Aster Fall, Ch 39: The Top of the World (Patreon)

The land spread out beneath Sam’s view in dark, soaring mountains and snow-filled valleys. The Western Reaches stretched far off into the distance to the north and south, a line of white, night-edged peaks glowing with trails of mana. He was standing at the tip of a diadem, each peak a shining gem set into a band that crossed the world. Sun’s Rest was the highest of them all.

The top of the world.

The thought flickered through his mind as he turned around and saw that he was alone. He touched the Amulet of Swirling Winds on his chest, searching through its connection for his father and the others, but there was no response. The amulet’s charge was drained and it felt like something here was blocking it.

He ignored the wounds that covered him as he leapt toward the pillar and examined the rune that had gone dark.

The pillar’s surface was smooth and cold beneath his hands, the stones unweathered by time. The sigils embedded in it were in a layer beneath the surface, but the part of the stone above them was translucent, making it look like they were engraved at different depths.

The dark rune was the focal point for the trap that had held him, but its energy had faded now. The World Law hadn’t threatened him about shattering the auras inside at least.

Where were his father and the others?

He hadn’t seen them in the trap, but they could’ve been in a different version of it or sent to another place completely. They might even still be on the slopes below. Perhaps the trap had targeted essence and he was the only one who had fallen in?

His senses poured toward the rune as explored it, trying to access the formation that it was part of. He didn’t think it would be successful, but as his essence touched it, the three strands of moonlight that had carved themselves into his essence constellation began to hum.

His aura flooded into the strands and then poured out of his hands in strands of twisting blue, green, and purple moonlight that flowed into the rune. His vision shifted suddenly as he connected to the formation.

Flickering images of other traps and locations throughout the ruins poured into his awareness, as well as a broken map of the area in three dimensions. The image faded in and out, as if it were having trouble maintaining its form, but he saw the slopes of Sun’s Rest, as well as the two neighboring peaks.

The ruins spread across all of them, both above and below the ground, covering the area. The damaged areas were dark, and much of it was damaged, but the areas that were still functioning were lit up in the colors of entangled moonlight.

It was too much information to process all at once, even with his Intelligence, and his mind spun. He slumped down against the pillar in a daze as he lost control of his muscles, but his hands were still touching the stones.

The moonlight in his essence constellation grew brighter as it pulled more of his aura from him, taking only that and not his mana, and continued to pour into the pillar.

Auric Imprint Detected.

At that moment, the Guardian Star spoke, its voice ringing in his mind as it began to burn on his hand. The star floated up, a reflection of it shining in the space above his hand as it began to spin, its nine points flickering. Beams of multicolored light flared from it.

Analyzing....

Changes detected in Guardian’s Aura.

Assessing threat....

The star continued to spin in place, the energy from it playing over the pillar in front of him and across his body. Its assessment weighed on him, and it felt like the star became heavier. Finally, the feeling disappeared and it spoke again.

Artifact detected.

Identified as “Moonlight Relic.”

History: Early version of Seal Ward.

Purpose: Intended to repair Flaws in the Seal.

Age of Relic: 162,417 years.

Integrity of Relic: 32%.

Threat Level: Minimal.

Interface available.

Suggested Action: Access Moonlight Relic?

New capabilities will be added to the Guardian Star.

He wasn’t sure what the star was asking, but it was clear that it wanted to do something with the ruins here, or perhaps with the pillar. His mind was in a daze from the information overload, but he got the impression that the Guardian Star and the ruins here were part of the same system.

The ruins were just a lot older and more broken.

He hesitated for a moment, as he tried to focus on the pillar again to search for his father, but the information was a massive spike of pain in his mind that sent him sprawling to the ground. He twitched there in a limp puddle, still bleeding from the thousand cuts the trap had left behind, but his hand was touching the pillar.

He had just enough focus to accept the Guardian Star’s offer. He wasn’t sure what it would do, but hopefully it would help. If his father were in a trap somewhere, maybe it could get him out.

As soon as he accepted, all of his aura poured out of him, flowing through the three strands of moonlight that were somehow inside his essence.

Interfacing with Moonlight Relic.

Activating Merger.

A wave of brilliant, rainbow light exploded out of the Guardian Star as it floated up from his hand. It shot through the sky until it stopped above the top of the pillar. It began to glow, its light increasing until it was far brighter than the moons.

The pillar shimmered in response, the sigils covering its surface lighting up. The entire area around Sam began to vibrate, a low hum filling the air as enchantments laid into the stones of this plateau activated in swirling, silver-green lines.

Energy flowed toward the pillar from the surroundings and upward, pouring into the star, which grew larger until it was half the size of the pillar. Several minutes passed as it continued to draw power. Then the nine points flared outwards, brilliant light spreading from them to cover the pillar and the ruined hall.

The light was so intense it was almost liquid, bathing everything in radiance. His eyes snapped shut defensively, but he could still see what was happening through his eyelids.

The enchantments on the pillar brightened until they were nearly as intense as the star, and then a beam of three-colored moonlight shot upward from them, pouring into it. The star hummed in response, its size increasing as the three colors joined the radiance.

The strands of moonlight blended into the star, which turned white again except for the rainbow colors on each point. Then the light began to fade, as the pillar and the ruins all around dimmed, the enchantments quietening.

The Guardian Star shrank back down, shooting down from the top of the pillar to hover over Sam’s hand. There was a new sense of liveliness to it, as if it had gained something important.

Access Acquired: Moonlight Relic.

Insufficient authority to claim ownership of the relic. Requires joint permission of Caelus, Silvas, and Amaris.

Access is limited to information and entry to some protected areas.

Damage to the relic is significant.

Stored power: 12%.

Auric Charge: 721,412 / 500,000,000.

The Guardian Star spun there, its points flashing as if it were pleased with itself.

A small chance exists to repair the relic. Guardian is advised to do so in order to support the stability of the Seal. It would protect the local region.

Study auric enchantments and initialize the self-repair mechanisms that have been broken by Outsider attack.

The best opportunity to charge the relic’s energy arrives in 3.1 weeks and will return again in seven years.

Sam looked down at the small star that was once again just floating above his hand, his eyes wide. He’d known the ruins were old, but these were completely ancient. It also seemed like they were from a similar origin as the Guardian Star...some type of earlier attempt to protect Aster Fall?

He wasn’t sure how the moons were connected or how he should get their permission to access the ruins, but he would worry about it later. The star had promised information.

“Search for my father,” he told it, a frown appearing. Access to the ruins and a request to repair them was all well and good, but what he wanted was to know where everyone was.

Search initialized, the Guardian Star responded immediately. It was more active than it had ever been before. Accessing Moonlight Relic and scanning the local area.

Its points flickered, and the response came back.

Jeric Hastern has been located within the area of the relic, as well as 28 Outsiders, 132 monsters, 430 local beasts, 147 citizens of Aster Fall.

Grand Flaw Detected.

Position: 34 miles west by southwest from your present location.

Five Subsidiary Flaws detected: 14 miles east by southeast, 17 miles southeast, 42 miles south by southeast, 24 miles west by southwest, and 54 miles west.

“Show me,” Sam demanded, frowning at the star again. As soon as the command left his mouth, the star flickered and his vision changed.

He could see the ruins from above, as well as the swirling enchantments in a grand formation spreading through it. Most of those lines were dark, and others were flickering as if they were about to go out.

It was similar to the vision he’d had when he touched the pillar, but it was sorted now, organized by the Guardian Star, and no longer overwhelming. He felt like an eagle flying above the mountains, looking down at everything below.

Jeric Hastern’s position is 37 miles south by southwest. He is approximately 7 miles from the Grand Flaw.

The view zoomed down the slopes of Sun’s Rest and came to a stop on a ruined building near the edge of a cliff. It looked different from above, but the ruined temple’s shape was clearly visible.

All around the temple, there was fresh snow slowly falling on signs of a fight. Corpses from large serpents, a wyvern, and two trolls were visible scattered around. The building itself was sealed by a glowing white ward, which looked like church magic.

The view swept down, piercing through the roof of the temple to reveal the interior. Inside, his father, Krana, and Lesat were seated around a small fire. They looked battered, but healthy. Across from them, the adventurers were in a worse state, with bandages and evidence of freshly-healed wounds.

At the rear of the temple, there was a small pillar of stone that was releasing an emerald green light. It was engraved with images of leaves and curling vines.

Wood Element Mana Gathering Pylon, the Guardian Star identified it as it pulled the information from the Moonlight Relic.

So much for an elemental affinity pillar, Sam muttered as he heard the name. Perhaps they were able to let that Wood mana flow through their bodies, but he had no idea what the effect would be.

“Can you allow my amulet to work here?” he asked, looking down at the Guardian Star. “Or will a message scroll reach them?”

You are currently at the control pillar of the Moonlight Relic. Communication from here to other locations is possible, but prevented by the ward around this plateau.

The Guardian Star was far more responsive now than it had ever been before. Apparently, it had gained something from the relic. It flickered on his hand as he felt a flow of energy shifting, and then it spoke again.

Communication is now enabled.

With its announcement, the Amulet of Swirling Winds came to life as the enchantment on it activated.

“Dad?” Sam’s attention was fixed on the image the Guardian Star was showing him as his voice reached out through the amulet. His voice was tight. “Are you alright? How long has it been since we reached that temple?”

“Sam!” Jeric jumped up from where he was sitting as he shouted back through the amulet, his voice carrying a sense of deep relief. “Where are you?! It’s been three days! The amulet wasn’t working to locate you and even Krana’s Far Sight was blocked. These ruins are dangerous. Are you safe?”

Sam let out a sigh of relief as he heard his father’s voice. He looked down at himself, taking in the cuts that were covering his body. The bleeding had slowed and he wasn’t going to die, but he needed to heal them at some point. He decided not to mention any of that to his father.

“I’m safe enough...I was teleported away by an old formation,” he replied. “It was a trap, but not in good repair. When it broke, it left me at the top of the mountain. There’s a control pillar here that I used to find you.”

For now, he left out the rest of the details, including the true meaning of the pillar. He didn’t know if the adventurers could overhear him, but he didn’t plan to reveal such an enormous secret to anyone except his family.

“I’m so glad you’re alright, son.” Some of the tension eased out of his father’s voice. “After you disappeared, we had some trouble here, but we took care of it. Now, we’re bunkered down and waiting for church reinforcements. They should be here in a day or two. They were delayed by some other fights in the ruins.

“Wherever you are,” his father continued, “if it’s safe, you should stay there until we can meet up. There are too many Outsiders and monsters around here. Once the church arrives, we should have the forces we need to clear the area.”

“It’s not that simple,” Sam replied, shaking his head, although his father couldn’t see him. “I’ve scanned the area. There are five smaller Flaws and the one big one, as well as a couple of dozen Outsiders and hundreds of monsters and beasts.

“You’re much too close to the main Flaw, and the Outsiders are going to be the strongest there. We need to break you out of that area and join together. I’ll send you the details via message scroll...and to Lenei as well.

“We’ll have to coordinate with the church to eliminate the Flaws one by one. Otherwise, the Outsiders will be able to travel from one Flaw to another and escape.”

Jeric was silent for a moment as he took in what Sam was saying. His eyes seemed to see through the walls around him as he looked at the mountainside. Perhaps with his Earth Sense, that was true.

“Then we have three priorities,” Jeric said as he looked down at the amulet. “Finding you, coordinating with the Church to destroy the Flaws, and eliminating the Outsiders here as well as the monsters under their control.”

“Or humans,” Sam added. “That Iceblood Guild could be bigger than just the three we met before. There are a lot of travelers exploring the ruins right now, and some of them might be working for the Outsiders.”

“I suppose that could be.” Jeric frowned. He clearly didn’t like the idea. “We’ll have to keep an eye out.” His gaze turned outward again, toward the peak of the mountain.

“How long would it take to get to you?”

“A while,” Sam replied as he looked over the path between him and his father. “There are a dozen layers to get through and I don’t see a clear access point up to this plateau. Some of the connections between the layers are also completely destroyed. I’ll have to explore to find the best path.

“More importantly, however, the only path leading up this way runs right past the Grand Flaw.... It’s not something we want to cross until we’re ready.”

“Damn it,” Jeric growled, his hands clenching as he thought about the obstacles between him and son. “We’ll work on it from both sides then. When the church gets here, maybe we’ll have the forces we need to push through.”

“I’ll work on this side,” Sam said as he expanded his view, looking over the ruins from above. The Guardian Star sensed his wishes and handled the change in perspective smoothly, as if it were reading his mind.

There were dozens of monsters surrounding his father’s position and many that were near the peak as well. Some of them were scattered and easy targets, as long as he moved quickly.

“Try to keep fighting and level up from the monsters around there,” he said at last. “I’ll do the same from up here. We’ll need to fight independently for a little while.”

“Just for a day or two,” Jeric replied, still growling. “At least we can keep in touch now. When you disappeared, I....” His hands flexed, his muscles bulging as he tried to restrain himself. “If anything happens to you, there won’t be a ruin left for these monsters to live in.”

“Then we’ll make sure they understand their mistake,” Sam agreed, his face tightening as anger rushed through his limbs. His hands were also curled into fists.

There were enough monsters all around the peak that he could probably gain several levels from them, if not more. Two days...or perhaps longer depending on how quickly he could make his way down. It might even be necessary to kill everything between him and his father.

Outside, dozens of monsters suddenly felt a sharp killing intent drifting down from the peak of Sun’s Rest.