Furious roars shook the dojo, and the oppressive aura of its combatants made the observers lining the walls strain to remain upright. The murderous intent pounced on Tavza as she stepped inside. It was swallowed by the Abyss before it could come close, leaving her mind unaffected.
“What’s this?” Tavza icily said, ignoring the onlookers while holding up the communication token.
There was no response except deep thuds of fists crashing into leathery skin and claws grinding against bone and stone. Three circles of utter darkness appeared without a sound, forming an array around the struggling Beast King. Three flashes disintegrated the head of the Peak D-grade simian before it could react, ending the battle prematurely.
“Poor guy,” a muffled voice said from beneath the headless carcass before it was flung out of the way. “I promised it could live if it managed to pin me down.”
“What is the meaning of this?” Tavza repeated.
“Isn’t it self-evident?” Kator said. “I’ve reorganized our group.”
“You’ve removed me from the mission, replacing me with one of your sycophants.”
“Right-hand man, but yes,” Kator said as he applied some paste to remove the shallow marks on his armor. “You’ve been sealed in your crypt so long I didn’t know if you’d emerge in time.”
“I was training for our mission.”
“You might be in charge, but this is a joint operation. Removing me is breaking the agreement. Remember, you are still on Draugr land.”
“Relocating. Someone needs to lead our sealbearers and remaining candidates into the graveyard. You have ample experience in that regard—your experience in the Million Gates territory makes you perfect for the assignment. Of course, you’re welcome to stay behind if you feel the task beneath you.”
“If only one of us can stay with Arcaz Umbri’Zi, it should be me. Your strained relationship with the asset is well-documented.”
“We don’t need to get along to work together. Rather, it’s you who’s too close to him. How can I be sure you don’t try to run off with the little bastard?” Kator laughed. “I’m not convinced your allegiance with the Empire supersedes that of your lake, so I’ll be the one to make sure he finishes his quest and completes his seal.”
“You have the audacity to talk about allegiance at this time? It’s you who—”
“You shouldn’t believe every rumor you hear,” Kator said with a shake of his head. “Either case, my decision is final.”
“I will—”
“Oh, I’ve imposed a seal on Kavista. This mission is of extreme importance to our cause. We cannot have any information fall into our enemies’ hands.”
“So that’s it?” Tavza said, the Abyss in her eyes growing darker.
“That’s it, Draugr,” Kator rumbled as patterns formed across his Warbones.
“I hope you don’t choke on your appetite.”
Tavza turned around and left, unwilling to stay with the insufferable Reaver for another second. Giving in to the desire to rip him apart would do her no good. Her chances of victory were slim, and it would accomplish nothing. Despite her best efforts, there still hadn’t been any word from the Heart. Kator was still in charge of the mission, which had been created by Lord Primo and ratified by the four races.
Lashing out was no different than breaking the cardinal laws of the empire, so long as his orders were within reason. They were out of options. Tavza soon reached her study, where Laz was already waiting.
“He’s not budging.”
“I guessed as much. That daredevil used the Primo’s writ to create a blockade, so he must be ready to face the fallout. He’s digging himself deeper if they’re truly planning something.”
“It’s a small price to pay for the White Sky Phalanx if it means furthering their goals. There is no way around the seal?”
“Not by anyone bound by the commandments.”
“Still no word from home?” Tavza asked.
“The Lake remains sealed per the last report, and we’ve received no word of any big changes on the outside. Garrisons close to our empires are still seeing a constant influx of common-race soldiers.”
“The lower races would never dare act out on their own,” Tavza said.
“True. And yet, such movements cannot be faulted under any law or regulation.”
“Do you think they’d actually dare attack?”
“If they see an opportunity? Absolutely,” Laz said. “For now, they should only be exerting pressure. Rattling their spears and attacking are two very different things. They want us to join their camp or remain neutral at the very least.”
“Have the others made their will known?”
“No. The Serpentine Sea Phalanx is still ignoring the actions of their race. If anything, they’ve escalated their war with the Primal Council. The Blood Progenitor remains silent, and the Eternal Court appears to be split down the middle. Who knows what the Eidolon are thinking?”
“They move as one,” Tavza sighed. “The Hiveminds must have given some form of assurance if two Phalanxes and half the Sanguine aristocrats dare raise their weapons.”
“It might not necessarily come to war,” Laz said. “This is not the first time this has happened. Even the Abyssal Shores have participated in similar activities in the past.”
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Laz’s words were meant to comfort. Unfortunately, they both knew this time was different. The Primo had been seen less and less frequently over the past generations. His true body didn’t even appear to officiate when the Imperial Supremacies left on their final journey.
The once-unmentionable rumors were now openly discussed among the common populace. That true Death had finally caught up with the Primo. That his Dao Heart could no longer take the eternity it had been forced to endure. That the Heart of the Empire had finally bested him and that it was time for the next chapter of the Undead Empire. No emperors, no futile wars, and an era of prosperity.
Even now, the Primo remained quiet, adding oil to the fire. His reticence had left the Abyssal Shores in a difficult position. This was the worst possible time for a civil war. Her ancestor was approaching his limits, with none being ready to pick up his mantle. Worse, discovering the missing branch was a glaring weakness until it had the chance to mature.
A single order from the Primo could have pulled the Abyssal Shores to his side—to let her bring back the son of Eoz and complete their bloodline. Even handing her back command of the mission would have sufficed. The Primo had done neither. Was his position truly so weakened he didn’t dare push back against the Reaver’s grab for control? Was he unable to communicate with the outside world, as some suspected?
Tavza felt the crushing burden of command weighing on her. As much as she hated to admit it, she wasn’t as skilled as Kator in leadership. Her path was another. She prayed that would be the key to avoiding disaster.
“We have no choice. I’m going to perform the ritual.”
“You’ve managed to finish it?” Laz exclaimed with shock.
“I believe so.”
“You believe? Death looks completely different compared to the Limitless Empire’s era. Just the slightest error in your calculations, and—”
“We are out of options. We cannot sit idly by while the world moves forward,” Tavza said with determination. “I have to speak with the lord.”
“Let me or Sepravo do it.”
“Impossible. You lack the required affinity with the Dao of Death and the precise knowledge to channel it. There might only be ten people in the Shores who have a chance of getting a message through,” Tavza said. “Please help hide my actions.”
“Of course.”
Tavza made her final preparations before activating a hidden array that displaced her into another room. A series of transfers using complex and everchanging patterns and her bloodline took her into a hidden chamber in the depths of Kavista, a place not even Tassar Kavriel knew of. It teemed with Miasma, far surpassing what the local holy lands could provide.
Part of it came from Tavza’s efforts over the past years, another from the fact it was a hidden vein drawing from the continent’s very essence. In the middle of the cave was an enormous sphere made from an intricate mesh of thousands of strings. It was one of the most incomprehensible arrays she’d ever encountered and the culmination of her efforts.
Being stripped of command had awoken her from her comfortable dream of superiority. She knew there would be little chance of her reclaiming command during the war—she was a historian and Array Master, while Kator was a skilled general and fierce fighter. She’d still believed she could have achieved her goals as a vice-commander, keeping the seed of Vanguard safe from the backlines.
That was before she fully understood the storm Arcaz had stirred. Seeing the Abyssal Pond explode was like a slap to her face that had shattered any lingering notion of safety or surety. Not even the Abyssal Shores were safe when facing the coming storm. Since then, she’d worked herself the bones, fighting, cultivating, and scouring the depths of the Million Gates Territory for anything that could help. Then she found it.
An array created by the Primo himself in an era preceding the System’s birth. A gift left to a benefactor who had extended a helping hand at his lowest. Tavza didn’t know the details, and she hadn’t dared prod too deep, fearful of triggering a hidden safeguard in the commandments. Still, the array had become a beacon of hope when the Heart grew increasingly distant.
‘When all options are exhausted, and all you see is darkness, light the pyre. Death will bring life.’
The message was not an empty promise. A year of research had deduced it was Law infused into the array. Activating it without the prerequisites in place would cause a powerful backlash that would rip even Monarchs to shreds. Tavza believed she’d checked all the boxes, yet her hands shook as she ignited the logs of ancient wood.
Black flames were sucked into the labyrinthian mesh, and millions of archaic runes lit up. The Miasma around her twisted and transformed, regressing into a primal state. Past and present connected through the tapestry of Death, forming an illusory gate. Tavza took a steadying breath and stepped through.
The river of time tried to rip her apart. She staunchly held on, her personal Abyss holding off the backlash of the paradox she’d formed. Space stabilized, and madness was unleashed. She stood on a desolate expanse under an utterly foreign sky. Decay and madness had taken up all reality, twisting her senses and perception. It didn’t accept anything else, and Tavza would have been instantly remolded by foreign Death if not for the small, black flame in her hands.
‘Child of Azol, you should not have come.’
The wasteland shook as it spoke. The ground rose, forming a sphere made of bedrock. One eye after another opened on the dusty stone until a million gazes were trained upon her. Not two were alike, except for the profound Death their pupils were made from. It was a different darkness than the comforting blackness of the Abyss and not any weaker.
Eyes opened and closed, forming a pattern that encompassed all life’s terminus. Dimensions lost their meaning as the eyes bent and expanded into dimensions where Tavza’s mind couldn’t follow. The undivided attention was just as fatal as the Fallen Death, which was still whispering in Tavza’s ears. It was completely different from the Founders, the homunculi carved in their lord’s mortal image.
She was facing one of the true facets of the Primo—Galgallim.
“My Lord, I was out of options, and all I can see is Death in our future,”Tavza groaned, struggling to keep herself from eroding.
‘You are traversing on ancient Karma. What befell the original owner?’
“Their descendants succumbed early in the Dark Ages. They died before they could finish the sphere.”
‘Fate inherited… and accepted. Speak.’
“There is unrest on the outside, and we could not contact you. We feared something had gone wrong.”
‘The Heart has been sealed.’
“What!”
Just who was powerful enough to trap the Primo inside the Heart of the Empire?
‘No matter. Heart and empire is one. Kingdoms crumble, civilizations fall. Death reigns eternal.’
Tavza held back a gasp. Was the Primo happy to stay in his cage, depriving the empire of its lifeline to fight back? Their population had grown far too great to survive without the Eternal Heritage’s constant infusion of Miasma. Even the colonies couldn’t survive without its gift.
It would lead to calamity, especially so for Draugr. The Abyssal Lake was the empire’s second-greatest source of Miasma. The other races couldn’t enter its depths, but the shores could provide sanctuary. The longer the Heart remained closed, the more danger they would face.
“Lord, the Abyssal Shores have not moved against you! However, the son of Eoz is being targeted by the other races. His fate is tied to our race. If lord could extend a helping hand, the Abyssal Shores will stand with—”
‘I cannot help you.’
Tavza’s heart sank even further.
‘His fate is not yours to control, nor anyone else’s. He is gathering Chaos; the tapestry has already been corroded. I can only sense he will face mortal danger.’
“Is there anything I can do?”
‘Perhaps. Perhaps not. Child of Azol, are you willing to face the unknowable? In Chaos, seize life.’
“I’m willing!”
‘Very well. Thus, Karma dies.’
Pitch-black runes poured out of the myriad eyes, forming a web that expanded space toward infinity. The madness was swept away, replaced by the pure bliss of the Grand Tapestry of Death. Tavza only got a brief moment to take it in before she felt a tug, pulling her across further into the tapestry until she reached a writhing knot.
It was a small gathering of Chaos, causing unpredictable changes that spread through the tapestry. Tavza felt she could accomplish anything if she grasped that power. Correct the past, save the future. She shook her head, remembering her goal. The key to her predicament should be inside. She’d seize it, no matter what.
‘Remember, fate is not set, and what is dead may rise anew.’
A gap opened, and Tavza entered the broken peak.