Echoes of War, Ch 36: A History of Battle (Patreon)

The Void flashed past in a ripple of silver light and then Sam reappeared. The stars were different here and Aster Fall was too far away to be seen. Ahead of him, he could see the Vos’Rekan in the distance. It didn’t travel in the same way as a titan, but it was still fast, and it was heading straight for him.

Its body was similar to a giant alligator, except it was the size of a moon. It had four arms that ended in sharp claws, each of them a hundred meters long, and two legs that were longer than seemed natural as they stretched back, almost like a frog’s. Its clawed feet were webbed between the digits and there were bright silver fins along the sides of its legs, like sails that were extended.

Some of the beast’s speed came from those sails, which were radiating a massive amount of power as they absorbed the energy of the chaos winds. The fins were as sharp as blades and were also one of its natural weapons. Spikes along its back rose up like a mountain range, releasing a wave of force that joined the energy from its sails to drive it forward.

Its head was an enormous gnarled wedge covered in scales, with a mouth that was even wider than the rest of its body. It stretched to the sides like a massive open cavern and at the center, there was an enormous black vortex devouring the energy of the Chaos Wild. That was the main way the Vos’Rekan flew. They devoured energy from the front and expelled it from their spikes and fins, creating their own current of power.

It wasn’t purely physical speed. They devoured dimensional energy as well, thinning out the space in front of them and restoring it as they passed by, so that it was like they were constantly falling forward in a dimension of their own with almost nothing to slow them down. It sounded awkward, but they were quick and agile, fully at home in the Void.

Their traveling dimension was also a strong defense, making it difficult for anything to injure them until they stopped. Anything that got in front of one was likely to be devoured in an instant and turned into their own energy.

Even now, the Vos’Rekan was like a massive bow wave of destruction cutting through the Void. The edge of the dimensional bubble preceding it was half present in the main dimension, shattering everything it struck like a massive ram. Rocks, dust, and anything unlucky enough to be in the way broke apart and fell toward the vortex in its mouth.

This was a Vos’Rekan’s basic and laziest harvesting method. They would fly toward something they saw and slam straight into it, relying on their massive size and the force of their dimensional energy to break it apart. Then they would swallow the remains. This one was obviously hungry after waking up, and it wasn’t bothering to take a more selective approach. Despite that, it was on a direct course for Aster Fall.

Even as he watched, the Vos’Rekan approached an asteroid field in the distance where a group of Void beasts were living. They were Icy Rift Scorpions, a type of scorpion-like ice elemental with six limbs and a spade-shaped tail that could launch blades of ice and mana, and they weren’t small beasts.

Each of them was about forty feet long with a narrow profile and sharp joints like spikes. The rocks they were living on were a mile or more across in places, which was one of their main defenses. Unfortunately for them, the Vos’Rekan didn’t even slow down. It just curved toward them to get a more direct angle of attack.

Its mouth gaped as it approached, the dark vortex at the center swirling out wider. Then the leading edge of its dimensional bubble struck the asteroid field like a giant ram, sending a wave of cracks through every rock in the vicinity. Many exploded into dust and fragments, but those that endured the initial strike weren’t much better. The dimensional energy spread through them, wobbling between the present dimension and the Vos’Rekan’s personal subdimension, and the shifting forces tore them apart from the inside, shredding the area in front of it.

The Vos’Rekan’s mouth opened wide and stones began to fly into it as it neared the edge of the asteroid field, sucked in by the draw. The Icy Rift Scorpions followed, the pulverized chunks of their bodies flying toward it in blue and white shards. Within minutes, the entire colony and half of the asteroid field where they’d lived was simply gone.

They were in the Third Evolution, but they didn’t stand a chance against the Vos’Rekan. Behind the Vos’Rekan, a river of elemental winds poured out from its fins, the remains of its lunch that it didn’t want to eat. It created a new trail of dust through the stars.

“Cursed lizard,” Sam muttered as his hand tightened on the spear. Old memories of inherited fear and rage filled his mind, making it hard for him to watch the destruction without moving. The spear shook in his grip, its blade hissing as it cut the elemental winds, and his heart thundered, telling him with every beat that he had to kill it.

Of all the enemies the Astral Titans had faced over the ages, Vos’Rekan were the worst. There was no point in trying to communicate with one. The titans had tried a few times, but the beasts’ thoughts were only about eating or sleeping. If it wasn’t doing the first, it was doing the other. There was no in-between or negotiation.

They were the all-devouring maws of the Void, and they liked it that way. Everything was food to them.

“Soon,” he growled as he took in the rest of the situation. He couldn’t just run forward. Without a plan, the lizard would swallow him too. He wondered how many young titans this one had killed in ages past.

At his current height of 200 feet, he wasn’t even as tall as one of its claws. His expression was hard as he studied the beast’s approach and plans flickered through his mind. Old memories of the titans’ battles with Vos’Rekan, of the racial abilities he had access to and the ones that he knew the Vos’Rekan would use, and of new possibilities that he could leverage now flowed through his mind as he settled on a plan.

He had to lure it away, but it wasn’t going to be easy. Vos’Rekan were single minded once they spotted food, so he’d have to give it something that looked even better than Aster Fall. That meant using himself as bait. Then, once he got its attention, he needed to make it chase him instead of continuing on to the world.

He could travel the astral paths to escape from it, which was an ability the Vos’Rekan didn’t have, but that would also make it lose the trail. If it got close enough, its dimensional bubble would lock down the Void. At that point, all he could do was fight. He’d have to skip ahead of it in short distances to keep its attention.

Once he stepped off an astral path, the Vos’Rekan would quickly close the distance between them. It was stronger than he was and faster in the Void. It would be like trying to stay ahead of a lightning bolt. The only good news was that once it caught sight of him, it should stay interested.

Essence called to essence.

The ancient rivalry between Astral Titan and Vos’Rekan meant that it would definitely try to kill and eat him. In the same way, he could sense the essence in it. It was like a glowing dark sun that threatened to engulf him at the same time as he wanted to tear it apart and take it for himself. If he had the essence from this thing, his strength would explode through the sky.

It took a massive force of will to focus on what he needed to do instead of sprinting straight for it. He dragged his attention away from its essence as he analyzed it. A quick glance told him the World Core’s estimate was right. It was just barely into its version of the Fifth Star. It also had quite a few titles and abilities.

Vos’Rekan. Primordial Void Beast. Level 502.

Titles: Sun Eater, Devourer of Life, Dimension Hunter.

Abilities: Endless Devouring, Void Stomach, Dimension Bubble, Eternal Body of Stone and Dust, Regenerative Sleep, Stone Form Hibernation, Greater Elemental Resistance, Greater Dimensional Resistance, Innate Void Affinity.

The list of its abilities went on, all of them clear in Sam’s mind, but those were the highlights, so he ignored the rest. It was a true Primordial beast that was as old as the Astral Titans. Its control over dimensional energy and its racial devouring abilities were immensely powerful, not to mention its sheer size.

He narrowed his eyes as he took in the difference. It wasn’t the biggest Vos’Rekan he’d ever heard of, but it was about five hundred miles long from nose to tail, and its mouth was fifty miles wide. While it was perhaps only ten times as strong as him, it was thousands of times larger.

He’d be lucky to give it indigestion if it ate him.

Since he couldn’t measure up in a direct contest of size or strength, he would have to hope that he was smarter. The main difference in power between a Vos’Rekan and an Astral Titan was their consciousness and the Class system. They both had a foundation as Primordial beings, but Vos’Rekan didn’t use classes. They were beasts, with their racial instincts and abilities determining their strength.

Classes were a result of the Titans’ personal studies into self-advancement, a way of maximizing one of the non-essence energies of the Void for their own use. Now, it was also Sam’s main advantage against this Vos’Rekan, just like it had been for the titans long before the civilized galaxy was founded.

Despite that, the Vos’Rekan wasn’t at a huge disadvantage. They consumed experience along with every other type of energy in the Void, using it to strengthen their bodies and increase their size. Even with his racial abilities, it would be hard to injure it.

Winning was basically impossible unless the Vos’Rekan choked while eating him.

Inherited memories and the present ran together in Sam’s mind, making it feel like time was stretching out as he decided on the route he wanted to take. At the speed it was approaching, he couldn’t just make it turn around. He needed to lead it away in an arc while trying to stay ahead of it.

It was already closer to Aster Fall than the Astral Guardian could be, but it hadn’t destabilized the World Seal yet. That was the only silver lining. The World Seal was more tolerant of primordial energy and Void beasts. Their energy was in tune with the Chaos Wild, which was the Seal’s natural environment. Just like it could operate within the normal chaos winds, it wasn’t disturbed by their presence.

It had been built that way, since otherwise, the energy of the Void itself would damage it, as would any powerful beasts wandering by. Additionally, the Vos’Rekan was at the Fifth Star, not the Fifth Evolution, and it didn’t have the same dimensional warping of mana that came with the higher evolutions, but that advantage wouldn’t last forever.

If the Vos’Rekan got too close, it would still break the World Seal. The dimensional bubble around it would eventually shatter it like a moon hitting a planet. It was only a question of whether that would happen first or if it would manage to devour Aster Fall before then.

The ancient one at the end of the First War that had damaged the World Core had also been lured away. It was a temporary solution, but if he could get it far enough away from Aster Fall, then the Astral Guardian might be able to help him fight. Together, they stood a chance of injuring it, but it still wasn’t a good one.

He’d heard the doubt in the guardian’s words when he spoke about driving off the Vos’Rekan. The guardian had put up a brave front to reassure him, but the difference between the early Fifth Evolution guardians that the Vos’Rekan had eaten in the past and a peak Fifth Evolution guardian like the crystal flame elemental was only about three times in pure attributes. Abilities and insights could make a big difference, but they didn’t change that basic fact.

Sam was already as strong in pure attributes as an early Fifth Evolution being, and perhaps even a bit more after his latest essence gain from the spirits. That meant the Astral Guardian was also about three times stronger than him, and only a third as strong as the Vos’Rekan. It also remained to be seen whether he could do much against the beast’s resistances. Even if the guardian came out to help, there was no guarantee they would win.

Either way, it was still their best shot, so he needed to put some distance between the Vos’Rekan and Aster Fall. The dimensional emanations of a Fifth Evolution battle could stretch across vast distances through nearby subdimensions, so he needed it to be well away from the World Seal.

Another star system or two from here should be enough.

Even if the guardian tried to limit his strength, it wouldn’t make a difference. His passive mana regeneration drew energy from the nearby dimensions. The emanations would disrupt the World Seal. At its prime state, the World Core would rebalance the energy, but it was too damaged.

Killing the Vos’Rekan together was probably out of the question, but if they injured it enough, it would retreat and go into hibernation, which could last for ten thousand years or more. Once the devourers started sleeping, it took a while before they woke up. That would kick the problem down the road, which was basically what someone had done to them this time.

Sam muttered at that, as he suddenly realized what the galaxy was like without the Astral Titans around. This thing should have been hunted down ages ago when it ate the last guardians, but no one had the guts to do it. They’d just hoped it would leave them alone.

It didn’t leave a good impression.

While the Council of Nine was keeping an eye on Aster Fall, their efforts were pretty minimal. They rebuilt it enough so that the Nexus wouldn’t spill out, but that was it. They were limited by their abilities, but at the same time they were probably hoping the titans would come back and fix things.

Sam snorted as he looked down at the spear in his hand with a wry expression. It seemed they were getting their wish with him, even if he wasn’t as strong as the older titans.

Despite that, he was still going to do his best. His family and friends were all on Aster Fall. If the Vos’Rekan arrived, they wouldn’t even know what happened before it swallowed the world.

He’d had enough time to send them a message, but the contents weren’t long. All he’d sent in a hurry was that there was a threat approaching Aster Fall from the Void, and he was going out to face it. If he succeeded, he’d be back. If not, hopefully he could still do enough damage to stop this thing. They deserved to know that much, rather than being left in the dark.

Maybe one day, they would be able to come out here and walk in the Void with him, but it would take a while and first they had to survive.

His backup plans for the Vos’Rekan included trying to tap into the power of the three moons near Aster Fall, collapsing a section of the World Seal around the beast and exiling it through the Nexus with the help of the World Core, trying to get the Path to interfere from a distance, and more. Each of them was less practical than the last. Some of them were just mutually assured destruction, since if it came close enough for the plan to work, the World Seal would definitely shatter.

Even tossing the Vos’Rekan into a star wouldn’t work. The thing would consume the energy and leave. It was the same as trapping it in a subdimension. The dimensional bubble it traveled in made it immune to most forms of dimensional interference. It would just tear through the Void and fly out again, while eating whatever was in the way.

It wasn’t a Primordial beast for nothing.

The early Void had been far more chaotic and storms of dimensional energy were common back then. The Vos’Rekan’s resistances were a reminder of that, and it meant that a lot of his abilities would do less damage to it.

All of those thoughts ran through his head and then were gone as he prepared himself for battle. Then astral energy coiled around him in a massive wave, creating a river of silver fire like a banner in the dark. At the same time, he made his essence flare like a star, outlining his presence.

“I challenge you, lizard.” Sam’s voice carried across the distance on a wave of shaped essence that flew toward the Vos’Rekan like a spear. “Let me see which of us will still be alive tomorrow. Come and try to eat me if you dare!”

The Vos’Rekan was still a long distance away, but it didn’t take long for it to see him. With the flaming outline, Sam was hard to miss. The beast shifted its head and stared straight at him. A savage glint shone in its yellow eyes as they fixed on him. As soon as they looked at each other, the primordial essence of their bloodlines roared like two suns warring in the sky.

The angle of the Vos’Rekan’s approach changed as it headed straight for him. Its speed was blistering as the dimensional bubble around it tore through the Void, and its wide-opened mouth was like a dark hole. He could feel the echo of hunger as the beast’s presence echoed through the Void, making the area tremble.

An instinctive awareness of having a dangerous beast staring at him ran across Sam’s skin, making his muscles twitch as the skin on the back of his neck tightened. The edges of his mouth curled up as he stared back at the Vos’Rekan, his blood boiling, and then he raised his hand. The blade of the spear in his other hand sliced across his palm, releasing a thin line of silver blood.

He raised his hand into the air, showing it to the Vos’Rekan like a promise as a trail of silver droplets flew into the Void. His hand was already healing as he turned to the side and stepped onto the chaos winds, heading away from Aster Fall.

A roar of hunger crashed through the Void like thunder behind him, silencing the chaos winds while it echoed in every direction. The beast altered its course, its massive yellow eyes unblinking. The dark vertical pupils at the center widened, fixed on the blood and then on Sam. The vortex at its throat grew larger and a wave of dimensional energy spread out from it as its speed increased.

A sense of grim satisfaction flashed across Sam’s heart as he shot into the distance. It seemed the blood and primordial essence of a titan was more tempting than the energy from Aster Fall, especially since he was closer. The Vos’Rekan and Astral Titans were ancient enemies, but they were also each others’ most desirable prey.

Some things didn’t change. It wanted to eat the delicious-looking thing in front of it before it went anywhere else.

He had memories of thousands of fights with Vos’Rekan in the early years and their habits held true. They were ruled by their stomachs. Maybe he could use that here.

He stepped onto an astral thread and flashed into the distance, putting some space between them, before he reappeared. The entire transit was only a few seconds, and he glanced back to see the effect. Behind him, the Vos’Rekan roared again as it began to accelerate, its attention locked onto him.

It was about thirty minutes away from him if he stayed still, but he needed more distance before he stopped. That would also give him some time to prepare. The new ability for Avatars of the Stars flowed through his mind as he activated it for the first time.

A wave of burning silver light flowed away from him and took on the image of a Titan-shaped flame that was filled with bright stars. A wave of weakness passed through him at the same time, making him let out a huff as part of his strength disappeared. He nearly staggered as he forced himself to keep moving on the chaos winds.

He had over 31,000 essence, and in that moment, 20,000 of it had flowed away to form the avatar. Part of his aura separated and fused into it too, lowering his attributes temporarily by 20%. At the same time, a halo of silver light shrouded the avatar as its body began to swiftly fill in.

The points of starlight expanded as they mimicked flesh and blood, bone and muscle. The familiar outline of his shoulders and head appeared, every line an exact copy of his own. The avatar’s aura began to rise as it absorbed the energy from him, swiftly increasing. It started at that base 20%, but within an hour it would reach 50%.

That was the limit for the ability at the Basic tier. Once it reached the peak, the temporary reduction in his attributes would disappear too. Until then, he was like a mana crystal charging the avatar, pushing it forward to reach its potential. The rate of its growth was based on his regeneration speed.

As it continued to gain strength, he pulled an item out of his cloak and handed it to the avatar. A hand made up of silver flames and stars reached out to take it. It was a cloak that it tossed around its shoulders, where the material trailed out like a golden streamer. More items followed, as the avatar began to equip itself.

A part of Sam’s mind was divided into the avatar’s consciousness, and he could see and feel everything that it did. With his ability to split his mind into different parts, it wasn’t a problem to maintain the connection. The avatar’s movements felt like a mirror image of his own, like reaching out his own hand to take something.

Without delay, he continued handing items to the avatar, watching as his second self put them on one at a time. There were artifacts, weapons, scrolls, spare auras, and more. Some of them disappeared into the storage bag he passed it, while the auras disappeared into a smaller version of his own aura storage dimension. He could only create one of the avatars at a time, but while it was still forming, he was going to make sure it was prepared to fight.

He glanced back over his shoulder at the Vos’Rekan, making sure that it was still in the distance and following him, and then he continued passing things to the avatar. As soon as he handed these things over, they needed to jump onto another astral path. He’d come up with a faster system in the future, like a spatial artifact that was prepared with a full set of gear, but for now, this would work.

He could make three avatars, and each of them should be almost as tempting to the Vos’Rekan as he was. They were echoes of his own energy and so they had the same feeling of essence. It would only be thinner.

He just needed to draw it away for long enough.