Aster Fall, Ch 52: The Grand Flaw (Patreon)

As soon as he was back to where Siwasir and the other Ice Sylphs were waiting, Sam held a brief planning session and checked on his father’s location. Then he sat down with the Pure Water Elemental Crystal, placing it on his portable table as he got to work.

The voice he’d heard a few minutes before was still ringing in his mind, and he frowned in puzzlement as he began to study the crystal. It had been a woman’s voice, rather than the World Law's, but he didn’t know who it could be.

Did everyone hear a voice like that when they reached the Epic tier, or was it something the Guardian had done? The Astral Guardian was the only person he knew who could interfere with the World Law, and even he could only do it a little.

He shook his head as he continued examining the crystal, planning out the runes he would need. The water crystal was beyond his skills to create, but he could still use it as a focal point for an enchantment. Even damaged, it held the resonance of very high level Water runes.

It hadn’t been the Guardian’s voice, but perhaps there was more than one. It had sounded ancient, so maybe it was a former Guardian.

“Do you know who that voice was?” he asked, glancing down at the Guardian Star. The star was part of him, so if he had heard it, the star must have as well.

Negative, but it can only be a memory of the individual who designed your Class. Whenever a Class is created, its pattern is preserved within the World Core along with the memory of the creator. It is a message that was left for you.

“But my class is unique.” Sam frowned as he looked down at the core. “At least in this generation. You mean there was another Battlefield Reclaimer at some point?”

Possibly, but a Class can also be created by another.

Sam frowned again. He had heard of his ancestors creating the Tower Magus subclass, but he didn’t have any information on how it was done.

“Do you think there are more records in the World Core about my class?”

If there was a memory in the World Core, he wanted to get it. His class abilities didn’t come with much information and the perspective of the creator would be invaluable.

Most likely. The Guardian Star’s voice was emotionless. However, accessing it is nearly impossible. If information was recorded for you, it will be delivered at the correct time. For now, the advice to train your abilities before Evolution is wise, in order to Evolve into a superior Class by meeting certain requirements.

“What are the requirements then?” he couldn’t help but ask. “And what are the possibilities?”

He didn’t know a lot about Evolution, although he had heard that not everyone Evolved on the same path. A Warrior, for example, had at least a dozen common variants at the First Evolution, including some for military professions and others for being an adventurer or small-group fighter.

Sometimes, strange Classes were available that had never appeared before, or a Class could jump up in rarity. He didn’t know the rules for that, but if it was just a matter of training his abilities up first, he would definitely do it.

More data is needed to predict the Evolution path for Battlefield Reclaimer.

“Alright,” he muttered as he continued marking out a runic circle around the water crystal. Once this Grand Flaw was dealt with, the path to the future was clear. He would make this mountain his base of operations, hunting around the area and eliminating threats while he focused on repairing it and improving his abilities.

The voice had told him to upgrade all of his core abilities. As far as he could tell, that meant all of his class and subclass abilities, at least the ones that could be upgraded. His Fire Affinity and Enhanced Senses were racial abilities, so he didn’t think those counted.

It would be somewhat time-consuming to make sure all of his abilities were at Epic, but the Moonlight Relic’s enchantments were based on aura, and surely studying that would help to get up his skills in Imbue, Intensify, Transfer, and the rest.

As for Reclaim Aura, he’d hunt more monsters and Outsiders and reclaim their auras. That would also let him get the battle abilities from his subclass to the maximum. Between hunting and enchanting, he’d be doing his job, growing stronger, and giving himself the best path forward for his Evolution.

Right now, however, he needed to focus on the Grand Flaw. As he continued to work, the design around the water crystal expanded, its swirling lines becoming filled with abstract symbols. Some of them were runes he had learned from enchanting, but most came from the ruins themselves.

The pattern was a rough approximation of the relic’s energy transfer enchantment. He wasn’t able to use the true version from the core enchantment yet, but he’d become very familiar with these lines that were everywhere here. With just a touch of insight from building the moonlight blade trap, he was able to recreate the most basic connections for them.

On top of that, the crystal had been part of the relic’s enchantment for a very long time and was imbued with its purpose. He was only encouraging it to do what it had always done, like awakening a memory.

After a little while, he began to pull auras out of his storage, bringing them close to the crystal as he examined the reaction. He needed to find a few that were compatible.

---

“We’re approaching the outskirts of the Grand Flaw now,” Jeric’s voice echoed across the amulet and rumbled in Sam’s mind. “Are you safe?”

His voice was steady and deep. Whatever he’d experienced with the church forces at the other two flaws, it must have gone well.

“As safe as possible,” Sam replied with a frown as he studied the area below. “Be careful of traps as you head forward.”

He was observing the area around the Grand Flaw from nearly a mile away. It had taken them an hour to reach this point on the seventh layer, but it wouldn’t take very long to close the rest of the distance. The Ice Sylphs were with him, preparing their weapons and spells for the assault.

Above, Elsanar was circling in the sky, so far away that he looked like a tiny speck against Caelus’ blue disk. The Moon of the Heavens had nearly reached his zenith, marking out that there was barely half an hour left until midnight.

The Grand Flaw shimmered in his awareness as the Guardian Star projected a map of the area. The details were indistinct and he couldn’t tell where the Outsiders were, but the flaw itself was easy to identify within the cluster of buildings.

This area was an old transportation hub and the flaw was inside a large building that had once served as a warehouse for shipping goods. Large expanses of open space surrounded it that had been staging areas for flying beasts, wagons, and even teleportation enchantments.

Now, the area was covered in snow. If he hadn’t known the flaw was down there, it would have looked like any other abandoned section of the ruins. Knowing the Icebloods, however, it wouldn’t be that easy.

There should be at least ten Outsiders here, along with twenty or more monsters, based on the relic’s scan, the Guardian Star agreed, but it is likely to be more. The fluctuations of the Grand Flaw are capable of concealing many additional presences.

He frowned as he studied them, tracing the paths that he could see from the map and comparing it to reality to see if he could make out any changes. Instead of harmless open plains, the expanses of snow made him think of killing fields that could be hiding any number of curses or traps.

He wanted to be down there, cutting his way through the Outsiders as soon as possible, but he’d agreed to provide overwatch until the battle was underway, using his information on the flaw and the map of the ruins to help coordinate the arrival of the church forces.

He’d already helped to guide them in an arc, so they would come in from a flanking position rather than straight through the old staging areas.

Once the church engaged, he would add his strength from a distance. It wasn’t as satisfying as tearing the Outsiders apart barehanded, but it would let him unleash his strength without revealing his appearance.

Lenei had never mentioned his appearance, and he had no intention of showing his face to the Church forces. Even the Guardian Star wasn’t a guarantee that they would listen.

As far as he was concerned, it would be best if the church only heard of the ‘demon’ who was working with the Ice Sylphs as a distant rumor, something a hallucinating prisoner might have come up with. Let them think of Sam Hastern and the Horned Hunter of the Moons as two different people, and then forget about him.

And as an added benefit, staying at a distance would make his father worry less, even though there was still a stubborn streak telling him to be down there in the middle of it, cutting his way through the Icebloods and whatever they’d come up with.

He wanted to feel the impact as they disintegrated.... A frown distorted his features as he reined in the battle lust and let out a deep breath. With his Charisma, it wasn’t difficult to restrain it, but it still seemed to slip out whenever he thought about fighting.

He reached back and checked on the water crystal across his back. The same hide was wrapped around it to protect it, but this time there was a large sheet of high-quality parchment rolled up beside it, one that he’d cut from the center of a wyvern wing and imbued with several different auras. He checked that as well, making sure that it was safe.

DRuUUmmmMMMmm.

A low, resonant rumble like the drumbeat of the earth marked the arrival of the church forces. The first sign was a long, white line that appeared above the snow with shining silver points, like an avalanche flowing in reverse that was crowned by stars. A moment later, the edge of the wave crested, breaking apart into orderly rows of cavalry atop stamping horses and armored war lizards with dark blue scales.

Behind them, infantry followed. Spears and helmets reflected the light of the moons and glowed with the brilliant white energy that the World Law had granted to the church. Blessed mana radiated from the Priests, Paladins, and other church warriors like a lake of righteousness.

The force was divided into three main sections, each of them about forty strong. Across those ranks, there were half a dozen Paladins, ten Priests, and more than a hundred Warriors and other classes who served the church.

They were distant, but after a moment he picked out his father from the ranks. He wasn’t difficult to find. Jeric was riding beside Lenei at the head of one group, next to their commander.

Human. Paladin Commander-Bright Captain. Level 122.

It was a woman, a detail he could barely make out at this distance behind her armor, and her classes caught his attention. Her main class was also an Evolved Paladin and her subclass had to be some type of military or church class, one that was focused on commanding forces. He didn’t focus on her for long, however, as his attention moved immediately to his father and Lenei.

Jeric Hastern. Earthen Marauder-Blessed Merchant of the Earth. Level 64.

Lenei. Paladin of Law-Spirit Healer. Level 66.

They had definitely gained a few levels from their hunting. His father had been 56 when they’d separated. It wasn’t as many levels as he’d gained, but his father had been hunting with a group. Lenei had also picked up some levels. She had been 60 before.

With a wave of her arm, the commander led her forces forward, stopping a hundred yards away from the expanse of snow that led up to the buildings. The church forces were too numerous for subtlety, so they had chosen to not even attempt it.

Despite the battles they had just fought, they arrived in perfectly dressed battle lines, with every mount lined up chest to chest with the one next to it. Even though they had some injuries, their postures were upright and forceful. Their lances were a long row pointing toward the heavens.

“We’re ready to support from above,” Sam’s voice echoed in his father’s ears as he sent the message. “As soon as you move, we’ll attack. Be careful of traps in front of you.”

So far, there was no response from the Outsiders near the flaw. They were pretending not to be here, but it was unlikely that would last for long. Unless they were planning to retreat through the flaw, all they could do now was fight.

“Don’t take any risks,” his father’s voice rumbled back. “If you feel angry, step back. There’s a better way. Fight with your mind clear.”

At the same time, Jeric passed the word on to the captain next to him, who nodded and turned to issue orders to her troops. The lines of mounts and foot soldiers shifted, taking on a new formation with the Paladins at the front. The Priests took up a supporting position behind them and blessings began to radiate outward as their magic flowed over the troops.

“A Grand Flaw is a scourge to the land,” Siwasir said quietly from near Sam’s shoulder. He looked over at the young man next to him, his gaze fixed on Sam’s face. Calmness radiated from him. “The goddess granted us life in the midst of a war with Outsiders like these, but much worse. At our birth, we were shaped from her tears to fight them. As an Initiate of Ice, you are part of that heritage, Sam Hastern. Until the mountains crumble or Aster Fall stands on her own. Are you ready?”

His words evoked an echo from the land around them, a deep pulse of Ice and a powerful rumble from the snow. It called to Sam’s spirit, bringing with it a desire for battle and a feeling of unshakable certainty, as if the land below his feet were rising up to support him.

“Until the mountains crumble or Aster Fall stands on her own,” Sam replied, his voice echoing as he put that feeling into words. He was going to crush the Outsiders who had dared to invade his home. His aura intensified as crystal flame poured out of him, condensing into a battle spiral.

Below, the captain raised her hand and with a barked order, dropped it. The chanting of priests rose up across the field, accompanied by the drumbeats of troops hammering their weapons against their shields.

Spell formations flickered out around the field in spinning diagrams that surrounded the troops, sinking into their armor and weapons. As it did, the infantry stepped forward, raising their spears as the light surged around them.

The spears caught fire, outlined in that light, and at a shouted command, the ranks stepped forward as they hurled them into the air. All along the line, points of brilliant white light rose up as dozens of burning spears flew outward.

The barrage rose in a whistling arc and suddenly multiplied into twenty times as many, until there were at least a thousand spears in the air. Like a rain of judgment, they glowed brighter as they turned the zenith of their arc and hurtled down toward the field below.

Explosions tore apart the field of white snow as they landed, followed a moment later by a cascade of deep, booming echoes that rolled across the area.

For a moment, there was only a blinding light that obscured the field, but then a glowing blue shield became visible across the field, hugging tight to the ground. It was tattered in places where the spears had ripped through it, but it was still holding.

It was similar to the shield that had been around the fifth flaw, but there were cloudy red and yellow splotches swirling across this one.

With a rumble, the snowy plain shivered. Snow floated upward as an enormous current of mana became apparent. All through the area, the shield began to vibrate as that energy flowed into it and then it rose higher. The colors intensified as the gaps in it began to disappear.

“Paladins forward! Priests to support. Advance!” The Paladin Commander’s voice echoed out across the area as she sent orders to her troops. All across the line, the Paladins at the head of the troops raced forward, their bodies turning into shining blurs of energy as they targeted the shield. Behind them, the chanting of the priests surged upward.

The land all around the troops was covered in a giant Ward of Law and now a deep, echoing thrrummmm of activated abilities and an enormous pulse of mana exploded upward, spiraling outward to form a row of flaming white hawks that soared through the sky.

Their size expanded until they were each thirty feet across and then they turned, folding their wings as they dived toward the barrier. They struck it with gigantic, echoing blasts of force that sent the cracks shivering outward as they expanded.

An instant later, the commander and the two other church captains blurred through the air ahead of their troops, slamming into the shield with explosive force. The glow of individual abilities outlined them, including a soaring force that ate away at the shield’s edge. The shield shuddered as cracks sparked across its surface, but it continued to rise upward.

With those gaps, the Paladins could have broken through the shield, but they would have had to separate from the forces behind them. Instead, they stayed there, their abilities clashing with the shield as they raced across the snow, searching for the talismans that gave it life.

At that moment, the snowy plain shuddered. The buildings that had been on the surface swayed in the wind as they began to fall apart, and then they exploded, their walls blasting outward to reveal the inside.

Stones that had been stacked around the buildings went flying, blasting through everything within two hundred feet, but fortunately they fell short of the troops. In the dark spaces that were revealed, the looming forms of four enormous, dark beasts and a dozen small groups of Outsiders and monsters were revealed.

At the center of it all, a space suddenly sprang into existence between one instant and the next. A moment before, it had been nothing but empty snow that stretched between the buildings.

Now, the Grand Flaw shone there like a dark, burning sun.

It drew Sam’s attention like an irresistible whirlpool. Just looking at it, it felt like he was falling forward, about to be swept away by it to another place. He only had to reach out and.... He pulled his attention away with a jerk, forcing himself to only look at it from the corner of his eye.

It was nothing at all like he’d expected. Instead of being a tear in the air, it resembled a roiling sphere. It was far larger than the transit point, stretching almost forty feet across from side to side. Seeing it, he started to realize why a Grand Flaw was something entirely different from a regular one.

There was a sense of space twisting in it, as if the laws of the world didn’t apply. A ring of distorted flames swirled and curved back in on themselves before spiraling outward again. Ripples of colors passed across the surface, only to be swallowed and replaced a moment later by others.

There was a pause across the battlefield as everyone took in the Grand Flaw, and then a sweeping aura of blood-tinged snow swept outwards as the surface of the flaw rippled. From inside, dark shapes appeared, slowly stretching as if they were being twisted apart.

A moment later, a horde of Outsiders flowed out from the interior, letting out roars as they raced onto the snow and joined the groups that were already in the area. Only a breath later, the number of enemies had more than tripled.

Eight Iceblood Shamans, four Iceblood Warriors, five Iceblood Hunters.... The impassive voice of the Guardian Star rang in Sam’s mind, calculating the additions. It didn’t take it long to finish, but the words sent shivers down his spine.

As well as twelve Greenscale Abyssal Serpents, eighteen Icesoul Wraiths, thirteen Diamondfang Ice Vipers, seven Coldfang Beheaders, three Ice Wyverns, and four Outsider war beasts at the First Evolution.

Ignoring the war beasts, the average level is 68. There are 74 enemies present.

The average level of the church forces is 62.

Comparative Force: 58% in favor of the Outsiders due to the advantage granted by the war beasts.

Just as he was about to ask what the war beasts were, the four enormous forms that had been hidden in the buildings raised their heads, shouldering aside the stones around them as they climbed to their feet. Each of them was taller than the building they had been in, even larger than the basilisk.

They were a strange amalgamation of features that gave off a sense of twisted, overwhelming strength. They were hugely muscled, with long tusks jutting from triangular, scaled heads like a lizard’s, and they stood on scaled legs like tree trunks. Their bodies were armored in rows of tightly-placed overlapping scales in pale yellow and dark red, and below their jutting foreheads, six red eyes gleamed like dull embers. Sharp spikes covered their head, spine, and knees.

Outsider War Beast. Level 125.

The impression they gave was of overwhelming strength, as if anything that dared to stand in front of them would be trampled to nothing. Compared to their massive bulk, the forms of the three church commanders were tiny fireflies.

As he looked at them, a sense of just how bad the situation was filled his mind. He hadn’t expected that they would have reinforcements waiting inside the flaw. Even with the church’s preparations, the forces at the Grand Flaw were stronger. There was also no telling what traps or curses the Outsiders had prepared.

Down there, standing straight and serious as he raised his hammers into the air, his father stood side by side with Lenei at the head of the forces. He’d rushed forward with her to assault the shield.

Sam’s attention locked onto him as the crystal flame around him surged upward in an enormous curtain.