Book 5, chapter 32

Zee and her mother walked along a narrow dirt path, wandering next to a river filled with crystal clear water. The sound of a crashing waterfall echoed behind them, creating a backdrop for their walk. The sweet smell of night bloom tea leaves wafted on the air, and a gentle breeze made the grass on the banks rustle.

For the most part, they walked in silence, their boots crunching on the dirt path. With night falling, and Zee leaving the next morning, her mother was in a dower mood.

It felt as though an unbridgeable chasm had formed between them. Zee wanted to give her mother assurances, but it all just felt so empty.

The fact of the matter was, she didn't have confidence in returning. Instead of broaching that touchy subject, Zee decided to talk about something else.

"Did Dad tell you about the gift I got you?" Zee asked.

Her mother brightened. "He did. I almost forgot to thank you for that. How did you get your hands on a world rot seed?" Cylia asked curiously.

"I have my ways," Zee deflected. 

Cylia gave Zee a sidelong glance that spoke volumes.

"I worry about you sometimes. You have a habit of causing trouble. I wish you would stop antagonizing people like the Terlashar emissary and the emperor," Cylia said.

Zee grimaced at the not-so-subtle rebuke. Her mother was right, of course. Antagonizing people who could destroy her with a thought wasn't healthy for her long-term prospects.

Still, Zee wasn't going to make any promises. She had things to do, and some of them involved angering old monsters. Instead of delving deeper into that treacherous subject, she changed tact.

"There is something I wanted to ask you," Zee deflected.

"Ask away," Cylia replied, her face a calm mask.

"Why is the emperor so insistent on someone with all three bloodline talents inheriting the throne? I have been thinking about it for a while now, and It still doesn't make sense. If he wants to abdicate so badly, then why doesn't he just leave?" Zee asked.

Cylia paused next to the mouth of the bridge across the river, anxiously glancing around for anyone listening in. There was no one in the planar space with them, but better safe than sorry. Her mother looked hesitant to reply at first, but eventually spoke. 

"Back when I first awakened the avatar of dominion, the emperor was paying a lot of attention to me. I too was curious as to why the emperor didn't crown Verenia the successor to the throne. 

Your grandmother was always tight-lipped on the subject, but one evening, she was angry about something the emperor did. She told me of a monster that lives beneath the palace. It is not a prisoner like everyone thinks, no, it is the prison guard. There is something else locked away in the depths of the palace. 

The monster who rules the planar space and the emperor form a binding contract to keep whatever is down there trapped. Even Verenia didn't know what they are trapping, and I suspect not even Farsaic knows. What I do know is the last twenty generations of emperors have been trapping it," Cylia said. 

Zee listened intently, not sure what to think about her mother's words.

"It sounds alot like the emperor cannot leave," Zee said. 

Her mother nodded. "He has never admitted as much, but I suspect that is the case. Since he was crowned emperor, he has not left the bounds of the empire. I suspect it is because the contract with the monster prevents it," Cylia said.

Zee swore inwardly, doubly revolted at the idea of becoming the next successor. No wonder the emperor wanted to force it upon her. He wanted to leave.

"Any ideas on how I can avoid becoming the next empress?" Zee asked, her tone hopeful.

Cylia shook her head regretfully.

"Nothing I could do would help at this point. Given you have awakened all three bloodline talents, my efforts would be futile," Cylia said with a helpless shrug.

"Well, so much for that," Zee grumbled.

Her mother laughed.

"I did warn you not to get involved with imperial politics,"

"I really wish I would have been more careful. I was too rash, and now I am caught up in the emperor's schemes," Zee said.

Cylia placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Things will work out. Just keep out of trouble, and come back safe alright?" Cylia said.

Zee didn't want to make any promises, but noting the tension in her mother's shoulders she nodded anyway. So what if her words may be a false promise? Her parents deserved some assurances, so she would give them.

***

The portal flashed to life, swirling with a calming dark blue backdrop of a gate through the spirit realm. Zee and her team shuffled forwards with the rest of the line, making Idle banter. 

The spatial cultivator who opened the gate lingering nearby which was odd, but Zee was too hungover to care if the man was slacking on her job. All that mattered was that the portal to Lorocos was open, and the line was moving forward single file. Saying goodbye to her parents had been hard, but necessary. She could still see the troubled look on her mom and dad's face as she hugged them goodbye.

Most of a week had come and gone in a flash, and now it was time to return. General Danmas' battle group would be leaving soon and they couldn't be late. 

The line slowly shuffled forwards, with Zee and Bastion being at the back of the line. Bastion entered the gateway first, and Zee followed close behind. Zee was lost in thought, not really paying attention. She was so distracted that she didn't react in time when the portal shimmered, changing hue.

Out of the corner of her eye, the D grade spatial cultivator snapped his fingers the moment she stepped into the gate.

Her heart leapt in her chest, and her stomach lurched, as space twisted. In a gut wrenching surge of spatial energy, she was teleported elsewhere.

Instead of appearing in the bustling teleportation hub of Lorocos, Zee appeared in a small glade surrounded by towering trees. The chaotic swirl of energy from the brute force gate clouded her sense for a moment, slowly dissipating. 

The scent of earth and pine needles filled her nose, with the sound of a startled bird squawking filling her ears. 

Zee wasn't sure where she was, but based on the three roiling gaseous clouds hovering a hundred feet away, she could guess why she was here.

It appeared she had been teleported into a trap. For a few seconds, she wondered how much these three paid to buy off the official back in Othera? Zee quickly shook off the thought, as it was unimportant for now. She could discover that little tidbit if she survived the upcoming confrontation.

"Fess Cal, fancy seeing you here," Zee said in greeting. 

Outwardly she was calm, but inwardly she was scrambling.

"Dern, what do we do?" Zee mentally shouted.

Before Dern could reply, Fess Cal floated a few meters forward, their form shaking in what Zee suspected was anger.

"Abomination! Come out, I know you are in there," Fess Cal hissed.

Zee froze. Ohh crap, they had sensed Dern!

What now?

"Call me out, I will talk to them," Dern said, in a surprisingly calm voice. 

Unsure what else to do, she complied.

The air in front of her shimmered, and Dern appeared. There was an audible gasp and the three Ashary floated back. Clutching his glaive in a gauntleted fist, Dern strode forward.

He looked like an expertly crafted suit of silver and black armor covered in wicked spikes, lacking only a helmet. The sound of his heavy boots filled the air on dirt filled the air as his aura oozed from his frame.

His domineering aura made chills run up her spine, reeking of taboo, bloodlust and the abyss. 

Zee used to think this was how the auras of all Ashary would feel. She had been mistaken. 

The three Ashary floating in front of them scrambled closer together, letting out their own incredibly pure auras that pushed his away.

Zee raised an eyebrow at the reaction.

In a show of support, they had all moved in a huddled bunch to combat the pressure he put them under. It seemed smart on the surface, but it was foolish. One attack could suddenly hit all three of them.

Zee was tempted to unleash an attack right away, but was stopped by Dern's mental nudge. 

"Hold off, this will doubtless turn violent, but still, I want to talk to them first," Dern said. 

"Alright, do you think," Zee said.

It was a perfect opportunity to attack while they were clumped up, but if Dern wanted to talk first, who was she to deny him? 

Instead, she got ready, conjuring Kur Zul. The specter slither into the ground beneath her feet, traveling unseen to get behind their opponents. 

"Stop, abomination! Don't come any closer," Fess Cal shouted.

Dern paused only twenty feet away from the trio, just out of reach of his glaive. After an unsteady pause, Dern broke the tense silence.

"You are all acting like a bunch of children. I always knew the Cal clan was weak, but this is embarrassing," Dern said, his disdainful voice echoing in their minds.

Like a storm, Fess Cal's body roiled angrily. 

"How dare you insult our clan? Our clan may not be strongest amongst the Ashary, but at least we do not commit the ultimate sin and delve into taboo," Fess Cal replied.

Zee could sense Dern's anger spike in her mind. 

"I didn't have a choice!" Dern snapped." The council stripped my power and banished me to death. I never wanted this," Dern said.

They still sounded disgusted, but Fess Cal's voice was much softer when they responded.

"I see... Given your circumstances, I suppose it makes sense. It was quite clever taking over that human's body, that's a good way to stave off the madness," Fess sighed." It is a shame that you will go mad from starvation like the others. Even with your taboo method, you only have a few months. Why not just let us save you from the pain?" Fess Cal said, seeming genuinely concerned.

Dern scoffed. "I was banished six years ago, and I'm still perfectly sane," Dern said.

"You lie! That is not possible. Your very presence will destroy any creature you inhabit. That vessel you have right now may be above average for a human but she is no different. Her soul will decay in only a few months," the right-most Ashary said.

"Lin Cal is right. What you say is an impossibility," Fess insisted. 

Dern shrugged. "Believe what you want. I am not here to convince you of anything. I simply revealed my presence so you would leave my vessel alone. We are not in Ashary territory, so what I do is not your problem," Dern said.

The three Ashary exchanged looks, seeming to have a silent conversation for a few seconds.

Finally one spoke, the one who had been silent until now. They were made up of a vibrant green gas, their voice surprisingly deep.

"As a former member of our kind, you know the rules. The Ashary high council does not tolerate an abomination like yourself. Even if this is not our territory, it is our duty to right this wrong," the Ashary said. 

The others bobbed in agreement. Fess Cal floated forward, appearing somber.

"Before we cleanse you and your vessel, do you have any loved ones you would like us to deliver a message to?" Fess Cal asked. 

Dern paused. "Are there any members of the Choel Mar clan in this area?" Dern asked.

Fess bobbed in the air.

"Several groups of the Choel Mar clan are searching the borders of the cosmic river. If you would like, we can send a message to them, what was your name?" Fess Cal asked.

Dern ignored the question.

"Thank you for the information. You have been a lot more understanding than I expected you to be. Therefore, I will return the favor. Leave my vessel and I alone and don't come back. If you attack me and mine, there will be no mercy," Dern said.

His tone was surprisingly respectful, yet cold at the same time. 

"I appreciate the warning, but we cannot back down. We must cleanse this corruption," Fess Cal said. 

Dern nodded somberly, sending her a mental nudge. It was exactly what she had been waiting for. Zee rolled her shoulders. Well, it looked like negotiations had fallen through. The three Ashary hadn't spared her a glance, and now it was time to show them why that was a huge mistake.

She would show them that she wasn't just some vessel. 

Her perception slowed as the heart of fire drummed in her chest, spreading vibrant flames through her body. Her sword slid from its scabbard, humming with power as she channeled energy.

Time to show these Ashary why it was a bad idea to clump up. 

The world river went mad as she thrust at the air, the force creating a shockwave. It was a seemingly simple thrust, and yet it carried enormous amounts of energy. Crashing waves of intense gravity assaulted her senses, as a pinprick of utter darkness formed where she pierced space.

The three Ashary acted fast, erecting dense shimmering barriers, but it was already too late. An incredibly powerful pressure dragged at their gaseous forms, compliments of her Gravity Well skill.

A fist-sized singularity had formed in their midst, forming a domain of immense gravity. Zee hadn't had many chances to use her newest skill over the past couple of weeks, but now was as good a time as any to test it.

An incredible pull far surpassing her aura of compression dragged the Ashary together. 

The skill was just as potent as she hoped, but her opponents were not just some bog common cultivators. 

Fess Cal reacted with remarkable speed, conjuring a thick dome of ice around the singularity.

The explosion of ice filled the air with an icy chill, covering the forest in a creeping frost that tried to burrow into her body. The barrier immediately cracked and started to fall inward, but it was enough for the others to activate moment skills to escape the incredible pull.

Zee clicked her tongue, disappointed at the lackluster result.

As it turned out, the Ashary's cloud-like bodies allowed them to mostly ignore the intense gravity of her finisher. That was good to know for the future. 

Being made of heavy armor, Dern was not so lucky. Even with his glaive buried in the ground, he was being dragged into the singularity. More importantly, it made him unable to block an incoming attack.

Zee quickly deactivated her skill, but the damage was already caused. Her own skill had given Fess Cal the perfect opportunity to crack his chest plate with a huge ice spike.

So much for eking out an easy victory. Well, it wasn't all bad. Dern could handle quite a beating, shown by the fact that the ice spike hardly even cracked his chest plate at all. 

Dern's mental voice filled her head. "You take those two, I will keep this one distracted until you finish them off," Dern said, his glaive shearing another ice spike clean in half.

"Will do, hold on as long as you can," Zee said, excitement in her voice. She had been aching for a fight for a while now, and these three were perfect targets to push herself to her limits. They were all middle E grade, but judging by their incredibly pure auras, her advantage in rank wouldn't mean much. She would have to go all out to claim victory here. The thought was exciting. Time to see how much she had grown over the last half year. 

Lin Cal appeared off to her right in a grove of trees, immediately launching a gale-force wind at her. The attack carried unmistakable power, matching the strength of her own finisher, but it was too slow. Zee was already on the move, vanishing in a cloud of mist that was oddly reminiscent of her opponent's movement skills. 

Behind her, there was an explosion of dirt and rock, as the attack struck her previous position. She reappeared in front of the mottled gray cloud that was Lin Cal and swung at them with a ruthless arc. Spirit echo roiled along her blade, which gouged into the Ashary's gaseous form.

There was a high-pitched wail of pain like howling wind as the corrosive effects of her spiritual flame started its gruesome work. Gaseous or not, it appeared the Ashary were not immune to the effects of spirit echo. Well, that was a relief. After her Gravity Well skill failed so spectacularly, she hadn't been certain it would hurt them. 

She only got in one swing before a huge gust of wind threw her away, sending her flying through the forest. She tumbled and rolled a few times, breaking a few branches in an assisted flight. Zee had a few new bruises, but it was worth it to inflict a grievous wound. 

Clambering to her feet, Zee was immediately forced to leap to one side, as vines sprung up from the ground trying to grab her.

It was the third Ashary, the one whose aura smelled of earth and nature. She swore, cutting off several thorny vines dripping with poison that tried to wrap her up. They came from all directions, a relentless assault that tried to overwhelm her with numbers.

Most cultivators would have been gouged or caught within seconds, but Zee was not like most Cultivators. Her sword was a blur as she cut the vines off with blinding speed, seeming to have eyes in the back of her head. Well, she technically did, with her spatial ripple skill giving her omnidirectional sight.

With each moment she fought there, more and more vines appeared, creating an inescapable net around her. The flurry of attacks was relentless, not giving her a moment to counter with one of her own. All the while, she could sense the world river going mad. Fifty meters away, Lin Cal was preparing what looked like a raging cyclone to throw at her. 

Zee swore, her sword singing as she hacked the vines to pieces. She couldn't just stand here and let them attack from a distance, but the vines were unending. The wind shrieked, and the forest groaned as the cyclone was thrown at her. She was harried on all sides by vines, unable to move in time. 

Or at least that is what she wanted her enemies to think. The two Ashary were so focused on making sure she couldn't escape that they failed to notice a certain spectral hiding in the crown of a tree. 

Over the roaring of the cyclone approaching, Zee's hair rose on end as his ghastly chant echoed in the wind.

"The goal of all life is death," 

The cyclone struck, and there was a loud scream of agony.

It wasn't Zee, but the one of the Ashary. She had waited until the last second to use her movement skill to dodge the cyclone and was covered in a few bleeding cuts. As she reappeared using a tree for cover from the gale-force wind, Zee peered out at the Ashary who conjured the vines.

They had just been struck by a spectral bird that dove straight through a multi-layered barrier like it wasn't there. Just like the ghost himself, his attacks could phase through barriers and solid objects like they were not there. If the Ashary had used a movement skill to dodge, they would have been fine, but it had blindly trusted its barriers. 

And now nature attuned Ashary's form churned like a boiling pot of soup stuffed deeper into the furnace. Their aura shuddered unsteadily, and forest trembled, as nature attuned Ashary's gaseous body exploded. She hadn't been certain it would work, but Kur Zul's ultimate skill had been extremely effective. It was just a shame he could only use that skill once a day. 

Nothing but a green fog remained, slowly dissipating into a raging wind still buffeting them. 

In a fit of rage, Lin Cal's form exploded with energy. A hurricane-force wind built around them, throwing Zee back despite using a thick tree for cover.

The building power made that cyclone from earlier seem like a gentle breeze and would be trouble if she let it go off.

Not even her movement skill would help her come out unscathed if she didn't do something. 

Luckily, Zee had just the thing to counter that kind of attack.

Ignoring a gash that dripped blood into her left eye, she raised her hands, gripping her sword in a two hand grip.

Her sword vibrated, and the spiritual currents of ebb and flow raged around her.

Cutting down in a viscous slash, she infused over three quarters of her mental energy into an all out attack.

A pitch black guillotine of pure force crossed the hundred meter gap in a heartbeat. Space was ripped asunder, and an unbridgeable chasm formed in the air. The wind attuned Ashary's attack was extremely powerful, but that didn't matter when Zees was faster.

The incredibly sharp slash in reality cut right through the hurricane winds, splitting the startled Ashary clean in half. Her attack formed a spatial tear fifty meters tall, a cut on reality itself that swirled and cracked ominously.

It was like a gateway to hell, one that sucked in the hurricane winds, dragging them to somewhere else. 

Wiping blood from her eye, Zee whired. She didn't have time to admire the aftermath, rushing through the now turbid wind. 

She hadn't been keeping track of Dern's battle with Fess Cal, but now that she did, she realized it wasn't going well.

His armor was covered in ice, and marred with cracks that oozed energy. 

On the other side, Fess Cal almost completly uninjured, floating well out of reach of Dern's glaive. It was an ill-suited matchup, where Fess Cal could bombard him with icy projectiles from a distance, while Dern could only try to dodge. 

Fess Cal seemed determined to destroy his conjured form, even at the cost of losing two of their comrades.

Zee wasn't sure why. Destroying his conjured form wouldn't kill him permanently. Killing her was the only way to do that. This strategy seemed incredibly foolish.

Even heavily injured as his conjured form was, she could always just call him back and let him recover.

Which is exactly what she tried to do. Zee appeared on the fridges clearing, reaching out with her mind to cancel her summon skill and call him back.

Zee hadn't been concerned at all for him, until nothing happened. Alarm bells rang in her mind as she tried and failed to call him back again.

An ice spike, shimmering with a familiar ominous power, shot down, punching a hole through Dern's shoulder, pinning him to the ground.

There was a horrific stab of pain assaulting Zee's mind, as the engraved lines on her fragment cracked. Horror gripped her. 

She wasn't sure how, but Fess Cal was actually killing Dern. With a crushing realization, she understood that if Dern died right now, he would be permanently killed, and so would she.

Zee had thought them foolish for splitting up like that, but it appeared she was the fool.

The nature and wind attuned Ashary had been delaying her, while Fess Cal killed Dern.

Zee hadn't even expected this was possible, and now horror gripped her as a massive clump of ice radiating an immense power formed in the sky. It descended towards Dern like a falling mountain.

Her mind raced, searching for a way out, as she flashed forward, appearing right next to Dern. He was frozen to the ground by thick layers of ice, and his armor was heavily damaged. Something about that frigid ice made her summon skill unresponsive. 

It created a domain that restricted her somehow. Hacking him free would take too long, and worse, she had already used her most powerful skills to kill the other two Ashary. 

Only one solution came to mind. Something powerful enough to block the descending icy mountain. The forest trembled, and the air caught on fire, as an orb of azure flames appeared right above her. There was no heat, and yet, everything for a hundred meters around her burned, decaying at an incredible speed.

The avatar of dominion ballooned in size, shooting up into the sky to meet the descending mountain of ice. Normally, it would take ten seconds to fully grow the avatar, but this was the benefit of awakening the Mantle. 

At the cost of draining her own energy, as well as tapping into the heart of fire, she could speed up the process and even move the avatar.

Without any other solutions, she threw the avatar right at the icy mountain. 

"Get out of my way Vermin!" Fess Cal shouted, floating atop their attack. 

"Go stuff it!" Zee shouted back, rooting her feet in place. 

Swelling to the size of a cart, the avatar of spiritual flames slammed into the underside of the falling ice. The world seemed to stand still as fire and ice were locked in a battle of strength. Then everything went white as a tremendous explosion of ice and flames rocked the forest.