NOVEL NEXT B2 Chapter 39 (Capstones)
A deep sadness clawed at Angar's chest, but he crushed it down. He wished Spirit would open her eyes to the truth, but she clung to her blindness, refusing to see, preferring the dark.
He would just have to prove her wrong, so wrong she'd have no choice but to see, return to him, and lead him to war and glory.
His hip and groin pain flared, and he stifled a groan.
"You ready, Sir?" called out Simo.
"I need a moment," Angar replied, wincing. "This ship's captain is only a Lieutenant, I believe."
He wished there were a different way of saying that, as it sounded odd once it left his mouth.
In the twisted Reptiloid gene-forge hierarchy, Lieutenants formed an early link in the chain to the elite Old Guard. They were above Chiefs but below Captains, Commanders, and Masters, ultimately leading to Archons, Overlords, or Viziers
A ship's captain typically followed the Overlord path. This was good news, as facing an Overlord, same as facing a Nofelim or Devourer, would spell certain doom.
A Lieutenant, though, should be manageable. They'd rigged the engines to blow if the threat was something beyond their ability to handle, so he counted this as a rare stroke of luck.
"Did you learn that from a vision, Child?" asked Hierarch Pumatay. "From one of your Holy Feats?"
Unlike Crusaders' Feats, the Ecclesiastic gained Qualities, while the Laity earned Traits, weaker echoes. Holy Knights and their ascension remained mostly shrouded in enigma, what they could do mystified.
"Something like that, Hierarch," said Angar. "I need one more moment, please."
The Hierarch nodded. "Of course, Child."
Angar opened his screens and saw the Capstone now had a description. Spirit had just vanished, so that happened nearly immediately, much faster than Glory Thunders' had.
At first, disappointment flickered through him. The new Capstone only enhanced Glory Thunders, expanding its area of effect and converting half the shockwave's damage to Holy. In fact, a quarter of all his lightning damage would now sear with Holy power.
That meant his attacks would be far more damaging to Hellspawn and abominations. As far as he knew, only Divine damage did more harm.
But he'd do far less damage to Heretics not loyal to Hell, such as those of the Old Guard, including the powerful Lieutenant he'd soon fight.
Capstones never worked this way, with one modifying another. It must be a unique chain, the third Capstone promising the ultimate boon. Anticipation burned in him, given how powerful Glory Thunders was. He just had to survive until then.
He selected Trumpets Blast, and all his Attributes increased by 3, all the governed Stats the same, with the trickle effect from the 3-point rise in Physique counting as the sixtieth Stat Point increase for Resilience and Power Level, causing another increase to Mind and Spirit.
This also marked his hundred and twentieth free Stat Point from Glory Thunders. He did the math, and at 40 Glory Points apiece, that equaled 4,800 Glory points. He really wished he could compare his Annals with another Crusader his level.
These increases brought his Skill Point total from 3 to 7. It also brought his natural Resilience score over 100, his first Stat to breach that barrier.
And with that, words blazed into his eyes.
A Glorious Achievement!
Righteous Crusader, glorious Knight, your Resilience Stat, a sacred characteristic forged in the crucible of unyielding faith, has transcended the threshold of 100 in natural score, tempered for the brutal trials and sanguinary crucibles yet to come.
This is no trifling advance, but a thunderous stride upon the Glorious Path. Your mind, a bastion of resolve, stands as an impregnable bulwark against the vile whispers of the accursed spawn of the Underworld. In our eternal Holy War, you are further anointed in the sacred hymn of slaughter, baptized in the blood of Heretics, wielding resistance as a hammer to purge the galaxy of the unholy, now ready to face creatures of the higher planes of the Underworld.
Glory Points bestowed: 3
For God and Empire!
He closed the message. He had already resisted and defeated a demon of the higher planes, probably due to his Righteous Rebuker Feat, as Templar Companies made up of Saints and Seraphs usually faced such threats.
He opened his Annals, reviewing his changes and new Capstone.
ATTRIBUTES, STATS, AND ADROITNESS
(Each Attribute Point increases all Stats governed by that Attribute by 1. Applying 4 Stat Points to the same Stat will increase the governing Attribute by 1. Numbers in (parentheses) include increases from items.)
BODY (Physical Attributes): With 17 AP applied – 44 (53)
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Physique (Size/Strength): With 17 SP applied – 64 (73)
Endurance (Stamina/Health): 48 (57)
Toughness (Physical Durability/Resistance): 61 (139)
MIND (Non-Physical Attributes): 33
Competence (Skills/Insight): 35
Cognizance (Awareness/Perception): 42 (47)
Resilience (Non-Physical Durability/Resistance): With 60 SP applied – 104 (112)
SPIRIT (Metaphysical Attributes): 26 (28)
Power Level (PL) (Ability Damage and Effectiveness): With 60 SP applied – 87 (89)
Energy (Resource for Powers shown as Energy Points equal to 3 + (Energy Stat x 3)): 26 (28)
Charges (Increases the number of times certain Abilities can be used per combat): 26 (28)
ADROITNESS (Finesse/Reaction/Speed): 5 (6)
RESOURCES
Current/Maximum Energy Points: 51/87
Current/Maximum Charges: 19/28
CAPSTONES
Glory Thunders
Increase Body, Mind, and Spirit by 3
Select a main and two mirror Stats.
Gain 1 Thunder per hit given, received, and per Energy Point spent, 4 Thunder per Charge spent, and 10 Thunder per enemy defeated.
With 200 Thunder, empower your next attack to create a shockwave, dealing (10 x PL) x Tier damage in a 9-meter long, 45-degree cone. This attack also restores 4 Energy Points and 1 Charge per Tier. All Thunder is lost 3 minutes out of combat.
Trumpets Blast
Increase Body, Mind, and Spirit by 3
The shockwave of Glory Thunders strikes a 12-meter long, 180-degree cone, and half its damage is converted to Holy damage. Additionally, a quarter of all lightning damage is converted to Holy damage. All Thunder is lost 4 minutes out of combat.
After hours more of relentless slaughter, the imperial forces had clawed dominion over the Old Guard battleship, save for its profane heart, removing brethren from Ebon Drains.
The bridge's fortified gate stood tall, a slab of pulsing bio-metal impervious to plasma torches, breaching charges, and everything else on hand.
Angar carved his way through scattered pockets of Reptiloid resistance, each clash feeding his Vitalulum harness and Vinculeparo torque. The warmth of their healing pulsed through his battered frame, mending flesh and alloy alike, accruing precious minutes toward First Aid and Mechanical Repair Skills.
But the nanites burrowing defied repair, gnawing deeper into his flesh. The pain was a searing hymn, radiating from his side through his pelvis and down his thigh, a fire that scorched one testicle with every limping step.
It was a wound he couldn't will away, a constant reminder of the Neuronaut's vile legacy. His Crusader Armor, scarred and pitted around the lower left side and belly, groaned under the strain, its integrity waning as the nanites chewed through its plating.
With the ship's corridors secured, forces redeployed with ruthless efficiency. The shipper was still attached, and its personnel were available to assist now.
No comcap stations surfaced in their sweeps, and the info that could be attained from them was badly needed. Frieden wagered they lay beyond the bridge's gate, perhaps in adjacent chambers, or within the bridge itself, guarded by the Lieutenant and bridge crew.
A handful of Ierne's grizzled technici, most fresh from the shipper, claimed knowledge of the Warp Siphon Drive's vulnerabilities.
They could kill the drive, collapsing the Alcubierre bubble and stranding the vessel in the void's cold embrace.
The technici warned that dropping the Lumenstream might trigger the Lieutenant-captain's final gambit, this being a self-destruct sequence to consign the ship and all aboard to fiery oblivion. Every access to the bridge had to be severed first, a task that demanded precision and time.
For hours, the imperial forces toiled, stripping conduits and powerlines, blocking circuits, rigging explosives across the ship's arteries to counter any catastrophic failsafe. The charges remained dormant, a grim contingency should the captain's Heresy prevail.
Angar and Frieden, their hacking modules in constant demand, tore open sealed compartments, flushing out Reptiloid holdouts cowering in the ship's humid depths. Each battle fixed his armor and flesh, but each passing hour caused more injury and damage, his HUD flashing warnings as the nanites continued their relentless assault.
Then, success. The ship left the Lumenstream, cutting through the deep of the void at just a fraction of c, and no self-destruct sequence ensued.
The gate to the bridge mocked their efforts, its crystalline tendrils weaving shut any breach attempted. Like the machimotarium's sealed portal, it bore no hackable panel, no weak point to torch through or shatter with explosives.
Angar's Phasorax Core, the sole means of getting through the bio-metal barrier, remained on cooldown, its daily charge spent.
The imperial forces, bloodied and weary, had no choice but to hold position in the void's silence, their fate tethered to the ticking seconds until Angar's mod reset.
Every step lanced fire through his pelvis, his limp a shameful betrayal of his resolve. He gripped his hammer tighter, its graviton hum a faint comfort, and steeled himself for the coming storm.
He knelt to meditate, hoping to gain some relief in that way.
"Are you alright, Sir?" Simo's voice cut through the oppressive hum of the ship's systems, concern etched into his tone.
Angar grunted, his jaw clenched against the fire searing through his side. "I'm fine."
"He's not," Frieden interjected, his voice low and grim through his helm. "Those nanites are attaching to his nerves. I'm frankly astonished he's still upright. Most would've collapsed screaming by now. The only mercy is they'll burn out eventually."
Pumatay's optics flickered as she scanned Angar. "No way to neutralize them sooner?"
Frieden shook his head. "Not with what we have available. I'd advise Sir Angar to wait until the nanites fade before storming the bridge, giving us time to figure out a way past this door, fighting it together. A Lieutenant is a foe beyond even his strength, especially in his current state."
Angar's grip tightened on his hammer. "You said only Neuronauts wield that liquid metal casing. Even if there's no way to open the door from the other side, and I must fight alone, I'll cut through whatever stands on that bridge. How long until the nanites die?"
Simo spoke before Frieden could respond, his voice steady with unshakable faith. "Don't doubt him, Frieden. I've seen Sir Angar defy death a dozen times, as if the Lord Himself protected him."
Frieden's helm tilted with a reluctant nod. "I just want it noted I told him entering alone is folly. The nanites' lifespan varies. They could last hours more, maybe days. Too many factors involved to say for sure. The pain worsens, but their corrosive bite weakens drastically over time. The damage isn't the worry, it's the nerve pain."
Angar exhaled sharply, the fire in his pelvis flaring with every breath. No shortcuts, then. Just gritting through the pain and charging toward glory. Sucking it up and driving on, the usual way of life.
He turned to Simo. "Your sidearm, may I borrow it? I keep forgetting to loot one."
Simo unholstered his pistol without hesitation, pressing it into Angar's gauntlet. "Always, Sir."
Angar weighed the weapon in his left hand, his hammer steady in his right. He sank into a kneeling stance, forcing his mind to rise above the torment radiating from his groin.
The bridge awaited with another crucible of blood and bio-metal. The Lieutenant-captain and his Heretic crew stood as the final barrier to victory.
Angar's name would either be etched again into the Litany of Heroes or burned to ash in a pyre of righteous fury.
He closed his eyes, meditating, filling his resources, reflecting on the Lord's will, and prepared for the test to come.