The Prophecy had glossed over him so it seemed likely that he would soon die in the coming war between Aether and Nether In the ProphetÆs opinion this was for the best Talented individuals were always variables that would need to be neutralized Doubly so because Padraic had a casual acquaintance with Nether King Hungry Eye
A brilliant holistic halo of light had begun to form around the clay body as ElhumeÆs efforts began to be rewarded Humanity the whole spiritual existence began to condense Steam wafted up from the heart as the amount of life energy flowing through its confines doubled and then increased by tenfold Yet the heart handled it all more and more brilliant lines of possibility stretching out
To stand on the cusp of history Still a blazing sun of life energy the Patron of the Deep sighed with obvious pleasure Although he must be strained by providing energy his eyes remained bright and enthusiastic I have encountered no greater sensation
Then circumstances had twitched and shoved the group down a different a darker path
The problem came from PadraicÆs heart The Prophet saw the careful restrictions Elhume had laid throughout humanity go into effect they squeezed at the edge of the receptacle of potential just enough pressure to shut some of the outer lines of possibilities However Padraic hadnÆt accounted for such a development when he had woven the heart The pressure along the outer edges of the heart built up the whole working beginning to tremble And then the strained outer lines of potential collapsed inward destroying nearby energy flows and creating strange deviant twisted arrangements of energy that cut across several of the previously parallel but separate possibilities
A strange resonant note like the yearning call of a lonely whale hummed out as discharged energy seeped into the clay body
Rapidly the situation in the heart began to deteriorate The deviant flows of energy swelled taking over more space Nearby flows needed to shrink to compensate it The destabilization slowed but the pressure of this monstrous new energy flow kept twisting and leaning toward the center of the heart And if it reached the middle
PadraicÆs face had been white as he watched the growing error I IÆm so sorry I didnÆt know
To his credit the Patron of the Deep understood what the other meant almost immediately He paled his massive body quivering You you wish for me to surrender my existence for the sake of this unborn race To bleed upon their altar to expiration never to witness the fruits of my labor
Surely there would be no greater honor you could experience Elhume spat out the words with a fair coating of sarcasm The presence of void in his image billowed out in the enclosed space of the room sucking away some of the life energy and nearly all of the air
I I The Patron of the Deep had wavered The ProphetÆs eyes glittered in those moments his worries from the past month falling away Warm and comforting life suffused his whole beingù As the Prophecy had stated due to the decline of his race his desire for greatness and permanence his relationship with Elhume and also due to his current situation the Patron of the Deep would acquiesce
Despite the strangeness of this space the Prophecy would not fail
When the Patron of the Deep glowered and lifted his chin the Prophet felt its heart seize His doubts came surging back frigid stabs that ripped through his faith in El Kedec As he suspected Nether King Hungry Eye had interfered in this as well I refuse Elhume I have my own life
Your wounds will soon claim you anyway Why not accomplish something great before your demise ElhumeÆs voice softened but did not relent
For a split second the Prophet knew those words would sway the Origin Beast The Patron of the Deep had such deep wounds it was a surprise he had lived this long
The Patron of the Deep blinked Wounds What wounds My sorrows might be prodigious but I would hardly
Both the Prophet and Elhume lurched Looking at the fist user the Prophet could see that he had been similarly certain that the Patron of the Deep had been quite wounded on the cusp of death Yet suddenly that conclusion dissipated like a mirage leaving both of them wondering why they had jumped to that conclusion
This is proof A burning excitement surged through the Prophet tinged with relief Hungry Eye is definitively interfering the Prophecy Our actions have consequences We have been forced away from grace
Elhume came to a different conclusion His eyes had firmed He had tightened his hands into fists He took a strong step and crossed the distance to the Patron of the Deep His image flared but concentrated just around his hand so as not to ruin the already unstable working His intentions were clear if you didnÆt have the wounds now he would just inflict them with one of his vicious punches
In that strained moment the wall had exploded as Hungry Eye entered the tableau Energy howled and seethed the situation rapidly worsening And then with an admirable display of Nether power he stopped ElhumeÆs punch from across the room The Prophet also didnÆt miss the way the effort flared and stalled the sundering of humanityÆs clay body briefly giving them time to right the ship
Yet the Nether King had also opened himself up allowing Scythe to slip into his shadow
Finally The Prophet leered but he saw something truly unbelievable as the Nether King should have been struck down
Scythe standing in Hungry EyeÆs shadow with his weapon raised paused and shivered Driven by fear he peered over his own shoulder into the face of a new darkness
Standing there an even larger monster appeared all smiles and teeth The carrion thing of dusk and dolorous hunger reached out and Scythe flinched
Chapter 2281
RandidlyÆs skin crawled as the enemy appeared behind him but he didnÆt panic Bits of shattered stone still tumbled through the air from his dramatic arrival and already he needed to clear this hurdle While that strange watcher of the Cult of the Savior appeared behind him he pulled deeply from his emotional sea and unleashed three of his images in tandem Hypothetical Gaze that Consumes the Universe NyxÆs Successor Births Fate
Darkness Withers the Sky and the Waiting Carrion Grins
Congratulations Your Skill Darkness Withers the Horizon and the Waiting Carrion Grins has grown to Level 976
Congratulations Your Skill Darkness Withers the Horizon and the Waiting Carrion Grins has grown to Level 988
Congratulations NyxÆs Successor Births Fate has grown to Level 1030
A horrid chimera manifested in the space behind the attacker armed with the hungry and insidious gaze of the Stillborn Phoenix the cataclysmic promise of NyxÆs whisper and the viciousness and bloodthirstiness of the beast that lurked in the canopy of the World Tree The watcher shivered and jerked sideways and Randidly offered a predatory smile over his shoulder
The being twisted trying to slip in between the fabric of the shadow and the ground vanishing into the veins of the base But the carrion being crowed its amusement as it shuffled forward all feathers and the smell of rot It reached out with taloned hands and tore into the flesh of the Cult of the SaviorÆs assassin
Congratulations Your Skill Darkness Withers the Horizon and the Waiting Carrion Grins has grown to Level 989
At the last moment it seemed to realize the being couldnÆt escape the haunt of Yggdrasil easily To its credit it then acted decisively It wheeled around and raised its curved scythe determined to strike a vicious retaliatory blow Although Randidly wouldnÆt describe the effect as luminous the strange energy it gathered around its weapon did resemble light A milky pale light that he had only seen coming as wisps over the horizon before pure light arrived to burn the pretenders away