Symbiotic Ascension : A Progression Fantasy Adventure

Silence. The moons were still hidden behind thick black clouds, not even one ray of moonlight breaking through. Lucian had stopped relentlessly attacking Owl-Mask, and the latter was simply staring at it in wonder. Milena's eyes were wide open, noticing a dark-green string connecting them with Owl-Mask. Glenn was kneeling right beneath it, his breath shallow and his eyes bloodshot. He was foaming at the mouth, his hands trembling uncontrollably.

This thing wasn't something he should even know about. Seeing it through Diamanes' memories had been awful, but it was nothing compared to what he was currently going through.

The Dead God.

Glenn couldn't tell how he knew that thing's identity; he just did. Forbidden knowledge that had been forcefully grafted to his mind from just gazing upon that hole in reality. A hole that opened up into outer space, where the Dead God remained. Not even Epinos during his failed descent had been so dreadful.

"D̸͎͊̚.̶̡̛̬͕͖̋̔ͅ.̸̮̫͗̀̈.̷̜̦͓̤̳̽͗!̵̵̵̵̵̵̵̡̡̡̡̡̡̼͔̬͚̼͔̬͚̼͔̬͚̼͔̬͚̼͔̬͚̼͔̬͚̼͔̬̈̈̈̈̈̈̈͝͝͝͝͝͝͝!!"

The pain rang in Glenn's mind as the Dead God spoke, a gibberish mess that wasn't designed to be heard by a human. Everyone around him imitated him, either passing out or struggling to stay conscious. Owl-Mask dragged his feet through the black sand, approaching the breach. He reached out with a shaking hand, his skull somehow appearing hopeful in a crazed, fanatical manner.

Bump!

The black sand rippled outward with the anomaly at its center. Owl-Mask fell to his knees, his head pressed against the ground.

"I welcome the great Corruption, the mortal Firmament, the one true God-!"

The eye blinked.

Owl-Mask's bones turned to dust, mixing with the black sand of the desert.

A Newborn Ruler, destroyed. With just a blink.

Glenn forced his head up, his Mana Sight activated. He could see something leave the "body" of Owl-Mask and fly up to the breach, feeding on what lay beyond. It grew stronger, its consciousness strengthened. The sky above cleared up from a violent gust of wind, the twin moons finally shining their pale light down on them.

The pressure crushing Glenn down was alleviated ever so slightly, letting him rise back to his feet. He tried to conjure a spell, but the little Mana he had left crumbled. Nelg was heaving with difficulty, and Diamanes was grunting painfully.

The desert trembled as something pierced through the dune, right below the breach and the inverted pyramid. A branch, white like pure marble. It poked through the sand, absorbing the moonlight ravenously.

Glenn couldn't tell how he knew, but he knew that the being beyond the breach was staring at this white tree. With the breach widening, the entire eye became visible. The dark-green iris was part of an even darker, soulless whole. The colors fluctuated, swirling like fumes in water.

'I need... To close this breach!' Glenn thought, struggling to form a coherent thought. He glanced at the dark pearl and the white tree while gritting his teeth. His hand tightened around the hilt of his sword as he willed it to turn into a spear. With one flawless movement, he sent the weapon flying at the dark pearl, Nelg's own Mana powering it up.

A ray of steel flashed in the sky and crashed against the dark pearl. Glenn raised his eyes hopefully, but that hope was quickly snuffed out. A thin, almost invisible barrier of Corrupted energy blocked the spear. The weapon fell to the side harmlessly.

"U̷̢̱̻͔̣̻͌͂͘s̵̢̳͔̮͚͕̐̐̑͌̊̉ȇ̷͓̒̊̽͠l̷͎͈͖̦̐̀͘e̷̢̩̟̙͒s̸̨̧̖̭͇͌͑̎̎s̴̡͂͜,̴̡̠̱̝̫͐̈̐̀ ̶̲̼̬̒͌͒͌̾͋͘ͅm̶̱̿̂͛̈̾͝a̴̢̠̳̦͇͑̓ģ̶̳̝̩̩͎̋͑g̸̞͍͖̤͍̟͂̐̉̋̕o̸͈̘͙͙͒͑͐̓t̸̠̪̭̜̚ͅ!̵̵͙̪͚͙̪͚͒̄́͛͊͒̄́͛͊͝͝"

The Dead God laughed, mocking him. Glenn couldn't understand his words, yet he knew the cosmic being was taking pleasure in watching him try and fail.

"This fucker... is laughing at me...?" He hissed, ignoring his ears ringing or the blood filling his eyes. He recalled Nelg with a thought, turning him back into a sword. He pointed the tip of the blade at the breach and gathered every last drop of his Mana, knowing it would probably be useless.

"It's just a dead thing," spat Diamanes, "Trying to dig out of its grave. Bury him back, Glenn!"

"I'll help!" Lucian screamed, his Mana exploding outward. Time froze for a short second around the breach, but that was all Glenn needed. He jumped and struck at the black pearl with all his might. The dark-green barrier flashed from the power of the blow, sizzling and crackling. But it held.

Glenn's eyes remained stuck on the black pearl even as he fell back into the dunes, completely drained of his forces. Even as the entire desert trembled in a strangely familiar manner, he continued to stare at the black pearl.

'I just need to destroy it. I just need to destroy it. I just need to—'

It took the W.O.R.M. itself surging out of the desert and gobbling up the white tree to wake Glenn up from his trance. Lucian screamed a name, but he couldn't hear what he was saying. Instead, his eyes were drawn back to the black pearl and the breach. The dark green eye was laughing victoriously, the Rift widening with every passing second.

Everyone stared at the breach, unable to even move.

Until a nine-tailed fox appeared behind the black pearl, its eyes sparkling with battlelust and anger. The clear sound of an unsheathed sword rang, just like a bell. Red, Primal lightning crackled, growling like a beast, focusing on a pure black katana's blade, held by a one-armed Black Heir.

"Not today. Raijin Kōgazen."

Thunder rumbled, the world covered in a violent red veil- not the blood-red of the Moon Rift, or the red of the vampires. No, this was the red of Sahro, the Black Swordsman, the Guardian Fox of Thalorieth, and the last dark elf. The dark green eye blinked, and Glenn could swear it shone in recognition. Recognition and angry hatred.

Sahro's blade didn't make a sound as it sliced through the black pearl, ignoring the mystical barrier protecting it.

The world shivered.

"̶̢̪̟̻̉̾̑͌A̷̳̩͖̋̍̒̂̓͒ŕ̶̖͍̦͍̣͚̈́ḥ̶̣͈̭̑̉g̸͙̫̬͍̬̥̿͑̒̇̂̚͝g̷̘͠ͅH̶̢̗̝̅̾͐́̿͠͝G̷̙̤̺̟̎H̶̢̧̨͉͇̗̺͂̀͗Ĝ̸̞̹̟͖͔̱̤͑̃̌͛͛̈G̸͇̓̌̃̑̃͠h̶̨̬̗̃̿̒̊ḫ̷̝̾̔̔̚̚!̵̧͎̳̀!̷͉͇̞̐̀͌̚"̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̸̫̟̬̠̫̟̬̠̫̫̟̬̠̫̟̬̠̫̫̟̬̠̫̟̬̠̫̫̟̬̠̫̟̬̠̫̅̾̅̾̅̾̅̾̅̾̅̾̅̾̅̾̅̾̅̾̅̾̅̾

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A cry of pain rang all over the Ink Dunes, probably reaching as far as Munirp and the Eastern Continent. Thousands, no, hundreds of thousands of souls cried, flying away from the black pearl and departing to their next lives. The sky turned gray with all the souls flying out.

Decimius stared at the souls, smiling dejectedly to himself. 'That's where all the Orcs were. Sacrifices.'

The breach exploded, burning in golden light, a soft yet honest light. Onnea was finally intervening. Gold chains clasped down on the breach, forcing its closure. Spells fixed the instability in the area and redirected the Mana, while ribbons of black satin grabbed the lost souls and dragged them underground. Countless weapons of steel and blood flew into the breach, stabbing the thing on the other side.

"̷̜̖̼̤̰̻̃̏T̶̡͐̇̌o̴̢̘͕̬̟̺͌͂̾̽̕õ̶͚͍ ̵̢̂́͋ĺ̵̢̗̳͕̘͈̦̂̾̓͆͂̿ä̵͇̬̙̇́̕͠ṱ̵͚̬͒̎̓ͅẽ̶̼̰̙̒͐̎̓͑!̶̬̦̱̫̒̒͒̂̈́ ̷̝̎͐̏̃̚T̷̲̅̈͛̏̒̀̿Ǫ̸̙̑̄Ǫ̶̢̥̦̐͒͂́͊͝͝ ̷̛̼͇̻̯̀̀̈́̎͑́L̷͚̣͓͎͆̿̈Ã̶̙̔̕T̷͈̏E̴͎̖̾!̵̱̹̬͙̆̎"̵̦̆̋̃̾͜ ̴̴̣̯̤̣̯̤̀̃̀̃

The thing beyond screamed, and this time Glenn understood him entirely.

"It is never too late, you fucking cadaver!" The young man crashed face-first into the black dunes, the world rumbling all around him. He couldn't help but chuckle slightly as darkness seized his sight.

"I should be keeping count of how many divine descents we have foiled," he muttered.

"You should." Diamanes agreed, while Nelg sighed in relief.

That had been a close one. i

***

"When do you think he's going to wake up?"

"Any minute, I'm sure. How would he dare make his friend wait? I need to show off my newest Circle, after all."

"Bah! This ahmaq probably is already awake anyway!"

"Don't call him that, Sahro!"

"Hey, I also ranked up a Circle, you know? I might deserve my Duchess title, now!"

"Oh, congratulations, Milena!"

"Nelg, when did you get here?"

Glenn disgruntledly turned in his sleep, plugging his ears with his hands and clenching his eyes tightly shut. His Mana Heart was drawing in Mana like a thirsty plant would suck in water. His entire body felt like a mess, but that wasn't what was bothering him.

What did, were the voices of everyone surrounding to try and wake him up.

"Liara, I swear this ahmaq is faking-"

"Call him that again and I'll ask Raijin to eat your toes when you sleep."

"W- What?"

"And I'll force you back into a train."

"...Tsk!"

Glenn rolled his eyes and sighed heavily. He sat up, yawning as he did. "Guys, I fought another ancient, evil entity connected to Corruption. Is it too much to ask for some rest?"

Everyone was sitting in black, sleek chairs carved from the same stone that made the walls and floor. One look was all it took to recognize the W.O.R.M.'s interior, dark and covered in red energy lines. The only difference was a massive window showing them moving around the desert.

He barely got the time to blink when Liara grabbed and hugged him tightly.

"Are you alright?" She asked, worried.

Glenn patted her arm with a happy smile. "Now I am."

She blushed and took a step back, lightly slapping his shoulder. Sahro clicked his tongue while Milena and Lucian traded a knowing glance. Decimius was sleeping on a stone bed, completely passed out. The Orc had suffered a lot during this whole ordeal, and it probably was the first time in a long while he could rest.

"What happened after I..." Glenn gestured at himself and the dried blood on his face.

A robotic voice rang in the room, coming from some invisible speakers. "The Twin Sisters' predictions have been slightly off. The Celestial Gods opted for sacrifice where fate dictated they would flee, and the ritual would fail. Instead, the ritual nearly succeeded, and a breach to the Deep Sky has opened. The Dead God, forefather of Corruption, almost managed to pass through, but the destruction of the ritual focus and the energy source disrupted the ritual. We're safe, for now."

Glenn looked up, confused. "And who is this omnipotent, all-knowing voice?"

"Javier," Milena responded, deadpan.

Glenn blinked, taking a few seconds to process the information.

"...What?"

Nelg sighed, bored. He was standing nearby with his arms crossed over his rustling chestplate.

"Now, it was very fun killing Newborn Rulers and giving me more souls to digest, as well as stopping another God's descent, but I'm quite busy with... You know, the thing. Could you ask Lina to pick me up?" Nelg asked, almost impatient.

"Come on, Nelg," Lucian passed his arm around the shoulders of Glenn's doppelganger. "Why don't you enjoy the break with us for a moment? You also risked your life with us, after all!"

"I am indestructible," corrected Nelg, "and probably immortal too. But considering the nature of our team, that's something we can all relate to, right?"

Milena rolled her eyes and crossed all four arms. "Why don't you just tell us about your progress? Maybe we'll be able to give you ideas to further your project?" She gestured at the W.O.R.M. they were using as their taxi. "And we need to pass the time until we arrive at our destination, after all."

Nelg's eyes lit up, and he took a seat near them. "Sure! After I truly became separated from Glenn, I've put it in my mind to figure out more stuff related to souls and all that. After all, I'm feeding off them to grow stronger, right?"

Sarho frowned. "But we already know."

"You did, but the readers didn't. Anyway, I figured that when I consumed souls, a strange process happened. Instead of destroying souls, I simply shave off everything from their mortal lives and feed on it. The rest is sent back into the world, blank slates meant to be repurposed into new lives."

"Like a cycle," Milena realized. "So death and life truly form a loop. How is that related to the gods, though?"

"Gods?" Lucian repeated, almost as confused as Glenn, hiding in his corner.

Liara nodded absent-mindedly. "Yes, Nelg is looking for a concrete way to kill a God."

Lucian blinked, laughed nervously for a moment, before silently sitting next to Glenn, contemplating how insane what he had just heard was. Glenn was still grappling with the concept of Javier being alive, talking, and, seemingly, piloting the Onnea-be-damned W.O.R.M.!

"My... predecessor, the dragon Sevirox, made a weapon capable of killing Gods, presumably," reminded Nelg. "Now, it's all good and well to have a weapon that can kill a God, but it's a bit lame if we can't even go find that God, right?"

Lucian raised his hand weakly. "Why are we even looking to kill a God, already?"

"Epinos and the Fallen Mother have a bone to pick with me," muttered Glenn as he rubbed the corner of his eyes. "I'd rather be prepared than not. And it aligned with Nelg's research about himself."

The Prince's eyebrows creased even deeper. "How so? And how come I wasn't aware of all this?"

"You were busy doing prince-work," Liara recalled, "Something about calming the nobles and cementing your political position."

Lucian grimaced. "Ah. That. Yeah."

Nelg continued, unperturbed. "So, my first thought was to search for a connection between Divinity and the Gods, said Divinity's come from. Unfortunately, that led nowhere, namely because Diviny appears out of nowhere for particularly fervent believers of a religion."

"I tried believing in a God myself, but that didn't work." Nelg scowled. "Not faithful enough, I think."

"I'm still so confused," Lucian groaned.

"Hang on, I'm almost there, Lucian," Nelg added. "Since searching for the source of Divinity didn't work, I kind of abandoned my project and focused back on myself. I wanted to figure out where the souls I ate went once I was done with them. And if I'm correct..."

He grinned widely. "The souls go to another world."

"Another dimension."

Diamanes cackled, startling everyone. "Another one? How many dimensions are there exactly?"

Glenn grunted. "Too many. Too, damned many."

Nelg ignored them and pointed a finger at the sky, or rather, the ceiling. "I think that dimension is what's beyond the sky currently. The place where that thing beyond the breach lives."

"The Outer Space."