Dark Matter Ascension

The entire spire was flooded with water, and large, sinuous coils wrapped around the spherical barrier that Jace had manifested. "The spire is compromised!" Quinn shouted over the comms. "You have to head back to the surface."

Jace saw the water descending the tube below him, before that was cut off from line of sight by the coils of the creature surrounding his shield. "Greg, you don't have to breathe, right?"

"Yeah," Greg replied as he stood at the ready.

"Neither do I," Dee added as her hands glowed with deep green, viscous acid.

"I need air!" Priam replied. "What am I-" he was cut off as his Archpriest Vestments manifested a hood, and as it covered his head, a screen of transparent energy shot down from the edge to the neckline.

"I've got him," Quinn stated. "I used a Common (Augmentation) Boon."

Jace focused on the leathery hide surrounding them, and saw it was the same as the leviathans he had fought up in that lake region. But this thing was enormous; the tiny, overlapping scales that dotted the hide were the size of his torso. "I don't think we can fight these things."

The rest of the rocky spire around them was cut off from view as the coiling length of body wrapped fully around the shield. Jace kept an eye on his energy, and saw it slowly deplete. "We're safe as long as I can keep this up," Jace commented.

"We should just blast it to smithereens," Dee said with confidence. "Plus, with how big it is, it'll probably give us a lot of Stardust."

The creature, to Jace's eyes, was outlined in orange – signifying that he could kill it without upsetting the natural balance of the ecosystem. "Sure Dee. Give it a try."

She let out a whoop of excitement and fired off a Skill she must have activated by thought alone and been holding back until she got the go-ahead. An explosion of caustic acid filled all sight, and Jace saw his limbs shrouded in a slight green glow.

Ollie whispered in his ear, "She has something called Empowering Exclusion, now, so if you would be struck in an area-of-effect, you instead gain a temporary bonus to your next strike."

Jace watched the leviathan's body melt away, revealing muscle, white sinew, and cartilage. The acid burned in all directions, and the creature let loose, allowing the group to see where they were as they slowly descended in Jace's Void Shield.

They were in an enormous, black ocean. Well, black due to lack of light – but their vision had shifted to enable sight in the dark, and Jace saw an endless ocean in all directions except directly up – the remains of the spire they had come down still dangling from the crust of the surface above. Below, he saw the tunnel continuing.

The enormous leviathan got some distance from the group and the sheer scale of the thing finally sunk in for Jace. Its head was the size of the entire Empire State Tower, a single tooth in its razor-lined mouth the size of an apartment building. The eyes were like lakes of silver that glared at the group. He couldn't even tell how long it was due to the angle, but he imagined that this thing had to be one of the largest of its species.

It crackled with red lightning that coursed along the exterior of its body, and out of that mouth a blast of the energy jolted towards the group – and impacted Jace's shield harmlessly. Greg, Dee, and Priam all flinched reactively, but Jace just stood there, the bubble slowly descending, as he thought about options. I could fight it, but that thing is massive. How would someone even kill it? I suppose a Void Beam to the head could do the trick and leave quite a bit of the body intact for Stardust gathering.

The creature's body crackled with energy and its eyes flared with a crystalline blue light. All the water surrounding the group turned to ice – and they began to ascend. "Thoughts?" Jace asked calmly.

Priam looked terrified, "It's…so big…how do you even fight something like that?"

Dee looked at Jace and shook her head, "I can always go inside of it and blow it up like that. Honestly, fighting it from the inside might be the best way."

Jace nodded, "I was thinking the same thing. Unless we have huge area-of-effect Skills. Dee, how big can your biggest blast be?"

She held up her chitin-covered fingers and began counting to herself before looking up at him, "If I use all my energy? Probably a mile-wide blast. Big enough to completely consume that thing. But I'll be tapped and useless."

Greg looked at Priam, "You can restore energy, right?" Priam gave a very, very subtle head nod. Greg then looked back to Dee, "I think you should do it. We'll have Priam top you up."

Priam put his shaking hands on Dee, "Fount of Energy (Rank 5)." There was shimmer of golden light that surged from his hands and into Dee.

She grinned and went up to the edge of Jace's barrier, "Can we get rid of the ice?"

Greg walked over and cut the ice apart, his blade permitted entry into and out of the barrier. By the time he had cut it away to reveal the space in front of them…it was an empty, vast black sea. "It's moved," Greg muttered.

Dee nodded, "I'm going to keep charging up a Demolisher's Devastation until it show-"

She was cut off as all the ice around them turned razor-sharp, with spikes pointing inward. The jagged tips tried to pierce through Jace's barrier and failed, disintegrated against the power of Void. "It's still near," Greg muttered.

"Above us!" Jace shouted as he felt his [Danger Sense] warn him of the incoming creature. The entire cube of ice was pushed down, and then the ice cracked before shattering entirely. The creature had the orb in its mouth, and Jace saw down its long, sinuous throat that was lined with even more teeth. "Now Dee!"

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She raised her hands and let out a manic laugh. The world around the group exploded with a crackling, blue voltaic energy as lightning erupted from her fingertips and engulfed the entire interior of the creature. It spasmed violently, and the sphere around the group was the only thing preventing their demise. "Got it!" she shouted with triumph as the spasming stopped and the thing floated limp in space.

"No, you didn't," Jace replied as he saw the slightest glow of energy still permeating the creature's interior. His All-Seeing Dragon's Eyes able to spot the tell-tale sign of magic-based Skills. "It's about to cheat death."

"What?" Greg replied. "They can do that?"

Jace nodded and drew Nethaldrim, "Annoying Skill. Most seem to have two lives."

Dee sagged, "I don't have the energy for two more blasts like that."

Priam put his hands on her, "I can tap myself out to give you enough, I think."

"Don't," Jace replied as the creature's body crackled with orange, sparkling energy. "We just need to destroy the brain." He looked over at Greg, "Can you keep the group safe? I can get up to the roof of the mouth there, carve through to the brain, and probably kill it from the inside."

Greg nodded, "I should be able to keep us all protected."

Priam ran over to Jace and grabbed his arm, "Don't leave me!" he said with terror filling his voice. "Don't…please…"

Jace looked down at his ally, "I know you're scared, but your shields and Greg's damage redirect will keep you all alive. It's our only way right now that isn't going to drain a ton of energy."

Priam gripped his arm tighter, "It's too big! You can't kill something this big with a sword!" His terror began to shift to panic. "We need to cut our way out and run. Get back to the surfa-"

He was cut off as Dee grabbed him from behind and hugged him, "You'll be fine. We will be fine. Jace will kill the thing, Greg will keep us safe, and you'll shield us all."

Jace looked over at Greg, "Let's do it. Skills up."

"Already up and running," Greg replied.

Quinn's voice came over the comms, "Jace, I'm activating Coordinator's Critical Gaze on you the moment you get into the skull."

"Got it," Jace replied. "Ready?" he asked the group.

Priam grabbed Dee and golden barrier flared into existence around the group. "I…Don't die. Oh gods, this is such a stupid plan!"

Dee nodded curtly, and Greg gave Jace a little salute. Okay, Jace thought, here we go. Void Brand (Rank 1), Void Blade (Rank 17) [Rending], Void Shield (Rank 6). The sphere surrounding the group vanished, and Jace used his soul-magic based grapple line to pull himself up to the roof of the mouth. He grabbed one of the enormous teeth with his free hand, then pulled himself up to the fleshy interior. Stabbing his blade up, he wrenched it back and forth before shoving himself blade-first into the gap.

We're going to die, Priam thought as he watched Jace's shield drop, the man traveling in the blink of an eye up to the top of the mouth, and vanishing as he cut a hole into it. His shields immediately began to buckle and crack from the water pressure, and the trio were swept deeper into the creature's body.

Dee had a hold on Priam with one hand and Greg's foot with another hand, and the larger man was able to get a hold of one of the teeth along the throat with his hands. Orange electricity arced over his body, but Priam's shields kept that at bay thanks to his Pulsar Cosmic Power. "I've got us!" Greg shouted out. "Just hold tight to me!"

Priam shut his eyes. We can't fight something this big, he thought. This is stupid. We are so dumb. We should have fled. Left and gone back to Khrox. Found another world!

Bloopa's voice resonated in his mind thanks to their Verge Protocol merging. Priam, you need to calm down.

Why?! He shouted back in his thoughts. Why should I be calm in this situation?!

Because it is under control. You are three of the most powerful Aspirants in the whole of The Cosmic System by nature of your Tier. Sure, these creatures were not properly classified…but you are strong. Stop thinking yourself weak.

Priam shook his head, I am weak though. I need other people to protect me all the time.

You are strong with your friends. Do not discount that.

I wish I was as self-reliant as Jace, Priam thought. I don't want to be scared. I want to be brave like him! Like my dad! Like my brother!

You are brave in your own right, Bloopa replied with sincerity. Trust in your allies; you have overcome challenges greater than this. You have fought Astral Demons and survived. Escaped that wurm and survived. You will live through this. Survive for your loved ones. Survive for her.

Priam forced his eyes open and looked at Dee, who was gripping him tightly to her chest, keeping him as close to her and Greg as possible to prevent them from being split apart. The person whom he had grown very close to. Who he shared everything with. A small ember grew in him. A feeling of confidence surging up from the depths of his soul. You're right. I've got her. When her, me, and Greg are together, there's no telling what we can do!

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[Extreme emotional state detected.]

[Qualifier of 50 levels in a Advanced Class met.]

[Class Expansion available.]

[Exarch <Cultivator of Bonds>]

[Confirm selection?]

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Confirm.

Jace was squirming his way up through blood, cartilage, and sinew. His Void Blade was effectively melting a path for him to continue his travel up, and he could feel the pressure closing in on all sides – kept at bay by his Void Shield. He was having to wriggle his body, but eventually his sword pierced into different textured layer, with little to cut into, and Jace clambered out of the hole he had dug.

He was pushing himself up through jelly of some kind that cushioned the brain from the pressures of the water and the edges of the skull itself. Surrounded by a thin film, he saw a bright-pink sphere with runic symbols along it. That is the brain, Ollie said in his mind. Their brains are almost like a soul-magic conduit. Just start hacking away at it.

Jace summoned his sword to his grip and stabbed forward; the goop slowing his movement but not impeding it. He pierced through the film and into the sphere which the blade cut into like a hot knife through soft butter. The pink mass was easy enough to cut through, and he forced his way through the goop with a near-swimming motion – the Void Shield repelling the liquid easily.

The creature shuddered, and the brain pulsated with grey light before fading to a dull, inert brown as it decayed before his eyes. Holding up his hand alight with the Cosmic and Ascended power symbols, he tried to dust it.

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[Stardust Acquired: 100,000]

[Stardust Split: 20,000]

-----

The creature vanished in a burst of glimmering, powder-blue starlight and Jace looked down, seeing his three allies swimming in space. "We did it," Jace said over the comms as he grappled back down – affixing the point in space – to his allies.

"We're alive!" Priam shouted. "And I got a Class Expansion!"

All three other Aspirants looked at him, and Dee crossed her arms, "You…you okay?"

"I…I was terrified."

"I hope your Expansion doesn't work off of how afraid you are," Greg commented.

Priam shook his head, "No! It's about building bonds with people! Friends, family, loved ones. I can't wait to use some of this Stardust to level up and get some new Skills!"

Jace looked around them, not seeing any more of the creatures nearby. But with his eye's magnification capabilities, he saw far, far down in the depths below even larger creatures swimming around. And off in the distance to his left, more of the same size as the one they had just fought coming over. Replicating the actions of the ones in that lake region, Jace thought. They are rushing to face the threat.

"We need to move fast," Jace stated. "I'm going to do something none of you will like." He let his Skills lapse – all except for Void Stalker (Rank 1) [Group]. "We are going down, and we are going fast. Hold onto each other."

Greg gripped Priam and Dee, and Jace held onto the larger man. "What is it you're doing?" Greg asked.

"I'm going to make us sink."