(Book 6) Echoes of War, Ch 1: Return (Patreon)

The Void was a dark and endless river. Time was meaningless. Sam’s existence was a field of silver stars that burned on the waves, rising and falling with the fluctuation of the heavens. Memories from the First Age of the Void flowed through his mind as if he had lived them. Slowly, he pulled himself free from the dark ocean and gathered up the shining stars that were his essence. An outline shimmered in the depth of the Chaos Wild, brightening moment by moment.

Burning silver eyes, curving horns, and broad shoulders gathered from starlight and became solid again, until Sam was standing in the Void. The winds of the Chaos Wild blew around him with playful breezes, tugging at his clothes and hair.

It was a long moment until he opened his eyes. When he did, a wave of hot essence rolled away like the forge fire of the dawn, burning with a brilliant silver-white flame that curled around his body and outlined him in the dark. The structure of the Void was clear to him and his gaze was piercing as he searched. His attention finally settled on a specific point. It was blue and silver, too far away even for his eyes to distinguish. It shone in his mind instead.

Aster Fall.

He studied it for a while and then he turned away, looking for another area. It didn’t take him long to find the sun of Alora’s world that he’d left many years before. Her world, Verdant, was much closer than Aster Fall, settled on the edge of the Borderlands and the wild. Its green star shone like a small emerald.

It had been a long time since he’d taken a step and his body was newly remade by the Void, but he didn’t delay as he began to walk. His muscles crackled with essence as they continued to fill in. Ahead of him, the astral paths glimmered between the stars. For now, he ignored them. He would take them soon enough, but first he wanted to familiarize himself with the changes from the Dream of the Void. He also needed to let his body adjust. Walking was best for that.

He looked around the Chaos Wild as he continued walking, sensing the flow of essence through the Void. The stars gave off a unique signature that told him exactly where he was. He could feel the presence of Void beasts scattered here and there, some of them very strong. It all felt different than before, more familiar and vivid.

Things had changed while he’d been dreaming. He could feel a sense of violence on the wind where a nearly-forgotten aggression was rising to a peak. It rumbled in the distant corners of the Void like wolves growling, their heads low and threatening as their fur stood on end. Their fangs were bared. Tempers that had long been held were rising to the fore, exploding into conflict, and

blood stained the Chaos Wild, spreading in every direction.

The Chaos Wild was always dangerous, but this was new. There was a dissatisfaction as if it knew a war was approaching. Beasts were fighting one another, their battles more violent than before. Humans and other races, though less sensitive to the changes of the Void, were probably having trouble sleeping, their dreams filled with strife. The feeling was familiar, a thin edge of bloodlust that he knew intimately.

His eyes turned toward the Nexus, sensing the distant flow of energy. Some instinct told him the balance was shifting and that the Nexus was at the center of it. The edge of battle he sensed came from the essence of two galaxies colliding. All living things here could feel the pressure of an enemy at their throat, even if they didn’t know what it was.

The First War had once spread across most of the galaxy. It had been millions of years, but the Void remembered. The fragments of essence left behind by the battle were part of everything, and they resonated as they felt it approaching again. If the World Seal failed, the war would come again.

It echoed like a drum in his mind.

He wasn’t sure if it had always been like this or if it was something new, something he could only sense now that he’d finished the Dream. Either way, it was a clear warning that something was gravely wrong.

He drew in a deep breath of starlight and sent the energy inward, willing his body to reconstruct itself more quickly. Swirling stars and hazy dust gathered around his waist, stretching down toward his legs that were barely visible still.

As part of the Dream, he’d merged into the Void and been born again from it. It had completely restructured his body, finishing what his evolutions began. Every fragment had been reborn from stardust and essence. He set that aside for the moment as he turned his attention to more significant issues.

How much time has passed? His thought was directed to the Titan Star, which had reformed with him from the Void.

The Dream of the Void lasted for 120 years, 3 months, and 16 days. The star answered his question in an instant. Its tone was as calm as ever, despite how long it had been since they last spoke. Total time spent on the Path of Stars is 152 years, 1 month, and 7 days.

How does that compare to time on Aster Fall? Sam’s next question followed, demanding an answer. As long as it had been for him, time there was faster. Hopefully, it hadn’t been too long.

At a conservative estimate, it has been over seven months, the star replied.

If it takes another thirty years to return, then add two more months to that, Sam said as he looked up. A pang of regret went through him as he considered the time. Altey’s birthday was only a couple of months away when I left.

It meant he’d missed it, and for a moment it pulled his attention away from the Void. Her birthday might be a minor event in the grand scheme of things, but his family was what kept him grounded. His evolution as an Astral Titan and the memories he’d inherited from the Void hadn’t changed that. He hoped she’d found some friends while he was gone and that she hadn’t been too lonely.

I’ll have to make it up to her when I get back. He’d missed one birthday, and there was no changing that. All he could do was make the next one.

Streams of starlight wrapped around his hand as he looked down at his palm. They swiftly gathered together into the shape of a book. Then it changed into a dagger, followed by a flute. Then it changed into a spear. Finally, he let out a small laugh as he let it dissipate. He wasn’t sure what she would want or what he could bring home for her.

At the same time, he was probably worrying too much. His sister was even more serious than he was. She’d want to know what happened in the Void more than she’d want a present. Then she'd tell him he should have beaten up his enemies more. There was a stubborn streak in her, one that was very familiar. Like him, she wouldn’t allow anything to harm their family.

A light chuckle floated through the Void as he pushed the worry to the side of his mind. He’d have thirty years on the way home to think of a gift. Right now, there were more immediate things he had to deal with.

First were the changes from the Dream of the Void. He looked down at his body, which was still translucent in some areas, especially his legs. They were slowly filling in and returning to the familiar golden skin tone as he drew essence from the Void around him, but at the moment his legs were just outlines filled with dust and sparkling starlight. His meridians were bright paths of power running through them.

With each moment, the winds of the Chaos Wild were swirling around like trails of fog as they poured new essence into him. He studied it for a moment before he nodded. The reconstruction would be finished about the same time as his essence pool refilled, within the next couple of hours. It wouldn’t take so long in the future, but the first time was more complicated. It was establishing a pattern for the future.

When he finished assessing the progress, he turned to his status sheet. There were some changes on it. Notably, he’d passed 10,000 Constitution while he was in the Dream, and he’d gained about 400,000 essence from passive absorption.

Level: 310

Class: Lord of Silver Stars

Subclass: Guardian of Aster Fall

Height: 138ft.

Age: 172 years.

Essence Constellation (Second Star): 2,974,322 / 5,000,000

STR: 9,323

CON: 10,497

AGI: 3,298

WIS: 2,022

INT: 15,982

AUR: 15,982

CHA: 1,733

He was still at the Second Star, which wasn’t fully grown for an Astral Titan, but he was nothing like he’d been when he left Aster Fall. More than that, his Charisma was boosting all of his attributes. The attribute had finally come into its own with his Blessing of Silver Stars class ability. It was also why he’d been able to complete the Dream so quickly. If it had been lower, it would have taken him even longer.

With his Constitution over 10,000, a new racial ability had appeared, and he studied it next.

Racial Ability: Physique of the Stars (Innate Constitution).

[You are born from the Void, every part of your body constructed from starlight and essence. As a result, it is difficult for damage from elemental sources to affect you. As long as your spirit remains, you gain the ability to regenerate your physical structure while bathed in starlight.]

It was a physique unique to him, a combination of his abilities and the path he’d followed to this point. Other Titans had their own physiques, each of them different according to their nature. If he’d chosen a different class, one attuned to Fire or Ice, his physique would have been based on that instead.

It was also a redefinition of his physical existence. He’d been immune to fire for a long time, and with Elemental Mastery, other elements hadn’t affected him too much, but this was a step further. He’d been reborn from his choices. While he couldn’t claim to be immortal, it would be difficult to kill him now. An enemy would have to destroy his spirit and keep him away from all starlight and essence, or he would be continually reborn.

Before the Dream, he would have been surprised by it, but now he just nodded. All traits and abilities came from your attunement to the underlying laws of existence. Codifying them into these categories was just a way of describing them. Class choices were a large part of that, a way of realizing your potential in a certain direction.

His Spatial Awareness, Titan’s Wrath, and Battle Aura abilities had also broken past their tier limits and were marked as Special. Thanks to the memories of the Dream, there was no longer any difficulty with his racial abilities. They were as familiar as his own breath. The rest of his abilities were the same as when he’d entered the Dream, but with the heritage he’d gained, it would be easier to increase them in the future.

A crackle of starry essence ran along his shoulders as he stretched. His thoughts were clear for the first time in a while and with the edge of battle on the wind to push him forward, he knew exactly what he needed to do.

Aster Fall was still under threat. The Dimensional Convergence and the Breaking weren’t going to stop just because he was in the Void. He had to get back to protect his family. That meant repairing the Moonlight Relic and doing what he could for the World Core and World Seal.

He also needed to find Asenya, wherever she’d gone. Her memory fragment in the Wild Tree had given him the title of High Artificer of Aster Fall, which should open most doors there. He would make the most of it as he searched for her.

Right now, the first step was to collect the nagas he’d left behind. He had plans for his Silver Army. If he could take them back to Aster Fall with him, things would get very interesting. A smile crossed his lips as he wondered what the warriors had been up to for the last century.

Hopefully, they hadn’t wrecked Alora’s world. Their enthusiasm was a dangerous thing. Once he picked them up, he would summon the Will of the Path to take him home. Plans for the future settled into place as he adjusted to the changes and continued to draw in essence.

A short while later, the astral path that led to Alora’s homeworld appeared in front of him, shining like a silver trail through the stars. A brilliant streak flashed through the Void as he stepped onto it and disappeared.

*****

Alora’s system appeared with a wash of light like Sam had stepped into a green ocean. The two worlds closest to the sun gleamed with life, far more than he remembered. When he saw that, he let out a quiet laugh.

“It looks like you’ve been doing well for yourselves,” he said, his voice echoing warmly in the Void.

A moment later, his eyes narrowed as he caught sight of a fleet of a dozen ships that were swiftly cutting through the Void on an approach to Alora’s homeworld. They were made of a light yellow wood that was heavily enchanted, but instead of being wide-bodied merchant ships designed to carry cargo, these had an angular, war-like appearance. Bright red slashes decorated the prows and there were angled chevrons on the white sails that looked like spears pointing forward.

At their current speed, they would reach Verdant within a couple of hours.

A dark expression crossed Sam’s features as he looked closer, his eyes picking out the people standing on the deck. They were humanoid, but taller than average, most of them eight feet or more. Wide branching antlers decorated their foreheads, extending for several feet to either side like a stag’s. Gold and silver bands decorated them like marks of rank. They were powerfully muscled, their hands gripping spears and enchanted staves as they stood in neatly ordered lines on the deck. He shook his head as he recognized the race.

They were the same Blood Hunters that had been harassing Alora’s family a century before. They’d wanted the Wild Grove back then and had been plotting with Alora’s uncle Nares to seize it. He didn’t know what they’d been doing since he left, but it looked like they hadn’t taken his warning to heart.

There was no way they meant well, not with a dozen warships flying through the system. The enchantments on their ships were active, including their defensive wards, which meant they’d come to fight. The runes carved into the prows were releasing wisps of energy as they pushed through the chaos winds, sending a wake of elemental power to each side.

A sudden surge of anger rolled through him as he saw that. Asenya’s memory was in the Wild Spirits’ grove, embedded in the Wild Tree she’d left behind. Alora had also helped him balance his essence once. Although their account was settled after he returned her home, there was no way he was going to allow these Blood Hunters to oppress her.

His smile turned grim as for the first time in 120 years, he cracked his knuckles and set his sights on an enemy. With a flash of starlight, he disappeared from where he was standing. A moment later, he was above Alora’s world, his arms folded across his chest.

To the ships approaching, he was invisible.

He was perfectly merged with the Void, his physical presence fused into its fabric. It was only a matter of will to step forward and reappear, but he wanted to see what these Blood Hunters were going to do.