Shadow of the Abyss

"Then which one of you belongs to Athena?"

Ophelia Silvers, a devoted follower of Athena, strutted forward, her shoulders swinging in a confident air. "That would be me," she declared, "And I will be the one to kill you in the name of Athena herself!"

Interestingly enough, Altair only smiled, his gaze assessing the young lady with azure blue eyes. "Athena, this one seems to be quite a handful. Erect a spatial isolation barrier for me, and you have my word. I won't kill her."

The Heavens replied as a sudden fixture of silence engulfed the entire city below. The mournful cries plaguing the city seemed to dissipate as the morning light took on a lighter consistency. They all felt as if they had teleported into another realm.

"It seems your master doesn't have much fate in you," Altair said, his smile turning cruel.

Ophelia's face contorted into an ugly grimace as she glared. "I—"

Just then, Thaeon's voice echoed with fierce determination as he asserted, "He is mine!" His lithe figure moved with an otherworldly speed, cutting through the vast expanse of space like a brilliant beam of ephemeral light.

As Thaeon moved, it felt as if time dilated within the Emperor's mind. His surroundings came to a standstill, as if frozen in time, while every fiber of his was united under a single, unwavering will. Tension built up within his muscles, tissue, and cells, creating a palpable sense of momentum that seemed to transcend mortal understanding.

It was as if the Emperor had harnessed the very essence of his being, channeling it into a powerful force that defied the laws of nature.

"Rule," The Emperor willed, his sword reaching up as the flow of time resumed, crossing against Theaeons ridged glaive.

DING!

The earth-shattering thunderous shockwave everyone expected did not resound through Heaven and Earth, leaving only the clanking of steel against steel to trace their ears. The realm stood still as Thaeon looked on with disbelief.

"H-H-How?" he asked a quiver in his voice, having pushed as much Mana into his sword as he could to generate the strongest sword stroke he could without an Art.

"A Soul King could not claim my life. What right does an insect such as yourself dare to hope?" The Emperor coldly asked, channeling the Will of the Abyss. He unveiled an ungodly might that transcended limitation, affixing his name across Heaven and Earth.

The moment did not constitute fear but a silent terror that bore through the hearts of mortals and transcendents alike.

Had there been a more terrifying mortal? A being that bore such Authority it seemed transcendent?

Thaeon could not contemplate such thoughts as Altair's palm lashed across his face, bleeding the very wrath with which he swung his blade. Sound roared through Zampis's silence as Thaeon bore through buildings the size of mountains, tearing through the earth like a rock through the water. He bounced and skipped, uprooting stones, glass, and trees without stopping.

"Approach me next time at full strength." The Emperor declared, settling his cruel eyes upon Athena's Acolyte. "Next"

The eleven acolytes gulped, their bodies shaking from the intangible pressure weighing over their shoulders like the hand of God. They wanted to kneel and sing in praise of the Emperor, whom the very Abyss seemed to anoint.

Ophelia caught herself, noting her labored breath, while behind her, the ten acolytes seemed to mirror her distressed state. She didn't dare turn, unable to take her eyes from the Emperor, channeling the [Will of the Abyss]

'What is this?' she asked herself, opening herself to the Wisdom of Athena.

[Ding]

[Will of the Abyss]

Passive: Transcend Limitations of the One across the Myriad Heavens. The Stronger the user's conviction, the stronger he may transcend.

Active: Creates a Domain fueled by the user's Willpower/Charisma to plunge those of weaker wills into an Abyss of Despair.

[DING]

[Ashen Blood]

Passive: Tethers the Body to the Ancestors of Old, granting the user Inherent Memories and lived experiences.

Active: Through the Will of the Abyss, user blood shall mend the rift between Eternal Damnation and Eternal Life.

[DING]

[Aspect of Rule - Dectected]

[Error]

[Authorty not sufficient to view the Aspect of Prince of the Vale]

Altair frowned and touched some unseamed force seeking to invade his being. It was smooth, like a wisp of the winds, and yet…

"What do you think you're doing?" he asked, opening the King's Domain and connecting to the invisible point between him and Ophelia. He was beside her before her awareness could channel that he moved. A palm reaching towards her head.

"I asked you a question."

Ophelia lurched her katana toward Altair's throat, an instinctual reaction that took over her arms, seeing his palm approaching. However, before her sword arrived, a bolt of infernal lightning bore through her head, stealing her consciousness before she could invoke a spell of protection. She plummeted toward the earth.

Altair once more looked at the ten. "You'd better release your body art. Those who are my equal have no chance against me."

"Master, your kill stealing!" Raven complained, flaring her chubby cheeks. "If this keeps going on. Raven will have no kills."

Wry amusement narrowed across his eyes.

"I've not killed anyone. I've kept my word," Altair said as Ophelia's limp body struck the earth, cracking the asphalt. "But I see your point. Have fun. Just don't kill anyone. I've plans for these fools."

Just then, Azar, the First Acolyte of Hephaestus, let out a deafening roar, unleashing the full power of the Third Flame Rite. The city of Zamphis was engulfed in a blinding flash of light, so bright that it seemed to turn the very air into liquid fire. The once-solid asphalt and towering buildings quickly succumbed to the intense heat, melting away into a deluge of molten rain.

[DING]

[Rite of Flame - Engaged]

[All Attributes have been multiplied by a factor of 4x]

Name: Azar

Age: 24

Race: Godling

Mana Circle: [Seventh Circle  97%]

Class: [Acolyte  of Flame III  Lv 150]

Str:  1847 → 7388

Dex: 1522 → 6088

Con: 2004 → 8016

Wis: 1910 → 7640

Chr: 1910 → 7640

Mana: 500

The Emperor waved off the flames as though they were the winds, his Almighty Resistance ensuring that such a level of flame could not penetrate his natural defenses.

"That's a bit better. But 4x? Is that the zenith of your ability as a Sixth Circle?" He wasn't impressed, but that was to be expected from someone less than thirty years old. Not everyone could train everything all at once.

"Pathetic," he continued as three Vale stars began to shimmer across his head like a Crown. Shadowclaw began to leak infernal air, and the black entrails of Vale Qi began to bleed from the sword's edge.

Dark, crackling tendrils of infernal energy snaked their way across the Emperor's lean forearm, pulsing with a sickly light as they reached ever upwards, snaking towards his shoulder and neck as an otherworldly circuit had been formed.

The very air around him seemed to vibrate with the power of his profane aura, which billowed and surged like a roiling storm cloud, lending an ominous weight to his already imposing presence.

[Desolate Abyss - Engaged]

[Infernal Might of Shadowclaw- Engaged.]

[Necrotic Flame - Engaged]

[All Attributes have been multiplied by a factor of 4.5x]

[Mana Attribute has been Mupiled by a factor of 2x]

Altair Blackwood

Mana Circle: [Forth Circle 25% →30%]

Class: [Prince of the Vale II Lv 150]

Strength: 1440 → 6480

Dexterity: 1545 → 6953

Constitution: 1720 → 7740

Wisdom:  1740 → 7830

Charisma: 1740 → 7830

Mana: 300 → 600

As the two auras clashed, a captivating fear engulfed the hearts of the ten acolytes, who stood transfixed before the Emperor. Their eyes were glued to the mesmerizing sight in front of them while their hearts pounded against their chests with an intensity that made them shudder.

The air was thick with anticipation as the beads of sweat formed on their foreheads and evaporated instantly, leaving them feeling drenched in their own fear.

The Third Flame Rite was unlike any mortal flame. It radiated an overwhelming energy that seemed to transcend mortal understanding. Yet beneath the Vale writhing against the Empeor like a flame cloak, it felt like a cool gust of air.

'Run'

The thought had cut across everyone's minds as they continued to stare.

[Divine Being, Piercing Owl, ask that you show mercy.]

"Mercy?" The Emperor smiled as the sigil within his eyes flashed, invoking [Infernal Bane]. Suddenly, ten translucent infernal swords appeared above the heads of each of the acolytes, who seemed to have a far higher sense of awareness than those Altair faced.

All ten dodged, invoking their divine arts to multiply their body's attributes, cutting through the air as they all charged at once.

Raven grinned. Her amethyst eyes glowed a frightening light as she blitzed the Acolyte of Fire, thrusting her fist through the air with such force that flame coiled around her arm as the Acolyte roared, managing to raise his Warhammer of Flame in the nick of time.

A dreadful force reached into the Acolyte of Fire, tearing him from the skies and into the earth like a meteoroid, causing the earth to begin thrashing back and forth like a wave. She whirled to her rear as the Acolyte of Lightning roared his mighty cry of defiance. Thrusting his spear toward her head.

The Vale spun beneath her will, enchanting her glaive as it clashed against a lightning spear. A discharge of essence ignited into a grand pillar that distorted space, seeking to tear it asunder.

Pushed back several meters, Raven did not stop. She rounded through the air, using infernal lightning as a platform. She charged towards the Acolyte of Lightning, only to divert at the last second as the Acolyte of War rejoined the fray like a raging demon.

The Guardian of the Vale began to laugh as an ancient force began to rise from off her being. The translucent image of her true form. The Three-Eyed Raven opened its wings. Ancient knowledge predating time immemorial rising across her sea of consciousness.

She grinned a predatorial smile, opening her will to the Vale.