing long strands of black hair to fall about her shoulders and down her back. According to Wrath, angels grew more wings the longer they lived if they didn’t get direct evolutions for the additional limbs - and Amelia’s absolutely massive six black wings indicated that she was absolutely prehistoric. Green eyeballs were growing out of the feathers of some of her wings, looking around rather creepily, but her figure was tall and muscular in a very feminine way. Instead of robes or armor like some of the other angels sported, she wore tight wraps like a mummy that covered about two-thirds of her body.

Other demons and undead of both hybrid and non-hybrid varieties were present on the outskirts and waiting patiently to hear what Allie and Wrath had to say, but it was Amelia Deathfeather that spoke first.

“We answer the lion’s call.” The masked six-winged angel said with a whisper, bowing her head as all the other angels did the same. “Reincarnation, we thank you for hosting our parent sin in your soul aperture.”

Allie gave a slight nod of acknowledgement, but felt Wrath himself coming to the forefront in the coming seconds.

Just like Riven’s soul clone that produced the Great Maw, Allie’s own version of soul clone produced the Wrathful Lion. Taken form, it was the size of a horse and lacked any actual fur. Colored dark purple, it was all solid muscle, devoid of fat, with a rigid and sharp look to it. Instead of a fur mane, it had flexible purple spikes that moved based on how it turned its head. Razor sharp claws were out at all times, with a long whip-like tail that ended in a stinger - and its teeth were that of a sabertooth with huge canines.

“My old friends…” Wrath said as it took on physical form, and jumped up beside Allie to brush against her before sitting. “It’s been a very long time since we had such a thorough get-together.”

Chuckles from around the crowd echoed in the stadium, but they were short lived.

“You have all seen the signs of a dawning new age… and we are finally here.” Wrath continued after silence claimed the arena once again. “I have found a satisfactory vessel to grow in, we have achieved freedom from Elysium’s prison with a second chance at life, and we do so with our friends in Gluttony’s entourage close by for mutual support.”

Wrath gave Tre’Zix a nod of acknowledgement. “But we are weak in our current state, and this is only the beginning. As you all know, our levels and dao accomplishments have been reset. We retain some of what we once had but only a mere parcel compared to our previous power. Many of you are still at level 1 in the F-grade, and although I don’t doubt that you could probably still win against those far above what you are on script - you will still need to work hard to reach E-grade as soon as possible. Hopefully, within the next few months. Jebil of the Horror-Crux will dispense assignments to each of you in the wars that Allie Thane’s armies are dealing with now. Panu is an integrating world and we have only a relatively short amount of time to take this planet for ourselves, in order to gain Elysium’s gift of relocating this planet and hiding it from the greater multiverse to grow. Our worst enemies will doubtless try to come for us when the integration phase is over, and though many of our older followers remain - the faith that our church once had is lacking. We have been gone far too long, as have all the sins and commandments, and we represent a threat to the newer powers that rose up in our absence to fill the void of power we left behind.”

Jebil the tiefling lich nodded in satisfaction, smiling from underneath his hood.

“The items many of you had have also degraded in power from once almighty treasures to shadows of their former selves.” Wrath began again. “But per Elysium’s agreement, they will ascend at the same rate all of you do. They should not remain worthless F-grade items for long. It is at my command that all of you join the war efforts near Chicago, at the sea borders north of Umbra, and within the hellscape dungeon of Negrada to level yourselves by bathing in slaughter and blood. Gluttony’s forces are already on all three fronts and will assist us with any knowledge we may require.”

Barktarus cracked his neck and rose to his full height, which was similar to Azmoth’s own in his giant form. “Master, which of us will you send with Tre’Zix to find Greed’s men and the vampire traitor?”

The lion’s head turned to the six-winged angel in tight wrappings, staring down the numerous eyes focusing on him from numerous black feathers. “Amelia Deathfeather is best suited to finding that which is lost. Barkarus, you will be at the forefront of our forces with Jebil. Amelia, bring your angels with you to join the clan of Tre’Zix. We must find the vampire welp before he absorbs the fallen blood god’s essence, if not for Gluttony’s Reincarnation - then as a bargaining chip to play with the new Blood God.”

“Do you not require one of us to be at your side, my liege?” Amelia queried in a motherly tone from underneath her porcelain mask. “Sometimes you get a bit out of control, and I’d hate to have to resurrect your vessel so early after just having arrived.”

Wrath bared his teeth, and the spines on his main flared outwards. “I am not a weak cub, Amelia. Do not coddle me. My vessel is one of only a handful of E-grades on this entire planet.”

Some of the others in the stadium laughed at the exchange, but Amelia shook her head in dismay and flicked her wrist. “Fine. Allie, do not let yourself die. Knowing him, I would hate to have to wait another five thousand years to find a vessel that Wrath deems as acceptable.”

More laughter and murmurs of agreement.

“And what will you be doing, master?” The deep booming voice of Barktarus the bone-wraith devil asked while spreading his wings with neon-teal membranes stretched between bones. “What are your plans as Jebil and I take to the fields of battle, and Amelia leaves with Gluttony’s envoy?”

The Wrathful Lion turned to stare at Allie, who’d remained quiet next to Mara this entire exchange. “Allie and I have some personal matters to attend to before anything else.”

***

The city of Mandon was still in a state of needing repair after Rippenvire’s invasion over half a year ago, but it’d come a long way. The multi-layered city still reached into the skies to inspire those who looked on it, and the top layer in particular where the previous King Arthur Brix lived had been especially tended to. The man was no longer king, but labeled as the very first Duke under Allie’s banner in the new status quo of the Thane necropolis - while all other nobles had been reduced to Barons and Counts. Realistically the entire power structure of The Thane Necropolis was still in the making, but knowing that they retained some form of nobility made many of the old rich families of the region of Dawn less upset about being integrated into the greater power.

“Are you feeling alright?” Lady Shovi Lucio asked her youngest son, coming to stand next to Lahn on the balcony overlooking the sprawling flower gardens that’d been planted only two months before after the catastrophe and ruin had been cleaned up.

Lahn let out a long sigh, eyes sad as he stared out across the fields of brilliantly colored flowers with teal eyes and pale skin. Adjusting his well made suit, he tapped one of his boots against the stone railing and leaned over to stare down the fifty foot drop. “The flowers are a rather nice reminder of how things used to be. I’m amazed the alchemists could come up with a way to retain the greenery by adjusting the genomes of death-attuned plants, it’s almost like the attack on Mandon never happened.”

Lady Shovi Lucio raised an eyebrow and tussled his now brown hair. “Did you not like the silver coloring?”

“I like my original brown better. Bought the dye from a vendor in Angor’s Midtown two stories below.”

She smiled, but brought her own silver locks in front of her to stare at them. “I personally like mine. Fits the red dress I have on rather nicely! Or so your father tells me.”

Lahn tried not to grimace at the mention of his father. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw his asshole of a dad and his two siblings, Parius Lucio and Linela Lucio, mingling with the crowds of people. They were almost all deathtouched enlightened here, meaning they didn’t look all that different from when they’d been alive aside from the color changes, cold flesh, limited pain and Death attunements they now possessed. Most of the mortal humanoid races had gone this route, including their old enemies - the Tereen elves in the conquered neighboring province, though the humans of Dawn had adapted better to their new reality than the undead elves had.

In fact, many of Dawn’s people were outright optimistic about their futures.

“With the Thanes protecting us, why even have an army in Dawn?” He heard one noble say while laughing and drinking from crystal goblets further into the open-air ballroom.

“It’s only a matter of time before this war is over.” Another man in tight fitting victorian garb said in agreement.

“Panu will be ours, and we’ll be at the top of the food chain as early adopters.” A woman in a ballgown enthusiastically nodded in agreement.

Lahn turned away with a grimace, catching his mother’s stare on the way back to look at the flowering fields. “I’m truly alright, mother. Just down.”

“Is this about Allie abandoning you again?” Shovi asked hesitantly, already knowing the answer. “You’ve been on five dates just in the past month, Lahn. I did like Allie, and am disappointed, but you’ll find someone else who is just as good.”

Lahn tried not to scoff, and his hands gripped the railing hard. “She showed me love even while I was ill, mother. I just thought… I just thought that she was different. That’s all. Even after her return from wherever it was she’d gone to, she still hasn’t come back to see me days later. She’s forgotten about me. And I was fool enough to think that maybe, just maybe, she’d want to at least give me closure.”

Shovi’s eyes fell, but she reached out a hand to grasp her son’s own and squeezed. “She may have left… but I’ll always love you, Lahn. Always and forever. You’re still my baby boy.”

Warmth spread in his chest, and he let on a gentle smile that replaced the ever-present scowl he nowadays had. “Thanks mom. I know you will, and I’ll never forget it. You’re the best parent I could ever ask for.”

The sound of a bell ringing caused everyone to turn around and the laughter to subside.

The now Duke Arthur Brix wore a wide, brilliantly white smile and stroked his colored brown beard that was neatly trimmed on his face - casting glances over the crowd while standing atop a raised platform in the back of the ballroom where an orchestra was setting up string instruments. “Hello everyone, and welcome to my humble house! I hope you’re all enjoying the party, but I wanted to let you know that we’ll be clearing out the dance floor soon so that our younger members of the nobility can get to know one another better. At the end of the night, married couples will also be allowed to dance and I hope to see you there as I will take to the dance floor too!”

His eyes cast to Lahn with a twinkle. “My daughters are looking for suitors and I can’t have them childless forever! They may not be princesses anymore, but who cares when they have the faces of angels!”

“DAD!” One of the young women nearby exclaimed before punching him and hiding her face in embarrassment.

Laughter erupted from the crowd before he waved his hands for silence again.

“Now, now, before I get murdered by my own family!” He laughed while raising a crystal glass up in the air. “A toast to the recovery of our dominion! May Dawn flourish under the Thane Necropolis’s rule. Long live Riven and Allie Thane!”

Lahn’s jaw clenched, but he lifted his glass anyways. “Long live Riven and Allie Thane.”

There was a loud cheer, and soon the floor was cleared as music began to play.

A very pretty young woman, the daughter of the duke, started making her way through the crowds in a green dress that hugged her hips. She only had eyes for Lahn as other young men tried to stop and talk to her, but she brushed by them with a growing smile.

“Here she comes!” Shovi whispered excitedly, prodding her son forward. “This’ll be the third time she’s approached you, Lahn! She’s strikingly beautiful, go talk to her and maybe you’ll get another date! The last one was fun, yes?”

Lahn’s heart lifted slightly at seeing Aurora approach, and his eyes softened. The cold steel cage wrapped around his heart began to loosen up, and a smile played at his lips as he remembered the first kiss he’d shared with the previous princess. “Yes… The last date was rather fun indeed.”

Chugging his glass of wine, he shoved it into his mother’s hands and winked. “Wish me luck!”

“Oh you don’t need it, but good luck anyways!” Shovi giggled as he made his way through the bustling crowds to leave her behind. “Good luck Lahn, you’re a genuinely kind person and deserving of happiness. I truly hope you find it.”