The Boundless Expanse(An Epic System Apocalypse LitRPG)

With Jonathan now back in the game, the conquest of Bloodspill was over within a week. He reunited with his allies a few hours after Kaloss had recovered, bringing the former priest along with him.

He had quickly ingratiated himself with Edgar and the Uthraki, what with their shared hatred of the gods. Some of the others were more wary, especially Eva. She wasn't the most trusting of people, and the arrival of a strange priest, especially one more powerful than her, made her suspicious.

Still, Kaloss was a true asset on the battlefield, able to wipe out entire armies with storms of fire and shadow. He was almost as powerful as Jonathan, though his level was a bit higher. Even with his strength sealed, he had all of the skill and knowledge of his incredibly long lifespan to draw upon. Unfortunately, some of his skills relied on much higher levels of strength and speed to pull off, though they did scale down somewhat, allowing him to eke out a greater level of power than most at his level could.

By the time the last city surrendered, Jonathan was sitting on the edge of Tier 8, ready to break through at any time. He was the second highest leveled among his core group, right behind Kaloss, who had an unfair head start.

Jonathan sat in a meditative position, looking out over the vast world that he had created. His position on the highest tower of Avarana's capital put him almost twenty miles above the ground.

The seven merged circles of the Hells were just barely visible with his massively enhanced senses, ranging from the drab grey sand and rock of Cessation to the verdant plains of the Great Farm. As there was no curvature to the world, it was all within sight.

It was incredible to think that all of it was his. He had once been a man who hadn't even owned his own car on Earth, he was now the ruler of a landmass thousand of times larger than his home planet ever had been.

A hand dropped onto his shoulder, and Jonathan turned. "Ah. Eliza. How are you?"

Eliza sat down by Jonathan, letting out a small sigh of relief as she did so. "Good. I just wanted a break from all the fighting." She fell silent for a moment, looking off into the distance. "Damn, this view is something else."

Jonathan smiled. "It really is. To think all this barely took a year. I wonder how long it will be until we are standing at the gates of Angranor's citadel, ready to free the Hells once and for all."

Eliza leaned in, resting her head on Jonathan's shoulder. "It won't be long at all. Especially with you leading us."

"I'm glad you think that," Jonathan replied, a slight warmth bubbling up within him. He and Eliza simply sat there for a few minutes, before he finally got to work.

Looking at his System interface, Jonathan selected the breakthrough. Energy coursed through his body, sparks of violet lightning pulsing behind his eyes. He lifted off the ground, feeling newfound might pumping into his veins.

You have reached Tier 8!

You have gained 1600 points in each stat (accounting for multipliers).

Your body is naturally more durable, and able to use a greater fraction of your total strength.

You have gained 960 points in Divinity.

You now need a higher concentration of mana, proportional to your level. Current inhibition is 0%, as you are using Tier 8 mana to operate. Maximum inhibition is 75%.

You now have access to Tier 8 classes.

Eliza gave him a sharp look. "Were you really just waiting to break through?"

Jonathan felt a slight panic, before responding. "Uh… No?" he said unconvincingly.

Eliza snorted, and got to her feet. "I'll leave you to it. Come and find me when you're done. I want to do something with you before we head off for more fighting."

Jonathan waved goodbye, but Eliza didn't look back. Sighing, he opened his class selection interface and let the darkness claim him.

Anticipating the same class types as usual, Jonathan was quite surprised when he found himself facing off against four statues that he didn't recognize. The fifth was simply the next tier of Elemental Juggernaut, but it seemed that the System had stopped sending him classes that it knew he would never pick.

Intrigued, Jonathan moved over to the closest statue. It was of a loose robed mage, his eyes crackling with a strange mixture of Divinity and Void elemental power. Strange in that the proportions were somewhat off. There was far more Void energy than Divinity, unlike in Jonathan's body where they were intermingled.

Grandmaster Soul Magus

Tier 8 Legendary Class

The soul is mysterious, but also a source of great power. It is a gateway between this world and the next, or in your case, a constant reminder of your death and subsequent rebirth in the Hells. In learning to tap into the elemental gate within your soul, you have found that, while possessing great power, your soul is quite fragile. At least, compared to your ambition. Perhaps what you need most is guidance?

+150 to Intelligence and Wisdom, +275 free stat points

Soul Mastery Pathway Skill

The class was powerful enough to instantly catch Jonathan's eye. The stat boosts were in line with the general progression within the Tiers of classes, but the addition of a Pathway Skill, and an especially valuable one at that, was even better. Even if it started off at the lowest rank, it would still grow to become an integral part of his skillset.

Before making any decisions, and knowing that his mainstay Elemental Juggernaut class was still available, Jonathan moved on to the next statue. This one was of a king, clad in ornate ruby robes and wearing a crown heavy not just on account of the gold and gemstones that made it up, but because of the authority that it represented.

Emperor

Tier 8 Special Class

You have proven that not only are you a peerless warrior, but also a talented leader. Your territories are quickly approaching the point of being a true Empire, both in the estimations of your allies and enemies alike, and by the System itself. Now is the time to prepare yourself for that weighty mantle.

+410 free stat points. Unlocks the Charisma Stat

Charisma: A special stat that grows through leveling a rulership based class rather than through stat allocation. Increases negotiation abilities, physical appearance and intimidation attempts. At higher levels it can influence the target's mind directly.

Note*

Special classes may only be taken once per Tier bracket and do not have direct evolutions

Compared to the Soul Magus class, this was something new and more interesting. The only extra stat Jonathan knew of was Divinity, and that was only possible to acquire if you were already a god. He had never heard of the Charisma stat before, and never encountered anyone who possessed it. Or at least, he assumed so by the description. While beings like the Circle Lords were naturally intimidating on account of their might, there wasn't anything supernatural about their gravitas. Being roared at by a dragon was already terrifying enough. Jonathan would have noticed if there had been another layer of intimidation on top of that.

Honestly, this would be a good pick, Jonathan thought. It's about the same stat points with my multipliers, and gives me some versatility. Charisma would certainly be useful for trying to find allies.

The next statue was of a wild faced brute, jaw and fists clenched in defiance of the world.

Grandmaster Void Berserker

Tier 8 Legendary Class

You have pushed yourself to your limits time and time again, both in pursuit of your element and in pursuit of power. Your rage against the gods pushes you to greater heights. Now it is time to channel that rage properly.

+150 to Strength and Dexterity, +275 free stat points

Ancient rarity [Limit Breaker] Skill

Jonathan was intrigued by the System's decision to start including skills in his classes. It could have just been the standard after Tier 8, or it could be in response to his growth. In any case, the skill being offered by the Void Berserker class sounded impressive enough.

Jonathan floated over to the final class statue and read over the description. The statue itself was of a golden skinned man clad in a toga, his eyes blazing with white light.

Godling

Tier 8 Special Class

You have come into your own as a god, far earlier than any others of your ilk. Becoming a Lesser God below Tier 50 is seen to be nearly impossible. Becoming one below Tier 5? Truly unheard of. Be careful, however, that your power does not become hubris and that hubris does not become defeat.

+160 to all stats

Divinity Mastery Pathway Skill

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

Jonathan froze, reading over the last line. He had a general energy mastery skill, but hadn't expected one for Divinity. He had always seen the energy of his godhood as something less nuanced than his elemental energy or mana. It was simply a power source that could be used to power Runes, or to empower himself. There was no way, or thus far a reason, to reach beyond that. The System message hinted at something greater, something beyond his current abilities.

He already knew what his Elemental Juggernaut class would end up giving him, so he didn't bother checking. Even if there was a skill attached to it, he would probably already have something similar. The Emperor class had been tempting earlier, but the Godling class was exactly what he needed to keep progressing. Jonathan was lagging behind in his mastery of Divinity, compared to the rest of his powerset. Smiling, he chose it.

The darkness faded away and the real world returned. Jonathan was still sitting crosslegged on the ground, gazing off at the horizon of his realm. Only, there was a slight difference now. His vision was faintly tinged gold, and he could sense a faint resonance coming from further down the tower. As he studied it, he realized that it was coming from Eliza.

You have gained a new pathway skill!

Divinity Mastery: Novice 1

Divinity is the raw might of the gods itself, but its uses range far beyond the simple role of fuel. True gods can use it to work wonders without the need for any other energy source. One day that will be you. Unless you blow yourself up. Or start a negative feedback loop at the intersection of your soul and your godhood. Nonetheless, your journey to the pinnacle begins here.

+5 to Divinity

The skill itself was quite nebulous. As it was a skill granted to him by the System rather than from his own efforts, Jonathan would need to learn how to use his Divinity himself, with the small headstart given to him by this skill. All he could do right now was sense Divinity near him, though that was already a step up from his previous skills, which was to say, forcing enough Divinity into either a technique or his own body to achieve something.

Jonathan stood up and headed over to the vast skylight that led down into the tower. Avarana had once used it to ascend into the skies, and it was almost half a mile wide. Only Jonathan's immense speed allowed him to even traverse the tower in any sort of reasonable time. The dark bricks were sealed together with iron, creating an imposing barrier against the elements. Even as the steely grey clouds circled overhead, a few droplets of rain beginning to fall, it remained obdurate.

Jonathan let the rain patter against his armor, ignoring it as he headed for the staircase on the side of the massive hole in the ground. A resident Earth mage had attached the staircase, which was made out of mud brown bricks as opposed to the glossy obsidian of the rest of the tower. Given that the tower wasn't useful for much except sightseeing and quiet contemplation, it wasn't that big of a deal. Most of the survivors from Bloodspill had moved out, heading to the Great Farm. The realm they had lived in was filled with nothing but bad memories. Those that did remain worked tirelessly to transform Bloodspill into somewhere they actually wanted to live in.

The entire scene was quite lonely, and Jonathan hurried down the steps towards the next floor. It was almost half a mile of non stop running to get there. Avarana had enjoyed her space, and wanted a degree of separation between her and her closest followers. For an egotistical dragon who thought herself to be a god, and later became one in truth, it was natural for her to consider herself to be above mortal affairs. In the end it had taken another god to defeat her, Jonathan supposed. Himself.

The landing was crudely affixed to the staircase, the architecture clashing with itself. Jonathan hurried past and into a long hallway, off which branched a series of rooms. Training rooms, offices and everything in between made up a complex the size of a small city. Bloodspill was truly immense, and even though Avarana had only taken direct responsibility for her own city, that still was made up of billions of people. It took a lot of bureaucracy to administer everything, something that Jonathan never really saw on his abbreviated rush through the Hells.

Out of all the rooms, there was only one that he expected Eliza to be in. As of late she had taken to training obsessively, prompted by Jonathan's convalescence. She was the strongest in the faction behind him, or perhaps Kaloss. With her Divinity, Eliza was able to access levels of power beyond the norm, with only Jonathan being above her. However, her focus recently was taken up by a different purpose. Training her elementalism. Most elementalists weren't like Jonathan, with a limitless font of power. They had a limitation imposed by their level and mastery. Eliza's obsession now was to master elemental flight, which was easier said than done. Jonathan could brute force it, but he had to burn the same amount of power just for flying that most people would use for their most powerful techniques.

As Jonathan neared, his armored boots clicking against the tiled ground, he heard Eliza swearing in the distance. A slight smile flickered onto his face, but he quickly banished it. Best not to let her see his reaction.

At the end of the hall was a large open arena, filled with all sorts of obstacles and a few training golems that looked like faceless angels made of marble. Eliza was barely visible, flitting past the door every few seconds. She was wreathed in a cloak of air, moving like she was a part of the wind itself. Jonathan had seen Edgar fly before, but this was different. Eliza wasn't trying to reach a deeper connection with her element like Edgar was. She was just trying to increase her combat abilities while in the air.

Her sword flickered through the air as she moved, wreathed in golden fire. Every swing cleaved one of the training golems in two, but they soon repaired themselves, their stony bodies snapping back into shape.

Jonathan sidled up to the doorway and leaned against it, watching Eliza get to work. He was sure she saw him, but she didn't acknowledge his presence. Jonathan pursed his lips. He had been quite distant lately. Maybe it was time to take another break from all the fighting and spend some time with Eliza.

A few minutes later Eliza snapped her fingers and the golems went inert. She flipped in the air and landed on the arena sands, flicking her hair back as she straightened up. "You're back. I thought you would be longer," she said curtly.

Jonathan entered the arena, only for Eliza to shoot a spear of wind at him, a smile on her face. "I want to see your improvement for myself. What did you get out of your new class?"

Jonathan returned the smile as he raised an open palm. The wind dissipated against it, though he was driven a step back. "You'll see."

Eliza snorted and raced towards him, her feet barely touching the ground. At the last moment she leaped, the air catching her. Her sword spun around in a tight arc, aimed directly at Jonathan's neck. For anyone else, that would have been an open threat, but for Jonathan, it was a sign that Eliza wasn't that angry at him.

He met the strike with his palm, smoothly shifting it from its outstretched position into a block across his body. The sword struck home, but didn't faze him. Then a charge of Divinity raced up and down the blade like it had been soaked in gasoline. The golden flame spread to Jonathan, singing the edge of his armor.

To Jonathan's surprise, he felt a connection to the flames that he hadn't before. Previously, Eliza's Divinity had been completely alien to his own, not only because it belonged solely to her, but because of the Air elemental infusion within it. Now he could sense that there were more points of commonality between his own abilities and hers.

Jonathan reached out with his mind and into the golden fire, trying to find some way to fight back. He could have overpowered it with his Void abilities, but he wouldn't be able to practice his new Pathway Skill that way.

The slight golden tinge to his vision brightened, the Divine fire glowing even brighter than Eliza herself, who was covered in a cloak of radiance. Jonathan's own hands were the brightest by far, however, his Divinity on the next level compared to Eliza's.

Finding a point of resonance between himself and Eliza's flames, he pushed his control into them. Nothing happened for a moment.

"Are you just going to stand there?" Eliza asked, tilting her head. "What are you doing?"

Then the flames surrounding Eliza's hands flickered and she frowned. A moment later they winked out entirely, a flash of purple light all that heralded their end.

"The hell?" Eliza asked, taking a step back. "Is that the ability you got from your new class?"

Jonathan nodded. "It is. I'm trying to figure out what exactly I can do with it. It's only at Novice 1 now. Though, it's probably about to level up after that."

"So," Eliza began, frowning. "What class is it exactly? It's not another Elemental Juggernaut class, right?"

"No. Something the System called a Special Class. Apparently they can show up at any point within a ten Tier bracket, but don't have upgrades. This one is called Godling."

"So you got a class that's named after something you already are, to teach you how to do things you already know how to do?" Eliza grinned. "Sounds a bit redundant to me."

Jonathan shrugged. "It's already working out, it looks like. Now, I thought you wanted to fight?"

Eliza surged into motion, her sword pointed directly at Jonathan's sternum. A swirling tornado of wind gathered around her body, centering on the sword. With a sudden blur, she leaped off the ground, corkscrewing through the air at hypersonic speeds. Making sure to keep the air contained so as to not rip the arena apart, Eliza closed the gap in an instant. Only, she found something in her way.

Jonathan's hand, coated in a layer of roiling Divinity, tinged purple by his element, was waiting there. It wrapped around Eliza's blade, the Divinity holding off the pressure of Eliza's elemental power. It felt like he was holding a tiny bomb in his hand, trying to pry his fingers apart. Jonathan ignored the sensation and gripped harder, before pulling back and tearing the sword from Eliza's grasp. His hand snapped out to slam into her torso, sending Eliza tumbling backwards.

She rolled to her feet, grinning. "You're not going to take it easy on me, huh? Alright. I'll get serious. Blessing of the North Wind!"

Jonathan watched as a corona of Divinity gathered around Eliza, before sinking into her flesh. Spikes of hardened air protruded from her joints, looking like a faintly shimmering suit of armor covering her limbs. Eliza lowered her stance before taking a single step forward. She vanished, even Jonathan's enhanced eyesight unable to track her speed.

Wait, he thought. That's not speed. She just became a part of the air. How did she do that?

While Jonathan's Wrath of the Void empowered him to an immense degree of physical might, it looked like Eliza had chosen a different path with her Divinity augmentation. It served to empower her element, allowing her to access skills from a higher degree of mastery than she actually possessed. Even Edgar had never pulled something like this off, despite his True Affinity.

Eliza's hand emerged from the air first, tugging her sword out of Jonathan's loose grip. He let it go, interested in what she would do next. Her movements were shockingly fast, as for the most part, anyone around his level or below looked like they were going in slow motion. Eliza, in that moment, was almost as fast as Jonathan was.

The sword flickered out of sight for a moment before reappearing, piercing straight through Jonathan's stomach. It was completely incorporeal, but even a fool could have predicted what would happen next. The weapon solidified, along with the rest of Eliza's body.

"Got you," she said.

"I don't think so," Jonathan replied, looking down at his bloodless armor. "Why don't you try removing your sword?"

Eliza frowned and pulled her hand back. Expecting resistance, she planted her feet, but stumbled back as she withdrew nothing but the sword's hilt from Jonathan's gut. The rest of the blade was gone, eaten away by the Void.

"It's time you got a new sword anyway," Jonathan declared. "We can get one in the Trading Hub. That blade was only Tier 6, right?"

Eliza stared at her ruined weapon in shock, before looking up. "Damn it. I suppose I deserve that. I could have really injured you there. I got a bit carried away."

Jonathan waved a hand dismissively. "Ah, don't worry about it. I've had way worse happen to me. A wound like that would take a few seconds of regeneration at most to fix."

Eliza shifted uneasily.

"What?"

"Well… There was a bit more to that attack. It was going to set off a bomb of compressed air in the center of your body."

Jonathan stared at her, then started to laugh. "You really didn't like me being away for so long, huh?"

"You're not angry?"

"Why would I be? That wouldn't have killed me. I don't really care about pain that much at this point, after what I went through to repair my soul. As long as it isn't deadly, it'll end eventually."

Seeing this as the end of the conversation, Eliza nodded. "Then should we go get a replacement sword? I'm going to need one for when we go back to the front lines."