Chương 155: Gaston

Gaston groaned when he finally found the entry token allowing him to escape this hell and head toward the next area. He hated having to make an effort. It was annoying. If Ark were here, they could simply Space Gate through and skip this menial task. Or worst case, he'd let Ark do all the work. Plus, he had a massive headache from Ark releasing one of his seals.

"That damn fool. What was he doing? Were the odds that bad? Would they be forced to resort to that? Gaston wasn't sure whether he was happy about the thought of both his seals being released or aghast that they needed to do so. He knew Feormere was going to be trouble. Ever since that first meeting, all those years ago. He shook his head. Integration competitors grew so fast. He couldn't imagine ever being able to fly through the E-grade in less than ten years. It took him ten years just to complete the F-grade.

To reach the peak of the hidden grade had taken him and his brother 25 years. They weren't the scions of gods who could do it faster. Or weren't blessed by fate to join an integration where levelling was so much faster. The only advantage he had was experience; he knew. Feormere lacked the tutelage and knowledge to even create his own offensive space skills. Which he was eternally thankful for. He shook at the thought of fighting another space mage at the peak of their power on equal footing.

It simply never happened in the Multiverse because they were so rare. Yet fate had forced him and his brother into a confrontation with a progenitor, of all things. He groaned once more as he dashed toward the exit of this cloudy hell. As he approached, his senses noted six others bearing tokens racing toward the exit. He changed his course and intercepted the first, appearing from nowhere, and smashed the star on its chest before it even knew it was being targeted.

Gaston grabbed the falling token and groaned again.

"Fuck!" He should have just headed here the moment those annoying women stopped attacking him. Feormere's harem, though pretty, were all so damn annoying. He had trained them well, and they were above average, even for integration elites. They would have no problems joining a powerful Empire once this was over. Which was the only reason he hadn't killed any of them. That and the fact he didn't want to piss off Feormere more than necessary. An angry foe was an unpredictable foe.

And they couldn't afford any slip-ups. Not now. This last Shard would mark the end of their journey if they failed. Gaston dashed away, quickly disabling the remaining token carriers with ease before approaching the exit. He hoped his brother was okay. As confident as he was in Ark, he knew he had a few fatal flaws and hoped he hadn't succumbed to any danger. He would know soon enough. Gaston stepped through the gate and entered the second area. __ Ten minutes before Gaston entered the second area.

Feormere and his ladies stood staring down at the cloaked figure, who wielded a massive rocket launcher in one hand. Ark panted as he stared in anger at the bane of his existence. Feormere. The Anomaly. Progenitor. Integration elite. It didn't matter what he thought of the being. He was in Ark's way, preventing him from reaching his goal. Twice now, he had broken his Space Gate skill. Always appearing at the worst moment, as if fate led him here just to break Ark's resolve.

It took everything inside Ark to calm his mind. He never broke like this. He always controlled his emotions. But not today. Today, there was too much on the line.

"Why are you so insistent on getting in my way!" Ark barked before he could stop himself. Fool! You're being weak! He cursed internally at his own outburst.

"You have an awfully big ego if you think this is about you," Feormere replied calmly.

"There are bigger things happening than your little quest for a Star Shard."

"What do you know of quests! You are a savage who doesn't know anything about the Multiverse! About what you are interrupting!" Ark once more failed to control his anger.

"If you were in my place, would you care what some… invader wanted?" Feormere's words rang like a bell through Ark's very being.

"How? How did you know that! Who are you really?" Ark barked, confusion clouding his judgement. How did he know? What did he know? For the first time, Ark felt out of his depth. He knew something was wrong with this integration. There was too much death, too much intervention. Were there more invaders he didn't know about? Was that why his calculations were so wrong… Feormere smiled, a smile that grated on Ark.

"I knew it. It was just a guess, of course. But I knew it. You have the same… air about you as PJ." PJ? Ark searched through his memory companion, trying to pinpoint the name. Nothing came to mind. The only name PJC-57xiv… but that was impossible. The Doomsighted had been missing for over one hundred years. Why would she be here? Ark swore internally, hoping that the C-grade was not the PJ Feormere spoke of. Otherwise, anyone in her path was as good as dead.

"As I was saying," Feromere continued.

"I've had about enough of all you fucking invaders thinking you can just walk in here and get in MY way. What right do you have to any of this? What claim do you have to the Star Shard? None!" Feormere's words echoed through the valley of trees surrounding them. Ark involuntarily stepped back at the anger behind those words. He had miscalculated all this. Feormere looked almost desperate, like something more important was on the line. Something Ark didn't understand. But Feormere wasn't done talking.

"I try, and I try. Do you have any idea how much pressure I am under!" One of the women beside Feormere laid a hand on his arm, but he shook it off, though he visibly calmed, and he shared a moment with her. Ark almost attacked, but Feormere's eyes sprang back onto him so fast he felt as if he had moved; he might have lost everything in that moment.

"You don't know anything." Feormere's voice was now free of anger. But it was laced with conviction.

"I don't know why you need it. I also know nothing. But that doesn't change the fact. Only one of us is walking out of this competition with that shard. And it isn't you." Ark felt the finality of that final word as Feormere attacked. Ark wasn't surprised; he raised three protective barriers. He aimed his launcher at the spot he knew Feormere would appear. But still, somehow, Feormere broke through his defences before Ark could even take a breath.

He moved so fluidly, Ark realized with a shock that almost broke him. Feormere had been holding back this entire time; he had planned all of this. He purposely separated Ark from his brother. He wore him down physically and mentally with constant battle and attacks. All for this moment. So he could take them both down individually himself. And Ark had walked right into his plan like a lost flauf.

He Space-Jumped away before Feormere's staff connected with his launcher, but as he expected, Feormere followed his jump, appearing barely a moment later. He was far too fast to react; it even boggled Ark's mind seeing it happen. Ark twisted his wrist and took the attack on his armoured arm instead. This proved to be a mistake as his bone broke from the impact.

"Aaahhhh!" He yelled in pain as he bounced back. He had defended with the arm not holding anything, so he was still able to pull up his launcher and blast an attack at Feormere. He saw the panic wash over Feormere's eyes as he realized that if he jumped out of the way, one of his Ladies would take the blast. So Feormere tensed as a purple armour coated him, and he took the full force of Ark's attack. Only then did Ark have a moment to pop a healing pill into his mouth and fully take note of Feormere's change.

He had no hair; he was streaked in black. He had clearly gone through a gruelling test. But yet he was fine. No blood. No signs of any visible injury. What was he made of? How was he so durable? His purple armour fractured as the blast knocked Foermere into the air, but it did not entirely break. Ark swore as he dropped the weapon and braced himself. Feormere vanished, reappearing at Ark's side and slamming into him, making him absorb some of the impact. Ark grunted as the bigger man knocked the air from his lungs.

His unpredictable movements and attacks were a nightmare. As the staff blurred and slammed into Ark's raised arm, fracturing it along with the other. He then turned his body as they both fell and slammed a foot into Ark's stomach, sending him crashing to the ground. Feormere flipped and landed lightly, his staff arched to his side as he stared down at him. Ark was broken, both arms useless. How had he miscalculated so badly? How was Feormere… Ark blinked as he started to understand. Ah. So that was it.

It took all of Ark's effort to use his broken arms to pull himself to his feet. He rocked in place, the star on his chest moments from breaking. He had lost.

"It seems. I did not understand," Ark mumbled as he almost fell to his feet, but managed to steady himself enough to look Feormere in the eye one last time.

"But you also miscalculated. You thought that I was the main threat. That will be the last mistake you ever make, before my brother kills you." This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. Ark felt the moment Gaston breached the second area. The device in his hand clicked, and the final seal on his brother's true power broke. Something hard slammed into Ark's chest, breaking the star and removing him from the competition. But he smiled at that last moment.

Because fate was a fickle mistress and Feormere was soon to find out why. __ Joe swore as Ark vanished from the competition. His last words and that odd device he pressed sent warning bells through his spine.

"Corel, Esha, take the others now. Go. Find the entry tokens to the last area. No matter what you feel, what you hear. Never turn back."

"But…"

"No!" Joe shouted, unable to control his rising fear.

"Go now! I will stop him." Joe felt the immense aura heading his way. He had miscalculated. He only hoped he could delay this monster long enough. He didn't even hear as his four companions ran as fast as they could. Every sense he had was focused on the force approaching him at an alarming speed. Joe blinked. Suddenly, Gaston stood before him. He assumed it was Gaston. But he looked nothing like the cloaked, hooded figure he had met on multiple occasions. He now stood before him unshrouded.

That nervous air he usually had gone as he stared at Joe with an unhidden air of loathing. His hair stood on end, reaching up to the sky, black braids swaying, as gusts of mana poured from his body like a storm. He wore sleeveless armour, his arms ribbed with thick muscles the size of Joe's legs. He had what looked like a black bandana strapped across his face, masking his eyes. His outfit as a whole reminded Joe of a martial artist's gi. Joe's heart almost leapt from his chest as Gaston stepped forward.

"Hmmm. Fast senses. Not a skill, though. Just pure instinct. That's rare," Gaston remarked in a calm, deep tone that made the ground rumble.

"Ark shouldn't have warned you. I would have killed you fast then. But now I think I'll make you suffer. For sending my brother home and standing in our way." Gaston blurred forward. Joe raised his staff to block as Gaston's fist slammed into his Mana Stream-coated weapon. Joe exploded backwards, flying through the air until he slammed into a mountain that shook and cracked ominously. To his surprise, he wasn't that injured, just superficial cuts from the mana that sliced his arms.

He pried himself free and landed lightly. Gaston stood waiting for him, arms crossed.

"Unexpected," he said before attacking once more. __ Corel jumped as she heard a third, then fourth explosion far to the south, where her bond fought for his life. That aura. It was strong. She didn't understand what had happened, how Gaston had changed so much. But fear clutched at her chest. She shook it off and took a deep breath. She had to believe in him. Joe wasn't protected like they were, by stars on their chests. That meant he could die here.

Again, she didn't understand why the system targeted him so strongly, but she knew it was down to fate. His fate was too strong, too bright. He would always attract unwanted attention. Which was part of what she loved about him.

"Let's go," she said as the group continued forward in search of clues. Trying to ignore the two clashing auras and the violence that followed them. __ Joe winced as he took a clean blast of deep red mana to his arm. This time, white blood filled the air as Gaston's attack ripped a chunk of his flesh off. Joe crouched in pain, popping a healing pill into his mouth, while Gaston stared in confusion at the blood leaking from his wound.

"I thought humans had red blood?" Gaston remarked, taking his stance. Joe didn't have time to reply before a barrage of mana bolts flew toward him. Each bolt was wreathed in air as they slammed into Joe's barding-covered body. A multitude of purple vines were blasted to bits as his barding was being worn down, gradually. But Joe was not without hope. He had noticed that, as strong as Gaston was now, as oppressive as his aura was… to Joe's surprise, it still didn't match his own.

He let his aura flow out fully as he felt the blood stop and his arm slowly start to knit back together. He shook it lightly, glad it wasn't useless. Gaston actually hesitated a moment as Joe's aura washed over him, and his smile faltered.

"Annoying," Gaston mumbled as he vanished. Joe closed his eyes. Gaston didn't reappear directly after he Space-Jumped. He did this odd thing where he could delay his jumps, making him seemingly vanish from existence and appear when he wanted. It made reacting to his appearance that much harder. So when he did reappear, Joe just barely threw his staff up to knock the fist aimed at his neck aside. Gaston grunted in annoyance, but had to bounce back as he shook at his vibrating arm. Joe could no longer hide his grin.

At first, he had thought Gaston was far above him in strength and power in this new state, this new form. But he was very wrong. He was like a peacock; most of his increased strength was for show. The mana Joe thought was pouring from his body was not, in fact, mana. It was coloured streams of air. He only knew small bits about aspected mana. Information Esha and Corel and others had given him, as he himself had pure, unaspected mana. But he knew it was important and that he should not ignore it.

It would give him important information about his opponent. For example, Gaston was clearly using wind, or air-aspected mana. Every time he attacked, a blast of wind followed, which was the reason Joe got blasted so far when struck cleanly. Which was why he at first thought Gaston was stronger than he was. But that wind was superficial, and didn't actually hurt him; it only fooled his mind into thinking he was more hurt than he actually was. But that was one thing Gaston had miscalculated.

Joe's ability to read a battle and understand his own strengths, weaknesses and most importantly, what damage he sustained. So when he pried himself from mountainside after mountainside, he obviously noticed the lack of damage he sustained. And most importantly, so did Gaston. This time, Joe struck first, as his staff blurred forward in a rapid strike. At the same moment, a small purple vine sprang from the ground and wrapped around Gaston's ankle the moment he tried to Space Jump away.

This resulted in him dragging a chunk of the ground along with the vine into the void, throwing off his reentry and making him stumble. Joe, who had followed his jump with Space Traversal, took full advantage of Gaston's opening as he landed his first clean strike to a raised arm. Gaston coated his arm in wind, similar to how Joe used to coat himself in mana, so Joe's strike did not fracture any bones or tissue. But the damage was immense as Joe's purple-coated staff slammed down with the force of a falling star.

Sending Gaston sprawling to the side before he jumped once more away. Joe smiled now in satisfaction as he heard a groan nearby as Gaston shook off the blow. But when he reappeared before Joe, he was not as confident as he once was.

"What's wrong? I thought you were going to kill me?" Joe taunted, trying to unsettle Gaston. He wasn't sure if it worked or just made Gaston focus. He never spoke as he attacked once more. __ Corel smiled as Joe pulsed confidence into her chest. She didn't know whether he was just trying to comfort her or actually winning the fight. She dared not pulse a reply for fear of distracting him. Esha must have sensed something, as she gave her arm a tender squeeze before they stared at the giant golem blocking their path.

They had found the first clue, and it led them here, to a graveyard filled with stone monstrosities, which creaked and came to life as soon as they entered. The small ones were dumb and easy to deal with. But these larger variants were different. They displayed actual fighting knowledge and used a strange, shuddering footwork and martial skill. Right then, the ground shuddered as a second monstrosity approached. All four needed no further warning to attack and deal with this one before its twin joined.

Corel struck low, while Alice and Esha struck high. Meanwhile, Tevenny blasted a vision into the rock golem's eyes, making it confuse a stone statue for one of them, and it attacked the stone harmlessly. They danced around its shuddering form until Corel managed to sever one of its legs at the joint, and the entire golem slammed to the ground. One limb was all they had to disable, as the thing was so big and so heavy, they were unable to get up once they were knocked down.

"Ha! Its head looks just like the farmers!" Esha cackled as they turned their attention to the second golem approaching as the ground rocked.

"Esha!" Corel countered.

"That's unfair to the golems. They are at least clean and not covered in filth!" The four of them laughed in joy as they tore into the second golem. __ Joe sneezed as he ducked and was almost beheaded by a slicing, wind-coated blade. Unfortunately, it wasn't a sword, so no lesson on why you should never use a sword against a farmer for Gaston today. But Joe did poke his staff into the halberd's shaft, knocking it off course and making Gaston shift his weight uncomfortably.

Joe flowed like a duck through a tidal wave as he avoided strikes and slices that sailed past him uncomfortably close. He still hadn't cleanly broken through Gaston's defences yet, but he was no longer solely focused on defence. He wasn't sure how long they had been fighting either, but he guessed at least two hours, which, with his injured arm, was not fun. But at least it had sealed up nicely and was no longer hampering his attacks.

Right then, he spotted the first opening in a while and twirled like a spinning top as his staff slammed into Gaston's now-armoured side. After all his cocky bravado and flashy entrance. Gaston had quickly pulled on armour as he decided Joe's attacks were far too vicious to take directly. He was right, of course, but Joe grimaced at the missed opportunity. If he had more experience, he might have noticed that the man was all bluster and not some unbeatable monster.

Gaston's armour cracked ominously as he jumped away, visibly shaken. Joe didn't give him time to recover. He was done with this. Done with being manipulated again. Done with being made fun of. As he attacked, somewhere far off, Esha shivered. Joe's onslaught continued unrelentingly as he took control of the battle and began to slowly overwhelm Gaston, who grew more and more frantic as he felt the tide shift. But Joe didn't care. He felt no pity for the space mage.

He didn't care why they were here, what their goal was. All that mattered was his own personal goal. All that mattered was his drive to save those he cared about and move them to safety. He had learned too many shocking truths, and nothing, absolutely nothing, would stop him from completing his goal. He wasn't sure if Gaston noticed his determination or saw the fire in Joe's eyes. But he faltered. His strikes lost their edge, and he placed a foot down wrong.

Joe barely even felt the moment his staff struck true, and bone broke as his staff collided with a shoulder, the hit clean and unyielding. Gaston buckled and crumpled to the ground, screaming in agony. Joe jumped back, shocked by what had just happened. He was so focused on his own movement that it took him a moment to even remember that hit that had felled his opponent. The move flowed back through his mind as he saw it, a deadly vibrating strike, his staff streamer flashing through the air.

A moment of hesitation. The unexpected angle of his blow. The connection. And just like that, victory was within his reach. Joe stepped forward to finish his opponent, to strike at the star on his chest and end this once and for all. But Gaston had one last Hail Mary.

"Gaaahhh!" Gaston roared as he rolled aside, dodging the blow that would have sent him home. He locked eyes with Joe, and Joe instinctively Space-Jumped away. His senses were spot on, as the air around Gaston warped, and a moment after Joe vanished, a huge black hole burst into life. As Joe appeared a few hundred metres away, he stared in horror as the black hole warped the air and seemingly pulled everything from around the area to its centre, and vanished. Nothing remained.

No Gaston, no ground, no rocks and no trees. Just a giant hole where he had once stood as the air steamed and seemingly mourned in response to the void that took everything. Joe's eyes darted left and right. He was confused. Why would Gaston do that? Even as a last desperate attack, why would he sacrifice himself? None of that made any sense to Joe as he turned in panic and shot forward towards his friends. Towards his bond!