Chapter Six Hundred And Eighty One – 681

Chapter Six Hundred And Eighty One – 681

Atop the wall of the keep, Felix was mostly left alone. That was partly because of how hard it was to reach this section of the wall, as well as his occasional practice unveiling his Spirit. The few curious guards had been driven away when the very air felt like it was going to murder them.

His only companions were the cold wind as it whipped down off the mountains, and his burning thoughts.

Felix had spent the majority of the previous night talking to his Chancellors through his Void Sanctuary. Thanks to their connection he was able to pull them into his inner world, just as he was with Karys. It made communicating with them far easier, even when they were thousands of leagues away. It was a task that hed been sort of putting off partly because he hadnt wanted to explain how his Bastion of Will had changed, but mostly it was because he was confident that the people hed chosen to rule in his stead were as willful as they were competent.

From Kingsrock, Kimaris informed him that the Claw had left the city and was expected to reach Elderthrone in less than a week. They were moving slower without Felix to open the Dark Passages, though. That had been somewhat expected on Felix's end, as much of the use of the Labyrinthine Wing was determined by personal strength, and the Claw were at best high Journeyman Tier.

Kimaris had also told him that almost all of the Risi Clans had come to Kingsrock and were now living there. It was a tumultuous experience, and required a great deal of compromise and diplomacy from the Covens, but Kimaris had taken to the task with relish. Felix had been happy to know that hed chosen the right person for the job.Read latest chapters at nov(e)lbin.com Only

Ahkestria was doing well, according to Klzik, with trade now booming between them and Jaast as well as some southern Territories Felix hadn't ever heard of. That had caught Felixs attention, as he knew the Unbound Kobold twins were somewhere in Jaast. After some bowing and scraping from the Yttin Chancellor, Felix had made him promise to speak to the young Master Iretus and have him search for any sign of the twins in Jaast. It was a relief when Klzik actually knew what a Kobold was, as it was a Lost Race and not one of the famous ones either. The message would be sent, he was assured.

From Elderthrone, Karys had told him that Zara was still facing opposition to her Chanter school, which wasnt something he could do much about even if he was there; at least enrollment in the school had begun, and over three hundred students were now being taught the basics of the Chant and Harmonic stats. That was the good news.

The news from the Ghreldan Hills had Felix severely pissed off. That someone, anyone, had dared to capture his people in order to coerce him into an allianceFelix didnt know whether to laugh or race to the Hills to strangle Prince Tevin. The fact that Alister had been forced to go and settle the issue also put him on edge. Coupled with the infuriating news of some sort of terrorists blowing up buildings in Elderthrone, Felix had ended his talk with Karys almost vibrating with rage. Not even the idea of Atar and Isla teaming up, buddy cop style, brought him any joy.

A piece of his Sanctuary had lit up at that point, the semi-translucent structures briefly glowing with a series of violently crimson and golden lights. No matter what Felix did, his anger and guilt just about boiled an entire quarter of his Sanctuary.

Hed quickly sent his Chancellors on their way.

Felix desperately wished to return to Elderthrone and sort things out. Were he there, hed have found the explosive bastards and ended them just as fast as he'd rip that prince a new one. But he could do none of that until he got to PaxVrell and restored the Shadowgate. To do that, he needed to face down another Grandmaster.

Avet was right, he thought with a twist of his mouth. I dont have time to get it perfect. I need to advance, now.

It was time to figure out his Tenth Pillar, once and for all.

Of nine Skills, he had only Tempered Void Sanctuary for his Mind and Astrum Ascendance for his Spirit. To make that more complicated, the latter wasn't even at level 100 yet, though it needed to be before he could fully Temper the rest of his Spirit. Felix was a mere handful of Skill levels away from Master Tier, but to achieve it he would need to fight someone worthwhile in order to push himself the rest of the way.

Feeling a pang of regret that Avet wasn't still around, Felix rotated his shoulders, loosening them up. Guess I'll have to settle on a Grandmaster in PaxVrell.

If Felix stuck to his previous patterns, he imagined he'd hit Master Tier at the worst possible timeprobably while fighting the Hierei. He wanted to push the last of his Skills up over the hump before then, but given how hard it was to gain Skill levels beyond ninety he didn't have much hope.

Not unless I can discover something profound about them.

Skills leveled as much from stress and use as they did from understanding. He'd been told a long time ago that understanding his Skills would eventually become the only way for him to advance. Rory hadn't known Felix was Unbound at the time, nor that he'd be constantly fighting outside his weight class. Felix hadn't ended up needing much revelatory knowledge to push himself into Journeyman or Adept Tier. But maybe Master Tier was different.

I have Sovereign of Flesh, Song of Absolution, and Relentless Resolution all at level 98. Voracious Eye and Chthonic Tribute are 96 and 99 respectively, with Void Sanctuary already sitting above 100. And Theurgist of the Rise, Adamant Discord, and Astrum Ascendance are all very close as well, at 98, 97, and 93. He leaned back, putting his hands onto the stone wall behind him and staring up into a cloudy sky. Now would be a good time for a climactic insight.

Odd.

One by one, he poured the power into most of the Skills of his Shaping Array, ignoring all the rest. Sovereign of Flesh was ignored as well due to the fact that it was already Tempered and thus part of his Pillars. His Tenth Pillar could not involve any Skills that had been previously part of his foundation.

The other Skills spooled up properly, singing along with Astrum Ascendance as the cosmic flame inundated their patterns. Mana and cycled Essence poured into them all, coursing through their planet-like appearances like stolen starlight.

Focus.

With Astrum Ascendance, the songs of his collective Skills were more apparent than ever. To his honed ear, commonalities in their patterns began to stick out, where once they were lost beneath the folds and turns of the Skills' vibrations. Now he could see points where they could be braided together. Combined.

Gathering his Will and Intent, Felix tried just that. He pulled at each of his shaping Skills, grasping at their commonalities through the use of Astrum Ascendance and the recycled Essence from his array.

It hurt.

Oh god. Thatthats not good.

It was like pulling fingernails off of his soul.

Felixs Skills vibrated, pieces of their patterns rising in brilliant harmony. And for a moment, despite the pain, he was sure it would work. It was working, as the patterns shifted ever closer together to join upuntil a terrible buzzing ripped through his concentration.

Dissonance. A burr in the Harmony of their song and a counterpoint to the rhythms that bound the shaping Skills together. By its very existence, it shredded the connections Felix had built.

All at once, his attempt failed. The working fell apart and his Mana and Essence rebounded in all directions, slamming into the roots of his Divine Tree and ricocheting off of his other, inert Skills. Felix was unceremoniously thrown out of his core space and into his still kneeling Body.

Agh. Shit. He rubbed at his chest. Each breath felt like broken glass in his lungs, but he kept at it as his inside quietened down.

Eventually it faded enough for him to notice anything else, and when he did he heard the last fading remnants of his Skills. Like a song half-remembered, it struck him with a vague familiarity that mingled with his lingering pain. There was something to it; something wild and free. Something beyond the cacophony of Dissonance and Harmony. Something whole.

Again.

Felix's head snapped up. "What was that?"

Again. His hunger was eager, encouraging. We can be better, Hunger said.

Felix blinked. Then a grin unfolded from one end of his face to the other, until he was baring his teeth at the sky itself. "Hell yeah, we can."

He settled back onto his knees and closed his eyes. Felix took a breath, and then a second, and engaged the array one more time.