Universe's End

“Go fish.”

“Damn it,” Allison growled. “I know you’re cheating.”

“I definitely am not,” Rory responded. The two were currently sitting around a fire, doing nothing more complicated than playing Go Fish. It had been yet another day in paradise of fighting slavering, ravenous monsters as they tried to eat them alive and slurp their bone marrow.

You know, the usual day in the cozy world of The First.

“I just don’t understand how you don’t lose,” Allison groaned.

“Chalk that up to my daughter,” Rory chuckled. Their relationship had improved vastly, though it was still a bit of an odd one. Highly competitive, Rory would have almost assumed they hated each other at times, except that it was hard to think that when, later that night, they’d end up in bed together.

It was odd, to say the least.

“The Sensen,” Allison said slowly.

“Correct,” Rory nodded.

Allison frowned for a moment before sighing.

“What is she like?”

Oh?

In their time together, Allison had never once directly asked about Roxy.

Hey, maybe that’s progress.

“She’s a kind girl. Selfless, works harder than just about anyone I know.”

“Just about?”

“She still has a way to go to beat her pops,” Rory half-grinned, flexing his arms as Allison rolled her eyes.

“And the sensen stuff?”

“Well, if you mean if she has psychotic murder urges… No. I genuinely cannot explain more than that, not like I was on the front lines or a cutting-edge researcher on their physiology. She’s got a few abilities that other races don’t, but I don’t know how much of it is because of her, and how much is because of this.” For good measure, Rory waved all around them, making it clear he was referencing Eon-fuckery.

“So… what does she do?”

“A lot of the same stuff I do; she’s got an Architect vocation as well,” Rory answered. “Though I do wonder…”

“Hmm?”

“Oh, nothing,” Rory sighed. “Just thinking about what she might be up to at this very moment.”

A light radiated out, blinding nearly everyone as a woman held a blade overhead, the weight of the world crushing her even as she refused to bow down.

“Exalt, Roar!”

Swinging down, the blade brought down a curtain call of light, the golden energy entirely suffused with everything she’d come to develop into the attack.

Glory.

Roxy felt several things inside her creaking under the pressure of her own attack, but she didn’t let up.

More.

When the light at last faded, what was left in its place was a ravine cut through the ground, several miles long.

Panting, Roxy dropped to her ass, head swimming.

A whistle rang out as a man came skipping forward, curls of smoke and fire always dancing around him like a silhouette on a page.

“So, uh, you sure you’re still tier seven?” Flair questioned.

“What was that?” Another voice asked, Elijah sauntering forward, his charcoal black skin glistening with a sheen of sweat.

“I see you are perhaps racing for the fastest through tier seven,” Kai Rong said, her arms crossed. “That attack was magnificent.”

“Well, I can’t copy my father,” Roxy said, her breath beginning to come to her more evenly. “So, I began cutting my own path. He uses a million weapons, but just because I’m an Architect as well doesn’t mean I need to use a million weapons.”

“Exalt, was it?” Flair asked.

“Yes,” Roxy huffed. “My spirit blade.”

“Spirit blade,” Flair nodded for several seconds as if he understood. “What’s that?”

“It’s the summation of everything I can, and the cutting away of everything I can’t,” Roxy said.

“Vague much?” Flair asked. “We’ve been working together for almost two years now. Surely you can open up a little more on the explanation.”

“She means it’s still being understood by herself,” Kai Rong rolled her eyes once more. “Not everyone is as straightforward as you, Salamander.”

“Gah, no,” Flair held his head as if in pain. “Not that nickname. Why couldn’t it be something cooler? Like Dragon? Or ‘The Dragon Knight,’ yeah, that sounds cool!”

“How many people have ever actually seen a dragon?”

“…none.”

“And there you go,” Kai Rong huffed. “Besides the point. With the end of this excursion, I do believe we are out of time before Oscuro opens at last.”

Roxy nodded. They’d made a trip over to the Reverse Mountains, probing unclaimed floating isles. Irene had been speaking about wanting to claim more territory within the region, and so it had been two birds, one stone. They could have probably explored the Maw, but at this point, the third floor of the Maw had become a hotspot of activity; tier sevens were no longer uncommon at this point as teams made their way through the underground. Even Ms. Marcie and her team were down there. Still, from what Roxy knew, they’d been working their way through one of the most dangerous parts of the third floor in an attempt to break the deadlock contest between the khans that had once included the Blight Khan.

It won’t be long at this rate before some team finds the boss of the third floor.

Shaking her head, Roxy dislodged the errant thoughts of the future.

“May I ask something?” Elijah said, stepping forward as he offered Roxy his hand. “How exactly do you put it all together?”

“Oh, easy enough,” Roxy said as she took the offered hand, letting the lone other tier seven of the group pull her up. “It’s centered on my normal folded aura blade.”

From her inventory, she popped the bladeless pommel out once more.

“Oh, that makes some sense then,” Elijah nodded. “To manage that entirely through mental wrangling of those energies and concepts seemed…”

“Like something my father might do,” Roxy huffed, amusement in her tone. “I’m aware.”

After the battle against the Spear nearly a decade ago, everyone had seen the two Founders hurl spears that seemed to defy everything they understood about what it meant to be powerful. In fact, the Circle Votaries had seen quite an influx of members as it became clear to many that the Founders were, in fact, godly beings.

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Roxy knew better, but the cat was out of the bag for a long time by then, before she’d even been around.

“Well, call me happy you’ve got yourself a new ace move just in time for Oscuro,” Flair said, hands on his hips. “Because we’ve got our work cut out for us.”

Roxy frowned, aware of what the man was speaking of. Irene had gathered more intel since the initial foundation of the Ehkorrus Oscuro groups. Her estimate of the rival groups from Tidal Grove had increased, from four to six. How they’d managed it was beyond Roxy, outside of already having folks who had been on the verge and then pushing them ungodly hard. A team led by a fresh tier eight wouldn’t hold a candle to their own team, composed of two tier-eights and two high-quality tier sevens. Still, sometimes there was a quality to quantity, more groups to scour more places.

“Regardless, it is time to return,” Kai Rong said. She was the official leader of the group, something that had only been possible because Tsarina had approached Kai Rong years ago about the idea. Had it been Irene, Roxy was fairly certain Kai Rong would have declined or chosen to go with a group made of only Rong clan members, but Tsarina asking the favor was only a step or two removed from her father asking.

And if anyone knew anything about the Rong, it was that when her father asked something, they showed up.

The journey back was relatively unexciting. Unlike her dear father, who could flicker from place to place so long as they were known to him, they had to travel the old-fashioned way.

Which was to say, they were cruising several feet along the ground atop a high-speed platform. It wasn’t a proper G.S.A.C platform, but it was fast and could support a decent amount of weight. It also wasn’t really usable in low-density pneuma environments, but thankfully, the Reverse Mountains met those qualifications.

A trip back that should have taken around three weeks on foot was reduced to only a week on the back of the Alibaba. It had been a random name her father had thrown out there years ago when they’d been discussing the idea of a non-militarized aerial platform, and Roxy had held onto it since. She wasn’t exactly sure where it came from, but then that was her father in a nutshell.

Returning to the main hub of their claimed island, the mountain was beginning to look unrecognizable. Between the influx of higher-tier settlers, defensive structures, and the annoyance of digging through stone to expand, civilization had spilled out from the interior of the volcano. The exterior was still completely incompatible with those below tier six, but an exo-city was growing regardless.

While a tier six couldn’t last long in the natural climate, within the shelter of specially adapted homes or buildings, they could sustain themselves just fine. Tier sevens could last indefinitely so long as they didn’t attempt to climb too high. The outer city, because that’s what it was becoming, was primarily for the likes of adventurers. Still, there were beginning to prop up a few non-combat types who happened to be tier six or tier seven and saw it as an opportunity for growth, be it personal or financial.

They weren’t all that interested in the exo-city today, though. No, they had to head inside to return to Ehkorrus. Upon reaching the exo-city limits, the team deposited the Alibaba into one of their inventories before approaching the checkpoint.

“Lady Roxy,” the man stationed at the border gave her a low bow before focusing on the others. “Matriarch Rong. Mr. Elijah. Oye, Flair, you cheap fuck, you owe us some fuckin drinks.”

Roxy stifled a laugh. More than any of them, Flair was a known entity of the Reverse Mountains. In a way, he was something akin to a Chief Protector of the Reverse Mountains, often the strongest fighter stationed there.

A sloppy, less respectable Chief Protector, and one who belonged purely to the Charter Front, but the thought was there.

One thing was that Flair was a known gambler, so much so that such interactions weren’t exactly uncommon, as Roxy had discovered.

“Boys, boys, now is not the time,” Flair said, placating them. “You see, we’ve got to head back. Oscuro is a-callin ‘.”

“You sure that isn’t Thalia? Heard you two were hooking up again.”

“Boys,” Flair said between gritted teeth. “Is now the time?”

“Just bustin’ your balls, boss,” The guard said. The guards, unlike Flair, belonged to the Garrison Front. Yet, they still tended to treat the man as if he were above them in the chain of command, even if Flair was a private ‘contractor.’ “Davis, Gate.”

Another guard nodded as the well-protected gate began to lift.

“My thanks,” Roxy gave the guards a nod as they bowed once more.

“Our pleasure, Lady Roxy. Oh, and do us a favor if we may ask? Don’t let Flair there pull a Jaz.”

Roxy felt more than saw Kai Rong wince at the mention of her former rival. Once considered Kai Rong’s equal, after Kai Rong had surpassed her and then Flair had surpassed her, the woman had grown reckless. And while sometimes being reckless and taking risks was exactly what one needed to do to grow, sometimes the dice simply didn’t land your way.

In her case, that had meant her head being torn from her body by a many-armed ape monster; those who’d been accompanying her had fled with only her head as evidence. It could be easy to forget, but life on Aelia was far from forgiving if one overstepped.

“We will do our best,” Roxy said. “Now then, shall we?”

“We shall,” Kai Rong answered as the group made their way past the gate, entering the ex-city before entering an even more well-defended checkpoint, several heavily armored doors that slowly retracted into the ceiling as they were permitted into the inner sanctum of the mountain, where those below tier six, or ordinary crafters, took up residence.

More and more, the interior was being hollowed out, less of a winding assortment of tunnels and sporadic rooms, and now a proper city, something that was aided by the expertise of hired Rong clan members who had some skills in the area regarding underground living.

Roxy was excited to see what the place would look like in a few years, but they weren’t here for sightseeing or shopping. Beelining to where they knew the gateway was, the four of them were only an hour or two later standing, waiting their turn in line.

Technically, they could have jumped ahead, but that had felt like an abuse of power to Roxy, who had vetoed the idea when Flair had brought it up.

“Destination?” The gateway manager asked, sounding bored until he noticed exactly who was next.

“Ehkorrus,” Kai Rong answered. “We have business back home.”

“Ehkorrus it is m-ma’am.”

Within moments of stepping through the gateway, the group found themselves being waved at by someone Roxy recognized as one of Irene’s aides.

“Oh, wonderful, the Circles were with me today,” the aide said as they appeared. “What are the chances you would all appear right as we were preparing to send for you?”

Roxy chose to ignore the mention of the circles and focus instead on what the woman had said otherwise.

“Oscuro?” Kai Rong asked, not bothering with beating around the bush.

“Yes,” The aide answered. “Just recently. If you will come with me.”

Shrugging, the four of them followed the woman, making their way to the city hall. Within the very center of the main lobby was the statue of Aelia that had been left behind several years ago. More importantly, there was the black rift that had cracked open in front of the statue, almost as if it had torn open space itself. Surrounding the rift, a perimeter had been set up, nothing more elaborate than a rope wall guarded by several serious-looking folks.

“Huh, talk about timing,” Flair muttered.

“Indeed,” the aide answered. “Irene would like to meet you with you.”

“Lead the way,” Roxy said as they were guided through the city hall. Knocking at the door to Irene’s office, it opened a moment later.

“Oh, you four are back already,” Irene said the moment they stepped into her office. “Glad to see that. As you all saw, Oscuro had officially opened for the second time.”

“And the others?” Kai Rong asked.

“Marcie’s team is expected to return soon,” Irene answered. “Apostolos and Violet are currently M.I.A, though I expect they will also be returning shortly.”

“So, we’re the first to enter?”

“Correct, from our side at least,” Irene answered. “Which is why, before you enter, are there any last-minute things you need to take care of? You won’t be able to return until the time allocated runs out.”

“If Aunty Violet and Uncle ‘Los aren’t here, then not really,” Roxy shrugged.

“All I’ve got to tackle is owing money to people,” Flair snorted.

“My bar has already been closed for some time now,” Elijah shook his head.

“As for myself, my clan is still being managed by my father,” Kai Rong answered.

“Gear?” Irene asked.

“Handled, plus, we’ve got the best person outside of the Lord Founder himself on the squad,” Flair said, pointing at Roxy.

“Well,” Irene shrugged. “I suppose there is nothing else to mention. If you are ready, you are dismissed.”

Kai Rong made a slightly sour face, as if she didn’t like being treated as a mere underling by Irene. Still, the woman bit her tongue before turning around and leaving the office. Filing out, Irene suddenly called out to Roxy as the last one in the room.

“Oh, and Roxy?”

“Yes?” Roxy asked.

“Please do be careful,” Irene sighed. “I know Tsarina believes it is for the best for you to experience novel things, but I shudder to think how your father would react if anything happened to you.”

Roxy scowled slightly. Not because of her father; the feeling of her father caring for her as much as he did always filled her with warmth. No, the scowl was about how others seemed to think she was a fragile object to be coddled and protected just because of her dad.

“I will keep that in mind,” Roxy answered before leaving and closing the door behind her.

Catching up with her team, who’d been considerate enough to walk a few steps away, she gave them a quick nod to reassure them. Meandering back through the city hall, as they returned to the lobby, there was one other figure present who hadn’t been there before, a figure that brought a smile to Roxy’s face.

“Tsarina,” Roxy said as she approached the regal bug woman, hugging her a moment later.

“My Lady,” Tsarina said.

“Here to see me off?” Roxy questioned.

“I am.”

“Here to warn me to be careful or anything?”

“No,” Tsarina shook her head, not that Roxy had thought she would. “I am here to tell you to be hungry.”

And with that, the bug woman said her fill, stepping away.

“Well, so we avoid a crowd gathering,” Flair looked around, licking his lips briefly as if nervous a former gambling buddy might find him. “Let’s get a move on.”

Gesturing toward the rift, the guards manning the rope barrier unhooked it, then waved them forward.

“No point in delaying,” Kai Rong agreed as she stepped forward. Following suit, the four of them soon stood in front of the black rift.

“To Oscuro,” Roxy said.

“To Oscuro,” her team repeated.

And with that, the group of four passed through into the unknown.