Divine Apostasy Book 9 - Chapter 10

[Author’s Note: I have made significant changes to the storyline and this chapter is part of the new direction. I am reposting this chapter with the current changes and marking the previous chapter as (OLD). Sorry for the confusion as I work through the best way to tell the story. Thank you.]

Chapter 10

Ruwen immediately triggered Last Breath as he arrived in the new area and moved everyone away from the rift and to the right, allowing Rami to view their rear. Remembering how the Cultivators back home could detect the vibrations from his Stone Echo and Sixth Sense spells, he refrained from using them yet. Instead, he scanned the area for any visible threats.

With Last Breath active Ruwen had the time to take in his surroundings. The black sky held no clouds and very little of the atmosphere remained. The lack of oxygen wouldn’t affect any of them as the need for breathing, eating, and sleeping mostly disappeared when reaching the Gem tier. The blackness above reminded him of his time on Rainbow’s End and he wondered if this might be an asteroid.

A thousand feet in the distance stood a walled fortress the color of bronze. Survey displayed walls that climbed fifty feet and turrets stood every thirty feet. Harsh light, bordering on ultraviolet, came from pillars atop the buildings and from hundreds of floating structures, each only two feet long.

The ground’s surface, while hard, shifted slightly as Ruwen moved. It felt like packed sand but had sharp edges like metal filings.

Uruziel expanded the Gravity Role, encasing everything within a fifty-foot sphere, and increased the downward pressure by a factor of ten. This wouldn’t affect Chip or Stump, but it might delay the hovering creatures that had already started to attack them.

Ruwen still hadn’t figured out how to use Harmony and Last Breath together, so he slowed his thoughts, and the world unfroze. Activating Harmony, he spread his awareness in a three-hundred-foot sphere, the action only consuming a fraction of a second.

The slow beat of the bronze metal flakes covering the ground traveled up Ruwen’s legs, and the attackers’ surging power generated somber chords that disrupted their surroundings. It turned the calm white melodies around them into a frantic red harmony of violence, the beat rapid and steady.

Lir reformed the display Ruwen had grown fond of since Ascendancy, and it gave him a surprising amount of comfort. A fourth bar had appeared under his Energy to track his Soul power.

Survey integrated seamlessly with Harmony and displayed its discoveries. Ruwen had wanted to speak with whatever lived in this place before any fighting occurred, but that possibility had now disappeared. He knew some cultures only opened dialogue after gauging an enemy’s strength, so he didn’t give up hope that a discussion could still occur.

The melody of the fifty enemies Harmony had discovered turned discordant as Ruwen aggressively increased the pitch of the notes near them, encasing each of the attackers in an unstable bubble and disrupting their attacks. With a thought he created a new harmony, combining the jarring sounds in a sonata of destruction, and flicked them all to the ground thirty feet away.

Fifty explosions occurred simultaneously, some larger than others, as Chip and Stump stepped up beside Ruwen. To their credit, neither one even glanced at the bright and noisy destruction, but remained focused on their assigned directions.

Go ahead, Overlord, Ruwen said.

Ruwen felt pressure on his Core as Overlord cast the Risen Queen Minion for Uruziel and the Fallen King for himself, and Ruwen added them both to the group. Then, after a moment of thought, he added Lir to the group as well.

The atmosphere, while thin, remained dense enough for speech and Chip spoke out loud. “Clear.”

“Clear,” Stump echoed.

Only then did the pair of Gem level fighters’ glance at the destruction and newcomers.

“That is impressive stealth,” Stump said. “I never sensed either of you, and I still can’t find Lir. Welcome.”

“Agreed,” Chip added. “I didn’t even smell you.”

Thankfully Overlord had summoned the armored versions of the Minions so Ruwen didn’t need to explain the physical appearance of what looked like his twin.

“Glad to be here,” Uruziel replied.

I am glad as well, Lir said in Chat.

Overlord nodded at the pair of fighters before turning to Ruwen. “That is a big Fortress. Remember our Plan B back on Rainbow’s End.”

“Do I have enough Spirit for that?” Ruwen asked.

“Adding what you Harvested under the mountain, Uruziel thinks it will only consume twenty percent of your total.”

“Only?”

“And I want Sivart to lead the troops while I take the scouts.”

“You can’t control both?” Ruwen asked.

“Of course I can, but this isn’t about me.”

Overlord had wanted to let Sivart out of Ruwen’s mind and into a Minion of his own for some time. The Narrator had done so much for Ruwen, much of which went unnoticed, and Overlord wanted to reward him. This situation was the first to arise where it made sense to try it.

“Sivart knows the dangers?” Ruwen asked, loath to accidentally cause the Narrator’s death.

“We practice in here all the time and his technique is superb.”

Ruwen studied the wall a thousand feet in the distance and all the buildings it protected. It might house a significant number of enemies, and it wasn’t the worst idea to use Plan B. Ruwen and Overlord had devised the plan to quickly assemble a strike team of twenty Warrior Minions supported by five airborne Sentry Minions. But really, this had nothing to do with safety, but showing appreciation for Sivart’s hard work.

Ruwen rubbed his forehead. “If you think it’s safe—”

Ruwen never finished the sentence as Overlord cast not one, but two Minions Ruwen had never seen before, quickly followed by a small army.

“I need to stop drinking,” Chip whispered.

“No, I see them too,” Stump replied in the same whisper.

Sivart sat astride a small green dragon. The creature flapped its wings, causing the metal particles on the ground to swirl. The dragon’s wings spanned sixty feet and its body stretched twice that.

Sivart snapped the long spear he held up to his shoulder, the weapon’s tip pointing at the black empty sky. On the far side of Sivart, close to his knee, a deep quiver held another dozen spears, and on the side closest to Ruwen, a large crossbow hung, cocked and loaded.

Black dragon silk provided Sivart’s armor, and he inclined his head at Ruwen. “Warlord.” He turned to Overlord. “General. Thank you both for this opportunity.”

Then Sivart reached back, gripping the bunched-up silk at the top of his spine and pulled forward. The cloth unfolded as he brought it to his throat, covering his entire head, and only leaving a slit for his eyes. Then the dragon leaped into the air.

Four more dragons, each a different color, appeared with riders who immediately streaked into the sky to take formation behind Sivart. Five modified wagons materialized in front of Ruwen, and he recognized the long-armed catapults of Launch Minions.

Round Sentry Minions appeared at the end of each catapult arm and the Launch Minions instantly lurched forward, throwing the Sentry Minions upward so hard, they immediately disappeared from sight.

At the same time groups of Minions materialized to the sides and behind them, each cluster of ten a mix of different kinds of Warrior Minions holding a variety of weapons and shields and led by a larger Fallen Hero Minion. The ten groups of ten loosely merged into what appeared an organized arrangement. But seeing how it formed, Ruwen recognized the flexibility of the configuration and how it could split into varying sized units depending on the danger.

The Launch Minions had fired constantly, and as they hurled their last Sentries, Survey displayed twenty-five now hovering high above. Instead of dispersing, the Launch Minions transformed into Siege Minions, the catapult arm becoming a massive bolt. The new vehicles hovered a foot off the ground, and they silently circled to the group of Warrior Minions behind them, who made room for the sleds with practiced ease.

Finished with the Minions, Overlord used the newly upgraded Scarecrow Aspect Hood of Guarding to create forty Angelic Field Guardians, distributing them behind, to each side, and inside the fortress in the distance. Each clone would have twenty-five percent of Ruwen’s Armor Class and Attributes.

Ruwen’s map lit up with updates as Survey absorbed the flood of information from Overlord’s clones, Sivart’s Warrior Minions, and the airborne Sentries.

All of it had happened in less than eight seconds, and Ruwen slowly turned to face Overlord, who faked concentrating on the distant clones.

“What in all that’s holy, was that?” Ruwen asked.

“What?” Overlord asked, still avoiding Ruwen’s gaze.

“You said Plan B, not—” Ruwen waved his hand at the sky, the distant fortress, and then turned in a circle pointing at the hundred plus Minions around them, “this,” he finished.

“Oh, that. It’s a slight variation. We call it Formation K-One.”

“It looks like you’ve practiced Formation K-One.”

“It gets boring in there sometimes,” Overlord responded, “So maybe we’ve practiced it once or twice.”

“A day,” Uruziel added with a small laugh.

Ruwen tried to hide his smile. “And how many formations are there?”

Overlord shifted between his feet, obviously uncomfortable. “We might have tested a few.”

“Hundred,” Uruziel said in a whisper.

Overlord turned to Uruziel, the two plated helms reminding Ruwen of battle golems.

“You’re not helping,” Overlord whispered back.

Uruziel laughed, placed a hand at the base of Overlord’s neck and pulled his head forward until their two helmets clanged together. “Can’t you see he’s impressed, not angry.”

Overlord’s helm turned toward Ruwen in a quick glance.

Ruwen couldn’t hide his smile any longer. “Impressive is an understatement. That blew me away.”

Overlord’s shoulders relaxed. “I’m glad you like it. After you refill your Spirit tank, we can really put on a show.”

Ruwen stepped up to the pair and put a hand on Overlord’s plated shoulder. “You did amazing. I can’t believe that’s possible. Congratulations to you and Sivart, and I look forward to the show.”

Overlord stood up straight, as the worry disappeared completely. “Triple Z will blow your mind.”

Uruziel stepped away from Overlord and shook a finger. “No triple Z. We’re here to explore this rift, not decimate a country.”

“Fine,” Overlord said, facing the fortress again. “Maybe later.”

Chip and Stump stared at Ruwen in shock. He quickly pointed at the mass of enemies he’d destroyed with Harmony. “We should examine those,” he said and Blinked to the pile.