Assault

Endyr was dreaming. He was aware of this fact because his body was gone and he was floating inside a pulsating void. There was only darkness, an infinite darkness that was omnipresent yet extinct, oppressive yet comforting, flowing yet stagnant. Endyr felt his soul crying out pitifully each time the darkness drew near, yet bubbles of exhilaration were also present. This cocktail of contradictions left Endyr reeling.

Time passed, though how much he did not know. An eternity may have passed and Endyr would be none the wiser. The total lack of sensory stimulus tore at his mental state, a thousand times worse than when he was an embryo. So bad was the depravation, Endyr could not help but wonder if this was a type of assault-one focused on shattering the ego and psyche of the target. The darkness swirled in on itself, stretching to infinity...

Infinity.

The word struck a chord with Endyr, stirring the dying remnants of his soul. The darkness responded in kind: thrumming like a string and twisting like a living being. Then, change erupted like a volcano. Endyr was pulled forward at a speed unable to be quantified through the void. No, this was no mere void. This was, somehow, the Plane of Infinity. Endyr had come home.

A new lull cam into affect. Endyr was continuously pulled for eons, with only the instinctual feeling that motion was still taking place keeping his sanity. And then, just as suddenly as it began, the pull lessened and stopped. Endyr had arrived at whatever had been pulling him. And soon enough, the culprit revealed themselves to Endyr.

The darkness congealed and warped, coalescing into a figure that took up the entire Plane of Infinity...or so it seemed to Endyr at least. Two pits of purple fire seemed to serve as eyes. This figure looked at the soul floating in front of it for a long time, before gigantic cracks formed and gave way. From the cracks, a voice burst out. "So, the wayward child returns once again. It has been countless eons and epochs since your sudden departure, younger brother."

Endyr did the equivalent of squinting his eyes at the figure's words. What he spoke and the tone...Endyr could guess this figure knew him. A Denizen of Infinity? Were they the one to pull him here without warning? On second thoughts...was he even a "he" or an "It", like Endyr was before reincarnation?

"Which one are you?"

Endyr asked this because the Denizens of Infinity were all identical in appearance, and their names often changed. Even the System granted them that privilege, one no other being in the Main Universe possessed. Once a name was given to your soul, the Akashic Records imprinted it forever, but Denizens were a unique exception.

The Denizen let out a laugh at Endyr's question before answering. "I am the sixth of our kind. In this age, you may call me Eros. Back then however, you knew me as Eos or Esha. Ring any bells yet, younger brother?"

A flood of information smashed into Endyr's battered psyche and forced its way inside his mind. Before he could stop it, his mind was pried open and violated. The force retreated, leaving certain pieces of information behind in Endyr's mind. It took him a long while to shake himself from his stupor, and then he fixed his gaze of Eros. "I remember you now. You were the one that always hung around Ker and Eris."

Amusement flickered in Eros' eyes before It spoke. "I am glad you remember, younger brother. After all, more than a billion years have passed since we last talked. Though I suppose it was our Avatars that conversed, and not us personally. Back then, we Denizens were incapable of properly thinking, weren't we?"

Eros' words made Endyr frown. He just realized that It was right. The whole event ongoing right now...such a thing would never happen, not between two Denizens at least. Something was wrong, and critically wrong at that. "Why did you pull me in here?" Endyr demanded. Eris let loose another chuckle as the flames in It's eyes blazed in tandem. "I did not summon you younger brother. I simply answered your plea for help."

"What plea?"

"Your plea. I don't know how you did it, but the Plane of Infinity is no longer accessible to you. Not in your current form at least. It trapped you in a state of limbo, slowly digesting your soul. If you didn't call out at that moment, you would likely have been erased by now. And of course, you are incredibly luck I was the to answer and not our other siblings."

A chill of foreboding gripped Endyr, but he had choice but to ask. "Why would our other siblings not be happy to see me?" he asked in trepidation.

Eros' smile abruptly transformed into a scowl and It's eyes erupted in purple fire.

"After you managed to commit suicide-touché by the way-the whole Main Universe changed. A quarter of it was sealed off and mutated into its own place, where not even we can enter. That is where you are now, I presume. But that is secondary. After word got out a Denizen was dead-truly dead-various Gods and Celestials rose against us. A vicious war broke out that destroyed another 20% of the Main Universe. It got so bad the System started killing any combatant over a certain Level to reduce damage. No Denizen died obviously, but we have been unable to set foot on a different Plane ever since. You have effectively revoked out sole source of entertainment, younger brother."

'Oh fuck me!' Endyr swore. He of all people knew just how much Denizens of Infinity relied on their Avatars and entertainment in general. Shutting them off from that source would warrant him 10 million years of beatings if he was still a Denizen, at the very least. "I don't suppose I can say sorry?" he asked politely.

Eros snorted and sneered at him. "If it was earlier on maybe. But now that everyone has had time to fester, no one is willing to forgive you. If they find you...you will die."

"You cant do that!" Endyr objected. "This is my true body now! That will seriously, permanently kill me! We are still siblings, aren't we?!"

He was grasping at straws, for if anyone brought the same argument to Denizen Endyr, he would have laughed in their face before crushing them regardless. Sure enough, raucous laughter bellowed from Eros.

"Don't worry, we will preserve you soul. You will just be stuck in a jar for several billion years. If you play nice, we might just let you out for a short walk every few millennium."

"Why aren't you doing just that then?" Endyr asked suspiciously.

Eros shook It's head and sighed deeply. "I would, but I lack the opportunity. Right now, your soul is too fragile and I would accidently kill you. As much as we hate you, we still do not desire your true death. Not even Hybris and Nemesis."

"Just to rectify, you didn't summon me to this Plane to begin with, right?"

"Correct, I honestly have no idea how you showed up here. If I were you younger brother...I would check my soul upon waking. Whatever call you subconsciously answered can not bode well for your mortal flesh. In fact, your current vessel may already be dead, crushed under the force of Infinity."

Eros' last remark was causal, but Endyr went into full panic mode. "Send me back!" he cried. Eros shot him a look of alight disgust before complying. "I didn't summon you, but I can evict you. I will naturally be informing the others about this, so rest unassured. Eventually, you will be punished for your foolish actions."

Before he could respond, Endyr felt the void shake and tremble. In a burst of light so bright it nearly left him catatonic, Endyr was pulled back to his body instantly. He awoke to Sia shaking him urgently, crying out his name.

"Altair, Altair, ALTAIR!" she screamed. All around them, tremors kept the room constantly vibrating. Outside the window, Endyr saw flames scurrying across the city, with screams and explosions ringing out irregularly. Clearly the city was under attack. Upon seeing Endyr was awake, Sia dragged him out of bed and towards the door.

As she reached it, the door was kicked down and violently flew into the room. Jace stood there, breathing heavily and with two dagger equipped. "We need to get the hell out of here. Stick close, and whatever you fucking do don't use Mana. It will light you up like a beacon for any hostile Ascenders in the hotel.

Jace had just finished his warning when Endyr's instincts screamed at him. In one fluid motion, he pushed Jace away at full strength and lunged back into the room with Sia. A split-second later, the hallway was torn apart by a vicious force. From the fire, four figures emerged. One was a woman while the other three were men, and all dressed in identical black robes and hoods. A medallion hung around their necks, a pyramid on what seemed to be a pile of flesh.

Endyr only had time to stir his Mana before the fighting erupted. The woman tackled Jace and crashed through the hallway wall, falling out of the building. The remaining three assassins turned towards Endyr and Sia and advanced into the room. As the first entered, he knocked on the door frame sarcastically.

"Knock knock kiddies. Room service!"