Free Web NovelChapter 1744: HighPlanes
Atticus found himself in the middle of a seemingly endless desert. The sun burned overhead, bathing the landscape in its scathing rays.
Atticus had imagined his ascension into the Higher Planes to be somewhat grand. Filled with drama, excitement, and blinding lights. Yet he had barely caught sight of the light that brought him here.
Even more, the world did not look like what one would expect a higher-plane existence to resemble. The sun was golden, the ground made of ordinary sand. He felt nothing restricting his power in the air. No plane will, no will at all. In fact, the only remarkable thing was the seemingly endless stream of energy permeating the world.
Atticus wanted to use Omnicognition, only to realize that he couldn’t. His bond with Ozeroth, one he had maintained for years, had been severed once he ascended.
It severed any semblance of connection he still had with the man. His mind felt strangely free, with no one watching. It had been a long time since he had felt so alone.
Atticus felt an ache settle in his chest. But he shook his head and smothered the useless thoughts.
He had made the right call.
Right now, what he needed was to focus. No distractions. He had to reach the peak.
Atticus exhaled. Then he began scanning the world. He was still in his flaming appearance. Every step he took fused the sand beneath him into glass. The longer he walked, the more he realized things about this world.
He was literally fire, yet he still felt the heat of the sun above. Nothing in the air restricted his powers, yet his perception was confined to a certain range.
It felt as though the world was endlessly larger than it appeared. Like crossing a kilometer here meant crossing millions back on Earth. Even more, the farther he moved, the more energy he burned, albeit at an extremely slow rate.
Clearly, he had misjudged the profundity of the Higher Planes.
Atticus would have simply chosen to burn the distance if he had known where he was headed. He had no guide, no Omnicognition to reveal the truth of the world. He was alone. Alone in an entire plane where what he considered the strongest of his enemies were gathered.
Still, he continued moving.
He needed to orient himself and find out what this world entailed. A settlement. People.
Anorah would’ve given him a sly look at the thought of him searching for people. He had spent most of his life trying to avoid them after all. Atticus smiled, picturing the look on her face. Then he frowned as an ache stirred in his chest.
’It’s necessary,’ Atticus repeated.
He continued across the desert. He considered flying, then ultimately dismissed the thought. Until he understood the forces at play in this world, remaining unseen was the wiser choice.
Suddenly, a tremor ran through the ground. Atticus froze.
Around him, cracks raced through the fused glass as the ground shook. The trembling intensified, growing more violent until it abruptly ceased.
Atticus narrowed his eyes.
"Burn."
He appeared in the distance, his gaze fixed on where he had been standing.
Something massive burst from the ground, blasting sand and debris in every direction. It surged into the sky, finally allowing Atticus a good look at it.
It was long, massive, and worm-like. Rows of jagged teeth lined its maw. Sand swirled around it as though it were an extension of its body.
Then it crashed back into the desert and vanished beneath the sands.
A moment later, Atticus felt the ground beneath him rumble.
"Burn."
He appeared in the distance. The worm swallowed where he had been standing and surged into the sky once more.
Atticus’ eyes burned scarlet.
"Turn to ash."
Flames engulfed the beast. It dissolved into ash, scattering across the desert winds.
’What the hell is that?’
Atticus had barely settled when the ground began shaking once more.
"Burn."
He appeared in the distance, watching as another worm tore through the desert before erupting into the sky.
"Turn to ash."
The beast crumbled into ash. Then the ground trembled again.
A deep frown settled on Atticus’ face as he appeared in the distance. This time, he reduced the sand beneath the worm to ash as well. Yet when another appeared, he chose to watch instead.
’Where are they coming from?’
More importantly, it was only after he killed one that another appeared. Was he missing something? It was during moments like this that he truly felt the usefulness of Omnicognition.
’Wait...’
Atticus watched another worm emerge in the distance. Even without Omnicognition, he had something else.
Solvath.
As the Primordial Star of Harmony, Solvath was essentially another path asides his own, Burning. Yet he could still wield its power.
Atticus reached out and the tattoos across his body blazed. The world turned purple. Almost instantly, he saw it.
The connections linking everything around him. The world. The energies. Even the very sand beneath his feet. It was an overwhelming flood of information, and he quickly focused on the worm.
He saw it. The thread connected to it. It stretched downward, weaving through the sands and into the depths of the desert.
Atticus frowned. These weren’t individual beasts. They were attacks sent by another.
"Burn."
The thread ignited. The worm collapsed into sand while a deafening rumble shook the desert. Atticus immediately took to the skies, staring down coldly as the desert began to stir beneath him.
The sand converged, morphing into the shape of a gigantic worm whose size dwarfed anything Atticus had ever seen.
Its body did not appear to be flesh, instead seeming molded entirely from sand. Jagged rows of teeth filled its maw while glowing crimson eyes locked onto him. ƒгeewёbnovel.com
It looked like a creature pulled straight from a child’s nightmare.
SCREEEEEEH!
The screech crashed into Atticus like a hurricane, yet he remained unmoving.
’An ascendant.’
There was no doubt. The sand making up the beast was not the same as the sand filling the desert. Atticus could feel it. It was will. Somehow, this beast was also an ascendant like him.
Regardless, it had attacked him. It was an enemy.
The tension seemed to thicken as Atticus’ grip tightened around his katana.
Whirl!
A sudden flash of light drew his gaze toward the horizon. Atticus narrowed his eyes at the incoming streak.
’An airship.’
Were they drawn here by the fight? For a moment, Atticus considered how he should play this. Stay and risk being overwhelmed by more enemies. Leave and hope to find someone else.
Hope had never been Atticus’ thing anyway. He chose the former. Soon, the airship approached and the hatch lowered. ƒгeewёbnovel.com
A beautiful woman with cascading golden hair and a pure white robe embroidered with golden stripes stepped down. Her eyes, like twin nuggets of gold, were fixed directly on him.
There was no curiosity in them. Only certainty, as though she had already found what she came for.
She hadn’t come because of the battle... she had come for him. Atticus’ grip tightened on his blade, his eyes blazing. Then the woman’s voice rang out.
"You are below me."
Atticus slammed into the ground. An overwhelming force crashed down upon him, pinning him in place.
"Burn."
Smoke hissed from his body, yet the pressure remained.
"Burn. Burn. Burn. Burn."
The smoke pouring from him thickened, yet the force pressing him down remained absolute. Atticus slowly lifted his gaze, only to find the sand ascendant similarly restrained, unable to rise.
The woman slowly descended before him, regarding him as one might regard an object.
’She has more authority.’
Atticus could feel something overwhelming from her. Something ancient. Something familiar.
"...Who are you?"
Surprisingly, the woman answered.
"I am Kosma. An esteemed servant of Lord Elysion." Her voice was soft and gentle, her eyes were not. "Ascendant, you carry something that threatens the order of the universe. For that, you are being apprehended."
Threatens... she definitely meant Solvath. Which meant she was an enemy. Going with her would almost certainly be the end of him.
Atticus’ eyes seemed to blaze. The smoke curling from his body thickened as his form began to tremble.
Kosma tilted her head slightly, a faint frown touching her features. She opened her mouth to speak, but a deeper voice interrupted her.
"I am faster."
Atticus saw nothing. Only a streak of golden light hurtling into the distance, followed by a shockwave that threatened to knock him off his feet.
He stared ahead. Kosma was the streak of light. She had been sent flying. Punched. By...
Atticus stared at the freakishly tall man standing before him. He had seen tall people during his journey, but Atticus had always considered himself a different breed. None of them could match his height.
Yet, this man was even taller, standing nearly nine feet tall. His hair was ash-gray. His eyes were ocean blue. A simple robe draped his frame, unable to hide the power packed into every inch of his body.
Yet it was the man’s face that made Atticus freeze. Handsome, like a statue carved by a master craftsman. And more importantly... the man looked exactly like the Katana’s Avatar.
"...Who are you?" Atticus couldn’t help but ask.
The man regarded him silently for a moment, his expression unreadable. Then he smiled.
"I’m your father."
