Chapter 276 (Patreon)

Chapter 276

The path of Red and Black called to him while the air shattered, and his specialty Blood Pillar - Profane Cyclone - was building in power as more and more of the creatures around him died like flies.  The sky was split with arcs of black lightning that roared around him as he moved in harmony with Gluttony’s own predatory instincts, smashing through enemies in explosive detonations with the original sin’s full might and amplifying it with his own innate power.

Buildings crumbled to dust, and the central purple iris on his forehead glowed brightly as the souls of his enemies were sucked into his skull with the whispered screams of the damned.

This was perhaps the very first time he’d truly been in sync with Gluttony, their combined wills dancing together like an unstoppable storm of violence while they wrecked entire squadrons of enemies in the air and on the ground alike.  It was the first time that Riven truly felt like he deserved the system title of ‘MYTHIC’, and he felt like a fallen god rising from the ashes to retake his former glory.  All that training he’d done had only been half of what he could truly bring out, and that was becoming every apparent now that his other half was involved.

Roaring hellfire exploded from his body and catapulted two mantis demons across the abyssal city into a tower with an explosion of stone, and Riven abruptly vanished into a portal to avoid ribbons of green light that sought to entangle him as a dozen enemies dashed passed allied fighters while he ducked and wove at blinding speeds under bridges between skyscrapers, through tunnels, or inbetween alleys to keep his advantage at range.  Meanwhile his four orbiting totems continued to unleash dark lightning strikes of their own accord and rapidly used small rift portals to redirect incoming attacks, while forming barriers of crimson ice to block ones the rifts didn’t catch intime.  They were machine-like in their accuracy and effectiveness.

And his other item upgrades weren’t anything to scoff at either.  With his normal mana he was able to levitate and hover, even fly to a minor extent.  With his previous version of Messenger’s armor he’d been able to use a propulsive burst to go through the air like a rocket.  But this new modified version of Messenger was on a level of control entirely new to him, and mere thought allowed him to push his mana through conduits in the armor itself that flushed the air around him with intrinsic propulsive maneuvering not seen in any kind of living thing or machine back from Earth pre-integration.  He could walk on a knife’s edge and double back or turn instantly, and without any whiplash.

He flashed forward and burst through another underpass while firing off conjured blood lances so fast that they appeared and ruptured off his arm like a gatling gun, blurring backwards at his pursuers and piercing through tough armor and hide in sprays of blood.  Crackling with lightning he zig-zagged and then broke the sound barrier - tearing a portal open in space and putting distance between the fastest of the enemy fliers before unleashing a thunderstorm of darkness.

The street behind him shattered alongside a merchant’s store, rupturing the ground and causing the entire sector of the city to shudder as chained snares bloomed from his outstretched palms and scattered - forming a web lattice around him for hundreds of yards to slow down the ones who’d survived his initial attacks.  Meanwhile his four totems orbited him in a spinning cycle that began to speed up, creating shards of sharpened ice that began collecting in protective layers as runes along each of the totems lit up brightly with red light.

[Hive Totems of Bloodforged Rift Sparks (Lesser Artifact, Elite Tier, Level 6 Totem Swarm): These totems come as a set, and new totems can be added to this number at the additional cost of Willpower - with each totem adding exponentially more Willpower to the cost.  Cost of Willpower is based upon attitude towards the wielder of this totem set, as well as current combat level.  Current Requirements:  119 Willpower, Blood Sub-Pillar, Shadow Sub-Pillar.  Bound to Riven Thane.

Adding different types of totems will change the name and description of this totem set.

Current Totems in Hive Swarm:

• 4 Totems of Bloodforged Rift Sparks

The Path of Red and Black has been imbued into these totems, along with numerous different sigils, and has used the blood of an ancient avatar of original sin to fuel its growth.  This totem has the ability to grow and level up, but diminishes in level each time one of its totems are destroyed.  This totem swarm can currently perform the following abilities:

• Black Lightning

• Crimson Ice

• Rift]

Three figures broke through the debris, tearing through the air on whistling feathered wings and outstretched spears.  Fallen angels, all dark paladins in black armor, crashed through nearby buildings towards him with relentless fury.

In turn the totems unleashed their layered shards of ice in a flash-burst.  One of the angels let out a cry of pain and the other two veered off as black electricity followed up the ice attack and smashed into the caught paladin, only for the man to let out a charge of brilliant orange light - healing his wounds and blasting the totem’s magics backwards in a new surge of resilience.

The paladins doubled their efforts while Riven flew backwards, and they simultaneously launched their spears his way while avoiding the writhing tide of nets that actively sought to take them down.

Jackal swung down and exploded in a blast of hellfire along its skull as the weapon deflected the first spear.  Riven jerked his head sideways to catch the second spear, and he formed a rift to teleport the third spear behind him right before impact.  Part of the building behind him tore apart, and the fallen angels drew swords while weaving between the thrashing network of snares before making another dive at him.

Red ice that’d been accumulating on the city streets below abruptly tore towards the heavens, with dozens of spiked pillars coming to meet the angels under Riven’s will.  

Fay’s dreamwalker zone triggered when the succubus finally caught up, and Riven used her illusion to vanish amidst a series of copies identical to himself just as the angels met his position.  A rupture of his red pillars of ice versus their enhanced physical blows crashed through the air in sprays of frost and Athela ripped off his body to change from her blood-pool form, flinging herself at the nearest of the angels and bringing the screaming man down while she rapidly impaled him over and over again at the weak spots in his armor.

Riven chuckled, reaching out a hand and turning it into a fist - as the writhing sea of snares all around them rapidly condensed.  “There is no escape for you now.”

The two remaining angels didn’t seem to notice their impending cage shrinking in, and continued their assault - lunging for him in bursts of unholy power with one going right for him and the other veering left before flanking.

A flash of gray and pink light from behind caused one of them to stumble and groan as Fay’s charm caught him flat-footed.

[Charm (Depravity) – Infatuate any enemies within range of sight that look upon you when activating this ability, causing them to lose focus.  The farther away they are from you, the less effect this ability will have.  The more willpower the enemy has, the less effect this ability will have.  Channeling ability that costs increasing amounts of mana over time.]

And Riven used the opportunity to send a crackling blood lance right through the man’s skull.  The fallen angel’s face imploded and his brains sprayed out the back end of his head, as the winged man began to fall like a limp doll towards the city streets far below.

CRASH

Riven’s weapon smashed aside the sword of the last enemy with another on-contact explosion of hellfire from Jackal, and from underneath his shadowy hood in the dim light of the abyss - his three glowing eyes stared back out calmly at the enraged dark paladin in front of him.

“Greed will have your soul, reincarnate!” The paladin hissed, through clenched teeth, flexing his own stamina channels to combat the building red frost accumulating on his skin and armor; while green sparks flew off his sword to combat the flames writhing along Riven’s staff. “And I will be the one that brings you to-”

SSSSSSHHHHHINNGGGG

Red strings latched onto the man’s helmet and yanked his head back, exposing his neck for a swift, clean cut of a sharp arachnoid limb.  The man’s decapitated head  flew through the air in a rotating spin, and Athela caught it - catlike - before shoving her claws into the brain as an overkill.

Riven flicked his wrist, and the condensing shroud of snares evaporated.  The roar of battle with explosions, metal, and claw clashing were all around - and the screams of the dying were intermixed by other victorious roars.

“WOOOOORRRRRRMMM!!!!” The echoing, enraged voice of The Gambler caught Riven’s attention, and the vampire prince turned his head to look at the enormous mass of writhing insects creating The Gambler’s body.  He was struggling but slowly pushing Gluttony’s own tendrils back due to the help of hundreds of other casters from Greed’s church, but was in large part being held at bay while his other forces were caught up in the rest of the fight.

A visage of Gluttony appeared beside Riven in a flash, and the sin began to speak.  “He did not think us to be this strong so early… He did not know the extent of our synchronization and did not think I’d be able to manifest myself to this extent.  He miscalculated.”

Without looking, Riven summoned a dozen storm razors and sent them hurdling to the right - eviscerating an enemy succubus who’d gotten too close to try and recite a miracle.  He heard the feminine scream of surprise and pain before she went silent, and in his peripheral vision saw the bloody patch where she’d once been on a nearby building rooftop.

“His mistake then.” Riven muttered, noting a familiar figure zig-zag through enemy combatants to send an enemy devil’s corpse skipping along the outer wall of a barracks.

The fully armored half gargoyle, half minotaur man let out a loud cackle of amusement, bloodied teeth bared into a smile when he turned Riven’s way.  “YOU HAVE IMPROVED MUCH, REINCARNATION!  Do not think I have not noticed!”

Riven gave Amano, leader of the church of Gluttony in the abyssal city, a nod of appreciation.  “In part, thanks to you.”

Allie’s flaming skulls were seen ripping through the air as a howl of souls burst out of the city to the north, and Riven’s attention focused there next.  Without as much as a word: he, Amano, Athela and Fay all headed in that direction join the battle once more.

And on the way, Riven opened his mouth; with a swarm of hungry beetles pouring out from his throat in a cloud of ever-expanding carnage that began racing through the city.  Hundreds became thousands, which became tens of thousands of insects  that buzzed ahead to gnash and tear at any enemy bearing the mark of Greed - before the feeding frenzy began to take hold on Riven’s mind… and his hunger began to skyrocket.

[Ravenous Beetle Swarm (Sin):  Open your mouth to summon a swarm of ravenous beetles.  The more biomass they eat, the more your health, mana, stamina, and divinity replenish; and the more beetles you can create.  Consuming targets with this ability applies towards your Gluttonous trait.]

***

Lillith walked with the bloody head of Greed’s high priest in her right hand, or at least the high priest for this particular event in the multiverse.  The Abyssal Descent was of course an isolated area, and there were many high priests that each presided over certain designated places for each of the sins’ churches, but it was nevertheless a grand thing to take one out.

Whistling to herself and casually stepping over the bodies of hundreds of defenders that’d been left to guard the ‘hidden’ temple of Greed far underground and through five defensive layers of wards, the shadowy demoness was all smiles as her pale white eyes sharpened dangerously upon the approach of new figures emerging out of the hallway ahead.

“Mistress of the Black Skies… It is truly an honor.” The calm, collected voice whispered from before her, as a robed skeletal skresh with an intricately made pair of short scythes held them out to either side in a greeting gesture.  To his right, another skresh wielding a scythe’s blade attached to a chain held the weapon calmly in front of him, while to his left - a third hooded skresh undead held a more standard scythe weapon that was rather tall with a crooked shaft.

There were no runes to mark them.  No semblance of magic, miracle or stamina infused into their bodies or equipment.  There was only a complete lack of substance, even to her senses, with a void of power encompassing their positions in the tell-tale sign of assassins who had pushed their masking and deception skills to the brink of their tier’s limits.

She should know.  She was the same.

“Reapers…” Lillith mused, coming to a stop twenty yards away from them with a giggle, and swinging the high priest’s head around by his hair while the dead man’s open mouth continued to sprinkle blood around the room while she played with the new toy.  “I wonder, how much did they pay you to seek your own deaths so openly?”

She put a finger to her lips as if in though, then tilted her head to the side with a brilliantly white smile that was in stark contrast to the pitch black of her hair and skin.  Her body rippled with shadow, and the very air around her began to darken as her body looked like it was losing substance.  “What kind of promises did Greed give you to take on such a risk?  You must know that you cannot beat me, regardless of how talented you might be.  Only a swift end awaits you should you try to stop me here.  This is not a conflict that involves The Scythe… I will give you this opportunity to leave.”

Her offer was immediately shut down.

“Do not think you are the only one who embraces the dark places of these realms.  We too thrive in it, we are some of the best our order has here in the descent, and our skill sets together - they surpass your own.”  The empty eye sockets of the leading skresh’s skull lifted slightly from underneath his hood, and the bone teeth of his face clacked twice.  “Greed has offered us… enough.  It is not our place to discuss such contracts after they are accepted, it is against our code.  All that you need to know is that we have been hired to stop you.  And once we do, our names will be listed in the history books as the ones to have slain one of the greatest assassins of all time.  Just think of the honor… of what titles we will be given not only in our own order, but by Elysium itself.”

Lillith’s giggles grew louder, and her domain of darkness expanded further.  “It appears people have forgotten just who I am… and yes, that would be an interesting thing to see.  What exactly would happen if I do die?  What title and bonuses would you get for killing one such as me?  But… I’m afraid we’ll never know.”

Her crown of seven horns began to grow in length, and the yellow flower she’d found in the underdark on Panu began to shrink down into her body as her hair began to rise up behind her in a flowing wave of black ribbons.  Her claws extended, and the room abruptly went pitch black as her brilliant white smile faded from view.

“Come to me.”

The reapers simultaneously blurred forward into the darkness, and the strikes of metal on claw came and ended a thousand times over within the time it took to take a single breath.

Then there was only silence.

Seconds later, Lillith walked out of the room - leaving the scattered remnants of the reapers behind her without so much as a backwards glance.

Her bare feet touched stone while she slid through the passages of the temple, passing through barriers and defensive soul snares like they were nothing.  A blockade?  She slipped through the cracks.  More sentries?  Dead.  Another explosive ward meant to bring down the entire temple if she walked through that archway?  Deactivated.

Without The Gambler here to protect this place from her, it was like walking through an amusement park.

Eventually she came to a circular room with a single black crystal of non-uniform make, glowing orange at the deep center of its core while it hovered over a pedestal at the center of the room.  Smiling to herself in excitement, she reinspected the area just to make sure that there weren’t anymore hidden surprises waiting for her - before stepping forward and reaching out to grasp it.

The treasure felt cool in her hands, drawing the heat out of her body like a hungry, animalistic thing, and she let out a sigh of fulfilled relief while closing her eyes and bringing the item to her chest.  “So it really was here all this time…  To think, that after so many eons of being hidden here in an F-grade and E-grade zone Elysium would not allow me to enter in my previous heights of power, the opportunity to finally grasp it comes to me now.”

She felt herself beginning to shake with excitement, and let herself do a quick skip around the room while continuing to hold the crystal to her bosom.  Twirling in place and letting her long, waist-length black hair flow around her - she settled down into a kneeling position while beginning to press her lips up against the crystal’s smooth surface.  Pale eyes widening as she began to drink in the pure energies of the crystal’s core, she felt her own soul lattice quickly form - as Lillith began to ascend into the E-grade.