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Chapter 39: The Steel Legion

We ended up getting our room and everything handled for us by the steel legion. After seeing how whipped into shape they were, it more like the legion of lackeys. I guess Torix scared the living shit out of them though. That and having two people over a thousand levels above your commanding officer tends to make that happen.

It was strange seeing how they operated compared with what I imagined they would. The steel legion wasn’t a group of conquerors. They were a system that assimilates, much like Schema without the force behind them. They offered an efficient organizing element that was hard to not take, especially considering the alternative.

They sent a small force of only a few thousand towards new planets. This force would then spread out by offering a recruitment plan that involved ironing out disobedience. They then gave out armor, guns, and other resources towards the members of a planet. They would create a large military force that would proliferate.

That’s what was interesting about them. They would use the previous knowledge of the planet for their rebuilding efforts. Of course they offered the basic enhancements for advanced technology, but they kept most of the previous tech intact. It had something to do with the utilization of planetary resources and such.

Made sense to me. It’s hard to create a density bomb out of something like unobtanium. I mean shit, it’s unobtainable after all.

Shitty ass puns aside, if I hadn’t spawned in BloodHollow, I would’ve joined them for sure. You get protection, order, and some sort of stability compared with the utter chaos of the new world. Not a bad deal if you ask me. I didn’t really get that kind of a choice though.

Anyways, the legion ended up letting us use the nearby warehouse as our own little hideaway. Honestly, working in the nearby area didn’t feel that different when compared with normal. Everything, form the marble walls to the dirt floor was the same. The only difference was the red tin roof overhead.

That’s where I worked for a few days. In fact, it took a few weeks before the legion organized everything. It turned out that old Whitley was one of the most important logistic officers for the legion on earth. That meant a much slower supply chain until someone learned how to operate everything.

Over the course of those three weeks, I studied the runic language. I carved dozens of different combinations onto my armor, trying out all kinds of effects. Quickness, hardness, even friction enhancing enchantments, I tried them all.

It took quite a while, but I made a few adjustments towards my armor. One of the most useful ones was the ten symbols etched onto my finger tips. Tiny as they were, they let me stick to walls and other surfaces. With boundless storm active, I could accomplish insane maneuvers near anything sturdy and stable.

I’d also accomplished carving two phrases into my palms. Each phrase had been a carved into a circle. They conveyed the fear of being helpless, the hatred of being used, and the weight of many burdens. At their center was the single symbol for the feeling of being overwhelmed. I figured these symbols would help with what I wanted to learn next.

I walked up towards Torix’s new office thing. He’d made his own room in the warehouse, turning it into a place for his experiments. It was much like a doctor’s office, with tables and benches with tools spread over them. Hunched over an operating table, Torix dissected one of the petal insects. Beside him was a jar full of them, each squirming for release.

As I walked up, Torix roared before slamming the scalpel through the creature. He leaned over the creature, sulking as I stepped near him,

“Did I catch you at a bad time?”

“No. Please, give me a reason to stop researching these insufferable creatures. They make no sense. No biology or rhyme or reason either. Just an amalgam of flesh and plant fibers.”

I shrugged, “Yeah, sounds like something Yawm would make. Anyways, I was hoping you could teach me some dominion magic while we’ve got some spare time.”

Torix perked up, standing straight up as he pulled out his ancient tome. The pages glowed with a swing of his hand, “I’d love the distraction, no matter how slight it may be. Did you have any particular thing you wanted to learn about the field?”

I weighed my hands back and forth, like measuring two different things in each hand, “Hmm, mainly telekinesis and maybe something to pin people down. I figure getting someone to stop moving would be pretty damn awesome for me.”

“Indeed it is. Then telekinesis and gravity wells are an excellent start. Telekinesis is much simpler and easier than gravity wells, so we shall start there.”

He raised a hand, spawning a blob of black, writhing mana, “This is the dominion form of mana. Can you summon it yet?”

“Sort of.” I raised a hand, and after a bit of struggling, a black ball formed above my fingers. The tendrils of black were gated by the spirals of red, just like last time.

I said, “Not too terrible if I say so myself.”

Torix frowned, “Unfortunately, you aren’t the only one who has a say in the matter. That mana of yours is incomplete. It is only forming due to your unusually high affinity. That isn’t true dominion magic.”

Torix pressed his fingers together before pulling them apart. As he did so, a blob of black formed again, “This is true dominion magic. Think back to when you first discovered augmentation magic.”

I facepalmed, “Of course. I got to embody what the feeling of dominion is.”

The ball of mana above Torix dissipated. He grinned, “That’s my apostle. You work on your summoning in the corner of the room as I work on discovering this…” He waved his arms over the petal insect, “Enigma.”

I walked over to the corner of the room, sitting on a metal chair. The metal creaked a bit under my weight, but it held up. I lifted my hand, forming the same mana as before. Thoughts of control and domination filled my mind. I wanted to save Michael and Kelsey. I wanted to make this world my own.

Except, I didn’t really. It wasn’t in me to be honest. No matter how much I tried making the thoughts form, they never had any substance behind them. In the back of my mind, I didn’t blame anyone but myself. As I realized that, the red bands built in density, preventing the mana from overflowing. I was holding my own magic back.

Struggling with it didn’t make a difference. Trying to think a different way isn’t that hard. Trying to feel a different way is much harder. Unfortunately for me, these feelings were deep in my bones. I understood exactly whose fault it was that my friends died. It was my own.

At this point, a red ball formed around the dominion energy. It made even interacting with it impossible. Even after an hour of trying to get this shit to work, the mana just wasn’t having it. It was when I was ready to give up and try something else that the foreboding voice entered my mind like a distant echo,

“You must embrace your hunger. Release the chains you carry.”

I frowned, glancing back at Torix. He hunched over the table, mumbling about how idiotic the insect was and whatnot. Turning back to the ball of mana, I thought back,

“It’s you again. Torix thought you were some manifestation of my inner turmoil. I call bullshit.”

“Interesting isn’t it? Despite his vast wells of knowledge, Torix is still ignorant of my origin. That ignorance may well be his undoing.”

I turned back towards Torix, my mouth opening as I was about to tell Torix about the voice again. The ominous voice roared in my mind,

“No. Do not speak of me again.”

“And why the fuck not?”

“I will not help you with obtaining dominion of your own magic. These red gates will never relinquish on their own. I may teach you how to destroy them. You may choose to reveal me after I have taught you. Does that deal sate your appetite?”

I frowned, “Alright then, voice thing in my head. What do I need to do?”

“I told you. Embrace your hunger.”

I rolled my eyes, “Alright, maybe a little more detail?”

“Remember when you first fought the spawns of Yawm? You unlocked a portion of your mind you had locked away. Simply open those doors once more, and you will be able to use dominion magic as simply as breathing.”

I sighed before thinking back. The zombies were coming in from everywhere, and it was like the entire world had gone insane. Instead of trying to make sense of it, I just wanted to go insane with it. After thinking on it for a bit, I guessed embracing my bloodlust or hunger wasn’t that far from the truth of the matter.

So I figured if I did it once, I could do it again. I steadied my breathing and leaned onto a nearby table. I grit my teeth and clamped my fists. I thought about Baldag-Ruhl trying to use me as a shell. I thought about Torix controlling me with his weird charisma voice. It was infuriating. I hated being swung around like a ragdoll.

I wanted them to all just stop. The voice murmured in my head,

“That is not what you thought about when you were surrounded. You didn’t want more control. You relinquished it to your own bloodlust. You embraced the primal.”

I sighed again before relaxing. I sat down before glancing around the room. I pondered about what I wanted. What did I want? It was a good question.

I wanted to control what I would and wouldn’t do for one. I wanted to be able to have friends I could trust and a home to go back to. Since Schema took Earth, I didn’t think it was possible anymore. Deep down, I already knew there wasn’t any going back.

There in the pits of that despair, I found something. It was a dark, malevolent feeling. It didn’t want to build. It wanted to destroy. That sinister emotion wanted to break everything that took away all the chances I had. I’d never have a family. I’d never have friends. Every day would be another fight for survival until I died.

There was an crazy part of me that enjoyed the idea of that. That part wanted to just let the simple cycle of escalation take over. It was like a way out of being used. I could just use everyone around me in turn.

They could become my stepping stones, my way up and out of this hole I’m in. I could use them as protection, growing until I could then use them as they used me.

As those thoughts filled my mind, the red bands lessened until they disappeared. The madness swam through my mind like a torrent, begging for battle and starving for slaughter. The dominion magic swelled in my palm, flooding out of my hand and onto the floor. The rune in my palm created an even greater outpour, swarming the room with the energy.

Skill unlocked! Dominion(lvl 1) – Why fight with one when you may fight with many? +1% increased ease of converting mana into DU(dominion energy)

The mana sent ripples through the concrete, bending the stone. The tables near me bent then snapped under the bending force. The energy resonated until one of the metallic instruments near me snapped, the metal squealing.

“Excellent work Daniel. I never expected so much potential in you. Your own affinity outweighs my own.”

Torix placed his hand on my shoulder, snapping me from my sudden stupor. The madness retreated, returning me to normal. Even though I didn’t understand it, I couldn’t deny how useful it was. It gave me tools I wouldn’t have otherwise. It made truly difficult things quite simple. Not just mana either. I could carry out carnage like that without remorse or guilt.

It scared me a little, but revealing it to Torix seemed like a bad idea. Why exactly? I couldn’t pin an exact reason down. My gut was telling me not to. So far, it hadn’t told me wrong up till now.

Torix pulled me out of the corner as he raised an arm, “Oh how much you’ll be able to accomplish. With that much mana, this world will bend with a wave of your finger.”

Just like you wanted me to? The thought flashed in my mind before Torix continued,

“Telekinesis should be a paltry task considering how much mana you summoned. For that style of magic, you need only give that mana a sort of will. Envision a change you want, then force the world to obey with the will of your mind. It’s quite satisfying.”

I nodded, “Alright. What about the gravity wells stuff?”

“For that, you must think of the universe like a giant, stretched piece of rubber. A gravity well is like a rock placed on the sheet. It creates a depression that pulls other forces into it. You must imagine creating an indention in that sheet, forcing a pull in the area.”

“Oh fuck. That sounds hard. Like, super hard.”

“It is very, very difficult. You should get it within a few years though. Nothing that several thousand hours of practice can’t fix.”

I winced at the prospect. Gaining levels would be a far better way of progressing than that shit. Mixing both of those processes would be better anyway. I nodded my head,

“Sounds like a plan. I think I’ll go see if I can’t get a handle on the dominion magic first though. Leveling it would help patch up a few holes in my build.”

Torix released my shoulder, “Good, good…Ah yes, there’s something I wanted to bring up with you while you’re here Daniel.”

I raised an eyebrow before he continued, “The time I used my charisma on you. I didn’t mean to create tension between us or create paranoia in you. I wanted you to move on from the death of your friends. I wasted centuries trying to find my own son. I didn’t want you making the same mistake.”

He spread his arms and let them slap against his sides, “If I knew you’d work through it so quickly on your own, I’d never have even tried. You likely are struggling with trusting anything I’ve said up till this point, questioning my every word.”

It was like he was reading my mind as he continued, “But I just want to make it clear what I thought of the situation. You don’t have to fear me. Even if I am your master, you are still my student. I want you to grow, not to become some sort of slave for me. I’ve got plenty of those already.”

I pursed my lips for a moment. He seemed sincere, almost vulnerable. After making sure I wasn’t seeing things, I murmured, “Hmmm…Okay. Thanks for talking about it. To be honest, you basically read my mind.”

He brushed off the accusation with a wave of his hand, “Your willpower and resistance to mental magic is very high already. You’d know if I planted something in your mind, I assure you.”

Now I would, but what about before I reached this level of resistance and willpower? I shook the doubts from my mind before saying, “Hell yeah. Well I’m off to figure some of this magic shit out.”

Those doubts had built up in my mind over time. I didn’t like dwelling on them, since they made me question everything anyone said. It had a way of pulling me away from the only friends I had left, so I silenced that doubt. I’d trust Torix and company for now, thought I wouldn’t be as gullible as when I first met them.

With that handled, I walked over towards my personal room and focused on dominion magic. The hardest part of the process was being able to summon that madness. My entire fighting style revolves around focus. I countered and crushed my opponents, overwhelming them with striking. This other stuff required relaxing my mind, which made the entire process unintuitive.

Still, I managed to get some sort of grasp on it. Over time, summoning it turned from an arduous process and into a sort of switch. When that feeling really clicked, a skill notification popped up,

Skill gained! Primal Frenzy(lvl 1) – People are like coins with several faces. You learn to master your mind, allowing for frenzy. +1% to ease of changing into frenzy mode. 1% less control lost.

That made the mode a bit more useful for sure. The lack of control made it dangerous and risky. Most of the time, I’d be better off without using it. It was my way of gaining control of dominion magic though, which would prove more than useful. I figured it was worth the risk.

Surrounded by walls of sheet metal, I sat cross legged as I struggled to wield the new toys I had. I just unlocked the frenzy mode, the feeling of carnage pumping through my blood. I wanted to feast and kill and consume. A knocking ebbed on my door before a steel legion grunt opened it and said,

“We’ve finished setting up operation containment. The others are ready if…”

I turned to him before standing up. I walked over, snapping myself out of my frenzy, “Thanks for letting me know. I’ll head on up.”

As I walked away from him, the grunt pressed his back against the wall and slid downwards. He mouthed under his breath,

“Monster.”

I ignored him as I walked into a nearby hallway. After pacing for a bit, I reached into the central room. The crushed walls that the overseer left were patched up already, though the hodgepodge of tin they used to fix it looked super shitty. Althea, Torix, and Kessiah were all talking around the room as I paced up,

“Yo guys. What’s up?”

Kessiah cracked her neck, “We’re finally about to come out and fuck Yawm up. One piece of his kingdom at a time.”

Althea and I nodded before Torix spoked with mana enhancing the sound of his voice,

“Daniel, Althea, and Kessiah will be charging forward. You all will travel behind them with the mounted machines, pulling the containment backwards. Your orders are clear. Do not try and fight the minions of Yawm. That is the job of these three. Understood?”

The troops saluted Torix, their loyalty ironclad with absolute fear. Torix turned to us,

“Hope you’ll be able to fight what Yawm’s created. Good luck.”

The three of us walked out towards a gigantic garage door. Kessiah pulled it up, the garage door banging against the roof with a deafening echo. The three of us sprinted forwards. Now everything was in order. We would finally fight.

In my mind, it was time to break Yawm. One bone at a time.