Ch51: Truth, Part One

"It is strange how new and unexpected conditions bring out unguessed ability to meet them."

― Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Warlord of Mars

Lightning thundered, purple white bolts that graced the skies of every world. Min could see them all, filled with terrified residents that called for comfort. A deep drone sang under the dirge of the cosmic storm, the hum of the immature realm's will. She had to calm the people and help Ven.

"Greetings, people of the Infinite Earths and worlds of the realm," Min cleared her throat and projected her voice to every corner of Ven's inner world. Infused with a clear energy, it stopped the cries of trillions. "Our homes are facing a potential disaster, the God of our realm is engaged in a great battle!" Fire carried with her voice and ignited in the hearts of the many. "Send your prayers to Lord Vendak now, help protect your planets and children at his side!"

Min watched as beings from across the realm fell to their knees, mortals and immortals alike. They opened their hearts and released their cultivated energy to the universe, all while bowed in prayer. An iridescent gold blossomed in the air, an ocean that rose to merge with the lightning above.

"That's it…" Min encouraged, even as she poured her own energy into the mix. "This is a battle for our very existence, give all you have, leave nothing behind!"

– – – –

"You heard the woman!" Mara released her cultivation and issued an Empire wide alert. "All citizens who are able must reinforce the realm with their power and any with the faith to pray must do so now!"

Worry tingled in her heart as she bowed her head. She didn't worship Ven as a God, like many of the commoners, but she believed. Her faith was born of trust and friendship, not devotion and blind acceptance.

'You better win out there…'

– – – –

"Master Kalina!" Aubrey spilled into the Principal's office, a combination of awe and horror on her face. "Did you hear? The Keeper of Order said that the Realm God is awake!"

Kalina glanced up from her desk and smiled. The young woman was her most accomplished apprentice, even if she was the latest to begin her training. Aubrey had asked about Ven on her first day, and badgered Kalina to no end about the subject once she became her personal pupil.

"I did hear, Min broadcast to the entire realm," Kalina motioned for the over excited woman to sit. "I have already given my inner power, but I'm afraid I don't have any faith to spare."

"Why not?" Aubrey frowned as she ignored the offer to relax. She paced back and forth, face a tangle of emotions. "You know him, why wouldn't you believe?"

"I believe," Kalina laughed as ancient memories surfaced like a welcome rain. "I met him when he was the littlest of fish, he'll never be a God to me, just the beloved pet that outgrew its bonds…"

– – – –

A wave of tainted force crashed through Ven's body. Driven beyond speed, he tumbled from fragmented space, into an untouched reality. The nearby life world went ignored as his fist drove forward, in time to meet the face of the now compressed Titan. 

"AHHH!!!" Shrunken to reduce his blind spots, the Titan's nose crumpled as Ven's knuckles connected. A rune etched itself into the monster's black flesh on contact, RUINATION displayed for any who could read it. "These cursed runes cannot destroy me…"

The Titan reached up and ripped the word from his body, along with a chunk of meat. It was tossed aside as his damaged face healed.

"We'll see…" Ven pressed forward. Every action in this form was supported by appropriate runes, but it took a huge toll.

He fainted a jab and spun into a kick, aimed for the Titan's head. The blow caught on the beast's elbow, another ruination effect that scarred his enemies flesh. Ven staggered back, tank almost empty. The fire of his cores had dimmed to embers, hotter than flame but at the end of their life.

'I need to wrap this up.'

His speed had already dropped, the Titan's movements close to a blur as they traded hands. The fallen Titan left him with no room to breathe, pressed close as saliva dripped from the corners of madman's mouth.

"You look at me with such disgust," The Titan barked out a laugh as he kicked Ven square in the chest. He kept close as Ven soared back, eyes filled with black fire. "I can smell my blood in you… answer me this, child of my flesh," He grabbed Ven by the face and kneed him in the stomach. "What would you do, if that system of yours vanished?"

Ven spat blood before his runes healed his body. He was getting weaker, while his enemy hadn't faltered for a second. Teeth grit, he forced himself to face the Titan as the crazed fellow continued.

"We have the same hunger, you and I," The Titan returned to his true size, a bulk that smashed the universe aside. He loomed above Ven, impossibly huge. "We must eat, or we will die, and the stronger we get, the more we must consume!"

"I've lived starvation before," Ven grunted as a light flowed under his skin. A volume of power that rode his connection to his realm and seeped into his weary cells. "I'd do it again, before I ever walked the path you've chosen…"

"You shall have the chance to prove it soon," The Titan snorted as his palms rose to surround Ven's body from all sides. "I'll rip the system from your soul and dump you in the empty to experience my pain!"

Ven ignored the words and followed a strange power that rose within him. A taste of a thousand joys, the sorrow of loss and the hope for the future. It was as if a multitude of people stood behind him, hands raised in support.

"You put too much value on your personal pain," Ven channelled the new energy into the runes on his skin and opened his eyes. "Power only places us above others if we choose evil, I might be a hypocrite… but I won't make that choice again!"