Tower of Avarice: A LitRPG story

Emily swallowed hard as she felt the weight of Lunara's black eyes settle over her like a cloak. The Celestial's gaze saw too much; it was as if they could peer straight through flesh and bone in the soul beneath.

Louis shifted at her side, but his hand dropped away from his weapon.

"You seek to sever a bond forged between deity and Apostle." Lunara said, each word ringing out clearly like a chime. Her voice had a slight accent that had a sing-song quality to it, and Emily found herself entranced by the Celestial.

Who was this strange woman who claimed to be Mathew's mentor? He hadn't mentioned her to Emily, but that wasn't surprising. They hadn't had much time together, and there were more pressing concerns than reminiscing about their time in the Tower.

"We do…I do. Mathew became an Apostle because of me, and I'd do anything to free him." Emily replied. The Celestial's face was expressionless, and Emily couldn't get any insight into her thoughts or emotions.

"Such a thing is not possible. The bond between deity and Apostle can only be severed by Mischievous Depravity, and I do not foresee such an event happening. An Apostle is more than just an instrument or tool; they carry a piece of divinity within them. Even if Mathew were to be killed, that which is divine will persist." Lunara explained, and Emily frowned in response to her words.

"Then Mercy wasn't lying. She can be resurrected, and there isn't anything we can do to stop it."

Emily's words hung heavily in the cold air between them. Her fists tightened at her sides, her knuckles whitening from the pressure. But she forced herself to meet Lunara's gaze, that endless darkness that was as calm and remote as the night sky.

The Celestial didn't nod or use any gesture of confirmation. She simply stood in front of them motionless as though the truth itself was too obvious to warrant emphasis.

"Such a thing is possible unless her deity chooses otherwise."

"Why would they not bring her back if having an Apostle is so important?" Louis inquired, and Lunara turned her head to look at the Prince of Francia. He calmly stared back and waited for an answer.

"Mischievous Depravity does not accept failure lightly. Mercy was not the first Apostle of that particular god." Lunara responded.

"You said you will help us. How do we free Mathew?" Emily interrupted impatiently.

"To free Mathew, you must kill a god."

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Mischievous Depravity's domain was a place where reality itself writhed and twisted without end. The ground shifted with every breath, rolling like the surface of an ocean during a storm. Hills rose and fell as if the master of this place was dreaming of various landscapes.

Skyscrapers of bone and black glass erupted from the soil one moment, only to melt into rivers of molten gold the next. Colours bled across the sky in sickly greens, violent reds and deep purples. They blended together like oil on water as they constantly moved and devoured themselves.

Nothing in this place stayed the same for long. The air was thick and heavy, filled with a multitude of sounds like distant laughter, mad whispers and the low hum of something vast and ancient breathing beneath it all.

And at the center of this domain resided a monstrous form that was incomprehensible in scale. It sprawled across the heavens and was an endless, roiling mass of eyes that blinked in unnatural rhythms. It had millions of mouths that gnawed with rows of jagged teeth.

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But it was the tendrils that made up most of its bulk. These coiling appendages lashed lazily through the sky, and there was nowhere in this land that its body could not touch.

This was the true form of Mischievous Depravity. Once an Outer God, now a deity of the Tower of Avarice.

It was growing larger as it fed on the Aether of the lands its Apostles had conquered. But nothing was ever enough, and even now, at the height of its power, it still hungered for more.

The landscape was split apart suddenly by a ripple in reality. A shockwave shuddered through the domain and the endless shifting was stilled at once. The ground froze, the howling winds died, and even the river of molten gold paused its flow.

A figure stepped out of the heart of the ripple. It was a man who was tall and radiant in a way that burned the eyes to look upon him. He floated across the ground, wrapped in divine power that forced consistency and firmness in an ever-changing world.

Unyielding Declaration had arrived in the domain of Mischievous Depravity.

He was a Celestial, but where Lunara had been ethereal and distant, Unyielding Declaration was an unstoppable force given physical form. His presence cleaved through the chaos like a blade of absolute will.

Despite being in the lair of the enemy, the Celestial's face was calm and severe, beautiful but harsh. He was a being sculpted from judgement and purpose. With every step he took, the broken, shifting world beneath him solidified as if reality itself had no choice but to obey him.

Mischievous Depravity's endless mass of eyes all shifted in unison as they locked onto Unyielding Declaration. The millions of mouths opened and released a piercing scream as its tendrils writhed faster, stirring up a tempest that destroyed everything around it.

A terrible, thunderous sound cracked through the air as the roar of an enraged god reached Unyielding Declaration.

But the Celestial divinity didn't falter. He raised one hand and, with a single spoken word in a language known only to his race, the chaos recoiled, and the god in the sky flinched.

In an instant, a battle between gods erupted. The sky bled black, and the earth tore open as the Outer God turned the full, monstrous weight of its fury upon the lone, defiant Celestial.

Page Break

"We cannot participate in the battles between the divine. Unyielding Declaration will fight on our behalf, but the outcome is not certain. If you wish to free Mathew, then we must first weaken Mischievous Depravity and tip the balance in Unyielding Declartion's favour." Lunara explained as they walked toward the glowing elevator.

"How do we do that?" Louis asked as the pair hurried to follow behind the quickly moving Celestial.

"A god gains strength from their followers. Worship and belief quicken the accumulation of Aether. But an Apostle is more than a deity's eyes, ears and hands in the physical world. They are a connection to the god, and through that bond, each grows stronger in a cycle." Lunara explained.

"An Apostle draws on their deity's strength, particularly in times of great need. The more danger they are in, the more power they draw."

"And the weaker Mischievous Depravity will get." Louis finished as he understood what they had to do.

"So, we need to make its Apostle draw on its strength so that Unyielding Declaration can kill Mischievous Depravity? That shouldn't be a problem. We just wait until Mercy is resurrected, and we kill her again." Emily stated with determination.

"That will not do. Mischievous Depravity will not waste the time or energy resurrecting her now." Lunara clarified, and Emily frowned at the implication.

"But that would mean…" Emily trailed off, unable to finish the sentence.

"We must fight Mathew." Louis said, his voice filled with sadness and unwillingness.

"Yes." Lunara confirmed.

"He won't fight us, and I won't fight him. There has to be another way! I came here to save him!" Emily cried, shaking her head vigorously.

"He won't have a choice. Mischievous Depravity will command it, and Mathew will obey. And you will have to fight him with everything you have, or we will all fail. Mathew has grown much stronger since he has become their Apostle."

"Even my abilities are no match for him alone. We must act together and force him to draw as much strength through the link with Mischievous Depravity as possible."Lunara commanded, and for the first time, a spark of emotion appeared on her face.

There was an intense reluctance mixed with sadness, shame and guilt. There were a hundred emotions, all visible for a split second before the Celestial regained her calm.

But in that moment, Emily understood just how much Mathew meant to Lunara. She cared for him as much as Emily did, and she reminded Emily of a mother who feared losing her son.

"We will fight, but it will not be easy. I fear the three of us will not be his match." Louis confessed as the trio reached the glowing elevator that would lead them to the next Floor.

"Do not worry; we will not be alone. Others are willing to fight for him as well." Lunara assured them as the doors closed and they were brought to the 99th Floor, where Mathew would be waiting for them.