Wish upon the Stars chapter 1077

I rode on the dolphin’s back for an hour. It was wild, dramatic, and if I hadn’t been in Mornax, I’d have suffocated. Finally, I felt the sense of Danger vanish, and decided to come up for air. I reached for the link between me and the dolphin (who I decided to name Croissant for reasons that had nothing at all to do with missing Bethy or my other friends) and pushed him to resurface.

We surfaced from the moonlight water after a few more minutes, and emerged onto the bank of…well, a bank. Or a beach maybe? It wasn’t exactly a big expanse of space. More than anything it looked like someone had bashed a dent in the bottom of the cliff and left the dust to settle at the base into some kind of sandbar. I hopped down, letting Mornax fade away as I turned to regard my new friend. “Thanks for the help, bud,” I told him solemnly. Croissant the dolphin screeched in concern, but I just smiled and waved him off. “I’ll be fine. Just be careful and stay low. I don’t want you to get got by that sword bastard.”

Croissant, snorted derisively, but then gave me a playful splash and dove back into the water. I grimaced as I wiped the liquid off my bare skin, noting the distinct burn where it had touched. Without Mornax I wasn’t meant to be touching…whatever this stuff was. Luckily it was just a dash, and my body refinement had been moving apace, so it started healing almost immediately.

I watched him leave bitterly, sad to see my new friend go. I’d have to be careful with that Tale of Nine Cats in the future. It wasn’t a one way connection. I genuinely regarded Croissant as my good friend now. The pain I’d endured had bonded us together tighter than I was bound to most of the subordinates I didn’t know very well.

Turning away from the water, I took in the spot that I’d landed. There was a small crevice in the rock, almost a natural cave, and it led into the darkness of the cliffside. I called out the others. Dayna, Deanna (who had emerged during our flight because Chloe was afraid) and Brad. Along with them, I summoned Dan and Oz, hoping they could help me figure out what to DO.

“So, we can go into the cave or try to free climb it,” I said bluntly. “But to be honest, I don’t like the feeling I get from the cliffside. Also, I feel…trapped. Like my clothes are too tight.”

“We’re deeper in the vortex,” Dan informed me. “The suppression has reached the limits of C-rank. As someone at the halfway point, you shouldn’t be affected yet, but the deeper we go from here the closer you get to actual weakening.”

I grimaced, but nodded. “Fair enough. Just means Clarent has no shot at taking us out anymore. So, what can you tell me about that cave?”

Dan looked into the darkness critically. “I get a strange feeling from it,” he said slowly. “But I can’t gather much information. Whatever is in there is too high ranked. The vortex suppresses active effects, but the inherent quality and Impact of items is still the same. To quote an idiom I heard during my research at one time ‘a starving camel is still bigger than a horse’.”

That was unfortunate. I turned to Oz. “How about you? Any idea what could be in there? You getting any danger vibes?”

He shook his head. “Nothing specific. It feels…dangerous. But not in an active sense? Maybe potential danger. Like there’s risk but we won’t necessarily come out the worse for it. The kind of risk that comes with reward.”

I chuckled. “My wife is a bad influence,” I said dryly. “Because hearing that makes me determined to go inside. You guys heading back into the Domain or coming with me?”

“That’s a quality pit,” said Brad with the tone of a professional appraiser. “Not too wide, but deeper than you’d expect, and very evenly worn. I’d love to explore it, I bet there’s all kinds of treasure inside.”

“I think you might be making assumptions based on personal experience,” I said with a wry laugh. “But fair enough, Deanna, Dayna?”

Dayna rolled her eyes. “Don’t ask stupid questions,” she said simply.

“I’m coming too,” Deanna said with interest. “I’m intrigued by the sensations I’m getting from this place.”

I sighed after getting the final nod from Oz. “Alright, looks like this is a team effort. Look alive people, we have no clue what’s inside. Danger and opportunity are great, but the danger is still there. I don’t want anyone getting killed for no reason.”

The demons would be fine, and would promptly return to my Domain. Probably. I had no clue what would happen to Brad, and wasn’t excited to check. He SHOULD respawn the same way, but it seemed stupid to assume. Just to be safe, I activated Mornax again, taking the lead position. Under C-rank suppression, it was impossible for anything to hurt me down here anyway.

Stepping into the cave, I was immediately met with…more cave. It was just a normal rock corridor. I frowned, advancing forward. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing squared. Finally, the cave opened up, revealing a large chamber with a huge decadently engraved black stone door. On the front of the door was a massive engraving of a skull, its eyes blazing with eerie red light.

As soon as we stepped into the cavern, the red light blazed, and a menacing voice boomed. “Welcome adventurers, to the Tower of Zand!”

“Nope,” I said immediately, turning to leave.

“WAIT!” shrieked the skull in a panic. “Please don’t go! There’s treasure in me! Riches beyond your wildest dreams! And more! We have…scones!”

I stopped, turning to raise an eyebrow at the skull door. “Scones?” I said dryly.

“And jam?” it offered desperately. “The butter’s gone bad, even through the stasis, but the jam is very fresh.”

I sighed, heading back into the chamber. “I ask, you answer, then MAYBE we go inside. And don’t lie to me. I can TELL when people lie. Or…you know. Doors. I can just sense falsehoods so don’t even think about it.”

“Don’t worry, I can’t lie!” it chirped happily. “My name is Drexel!”

“Nice to meet you Drexel, I’m Solomon,” I said politely. “Now, I have some questions. First of all, you said you’re a tower? But…this is a cliff. We’re underground. Towers are traditionally built…you know…up.”

The skull sniffed, despite having no nose. “Obviously the tower existed before the cliff. I was buried under rock and dust, for millennia have I lain dormant, finally awakened by the arrival of the chosen few! Rejoice, travelers, for your fortunes have turned, within me lies the great treasure of the god Emperor Zand! Long did he reign and mighty was his power, across the vast planes of the galaxy did he roam, gathering treasures beyond mortal imagining, and today, you have the chance to receive these treasures!”

“This is starting to feel depressingly familiar,” I sighed. “We have to take a test right?”

“NO,” boomed Drexel. “You have only to take a te- oh…yes. That’s right. How did you know?” He sounded a bit put out.

I shook my head. “Look, we aren’t really looking to get caught up in something like this,” I said apologetically. “I get it’s your purpose or whatever and you feel like you need us to come in, but we have a quest to get on with, and we can’t really stop.”

“B-but the treasures!” he protested as. “The Great Zand requires a successor! If you pass, great wealth will be yours. Weapons of mass destruction, unimaginable elixirs, priceless artifacts! We have a Continuum Ant Nest, a Lamp of the Eternal Djinn, and even a Cosmic Phoenix Cinder!” He pled.

I stopped. “I’m sorry…” I said slowly, turning around. “What was that last one?”

“The Cosmic Phoenix Cinder?” he asked excitedly. “Truly a wondrous artifact. The Cosmic Phoenix was a unique creature who burned with a spatial flame. Nine Nirvanas did it undergo, and nine worlds did it birth. Though only an ember, the Cosmic Phoenix Cinder has the unique property of strengthening and enhancing the world or Domain of gods and mortals alike! Of course, it must be integrated with the body, but there are many methods to infuse a physical being with such power.”

My mouth went dry. That was…a lot. I wasn’t sure about the mechanism of S-rank, but I DID know that a large portion of it was dependent on Domain strength. I was strengthening my body with the Nine Phoenix Reincarnation Art to prepare it to merge with my Saga, and that fusion would have some affect on my Domain. I wasn’t sure what kind, but I WAS sure that bigger and stronger was better for Domains. Especially stronger. Lark was known for his absurdly powerful Domain, but his method for strengthening it was pretty much impossible to copy.

And this wouldn’t just be a one and done. If I used this to condense a template, the Cosmic Phoenix’s flame would be PART of me. I would potentially have a method to continuously improve the size and quality of my Domain beyond what anyone my rank should have. 

I glanced at Oz, whose eyes were gleaming, and whistled internally. Risk and reward indeed. My first minister knew what he was doing.

Turning back to the skull, I cleared my throat. “I have questions,” I said tentatively. “First, will this tower lead to the surface? Second, if we pass, will I be required to STAY? Third, I already represent a god, will this interfere with your master’s inheritance, and fourth, what does that inheritance entail and what are my responsibilities?”

Drexel’s eyes pulsed excitedly. “Oh nothing too restrictive. You can indeed exit to the surface from the top of the tower, you won’t be required to stay, and inheritance is a strong term. Rather it would be correct to say that Zand simply wishes you to keep the name of his ancient enemy and usurper in mind on the off chance you have an opportunity to avenge his downfall. It probably won’t come up anytime soon!”

I squinted at it suspiciously. “And what about the tests? I assume they’re very dangerous?”

“Moderate danger,” it assured me. “Reasonably extreme at most. No real risk of death. You might be horribly maimed, or perhaps go insane, but that’ll be the worst of it!”

“Comforting,” I said acidly. “Give us a moment, please.” To my surprise, the lights on the skull actually dimmed, and I looked at it suspiciously for a moment before turning to my friends. “Ok, so…I kind of need that Cinder. Anyone against going through this tower to get it? Because…yeah, I can’t DESCRIBE to you how much I need that thing.”

The others looked dismissive. “We told you we were coming along already,” Dayna said with a snort. “You don’t need to explain to us.”

I grinned at her widely, knowing she couldn’t see my face, I also gave her a thumbs up before turning back and approaching the door. “Drexel!” I called, my voice buzzing with confidence and power. “I want to attempt the trial in your tower. Will you permit me entry?”

The red eyes blazed to life, brighter and stronger than they had been before. “HEARD AND WITNESSED!” it howled triumphantly as the doors began to grind open. “Heard and witnessed by this humble spirit. Enter challenger, and beware, for within lies the makings of your doom, or of your ascension!”

Both doors stopped when they were parallel to each other, creating an empty, open dark space that led into the tower. Turning to confirm with my friends, I nodded to them and then stepped forward, ready to enter the tower and undertake the trial. I had a feeling this one was going to be a doozy, but I had another feeling too. A bubbling, rioting excitement in my gut. If I could pull this off, this would be a turning point in my life that I would never forget. And so I vanished into the darkness as the door slammed shut behind me, and the trial began.