High Artificer, Ch 34: Keros

When Sam found him, Keros was standing at the center of a courtyard, looking up at the stars.

Sam stood in the Void, his figure immaterial, as he took in the changes in the crystal flame elemental.

Keros looked almost the same, a humanoid figure of cut sapphire and blazing heat, but there was more depth to his aura, which made him seem more present. 

It was due to his Truth resonating with reality.

His aura was already stronger than some of the High Councilors, even though his Level was only at the boundary of the Sixth Evolution, which meant he’d comprehended a powerful Truth.

Sam analyzed him, taking in the changes.

Kerosto’Era’Naratoth 

Lord of Crystal Mysteries-Flame of the Seven Sages.

Level 600.

Truth: Arcane Heart of Crystal Flame.

The astral energy that he’d poured into Keros’ restoration back on Aster Fall was still there, from when he was healing him after he’d been nearly killed fighting the Vos’Rekan the first time. 

It had strengthened his body, and unlike most crystal flame elementals, his flames were tinged with silver now. The signature of astral energy was partially woven into his aura, which meant it had been a part of his Evolution.

Astral energy wasn’t compatible with most races except Astral Titans, but Sam’s ability with elemental essence had made it work for Keros. 

It was different from what he’d done for Rolen.

His apprentice had gained an affinity for Astral Ice, which was a form of celestial ice in the Void that was infused with starlight, which made it partially both things. It was a rare variant of an element, and since humans were flexible with elemental affinities, Rolen was able to incorporate it, but he wasn't able to use astral energy itself any more than Keros was.

Pure astral energy was the essence of starlight itself, as well as the Titans' bloodline power. If Keros tried to change his affinity to it, it would destroy his crystal flame foundation. 

When Sam used it to help Keros regenerate, he’d been careful not to overwhelm the elemental’s affinity. Instead, it had become something like an integrated treasure, like starlight that was infused into a sapphire or a silver band that reinforced a gemstone. It was acting as a reinforcement and boosting his potential.

As a result, his Classes had been significantly upgraded.

Before, Keros had been the Lord of Crystal Spells and his subclass had been the Flame of the Seven Wanderers. His new ones were on the same paths, but stronger.

Lord of Crystal Mysteries was a tier higher than his earlier class. It blended the command of spells with that astral energy, letting Keros’s flames take on a more wide-ranging celestial aspect.  

His Truth affected the way crystal flame merged into runes and let him create endless variations for his spells. It also embodied how its properties of being both hot and cold at once was ever-changing, providing a source of power as it moved from one form to the next and allowed for flexibility.

The Cer’Aleth had a talent for self-sustaining spell forms that could grow on their own and with this Truth, Keros had opened the door to a realm of great power. 

His spell structures would be adaptive, capable of self-repair, and capable of breaking apart and reforming on their own without losing their stability. It meant that his mana would go further than before and his efficiency would sky rocket.

The Arcane Heart of Crystal Flame was a good Truth for him. It was based on the magic of crystal flame and was now the heart of his spells, giving them power at the same time as it let them change more easily.

His subclass was more of a direct upgrade and fairly similar to his previous one, with the focus shifting from the Seven Wanderers to the Seven Sages, but it had a sense of higher power and wisdom.

It was an excellent Evolution. 

In terms of pure power, Keros was probably a dozen times stronger than he’d been before. His Truth was a lever that would let him use his strength to the greatest advantage.

It didn’t look like he had too many areas that needed to be improved immediately. It was a solid foundation. He just needed energy and time, as well as a strong stimulus to keep advancing along his Path.

Perhaps in time he would be one of the first to surpass Level 699.

That was one of the reasons Sam had come to find him.

He studied Keros’s meridians and aura as he considered how to make it work. It hadn’t been immediately clear, but the more he looked into the Heart of the Void, the more he could see the way energy needed to change at Level 700.

There were beings out in the galaxy that had already reached that state. 

He could sense them. 

The moment of their breakthrough echoed in the Heart of the Void. It wasn’t there in the same way his existence was, but there was an impression.

Every moment, Truths of the Heart were flowing into his mind, teaching him more hour by hour. Things he didn’t know a few minutes before were forming in his mind without reference or context.

It was fortunate that his Intelligence was so high. Part of his attention was constantly sorting through those bits of new information and cross-referencing them for a more comprehensive understanding.

He’d organized his thoughts so that only part of his attention was interfacing with that flow, which kept it from becoming too distracting. It was like he was steadily reading through an endless library.

Things that the Avatar of Blood had said now made more sense, as did the Outsiders’ goals in the First War. 

The Three Demons had been trying to achieve the Seventh Evolution when they came to this galaxy. They’d thought that by absorbing enough raw essence from the stars here, they could break through the barrier and reach it.

They had been guessing, but they knew that others had already done it in their galaxy, although they were legendary figures of the past.

That was why Shattered Skies had brought along that spark of astral chaos from their galaxy, which Sam had inherited. It had shaped his Path and turned him first into a Voidborn and then into a Titan.

She’d intended for it to bridge the gap to let her reach the Seventh Evolution. The Avatar of Blood had wanted the same thing when he sensed it on Sam. 

The memories Sam had inherited from the Outsider outpost that belonged to her had a few references as well, ones that he now saw in a new light when they spoke about the Immortal Ancestors of the various bloodlines.

Now, he knew what that title meant and it made him shake his head.

Those Ancestors were the ones who’d reached the Seventh Evolution and left their mark on that galaxy.

There was no method listed for how to achieve it in the outpost’s memories, but with the insight from the Heart of the Void, he was able to put together how it must have been done.

In that, he knew more than the Three Demons had.

With enough effort, he might be able to look back through time and see into another galaxy, to study how those Outsider Ancestors had done it, or to another galaxy where the path was more fully formed.

The Heart of the Void touched them all. 

His galaxy was mostly an open book to him now, but other galaxies were distant from his mind, so it took more work to see them. It was a conceptual distance in the Heart of the Void, rather than a physical one. 

Space didn’t mean much there.

The Seventh Evolution was the realm where Truth became Form. 

Level 600 allowed you to Ascend to become something like a local god within your domain, bending reality around you, but Level 700 made it continue after you left, if you willed it to.

It was the Evolution where lifespans became endless, which was why it was called the Immortal Evolution.

It was difficult to achieve and required a massive amount of energy to fuel the breakthrough, but it was equally as powerful.

With the ability to make your Truth permanent, you could also make your existent permanent, something that could only be broken with enough power. 

Everything you did gained a sense of greater weight in the universe.

It didn’t guarantee that you were truly eternal, but it was the next best thing. It was an Evolution where you could only die by being destroyed and you had the durability to make sure that was difficult.

It wasn’t as good as being a Sovereign, but it was easier to achieve as long as you had enough resources.

An Immortal wouldn’t be reborn from the Heart of the Void, they were limited to the same concepts that they had before, and they had no control over Chaos, just their Truth and Form, but that was enough.

They were extremely powerful.

That Evolution allowed you to make permanent existences from your Truth, even if they shouldn’t exist, including things like a bloodline that was locked and always perfect when it was passed down.

That was how the Outsiders had acquired theirs. 

Each of their Paths had a Level 700 Immortal Ancestor at the beginning of it.

There was an Ancestor of Blood, of the Elements, of Passion, of Stealth, of Transformation, and of Devouring, at the very least. Those were the Six Paths he was familiar with. 

The thought made him worried for the Titans who had gone to the Outsider galaxy.

He resolved to try to find them as soon as possible. 

His dominion should allow him to if he had enough time to listen to his dominion and to search through all the information he had access to in the Heart of the Void.

The presence of starlight and astral energy, Caerlon’s runes, their crafting...perhaps the trace of this galaxy’s energy elsewhere or the more familiar resonance of their elements, one of those should be enough of a signal that he could find them.

The Heart of the Void stretched everywhere and the Titans’ presence would be visible in it.

Hopefully they hadn’t run into one of those Ancestors. 

Even for the Titans, that would be problematic. 

He could sense the presence of many figures at the Seventh Evolution in distant areas of the Void, which was one of the reasons he was concerned for the future of his homeland. 

It was difficult even for someone at Level 700 to cross the empty Void between galaxies, which was what had kept this galaxy safe so far. It was a painful and arduous process.

But one day, an Immortal might come here.

His ability to channel Primal Chaos was stronger than any Immortal, something that would dissolve their Truth and Form, but he hadn’t fought one yet to test it. He was confident that he could stop an invader, but they might cause a lot of trouble before he found them. 

The best thing to do would be to get this galaxy up to par so it could defend itself if he wasn’t around. 

That meant he had to raise some Immortals. 

It was a tall order and currently the training paths of this galaxy weren’t up to par. 

The Seventh Evolution needed massive physical and spiritual power to create an Immortal Form, which was its foundation. 

With the right guidance, the Titans would be able to manage it, but that was because they were Primordial and had nearly unlimited potential and strength. 

The only reason some of them at Level 699 hadn’t broken through was that there was no knowledge about how to do it and they hadn’t tried hard enough.

At the moment, none of the younger races had the necessary power. Their domains needed to be ten times stronger. Without that foundation, they wouldn’t be able to gather the necessary energy.

Now that he knew about it, he planned to push his family to that level eventually, both to protect them and to make sure their lifespans didn’t run out, but even if they accepted the idea, it would take time for them to reach it, as well as better training methods, which he would have to develop.

For now, Keros was his top choice.

Asperio was next.

Both of them had the necessary drive to succeed and would understand how important it was. If they agreed, they would be his test subjects for new methods. 

He’d worked with Asperio on refining his domain, which was the first step, but he would have to help him make it more powerful.

Depending on how it went, a few of his other allies would be next, along with the Silver Nagas on Aster Fall.

The Nagas were slowly gaining levels, but they were still in the Fourth Evolution, so he had a little time for them, but they would be the best students. He would have to make sure to find the right training paths for their Fifth and Sixth Evolutions. 

That way, their advancements wouldn’t be wasted.

He could see the future ahead of them.

One day, with their loyalty, the nagas would be the Heralds of Silver Chaos, his emissaries in the Void.

He could feel the echo of their presence in the Heart of the Void. He couldn’t tell what year it was in reality or the path he took to get there, but it made him smile.

Keros was the perfect sounding board for all of those ideas.

There were few people whose perspective he trusted as much as the old elemental. Before he built the human domain or changed the galaxy, he wanted to hear what the former Astral Guardian thought was most important.

Keros had seen ages pass on Aster Fall and he’d watched millions of years of the regular galaxy from a distance. If anyone had a good perspective on both of them, as well as how to strengthen all parties, it was him.

His dedication to protecting the galaxy was his most defining feature.

Winter would be a good one to ask too, but she was reliant on the Titans and couldn’t imagine a world without them as easily. 

Keros would have a better view.

Between one moment and the next, silver ripples of starlight coalesced around Sam as he faded into existence. Space bent and then bent back, with barely a flicker of essence to disturb it. 

A light breeze drifted past Keros where he was standing in the academy courtyard. It curved, taking a different path than before as if someone was standing there.

The change made the elemental turn to look. A flash of surprise flared through his heart flame as he saw Sam.

“Hello, old friend,” Sam said with a grin. “It’s been a while.”

Instead of being surprised, Keros only chuckled. He’d been around Sam’s avatars enough since coming back to get used to him, as well as his habit for appearing out of nowhere. 

They’d been catching up regularly, but now that Sam’s real body was here, it felt more official.

“You finished your Evolution?” Keros asked, looking impressed as he studied Sam. He wasn’t aware of any of the profound thoughts on Sam’s mind, so he focused on what he knew.

“That was swift indeed, much faster than mine! Congratulations are in order! How did it go? I can barely sense the aura around you, which means your Truth is more profound than mine by quite a bit...and you are restraining it. That is only fitting for a Titan.”

His words were easy and relaxed, without a trace of jealousy. He only seemed kind as he looked expectantly at Sam.

“A few unexpected turns, but it went well enough,” Sam said with a smile as he waved his hand through the air. 

He was undecided about telling Keros everything, so for now he was going to play off all of his knowledge as Titan insights that had come to him while breaking through. 

It was easy enough to say they were inherited memories that the Titans had simply never shared with the other races. It would still be startling, but it shouldn’t make Keros treat him too differently.

He found it more comfortable to pretend he was just a bit above average rather than a supreme being capable of destroying most of reality with a touch.

Perhaps it was an illusion, but that road was too lonely.

With a flicker of will, he sent his status with the Lord of Endless Stars class to Keros to view.

Keros’s eyes widened as he took in the changes.

“You have changed even more than I expected, Sam Hastern,” he said slowly, shaking his head. 

“I truly cannot comprehend the Titans, or you. I can sense your domain, but it is so much stronger than mine that the two cannot be compared. What is this Truth in it, and your new class?”

“I comprehended a Truth of Endless Starlight,” Sam said, “which should help me find some old enemies, if you’re interested in another hunt for Vos’Rekan soon.”

His dominion was expansive, and one of the things he could feel now were the voids where starlight was disappearing in the galaxy. 

That signature only came from two things: collapsed stars and Vos’Rekan.

With a little effort, he should be able to hunt down the creatures and put an end to one of the Titans’ oldest enemies.

He hadn’t decided yet if he should leave some of them alive, but the ancient one that had attacked Aster Fall in the past was the first on his list of the things to find.

Its punishment was past due.

He’d promised to take Harsen along the next time he found one and he would probably invite Broden too, along with anyone else interested in a great hunt.

It would be a good way to show the faculty at the Academy what was important.

He doubted any of the current High Council would come along except Asperio, but he would extend the offer to them as well.

More importantly, he had plans for the Fragments of the Primal Void that the Vos’Rekan had. He was going to need them to build things.

“If you need me, I will be there,” Keros replied with a nod. His voice was serious. “I do not seek out such battles, but I will not flinch from them.”

His attitude was as serious and steadfast, as grave as a soldier on the dawn of battle.

“It will not be as dangerous this time,” Sam promised. “I am stronger than before. It might also be one of the last chances to participate in such a battle for many years. The Vos’Rekan are rare.”

“Of course I will accompany you,” Keros agreed. He paused as he gave Sam a long look. “You have changed, even from when I saw your avatar yesterday. You are more confident.”

“This hunt will be the beginning of many changes,” Sam agreed, “but we will deal with it in time. Before that, I wanted to ask for your advice on another matter. This Evolution has made me see the strength of our galaxy in a new light. I have learned some things about the Seventh Evolution and the forces beyond our galaxy.”

“The Seventh Evolution?” Keros’s heart flickered with surprise as he stared at Sam. “Are you certain? There have always been rumors, but nothing in fact. You sound as if you know more. Does it really exist?”

There were rumors about the Seventh Evolution across the settled galaxy, but to him it was as much a myth as True Dragons.

“We are not alone in the Void,” Sam said clearly. “I’ve seen it. Others will come eventually. To face them, we need a stronger Path. I do not want to have a repeat of the First War where we barely held on and where the aftermath was almost as much of a threat.”

He paused as he looked out into the distant sky, his eyes turned to the edge of the galaxy.

“Invaders will come. Each day, the Void is growing stronger and the powers in it more refined. They will not stop advancing. Our galaxy had a pleasant youth with only one great war. 

“Although millions of years might separate them, that war will be the first of many. We must prepare.”

Keros was frozen as Sam spoke, but the flames in his chest were leaping with every word. Then he shuddered.

“This is what the Titans knew?” Keros asked quietly. “Or what you have just now seen?”

“It is the result of insights from my Evolution combined with my people’s memories,” Sam replied. “They always hoped we were not alone, but they underestimated the danger of finding out. That was what led to the Nexus and the First War.”

“I do not want to critique their accomplishments, since they forged most of the great artifacts in this galaxy, but they opened the Nexus too easily. They believed they had the power to face anything that came. They were both right and wrong.”

It was the heritage of the early Void where the Vos’Rekan hunted Titans and the Titans returned the favor. It had been hard for the Titans to imagine something else that could threaten them.

They’d never seen it.

The early Void was a place of chaos and destruction where life and death hung by a thread. That was what had driven the Titans’ swift advancement and strength.

Once that era passed, they had become too relaxed.

That was the problem with being the only Primordial Race that was really left. They’d had a lack of enemies. 

Even the First War hadn’t really challenged them. Only a handful of Titans had even participated in it. The rest had kept on with their usual research and other pursuits.

But the Void was the same as it had always been.

Raw power tore apart the cosmos and only greater power could pull it together again.

Perhaps this galaxy was too distant from others or the Titans had just been unlucky that no invasion came in those early years, but it had left them without a new drive to replace their old need for survival. 

They’d turned to crafting and raising the younger races, but they’d also slowed down. Most of their great accomplishments had been infrequent after the Vos’Rekan were beaten away and the Titans began to flourish.

Unlike them, Sam could sense the powers beyond these stars.

“We must take a stronger approach,” he said. “Some allies might exist around distant stars, but not all will be trustworthy. The Titans were strong, but not as strong as they could have been. We need to reach the Seventh Evolution if we hope to have a chance.”

“And here I was preparing to settle into my retirement,” Keros said with a chuckle, but the words didn’t hide the flame of interest that flared in his chest. 

“This changes things. I knew you would consider the possibility of another war one day, but I did not think it would be today.”

He looked across the courtyard at the academy buildings and their walls covered in silver ivy. They had a solemn and sacred air. 

“I’ve often considered the problem of another war,” Keros said slowly, “in those long years with little to do but watch for Vos’Rekan. If we were stronger, or if the Titans had stayed, those beasts would never have harmed Aster Fall or threatened the Borderlands.”

He waved at the halls around them and the stones slumbering in their places.

“I agree that we must do better. Even if we can achieve the Seventh Evolution, the students we raise here will be the future. I do not want to give them a world torn apart by invasions, or a homeland that has been destroyed by war.”

There was a fierce heat in his tone, one that his habitual steadiness didn’t hide. The thought of another invasion made him angry.

“I will stand with you until the end,” he said as he turned back to Sam. Then he added, almost as an afterthought. “And I would like to know more about the Seventh Evolution.”

“I’ll share all of my plans for it,” Sam promised. “If you’re willing, we’ll forge a path together to reach it one day. The greatness of our era hasn’t yet passed. We can still make it brighter.”

He looked at the buildings that Keros had been studying, taking a moment to appreciate the history of the academy and what it promised. He couldn’t let that down either.

“Once we find the stronger Paths,” he said, “as headmaster of the academy, you will be in a position to influence the growth of the most talented among the younger races and to set them up for success, as you once set me up for success. It will be an important thing. Perhaps you will be their guide to start a new age.”

A slight smile crossed Keros’s features, but he shook his head at that. “You are a Titan, and so the Titans will still lead the way,” he said, his tone solemn. “As it has always been, so must it be. I will follow you wherever it may lead. So will this galaxy.”

Sam felt a weight settle onto his shoulders at those words, but it was only another layer to the weight that was already there.

“Then let’s start planning,” he said as he raised his hand. “There’s a lot to do.”

Space rippled around them, turning black and silver, and then they were standing in his hall as the Void stretched out above.

At his command, a wave of dimensional energy flowed through the air, swiftly revealing pitchers of mead and wine on the table, as well as a Level 580 Void beast that appeared on a spit above the fireplace, which began to turn.

The goblets and the food were full of elemental energies that would act as tonics for Keros’s strength and domain. He wasn’t sure the best way to help him improve yet, but it couldn’t hurt.

Hopefully, their conversation here would help him to sort through some of the impressions from the Heart of the Void and let him see the path more clearly.

“To the future,” he said as he lifted a goblet in a toast, which Keros returned with good will.

After this, he was going to revise his goals for the human domain. If things went as he predicted, their worlds would be different than anything that had ever been seen before.