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And on the ground in front them, and all around…

…they were surrounded, the weapons of almost a hundred soldiers were pointed at Orodan and Zaessythra.

At the very front, twelve foot tall suits of metal were arrayed. Hot steam and magical energies being periodically emitted out their vents. Glittering enchantments were engraved upon the plates of metal which made up their armored frames. These large metallic golems seemed to have no pilots within, they wielded some manner of multi-barrelled firearm on the right hand, and an impressively forged and enchanted blade in the left.

War golems of steam and metal.

And behind them, arranged tactically to safeguard the flanks and seemingly vulnerable angles of the golems, were human soldiers were armed with repeating rifles of similar make to those he’d seen the dwarves of his home world use. These guns were seemingly powered by a mixture of steam and magic. Powerful implements, lethal ones too, if the feeling he got from them was any indicator.

The golems and soldiers comprised the first battle line. And behind this leading rank was an assortment of artillery pieces supported by additional gun-wielding soldiers and mages.

They came in varying sizes and had crews operating them, however all of them were mounted atop some manner of vehicle, a metallic, enclosed cart which was again, operated by steam and magical energies. All of these vehicles had firing ports, much like the balistraria upon a fortified castle, from whence the gun-wielding crew could dispense salvos of death. The barrels of many steam-powered rifles protruded from these gun-holes, the human crew within these vehicles alert and watching him and Zaessythra closely.

These artillery-mounted vehicles were supported on the flanks by the aforementioned firearm wielding soldier which seemed to be the most ubiquitous sort of troop present. Behind them however, were combatants with higher than normal amounts of mana.

War mages.

These magical soldiers were arranged in formations of five, with four mages supporting a central one. Two fire mages and two water mages supported a leader in the center who seemed to command steam itself. There were four such formations, and these central steam magicians were Grandmasters who seemed to empower the very machines and firearms of the entire force in an amplificative maneuver. The steam-controlling magicians wore dress uniforms just a step lower than the Transcendent-level commander of this formation.

And half a mile behind the formation… were three soldiers armed with what Orodan could only admit was a very dangerous and oversized variant of rifle. The energy emanating from these weapons was quite great, and the wielders looked to be the Grandmaster-level.

Machine and man, organized in concert to form a unified military force, all empowered by steam and a dash of magic.

Orodan had seen golems on Alastaia, and he’d seen W78 and A1, the machine warriors of the Unity. Yet to see a very mechanized yet magical military force was a novel experience. The basic human soldiers were at the Master-level, although Orodan had an inkling that their guns could hit above their level and hurt Grandmasters. His senses told him that the artillery pieces and steam knights carried a decent amount of power. Perhaps a full barrage from this unit might even hurt a Transcendent.

And the three deadly sharpshooters in the rear rank? They might even be capable of killing Transcendents when working together.

The commanding officer in ornate dress uniform wielding a rapier and hand-held firearm was an early Transcendent, and was undoubtedly a core part of the formation. Numbers and firepower were of severely reduced effectiveness if they couldn’t be brought to bear due to the enemy closing distance. To that end, having a Transcendent capable of holding the line was an important task.

Military pomp and regalia was typically abandoned by the time someone reached the Transcendent and divine levels. The Transcendents he’d seen in his own galaxy were a bit removed from the military ranks, concerns and organizational structures of Grandmasters and below. For the woman to still be wearing a uniform, it was intriguing. It suggested that these people took custom seriously and Transcendents seemed well-integrated into society even after their ascension.

“Did you hear me? Identify yourself! You’ve broken past planetary space-lock defenses and are in violation of galactic law, article nine. Intruding upon the territory of a sovereign nation is not something we can overlook,” the commander spoke. “We need not come to blows today, simply surrender yourselves and we might work this mess out.”

A junior officer suddenly rushed up to the commander, and Orodan’s keen senses picked up on the conversation.

“My Lady! The Aurameter detects the woman as being mid-Transcendent, however it cannot get the upper-reading for the man.”

Which made little sense. Orodan was but a Master. Technically at least. Of course, if the machine detected overall energy, then he would certainly appear rather monstrous, with total power exceeding that of a peak-Transcendent. Even at a sedate pace of energy generation, Orodan’s soul held more raw power within than most beings he’d met.

It was subtle, but the commander’s eyes took on a serious look, and Orodan detected the familiar pulse of dirty mana sent out from a ring on her hand. Calling for immediate assistance was but a natural course of action when one felt outmatched.

Orodan raised his hands into the air and walked forward, attempting to placate the woman and the tension which was palpable.

“I come in peace,” Orodan said. “We’ve come from the neighboring galaxy seeking the branch of the Conclave. Our grand array was assaulted and damaged during our travel and we consequently landed somewhere unintended.”

“Unlikely. A galaxy is a massive place and a grand teleportation array’s targeting function being damaged would lead to the passenger being slingshotted anywhere within. Without your teleport being guided, to somehow land upon a planet is exceedingly unlikely, bordering on impossible,” the commanding officer said. “If you’ve arrived here, all evidence points to it being intentional.”

“Well, the disguising function of the array was also damaged and we were nearly devoured by something big and hungry during transit,” Orodan said and the commander’s eyes widened. “Something glowing and golden came to our aid though. Perhaps they’re the one who steered us right?”

“That fluctuation in the void was you…?” the commander asked. “Even still, your story doesn’t add up. If an Embodiment-level being aided in guiding your teleport, the energy would’ve been apparent to our scans. No source of power from outside the galaxy steered you here.”

Then…

“Was it someone from within?” Orodan asked. “Where are we? The galaxy and star-system please.”

“This is Lonvoron, prime world of the Blackworth Collective within the Colodon System. We are within the Yellow Moon Cluster of the Vystaxium Galaxy,” the officer said. “This is where you intended to come, yes?”

“It is,” Orodan answered. The letter had said as much too.

And if whoever had rescured him within the void wasn’t the reason for their new targeting…

…then Orodan suspected it was this other time looper who’d done so.

“Good. Then you shan’t have any issue coming with us to verify your identity and meeting with the Viscount,” the officer said. “In fact, my superiors should be arriving henceforth to convey you the rest of the way themselves.”

Orodan turned to Zaessythra, stood to his right.

“I’d normally suggest we go with them but…” she muttered.

“You sense it too then?” Orodan asked and she nodded.

What they sensed, was world energy. Zaessythra likely sensed it through the world-sword she had, and Orodan through his own world crown which he bore upon his arm. At such an extreme distance they couldn’t access the world energy of the respective worlds they held rulership over, yet their rulership items still allowed them to access some functions such as the detection of world energy and minor ways of interacting with it.

And the world energy practically held the minds and souls of these soldiers in a vice grip.

They were potentially dealing with puppets to a higher power.

“For now, why not play along and go with them? If this is truly a trap, we can simply reset and try this again,” Zaessythra said. “They haven’t attacked or offended us, and the weapons are fair given their lack of information on us.”

Orodan agreed. Butchering soldiers defending their own homes when they were the ones who’d landed upon Lonvoron, would be a tad villainous. Better to see how far this went and what exactly the orchestrator wanted from them before committing any acts of violence.

Spatial fluctuations emanated near the commander of these steam and magic powered troops, and three more figures stepped out. Two of them mid-Transcendents, dressed in ornate military uniforms and perhaps slightly weaker than Zaessythra. The final one was a woman dressed like a bit of a vagabond, a bottle of liquor in her left hand, and a gun in her right. The small hand-held gun had a cylindrical contraption built in. And from the looks of it, the contraption fed ammunition into the hand-held weapon, and twelve shots seemed ready to be delivered.

Despite the comedic appearance, he held a rough estimate that this roguish woman was a high-level Transcendent stronger than Zaessythra, and perhaps a bit more powerful than Orodan himself. She was dangerous, and the instinctive feeling he got from that small gun was no jest.

Still, she wasn’t even a peak-Transcendent, and Orodan would estimate her as being near level 140 but not surpassing it. In all likelihood there were even more powerful reinforcements that could appear at a moment’s notice.

He was strong, and he’d fought enemy armies before, but to fight an entire planet’s worth of Transcendents many of whom might be near the peak? The thought excited him but it just wasn’t the time for it. These people had done him no wrong and he had greater concerns. Not when his checkpoint uses were limited and his allies upon Xian were counting upon him to secure aid.

The powerful gunmaster took a deep swig from the bottle in her hand.

“Mmm… Von Asterman vintage…” she said and then hiccupped. “Not bad. I was looking to reserve it for a special occasion… like my next marriage. Explain who you are and why I shouldn’t unload twelve rounds into your head.”

That alcohol wasn’t normal either. Vision of Purity and his strange sixth sense gave him enough of a picture to tell that the drink had empowered this woman. Drunken as she seemed, a weakling she was not.

Good.

“I’d hope it’s because I didn’t come here seeking a fight,” Orodan said, and then his face lit up in a joyous smile. “Although, that does sound like a fun offer.”

Something in his tone must’ve alerted the woman, as her previous drunken tilt straightened out and her casual-seeming eyes took on a serious edge.

“Madam Lawson… this man’s Aurameter reading caused the device to trigger all four levels and malfunction,” the Baroness reported. “We’ve re-checked it on three separate devices, and the readings indicate-”

“That he has energy beyond that of a peak-Transcendent. Pull the formation back and inform the King,” the drunken woman ordered in a tone which brooked no doubt. “The Aurameter provides an approximate level of power based upon the soul. A high-level soul specialist might skew it, but these readings do not lie. Are you an enemy of the Blackworth Collective? Come looking for a fight, have you?”

“Not at all, in fact I come in peace. Having a powerful fighter make an implied threat does rouse my blood however. You claimed yourself capable of unloading twelve rounds into my head, did you not?” Orodan asked as his sword and shield were drawn. “How about this. If I survive your twelve bullets, you’ll hear me out. I won’t retaliate in the slightest. I simply wish to test myself against that gun of yours.”

“A fair proposition. My superiors will be arriving soon, and long have I wished to test myself against a peak-Transcendent,” the woman said as the cylinder on the gun was rapidly spun and the weapon brandished in her hand and aimed his way with a twirl. “No reneging on the deal. Last chance to commit.”

“Enough talk. I’ve survived barrages from entire cannon batteries firing at once,” Orodan stated. “Show me how these bullets of yours hold up.”

She was as good as her word. The first thing Orodan felt was a powerful strain against his arm and a titanic impact against his shield.

[Shield Mastery 88 → Shield Mastery 89]

His loyal defense held strong, yet he was sent skidding backwards. The motion of the gun was impossibly fast, the bullet even faster. There was no way his current mind and body could keep up with the projectiles fired from that weapon.

By the time he reflected on all that, the second shot had already ripped straight through the exposed bit of his arm.

Immediately, the temptation struck to use Time Compression and hasten himself, yet Orodan refused. It would be cheating and against the spirit of this training exercise.

The bullet was deadly for more than just its velocity and impact force. Rather, the projectile was a transcendent example mastery of force transfer. At first one might think a poison was causing Orodan’s cells to suffer destruction as they were eroded away. Yet the truth was far more impressive.

The very force of the shot was spread and dispersed in controlled pathways upwards along his arm as it ravaged his body. Like a devouring acid, a hungry flame, yet achieved with naught but pure impact force from the bullet which was strictly controlled by the gunmaster as though it was telekinetic.

It was akin to a swordsman slicing an opponent’s arm and instead electing to control the force so that it continued traveling along the foe’s body and then decapitated their head. It was a Transcendent level of skill in gunplay, it was profound.

And it had also made him twitch in reaction just a bit as he attempted to move his shield to defend. A move which left the top half of his head exposed.

The following six shots struck him squarely in the noggin and destroyed it and the upper half of his body entirely. Even as Harmony of Vitality warred with the destructive and virulent force transfer effect from each bullet and attempted to outpace the damage through healing.

It was the ninth shot where Orodan’s shield finally stood in-between once more, holding strong as his soul empowered his defensive weapon. Unfortunately, the tenth and elventh shots all went for his open legs which were practically blasted into non-existence.

Finally, the twelfth bullet was preceded by the venting of a large amount of steam from the gun, a sign that it was bad news.

The gun fighter’s eyes were deadly serious, and despite all the damage she’d scored the Transcendent-gunwoman looked equally shocked at Orodan’s resilience and practically instantaneous healing. The final bullet then, was symbolic, a way to pit her full might against his.

Rather than his head or exposed body, the final shot came straight for his shield. Her bullet, against the soul empowered defensive implement which had saved his life so many times.

Orodan tore through space as the bullet hit. His soul trembled from the strain of pouring power into his shield and maintaining the focus necessary to prevent its destruction.

And at the last moment, he understood that a shield wasn’t just a defensive implement. But one of offense as well.

What was defense? To defend against an attack meant not just weathering it like an unyielding pillar, but to also address the attack itself. As shield met unstoppable bullet, he realized that to defend with the shield involved dealing with the attack.

To attack the attack itself.

What was a shield? A shield wasn’t just defense, but offense. Yet, to step into the realm of mastery involved realizing that a defensive maneuver with the shield could be completed through offense, and that an offensive maneuver with the shield could be completed through defense.

His shield advanced, his determination like steel. He refused to passively defend. He practically smashed it right into the bullet aiming to win through pure force and the perspective that defense involved beating the offending attack with naught but the stubborn defiance a warrior should have.

What was needed next, was an offensive maneuver to return the bullet to whence it came, Orodan instead played it defensively, squeezing the utmost control he had to its limits and holding still, guiding the bullet along his unbreakable shield’s curvature, the bullet spinning along the path of his shield’s rim until it was returned with the same amount of force…

…right past the gunwoman’s head, missing her intentionally yet barely.

[Shield Mastery 89 → Shield Mastery 90]

“Defense can be achieved through offense… and offense through defense,” Orodan said to himself, seemingly in a trance. “Perhaps this is also the key for Sword Mastery…”

“Nice insights, but have you forgotten our agreement that you would not retaliate?” the woman asked as she took another swig. Comical as the action looked, the drink in fact empowered her, indicating that she was taking this very seriously. “Though, we might address that after. You… are not a peak-Transcendent, are you?”

“No. I am in fact, a Master-level warrior,” Orodan answered. “And I apologize, I simply needed to carry out the last step to make that skill gain. I made sure to miss your head too.”

“Who might you be?” the gun-fighter asked. “No Master-level individual in existence should be capable of contending with a level 139 Transcendent.”

Orodan smiled, and to the side, Zaessythra tensed up noticeably.

“I am Orodan Wainwright, here to link up with the branch of the Conclave upon Lonvoron, and most importantly…”

“…Orodan! No!”

“…to meet this other time looper. I’m also in a time loop myself.”

He heard Zaessythra’s palm sharply meet her own face.

“Why does he always do this…?”

Let it not be said that Orodan Wainwright beat around the bush.

The Transcendent gunwoman who’d shot Orodan had a look of surprise upon her face, which she quickly schooled. And most importantly… Vision of Purity and his own world crown betrayed the slightest of ripples within the world energy which had wrapped around her mind and soul like a constricting snake.

Orodan had his suspicions, but chose not to act upon them for now.

“A time looper?! Just as the King asked us to watch for… incredible! This must be fate, for you to arrive at such a time when we’re beset on all sides by the Eldritch,” the gun-fighter said said. “To think there’s another, the King must be informed!”

“There’s another time looper then?” Orodan asked. “Who is it?”

“Only his Majesty knows of their true identity. Yet we’ve been told to remain on the lookout for anyone claiming to be such,” the leader of the Transcendents said. “King Alstatyn Von Flemethy, monarch of the Blackworth Collective, wishes to meet you.”

“Truth-detection is of no use. That shroud of world energy covering their minds and souls is interfering, and any attempts to push past it would be felt,” Zaessythra said telepathically.

“It makes little sense. Why would knowledge of this other time looper be so widespread? This random Transcendent here seems to know about it,” Orodan replied along the connection. “Do they just go around telling people that they’re in a time loop?”

“Indeed, I wonder who would do such a stupid and thoughtless thing?”

He sent a feeling of distinct unamusement down the telepathic link.

“Your barbs aside, this doesn’t add up with what the contents of the letter said. This other time looper clearly went to great lengths to preserve their secrecy. For them to be known of simply creates more doubt and questions.”

And most importantly…

…these people were being beset by the Eldritch too? No wonder the horizon held a distinct purple and grey haze in the distance.

The Eldritch wasn’t exactly limited to Alastaia. His first meeting with Varkir, the God of the dwarves, had resulted in him learning that the Eldritch threatened many places. The Celestial Emperor of Xian, Jian Huangdi, was corrupted by the Eldritch. The Reject, one of the five Administrators, was also corrupted by this foul plague. So to encounter it here was no surprise to Orodan.

“Time looper, please, the longer we tarry the nearer the forces of the Eldritch draw. They have always threatened our peoples, yet ever since the unification of our Collective as of late they have been pressing even harder,” the Transcendent said. “A spatial rift leading to the surface of a plague world threatens the northern provinces. Our brave soldiers and sturdy war machinery hold the line against them with each passing minute.”

“The Eldritch threatens your peoples? How strong are their champions which descend upon your worlds?” Orodan asked.

“Powerful Gods and Transcendents, beyond level 140,” the woman answered. “Many of them quite barbaric. And some of them… turned from among our own forces. The virulent and infectious nature of their plague has caused us much grief and loss as we’re forced to fight our own.”

“Then, how about we help against these Eldritch invaders first before we meet your King?”

“I would advise against it, the Eldritch are ferocious and deadly beyond compare. Your knowledge of the future and ability to return this knowledge to our forces will be our greatest asset. To that end, meeting with the King and joining forces would be the most tactically sound decision,” the Transcendent argued. “Their rotten touch is vile and infectious. Many of our greatest defenders and champions have fallen to it as they’re forced to turn against us. We absolutely cannot afford you being corrupted by the Eldritch.”

“It will be fine. These Eldritch simply need a good cleaning,” Orodan replied.

“Unacceptable. Royal decree obliges us to deliver you as an honored guest before his Majesty.”

“I wasn’t asking. We will be aiding in this battle against the Eldritch,” Orodan said. “The Eldritch are my enemies. There will be no peaceful meeting between the King and I when my enemies run rampant upon this world.”

“And when you become infected by their madness? An Eldritch-infected time looper would be the doom of our-”

“He has Eldritch Resistance.”

Silence followed the proclamation, and Orodan felt the world energy binding the minds and souls of these people stir at Zaessythra’s words.

“That is…”

“An end to your complaints, yes?” she asked the gun-fighter.

“To see you championing my way of doing things Zaessythra, I thought I’d never see the day,” Orodan remarked.

“You would’ve bullheadedly insisted on it either way, I’m just getting ahead of it,” she replied.

The four Transcendents of the Blackworth Collective before them were more than a little wary of the two. One was an early-Transcendent. Either he or Zaessythra could best that one. The other two were mid-level Transcendents who were slightly weaker than Zaessythra. Perhaps she could win the two-versus-one, perhaps not.

The gunslinger he’d heard referred to as Madam Lawson however, was the strongest of them. Strength came in different forms however. Her gunplay and the speed of her firearm and bullets were extraordinary. Orodan would need to use Time Compression to compete against that level of swiftness. However, he was a warrior through and through. Guns were her forte, melee combat and the thick of brutal violence was his. He hadn’t missed how her muscles twitched in minute ways to indicate a mindset most defensive, and perhaps even a bit averse to engagements at close range.

Her gun and weapon arm were fast. The rest of her, not so much. Orodan felt confident he could best her if it came down to it in a one-on-one, and this was without the usage of Time Compression. His healing could outpace whatever punishment she delivered, and his own endurance would eventually grind her down.

Of course, this all hinged on the assumption that he had endless time and no additional reinforcements coming in. Still, whatever the gunslinger Madam Lawson had seen, she was wary of. She refused to order her troops to attack or attempt an apprehension of Orodan and Zaessythra.

And for a few seconds, a tense standoff occurred as the two sides eyes one another down.

Until the world energy which gripped the mind and soul of Miss Lawson trembled almost imperceptibly once more, indicating action from whoever had this woman in their grips.

“There’s been a change of plans. You wish to visit the front lines of the northern provinces first? That will be acceptable,” Madam Lawson said. “His Majesty will meet with you at our main main war camp. We look forward to working together, time looper.”

That had been resolved easier than expected. Understandable given how nobody with a level of foresight would want to make an enemy of a time looper

Yet something in the back of Orodan’s mind told him that he was walking into a veritable wasp’s nest of problems.

#

The warzone they were headed to had a spatial rift leading directly to a plague world. This was the point through which the Eldritch were invading Lonvoron.

A plague world. It was what these people called an entire world which had fallen to the Eldritch. Orodan suspected that the masters of the Eldritch Avatar which invaded his home world also came from one of these. Yet, such a situation made him realize that Alastaia had it easy. They dealt with numerous descending champions of the Eldritch attempting to gain a foothold over many centuries. Yet, to have an active spatial rift which led directly to the heart of a plague world?

Lonvoron was facing a drastically different sort of Eldritch invasion, one on a far deadlier scale than his home world had. Combatting it required the mobilization of military forces across the entire planet and perhaps more.

The two of them had travelled alongside the unit of soldiers, war machines and mages. Initially, a spatial rift had opened up and the party moved a portion of the way towards their destination, however they were now trekking the rest of the way on foot.

Direct teleportation into the front lines was off-limits. The spatial rift leading to the plague world had plenty of Eldritch-infected spatiomancy specialists on the other side. Entire towns could be infected and the corruption rapidly expanded if spatiomancy was carelessly used between safe and unsafe areas. Consequently, teleportation within two-hundred miles of the front line was banned and strictly monitored.

The Eldritch Avatar had been quite corrupt and virulent, yet an entire plague world launching an attack through a spatial rift was far more concerning. If unprepared, an entire world could succumb to Eldritch infection within a matter of months.

Orodan and Zaessythra were sat atop the open air captain’s deck of a large moving vehicle powered by steam. Alongside them, in a nearby vehicle as their escort, was Madam Lawson the gunslinger. He and Zaessythra were kept on their own steam-powered vehicle. Zaessythra was deeply engrossed in her book, some tome on transformations and soul magic, and Orodan had a frown on his face as he looked discontent.

“I still maintain that I can travel faster on foot,” Orodan declared. “This thing is slow.”

“And destroy the landscape in your path of travel?” Madam Lawson said. “The northern provinces take the preservation of natural habitats seriously. Many rare and expensive crafting reagents come from these environs. It’s all part of the war effort. Every blade of grass, every tree, every bit of ore in the ground, it all comes together to push the future. Take for example, my twelve-shooter. This pretty lad’s been with me for the better part of a hundred-thousand years. The metal came from a centuries old deposit in the mountains, the wooden handle, from an ancient tree. And I’m personally involved in the crafting of each bullet.”

“I can see how a stable supply of materials is important, it’s a war asset and a strategic resource. Yet, when besieged by the Eldritch shouldn’t your priorities lay elsewhere?” Orodan asked.

“Have you noticed what vehicle you’re riding upon?” she asked, and Orodan shook his head. “This here’s a light carrier. It weighs over one-hundred and fifty tons, bears up to fifteen crew members and soldiers, and has a mounted heavy gun capable of shooting right through a mountain.”

“I get the feeling it could kill a Grandmaster with a direct hit,” Orodan said. “What of it though?”

“Do you notice that we’re riding upon roads and relatively flat surfaces?” Madam Lawson asked. “If we allowed every visitor and foreign dignitary with skills of a brutish nature to traipse about at will, how long until our network of roads and the smooth terrain are gone?”

Orodan had to concede the point there. Even if Orodan felt himself faster, the vehicle they were upon wasn’t by any means slow. Though, it was bulky.

“So if one of these things falls into a ravine, what do you do?” Orodan asked.

“The engineering corps would have to extricate it, or a mage with a talent for moving large objects,” she answered. “If the unit has a Transcendent with decent physical skill around, they might also do.”

“A Transcendent? Why, anyone with a Physical Fitness skill above 50 should be capable of lifting the 150 tons of weight. Even if difficult, at worst, by level 55 someone should be able to casually pluck this thing out the bottom of a muddy hole if needed,” Orodan remarked. “Is this a specialized unit? I feel the lack of any other front line troops is a bit of a vulnerability.”

“It’s by design. We have no dedicated front line troops in our military… outside of the penal divisions and some rare individuals. Such things are unnecessary with our current doctrine of warfare,” Madam Lawson remarked. “If we need to dirty our hands with the base act of hand-to-hand, our brave men and women of the line infantry have affixed bayonets and side swords.”

“Yet none of them are dedicated troops capable of engaging the enemy toe-to-toe? An… interesting choice of tactics,” Orodan said. His younger self would’ve immediately decried this as cowardice and stupidity. Yet now, he had grown and could see why they might choose to fight as such. “Is the threat of Eldritch infection so great that you cannot afford to have warriors clashing blades against them?”

“That’s one part of it. The other is that a soldier purely dedicated to melee combat is a liability and not as versatile. All that investment; long hours of training and pain, close combat and the risk of constant death. It is a lot to ask of someone. I see you too are one such fighter. Would you not agree that it takes someone of a certain caliber to pursue such a path to its limits?” she asked. “In contrast, even a coward can be trained to pick up a gun. They might not be good at it, their mentality may not allow them to reach the very limits of martial excellence, yet they can do enough. Such a coward, when given a weapon of sufficient power and trained to wield it in relative safety and comfort with some minimal standards of soldiery, can end the life of any promising warrior.”

Orodan had to take a moment to think about it. On one hand, this woman’s argument had merits, even if his experience with melee combat and life in the militia was slightly different. Firearms existed on his home world, but they simply weren’t powerful enough to bridge the gap between a civilian and a trained warrior. The few firearms that were capable of harming high-level warriors were secrets guarded closely by the dwarves.

On the other hand, if firearms technology was powerful enough, and a nation had the logistics and crafters to produce powerful guns and the organizational power to train troops to use them… then even a coward training for a little while could kill a warrior who’d trained for decades. And even if a secondary capability for melee combat wasn’t as good as a dedicated warrior who spent their life honing their skill, a charge of troops armed with bayonets and side swords was still a tool available to such an army.

Still, his own perspective was a bit warped. Orodan wasn’t blind enough to deny the fact that he was an outlier. Yet even then, he’d seen and trained alongside plenty of warriors in the county militia. Firearms technology back home wasn’t anywhere near the level these people had. Mages existed on Alastaia, but they were rare and required an inherent talent or a drive for hard work and the willingness to commit to long hours of focus and study. As a result, back home, the only choices for those interested in a life of soldiery and adventure was to pick up a melee weapon. Ranged martial weapons sufficed too of course, but they too required a level of talent and dedication.

“I’ll have to disagree that cowards can’t pick up the sword. I trained and fought alongside plenty who lacked resolve and that deathly commitment in their hearts,” Orodan said recalling how in his very first death, Parthus Edrosic and the rest of his troop of militia fled at the thought of actual combat. “You don’t need to be exceptionally talented or have unquestionable gumption to pick up a sword and swing it.”

“And yet, can such a cowardly and inept swordsman slay beings with skill levels and physique which are inherently superior?” she asked. “Aside from a few cases of immigration, most of our people are human. Do you think we’re meant to stand toe to toe against an orc or a demon? Certain races such as dragons are capable of easily slaying a hundred warriors. What point is there in learning the ways of the blade when a dragon with a few levels in a skill is vastly superior?”

“Skills such as Body Tempering can narrow that gap, as can Bloodlines. Additionally, the small size of us humans can be an advantage. I fought a giant Depths Worm underground once, and my small size allowed me to burrow within and slay it with impunity from inside,” Orodan said. “Despite how superior you claim your ways of war to be I don’t see those who engage in the ways of close-combat rolling over and accepting death anytime soon. I have no doubt that the Eldritch send warriors and beasts with a focus on close-range savagery against you. Given their steady encroachment, I assume melee combat has not become completely obsolete and the lack of melee capability hurts your troops.”

“I suppose you have a point, time looper. The Eldritch has corrupted many beings possessed of melee lethality and brought them to bear against us. And I have also seen warriors from other territories and from outside our galaxy even. I shan’t doubt their mettle,” Madam Lawson said. “Yet, think not quality, but logistics. For every monstrous warrior like you, a thousand soldiers of the line infantry can be fielded, each one holding a gun. When a brutish juggernaut among the Eldritch ranks takes to the field we don’t face them with a mighty warrior of our own, but tactics and numbers. What does the power of Transcendent martial might matter when multiple mages and steam knights have them pinned down and they face lethal focus fire from our snipers and artillery? As for our own, some of our most powerful Transcendents have been integral in holding the line against the Eldritch. Even if most of them lack any ability in a close-up fight, we have powerful Transcendents as well.”

“No Gods?” Orodan asked. “I’m normally the first to decry reliance upon divine power rather than one’s own, but surely your soldiers could use a Blessing or two upon the battlefield? Or Gods battling within the divine dimension or popping into the material plane on your behalf. Especially when facing the Eldritch.”

“You must be new to facing the Eldritch, or have not seen an invasion from a plague world, time looper,” Madam Lawson said as the steam vehicles trudged onwards and the purple and gray haze in the sky drew closer. “Gods are a severe security risk against them.”

“How so?”

“When a God is corrupted by that foul plague… their divine influence and Blessings to their followers don’t shut off. That connection, the pathway, it can be used to corrupt entire groups of the Gods’ followers and faithful,” the woman explained.

That sounded quite bad, and grim. It also explained more clearly why the elven deities of Alastaia had taken Faraine’s imprisonment so seriously. A God falling to the Eldritch meant the rapid corruption of their strongest followers and Blessed individuals afterwards.

“A fell fate, to be going about your day and then succumb to the Eldritch because the God you hold trust in has fallen,” Zaessythra piped up, sparing some attention to the conversation from her deep reading of the book she held. “Has there been such an incident?”

“Thankfully, no.”

“Then, how do you know of these things? Despite the steady encroachment of the Eldritch, from what you tell me, this world and the planets of the Blackworth Collective seem to be well-prepared in general,” Orodan remarked.

“Having a time looper on our side is a great boon. His Majesty will not reveal their identity, but whoever they are, their ability to return in time and dispense critical information to us has spared us much loss,” Madam Lawson said. “Who can say how bad the situation would have otherwise gone?”

“Interesting…” Orodan muttered.

The conversation was a good way to pass the time as these frustratingly slow vehicles lumbered across the ground. It was also enlightening. Not simply for the things he’d learned, but for the simple fact that he closely observed the Transcendent gunslinger’s soul.

And whenever the notion of a time loop or the other time looper was brought up. The binding sheathe of world energy enveloping the woman’s mind and soul, trembled.

Whoever this other time looper was, they clearly didn’t want their identity revealed.

“This is why we were so concerned when you wished to throw yourself against the Eldritch. The true value of a time looper lies not in their personal combat prowess, but the value they can provide by leveraging the information they carry across time,” the woman said. “Despite my perfervid protests along our journey, his Majesty has seen fit to acquiesce to your request. He will meet you within the main war camp. Deep within the hot zone and far too risky for my liking; though I don’t get to question orders… much.”

“It’ll be fine. I don’t think my abilities against the Eldritch have been explicitly revealed. I’m rather well-suited to fighting them,” Orodan said, and the ride went on.

About thirty minutes and many miles later, a shimmering blue barrier was visible before them, and a scout called out.

“Passing into the hot zone!”

“Past this point, the protective spatiomancy perimeter ends and the hot zone begins. This is the frontier of our struggles against the Eldritch in the Collodon system. Unlike the other nearby worlds, Lonvoron’s invasion is spearheaded by an entrenched spatial rift leading directly to a plague world,” Madam Lawson said. “Be wary, we have fifty miles of terrain to cross before we reach the main war camp at the front lines, and although it’s rare, the Eldritch have been known to launch ambushes on convoys heading to reinforce the vanguard.”

Orodan nodded, and the military forces guarding the other side of the perimeter parted to allow them way.

The terrain they’d travelled through was serene, the forests green, the plains lush and rolling.

The other side of the barrier wasn’t the same.

“Plague growth on the road!” the leading scout called out.

Madam Lawson stepped off her light carrier and walked towards the road. A sickening purple-grey growth infested multiple parts of the road leading towards their destination. It was exactly what Orodan saw infesting the ground and sea in the aftermath of his very first encounter with the Eldritch Avatar on Alastaia, when it had won and held him under the Eldritch corruption for an entire year, attempting to break his will and infect him.

Interestingly enough, the infected parts of the terrain were the trees. The grass and saplings remained unaffected, and Orodan could even see small worms wriggling about on the ground and even over the Eldritch growths, although Vision Of Purity told him that they were still being slowly exposed.

Next to Madam Lawson was the very first Transcendent he’d seen after landing upon Lonvoron. The early-Transcendent woman with rapier wearing ornate military uniform.

“Baroness, clear the road so that we might make way for the King.”

“Yes Madam,” the Baroness acquiesced and then turned to a corp of officers, particularly to the oldest one among the fresh-faced group of them. “Captain, clear the way.”

“Yes ma’am! Combat engineers!” the captain ordered, and the compartment doors for a few of the light carriers opened up, producing a stream of figures. “Clear the road and deploy alkahest as we go! Deploy bridges so that we might make hasty our journey!”

The whole thing was very well-organized with a clear chain of command and good unit cohesion.

The engineers of this military unit were essentially laborers and specialized crafters. Akin to the siege engineers and construction crews that would travel with any organized military force or expedition on his home world. They carried small wheellock firearms upon their hips but they weren’t meant to serve as combatants, and it would be a grim situation if they were. The bigger feature of note was the heavy backpacks they carried, replete with all manner of tools, materials, mechanisms and explosive ordnance.

Orodan wasn’t sure if these men and women served in the military to get a headstart on their crafting career, or if they were established craftspeople who left their regular work behind to serve. Given the apparent youth of some and the age of others, perhaps the answer was both.

In swift fashion, the engineers set up expanding metallic bridges over the Eldritch growths covering the road while others deployed a powerful acid which caused the Eldritch to hiss and burn. All throughout, the soldiers were very cautious not to make direct contact with the foul substance and the heavy-duty protective armor they wore seemed apt for the task. Hells, the engineers seemed better armored than the line infantry carrying the rifles.

Behind the crew, with grim looks upon their faces, were sergeants wielding twelve-shot firearms. Orodan had been told that these were known as revolvers, and they were steam-powered just as the rest of these people’s equipment. Given how angry and unsociable these sergeants looked, Orodan had no doubt that they were meant to serve as executioners for any troops who became unfortunately corrupted.

The scene of industrious and professional labor was interrupted by movement.

Vision of Purity caught it before his eyes did. A four-armed creature erupted from the foul gunk as the burning acid made contact with it. Purple and gray veins of Eldritch corruption ran across its body and it let out a shrill hiss as it lunged for the nearest engineer.

Only for it to be met with a whizzing bullet which Orodan’s eyes were able to track.

The crack of the bullet was only heard after, and the Eldritch creature dropped dead.

“Keep working sods! Nice shot back there!” the captain of the unit called out.

“Like shootin’ wolves on the family farm sir!” the sniper in the back ranks called back as the troops whooped and hollered.

“Rather well-organized unit you have here,” Orodan said. “Such cohesion is rarely seen on my home world.”

“All regiments and divisions of the Collective’s army are trained to this standard,” Madam Lawson said. “The advantage afforded to us by our time looper is a great one. The army reforms leading to these tactics were developed by them.”

Which begged the question of just how long this other time looper’s loop had been going on for.

“How long ago were these reforms?” Orodan asked.

“They were… hmm… you know what? I don’t exactly know,” she said. “You might get a better answer from a book or a historian.”

Odd. Even more so that the world energy controlling her had most definitely constricted tight around her mind when Orodan asked that question.

The troops cleared out more of the Eldritch growths. The unit consisted of professionals and they knew how to do their jobs with near-supernatural cohesion and competency. Orodan had never seen such fluid and smooth teamwork in his life. Snipers and talented rifle wielders among the line infantry periodically picked off any Eldritch-infected flying fauna which were essentially spies for the enemy. At the same time, in the distance an occasional large Eldritch animal, either a bear, deer or wolf, would attempt to charge towards the formation. These random attacking beasts were put down by the sharpshooters, and if they got too close, a brief clash with the steam knights left them splattered on the ground with no concern as the metallic steam-powered golems were non-living.

Things were going well and their journey proceeded smoothly with Orodan not even needing to involve himself. Right until they encountered a much larger growth.

“A plague nest on the road? The scouts have been derelict in their duties…” Madam Lawson muttered. “Little wonder the road’s looking so overrun. The growths in the area stem from this nest.”

Orders were passed down and the combat engineers got to work deploying their acid as steam knights stood guard in front of them, prepared to bear the brunt of any infected things which spewed forth.

One thing led to another, acid was deployed, a giant leopard the size of a house at the Grandmaster-level came forth, and even as it was killed by a steam knight, the residual Eldritch splatter from its slaying landed upon a combat engineer who promptly began screaming.

The sergeant nearest to the poor screaming woman had his revolver pointed at her head when Orodan suddenly appeared in the man’s line of fire.

“Step away! She’s beyond our ability to help! Her purification is a mercy!” the sergeant yelled.

“Her execution you mean,” Orodan countered. He understood why they were doing so, but he could offer a better solution.

A broom was drawn from a spatial ring, and his right hand bore the only tool he would need. A single sweep of the broom across the infected woman’s face…

“Time looper! The Eldritch cannot be… it cannot be… what?”

…and the woman was cleansed.

“Foul Eldritch. So much of it around these parts. This place is overdue for a good cleaning,” Orodan said.

“It’s different from the kind which corrupts the Celestial Emperor, is it not?” Zaessythra asked as she got close and took a sniff of the residue upon the ground. “Less resilient, yet more infectious and virulent. I feel the slightest of whispers upon my mind by just being too near.”

“I wouldn’t recommend getting that close, even some very strong-willed people I knew succumbed to its insidious truth,” Orodan said.

“The shard did far worse. I don’t have Eldritch Resistance, but I think I can survive contact with a brief amount,” she replied.

The combat engineer had stopped screaming a few moments ago, and now the woman could only stare at Orodan with wide eyes even as her hands trembled.

“How?” she asked. “Everyone besides the cursed fall when they touch it… how?”

“Well,” Orodan said and hefted his broom, shaking it for emphasis. “Sometimes the filth simply needs a good sweep.”

“That is… a Celestial skill, isn’t it?” Madam Lawson asked and Orodan nodded. “How improbable… we have to go, they’ve doubtlessly taken notice and-”

Orodan felt the space in the middle of the unit tremble and the unit captain yelled.

“Lesser rift! To arms!”

Space tore apart as a rift opened, and a veritable flood of Eldritch spewed forth.

Orodan acted first as the entirety of his raw power was thrown into an overpowered Time Compression, hastening himself.

[Time Compression 50 → Time Compression 51]

Almost immediately, from the other side of the lesser rift, he felt an enemy chronomancer of decent power and skill attempt to jump onto his local time field and even the odds.

Unfortunately for them, Orodan had only gotten better at Time Mastery and Time Compression after his stealing of the shard from Narictus. Compared to that half-dragon vampire he’d wrestled with over the control of time, this enemy chronomancer was decent but noticeably inferior.

With some struggle, he contested their attempts at hijacking control of the Time Compression away from him. After denying enough attempts, the hostile chronomancer either realized it was futile or had run out of energy.

[Time Mastery 81 → Time Mastery 82]

Another skill level. One more step forward in his burgeoning prowess over time.

Immediately, Orodan refused to leave the advantage unexploited. The speed difference between him and the Eldritch detritus coming out of the lesser rift was now massive, to him it appeared as though frozen.

With broom in hand, he channelled Domain of Perfect Cleaning and got to work.

The first sweep utterly annihilated the disgusting waves of Eldritch coming for him. It was practically removed from existence altogether.

The second motion with his broom began targetting whatever foul bits of Eldritch were coming through yet were still on the other side of the lesser rift.

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And before making any third sweep, he decided to commit and stepped inside.

If the Eldritch thought they were the only ones allowed to invade…

…then they hadn’t met him.

It was a spatial tunnel. A form of spatial travel between two points which involved travelling through a tunnel rather than a direct connection between two points. The downside was increased travel time, the upside was an easier ability to defend against whatever came from the other side as it gave them some extra time and distance to react and close the tunnel if they felt him too great a threat.

Smart of the Eldritch. A far cry from the rather stupid sort he’d dealt with on Alastaia.

Yet, unfortunate for them, Orodan also had a measure of skill in spatiomancy.

[Space Mastery 76 → Space Mastery 77]

His soul energy shot outwards and grasped for control over the lesser rift the Eldritch had created. There was a level of resistance, however it wasn’t much, and Orodan easily took control.

Then, he took a step, and then another. Beginning his travel down the spatial tunnel and towards the plague world.

Each step came with an associated sweep of his broom. Like a herald of impending purification, Orodan Wainwright marched forwards.

A grotesque and large six-armed Eldritch warrior stepped forth, its eyes white and pupil-less. It wore a corrupted amulet around its neck, glowing with incredible power and looking to be under heavy strain as it counteracted his Time Compression. This foe was strong, definitely above level 140, and it looked about ready to charge him.

The glorious clash of melee seemed inevitable if not for it suddenly stopping. It stiffened as Domain Of Perfect Cleaning shot out and targetted the very Eldritch within it.

Yes, Orodan would’ve enjoyed a good brawl, and without a doubt this mighty Transcendent would’ve likely flattened him many times over. Yet, to pit him against the Eldritch was a grave mismatch in their disfavor.

The Eldritch enjoyed corrupting the terrain and living beings into fighting for them.

Orodan felt they were due for a taste of their own methods.

“What… where am I…? You! Who are you?! I was fighting the Eldritch on my home world and then… and then…” the six-armed troll-like warrior seemed to struggle.

In truth, the only reason it had forgotten and was in a confused state was because Orodan’s Celestial skill had not only cleansed the Eldritch but also its shattered psyche from millennia of corrupt servitude.

He had locked the horrid memories of suffering and the ‘truth’ of the Eldritch away for later healing and addressing by a mind specialist.

“You are free of their foul taint, safety is that way,” Orodan declared and laid a gentle hand upon the warrior’s shoulder and ushered him to the other side of the spatial tunnel.

“I… I see! You rescued me! But what of you, warrior, I cannot in good conscience allow you to damn yourself.”

“I have more of the Eldritch to cleanse, go on, I can’t focus when I have someone else to look after,” Orodan said.

The spatial tunnel suddenly trembled, and an oppressive aura of raw outrage flooded the area.

“Inconceivable! A most detestable skill which defies truth! Return our champion immediately!”

“No.”

In fact, he’d bandied words enough with the three Gods which controlled the Eldritch Avatar of his world. He wasn’t keen on hearing the jabber of another one.

Domain of Perfect Cleaning shot out at full power as Orodan aggressively moved forward, determined to cleanse this foe.

“You shall not blind me to the truth! You cannot silence reality! That which we all draw from!” a disjointed voice cried out.

“I can and will. You Eldritch scum are the cause for most of the problems I face,” Orodan shot back. “Now face me and be cleansed.”

His soul roiled with fury, all the generated soul energy was poured into Domain of Perfect Cleaning and he positively erupted with incandescent light as the Celestial skill was directed solely against whatever lay on the other side of the portal.

It was interesting to note that whichever Eldritch monstrosity the voice came from was capable of matching or hopping onto Orodan’s Time Compression. They weren’t slowed, and the resistance they provided was quite great too. Matter of fact, the sheer amount of raw power they possessed was also rather staggering. It wasn’t beyond him, but it was to the point that Orodan had to begin drawing upon the upper range of his soul energy generation to begin matching and then exceeding it.

“Anomaly… an impossibility… how can a living being match our raw capacity…”

“I admit, the sheer amount of Eldritch power at your disposal is impressive, but I’ve outmatched an entire world core,” he declared. “Come, Eldritch beast, show yourself so that I might cleanse you face to face!”

Orodan continued taking steps forward while his Celestial skill was activated at full power. Each sweep extended beyond just the reach of his broom, with the effects going out for miles beyond the other side of the spatial tunnel he was in.

He moved closer and closer to setting foot upon the plague world itself, and the shrieks and hisses of the Eldritch continued getting louder and louder as he purified it all. Occasionally a powerful champion infected by the Eldritch would come through and attempt to stop him, only for them to also be purified and sent out the other side to safety.

After the third one, the unseen Eldritch leader must’ve realized that gifting Orodan potential allies for free was a bad idea and they stopped coming.

Just who was this mighty foe he fought? They hadn’t shown their face, yet Orodan had to admit their energy capacity was impressive!

The answer came as he was on the precipice of crossing over to the other side of the spatial tunnel. As he approached the mouth of the tunnel, he finally saw who it was that he’d been fighting all this time.

Or rather, what.

It was quite gigantic. Many times larger than the one he held dominion over on Alastaia and the shattered one within the moon. System glyphs covered every inch of its surface, yet these glyphs no longer pulsed or hummed with world energy. Rather, its surface was covered in disgusting purple and gray growths. It pulsed with a very faint yet recognizable source of energy that Orodan hadn’t really encountered before. The energy source was raw, unfiltered; and the thing looked as though it really wasn’t meant to use it.

He’d only ever felt this energy two times in the past. During the ascendancy trial of that elven God on Alastaia and…

…in the letter he’d acquired from the other time looper.

This, Orodan was beginning to puzzle out. Was the very power source of what all living beings in the universe relied upon. This was System energy.

And using it directly seemed to turn things Eldritch.

The gigantic world core before him was certainly corrupted enough. The heart of the plague world invading Lonvoron.

“This only creates more questions… just what is underlying the System?” Orodan asked, both of himself and the Eldritch world core before him.

“The blind finally see… where do you think it all comes from? Cease your attempts to deny reality. Embrace the caring, the compassion, there is so much love and care to be found when you rid the intermediary and harness the source directly,” it spoke.

[Eldritch Resistance 61 → Eldritch Resistance 65]

Whispers came abundantly to Orodan’s ears. In the past, he hadn’t truly known of this ‘truth’ that the Eldritch had spoken of. Yet now, now he had an inkling of just what the Eldritch really was. He knew that world cores faced a maddening effect as they drew upon world energy over the long years of their existence.

But to now learn that cutting out the intermediary allowed world cores to directly channel System energy? And that this direct source of energy that he’d seen on only two occasions prior was the cause of the Eldritch? The increased knowledge somehow made the maddening whispers of the Eldritch become louder in his ears.

It was hazardous knowledge. The closer one stumbled to the truth of it all, the more vulnerable they became to the Eldritch.

It explained why Eldritch corrupted landscapes had elder trees, animals and other intelligent sources of life become infected first. Those that could comprehend the knowledge would be all the more susceptible to it. Simply knowing the truth didn’t corrupt someone, but it did make them more susceptible to corruption when the Eldritch did come around.

Orodan grimaced. With a steeling of his willpower, he elected to throw the truth out of his head and ignore it.

So what that the System itself might be responsible for the Eldritch? What did it matter that there might be something empowering the System which was antithetical to sapient life?

The very first time he’d encountered the Eldritch, the Avatar had put him under for an entire year while attempting to preach the truth to him. Yet, Orodan was a stubborn bull with a head of stone.

His stupidity, his hard-headed nature, his unwillingness to listen and change his mind…

…these were excellent qualities when it came to resisting the Eldritch!

How could one spread the truth to his mind when he would simply double down, plug his ears and insist on not listening like a donkey?

Orodan Wainwright cared not what the truth was. For he was stubborn.

“I see… so directly drawing upon the power of the System has led to this…” Orodan muttered. “No matter. I see it clearly now, what I must do.”

“You will accept the truth? Come, child… embrace the warm touch of that which empowers all.”

“No. I see that I must clean every single world core of the Eldritch, starting with you,” Orodan declared.

For a moment, there was silence.

And the next, calamity was unleashed.

Tsunamis of Eldritch power the size of continents smashed into him dozens of times a second in an attempt to force him back through the spatial tunnel. Yet, he’d grown stronger over the course of his struggles, and bringing the Eldritch to bear against him was a poor decision.

He stood strong and pushed against the waves while simultaneously cleansing them into oblivion; and took the first step out onto the plague world, his entry point, in front of its infected world core.

“Leave this hallowed ground! Sacreligious fool!” the world core roared. “Slay him at all costs!”

Dimensions shuddered as Eldritch-infected Gods entered the material plane, alongside infected Transcendents they immediately rushed to attack him. Under the power of the infected world core, these Transcendents and Gods were brought onto Orodan’s Time Compression. His speed advantage was now gone.

Yet, it was a foregone conclusion.

They were Eldritch, he had Eldritch Resistance.

They were dirty, he had a Celestial skill capable of cleansing their very beings.

They were Eldritch, and he detested them.

Two infected Transcendents, both in the mid 130s fired calamitious attacks towards him. One a harpoon of tremendous piercing power. The other, a throwing axe whirling about entrancingly in mid-air.

The two were immediately purified, yet their attacks continued onwards corrupted by the taint.

Which was fine as Orodan simply took both upon his shield and smashed them aside followed by a subsequent sweep.

In his earlier days he might’ve cleansed the attacks and received two untained strikes from powerful Transcendents and lost some momentum as a result. But, Orodan’s battles against the Eldritch had taught him how to leverage his advantages, and Eldritch Resistance was one of them. Any attacks which had an Eldritch taint to them were of drastically reduced effectiveness against him. It was how he’d survived both the Eldritch Avatar and Jian Huangdi.

A God, definitely above level 140 given the dangerous feeling Orodan got, charged right at him. It was a slime with thousands of tentacles erupting from its amorphous form. He normally thought slimes were rather cute creatures, yet the familiar corruption of purple and grey had infected this one and stripped away its natural beauty.

His Domain shot out and cleansed it too.

In front of him, the infected core of the plague world began to get desperate. It had felt Orodan’s power initially and likely realized that a battle of attrition against him was a dangerous bet to take. To that end it was pulling out all the stops and sending its mightiest minions against him in a bid to get him killed.

To that end, it sent a peak-Transcendent. A being on the same level as Jian Huangdi although perhaps not a Celestial skill bearer.

He wasn’t delusional. He could perhaps beat Jian Huangdi through cleansing the former Celestial Emperor of the Eldritch in a surprise maneuver. But in a straight battle when the opponent was ready? Orodan’s odds against a peak-Transcendent weren’t good. Not yet.

He was prepared to receive its attack when a familiar six-armed troll and a thousand tentacled slime stood in front of him.

“Hero! Go onward! You must press on and purify the core of the plague world!” the troll bellowed.

“You… I thought I told you to seek safety!” Orodan yelled.

“Little time for admonishment, warm-blooded one. We shall cover your approach.” the slime said.

Orodan internally grumbled a bit at the fight he’d missed out on, but was appreciative. Who knew that these two were so eager to wreak vengeance against the Eldritch upon being liberated?

He pressed on and laid both hands upon the infected world core, and with utmost focus…

…unleashed the entirety of his soul energy against it in a war of cleansing.

Immediately, a shriek which could kill lesser beings tore free, and the very plague world trembled dangerously.

“Abate your abominable actions!”

Yet, Orodan cared not for its protests. All Eldritch would be annihilated.

He was already capable of outputting more power than a large world core. And that was with a skill he didn’t have nearly as much talent in as his Celestial one. Pouring copious amounts of power into the Domain of Perfect Cleaning was far easier than for any other skill.

Orodan was a fifth of the way into cleansing the world core entirely when interference struck. Frankly, it would’ve been stupid if there were no safeguards in place to stop him.

Two more spatial rifts opened up, and massive tides of Eldritch spewed forth from them. On the other end of them Orodan felt two more gigantic Eldritch presences, likely other infected cores from plague worlds.

“Do not kill it, force it back through the rift to its world,” one of the infected cores commanded, and a surge of Eldritch forces came through both these new rifts. “Interesting whispers have reached our ears as to this one’s true nature. It is the time looper. He has been informed.”

The numbers against him were more than a bit unfair. Dozens of corrupted Transcendents flooded in. The six-armed troll was slaughtered, as was the slime, and Orodan was forced back by the Eldritch practically bullying him backwards through raw physical numbers and might.

His wrath at the deaths of his unexpected allies was great, yet he could do little as the Eldritch weren’t interested in killing him, but forcing him back to where he came from.

His Domain left the world core he was trying to cleanse and now began focusing on the horde.

Dozens of Eldritch were purified, and he had a feral grim upon his face at the realization that these fools would run out of bodies to throw at him if they tried wave tactics.

Yet, the horde was just a distraction.

A gigantic beam of Eldritch force erupted from the world core he’d been cleansing, and two similarly impactful beams erupted from the new spatial rifts, and Orodan was shot backwards into the spatial rift he’d hijacked and come in through.

He practically flew down the spatial tunnel, the scenery passing by his eyes rapidly.

And before he knew it, he smashed into a field of green grass, causing a destructive earthquake from the impact.

He attempted to get up and immediately charge the rift once more, only for him to have his spatiomantic control over the rift contested by not one, but three infected world cores. Orodan’s ability to generate power was impressive, but to face the power of multiple worlds at once was a tall order. If it was his Celestial skill, it wouldn’t have been an issue. But as it stood, he needed to pour far more soul energy into his space mastery to produce results with it since it was a lower level skill. And against three entire plague worlds he’d have to kill himself to generate the power necessary to win.

Regardless, he strained and struggled to the bitter end until they ripped the control of the rift from his grasp, and it came with gains.

[Space Mastery 77 → Space Mastery 80]

“Orodan!” Zaessythra yelled and had an irritated look on her face. “I know you have a death wish you freely indulge in, but at least warn me before you launch a counter-invasion of a plague world next time. How many deaths did it take?”

“None. I didn’t die against them,” Orodan said. “Although the plague world was forced to call upon two more infected world cores for assistance, and I think they know I’m a time looper now.”

“And I must say, it’s quite good to make your acquaintance,” a voice called out.

The very definition of kingly. A face that was youthful yet regal, and a voice that was doubtlessly the work of a social skill. The man wore a dapper hat, on top of which a crown was situated. And the jewelry and raiments worn were likely more expensive than the combined wealth of cities.

“I don’t believe we’ve met yet,” Orodan said. “Orodan Wainwright. I’m in a time loop.”

“Indeed Ser Wainwright, I’ve heard as such,” the man replied with a smile. “As for me, I’m Alstatyn Von Flemethy, King of the Blackworth Collective. Given the state of these formerly Eldritch-infected people here, I’m inclined to believe the interesting news Madam Lawson has delivered to me. What has brought you to our galaxy, and specifically to the worlds of the Blackworth Collective?”

“I’m looking for the other time looper.”

#

“Why do they call you Madam?”

“Why do they call you time looper?”

“Because I’m a time looper?” Orodan posed.

“And has it occurred to you that they might refer to me as such because I’m a lady?” Madam Lawson posed in return.

Orodan shook his head.

“Well, of course that’s self-evident. What I mean is, they call your underling the Baroness ma’am, yet even the King calls you Madam,” Orodan said. “Why?”

“Your straightforward manner of questioning might chafe some, but I find it quite entertaining,” she said and then turned to look out the opening to the large war tent they were in. “I suppose it’s a nod to the name I’m famed for. Back in the day, I used to be a renowned pirate. Many star systems quaked in fear at the sight of old Madam Lawson and her merry crew coming by to plunder their riches. The treasures and rare artefacts we’d plunder… those were the times. Of course, the Collective got its act together under his Majesty and all us outlaws and ruffians were brought to heel with the offer of servitude and using our skills in service of the Collectivein exchange for wealth and security. Not a bad deal.”

“How long ago were you a pirate?”

“Recent. Not been more than a few decades since,” she answered.

“And this was before the time of the Collective and its reforms?” Orodan asked.

“That… I honestly don’t know. Why’re you asking such trivial questions? A historian or a book can help you better with exact dates,” she said, a flash of irritation upon her face.

Yet, Orodan hadn’t missed the constriction of the world energy around her mind and soul.

It wasn’t outright confirmed yet, but it seemed likely that these reforms took place relatively recently. Within the last few decades. And whoever was in charge of the mind control had done a sloppy job. Mistakes were natural when it came to mind control on such a massive scale. Although calling this true mind control would be inaccurate as these people seemingly had free will, yet the layer of world energy only triggered when certain conditions were met. Likely related to this other time looper’s anonymity.

It wouldn’t surprise him if a look at a library or a chat with a historian revealed some carefully doctored books and fabricated accounts meant to throw off the trail. This other time looper seemed rather cautious.

Still, that could come after. First, was the matter of the Eldritch.

The purple and gray on the horizon had abated a decent amount, even if the spatial rift looked to be heavily defended. The front lines of the Blackworth Collective’s army had managed to make a decent dent and push the Eldritch back for once

“They haven’t made any attacks since?” Orodan asked, changing the topic.

“No, the infected have been fiercely defending ground, yet for the first time… not advancing. They even attempted to close the rift, but our space mages have been working to prevent that,” Madam Lawson said. “Your display might’ve cornered them into playing a bit more cautiously. Never thought I’d see the day we recruit from the infected by purifying them… you Celestial skill bearers sure are a different sort.”

“It’s just a bit of sweeping,” Orodan dismissed.

“If you call that a bit of sweeping, then I’m an infant with a toy crown on his head,” the King said as he strode into the tent. “Apologies for keeping you waiting, Ser Wainwright. I understand you wish to aid us in our battles against the Eldritch? Your aid in purifiying their wicked filth and sending them onto the defensive has already done wonders.”

“I didn’t even successfully purify the core of that plague world. How big a difference could I have made?” Orodan asked.

“Quite the difference, in fact. The plague world you set foot upon and assaulted is the central point from whence the Eldritch are invading the Collodon System,” the King explained. “During your battle, over 30% of their leading champions on our front lines pulled back immediately, likely in response to your threat. Without critical enemy leadership, our forces made titanic gains and inflicted severe casualties upon them. And it’s not just that, but the other two nearest systems experienced similar retreats which were capitalized upon. All in all, you’ve undone a decade of their progress.”

He didn’t bother asking how long the Eldritch had been invading for. He had no doubt that even the King would find some excuse for not giving an answer or would refer him to a book. It was apparent by now that this other time looper was doing everything they could to muddy the waters.

“Then, why not launch an assault of the rift and purify this plague world once and for all?” Orodan asked.

“Certainly, that is our intention. And preparations are being made for the re-deployment of troops from newly liberated fronts to the central rift,” the King said. “With your aid, time looper, we can beat back the Eldritch threat which has beset our Blackworth Collective. And then, we shall be free to send reinforcements against your foes in your home galaxy.”

“And yet, not free to tell me about this other time looper,” Orodan remarked.

He and the King had spoken extensively for a while. He’d learned much about Lonvoron, the Blackworth Collective and the Vystaxium Galaxy. And yet, the man refused to breathe a word about the other time looper aside from the assurance that they existed.

On the bright side, he had the assurance of reinforcements from these people if he helped quell their Eldritch issue. Something the King had been meaning to ask him for help with anyways. Furthermore, they knew the location of the Conclave’s branch in the Vystaxium Galaxy and were happy to aid Orodan and Zaessythra in liaisoning with them for a return journey to Xian.

“I’m not at liberty to speak of them, my friend. Their identity has been carefully hidden, and even within my mind the knowledge is under hundreds of safeguards,” the King answered. “If I were to try and tell you, I would face death in not just body, but mind and soul.”

In fact, Orodan could believe that much. For unlike the other people he’d seen, King Alstatyn’s mind and soul had no world energy constrictions upon it… but nearly a thousand spells and safeguards. Many of which looked unlike any he’d ever seen. The only person capable of such intricate and delicate spellcraft should’ve been the other time looper. And it implied that the King was a somewhat important man to the other time looper.

And similar to the letter, there was that brief and unmistakeable tinge of raw System energy present. Yet it didn’t seem to be going out of control and causing the rampant madness and Eldritch corruption of the King like it did the plague worlds. How one could directly interact with it if not a world core or System being, Orodan didn’t know.

What he did know though, was that pondering wouldn’t help. It was time to finish the Eldritch off.

“Fair enough. When will the assault begin?”

“In an hour, Ser Wainwright. Our soldiers and materiel are assembling and will soon be ready,” the King said. “Why not do a tour among the troops? Asking men and women to march into a plague world is a daunting task. The sight of the Eldritch purifier himself might raise their spirits and improve morale!”

The troops of the Blackworth Collective upon Lonvoron had been touting him as a hero. It had only been a day since his arrival, but these soldiers were desperate for something to cling onto. From what he’d seen and heard, the life expectancy of the average line infantry rifleman was rather abysmal. The unit he travelled with thus far had been a specialized one consisting of veterans. The line infantry gun-fighters there had been Master-level, the fire and water mages apprenticed to the steam mages had also been Masters and Grandmasters respectively. And they’d had a Transcendent leading them in the fray.

In contrast, the standard unit was lucky to have a Grandmaster, and life expectancy was low.

Orodan walked out of the tent and among the first ranks of line infantry.

“It’s the purifier!”

“Ser! It’s an honor to stand beside you!”

“Thank you for coming from the stars to aid us!”

Orodan went around shaking hands and greeting the soldiers around him when a sergeant approached.

“Ser, it’s an honor. If you dont mind me asking, how do you muster the stomach to use those things against the purple bastards?” the woman asked. Her voice was gruff and she had more than a few scars on her face. Yet her grip upon the rifle slung about her shoulders was doughty. The look of a dependable soldier ready to enter battle. Orodan could respect that.

“Let me ask you a question in turn. How do you muster the guts to bring that rifle to aim and hold steady when the masses of Eldritch are charging your line down?” Orodan asked. “How do you steel your resolve when the order to ready bayonets and meet their charge is given?”

“Why ser… I simply pray to our Gods and accept my possible death in the service of my people,” the sergeant answered.

“Then you’ve answered your own question. Courage comes not from hearing a speech from some fool swinging a sword and shield,” Orodan said, and then tapped the left side of her chest. “The resolve of a warrior comes from within. I will not lie, many of you do not have it and no number of rousing speeches will help find it once the brutality of battle begins. You, however, already have that spirit. Sword or rifle, the weapon does not make a warrior, the wielder does.”

Some of the troops looked disheartened. Yet, many of them who were quieter and likely wouldn’t have been influenced by some nonsensical prattle looked emboldened.

Good.

Better to embolden ten warriors of quality than pander to a hundred weaklings with no spine.

He continued onward, running into a crew of steam knights and light carriers being worked on by artificers and combat engineers.

“No… no! Put that glyph on the pauldron and it’ll blow the armor plate right off when anything hits it! How did you pass the academy!?” a lead engineer angrily screamed.

“Sergeant, the design is by intention sir! I think we could improve the armor of the steam knight’s and carriers by having plates explode outward with force when an attack of sufficient power hits,” the young man said. “These are expensive machines and having them be put out of commission entirely when caught by a Grandmaster-level attack is inefficient.”

“This is not the time to be innovating and attempting new tactics,” the sergeant berated. “And what will you do when a horde of weaker beasts mobs it and the enchantment triggers?”

“I’m still working on it sir…”

“As I said, not the time to inno-”

“Defense, achieved through offense. I concur,” Orodan said as he examined the enchantment closely with Vision of Purity. He wasn’t as good an enchanter as this young boy, but he could perhaps provide a fine eye where this boy hadn’t looked. “The incoming warhammer which is simply taken directly on the shield will break the shoulder… yet when the shield is angled and swung outwards to meet the strike… the attack is prevented. In line with this philosophy, one can also apply this to armor. In fact… the only thing wrong with your design is the purity.”

“Ser purifier? It’s an honor to be in your presence ser… but the purity?” the boy asked.

“You’re an excellent enchanter, this is some fine work, yet the materials you’re working with are a bit sub-par and consequently the smaller patterns in the enchantment that you’re attempting don’t have mana flowing through them due to impurities in the material,” Orodan explained, and a broom came into his hands. “Let me give it a little clean.”

One sweep and an embarrassed sergeant and happy engineer later, Orodan was on his way to the very front.

He walked past a steam mage who was arguing with his apprenticed water mage.

The mages functioned as five-man squads. With two fire and two water mages supporting a steam mage who the four were apprenticed to. Their nominal title of water or fire mage didn’t mean that was what they were limited to. It simply denoted their role in the squad and what they were best at. The hope was for every fire or water mage to eventually move up to being a steam mage themselves. Of course, this required knowledge of both fire and water.

Naturally, talent made a difference, and it wasn’t unheard of for a fire or water mage to be superior in steam magic than the squad’s leading steam mage who they were apprenticed to.

Which was where the argument stemmed from, as the apprenticed water mage believed himself to be the superior steam magician and wished to take the leading position in the squad. The steam mage was frustrated with his rebellious apprentice even if he admitted that the boy had a bright future and would likely surpass him.

Orodan simply reminded the boy that he was a member of the military and had orders to follow and a role to play. Perhaps hearing it from the famed ‘Eldritch purifier’ himself had the boy a bit intimidated, but it worked and he shut his mouth.

Finally, he walked a half mile to the very front where Zaessythra was speaking to the scout who was furthest out.

“-we’ll take potshots at them from long ranges and they won’t even come out anymore ma’am. Previously you’d hit one and a swarm would follow, not since the purifier went in,” the scout wielding an oversized rifle said. “It’s mad to think I can actually see the rift from where we’re standing. Nobody I knew had ever seen the rift… and here I am looking right at it.”

“Their sudden lack of aggression implies finer control by the plague world core than I would’ve thought,” Zaessythra said. “Good of you to join us Orodan, I was surveying the rift but my detection skill isn’t able to make out much on the other side with all the interference the Eldritch is causing.”

“Still the same presence I encountered earlier,” Orodan said, referring to the world core he’d gotten a fifth of the way into purifying. “Oddly subdued though. Perhaps awaiting the arrival of whoever they called?”

“The King seems to think it’s an Eldritch World Ruler. I don’t necessarily agree,” she said. “If you say that you encountered two peak-Transcendent Eldritch defending that world core, then what else would they call as assistance?”

“I’m not sure, but it can’t be any worse than whatever we’ve got waiting for us back home in our galaxy,” he replied.

He then looked closely at the spatial rift.

It was heavily defended of course. Ranks upon ranks of armored Eldritch warriors wielding shields and a few with throwing weaponry. This was what an end stage plague world was capable of producing. A heavily armed force which was organized and lethal. With one goal, the infection of all sapient life with the Eldritch ‘truth’.

Now, however, this vile force had pulled back upon experiencing the Celestial skill of Orodan Wainwright and his ability to cleanse the Eldritch. Still, as he looked closer at it, he could see the core of the plague world remaining still, as though waiting for something.

The blue barrier surrounding the hot zone of the conflict suddenly shimmered, then began crackling.

“Spatiomantic fluctuations inbound!” a loud magically amplified voice called out.

Orodan felt it himself. Space trembled and the preamble to two other large spatial rifts began showing. One would open within the main war camp itself, and the other, right on the perimeter of the barrier maintained by the Collective’s spatiomancers.

[Dimensionalism 23 → Dimensionalism 25]

Orodan felt the dimensional layers fluctuate, and for the briefest of moments, he would swear he saw the quickest flicker of a figure, and a… book in their hands?

In any case, he had bigger concerns. Namely the fact that the Eldritch were attempting to outflank the military forces of the Collective, and that Lonvoron was under attack by three plague worlds at once.

He couldn’t directly contest the spatiomantic ability and raw power of three plague worlds when they were working together. Yes, Orodan was a monster of energy generation, but in the short term they would simply overpower him. Even if he would eventually win in the long term, the planet would be irrevocably damaged too. In the previous clash he had against them, they’d ripped control of the spatial rift from him and any attempts to overpower their energy generation would’ve led to him producing soul energy high enough to kill himself.

Of course, it was a different matter when they were separately trying to establish their own rifts. When not working in concert, the power of the three plague worlds was dramatically weaker.

And Orodan felt he could at the very least prevent the outflanking of the Collective’s forces.

His eyes began blazing white, and soul energy practically exploded off of him as Orodan channelled Eternal Soul Reactor to its limits.

“I’ll get the troops to a safe distance,” Zaessythra said as she grabbed the nearby scout and began aiding in pulling the soldiers back.

With focus, he directed his power into three separate streams, focused on the existing spatial rift, and the two new ones which sought to make landing within the hot zone and invade Lonvoron.

His cells were beginning to face destruction, and Orodan was down to perhaps a handful by the time he was nearing completion.

And yet, with a titanic effort and the performance of a feat beyond a peak-Transcendent…

[Space Mastery 80 → Space Mastery 84]

…Orodan Wainwright combined the three separate spatial rifts into one, their location, where the original spatial rift leading to the first plague world was.

This way, his enemies would be forced to launch their assault from a singular point the allied army would be prepared for.

Orodan reformed, and the forces of the Blackworth Collective showed their worth as they moved to meet the horrid tides of three plague worlds spilling forth from a singular spatial rift.

The artillery caused explosive booms which made the earth tremble for hundreds of miles. Entire bunched masses of low-level Eldritch were vaporized on the spot, and these artillery units were strategic in their targeting. The light carriers moved up front and then deployed hundreds of line infantry troops armed with repeating rifles who immediately got into formation behind pre-prepared defensive positions. These troops of the line infantry were vicious with their fire, especially when directed by their sergeants and captains. Entire ranks of Eldritch began falling as they attempted to advance, and on a numerical basis, the line infantry seemed a close match for the sheer quantity of the Eldritch. This was the logistical advantage of a well-developed firearm. The ability to train even an unmotivated peasant into a rifleman was a huge advantage and helped provide mass numbers of troops for the line infantry. One of the things which made a plague world invasion deadly was the massive number of weaker infected life forms that swarmed defenders. Having mass numbers of line infantry to even the numerical odds and provide firepower was an excellent counter.

The line infantry couldn’t handle all threats though. And if a particularly vicious infected showed up that was beyond their capabilities and threatened to reach the line, then the steam knights stepped forward and occupied it. The lumbering golems weren’t skilled fighters, nor were they overly nimble. But they were durable, and their armor was thick. And when it wasn’t…

…he saw a few take the assaults of Grandmaster-level Eldritch and have their impacted armor plate explode outwards with force. This got rid of the armor plate and left the steam knight more vulnerable moving forward, but it was a better outcome than having it taken out of the fight entirely. Those things were giant weapons platforms, and the longer they remained in the fight, the more damage they could deal.

Near the artillery and aiding the entire army, were the squads of steam mages. Each five-man squad worked in harmony to support the steam mage. The steam mages empowered the artillery, steam knights and rifles of the line infantry to hit harder and perform better. Without these integral mages, the effectiveness of the Blackworth military and its offensive prowess would otherwise be lesser.

And finally, the Transcendent commanders oftentime stepped forward to meet any Eldritch Gods or Transcendents which broke from the masses and threatened the soldiers. These Transcendents of the Collective wielded firearms and an accompanying melee side arm with great skill and excellent synergy, although Orodan observed that aside from a rare few, most of them were rather averse to engaging in protracted bouts of melee combat against the Eldritch.

Which was smart, not only for the risk of infection, but because all these Transcendents needed to do was hold the line and tie the enemy down. Chiefly so that the snipers and sharpshooters in the back ranks could inflict some real damage. There were four Transcendent-level snipers in the back of the Blackworth lines, and these men and women were absolutely lethal against any Eldritch that didn’t have self-healing capabilities. Even the strongest of defenses and the sturdiest of shells were penetrated and the Eldritch slain in a shot each.

Of course, an army which had no dedicated front line combatants would struggle as the battle went on. Especially when the Eldritch sent practically endless numbers of weaker lifeforms and hordes through the spatial rifts. It was as though the population of an entire world was coming through in a maddened frenzy, all in a bid to reach Blackworth battle lines and break through. Or worse… cause an outbreak.

This was what the forces of the Blackworth Collective were under imminent threat of, with a three self-healing Transcendent infected about to make contact with a battle line.

Which was when Orodan decided to act.

“Squad twenty-seven, target that flying… what?”

“Its infection just vanished!”

“It’s the purifier! The purifier has cleansed it!”

Domain of Perfect Cleaning got to work as Orodan had a feral smile upon his face.

Stupid Eldritch.

Instead of learning from their first encounter against him, they’d doubled down and decided three plague worlds’ worth of hordes would be enough. Unfortunately for them, sending endless swarms of infected against Orodan Wainwright was a dumb idea.

He would never lose a battle of attrition.

Each and every living thing and inanimate object under control of the Eldritch was merely a target for Orodan to clean.

His Celestial skill immediately shot out and cleansed tens of thousands in one swoop.

“Slay that vile Celestial skill bearer! He defies the truth!” the peak-Transcendent Eldritch commander roared as purple and gray spittle flew out of its mouth. It was the same one which had assailed him earlier when he’d tried purifying the plague world the first time around.

Within moments, it too was cleansed.

“It is the time looper,” one of the Eldritch-infected enemy Gods gutturally declared. “The voice of the earth has warned us of him.”

Attempts at swarming him proved useless. What did he care about hordes? Capture attempts by Eldritch-infected Gods and Transcendents proved less effective than they’d have liked given his high Eldritch Resistance. And attempts by the peak-Transcendent Eldritch leader to engage him were stifled by the forces of the Blackworth Collective that were supporting him and had now gained a massive morale boost.

“Protect the purifier!”

“For Lonvoron! For the Collective! For our people!”

Thousands more were cleansed and the tide of the battle dramatically shifted until the Eldritch decided to revise their tactics in the face of Orodan’s utter dominance against hordes.

They began spewing massive waves of Eldritch energy out of the spatial rift, using it like a makeshift cannon. The battle had now drawn rather close to the spatial rift as he’d gained ground for the allied forces. Orodan was thus forced to direct the majority of his attention towards these waves of corruptive energy which would otherwise slaughter or infect large numbers of Blackworth soldiers.

Simultaneously, and in an even worse turn of events, one more peak-Transcendent Eldritch sprang forth from the spatial rift. This peak-Transcendent immediately provided a screen for the other one, preventing the forces of the Collective from reinforcing Orodan.

Working together, this pair of two peak-Transcendent Eldritch attempted to converge on Orodan’s position. These were the mightiest warriors the three plague worlds had, and Orodan wasn’t overconfident enough to believe that he stood a chance in straight battle when they were prepared and knew of his abilities; even with Eldritch Resistance. The grasping claw of the first, an Arch-Devil, looked to grab Orodan’s head when a flash of silver entered his vision and two scaly wings were in front of him.

“Zaessythra, you’ll die in an instant!”

“It’ll buy you time! Just resurrect and cleanse me afterwards!” she yelled.

She would die. He knew this. This was the attack of a peak-Transcendent and even Orodan would’ve been severely damaged despite his Eldritch Resistance. He was tired of this annoying half-dragon leaping in the way of attacks meant to hit him. Zaessythra stood no chance.

Which was why Orodan decided to give her one.

The Absolute Soul Dominion portion of his Celestial skill wrapped around her, treating her as though she was his shield.

Her energy pool completely bottomed out in an attempt to resist the foreign feeling of Orodan controlling and empowering her like she was a weapon. And yet…

…it worked!

Furthermore, the most interesting trait of that part of his Celestial skill was that any weapons he empowered with his soul also had access to Orodan’s resistance skills.

With a booming impact, Zaessythra was practically flattened into the ground. Bloody, battered and in far more pain than if she’d actually died. But she was alive.

And that had bought him one more second. Which was just enough time to divert a bit of attention from countering the horrendous beams of Eldritch energy spewing from the portal, and put it towards cleansing the peak-Transcendent Arch-Devil.

With a shriek, the purple and gray corruption running rampant throughout its form dissipated, and out of respect and in line with his newly embraced ideals, Orodan left the essence of demonkind which was integral to it, alone. Unless he had no other options, it was villainous to go about purifying people of traits integral to them when they’d done him no wrong. And even if they had wronged him… an honest death was preferable to stripping a demon of its being, or a true vampire of vampirism.

To the side, another figure entered the fray.

The other peak-Transcendent Eldritch was folded in half as a comically oversized bullet impacted its torso and sent it flying away.

“Ser Wainwright, we can’t have you getting captured at such a critical juncture. Does your skill cleanse the area around me?” the regal voice asked and Orodan nodded. “Good. Contact with the Eldritch would go poorly for me. Yet, I embrace the risk and shall guard you myself. What do you need?”

“T-the King! His Majesty takes to the battlefield!”

“Soldiers! March forward and muster ‘round the King!”

Morale skyrocketed and many more forces came to reinforce their position.

Orodan’s concentration was still on the Eldritch beams erupting from the portals however.

“We face an invasion by three plague worlds at once,” Orodan explained. “I need you to keep the enemy off of me as I slowly cleanse the beams of Eldritch energy and move towards the spatial rift they’re coming from.”

“Truly? This is a dire situation. That spatial rift… my space mages tell me you’re the one who forced the Eldritch to coalesce the rifts together and enter from a singular point. You have my thanks and gratitude for that,” the King said. “If we get you into the spatial rift, can you shut it off?”

“No.”

“No? What then? Perhaps we can secure the portal and seal it temporarily?” the King asked.

“No, because I intend to go through and purify the world cores of all three of these plague worlds,” Orodan declared.

Utter silence met his declaration.

“Surely you cannot be serious… you struggled and were pushed back in your attempt to purify but one,” King Alstatyn argued. “Is this a wise course of action?”

“I was pushed back due to being alone and having to split my attention between fighting the cores and fighting their Eldritch-infected underlings,” Orodan explained. “Cover me and keep the enemy off, and I can cleanse all three, ending the Eldritch threat not just in the Collodon System but the neighboring two as well.”

The King looked to think for a moment, and then had a look of determination upon his face. And Orodan wasn’t blind to how a small connection of that inexplicable System energy between the man and some far away location was constantly thrumming. It was the tell-tale sign of communication.

“Against my better judgement, and the advice of those smarter than me… I shall go through with this, Ser Wainwright! For Lonvoron and for the Blackworth Collective!” the King declared and hefted his oversized hand cannon.

Slowly, but surely, the forward march gained in speed as Orodan was allowed to focus as the military forces of the Collective supported him.

The Eldritch seemed almost desperate in how hard they were expelling beams of power through the spatial rift, and the tunnel itself wanted to collapse, however it did not as the combined space mage corps of the army worked on reinforcing it, and most importantly…

…King Alstatyn used his crown to direct the world core of Lonvoron itself to support the spatial tunnel.

Unlike last time, Orodan wouldn’t have to worry about having control of the spatial rift torn away. Others were handling it.

He set one foot into the spatial tunnel, and then another. All while his broom was in hand instead of the sword and shield.

Each sweep cleansed miles of Eldritch and he drew closer and closer to his targets.

At the very end, the spatial tunnel he was traversing split into three ends. Each leading to the world core of a different plague world.

Standing at the triple juncture…

…Orodan Wainwright poured his all into the Domain of Perfect Cleaning.

One warrior and his eternal soul fueling a Celestial skill, against the raw power of three large world cores infected completely by the Eldritch.

Hours passed, and Orodan ignored the constant attempts by the world cores to negotiate peace or surrender. He would cleanse them no matter what.

He was reduced to just a small handful of cells for hours on end, and this led to an overdue gain.

[Eternal Soul Reactor 97 → Eternal Soul Reactor 98]

This further accelerated the rate of his cleansing. They were strong, monstrously powerful, these were three entire world cores. Yet, when fueling mainly his Celestial skill, when focusing on cleaning. Orodan Wainwright could channel amounts of soul energy which would be visible across a galactic divide.

Finally, results came two hours later.

“No… please… spare us… to erase the truth from our minds is cruel beyond measure,” the infected world core said.

“And to force it upon innocent beings whose lives are upended is equally monstrous,” Orodan said. “Long have I reflected on the ethics of cleansing someone of a trait integral to them. I’ve ruminated on how such an act might stain my warrior’s honor. Yet, for the Eldritch, I shall make the exception every time. Your kind will receive nothing but the burning light of cleaning by my hand until there is naught left in the universe.”

The shrieks and howls of the Eldritch infected world cores were loud, yet Orodan cared not. Their infectious invasion was due for an end.

The first infected world core went silent as the final bits of Eldritch were purged from its mind.

“To think clearly again… our memory is faded but clear…”

The second followed.

“Eons of suffering and manic obsession, at last ended.”

And then the third.

“At last… liberation…”

To best three entire world cores in a contest of energy generation. It was a feat worthy of legend.

[Domain of Perfect Cleaning 96 → Domain of Perfect Cleaning 97]

One step closer to Grandmastery. One step closer to understanding the true meaning of cleaning.

The world cores were cleansed. As the battle of cleaning went on, each core drew more and more upon the residual Eldritch energies of its world. Horribly infected landscapes, animals, beings, champions and even Gods and Transcendents. They all found themselves having the Eldritch drawn out of them in a bid to reinforce the cores which were struggling against Orodan.

Consequently, in purifying the cores of these worlds…

…Orodan had purified the plague worlds themselves.

With his work done, Orodan stepped back through the spatial tunnel and out to the Lonvoron side of the spatial rift.

The forces he’d left behind immediately pointed guns at him for the briefest of moments upon his return…

…which were quickly lowered as roars and yells broke out.

“He’s done it!”

“Impossible… he really cleansed three entire plague worlds?”

King Alstatyn Von Flemethy himself stepped forward, a look of awe upon the man’s face.

“Ser Orodan Wainwright… the reports flooding in from all across our system and the neighboring two do not lie. You… truly have cleansed the three plague worlds of their Eldritch taint, haven’t you?” the man asked.

Orodan nodded, and the assembled army of the Collective broke out in raucous cheer.

“It was a good battle, even if it wasn’t the physical clash of shield against sword that I’d prefer,” Orodan said. “Now then, perhaps I might speak with this time looper? I believe I’ve earned some answers.”

“Orodan,” it was Zaessythra. Healed and in good condition from her earlier battering. Something which brought a relieved smile to his face. “After you went into the rift, we found this… it’s a book. It was found on the corpse of one of the peak-Transcendent enemy commanders.”

“It seems to be a dangerous artifact. To that end, I’ve elected to store it in the vaults beneath Storven, in our capital,” King Alstatyn said.

Orodan didn’t necessarily have a problem with that… however the book definitely roused his suspicions.

Particularly because it was positively roiling with System energy.

#

“It’s a different sort of energy,” Orodan explained. “I’ve seen vitality, mana, soul, Qi, Eldritch and world energy. But this one is entirely unique and this marks the latest in the handful of times I’ve encountered it.”

“A most vexing puzzle we face then… just who does it belong to?” the King asked. “I too have… never mind…”

Orodan didn’t miss how the small thread of System energy connected to the King began angrily pulsing the moment the man opened his mouth.

“We found it on the body of the other peak-Transcendent commander of the Eldritch… but no clue otherwise,” Zaessythra said.

“Well…” Orodan trailed off. He really hadn’t had a chance to reflect much on the battle and his skill gains. He’d directly gone from the battlefield to the capital of Lonvoron, Storven, a pretty town yet one around which the flows of time were strange. But now, a memory came unbidden to his mind. “It was strange, but my Dimensionalism skill levelled up twice.”

“Explain,” Zaessythra said.

“It only increases in level when I detect someone crossing the dimensional barrier or interacting with dimensional boundaries,” Orodan said. “This time, I saw a figure. The glimpse I got was far too brief to recall any details, but I did notice they held a book.”

“That, and the cores of the plague worlds mentioned informing someone of your presence,” the King said. “It cannot be the World Sovereigns, those were the peak-Transcendents we slew, and the other one was slain in a separate skirmish with our forces. In any case, just below Embodiers who we thankfully shall never have to encounter within the bounds of a galaxy, the core of a plague world is the supreme authority within Eldritch heirarchy. The peak-Transcendents should’ve been subservient to the infected world cores. Why would they claim that somebody else needed to be informed?”

“It makes little sense to me,” Orodan said. “In any case, you’re unwilling to give me any answers on this other time looper, which I’ll respect. And they seem rather paranoid and unwilling to meet me whatsoever, which I’ll also respect. However we’ve secured not only aid from your forces, but the assistance of the Conclave branch in this galaxy. So I’m fine with leaving the matter where it is.”

Orodan had never been one to snoop or forcibly pry unnecessary things from the mouths of others. If this other time looper wanted to maintain their secrecy so badly, he would let them. Not only had they somehow created an excellent military force capable of fighting off the Eldritch in the Blackworth Collective, but they’d also given the go-ahead for King Alstatyn to send aid back with them to Orodan’s own galaxy.

He wouldn’t spit in their face by attempting to trample about and get answers like the wrecking ball he typically was.

Besides, coming back in the next loop was always an option. Although if they were a time looper, then they’d likely remember everything and who he was.

Good incentive to perfect his natural talent and aptitude for the Disguise skill.

“Does this matter not call to you though?” the King asked. “Just look at this book, it could give us so many answers.”

“Will it? Last time I opened a strange book inside of a vault it rewarded me with excruciating pain,” Orodan remarked while looking at Zaessythra.

“I don’t remember this incident at all, but knowing you, you probably thought it was good training or something,” she replied.

“That it was!” Orodan said with a smile and then turned back to the King. “I would advise against tampering with it carelessly. The infected world cores I saw used System energy directly and faced complete corruption. I’m not sure if that energy can be harnessed safely.”

“Ser Wainwright, does the book not speak to you? The desire to get an answer almost irresistible?” King Alstatyn asked. “Somebody I know holds a similar artifact, and I’ve never managed to get an answer out of them about what it does… or about anything they do really. Why shouldn’t I open it? When all they do is give me falsehoods, lies and tricks, should I not seek an answer?”

Orodan’s eyes narrowed and he looked very closely at the book.

There.

It was almost imperceptible, but the most minute thread of System energy had latched onto the mind and soul of the King, and the thread was ever-widening as the man spoke.

“You really shouldn’t do that Alstatyn, I can already sense the book influencing you,” Orodan said. “You know not what it is, just leave it. How about we take a walk and speak about the troops you have assembled at the grand array?”

“No… no! If she won’t give me any answers despite all we’ve been through… then I’ll find them myself!” King Alstatyn said.

The man was far too close to the book, yet Orodan had already moved next to him even as the King threw the cover open.

It was a trap.

[Eldritch Resistance 65 → Eldritch Resistance 68]

The opening of the book caused an outpour of Eldritch energies severe enough that even Orodan began hearing whispers and the familiar maddening thoughts of the Eldritch. He steeled his mind and threw them off, and then immediately got to work in purifying the vault they were in.

Zaessythra was choking on the ground, yet her eyes weren’t whitened yet. She had a strong mind. A casual sweep of his broom cleansed her easily enough.

The King however. The man’s eyes were entirely white as the Eldritch broke out all over his body in sickening purple and gray growths.

“The truth… yes, I’d seen it before, known of it… but to embrace it once more…”

Orodan lashed out with his broom and instantly eradicated all traces of the Eldritch. The King’s eyes returned to their normal color, and the man stumbled backwards with a gasp.

Although, an accompanying visitor came with.

[Dimensionalism 25 → Dimensionalism 26]

He really needed to start training Dimensionalism normally instead of through unannounced visitors.

Strange robes of shifting colors. Thousands of spells active at once, and Orodan wasn’t even sure of what he was looking at. Sometimes it was a four-armed ogre, other times a slithering snake, and others, a golem. It was only with Vision of Purity and the steeling of his own mind against the insidious threads of soul energy attempting to enter it that he managed to mostly look past the illusion.

Zaessythra was frozen in time, only Orodan could see this.

They were human, or rather… humanoid. He was mostly certain of that. Maybe.

And they had absolutely no other distinguishing features whatsoever as their entire form was shrouded in a cloak.

The passive spells which were present on this person were utterly pure, and Orodan could only detect them visually and through Soul Mastery as they were powered by soul energy. There was no real method of distinguishing anything otherwise.

This shimmering humanoid figure walked right up to King Alstatyn…

…and grabbed the man by the collar.

“Your throne, your kingdom, your people safeguarded against the Eldritch. All provided by me and yet the one loop I really need you to keep your mouth shut and act in line with instructions, you fail,” the being said, their voice distorted and mangled in a manner which made them sound monstrous, male and female at the same time.

“I helped give you victory against the Eldritch!” the King roared. “You never tell me anything, your behavior chang-”

A casual flourish of magic silenced the man and sent him into a portal.

“Enough. I detest taking away anyone’s autonomy, yet your loose lips in such an impassioned state may cause the slipping of details I do not need divulged,” they said. “The victory against the Eldritch… was given to me by Orodan Wainwright. Or rather, my fellow time looper. Greetings, Orodan Wainwright. Hearing of your exploits is one thing, seeing you in action is another. I’m afraid our meeting must be cut short as we have an uninvited visitor who has snuck their way in. Reveal yourself. Your attempts at hiding between dimensional layers have proven inadequate against the mantle I bear.”

[Dimensionalism 26 → Dimensionalism 28]

The ripples came from behind Orodan, and he turned to see an old man. White beard, a religious sceptre, and priestly robes. The book laying upon the plinth trembled and promptly flew into his hands upon his arrival.

He could sense absolutely nothing through Vision of Purity, just like when he’d met the Mage.

“We meet once more, my mysterious thief,” the old man said. “Will you hand over the mantle you’ve stolen?”

“Prophet. Your presence within the territories of the Blackworth Collective is unwelcome,” the other looper said. “You shall receive no mantle for it is rightfully claimed by mine own hand.”

Prophet? As in… the Prophet? One of the five Administrators?

“Rightfully stolen, like a crow plucking a trinket it will never appreciate the value or function of,” the old man said. “You say my presence is unwelcome, and yet you appear as a mere clone, afraid to risk your own neck. Perhaps you should take inspiration from this one. The whispers I hear of his feats are rather impressive. Little wonder you were replaced.”

“You speak falsehoods meant to trigger my ire. They shall avail you not,” the other looper declared. “Lest you forget, treaty binds you to avoid combat within the limits of a galaxy. You shall receive no mantle from me and no welcome to this galaxy. Begone.”

“On the contrary my dear coward, I speak only the truth. You’ve done a great deal to obscure the history of your little Blackworth Collective, and even more still to obscure your own identity. Smart of you lest I find your location and true self,” the Administrator said. “All that information gathering, all your plans, schemes and allies, and yet you refuse to accept the possibility that the next has been anointed and stands here. Seventeen years ago, you know what occurred… the rumbling within the System, the pulse from the node at the center of your galaxy. The glyphs which were stripped from your very soul.”

“Lies! Your ceaseless prattle has gone on long enough,” the other looper said.

“Hold on… you’re the other time looper?” Orodan asked.

“Now is not the time for such questioning. The Prophet is a deadly foe although we’re kept safe by treaty between him and the others.”

“But… your letters. You told me to potentially seek refuge with the other four, was that-”

“True, for your own situation at least. The Prophet considers me his bounty and I must treat him differently.”

The Prophet hit his staff upon the ground of the vault, causing spatial fluctuations and regaining everyone’s attention.

“I see you do not believe me, coward… tell me then,” the Prophet said as something sailed out of Orodan’s spatial ring and into the Administrator’s hand. “This captured glyph, is this similar to the ones you lost seventeen years ago?”

“What of it? Many organizations across our universe have captured those.”

“And yet, this time looper here has the exact glyphs upon his soul… and you do not,” the Prophet said.

Could it really be true?

Little wonder then, what the Mage had said when Orodan asked if there were other time loopers.

“Yes, there were, no there are not.”

Was there only ever one time looper at a time? This other looper then… was no longer in the time loops.

“Enough. You have made your point, leave,” the other looper said, anger and frustration showing through their voice.

“On the contrary, I think for once… I shall stay. I’ve always known that Lonvoron was important to you. Long have I suspected that the System’s Control Spike which selects the loopers is located upon this world. Yet through aiding in Orodan Wainwright’s journey to this world I’ve gotten a better opportunity to understand why you value it so much,” the Prophet said, outing himself as the one who’d aided in directing Orodan and Zaessythra to Lonvoron. “That little King of yours, quite interesting to learn that he’s the only one upon this planet without the obscuring controls you’ve placed upon the minds of all others. What happens if I pluck him from where you’ve kept him?”

“You would be violating the treaty and would court open battle against the Mage and the Warrior!” the other looper roared as space trembled and King Alstatyn suddenly appeared in the hand of the Prophet, held aloft in the air by his collar. In a deep sleep. “Unhand him or face my wrath!”

“That would certainly be a first. I don’t go back in the loops, but I doubt a little coward like you has ever tried fighting me before. Perhaps all you needed was some motivation,” the Prophet said. “And the treaty? How quaint. You see… the treaties among us are broken fairly often over the eons. And when I spot not just the chance to reclaim the Reject’s formerly owned Administrator Mantle but also the opportunity to permanently eliminate the single greatest threatening time looper I’ve ever seen. Why would I not take it?”

Orodan suddenly felt very seen.

“Me?” Orodan asked. “What have I done to you?”

“To me? Nothing. To my plans? Potentially, everything,” the Prophet said. “Do you think I haven’t noticed your anomalous ability to generate power at impossible rates? Even the caged protector itself cannot do what you can with the meagre prowess that you have. And that sickening Celestial skill of yours… I’ll be all too happy to engage in a few centuries of war against that brute if it means ensuring a time looper as threatening as you isn’t allowed to come into power. Come, I shall give you an easier end than the Reject would on a bad day.”

Orodan raised his weapons and charged forward, uncaring of the danger. And was promptly slapped into the ground and bound with gold chains all within an instant.

He struggled and strained with all his might, yet the chains were simply too strong. To that end, he began churning Eternal Soul Reactor as hard as he could. As he did so, the real battle between the Prophet and the other time looper began.

A second figure, completely identical to the other time looper, entered the vault they were within.

And the very first move they made was to channel an apocalyptic amount of power into a very familiar and eerie pink shard.

“Hmmph… finally revealing your true body, are you? This little King must mean a lot to you,” the Prophet said. “And using the shards won’t help when the power behind your attack is so pitiful.”

“Pitiful? Allow me to serve you a combination even I dared not try before,” the other time looper said. “Using an Administrator’s Mantle against an Administrator, a new experiment for the records.”

The other time looper’s real body then channelled power, not through their soul, not through mana, but through a strange robe they were wearing. The usage of the robe briefly removed most of the illusions upon their form as the System energy roiled, and Orodan got a brief glimpse of pale, almost sickly skin, but nothing else.

The Prophet looked far more serious as he blocked the following beam, having to put genuine effort into it. A prayer was uttered, and a golden book opened up before him, absorbing the beam but barely. And it was a moment of genuine effort for the Administrator, something which left him vulnerable.

At the same time, Orodan finally managed to burn his way out of the golden chains through flooding them with raw soul energy. The Reject had similarly tried to bind him, but Orodan had grown stronger since then, and attempts at capturing him wouldn’t be as smooth or easy.

The Administrator was concentrating in blocking the beam fired by the other looper. It was a lethal attack channelled through the shard which could destroy many star systems. The Prophet didn’t appear too strained, but the consequence of having to dedicate effort into blocking the beam, was that the shroud of System energy enveloping him had dissipated.

Allowing Vision of Purity to see what lay underneath.

“Eldritch…” Orodan muttered. “You’re the one responsible for the Eldritch invasions of this world.”

“More than just that… all the infectious Eldritch come from me. Agents of the truth, with a mission to spread it so that we might live in harmony with that which empowers us,” the Prophet said, a gentle smile on his face. “Eldritch…why refer to it by such a name? Can you not realize that it is merely the true and direct form of the lifeblood which empowers us all?”

“I care not what it’s called. It’s purple, gray and disgusting, and I… will clean it all!”

With a roar, Orodan reduced himself to a single cell with the amount of soul energy he produced. His all was thrown into the Domain of Perfect Cleaning. Yet, not the aura, but into his very broom. Into the very sweeping motion.

The Prophet hadn’t accounted for Orodan potentially killing himself to avoid a permanent end, and consequently panicked and threw an overpowered healing prayer towards him. Something which allowed him to generate even more soul energy without getting killed.

Using the Prophet’s desire to keep him alive, Orodan continued building up fatal levels of soul energy. His body was destroyed and reformed continually.

[Eternal Soul Reactor 98 → Eternal Soul Reactor 99]

And with that final boost in power, he threw it all towards his broom, which raced directly for the Prophet’s heart.

[Domain of Perfect Cleaning 97 → Domain of Perfect Cleaning 98]

A terrible shriek left the Administrator’s lips. The yell itself nearly killed Orodan, reducing him to a single cell.

He hadn’t succeeded, not fully anyhow. The Prophet was simply too monstrous, unbelievably powerful. The Eldritch tide within him was akin to the might of an entire galaxy. In no way could the current Orodan cleanse this being.

Yet, with all his power…

…Orodan had managed to clean 1% of the Eldritch from within the Prophet.

And when something was purely and unequivocally Eldritch, and it was then brought down to 99% purity. The sheer internal pain and conflict as the Eldritch attempted to convert and consume the other part, was unimaginable. Particularly for a being at the Prophet’s level of power.

“We must go… now!” the other looper said as they opened a spatial rift while the Prophet collapsed to his knees.

Orodan wanted to stay and finish the job, exploit the Administrator’s vulnerability, yet the other looper left him no choice as they practically threw King Alstatyn, Zaessythra and himself into the portal and then jumped in themselves.

Orodan was suddenly at the Conclave’s branch in the Vystaxium Galaxy, a grand array open and ready to send people through the void between galaxies and back to his own.

“Through the grand array! Go!” they ordered.

Orodan threw Zaessythra in headfirst and then chucked King Alstatyn inside as well. The other looper rushed in too, but before Orodan could enter, he heard a horrifying shriek.

He turned around, and the most unsettling sight of the Prophet rushing at him on all fours like a feral and freakish beast entered his vision.

He readied his sword and shield. Orodan’s smile widened at the prospect of an excellent melee bout and a good death against a horrifying foe, yet it was not to be.

Fifteen feet of steel and muscle interposed itself between him and his approaching death. System energy practically exploded from this tall, dark warrior’s greatsword.

“Your spirit is strong, yet glorious death in battle shall be denied today. Live, and fight another day, time looper.”

A powerful hand gripped him by the head and threw him headfirst into the grand array’s active beam.

The travel was tumultuous, yet not as bad as the first trip to the Vystaxium Galaxy. Eventually, he arrived and stepped upon white marbled tiles. His surroundings were calm, the teleporter was still functioning.

Outside, the assembled forces of the Blackworth Collective, mustered and prepared to return fire against the dwarven void ships which ominously hung overhead. Cultivators were slowly coming out from the buildings and took in the sight of the Blackworth forces Orodan had brought back. Holy warriors of the Conclave were alongside them as well.

He saw Zaessythra in the distance alongside Zhou Shan, rallying the soldiers.

“Zaessythra, where’s the other looper,” Orodan asked.

“What other looper, Orodan? Nobody came out of the array after King Astaltyn,” she answered.

“Look… above…”

“Good Gods… our home…”

In the skies above, beyond the void ships of the dwarves, beyond the sun and stars. In the extreme distance, noticeable only by those with enhanced eyesight.

Was the Vystaxium Galaxy.

And it lay shattered.

Orodan could only wonder how he was meant to fight an Administrator if this was their level of power.