by Ivan Kal
He saw the man turn and head in their direction. Everyone stiffened as he stopped in front of them all and then bowed deeply. He held the position for a few seconds and then straightened.
“Ascended, you have my gratitude. You cannot understand the significance of what your aid has given us. You have fought against a terrible foe, and you’ve come out ahead. I am sorry for your losses, but know that they had saved not only your lives, but also the lives of everyone else in your World.” The Tower Master met each of their eyes, holding their gaze for a long moment.
When he met Morgan’s, he saw real sympathy as well as real gratitude in the man’s eyes.
“With your actions, I will consider it as if you have cleared this floor.” Everyone blinked at the man’s words. “You have defeated the final boss, even if it was being controlled by someone else. Regardless…”
He looked at his wrist, and then chests appeared in front of everyone. “These are the rewards meant for clearing this floor: an item suited to each of you that can grow with you in the future, as well as experience.”
Morgan blinked at a notification in the corner of his eye. It pulled itself up without him focusing and he knew that Sabila had anticipated his desire.
CONGRATULATIONS! QUEST—THE FALLEN EMPIRE FLOOR— COMPLETE!
G.F. bonus reward — 100,000 exp
It was enough for him to level again, and probably was for the others, too. The words disappeared from his vision and he leaned forward to look at the chest. He didn’t know if he wanted to open it; it felt wrong to feel curious when his friends had just died. Then he felt Ves put a hand on his thigh and squeeze.
“I know we are all sad, but they would not want us to mourn them for long.” She looked around, her face still streaked with tears. “We are ascended.”
It was a simple statement, but an accurate one. Death was not something new to them. Morgan reached over and opened his chest. Inside, he saw a bundle of something that seemed to have been woven out of darkness itself. Morgan picked it up and looked at it, finding two cloth vambraces.
Shadow Realms (requires 70 will, 40 intellect, 30 wisdom) — The two pieces of a universe long since gone. The two vambraces are bound to two unique spatial spaces. The user wearing them can reach into any of them and pull out anything stored inside of them without the need for extra focus on the desired item. The vambraces can be used defensively to absorb anything within the range of the user.
Morgan blinked. He didn’t really understand what they could do, but they did look like they could be useful to him. He put them on his forearms, seeing that they appeared as total darkness. He pulled out several different arrows from his other storages and then slowly pushed then into his forearms. After he did so, he pushed his left arm into his right and he had an idea of what he wanted, but while he didn’t focus on it, he could feel an item fall into his hand. He pulled out the arrow that he had intended to pull out. It was actually very convenient to use, and would speed up his arrow draw considerably. He saw that he could put and pull items in anywhere around his whole forearm. He grabbed a piece of broken stone from the ground and then threw it straight up in the air, then placed his arm beneath its path. The stone hit his hand and disappeared into the storage. Morgan could already see how he could use them defensively. It was a good item for him.
He glanced at Ves, and saw her looking at a large rod that she held in two hands. She twisted the handle and the top of the rod turned into a spectral green mace head. She twisted again and it became an axe, then again and it was a flail. Morgan looked down on his forearms coated in complete darkness, looking unimpressive, and felt jealous of her flashy item.
“You have a choice now.” The voice of the Tower Master brought all of their attention from their items up to his face. “The portal to the next floor is open and ready. But…you’ve been put in a position you never should’ve been in. As such, I can offer you a way outside of the Tower. If you agree, you will be allowed to leave the Tower, and if you come back you will need to climb all the previous floors again. Know that there is no penalty for either choice. You have done your World and the Great Lord a service, and you have given more than you should’ve. Because of that, you may choose not to give anything else.”
Morgan looked around, seeing everyone looking surprised, some perhaps even hopeful.
“Morgan.” The Tower Master turned at him lastly, and Morgan stiffened. “I would like a moment of your time, in private.”
Morgan looked around, seeing everyone look at him, but he couldn’t really refuse. He was pretty sure that he knew what this was about. He stood up, giving Ves a small smile and then he followed the Tower Master some distance away. He stopped and Morgan did the same. Then something happened to the air around them, as if the world around them became muffled.
“You’ve made the seventh step,” he said.
“Uh… I think so? I have Sabila—my soul-implant—in my head now,” Morgan said. Sabila had been quiet since the battle finished, giving him time with the others. But Morgan had so many questions, for her, and perhaps for the Tower Master if he would answer them.
“Your soul-implants are the Guiding Force’s additions. True spirit artists do not have voices in their head.” At that, he paused and his head tilted. “Well, most of them don’t. But, your achievement, the seventh step, is what this entire world had been created for, what the purpose of the Tower of Power is: to draw out and force an ascended to make it.”
“Why is it so important?” Morgan asked.
“You saw what we fight; you felt that power. The Heralds of our enemies can attack a soul directly. They can corrupt and change a person against their will if they are not powerful enough. A spirit artist on the seventh step has their body, spirit, and soul forged into single unified form, and to do that you need to know yourself, to understand who and what you are. For your will to be uncompromising. The enemy cannot touch a soul forged with its vessel and power. This is why the Great Lord needs ascended of this power, because he fights a war where anyone who does not have enough will can have their soul corrupted. A spirit artist of the seventh step is a master of his own soul, spirit, and body, however, and none may take from them their free will. A spirit artist of seventh step may be killed by someone more powerful, but they will never be turned.”
“Oh,” Morgan only said.
“You have already achieved what we’ve been working for all this time. You do not need to stay here. I can take you to your father. He is waiting,” the man said.
Morgan blinked blankly at the man. “But what about the Tower? The other floors?”
“The goal was never for anyone to finish the Tower. In truth, it cannot be finished. I am the last test on the last floor, and only those who have taken the seventh step can pass. Every other floor was designed to force people into situations so dire that their souls might evolve, that they might look at the truth of themselves and accept it. Ascended who reach high levels might have more power, and yes, that is granted to them so that they might deepen the connection with their spirit, but they lack what we need. It has never been about power—your father can grant great power to entire civilizations, make them into a fighting force that can take on any force—but what he needs are people who can stand up to the Heralds, who can survive without having their souls rent apart.”
Morgan didn’t know what to say. He looked back at his friends, at Ves, then back at the Tower Master. He could go and stand by his father’s side, proud in his achievements. He could help him in his fight. “You need more, don’t you?”
The Tower Master nodded. “Yes, we need more. Your soul-implant has recorded your ascent to the seventh step. The Guiding Force will study the records and adjust the soul-implants of other ascended, to facilitate their growth.”
Morgan looked back again. Going with him would mean leaving his friends, at least until they managed to do what he had. “I can’t go. I don’t want to abandon my family. And I…I can do more here. The entire World out
side is filled with ascended who don’t try to improve, who don’t want to grow. Maybe I can change that. I still don’t understand exactly what I’ve done, but maybe I can help. Maybe I can help others reach it as well.”
“The choice is yours,” the Tower Master said. Then, gesturing, two portals opened nearby, a red and a blue one. “The red portal will take you to the next floor, the blue one outside of the Tower.”
The Tower Master inclined his head and then walked away, and another portal opened and he headed toward it. Morgan watched him, and then he remembered something. “Wait!”
The Tower Master turned and looked at him. “You changed your mind?”
“Uh…no. I have something to tell you. You can speak with Oxylus or with the Guiding Force, right?”
“I can.”
“I have a message for them.”
“Speak and I will let them know.”
“When I was on the first floor, during the tests. I nearly died from a being called the Weaver.”
“Yes, I saw.”
“Well, someone helped me defeat her, and she, or it, asked me to pass on a message?”
The Tower Master’s brows furrowed. “Someone helped you?”
“Yes. Moirai, and she told me to let Oxylus or Iris know that she wakes.”
The Tower Master blinked in shock. “Are you certain about that? That you spoke with her?”
“Yes. She called me ‘offspring’ and called Oxylus her other half.”
“That…that is great news.” The Tower Master bowed his head and then turned around. “I will pass your message on,” he said as he stepped through, and then the portal closed behind him.
Morgan turned back to the others, saw them looking at the two remaining portals.
“It was a good decision, Master.”
“Right, I forgot that you were there for a moment.”
“I will always be with you, Master. I am a part of you,” Sabila said.
“I mean…you know what? It doesn’t matter. So, what can you do now?”
“I can provide you with knowledge in real time. I can help you adjust your HUD and allow you to see additional information, as well as help you upgrade and adjust your abilities. I am here to advise and help you grow stronger. But, as long as we stay in the World, I will have some limitations on what I can do and share. Regardless, I can act much more freely now.”
I guess I have an on-demand soul-AI helper in my head now. Great. Morgan nodded his head, supposing that it did make some sense that she had some limits. This World was still isolated from other places. Morgan took a deep breath and walked over to the others. They had a decision to make, and knowing what he knew about the Tower now, he knew what he was going to suggest.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Morgan and the rest of the raid group entered a portal, and a moment later they all walked out of the Tower of Power. Morgan took a deep breath and saw the setting sun. The city of Amon’Tor was the same as it had ever been, and its people moved about its streets.
Everyone had a conflicted look on their faces. They had attempted to climb the Tower, and they had found death—but they had found glory as well. They had fought alongside the Master of the Tower and its guardians, had fought a foe of the Great Lord. He could see it in the others’ eyes. They had lost people, but they had a new fire in them now. Morgan glanced at the Tower behind them, and he knew that they would all be back. They had forged a bond stronger than any other, and Morgan knew that they all wanted to finish the Tower. Morgan knew now what the test was, and he was going to help them all reach that goal.
But for now, he knew that they needed rest, that they needed more people to climb again.
Morgan looked at his teammates, Lucius, Clara, and Ves. They would return home, to their Guild, and Morgan already had plans for the future. He needed to expand, to conquer, to force this World to change—to get the ascended to achieve what his father needed. This was the thing that he wanted to do, to get his father the army he needed.
And he knew that he was going to need a lot of help.
As the group started walking down the steps, Morgan approached Ta’elara.
“What will you do now?” he asked.
She raised her head to look at him. “I don’t know. Some of my questions were answered, but now I have many more.”
“And you intend to find the answers to those questions?”
“Yes, but first there are more things I need to learn about magic. The things that those Rzan did, how they used the energy from blood, their chanting and gestures… There are many things that I do not know.”
“Perhaps you might consider coming with us? I know of a valley where you can focus on your experiments in peace,” Morgan said with a raised eyebrow.
Ta’elara narrowed her eyes at him. “What are you planning, Morgan?”
“Oh, you know me. Stuff, this and that…”
“I might take you up on that invitation, if only to keep you from doing something stupid,” Ta’elara said.
Morgan smiled and walked away. He would need to convince Borodar and Hexna to join his guild, maybe even Gandiir and Sumion. Ragnor was a part of one of the Great Guilds, so he perhaps wouldn’t accept… Still, Morgan would ask. He needed powerful people, because he planned on shaking this World at its foundations.
He walked back over to Ves, and put his hand around her. He knew that she was in pain, and he was too. He didn’t know what to say to make it feel better.
“I was so mad at them, and I didn’t even get the chance to forgive them,” Ves whispered suddenly.
Morgan squeezed her shoulder. “No matter what they did, they were still your parents, and they loved you. They wouldn’t have done what they did if they hadn’t. Vall, too.”
“Oh, Vall,” she sobbed. “That idiot. Always jumping into danger.”
“He saved us, all of us.”
“Knowing that doesn’t make it hurt any less.”
“No,” Morgan agreed quietly. “But he wouldn’t want us to be sad forever.”
“For so long, my goal had been to climb to the top of the Tower, to be the first ever to do it, and to find my parents. I feel like I failed on both counts.”
“No,” Morgan stopped and turned her to face him. “Listen to me. We found your parents, and you know that they loved you. And we climbed the Tower—we are the first to return from beyond the third floor. And I fully intend to go back, to climb beyond, to reach the end to face the Tower Master, and I fully intend on passing his test. We will be the first to finish the Tower of Power. This I promise you.”
Morgan saw her smile and he pulled her close. He was going to try and teach them all how to do what he had done, and when they returned to the Tower of Power, they would not lose anyone. They would reach the end and show his father that they were worthy to stand next to him in the battle against his enemies.
“Yes,” Ves said as she pulled back. “I think I would want that, and that Vall would like to see us climb to the top.”
“Hell yeah he would. We are going to finish the Tower—for everyone we lost.”
Morgan looked around and saw that the others had listened in, he saw determination in their eyes as well. This wasn’t a defeat; they hadn’t left the Tower with their tails between their legs. This was just a respite, a moment for them to gather. Morgan could see it in their eyes: all of them intended on coming back. And all of them would. They would gather another group, gain more power, and they would reach the top.
And Morgan was going to force the entire World and all its ascended to watch, to be inspired, and to follow behind them.
EPILOGUE I
Kai Zhao Vin stepped into the control room of the floor. The Dawn’s Light stood next to the screens, with a floating woman with fire for hair. Vin made his way over to stand next to them.
“Do you know how they gained access?” Vin asked.
“I’ve infiltrated their ship’s systems,” the Guiding Force said. “They erased their data, but I
pieced a few things together. They have scouts searching across the multiverse, looking for us. They got lucky here. You did well. If the Herald managed to get through… Chaos could’ve spilled in and consumed this universe before we had a chance to respond.”
“We were lucky that I was here at the right time,” Vin said.
“Yes,” she said simply. Then, “You let them go out of the Tower.”
“They deserved it, and I do rule this Tower.”
“He will not like that. We need more—”
“I know what we need. They earned it nevertheless,” Vin said. “But, I think that we, too, needed this. The World has not developed according to our plans, despite your attempts to guide it in the right direction.”
“I know,” she sighed.
“Perhaps now, with Morgan on the outside, that might change.”
“I have the record of his ascension,” the Guiding Force said. “It happened at the moment his soul was attacked. It might suggest that a direct assault on the soul might be the key to triggering the seventh step.”
“That isn’t a requirement for spirit artists,” Vin replied.
“No, but spirit artists train and meditate for decades before they start climbing the steps. They know themselves intimately. Ascended are not spirit artists,” she mused. “I think we have been going about this all wrong. We were so wrapped up in replicating the seventh step that we didn’t explore other options.”
“There are countless ways to power,” Vin agreed. “A different approach for them might be preferable.”
“We shall see.”
“My new Guardians,” Vin began. “They died while the connection was blocked.”
“The local system worked,” she said.
“And the…”
“Yes.”
“Good,” Vin said with a nod. “You heard about Moirai?”
“I did, and I am reviewing her status now. I found an anomaly at the moment when Morgan went through his test. It seems that she has been able to make a connection to him. It seems like there is more to genetics and legacy than the old man wants to admit.”
