6Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNlkN1Ie5BuEveryone began to bombard me with questions in rapid succession.
"Hey, cool new look. How've you guys been? We've been great," Trevor stated nervously before segueing, "Hey, I got a proposition for you..."
"Relax before you blow a spark," Arne firmly pressed her fist on his chest in a camaraderie fashion. Then turned to me. "Our marks disappeared. What's that about?"
"Whoa! You look so different!" Naomi exclaimed with excitement. "Did you stop the war? Are you coming back?"
"It doesn't appear so," Damien answered for me as he stepped closer. "A portal? I wasn't aware people could have that kind of ability."
"You'd be surprised by the abilities other cindarians have," I remarked calmly.
"Where's Dad? What's going on over there?" Wren inquired.
"I'll explain everything in time, but I need you all to come here," I told them. "This may feel weird..."
In the next instance, Raina transported them to stand before us by swapping their places with some broken floor tiles from the earlier fight. Meira then gave each of them zip-wear and explained how they worked.
"Cool," Trevor said with a grin as he changed his clothes over and over.
When Naomi saw Za'Fia, she shrieked and clung to her gleefully.
"I missed you!" she hugged tightly.
Za'Fia endured the affection and hugged her back a bit, saying, "It was a little dull without you around."
Once Naomi let go, Za'Fia got a good look at her and said, "After you shared what happened to me, I knew you'd changed, but to see it in person..."
"Yep, I'm just me now," Naomi said, then glanced over at Tymon and whispered, "So, is he still...?"
"Still dense...? Yep," Za'Fia sighed. "But I can see things are changing in him. What about you? I've noticed how often you've mentioned him..."
Za'Fia teased her with an eyebrow as she subtly nodded toward Trevor, who was still playing around with his zip-wear. The two of them must've been keeping tabs on each other telepathically all this time.
Naomi blushed but didn't reply.
Then she glanced at me, and I noticed Michael had too, as a tear of frustration fell down my cheek. I quickly wiped it away.
Michael silently placed a concerned and comforting hand on my shoulder while Naomi asked, "What's wrong?"
I shook my head, forcing a smile.
"Nothing, just dealing with one of Viraa's many burdens," I said before exhaling heavily, trying to keep it together. "Sometimes I wish I could be in multiple places at once."
Earth – Unnamed Island 150 nautical miles west of Washington – Underground Maximum-Security Prison
Verin's eyes snapped open suddenly as she sat forward. She turned left and right, looking around in confusion.
Where was she? She was...in a cage? A cell. She looked down at her grey uniform.
Prison...the last thing she remembered was experiencing an endless hell. Millenia of suffering and torment because of...Alissia.
Verin gritted her teeth as everything came back to her.
She looked to the right, where a bed was, and saw her reflection on the metal framing. Her hair was longer and mangy, and she smelled awful, but that wasn't her focus. She needed to leave. Her suppression cuffs were off, allowing her to break free.
She tried to transform but realized in horror that she couldn't.
"My mark," she touched her chest where it once was, "it's gone?"
She rubbed her head in confusion.
"Okay, I'll figure it out once I'm in a familiar place."
Verin stood and approached the metal, solid door. She placed her palms against it and began to push hard, but the door creaked without giving way to her strength. It was sturdier than she expected, but luckily, her attempt sounded the alarms, causing several humans in armored uniforms to show up with advanced weapons.
She waited, but was disappointed when she realized none were dumb enough to open the door.
"Remain in your cell, demon!" one of the officers yelled.
Verin looked up with omnivision.
Hm. I'm deep underground. If I bring down these walls, I'll only bury myself too. Guess the only way out is through that door...
She gathered her strength, pressed a foot onto the door, and began to slowly push as the door creaked some more.
"Hey! Stop that! Get away from the door, now!"
"I suggest you do the same," Verin said wickedly as she applied gravitational force to the door as well, forcing the bolts of the door outside to burst from their slots like bullets.
Seeing this, the officers scattered just as the door flew across the prison's underground gap and fell into the chasm below them.
"Jesus, this can't be happening...," one of the guards said in terror as Verin stepped out of the room with a demonic aura. "I should've accepted the transfer to Angola. My wife was right; I was too greedy."
Verin's head snapped toward the officer.
Right, she should find Avarice...
She grinned, causing the officers to panic as she vanished. She moved with inhuman speed and agility and slaughtered every human in her way as she sped around the corridors, only sparing the prisoners since it'd take too much effort to force her way into the cells.
Eventually, she finished, and blood was everywhere. The warden had managed to escape, but that didn't matter to her. She leaped hundreds of feet into the air before bursting through the air violently as she flew straight up, shaking the prison in the process. She flew through the dirt, metal, and concrete until she exited the top of the prison and was floating high in the sky, seeing the sun for the first time in what felt like millennia.
Verin immediately closed her eyes and searched the entire planet for Avarice, but couldn't sense him anywhere. In fact, she couldn't sense any of the others.
Were they in different prisons? No. Her mark was gone, and Alissia's energy had disappeared from her shackles. Theirs would have too. She should be able to feel them.
Were they hiding? Without a mark, Avarice wouldn't be able to transform.
No, she's already searched their safe areas. That means they're not there. They left. Wren. Trevor. Avarice. Even the Primordials were gone. They all left her there. Alone. Avarice abandoned her, pursuing his plan to leave Earth. After everything...
Verin grew livid.
In a fit of rage, she dashed back down to the prison and began killing every single person there. She even crushed the prison to bury the underground areas, killing some prisoners while ensuring the others would eventually starve to death.
But that wasn't enough.
After leaving the prison, Verin flew around the world at Mach 13, wreaking havoc by destroying cell towers, crashing satellites, and destroying nuclear power plants and quantum generators. This generated mass panic and despair from millions of humans that she fed on and killed to gain power from until she plateaued.
She balanced atop the needle point of a building she hadn't destroyed as she observed the fires below. Part of the city she was in was flooded with sewage after she'd sunk another section of it beneath the earth. Other parts were on fire as buildings crumbled.
She clenched her fists. She'd regained the power she lost from her mark's disappearance, but it wasn't enough. She intended to fly to Mars or any of the other planets in the solar system to find the others and make them pay, but she needed more power.
Then a better solution clicked. Alissia would never leave the humans. If her team was gone chasing Avarice, they were coming back, and she'd be there waiting to force Avarice's location from her, then kill her, and imprison Avarice if his explanation wasn't good enough.
Plus, this worked in her favor. There was a better way to get the strength she needed.
Verin flew to Avarice's lab in the Chihuahuan Desert. She went all the way to its basement, where they kept one last augmentation tank preserved. Avarice had originally had it created for himself after seeing how humans could evolve, but he then tested the solution on his cells and subsequently banned its use until he could figure out a way around certain drawbacks it'd have on him.
But Verin didn't care about drawbacks. If it'd give her the power she needed, that's all that mattered. She went to the computer and powered all of the appropriate sequences before submerging herself in the solution. She closed her eyes as she started enduring the associated agony of her body being forced through evolution, the thought of crushing Alissia and the others fueling her sanity through the process.
Cindar – Royal Palace – Meira's separated dimension
After a moment of the team staring at my power in disbelief, I was able to share the gist of the situation with the others, only leaving out certain details I needed to figure out first.
How are we supposed to beat a Tenshu? Naomi exclaimed telepathically.
You'll each receive a zenith mark to make you stronger, I explained quickly. Then you'll train your new powers and try to evolve them. Otherwise, Aeric will have the Pneumarian Forces and Klevonian Army kill each other so that he can step in after the dust settles.
"So, you all ready to begin?" Raina asked.
"Yeah," I said, preparing, when Trevor and Wren approached me.
"Wait, a sec," Trevor said, then gulped as he and Wren knelt and lowered their heads in shame.
"We know it might not mean much, and we know you're only brought us here to keep an eye on us, but we're sorry for the part we played in wiping out the Watchers and planning to wipe out the humans," Wren stated.
"Me especially," Trevor looked me in the eye. "I was the one to take your family away from you. I really do wish I could go back and change things, but all I can do is try to make up for it somehow."
I watched them with Heart's Eye and saw their emotional auras were a mix of benevolent green and compassionate pink, indicating their sincerity. Something had genuinely changed within them.
I placed a forgiving hand on their shoulders.
Damien watched them, proud of their humility and conviction.
"You don't have to kneel, but I appreciate the gesture. I forgive you," I told them. "Part of me did bring you here to keep an eye on you...and perhaps use you for my cause, but I can't see the old versions of yourselves anymore. Moving forward, I'll do my best to place more trust in you."
They smiled as they stood.
"Hey, uh, I've been thinking of a way to you know...make up for my part in everything last year. I learned that you keep that machine's – Trik's – memory nodes with you in hopes of one day rebuilding his body. I can do that for you," Trevor offered.
I smiled appreciatively at him.
"I'm glad you're trying to turn over a new leaf. If we can avert the current crisis, we can take the time to discuss that matter later. For now, I need us all focused on getting stronger."
Over the following moments, I gave each of them a new mark. I wanted to keep Viraa's memory alive somehow, so I kept their marks the same as before.
However, Trevor and Wren were receiving a mark for the first time. I made Trevor's symbol of an explosion and placed it in the center of his chest. Wren insisted that hers be a diamond placed around the naval.
When I was giving Avarice his, I felt reluctance, and it dawned on me that, unlike the rest of us, he and Verin hadn't had their mars fully unlocked by Viraa. Perhaps it was best I followed suit. I couldn't augment the mark like an ascension mark, but I could apply limiters, so that's what I did, granting him only 89% of his full potential.
Once the marks were set, everyone went through a slight metamorphosis as their bodies adjusted. The guys and Arne grew slightly taller and more muscular, while the others were more defined and toned. They each even decided to change their clothes for their new looks.
Avarice changed his suit to something that would undoubtedly cost millions on Earth. It was a black suit lined with golden, intricate details that had a stunning, inverted, golden cloak with black details worn over his shoulders. Even his dark dress shoes looked expensive.
"Ah, this is more befitting of my new status," he said as he displayed his bio card. He was now a 4-star threat with an EQN of 79,000,000.
"Whoa, that's Pops for ya," Trevor said in awe.
"I'm confident I could defeat even the Ryfi Theos or Ryfa Pakt now," Avarice said, glancing at Raina, then at me.
"I can still put you down," I warned him.
"Lighten up, it's a joke," he waved me off.
Tymon had changed his clothes to be more combat-ready. All black, of course, and he still wore his cross, but now with a hoodless cloak similar to the last one. Without his hood on, I realized his hair had gotten a bit longer as it swayed just a little, making him seem a tad bit older. He was a 3.5-star threat now with an EQN of 60,000,000.
Michael was more muscular now, but his frame was leaner, less intimidating, and more...inviting. I found the change pleasant. He wore his usual white outfit, but instead of a coat, he wore his epaulets and scarf with a thin, transparent cloak. He was a 3.5-star threat with an EQN of 59,000,000.
Za'Fia wore a dark shirt and jeans just like before, except now she also wore a regal, crimson cloak that complemented her red streaks and fiery arm. Her bio card revealed that she was a 3.5-star threat as well, with an EQN of 57,000,000.
Then there was Damien. He kept his violet, open-chest vest, dark pants, and his cherished white hat, but he changed his coat a bit. Instead of a plain, silky white coat, it was now a silky white coat with intricate violet designs woven into it, complementing his vest and violet streaks in his hair. Unlike the others before him, he was a 3-star threat with an EQN of 55,000,000.
Next was Arne. She still kept her preferred ancient Greek aesthetics, but with some slight changes. She wore a belt with a lion symbol and a matching brown cloak that hung over her shoulders. She was also a 3-star threat with an EQN of 52,600,000.
Wren had changed her clothes entirely. She wore a Chinese-style, teal robe with red, silver, and black linings. Over her naval, where her mark was placed, was a diamond-shaped buckle of some kind. She looked...serious. Mature. Fitting for a 3.5-star threat with an EQN of 53,790,000. Strange, she should've been a 3-star threat. It was likely her unique ability to control multiple elements that gave her the boost.
Trevor took the most liberties with his changed clothes. He kept his shades and orange coat with green linings, but changed everything else. Now he wore some kind of dark, alien fabric suit that was lined in bronze. On his chest, he wore a symbol of his explosion zenith mark like a superhero would. He was a 3-star threat with an EQN of 53,700,000.
"Oh, yeah. This is it," he beamed proudly as smoke swirled around him.
"Wow, you're all as strong as a Crest Head. Some of you could even be as strong as the Spiritan Commanders or a General Titan," Meira marveled.
Lastly, there was Naomi. She was by far the one who changed the most. Her body grew a bit shorter, and her bust and bottom shrank a bit, too. In exchange, she looked more agile and athletic compared to before. Her silver armor was changed into a more stylish, cute version of itself with a wintery hooded cloak and ice-colored gloves. She was now a 3-star threat with an EQN of 49,000,000.
Everyone looked at her in shock, at a loss for words at her sudden change.
Naomi looked down at her body, just as speechless as the rest of us.
"What the...?"
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Earthly Ties Saga Layout:
The Primordials: Death's Fury (Volume 01 - Chapters 1-30)
The Primordials: A Joyless Joy & Life (Volume 02 - Chapters 31-50)
The Primordials: Lustless Prides (Volume 03 - Chapters 51-78)
The Primordials: Retribution (Volume 04 - Chapters 79-110)
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The Primordials: New World (Volume 05 - Chapters 111-165)
The Primordials: Transcension (Volume 06 - Chapters 166-195)
The Primordials: Culling War (Volume 07 - Chapters ???-???)
The Primordials: Secret Vendetta (Volume 08- Chapters ???-???)
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