Dark Matter Ascension

"And done," Quinn said as she finished the final touches.

Shhiv sat up a bit straighter from the lounged position she had been in, sitting on Quinn's couch near her "battlestation" as she called it. A series of monitors around a desk that were mind-boggling to try and track all at once. But it had been Shhiv's recent place to hang out while she tested out her Cosmic System capabilities…mostly because she could see Jace.

Well, the top of him, and his immediate surroundings. Thanks to Quinn's Celestial Observer, she could watch what was going on. And Quinn didn't seem to mind as long as Shhiv didn't interrupt her. Shhiv walked over, "We ready?"

"Yup," Quinn replied as she stood up, stretching. "I sent the information over to Josie. In a few, she will go through an accelerated level-up with you. All the way from where you are now to Tier 10. It will burn through pretty much all of the Stardust that the group has been investing."

Shhiv sucked in a breath of shock, "They spent all that on me?"

Quinn smirked and looked at Shhiv fondly, gently putting a hand on her shoulder. "Without Jace's efforts, each of us would have died. He saved me and Greg back on Velenar Prime. He forgave me for betraying him. He let Priam live when he had every right to kill him for helping an attempt on his life. Dee? Well, Jace never directly saved her, but she is easy-go-lucky, and Stardust isn't something "shiny she wants to collect," to use her words." Quinn chuckled and lightly squeezed Shhiv's shoulder. "They felt like they needed to repay him. And he has no need for Stardust."

Shhiv felt overwhelmed with thankfulness and gratitude she had no clue how to express. Instead, she just reached in and hugged Quinn, feeling her tail flick back and forth – which she had to keep from whipping into the furniture and slashing to bits. "Thank you," she whispered.

Quinn hugged her back and then gently pushed Shhiv away, "Go and level up. We'll go and have a night on the town soon here. Ladies' night! You, me, Missy, Dee, Ree. I've been researching restaurants in Khrox and found a place that seems great."

Shhiv glanced at the monitor, "But monitoring Jace-"

"It'll be fine. He's got Ollie and Xera will take over my console."

Shivv felt her worry instantly wash away. "That's good. Okay then. Off to my apartment to level up."

Jace followed Moltrinoch to the base of the walls. He saw along the base more of the Runes that had been carved in, reading [Stability]. Just like the stakes around Richter's Repose. The demon led him down to a section of wall that was similarly carved and formed, but there was a slight difference in the stonework. The demon landed, pressed a series of four different stones, and once all were slightly depressed, a chunk of wall rumbled ever-so-slightly. Placing his claws on the rock, Jace saw the tiny grooves that the tips fit into, and Moltrinoch pushed the stone aside into the rest of the wall.

"This is the emergency exit," Moltrinoch stated. "Takes us right into the main hall outside of the throne room. Remember our deal, yes?"

"I kill Riscarn, you take over," Jace confirmed as he drew his sword. Crusader's Bastion, Dark Energy Mine (Rank 1), Void Brand (Rank 1), Void Blade (Rank 17) [Rending], Void Shield (Rank 6). His weapon blazed with white-grey wisps, crimson nebula, and golden flames. The shield that manifested on his other arm was, likewise, blazing gold.

Moltrinoch winced and instinctively backed away into the tunnel before remembering himself and chuckling. "Shall we?"

Jace nodded, "You lead. Put him off guard."

Moltrinoch smirked, but there was just a trace of fear behind the smile. "Of course."

He is going to betray you the second you look like you are injured, Ollie reminded Jace.

I know, Jace thought back as he descended into the stone corridor, silent as a whisper. Thanks to his leg's (Lightfoot) Augmentation, his footsteps were incredibly hard to detect. That coupled with Void Stalker made him impossible to track or notice. Well, save for Astral Demons who were higher Potency than him.

Moltrinoch glanced back a few times, ensuring Jace was present and still following him, and the duo reached a locked door covered with runes that read [Forbidden Access]. This stuck out to Jace, because it was the first object he had seen with multiple Runes on it. I still don't even know how Runes work, Jace thought. I don't know what they operate off of. Glancing down at his Hero's Blade, he did not see any Runes. And it doesn't have anything to do with these Relics, either.

Shhiv will be able to figure out more once she starts using her Astral Class in earnest.

Jace followed Moltrinoch through the now-open door and the stonework shifted to something less rough-hewn and more perfectly crafted. Stones that were interlaid and set together with mortar. The demon led Jace up a set of stairs, then turned and whispered, "This next door will open behind a statue in the main hall. Let me go up, see if Riscarn is present, and then I will return to notify you."

"Fine," Jace replied as he crept up the stairs. Another metal door stood in their way, and Moltrinoch opened it before stepping past and shutting it almost all the way – he left a little crack there.

The footsteps of the figure faded into the distance, and Jace let his helmet recede as he pushed his ear up to the crevice. He could hear, far off in the distance, the sounds of the explosive impacts against the shields covering the city. But that consistent thumping was the only real sound he could make out.

Until the shouting. He heard shouting, screaming, and then footsteps as Moltrinoch ran towards him – completely terrified. "He's here and he's pissed!"

Jace ripped the door open, getting to the left as Moltrinoch ran through and slammed it shut behind him. Jace took in the large, open hall. Fifty feet tall with large pillars holding up the roof. It was completely covered in hides flayed from creatures of all different species. Hanging from the ceiling was a macabre display of dried flesh that was filled with glowing rocks inscribed with the Rune for [Light]. The dim, yellow-orange hue washed the whole room in a glow that made Jace feel like he was back under some of the street lights in older parts of Earth's gang-ridden roads.

He could hear the scream of rage from beyond a pair of still-open metal doors. "Moltrinoch! Get back here!" Jace felt his heart skip a beat as he felt the sheer violence that the words carried with them. The threat of impending doom that was vocalized and shook him to his core. He tried to force himself forward, but his legs wouldn't respond.

He tried to say, "Ollie, what's happening?" but the words caught in his throat and he could only stand there as every instinct told him to run away. To flee. To get away.

Oh, that is not good. Some type of Talent based upon Fear as an Emotion Source. Ollie sounded worried, and that only amplified Jace's fear. I would wager that Astral Demons also draw on an Emotion Source for any Talents once they reach Potency 1. Let me try turning off the fear response…

Jace did not feel any different. His body told him to run. To retreat. And he took a step back away from the door as he could feel the oppressive aura wash over him.

Crap, that did not work. Use a level up, and let us get you some Talent that keeps you from fleeing and will steel your resolve.

-----

[You have leveled up!]

[You have chosen New Talent!]

[Talent Name: Indomitable Will.]

[Effect: The user's mental and emotional resistance increases based upon their current depth of emotion.]

-----

Jace felt his legs respond as he took a staggered step forward. The weapon in his hand blazed with a stronger golden glow as flames flickered off of it. There we go, Ollie said with relief filling his voice. Now go be a hero.

Jace took a few steady breaths before he ran out from the cover of the pillar, across the threshold of the doors, and stood in the gap. Before him he saw an even more gore-covered room. Not dried hides, but still-living and breathing creatures – mostly Gyanv – hung up from the walls on hooks. He could hear the faint wheezing and sounds of pain, asking for a release from their misery.

A throne of bone, covered with muscle and sinew that had been dried out to keep it together and cushioned, dominated the far end; about fifty feet away. A two-legged figure that towered twelve feet tall. Its mottled, grey flesh was stretched across a wiry, toned form. He had extra limbs of various species grafted onto his form, and along the torso a long, thin, razor-lined mouth silently opened and closed. A bulky torso with wide, spike-tipped shoulders led to a stocky neck and the face of Riscarn. A mouth with rows of teeth in a circular shape, like a lamprey, with a long, twisting, sickly-pink tongue, deep-set black eyes with a tiny glimmer of green, and crooked horns jutting from the head completed the whole macabre form.

"Ah, that explains it," Riscarn said as he stood up, grabbing this throne with one of his long hands that dangled down to his knees. "Moltrinoch has chosen to ally with a Dreamer to take my throne. That fool will die, as will you!"

Jace felt a palpable wave wash over him. A dark-grey shockwave that burst from the figure and caused his scalp to prickle and goosebumps over his whole body as every instinct pushed him to flee. But he had seen the horror this thing had inflicted, the bodies on the walls and ceiling, the still-living forms that were begging for death. I can't run, he thought. I need to stop this thing. To protect others.

His blade glowed a brighter gold, the weapon illuminating with a crackling, golden flame. He felt the fear pushed back.

That way! Ollie said in his mind. Keep thinking heroic thoughts like that! It is increasing the depth of your emotion!

Hero's Arena, Jace thought as he activated the Talent. Thirty feet in all directions, golden flames erupted and spun around in a cascading dance of winding spirals. Flickering in place before snuffing out only to reignite elsewhere. He pointed his sword, Void Beam (Rank 3) [Limited Range].

The beam shot out and consumed all of Riscarn save for his forearms to hands and his knees down to the feet. Jace saw his energy drain down, and began looking at the walls to see if there was a way to rescue the people who were on it.

Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

"Interesting," Riscarn's voice said, drawing Jace's attention to the now-reconstituted form. "Some type of annihilation from your home universe. But not enough to encompass my whole form."

In other words, Jace thought, I'd need to Horizon-Splitter or get him to ball himself up into the size of the beam's circumference. Or, I can just try and destroy him with Psykinetics.

Riskarn reached back to the throne, grabbed it, and it was slurped into his body with a sickening, squelching sound. His body expanded and grew more monstrous, with extra limbs and appendages sprouting as he began reaching to the ceiling, grabbing screaming, writhing bodies, and shoving them into the huge mouth on his stomach. His whole body glowed with a deep, sickly brown light. "Fear me!"

Jace felt the wave wash over him again, but this time he shook it off with little effort. I'm going to stop this. I'm going to save these people and get them help. The golden glow of the Hero's Arena amplified, as did the tension he felt in his muscles.

Riscarn moved fast – faster than Jace could ever hope to keep up with.

-----

[Foe that is vastly superior detected.]

[Shattered Limits enabled.]

-----

Shattered Limits (Rank 19) [Single-Minded Fury]. Jace was able to get his shield up in the way of a crashing fist that slammed onto him from above. He felt the ground crack under his feet, and he pushed up – much to Riscarn's surprise – as he ran through the legs and slashed up, scoring a hit along the inner thigh.

The flesh began to burn and sizzle from the golden flames, and the white-grey of the Void ate away at the figure. In the single move, Jace had delivered the Void Brand with the strike, and so a slight patch of Void began to spread along the wound. Growling, Riscarn's flesh sloughed off – dropping the damage over time afflictions onto the ground as they devoured the demonic flesh. "Clever little shit," he growled.

Thanks to his Skill and the Evolution stacked on top of it, Jace moved at two-hundred times his usual speed. And yet even with that improvement he was still on the back foot as Riscarn spun around and began pummeling him with fists. Every strike that Jace blocked with his shield shattered the ground beneath him as the shockwave transferred through his body and buffeting wind blew against the Void Shield. If not for that being active, he was sure the wind itself would have pulverized his insides.

Every strike carried that same sickly-brown aura, and each time Jace blocked, he felt that little tingle of fear in his spine, screaming at him to run. To flee. But he saw the Gyanv pasted to the walls, writhing in pain, and that bolstered his confidence, deepening his emotional state. "I'm going to kill you," he growled as he activated Raging Cleave (Rank 10) [Echoing Cleave]. The next punch that came in, he intentionally let it slip past his guard and he spun with the blow, reducing the injury substantially.

He still felt the pain that raced down his shoulder, but the extra momentum from the hit allowed Jace to spin to his outside-left and deliver a horizontal strike that cleaved through Riscarn thanks to the range increase. A second later, it was followed up by the Echoing Cleave, which cute another line through his torso.

Riscarn let out a scream, and Jace activated Aura of Wrath (Rank 11) [Voidflame Vestment] and Void Step (Rank 5) [Burst], warping behind Riscarn. He slashed down at the neck, but the figure moved to the left slightly, and Jace instead cut down into the flesh and bone around the collarbone. He cut deep, and his sword was lodged, requiring him to let go. He kicked off just before several hands reached for him in an attempted grapple. Arcing backward, he recalled his blade to his hand.

The golden flames of Hero's Arena and the whipping tendrils of Void from his Aura of Wrath were doing damage, constantly ripping away at the edges of Riscarn's form. Reaper's Shadowstep, Jace thought as he teleported from the shadows to the other side of the Demon Lord. He chopped clean through the ankle, and before Riscarn could turn to him, Jace used another Void Step to warp behind him and chop away the other ankle.

Riscarn whipped around – faster than Jace had expected and slammed a backhanded fist into him. Jace went sailing through the air and into the wall, landing with a sickening squelch as he crushed one of the captive Gyanv. The impact was negated thanks to his Void Shield, but the strike from the fist had bypassed his barrier thanks to being empowered by Psykinetics. Jace felt the pain in his chest – it had been fully crushed in, and he couldn't breathe.

Dark Matter Mending (Rank 4) [Vampiric], Jace thought as he saw another fist coming his way. Activated Void Step again at its highest Rank, he warped to the back of the throne's dais to buy time for the Skill to heal him. It took a few precious seconds, but his chest was repaired and he could breathe again. Riscarn had recovered as well – his feet seeming to have re-attached. But Void and the golden flames continued to lick along his body.

"I will adorn my walls with your pelt!" he screamed as he began reaching up and scarfing down Gyanv, feeding them into his gaping stomach-mouth that chomped on them, spurting sickly green ichor onto the ground. Each body he consumed, he grew slightly larger and the damage-over-time afflicted flesh sloughed off.

I want him to burn. Archmage's Admixture. Jace activated the once-per-day pure-magic Skill granted to him by the elemental pillars from Nihilethelea.

Riscarn's whole body was engulfed in a raging, crimson inferno, and he let out a screeching wail of pain. "What is this?!" he shouted as his body glowed a deeper, darker, more putrid brown. The color of muck and mud mixed with refuse.

The flames refused to quell, and Jace used that opening to rush in once more and deliver another Raging Cleave (Rank 10) [Echoing Cleave] strike, cutting clean through his midsection and out the other side. The duplicated strike hit a split-second later, cutting a deeper gash.

Riscarn twisted around – his body rotating in place before the flesh reaffixed itself. "Insect!" The huge stomach-mouth opened and a beam of dark brown shot out. Jace held his shield up and took the hit, the cascading Psykinetic energy pushing him back along the floor. The NICIF flowed down and changed his prosthetics and boots, adding the claws he was familiar with to keep his footing. The arcing stream splintered once it struck the shield, splitting around Jace.

Void Step, Jace thought. But he didn't move. Ollie? What's going on?

Ollie replied in a panicked voice, I do not know! I am working on it.

Jace stood resolute as the beam continued. Thankfully, Riscarn did not seem like he could do anything else while firing the laser. And Jace was more than capable of resisting the stream of Psykinetic power. This isn't a problem. I can hold out until Ollie finishe-

His [Danger-Sense] picked up, and Jace activated the Dark Energy Mine he had on his chest since entering the tunnel. He jumped up, angling his shield to make sure it kept the beam directly in front of him. The brown that had fired out and splintered off had merged and surged into where he had just been standing. Landing on the ceiling and grappling onto it with his feet, Jace saw the pooling surge fling itself up to him.

Void Beam (Rank 1) [Limited Range], he thought as the white-grey beam shot out from the space right above his shoulder and obliterated the gunk construct.

Got it! Ollie said with delight. Looks like while you are in the beam's radius, you are rendered incapable of non-physical means of movement. Some type of Specialization to his Talent.

I thought The Cosmic System is inside of me? Jace thought back. It can't be taken away.

Not taken away, just suppressed. If he was a lower Potency? It would not work.

Jace nodded and felt his [Danger-Sense] again, and he jumped back down to the ground as another brown-goop construct surged towards where he had been grappling on the ceiling. Keeping his shield in the way of the main beam, he fired off another Void Beam to destroy the construct. How long can he keep this up?

No idea.

Then we try something different. Voidsoul is active?

Yes.

Can I absorb this?

If it was your Potency or lower.

Then we try this. [Vengful]. Jace felt a deep pain in his torso. An ache that hurt him to his core, and despite the constant Dark Matter Mending affecting him, he could still feel the hurt. But his weapon ignited with an even brighter golden glow, crackling with flames and emitting a roar of wind as the air seemed to sizzle and pop as the atmosphere boiled around the radiant, holy fire of heroism. Running to his side, Jace kept his shield in the way of the beam.

Riscarn turned with him, keeping the beam fixed on Jace. "I can do this all day! I think I'll make that little toothpick of yours my new carving knife!"

Jace couldn't get an opening to throw his sword. But then a thought struck him. He sheathed the sword with a thought, brought his right hand to his left forearm with the shield affixed to it, and pulled several throwing knives made of Starheart Steel. The golden flame burst in his grip as he held three of the implements in his grip. And thanks to his Swordmage Stance (Rank 3), he knew exactly how to use them.

He ran to his right, ensuring that the beam was just slightly to his left, which meant that he could wriggle a hand just around the shield yet out of the beam's path. He threw the three knives with a deft quickness, and they went sailing into the stomach-mouth. An explosion of gold flame followed by two more identical explosions shut the beam off at its source, and Riscarn bellowed in pain as he collapsed to his knees.

Jace wasted no time and used another [Vengeful]. It felt like a blade stabbed into his gut, and he winced as he hissed out at the sudden pain. But his sword blazed with the same power, and he summoned it to his hand as he raised it overhead and flung it forward. It sailed into Riscarn's head, impaling into the center of the forehead before exploding in a glimmer of golden flames.

Riscarn collapsed forward, and Jace closed in, raining down blows as he kept destroying the body to ensure nothing remained. It took a good three minutes of chopping, but eventually he had spread Void and the golden Psykinetic energy of Valiance across the whole body – and it sizzled out of existence.

The wispy white Essence surged into Jace and he felt the slightly-full feeling of eating too much food. Dark Matter Mending had fully healed him up during his frenzied slashes, but a new message scrolled across his vision from the Astral System.

-----

[Infusion Acquired.]

[Legendary (Soul Cache).]

[Dreamer owner detected.]

[Do you wish to convert to Essence?]

-----

Yes, Jace thought as he looked at the Gyanv around who were still in agony, but who he could not help yet. And shit, I needed the head for the mission. Wait, Ollie, we have a camera in this thing, right?

Oh yeah. I have already stored the video.

Good. That should be proof enough.

-----

[Confirmed conversion!]

[Legendary (Essence Cache)].

-----

A storm of light blue ruptured from a tiny dot in space in front of Jace, and went flying through the walls and into the vastness of the Astral Verge. Souls, he assumed, freed from their confines in the Infusion.

Want me to use that?

Sure.

Done. It had fifteen-hundred Essence inside. Plus this Riscarn Demon Lord was worth three-hundred, putting you right at one-thousand nine-hundred total.

Jace headed to the set of doors only to be met by Moltrinoch, who sounded elated. "You did it! Oh, that's going to cause some ripples for sure!"

"What do you mean?" Jace asked as he stood there, sword and shield still out and still ablaze with his Skills minus Hero's Arena and Aura of Wrath.

"When a Demon Lord dies, it sends a ripple across all Layers of the Astral Verge. A death scream, of sorts. It frees underlings from their control – if they controlled them through some way. Like Riscarn who controlled through a Talent related to fear. Or the legendary Valcrinox the endless madness. He's rumored to be the strongest Demon Lord, and that he rules using demons driven to insanity that he then takes control of."

Jace frowned, "And now you're going to take over."

Moltrinoch nodded, "If our deal concludes-"

Jace leveled his sword at the demon, "I know that your kind can live in peace with other species. Is that what you plan on doing? Making this place like Richter's Repose?"

There was a flash of anger across Moltrinoch's face. But ultimately he shrugged, "I would not be opposed to it."

Best not to trust him, Ollie thought to Jace. He's just an Astral Demon after all.

But I've seen them be…like regular people, Jace thought back. And unlike the innocent people I killed…I don't think I could rectify a mistake of getting these demons back. When they run out of Essence, they die for good. And with my Psykinetics or Void, they will definitely die. If Moltrinoch had done some evil shit I knew about? Sure, I'd kill him without a second thought. But he's kept up his end of the bargain.

As he thought that, he knew he was doing the right thing. The golden glow surrounding him surged with vibrance, causing Moltrinoch to step back a few feet. "A hero keeps their word," Jace stated. He made sure his eyes were staring into Moltrinoch's, and he let his helmet recede so the figure could see his draconic pupils. "Everyone gets a chance. If you do not turn this place into a place of openness like Richter's Repose, then I will come back here and obliterate you." To reiterate the point, he raised his hand and pointed it at the large double doors leading out of the building opposite the throne room.

Void Beam (Rank 1) [Limited Range]. The white-grey surged out and bored a hole through the metal doors, revealing a long set of stairs that descended down to an atrium in front of enormous glass windows that revealed the city beyond.

Moltrinoch nodded curtly, "I understand."

Jace walked toward the hole in the door, feeling not just confidence, but a sense of satisfaction. "Ollie, open up comms to this Hive Queen's forces. Time to get them to stand down. And, having their forces stationed here will keep Moltrinoch honest."