However, I couldn’t help but draw my attention towards the construction satellites. Five of them seemed to be slowly working on either an assault ship, or a shield ship. However, the sixth was far bigger. It was actually built around one of the moons, and I could see various devices drilling into the moon, working to convert it into something else. What they were making, I couldn’t say. But, given the amount of resources invested purely in the construction satellite, I knew it had to be important.
And, it was around that time that the ships managed to lock onto me, sending another concentrated blast my way. This one, I was more prepared for. Before the ships had the chance to fire, I had erected a barrier of time in front of me, causing time itself in a fixed area to slow to a halt. Like this, even if the attacks moved at the speed of light, they would not be able to reach me.
This was the first time I had really felt the effects of my increased mana control and regeneration since the birth of my universe grove. Even though the time barrier cost an insane amount of mana to maintain, it was not even making a dent in my mana levels. This gave me plenty of time to get out of the way, while the blasts were being held in stasis.
Well, let’s move on to step 2. I thought, spreading out my mana sense. To my surprise, I was actually not able to cover this solar system with my senses. Not because I was being restricted, but more because it was too big. I could see a giant, bluish white star in the distance, yet my mana could not reach it. It was simply out of range.
Still, I could more than cover this planet and the area around it. And it only took me a moment to lock on to several areas surrounding the New Human Empire fleet. Surprise!
In only a brief moment, energy surged from my body, forming into the Sons of Chaos fleet ships. The Qu’Lopti flights were already in their robot forms, weapons primed. The Deus Ex ships opened fire immediately upon taking shape, while the Ariadne waited for just a moment before doing so.
“Glad to see you brought us to the party after all, John. She was getting worried.” Celeste’s voice appeared in my mind, drawing my attention to the only other person in the fleet that was NOT in a ship.
As it turned out, Sharon had a lot more leeway in her transformations than I did, as hers involved merging her body with a companion, rather than altering her own body. While the rest of the fleet waited, she had sat atop the Ariadne in the form of a void elf. But now that she was here, a grey light surrounded her, and she grew… and grew… and grew.
Her final size was definitely not as big as the original lunar titan, only roughly a tenth of its size, but that was still bigger than any ship in either fleet. I could see a toothy grin on her face as her hands slowly reached down, clasping around one of the shield ships and shattering it in her palms. Originally, I was thinking that I’d have to help out with this fight, taking on one or two of the ships to take the pressure off the fleet. But, now that I saw Sharon getting to work, I realized that was no longer necessary. If anything, I might get in her way, and it’d be hard for her to notice something smaller than a flea by comparison. I could very well find myself squished.
Celeste, find me somewhere that I can make things explode. I knew that the Deus Ex would have a few key targets in mind, but before she could even get to it, a blue screen appeared in front of me.
Oh, oh! Me, I got this!
Got wha-
Quest Issued!
Beyond Infinity
Rank ★★★★★★★★★★★ Extermination
The Champion of War has plagued the Galaxy with his conquests, enslaving primitive races and using them to further his galactic agenda of domination and destruction. Go punch him in the dick! Also, kill the bastard if you get the chance.
Time Limit: The rest of your natural life.
Reward: Beyond your wildest dreams
Failure: Only if you die
And, like the very first divine quest I had received, I had an innate sense of where the leader of the New Human Empire was. Not in any of the ships fighting my fleet, but on the moon I had noted previously to be inhabitable. But really, ELEVEN star difficulty? I thought the scale only went up to ten!
Well, we just kicked it up to eleven!
...Fine, fine. Let’s get this over with. I thought inwardly, choosing not to argue with a god when there were bigger things to worry about. Okay… maybe not bigger, smaller things to worry about. Things small enough for me to actually be capable of worrying about them.
Activating my Toybox portals, I soon appeared atop the moon in question. Judging by the fact that he was sitting at a table, enjoying what appeared to be a cup of tea, he was not too worried about the battle overhead. Stanley Martin was a tall man, a few inches taller than me, and even bigger than I remembered. However, at the same time, he also seemed older. His fading black hair was now mostly white, his face full of wrinkles.
From beneath his tinted glasses, I could catch the sight of yellow eyes with vertical slits, similar to those of a cat or a lizard. “Good evening, John.” He said, without ever looking up from his tea. When he did look up, however, his words abruptly stopped. “So nice of you to-...” He paused as his eyes landed on me. I could see a slight twitch from his eyelids as he looked at me.
“Something wrong?” I asked with a small grin, still in my blood red metallic form.
“That… is lifeblood, correct?” He responded, seeing me nod. I could hear a small growl coming from the base of his throat as he set down his tea, finally standing up. “Okay. We do this the hard way. I beat you to within an inch of your life, and then I don’t stop.”
Martin was wearing black, baggy clothes, making it difficult to see his skin underneath. However, from the sheer size of him, he should be in better shape than anyone of his apparent age. Still… he shouldn’t really be a match for me, right? Yet, even though he knows about the lifeblood armor, he still seemed quite confident that he could kill me.
“Oh, and by the way.” He said as he began slowly walking towards me. “This entire moon has a mana-redistribution field covering it. So, don’t count on your manipulation abilities saving you.” Okay.. that’s just not fair.
And, as I thought that, I took just a brief moment to confirm, attempting to feel the mana around me. And, in that brief moment where I realized he was telling the truth, he vanished from my view. I felt a strong impact in my sides, and found myself lifted up off my feet, thrown by the force of the strike to fly away.
Outta the park! -500 Health
I saw the message appearing in front of me, amazed that one punch did more damage than over a dozen ships worth of laser blasts. Orienting my body, I landed down on my feet, my legs digging long trenches at least a dozen meters long before I finally stopped. Looking up, I found what should have been Stanley Martin, human general.
Instead, the skin of his hand shattered, revealing sickly green flesh and bone beneath it. His body hunched over unnaturally, spikes seeming to poke through the back of his baggy shirt. “Oh, crap.” I muttered, realizing that this quest actually deserved its rating.
Chapter 54: The Death of a Hero
At this point, it was fairly obvious that the human, ‘Stanley Martin’, was not the man standing in front of me. What was standing in front of me was by no means human, even if it looked like it was trying to wear a human skin. So… what was he?
As I tried to figure this out, I kept my eyes trained on him, waiting for that moment when he moved close enough for me to strike. I might not be his match in terms of physical combat, but that was not my only option for battling. Yet, my efforts were in vain. Before I even noticed him moving, I felt a pain in my chest. Somehow, he had crossed the dozens of meters faster than my eyes could see, and landed another punch on me.
Ragdoll physics enabled! -1000 Health
Oh, fuck! This was double the damage he had inflicted before, and I instantly shattered one of the scales hidden beneath my red armor, restoring me to full health. However, this time, I wasn’t able to stop myself from bouncing along the gro
und several times before coming to a stop.
Okay, options! I can’t take him to subspace, that requires being able to touch him, and I’m not even sure where we are in relation to the abstract right now. My element manipulation is sealed and--oh god he is getting uglier by the second. As I got myself back to my feet, I once again saw him walking in the distance. Judging by how far away he was… did he seriously just punch me over a mile away?!
Anyways, the skin around his right arm, as well as both of his legs had completely shattered at this point. Even the shirt sleeve and pants he was wearing had gone with them. His fingers were long and chitinous, his limbs long and narrow. From what I could see at this distance, his legs were actually digittrade, rather than the normal humanoid model. However, another thing that changed was his head.
His face looked like it was peeling off, a helmet of sleek chitin forming over it. Scraps of his flesh fell to the grass, until even his eyes had been covered by his natural helmet. Okay, the less human he gets, the more powerful he becomes. If he doubles in power again, I am dead with one strike…
“Lex, bring them all out!” I shouted, holding up my hand. Although my clothing and equipment was also covered by my lifeblood armor, it was clear that the message went through. Streams of mana originated from my hand, spreading out in every direction to form my fifty elemental soldiers.
“You have a Worldforce Army?” The creature posing as Stanley asked, a hint of surprise in his voice. “No matter, they won’t be able to help you here.”
Before I was able to question how I was able to hear his voice over this distance, I saw a fine line of dust rising along the ground, leading… directly behind me. Okay, you REALLY have to stop doing that.
Block it with your back! -1200 Health
Okay, using another of those scales now, as I bounced along the ground again, this time thankfully finding something to stop me early. Sadly, what I found to prevent my continued free-flight was a mountain, which I seemed to find myself buried in. I let out a pained groan as I tried to pull myself out of the rubble. My elemental army was no longer in earshot, and they were nowhere near close enough for me to send orders.
By the time I pulled myself out of the stone wall, Stanley was already standing there in front of me. This time, both of his arms held the thin, chitinous form, and he had a long, spiked tail behind him that extended several meters. Oh, fuck.
“Klax…” I muttered under my breath, remembering the warlike race I had briefly encountered way back in NeoLife. Yet, they should be on the other side of the galaxy. Even if they adapted instantly to the game world, this should not be possible.
Although his chest was still largely human, the rest of him was undeniable. Even the back of his head had begun to elongate. As he opened his mouth, glistening drool leaked out. I heard a series of harsh guttural tones while his voice translated into my mind. “We never did like that name.”
Part of me wanted to do nothing more than jump in a portal to the other side of the planet, and order Celeste to nuke this moon from orbit. It’s the only way to be sure. Yet, I had no doubt that this thing either had a way to stop me, or was able to survive such a blast, with the strength it had shown thus far.
Stanley reached down, his six thin fingers gripping my head and effortlessly lifting me up. “You’ve done well to make it this far, John.” His clacking voice echoed in my mind as I felt his fists slowly tighten. “But this is the end for you, and your little army.”
Just as I began seeing the damage numbers appearing, my lifeblood armor being crushed like tinfoil, another voice echoed out, this one from the air above us. “Not so fast, jerk! Reality Break - Limitless Silver Sands… Deus Ex Machina!”
Stanley’s head tilted up in surprise as a giant cloud of silver appeared above us. I would recognize that skill name from anywhere, but why she was here instead of commanding the fleet I didn’t know. Before Stanley could crush my head, the cloud formed into a single, giant shape. The figure was obviously that of Celeste, her pink hair falling down to her waist. Yet, right now, the normal bracelet cannon she typically wore was fully extended, its barrel only a few feet above our heads. “Do you trust me, John?” She asked into my mind.
Fry the bastard. Seeing as I couldn’t nod, and my head was gripped too tightly to talk, my thoughts would have to suffice. And before the thought even finished, we were engulfed in a golden light. I felt the grip on my head loosen, but instead I was driven into the ground beneath me from the force of the blast.
Friendly Fire! -200 Health
That’s not going to do much. I warned mentally as I saw the damage number in the window in front of me. Yet, it was enough to get me out of its grip, which was at least something. And why did you never tell me you can turn your clones into a giant mech!?
“Talk later, dying now!” Her rather worrying answer came back a moment later, causing me to open my eyes and pry myself out of the ground. What I saw was a fully transformed Klax soldier, its claws dug deeply into the giant Celeste’s thigh. With one angry howl, it ripped her leg clean off, leaving her barely able to balance… at least, until his body spun in midair and kicked at the stump, sending her falling onto her back.
The fact that a three meter alien could casually rip apart the leg of a fifty meter tall mech was… worrying to say the least. Thankfully, this mech was made with Celeste’s silver sands, so the detached leg shattered, quickly flying back to its stump and reforming. I don’t even want to know what the requirements to use such an overpowering skill is.
Shaking my head, I looked to the distant elemental army, which was standing motionless without having received an order. Celeste, buy me some time. Just keep him busy, and I’ll be back to help soon.
“Well, I’m trying!” Came her hurried response as she kicked at Stanley, only to have her foot caught. With a savage twist, her entire foot broke off, and he cast it aside. “Try to hurry up, though! This isn’t easy!”
With that as my cue, I quickly opened up a portal to bring me back to the army. Although I can’t transform mana, or utilize the mana from my grove to do things thanks to the formation, it seemed these guys weren’t affected. After all, they were living elemental mana. “Lex, communicate with them for me! Tell them it’s Titan time.”
Once my voice had finished, I could feel a pulse of mana spreading out from Lex, which bounced off each elemental soldier to create a network of transmissions, passing the message along over short distances to prevent the message from dissipating. And once the message had been sent, the various elemental soldiers all broke apart and surged towards me.
I found myself in the familiar inner shell of steel, tapping into the mana attempting to connect to me using order mana. I could feel new arms and legs forming of fire and stone as my form took shape. The cape of shadows billowed at my back. I might not be able to control the elements on this moon, but they can. And I can control them.
Honestly, summoning the elemental soldiers was a gamble, because I wasn’t sure if they would even be able to hold their form within the formation set up. But if they did, it meant that the formation had no real effect on them. Thankfully, my gamble this time won out.
When I opened my eyes, I found myself assuming the form of the elemental titan. Sparks danced along my broken stone skin, fire visible through the cracks. Not wanting to waste time appreciating my new appearance, I turned and saw Celeste and Stanley fighting in the distance. Well, really it was just a case of Celeste trying to fight back while body parts were constantly ripped apart and regenerated. By now, it seemed to be a race of which could happen faster… and Celeste wasn’t winning.
“Any time now, you know!” I heard her calling out to me in a panicked tone as I began to rush over. Each thunderous step caused the ground to shake beneath me, so it was no surprise when Stanley noticed me. His head snapped to face my direction, and his hands actually stopped ripping apart the giant Celeste as a harsh tone sounded out through the area.
“How?!” His words came
out. “Which one was it!?” I could sense the elemental mana being distorted as he charged rapidly towards me. I still had trouble tracking him, even in this state, but the mana didn’t lie.
Raising my foot, I wasn’t surprised when he caught it, undaunted by the flames surrounding the limb. Before he did anything, my foot shattered on its own, fire and stone wrapping around him to form a tight cocoon. Even then, that only lasted a moment before it shattered from his strength, his skin tinted light orange from the heat.
“Which god was it, you insect!?” Ironic, considering who was wearing the chitin here. Nonetheless, he jumped up towards my chest and kicked. He seemed surprised when his foot did not find the bundle of metal hiding my real body, which I had already hidden within the shadows. “The Worldforce Army is one thing, but the Titan?! This is a clear violation!”
I wasn’t even able to understand what he was talking about anymore, until Celeste mentioned a name I had all but forgotten. In horror, she looked at the relatively smaller Klax, muttering in a barely audible tone. “Abzul…”
It was then that I remembered. Stanley Martin, Champion of the God of War… and that god’s name was Abzul. Okay, this is just so not fair, Malthan! You sent me down here to kill a god!? Without even having my universe mana!
Surprisingly, I didn’t get an answer back from that complaint, but Abzul tilted its head towards Celeste. “That’s right, and I’m sick of this!” As he spoke, his body began growing slowly. “Countless eons of the same shit, but no more! They want to break the rules, then fine! Let’s break the fucking rules! This whole fight is nothing but a farce!”
Soon, he was just as big as Celeste, his fingers wrapped in a golden light. With an unearthly roar, his hand slashed down towards me, faster than I could react. By the time I even realized what was happening, I felt the shadows I was hiding in being torn apart, my true body ripped to pieces in a moment.
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