Apocalypse Redux

Chapter 264: Bitter Gains

On paper, this had probably been a win.

The current Aspirants for War and Pestilence were dead, killed by Isaac and Dr. Loup respectively, and Ardouin had absolutely kicked the ass of who had to have been the Aspirant of Death before Isaac had arrived. After all, the figure had been wearing a ghostly blue mask, and the Horseman of Death was described as riding a “pale” horse.

What had really cinched things was his weapon, though, a war scythe. Aside from the name, it only had superficial commonalities with the agricultural implement, being a polearm with a curved, single-edged, blade at the end, though this blade was an extension of the pole, rather than being mounted perpendicular to it.

In addition, initial interrogations of the prisoners had gotten them the codenames of the other high-powered members of the cult. The sickle-wielder who’d ended up on the wrong end of Zeneli’s spear had been called Kronos, the pyrokinetic had been Surtr, and the illusionist who’d been such a huge problem initially had been Utgardloki.

That codename, specifically, had been very appropriate. The original, mythological Utgardloki had made Loki do an eating competition against a wildfire, one of Thor’s human companions race a thought, and pitted Thor himself against old age in a wrestling match. Forestalling most of France on his own had certainly let him live up to the legend … until Sun had shown up with his incredibly perceptive eyes.

Five people who’d have easily earned S-Rank from any official evaluator, almost a hundred prisoners, and one of the cult’s major teleportation hubs, which had been discovered when Ardouin had flung several missiles through a portal. The resulting explosion had been noticed and had made finding the place damn easy.

All in all, they’d cost the cult more in a single battle than in every previous fight put together, and gained more than enough strings to pull on to uncover the rest of the hive of scum. Hopefully.

But it was hard to celebrate when one was faced with a death toll of almost twenty-five thousand civilians and an additional three thousand-odd military personnel.

Isaac had also gotten several [Skills] to the next threshold, but he’d been close to deciding to not look at them until Lorient was cleaned up and the dead put to rest. But after a few minutes, he’d decided it was a pointless gesture that no one would ever know about and that could really bite him in the ass if something happened before then.

Divine Fire (legendary, Level XX)

Fire. What can it do? Pretty much everything, as long as you’ve got the right kind and are creative enough.

Fire. What can it be? Pretty much anything, as long as you’re not risk-averse when it comes to getting it.

That is where the issue lies. Getting it. Of the countless mystic and mundane flames there are, one can only gain a few if one takes the normal path, that is.

Stealing them … ain’t normal. But it is possible. It is audacious, ludicrous, but possible. And fully in line with the Promethean spirit.

This Skill grants the user the ability to conjure and control mundane flames. Initially.

The real power of the Divine Fire is its ability to absorb and assimilate all other fire, both magical and not. The user becomes immune to all fires they have absorbed (and can extend this protection to objects on their person) and are able to then wield it with the same power and ease as the original fire.

Once conjured, flames fueled by the user’s mana directly can be controlled for free while secondary fires spawned by the initial flame can be directed by spending a negligible amount of mana. All flames can be extinguished for free, be they conjured directly or merely ignited by conjured flames.

All assimilated flames can be used individually or combined to form greater forms of fire, whose patterns can be stored for later use.

The user also grows partially immune to unknown fires based on their similarity to already assimilated flames.

After countless fights where the user has assimilated an enemy’s fires and promptly tore their user to shreds, this Skill has evolved to subsume hostile flames once the user has absorbed a sample not just of the correct type, but the very same flames they’re currently being attacked with. These flames can then be manipulated freely, drawing mana from the controlled fire and progressively extinguishing it in the process.

Cost Patters: Creation cost per second/control cost per second

Standard Flame (7/1)

Absorbed Flames:

Samadhi Fire (2,000/500)

Dragon’s Breath (50/1-10)

Grand Hellflame (50/1-10)

Campfire (3/1)

Burning Magnesium (14/1-3)

Napalm (5/1)

Stellar Corona (40/2-4)

…

(see full list (1.998)?)

Combined Flames:

Prometheus’ Wrath (2,500/200-1,000)

Drachenbrodem (250/100-150)

True Starflame (200/25-50)

Combined Elemental Phoenix Disintegration (100/10-15)

…

(see full list (336)?)

The sheer cost of Prometheus’ Wrath made it hard to use, but damn it hit hard.

And the power to subsume hostile flames would make future flame-based enemies a cinch.

Meanwhile, [Form of Horror’s] utility had jumped by an order of magnitude.

Form of Horror (legendary, Level max)

There are many sides to the Undying Wraith. The impression they broadcast out into the world and show others, the hole in the world no one will ever perceive before it devours them, and lastly, the face someone only sees in the moment of their death.

The form granted by this Skill. A monstrous alternate body based on the user’s Aspects.

Current Aspects: Aspect of the Poltergeist, Aspect of the Greater Hydra, Aspect of the Megalodon, Aspect of the Fata Morgana, Aspect of the Blade Tempest, Aspect of the Acid Drake

If the user also has the Skill The Chosen Weapon, this weapon will be incorporated into the user’s new form.

Furthermore, while in this form the user’s Strength and Fortitude are increased by 65 % while Agility and Perception are increased by 100 %. Magic Power and Magic Regeneration will remain unchanged.

This Skill can only be activated once every hour and lasts for 300 seconds. It also requires 1,000 mana to use, which it siphons off from the user’s mana regeneration so long as the mana pool is full.

After countless battles where the user has used this Skill to annihilate foes that should have been well beyond his capabilities, it has been increased to a level of power worthy of its own legend. The user may now transform into any non-Boss creature whose Aspect he holds and has a Level that does not exceed his by more than 10 (more powerful creatures may suffer from a shortened duration). In addition, the user may manifest body parts of the monsters for a cost dependent on the specific body part copied on their normal body.

And now, it has reached the pinnacle of its power. The number of customizable forms is increased to 7, which can be freely created/altered while this Skill is inactive. These Forms can draw upon the forms of any monster whose Aspect the user has slotted. The Stat boosts provided by this Skill are increased. Furthermore, the user may freely switch between any of his one standard and seven custom forms while this [Skill] is active. Injuries will transfer between forms, but use of unique biological resources (quills, venoms, acid spray, etc.) will remain limited to the form that utilizes said resources.

Current Forms:

Aspect Amalgam

King of the Sea

Ruler of the Airspace

Perfect Amalgam

Empty

Empty

Empty

The Stat boosts for Strength and Fortitude had jumped from 45 to 65, while the ones for Agility and Perception had increased by thirty percent to the point where this [Skill] now fully doubled them.

And the ability to freely switch between various forms could be abused to an absurd degree. Create multiple forms that basically amounted to biological suicide vests, spraying acid, toxins, razor-sharp quills, and more besides when it was needed. A form that went all in on mobility, another that bristled with biological weaponry … he’d defer figuring out how to best use that new trick later, though. More [Skills] to work through and all that.

Lessons of History (legendary, Level X)

Those who don’t study history might be doomed to repeat it, but those who do study history will most likely end up watching someone else repeat it. Sucks, doesn’t it?

History is filled with great examples, both ones to live up to and ones to avoid living down to.

This is a Skill to help turn those lessons into plans of action. It allows the user to uncover things about the past by supporting the discovery of new information based on mere context clues and will then check the veracity of this information.

Once such information about the past is in your hands, the Skill will point to the core lessons to learn from the past and allow these lessons to be communicated clearly and unmistakeably to others.

If you also have The Meaning of the Name, these Skills will work in concert to provide superior results for both and it will run subconsciously beside its sibling Skill.

In addition, the user gains a mental archive of all information gathered by this Skill. This information takes a few seconds to access if it has been forgotten by the user’s main memory, however.

[Lessons of History] had gotten a nice little boost, lacking in the short term but overwhelmingly powerful in the long term.

Expert’s Insight (legendary, Level X)

What separates a soldier who just got out of training from a veteran? A student who just got his degree from a lead engineer? A wizard’s apprentice from an Archmage?

The answer to all those questions is, of course, experience. Some things are taught, yes, but others need to be learned from experience.

Sometimes, said experience takes the form of repeating an action over and over and eventually figuring out a way to make said action more efficient.

In other times, realization comes as a painful realization after a mistake reaps terrible consequences.

Either way, this Skill offers up both a massive pool of experience to the user and vastly improves their experience and Skill Level gain by granting preternatural hindsight. If the user has any knowledge on a subject, they find themselves making connections far more readily and related subjects will be far easier to research. Furthermore, Expert’s Insight acts as a general memory booster.

As with many other Skills in the Hildebrand’s Heir Class, a lesser version of this Skill can be granted to the user’s students using Legacy of a True Warrior.

However, unlike those other Skills, Expert’s Insight does not turn into a lesser version of itself, but rather transforms into a fundamentally different Skill called Veteran’s Knowledge, which allows the user of Expert’s Insight to directly impart their knowledge (note that this is a limited effect, this Skill will not directly put the taught individual on the same level as the user).

In addition, this Skill synergizes with Lessons of History, allowing the user to draw not just upon their own experience, but that of those they witness fighting, albeit at a vastly reduced efficacy.

Oh, that would come in real handy. Isaac grinned. Just one more upgrade to look through, [Champion of Mankind].

Champion of Mankind (legendary, Level X)

Humans are rather weak, aren’t they? Small and fragile despite how much of the planet they’ve conquered, what great things they’ve made, an individual human is still not all that powerful.

Which is why they sometimes need a helping hand. Someone who might give advice, stop powerful foes, or maybe just steal fire from the gods themselves.

This is the Champion of Mankind, humanity’s shield, and the vanguard of their march into a brighter future.

This is a Skill that grants the wielder the power to protect others, adjusted for the situation.

There are three forms this boost can take:

The Leader:

The Leader is the true power behind an army. When the Champion takes command, that fact becomes abundantly clear.

All troops (up to Skill Level times a thousand) under the Leader’s command gain a thirty percent boost to their physical Stats, are automatically empowered by [Veteran’s Knowledge], and gain access to the basic Skills of all standard combat Classes, such as Strikes, Blows, Shots, Healing Skills, and simple Spells.

Furthermore, the Leader temporarily gains a seventy percent boost to their physical Stats, as well as the Skills [Threefold Thoughtstreams], [Simulate Maneuvers], and [Battlefield Map].

The Leader lasts for 1 hour and has a cooldown of ten hours.

The Thinker:

The Thinker is the physically weakest of the Champions, yet also the most impactful, especially in situations where physical force is not the correct answer.

The Thinker gains access to any five regular Skills from scientific/knowledge-based Classes up to and including rare rarity and the third Evolution.

In addition, he gains access to the Skills [Parallel Thoughts] (each thoughtstream costs 1 mana per second from the Skill’s pool), [Simulation] (each simulated second costs 2 mana), and [Mental Celerity].

Lastly, the Thinker can feed Spells using the Skill’s mana at an exchange rate of 2:1.

The Thinker lasts as long as the Skill’s mana lasts (natural drain of 1 mana per second) and imparts a cooldown of one day.

The Vanguard:

The Vanguard is the simplest form of the Champion, but by no means weak. In fact, when it comes to raw combat power, it is utterly unsurpassed. When in Vanguard form, the user’s physical Stats double, they gain a nigh-unbreakable set of armor custom-designed to match their fighting style.

Furthermore, the Vanguard can, at will, draw in all ranged attacks made against nearby allies and even incite enemies to go after them instead.

Lastly, the Vanguard gains temporary access to the [Indomitable Shield], [Unstoppable Momentum] and [Unbreakable Charge] Skills.

The Vanguard lasts for five minutes and has a cooldown of four hours.

The Cleansing Flame:

The Cleansing Flame is exactly what the name implies. The user is wreathed in armor made from the flame they themselves created, known as Prometheus’ Wrath.

Anything up to fifty meters away can be affected by the fire and heat, though the power decreases as the distance increased, and the user can freely exclude the environment and living beings from this damage.

The user also gains a seventy-five percent boost to all physical Stats.

Finally, the user may add the healing aspect of Phoenix fire to their armor, healing select living beings.

The Cleansing Flame lasts for five minutes and has a cooldown of six hours.

***

In addition, the user may switch between forms once after activating this Skill. The cooldown of Champion of Mankind will be increased to three days regardless of which forms are used, and the remaining usage time is dependent on the amount of mana remaining, halved.

Cost: 6,000 mana stored in a separate Pool

WARNING! This is a Skill meant to protect humanity and will fail when used in the service of ushering in its downfall.

Another solid boost and a second switching power, albeit a vastly weaker one. Something to be used in case of emergency, and rather harder to exploit.

The real gain here was the additional form. [Champion of Mankind: The Cleansing Flame] would be utterly devastating when used in the middle of an enemy formation, and it had a solid utility/support aspect as well.

All in all, he was extremely happy with the gains … yet it still felt like he’d bought them with the blood of the dead civilians and service members.

Still, that same blood should let him push through some serious political changes with how it came to hunting down the fuckers who’d actually killed them.

They wanted the end of the fucking world? He’d give them the end of their world!

… And now, off to Ardouin’s temporary office because the man wanted to talk. Should be fun.