Rise of the Devourer

The common room of The Hollow Rest was surprisingly comfortable for a building carved out of rock, but knowing it was owned by a dragon, everything made perfect sense.

A fire crackled in a massive hearth, casting dancing shadows across the grizzled innkeeper, a woman with one eye and an impressive scar that ran from her forehead to her chin. Countless trophies hung along the walls behind her. Monster parts, weapons, and personal mementos remained in silent tribute to adventurers who'd passed through over the years. Some trophies were cleanly mounted, polished and labeled, while others had been nailed up in a hurry.

Cozy and warm, check. Collecting everything in sight, also check.

Tony approves. Dragons understand the value of a good lair.

Noah snorted. First hint that Tony had opinions beyond combat and survival…and it was to appreciate real estate strategy.

Though at the moment, said dragon was absent, having departed to handle arrangements for the next few days. He may not need to call in advance to claim a space at the Hollow Rest, but the ascension chambers were a collective resource that would take some preparation.

Noah sat at a table near the fire, nursing a heavy mug, its handle worn down by years of visitors. The drink tasted of bitter herbs steeped in alcohol. Not pleasant, but it burned down his throat and settled warm in his stomach.

Across from him, Aurelia studied the innkeeper’s map, while around them, the inn's patrons spoke in low voices. Laughter was sparse here. Every few minutes, the door opened, letting in a slice of dusty wind and the sound of Marrowhold's muted bustle.

Noah was surprised by how crowded the place was, how busy this whole settlement seemed to be. He’d have assumed that someplace with such a high power requirement and niche purpose would be more sparsely populated, but just looking at it if he didn't know better, it could have been any bustling trading post.

"You're restless," Aurelia said without looking up from the map. Noah blinked. "What?"

"You've been tapping your fingers for the last ten minutes. You've checked your mug at least six times for god knows what. And you keep looking toward the door like you're expecting the next person through it to try and kill you." She finally looked up, her eyes meeting his. "You're restless."

“Maybe so,” he admitted. Ever since they'd left Drakonias, a buzzing energy had been building under his skin. An urge to move, to fight. His whole body felt pulled too tight, straining desperately for release. It had been slightly muted in the manaless desolation of the Stoneplains, but here it had surged back in full.

“What’s troubling you?” Aurelia asked.

Noah lowered his voice. "We’ve already had one Ascendant come after us, even if Zax was able to deal with him, but he was clearly only a small part of the picture. The lunar cultists, whoever else is pulling strings behind the scenes… We hurt them, but the failure of one attack won’t stop them."

"And that bothers you."

"Doesn't it bother you?" Noah leaned forward, hands tightening around the mug. The firelight painted gold along the edges but he was in no mood to appreciate the aesthetic. "He manipulated the king, tried to resurrect a dragon, nearly killed all of us. And we have no idea why, who he was working with, or what they’re planning next. Zax got very, very lucky that he was able to counter the Ascendant’s skillset so perfectly. If it’d been anyone else at that power level, I’m afraid he’d have been hard pressed to come out on top. He’s insanely strong, but he’s still no Ascendant. Trust me. I’ve been punching up since the day I arrived, and some power differences are insurmountable.”

Aurelia set down the map, her expression unreadable as she simply studied him. "You've changed," she finally said. "Since Drakonias, since the dragon's heart. There's something different in your eyes now."

Noah didn't know how to respond to that. He felt different, physically. The fragment of the dragon's heart thrummed in his chest, a connection to Vion that he couldn't quite explain or understand. Sometimes, in quiet moments, he could almost feel the echo of another heartbeat layered over his own, distant and too steady to be human. He hadn't thought it showed so clearly.

"You're not just trying to survive anymore, are you?" Aurelia continued, her voice carefully measured. "You're training to fight Ascendants. That's not the same thing."

“I’ve been fighting things that should have killed me since day one,” Noah said, confused by her angle. “I wouldn’t have survived this long if I didn’t keep pushing forward.”

"Survival means getting stronger, being careful, picking your battles. Fighting Ascendants means..." She shook her head. A strand of hair slipped loose, catching the firelight like a thin wire. "You've been like this as long as I’ve known you, always pushing forward no matter the cost. But lately, it's different. More intense."

“Don’t tell me you’re having second thoughts now.” There was the faintest edge to his voice now. “Not when we’ve already come this far.”

"It’s not that.” Her eyes held his, unwavering, almost defiant. “I've seen you fight, Noah. The way you throw yourself into danger without hesitation, ignore limits that should break you. It's impressive, but it's also terrifying. And now…"

"You think I'm being reckless? If anything this is the most practical path I could possibly pursue. The Lunar Cults? The White Bloom? Plus who knows who all else? They’ll be coming for us.” He pressed his fist tight against the table. “Coming after me, for the shards I’m carrying. And every time we only survive, escape, let them get away, it’s another chance for them to get it right next time. It’s not enough to survive any more, I can’t afford to just hold my own. We have to be strong enough to destroy them."

Aurelia’s expression shifted, understanding warring with concern. "Do you remember what you told me, back in Layfar Village? About why you threw yourself into dangerous situations even when you didn't have to?"

Noah thought back, what seemed a lifetime ago. "‘I just like to butt into other people's business,’" he recited with a smile, relaxing the faintest bit. “And you said I wasn’t allowed to take stupid risks without thinking it through.”

“And I stand by it.” A reluctant smile teased at the edges of her eyes, and for a moment she looked away to regain her composure. "Back when we first met, you said you couldn't sit by and do nothing. That you'd seen what happens when people don't fight back, when no one steps up." Aurelia leaned forward and searched his face. "That… that is still true, isn't it? This isn't about revenge or glory, it's about making sure no one else has to suffer what you've seen?"

He hated that it was a question, that she could doubt him, but he forced down the reflexive retort and gave it the full consideration it deserved. He’d been through so much, faced so much adversity, and changed into something so far from human that his origins were barely relevant any more.

But had his goals changed? Had who Noah Brown really was survived evolution after evolution?

This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source.

He pulled up his quest list. It’d been a long time since he had time to consult it, and since becoming a [Dragonspawn?] it no longer auto-populated. Or perhaps it was with the C-rank upgrade? With everything happening so fast, he’d lost track. But though he had no new exploration quests popping up, his existing ones remained.

They were simplified now, but as he considered each of them, they retained the same strength of purpose as when he’d first obtained them.

Shards of [???]: Collect all the shards of [???]. (Current: 3/??)

Whatever the Shards were, he would seek them regardless. He knew that all the way to his soul. They would be drawn to him, and he to them, no matter whether he had a quest or not.

Abyss Hunter: Destroy the Abyssal Cult, Lunar Cult, and White Bloom to prevent further atrocities.

If anything, his determination to end those who would bring death and suffering to Erandir had only grown stronger. The Primordial Cults were no benign parasite, but a vile stain upon the face of the world. He only needed to be strong enough to follow through.

A New Void: Form a new Path and Oath to offer redeemable cultists an alternative to the Abyss.

He still had no idea how he was going to accomplish that one, but just seeing it renewed his hope. If the quest was here, that meant he could do it. Whatever it took, however long he had to fight, if he had to face the gods themselves…

Aurelia searched his face as he refocused on her with a smile. Then she reached across the table and placed her hand over his clenched fist. The gesture was grounding, her palm warm and dry against his knuckles. "I’m glad. Just be sure you don’t let that change.”

Before Noah could think how to respond, the door to the common room swung open. Zax strode in and crossed to their table. "The chamber is prepared," he announced without preamble. "When you're ready to begin your evolution, it will be waiting."

Noah pushed back from the table, his drink forgotten. The buzzing energy under his skin intensified, as if his very soul recognized that the moment it had been waiting for was finally at hand. His heart thudded hard and he could swear he heard Tony chanting excitedly in the back of his mind. "I'm ready now."

Zax studied him carefully, those ancient eyes seeming to peer directly into Noah's soul. Then he nodded. "Follow me."

***

The ascension chamber was located deep beneath The Hollow Rest, accessible through a series of passages that varied between carved slopes and elegant stairs, plain stone and rough wood, bearing the signs of at least five different groups of creators. The walls changed as they went deeper, finally ending in more black rock covered in those strange symbols he'd seen outside, veined with pale blue light.

The air cooled as they descended, and with it came the damp mineral scent of old caves and forgotten rivers. He could hear the drip of water steadily in the distance.

Noah felt the mana density increasing with every step. Where the Stoneplains had been depleted and the interior of Marrowhold stable, down here the power was almost overwhelming. It lapped against him from all sides, thick and heavy, making each step a struggle. His body didn’t want to move through it. He reflexively wanted to linger at each surge, absorb it until he couldn’t hold any more, but Zax only kept drawing him further onward.

Aurelia, for whatever reason, seemed to be less bothered by the weight of mana density here. She followed at a steady pace, looking around at everything with as much curiosity as Noah himself.

"This is one of the anchor points," Zax explained as they walked. His voice echoed within this passageway. "Places where the barriers between realms are naturally thin. The original inhabitants of this place built their city here specifically because of that thinness. What they left behind makes it ideal for rank-up ceremonies."

They emerged into a massive circular chamber. The ceiling was lost in darkness above, but the floor was perfectly smooth, inscribed with concentric rings of symbols that glowed with a soft golden light.

At the center of the room sat a raised dais, clearly designed for a single occupant. Its surface was slightly concave, as if made to cradle someone sitting cross-legged. Noah's Abyssal Awareness brushed over it. A focusing lens.

Zax moved around the chamber's perimeter, touching certain points on the walls. With each touch, additional wards flared to life, layers of protection building on top of each other. Lines of light traced themselves through the stone, circuitry connecting symbols until the whole chamber hummed with contained force.

"The process of evolution is intimate and vulnerable," Zax said as he worked. "Your soul will be... exposed, for lack of a better term. These wards will ensure that nothing can interfere with your decision. Certain entities take interest, once you begin to ascend to higher ranks. Given your... unique circumstances, we think it prudent to ensure privacy."

Noah thought about Hellion's attempted intervention during his first Awakening, about Septah's cryptic guidance, about the various powers that seemed to have taken an interest in his fate. “Thank you.”

“There is something else you should know before you begin. Your path has diverged sufficiently from what is normal for your kind that it is very likely you can shift the nature of your evolution. It is not something to consider lightly, but it is also a rare opportunity very few will ever obtain. I cannot say what form exactly your evolution would take, if you choose to pursue it, for it is built from all that you are and could become.”

“Isn’t every path evolution about shifting my nature?”

“No. That’s shifting the form of your power, the path trajectory you commit to, augmenting and guiding it to make your growth smoother. Most would not lean on it so heavily as you have been, but most also take years to reach each of the steps you have passed in months.”

“So if this evolution shift isn’t changing my paths, what is it?”

“Your race stands at an apex. You are more than human, but less than dragon. If my guess is correct, you can force that to tip over into unlocking Race evolution fully. Rather than being a static thing, your Race would gain a level and associated perks, regardless of what form that evolution takes.”

“Basically giving me a fourth path.”

“Exactly.”

“That sounds like an obvious choice. So what’s the catch?”

“The catch is significant. If you choose the Race Evolution now, you sacrifice your Rank B Path evolutions entirely. You will gain no Path upgrades today, no matter how powerful they might be. In terms of immediate combat capability, you will be weaker than you would otherwise be."

"That sounds dangerous."

"In the short term, yes. But I would not mention it if it were not an essential choice to take into consideration." Zax began pacing. "Rank A is the most critical evolution any being can undergo. The final threshold. The choices made at Rank A define everything that follows, your Ascendant form and ultimate abilities. If you wait until your next Rank to pursue a Race evolution, it will compete directly with your Path evolutions. You would have to sacrifice one or more of your Paths entirely to gain the Race evolution. At that stage, your Paths will be far too valuable to discard. You would be forced to choose, and any choice would mean losing something irreplaceable."

"Ah,” Noah said, understanding coalescing. “Whereas if I take the Race evolution now..."

"You open an active Race evolution line, alter your Records within the Astral Scripts, so that when you reach that final threshold, instead of choosing between Race and Paths, you will evolve all four. Your Race and your three Paths, simultaneously. You will be weaker than you might otherwise be until you reach A-Rank. The danger is substantial, but the ceiling would be beyond anything a normal evolutionary path could achieve."

“Is it worth it? If I’m sacrificing three upgrades to gain one more?”

Zax met his eyes. "I have lived for millennia, Noah. I have seen countless Awakened rise and fall. Those who sacrifice immediate power for greater potential rarely survive long enough to claim their reward. But those who do survive, their rise is unparallelled."

"I do like the sound of that.”

Zax nodded. "Take however long you need. We will remain here to ensure nothing disturbs the chamber."

Noah approached the central dais, his footsteps echoing in the vast space. The symbols on the floor pulsed brighter as he passed over them, responding to his presence. When he finally stood at the center, the lens focused the chamber's power all directly onto him.

He took a deep breath. Then another.

Zax hummed. "Trust in yourself, Noah. You have accomplished things that should have been impossible. You have bound the Void itself, survived encounters that would have killed anyone else, and carved your own Path through a world that constantly tried to destroy you. Whatever choices you face, trust the instincts that have carried you this far."

“I believe in you,” Aurelia said. “Just remember what’s important to you and you’ll be fine.”

“You’re right, I will be.” Noah smirked. His mouth was dry, but the expression helped. "Alright then." He closed his eyes, reaching inward toward his Astral Script. "Let's see what I can become."

The chamber's power surged around him as he began the process. The symbols blazed with light. And Noah felt himself falling, his consciousness plunging toward that familiar space where his soul resided.