I Can Assimilate Everything

The grave had closed.

Not with fanfare, only with silence. A stillness that held the bones of forgotten empires and the shattered echo of a thing that once called itself glorious

Achilles stood with the shovel still in his grasp.

The runes on it dimmed, their purpose fulfilled. Yet the weight in his hand felt heavier now, not from the tool, but from what had just been buried.

He stared down at the grave. The dark sand had flattened, perfectly level, as if the world itself refused to remember what once festered there.

And within him, something surged.

A hum- deep, ancient, and steady as planetary rotation unfurled in his bones. His Existence shook gently as a stellar crimson sea swelled behind his eyes, each wave of it laced with cosmic dread and unshaped awe.

The assimilation was complete.

A crimson light appeared behind his pupils, and knowledge began to bloom. His blood pulsed like starlight.

New Assimilation: [Inorganic Stellar Lifeforms – Crimson Shroud Vortex]

…!

And with it… five abilities bloomed into being.

1. Heartforge Trinity Protocol – The user gains the ability to forge three Hearts of Existence, crystalline nuclei of Selfhood drawn from Astral, Primordial, and Gamma matrices. As long as one remains intact, the body and soul can regenerate the other two. Reformation time depends on energy and distance. Only simultaneous destruction of all three hearts can kill the host.

2. Vel'Zur'aan Dismay Engine – The user may manifest a floating Crimson Disintegration Eye, composed of thousands of microscopic tendrils bound together by terror-conscious resonance. It fires beams that unravel spiritual, biological, and energetic matter at the atomic level. It induces hallucinations, fear, and voluntary neural collapse within anyone below the Empyrean Star Nexus Transcendence Threshold.

3. Voidbloom Lattice Spread – Infects the battlefield with drifting red spores that anchor into the environment. Each one records energy signatures and mimics the effects of prior attacks, replaying fragments of battle history at random intervals. Creates chaos and destabilizes the mental focus of opponents.

4. Predator of Collapse – A passive ability. The user automatically identifies nearby weak points in spiritual constructs, bloodlines, defensive barriers, and high-tier energy formations. Over time, the user's own structure subtly adapts to counter each one.

5. Flesh-Husk Weaver – Once per battle, the user may create an empty shell composed of harvested biomass and spiritual impressions. This husk mimics a fallen enemy's abilities at 50% strength and can act as a decoy or sacrificial shield. When destroyed, it detonates with the stored fear-energy of the last being it mimicked.

Achilles' eyes pulsed with living crimson and gold.

He nodded once, his voice low and final. "Alright… that's done."

The shovel sank into the sand with a whisper, and he turned, his shadow falling long across the corpses of the fifty who had once stood behind the Primordial Light of Darkness.

They were still. Shriveled. Empty.

Sun stared at the scene, arms loose at his sides, tail twitching once like a wire coiled in disbelief. His eyes flitted between the grave and the broken husks.

"This is it?" he muttered. "That was the battle against the Primordial Light of Darkness? And he's… dead?"

Achilles looked over his shoulder, gaze calm.

"It doesn't always have to be a flashy fight," he said. "No sky-beams. No spiraling destruction. Sometimes… victory comes silently"

…!

Sun fell silent.

The wind rustled the treetops. The sea murmured in its slow breath.

Achilles turned again, this time toward Rose.

She stood where he had left her, untouched by the horror, green stellar flames curling softly around her frame. She blinked when he stepped closer, as though stunned by the quiet storm he had walked out of.

His arms wrapped around her waist. His nose pressed to hers as he took her lips.

Gentle. Not desperate. Not fueled by relief.

Just warmth. The kind one reaches for after long nights and longer roads.

Between kisses, he whispered, "The greatest threat to this Plane… is gone."

She exhaled. Her eyes softened as the green in them flared. "Mmm."

Her fingers traced the collar of his chest, voice low. "So now you just have to deal with the Ancient Lineages…?"

Achilles shook his head. "Even that's a minor matter."

He glanced toward the sky, where the fabric of the world still shimmered faintly.

"The Planar Barrier is still intact. It's grown thin, yes. But enough remains. The Crimson Shroud Vortexes… they haven't found this place yet. We have a few months. Time to grow. Time to… unify."

Rose's smile deepened, her hand resting flat against his chest. "In that time, why don't we listen to your ancestors?"

He blinked.

She leaned closer, her nose brushing his. "Whichever Great Grandfather of yours said you should establish your lineage and… have progeny…"

Her hand slid around his neck.

"I think we should listen to him fully."

…!

He paused.

Her voice dropped into a near-whisper. "Before something else steals your attention. How about you make the task of progeny… your main task?"

He blinked again.

And then nodded slowly, the crimson-gold of his eyes dimming into something brighter.

"For my Little Queen," he said, the words full of a vow, "I will do just that."

In the background, Sun's eyes twitched.

He stared at the two of them, still locked in an embrace as if they'd just strolled out of a spa rather than buried an eldritch abomination.

He threw up his hands. "Are you serious?! You're talking about what right now?! Right after that?!"

Achilles didn't turn.

Rose smiled.

Sun groaned and ran his hands through his hair. "Will you at least tell the Ancient Ones you've killed the monster haunting their nightmares?"

Achilles paused.

He turned slightly, the sunlight catching his golden robes as his eyes narrowed in thought.

After a beat, he said, "No. Let them believe it still lurks."

…!

Sun's eyes widened.

Achilles' voice deepened.

"It'll make it easier to bring them in. To unify the humans… the Ancient Ones… even the prideful lineages that would otherwise stand divided."

He took a step forward, the grave behind him, the sea in front.

"For this Plane," he said, "the days of scattered thrones and isolated power must come to an end."

He looked over the endless waters, wind pressing against his back.

"Before the Planar Barrier fades completely… before they find us again…"

His hands curled at his sides.

"I will gather all under the name Adrastia."

…!

Sun sucked in a sharp breath.

The pressure that radiated off Achilles in that moment was not something he could joke away.

It wasn't rage. Or wrath. It wasn't born of the void.

It was…Conviction.

Even Sun, ancient and unruly, felt a tremor of intimidation rise beneath his skin.

He looked to the horizon, watching the sea ripple in uneasy rhythm.

And he said nothing.

Only offered a quiet prayer for the Ancient Lineages who still thought they ruled something.

Because they had no idea what was coming!