Infinite Realm: Monsters & Legends

Aspect

Ryun sat on top of a large rock, in one of the citadel’s gardens. A small pond was next to him, and the rest was filled with plants. He was sure that they were beautiful and colorful, but he couldn’t see them, not in the same manner. All around him was Essence, he could see it, but he couldn’t identify all of it. He looked at it and tried to think about which Essence would fit him the best. Of course he could pick something exotic and powerful, something like Selia’s Sanguine Silver, but that would mean being able to cycle it in a limited fashion. Only where sources of such things existed, or if he had some powerful items or formations that could create it on demand for him. It was the path that he could take if he wanted to devote a long time to his advancement in the Ascended Realm, as once he reached it, he would need to cycle with both Aspects equally.

Erdania and Selia hadn’t been much help in his decision making process. Both of them had Aspects that were used by their sect. Their Paths and the way those Aspects impacted them was known. Ryun had considered Gravity, but after a talk with Erdania he realized that it didn’t fit with what he already had and how his body was. Which left only one person who could help him make a decision.

Eratemus sat on a bench next to him, his undead body unnaturally still and eyes turned toward Ryun.

“It depends on what you want,” Eratemus answered Ryun’s question.

He had come to the necromancer with the topic of what his second Aspect should be. Asking for input on his choice.

“Something abundant enough that I can use it to reach Peak Evolved now,” Ryun said.

“Well, there are many ways to go about it. Are you planning on combining the two aspects or keep them separate?” Eratemus asked.

“I don’t know yet,” Ryun said. “What even can combine with the Void?”

Eratemus waved his hand. “Don’t think of it like that. Sure, if the Aspects are compatible they will create something better. But… the result is not only on the two Aspects, it is on you and your understanding of them—as far as I am aware. Imagine,” Eratemus continued. “You take the Aspect of the Wind, and attempt to join it with the Void. The Void disintegrates anything it comes into touch with—well, most things—but depending on how you understand Wind, the Void could take on some of its properties. Wind is more than just its Essence, some would equate it with freedom of movement through space, others would simply think that it was fast moving Air. You could get a Void Wind, if such a thing could exist, which would change how your Void behaves, and that can grant your Qi added flexibility.”

Ryun frowned. He hadn’t thought about that, but… if it did work that way, then he could make something unique. Still, he couldn’t rely on the fact that he could do that successfully and without taking away a lot from his Void Aspect. For now, the safest bet would probably be for him to decide on something that he could use separately. He could always combine later.

“I don’t need any more destructive power,” Ryun said. Void was all the firepower that he needed, he needed utility or defense. The question was how his techniques would react to different Qi. What would be the result. For his second Path he hoped that he could find an Aspect to make it more effective. Void was not nearly as effective as anything else would be.

His shaping was powerful, but he was overcompensating with high stats. He was forcing Void into a state that it didn’t want to be in. It made it… brittle, not as tough as the stats he used to create it should make it be. His Void Armor in the mist form was closer to what Void was meant to be, but even that wasn’t as effective as something else probably would be. All Qi can be forged into three different states, liquid, mist, and crystal, but the Essence usually had a natural state. For Void it was a combination of liquid and mist, which meant that him forcing it into a crystallized state went against what it naturally wanted. It was why his walls and armor weren’t as strong as they should be.

But he had suspected that personal understanding of Aspects was important. His ideal had come from the same thing. And perhaps the way that his Qi acted was also tied to the way that he perceived the Void.

“Preferably something that the Empire could provide me Essence of, something that wouldn’t be difficult for them to find or too valuable to deny me.”

“That is quite a condition,” Eratemus started. “The Empire doesn’t have many Cultivators, so any Essence you get will come from their arrays. They must have some that gather Essence and store it for the use by other arrays, like the shield that protects this city. As for what they would have abundant? Any of the basic elements, they would probably have in abundance. Fire, Air, Water, Earth, Light, Dark, Blood, Sand, Metal, did you think about any of those?”

Ryun nodded, he had considered them, yes. He had dismissed them, simply because he didn’t think that any of them would fit.

“You should probably think about how your techniques will be impacted by an Aspect,” Eratemus told him. “Your Paths have their core, different Aspect can change how the techniques manifest, but their effectiveness will depend on which Aspect you chose.”

Which was what happened with his second Path. He looked around the garden, at the Essences surrounding them. He had an idea of how some of those Essences would manifest in his Paths. His Path of the Final End with Air Essence would be similar to what it was now. His branch technique would be a blast of Air, his fruit probably the same only with Air. His base technique would be the hardest to predict. It had started out as a technique that allowed him to empower a part of his body. He had developed that into a full body enhancement. When he gained an Aspect, he had gained the ability to switch the bonus from any stat to any other fully. That was the flavor that Void gave it. Ryun assumed that the base of the technique would remain the same, he would be able to boost his stats, but the secondary effect would probably be something else.

His Path of the Unbreakable Wall though, would suffer from the same thing that it currently did. Void wasn’t nearly as effective with it. Creating walls out of Air, armor, and an avatar, would be the same, crystallized Air Essence, something that it was not meant to be.

So what else was there? Dark might be something different, and Ryun did have some internal understanding of it. Both because he had once been blind and in total darkness, and because he experienced something like that every time he entered the Void. His own understanding of it might allow him to do some interesting things. Still, he tried to imagine what his techniques would look like. Shooting beams of darkness would probably not be as effective as Void, but his second Path might be changed into something different. Perhaps he could craft armor that hid him in the dark. Though, Dark wasn’t shadow, it was a complete absence of light shadow wasn’t exactly that. Still, he didn’t think that it would provide him more defense, only more… utility—one that he would probably only be able to use at night.

How he wished that he could use the Essence around him, to try his techniques with it. He suspected that even that might be possible, the memories suggested something like that to him, but he wasn’t successful in any of his attempts, not yet.

Metal might be good for his second Path, but it would be completely useless for his first one. Many of the basic elements were like that. Ryun knew that understanding of them shaped how useful they were to a Cultivator, but those elemental Essences had limited… ideas and concepts attached to them. At least he thought so, and that was what mattered. And there was his Evolved form to consider as well. He knew from the wording that it would incorporate his second Aspect into the form as well. Currently with only Void it made his entire body disintegrate any Essence that came in touch with him, and give him a bonus to wisdom of 20%. Another Aspect would add something more, change his entire form. He needed to pick carefully.

“Your two Aspects are Death and Soul,” Ryun said. He could see it in the undead’s core. It was strange, Death Essence filled the body, and the core was filled with both types of Essence, though it was… strange. Not like a core of a living person.

“Yes,” Eratemus said. “A concept and something that is perhaps a true combination of all. Hm… A concept might be good for you.”

“What about Death? It is abundant, isn’t it?” Ryun asked.

Eratemus tilted his head. “Death is… often misunderstood as an Aspect. It is actually a bridge, Essence of transition, from life to afterlife. When used offensively, it can be very effective, though I don’t know if it would be very effective for you and your techniques.”

Ryun agreed, he had only asked to see what the necromancer would say. Ryun already possessed what remained of the Aspect of True Death, he didn’t need another related Essence. And he didn’t think that Death would be very conductive to the defensive parts of his second Path. Soul… it wasn’t as abundant, and he didn’t even know where to start looking for the high tiered sources of it.

“What about Life?” Ryun asked, that one was abundant as well. He could see it working well, though not fully. He could probably absorb it into his Armor technique in mist form and increase his vitality while it was active—he was pretty sure that vitality was the stat that would gain the most from that Essence. Though his other techniques would suffer.

Eratemus shrugged. “As I said, it is your choice, it must be. Your understanding will shape everything. What I would get if I picked an Aspect for myself is not what you would.”

Ryun sighed. Not Life, he needed something else. Of the laws, he had dismissed Gravity, which left Time and Space. Time… it was hard to find and cultivate, though it might work well for all of his techniques—if he tweaked them a bit. At least if his understanding of Time could be utilized. But it was not abundant. Oh, it was all around them, he knew that. He could even glimpse it a bit, he had seen it when he had seen Zach fight. But… he had no idea how to draw it from around him, it was… beyond him, at least currently. It was probably too tied into everything else, affecting every single Essence. Though it did fit into his ideal in a way, it probably wouldn’t mix too well with Void.

Space might be a good fit, though he didn’t quite understand how it worked. He was fairly certain that he could pull that one out from around him for some reason. And he knew that there was a layer of it separating the Void from everything else.

Though, he would preferably want something which would enhance his Void if he could join the two. If not, something that would fit well with his second Path.

He sighed. It seemed like he wasn’t going to find anything that was an immediate fit. He would need to pick something and force it to fit, as he had done with everything. Of the Aspects that he knew about, he was leaning the most towards Time, but that one was one of the hardest to get and understand. It fit his ideal, it would remain with him for all time. He met the necromancer’s eyes and spoke.

“Thank you for your time,” Ryun stood up. “I think that there is someone else that I should speak with. If he agrees.”

With that, he walked away, in search of the only person he knew that could tell him anything about Time from experience.

They were on a large balcony, overlooking the city. Neither of them looked at each other, even after all this time it was still hard.

“Why come to me?” Zach asked.

“You are the only one that I know has it,” Ryun answered.

It was hard, of course it was. For both of them, but this world, this mission. It was bigger than them.

“And if I don’t want to tell you?” Zach asked, his eyes still looking over the city.

“Then nothing, I’ll go away.”

Zach didn’t say anything for a few seconds. But Ryun knew, he understood him better than Zach might think. He wouldn’t be here for any reason other than because he thought that it was right. That they needed to do this and succeed. To protect other people. Zach would do many things to protect others, to right the wrongs, even sell his own soul. He wasn’t going to refuse.

“Fuck you for that,” Zach said, but his words had no bite. And he knew Ryun well enough still it seemed. He understood what Ryun had done.

Ryun felt no remorse, not really. What had been broken between them can never be fixed, but they would need to work together if they were going to succeed. And if Zach could help Ryun get stronger so that they were better prepared, then he was going to help him.

“I can use three different abilities based on Time,” Zach said. “I can slow it down, I can stop it, and I can rewind it. And I have a skill which lets me… manipulate it, I guess, the perception of it at least. I don’t know how to explain it better. With it, I can attack several times in the same moment, and I can make my movements appear before I even make them.”

“How does it make you feel? When you use it?” Ryun asked.

Zach glanced at Ryun and frowned. “How does it make me feel?” He repeated.

Ryun didn’t meet his eyes, he just nodded. “Yes,” he said, wondering how to explain it to someone who wasn’t a Cultivator, not primary one at least.

Zach turned away. “It makes me feel like I can… borrow power from it I guess. When I stop, slow, or rewind Time, it is like I am being granted a moment. When I use my skill, it is as if I join two possibilities of myself together in this moment.”

Ryun grimaced. That was not really what he was looking for. But he didn’t know the words to elaborate it to him. Still, that didn’t really fit with his understanding of Time. For Ryun, Time was something else. A concept that encompassed all of eternity. From now till the end of all things. He had hoped that perhaps he could try and use it for his purpose, incorporate it into his power. But… it didn’t seem to be what he had wanted it to be. Perhaps his understanding could warp it a bit, but he knew that while it mattered, the Essence still had its own core that couldn’t be changed. Void would always be destructive, Fire would always burn.

“Anything else?” Ryun asked, hoping that perhaps there was something else.

Zach didn’t answer immediately. Then, he spoke slowly.

“I don’t know,” he shrugged. “I learn the rules of my powers and use them to the utmost of my ability. I don’t understand the deeper meanings behind them, at least not in the manner that you seem to want me to. The only thing that I guess I feel with time is… There is… like a moment where everything is still and I know that I am tapping into a power much greater than I am. I borrow its power, I don’t create it on my own.”

Ryun sighed, but nodded in ascent. It was too much to ask really. They stood there in silence for a while, neither saying anything. It was… an uncomfortable silence.

Finally Ryun pushed himself away from the railing and turned to walk away. After a few steps he sensed Zach turn around and look at his back. After a few more steps Zach spoke.

“Why did you really come to me?” He asked.

Ryun stopped, but didn’t turn. “We were friends once.”

“Once,” Zach responded.

“I guess that I wanted to… I don’t know, pretend,” Ryun said.

“Yeah,” Zach said, then turned around and looked out at the city. Then he added in a whisper too low for anyone to hear. “Too bad we can’t.”

Ryun didn’t say anything, he just walked away.

Ryun spent the rest of the day thinking about what he could do. What kind of Aspect he could pick that would fit everything that he needed it to. If he was being honest, he didn’t need it to conform fully with either of his Paths, it just needed to add something to what he already had.

He always came back to his Ideal though. It had named him as the Witness of Journey’s End. It shaped him to be someone who witnessed the end of journey’s, listened to the stories of others, experienced them. He was now in a story, and some of those around him would end, it was his purpose to endure and witness it all. Inevitably, his mind always went to his meeting with Ullia Dar Ishi, the woman who died. Whose existence he had ended, gave her a True Death. She had shared her story with him and in that had given him a purpose. He had always felt sad at the fact that he hadn’t gotten more time with her. He could’ve had a lot more to learn from her.

What could have he gained if he had been able to truly witness everything? It was one of the reasons why he had gravitated toward Time. He had thought that perhaps that Aspect could grant him more of it. Let him survive until everything came to an End. But if his Ideal was right, then… then even Time would End at some point. He needed something else that fit with everything that he was.

Ryun knew that he didn’t have a perfect Cultivation—he had done very well—but he had made mistakes. There was one thing that he was sure he was better at than most everyone else; his understanding of concepts and ideas that guided Cultivation. It was what allowed him to grow so much.

In the end, he tried to think about what was it that he desired most of all?

He thought back to his conversations with Eratemus and Zach, thinking about all that they had told him. And then he paused. Something from his conversation with Zach suddenly stuck out at him. It was… not exactly what he went to him for. But… it could fit nicely with his current Aspect, and perhaps even with his Ideal, his entire being.

It was one thing that he often desired, that he enjoyed. It was a concept, and if it existed… though he saw no reason why not. Everything was Essence.

He went to find Eratemus, hoping that the old necromancer might now.

“Huh, well yes, obviously it exists as a concept. But it is not abundant, not like even Time is? The Empire has those Time manipulation chambers, it obviously has supplies of it. I doubt that they would have that.”

Ryun smiled. “I went about this wrong, I think. I shouldn’t have limited myself to what they could provide. They might not be able to give me that Essence, but they could provide me Essence as currency, the pure Essence that I could use to purchase what I want.”

Eratemus tilted his head. “Purchase where?”

Ryun smiled and turned around, heading to find one of the Empire’s representatives. He needed to know how much Essence they could provide him, how much wealth could they pour into him. How much he had at his disposal. He had to know before he tried to make a deal.

He managed to find the Custodian, and the minotaur had to consult a few other members of the Emperor’s court before coming back to him with a number. Ryun had a sizable wealth of Essence that he had gathered from years of killing monsters, using his [Reave]. The number that the Custodian gave him dwarfed that by a considerable amount.

With that knowledge, Ryun made his next stop. He made his way to his room and then looked through his screens.

A few moments later he was in a familiar scape, a shrouded being sitting across from him at a table.

“Welcome back, Ryun,” the Dealmaker said. “What can I do for you?”

“Will you call in your favor?” Ryun asked, he didn’t like having it hanging over him, and though it was not why he had come, he figured that he should ask.

“Not yet, I think,” the Dealmaker said.

“I am about to go on a mission where I could die,” Ryun added.

“You could, yes,” the Dealmaker said. “And if so I will lose little. You are not the only one I have deals with.”

Ryun wondered if he should try to dig deeper into that, but decided against it. No point in trying to dig deeper with the Dealmaker.

“I am here looking to buy something,” Ryun started. “A way to generate high tiered Essence.”

“What kind of Essence?” The Dealmaker asked.

Ryun was certain that the being already knew, he answered anyway. “Stillness.”

The Stillness that would come after the End. The Stillness of a moment to listen the stories of others. A Stillness to witness the moment.

The Dealmaker titled his head. “There are many ways to generate that, which one would you prefer?”

Ryun wondered. He could ask for a shrine, like the one he had in his sect. He was sure that something like that would be cheaper, relatively speaking at least, than any other way. It would always be in a single place, unable to be relocated. But Ryun needed something that could help him on the move. “How much would an item that could generate an infinite amount of that Essence cost me? A source of Stillness?”

The Dealmaker pulled out nine items. They were all the same, round orbs, looking like crystal balls. He could see an Essence inside of them, could even feel it. Familiar, but not quite. The Dealmaker told him the number. Several numbers actually, one for each item, each with a different tier of Essence.

Ryun looked at the final number, the one that could create tier nine Essence. It was an amount that was… a wealth of a kingdom, or an Empire.

He accepted.