88 Breach

There was something here... Something that Riku knew that he could still draw from within him. Repeatedly, he kept banging at the proverbial door of his power, forcing it to come to his will.

[BOONS OF CHAOS: CHAOTIC SYSTEM TRUMP NOT AVAILABLE]

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On and on, he banged at the thin wall stopping him from accessing more of Nyx's Chaotic power. Somewhere deep inside, he knew that what he was doing was dangerous. A primal instinct within him roared against his attempts; a singular urge telling him that what he was doing could get him killed. However, he was on the verge of dying right now. On the verge of failing a mission that he put upon himself.

He refused to die so stupidly like this. Not when he knew he still had more tools at his disposal.

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For a full agonizing minute, Riku kept bashing his head against the barrier, the light from above now barely but a twinkle as the dim shine of the undersea stars around him barely gave him any light. Some fish were starting to investigate him, probably thinking that he was their next meal as he remained unmoving, focused on the task at hand.

'Come on...' he grumbled, his consciousness starting to fade. 'Break, damn you...'

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[BOONS OF CHAOS: CHAOTIC SYSTEM TRUMP- TRUMP TRUMP TRUMP]

His eyes widened as Nyx's telltale voice suddenly started to repeat itself, its clarity becoming muddled as if he was listening more to a poor radio recording instead of a proper one. At the same time, a dull pain bloom in his chest as he felt the barrier stopping him from accessing more of Nyx's power began to break, a small metaphorical crack breaching and allowing a small sliver of his goddess's power to flow through him.

Seeing a breakthrough, Riku kept at it, bracing himself as he repeatedly banged at the barrier separating him from his goddess's power. More and more, he felt a newfound power flowing through him, his strength returning as the lack of oxygen suddenly didn't seem like an immediate concern anymore.

[TRUMP TRUMP TRUMP TRUMP]

For just a little more, he knew that he was close to a breaking point. He was onto something, something that Nyx clearly didn't want him to know. He could feel the dull pain in his chest starting to grow the more he let her power flow through him, and he just knew that if he kept doing this, there was a chance that he'd just black out from the all of the pain.

And still, he refused to stop.

[TRUMP TRUMP TRUMP ERROR ERROR ERROR]

Despite the clear warnings, he continued. Honestly, he was surprised that-

/M-My Champion?! What in the world are you doing?! Stop this immediately!/

***

{NYX POV}

Still fully in her nap, Nyx was more than ready to simply let things roll and see where they settled. She was pretty sure that Riku would be fine on his own. And with how Shizu was pushing herself, she was certain that her friend would find her way back to them as well. As such, all she had to do now was sit back, relax, and-

*thump...*

Nyx grumbled in her sleep as she felt a faint throb coming from within her chest. Not that it was alarming, but it wasn't enough to rouse her from her sleep. Besides, it probably wasn't important-

*thump thump thump...*

The goddess's heart skipped in her sleep, causing Nyx to slowly stir awake even unconsciously. Her hand placed over her chest, she rubbed the drowsiness out of her eyes as she squinted at the still-ruined battlefield around her.

"W-Wha... It's not over yet?"

Nyx squinted as a pang of confusion washed over her. She wasn't one to wake up from a scheduled nap. Shizu's barrier was still holding, so it wasn't like the boat needed her to repair it. And her two companions weren't back yet, so why did she...

*thump thump THUMP*

"N-Ngh... W-what was that?"

The goddess's eyes widened in both confusion as she felt her heart beat erratically. In her head, a faint banging sound could be heard as she felt something trying to access her power. Then a few more thuds echoed from within her chest, causing her to clutch at her breast with a hiss.

"Is this... pain?" she wondered to herself. "That was.... I'm feeling pain?"

Nyx's eyes narrowed in suspicion at her conclusion. Even the very concept of such a feeling was foreign to her. After all, the only reason a god would ever feel pain was if their domain and very Aspect was at risk of damage, or if someone was trying to... tap into their own wells of power without permission...

Immediately, her eyes widened in alarm.

/M-My Champion?! What in the world are you doing?! Stop this immediately!/

Contacting Riku, her Champion didn't even bother to stop as his constant attempts to breach her defense refused to stop. The pain wasn't so much that she was in agony. In fact, it was more like an annoying hiccup that refused to leave. But still, her Champion was playing with power that he was far from being able to contain.

/You're going to die!/ she insisted. /There's a reason I didn't-/

But before she could finish her thought, she felt something within her snap as she lurched over. Her heart began beating faster at the sudden intrusion, the conduit where her power flowed to Riku now surging with unchecked pressure as Nyx could only frown at the breach of her very being.

/Don't say I didn't warn you.../

Disappointed, Nyx could only sigh as she sank back into her lounge chair, her hand rubbing the dull throb on her chest as she allowed her Champion to do as he pleased.

"You too, huh..."

Well, if her companions wanted to play with powers far beyond their capabilities, then who was she to stop them?