Tier 3+ - Accidental Champion (Book 7) - Chapter 54 - I’m Going to Share Everything

Palini Damascus bore witness.

The man had heard of Void Beings before, but only in passing. Spirits, the Otherworld, souls… These were things he’d known existed, but not once had he delved deep into those realms. They were, he’d thought, not things that actively concerned him. He was mired in the physical world. The mortal realm. He knew enough to face necromancers and reapers and other spirit summoners in combat—what more insights were needed for someone such as him?

Palini was a physical fighter, through and through, even if he did have a few of what he liked to call tricks like his Strike Out spell. The knowledge he had of other lines of classes was extensive, but only to the point where he knew how to counter them effectively or give general advice to his children, their children, and onward down the line.

Specialisation had always been an important part of his training, and it was always what he pushed in those he’d trained over the years. While lifespan was not exactly limited for a Denizen, he—and his original master—believed that one could only become truly proficient in so many schools of combat, even with all the time in the universe. And while one could take hundreds, thousands, or more years to learn and expand their repertoire, why not spend that time delving deeper into the core elements of their class and fighting style?

Because while lifespans might not be limited, time was. A hundred years spent learning a hundred things was very different to a hundred years deepening expertise in only one. This strategy had allowed him to excel in one-on-one combat as he made a name for himself in the Orin Arena Circuit. It had gotten him to where he was now. Even those who possessed influence over the bounds of time were limited by cooldowns.

Time wasn’t the only concern, either. Energy was limited, as were spellsets. Thus, specialisation was the pinnacle of power. Never before had he met a powerful Denizen who thought otherwise. Until now.

Xavier Collins flies in the face of specialisation. He’s barely a pup and he defeated me with ease, even if it wasn’t his sword work that defeated me, he’s a far better swordsman than I was at D Grade, and a thousand times better than I was at his age.

So as Palini stood there, the ends of his stumps itching something fierce as his arms took their sweet time to heal, he threw aside everything he thought he knew and simply observed. As the man had told him to do, he became nothing more than a witness. Though Palini had never been a coward, and would not hesitate to join the fight, he didn’t see how he would made any appreciable difference.

Without his arms, without his sword, there was very little he could do.

I suppose that’s a tick in the column against specialisation.

The Void Being had been flickering in and out of existence, more and more frequently, until Xavier had done something to it with one of his drones using Strike Out. Palini narrowed his eyes, staring at the being. His spiritual sense told him there was more going on here. There was a slight incorporeality to the Void Being that hadn’t been there before, one that couldn’t be attributed to its technical status as a spirit. Pushing his sense against that incorporeality gave it a familiar feeling, one he’d encountered before.

A Time Prison spell, or something similar. No wonder it hasn’t flickered again. Now, it seemed as though the spirit was truly frozen. I guess that will give time for Xavier to do whatever it is he plans to do.

Despite how immobile the enemy currently was, Palini was inclined to take several steps back. Who knew when that thing would break free?

Though he found it difficult to take his eyes off the Void Being—a monster of a thing that looked exactly like Xavier Collins, a mystery of the multiverse there might never be an answer to—he couldn’t help but look at the Xavier and the dozen drones the man had created. Each drone, including the final to appear that had laid its glowing hands on the Void Being and locked it in time, held a stylus and was hard at work drawing what the man called spell patterns.

Palini had watched Xavier draw these things before. At one point, he’d even given Palini a brief explanation of what they were. At first, Palini had thought such things could never be of use to him. They took far too long to create by even someone as skilled and swift in their movements as the young dragonkin he’d pledged his loyalty to. But the more he’d seen Xavier use them, the more he realised their power and utility.

As Palini watched each of the different drones draw their spell patterns, he was surprised to see Xavier simply standing in the middle of them all with his eyes closed. Palini cocked his head to the side with a frown but remained silent.

“You can speak, if you wish,” Xavier said without opening his eyes.

“I wouldn’t want to distract you.”

“I have concentration enough to hold a conversation.”

Palini raised an eyebrow. “Even with”—he gestured at the drones, the Void Being, the frozen, newly loyal Denizens beyond—“all this going on?”

Xavier smiled. “I’ve long held the ability to split my mind. I’ve only become more adept at it over the years.”

“Long… Years…” Palini chuckled. “You don’t know the meaning of the words.” He stopped himself from biting the top of his lip. These honest remarks seemed to come thick and fast when in the presence of this man, yet he always worried how they would be received only after he’d uttered them. It was such a dissonance, seeing someone so young wielding so much power. Seeing so much power coupled with such idealism. It often made him slip from the role he’d signed on for.

Xavier chuckled in return. “I suppose you’re right. Even so, I see many questions in your eyes.”

Palini sighed. “Despite the truth contract, I find myself wondering if you were honest when you said you would share your powers with these people, and with more than just them. Such a course of action sounds incredibly shortsighted, even if you were to heavily contract them—something I can’t see you doing.”

“Hmm,” the young dragonkin replied. “The reason I want to do this is actually a longsighted one.”

“I see your mind working, every moment. How many plans have you got in that head of yours?” Palini glanced around the throne room. “Something tells me it’s more than this sector you have your sights on. You’re young, but you must know how much attention you’ll draw by conquering this sector.”

Xavier pursed his lips. “I’m not sure I like the word conquer.”

Palini scoffed. “What else would you call this?”

“I’m not sure there’s a word for what I ultimately want to do. But… I suppose I can borrow one we’re all familiar with.” The young dragonkin tilted his head to one side. “Integration. I want to connect, unite, as many peoples as I can.”

“Under your rule?”

“Yes, and no. I want them to rule themselves, as long as that rule does not cause undeserved harm. But I want to do more than bring people peace, or self-agency, I want to bring them power they never thought they could wield. I want them to open their minds and hearts to what’s possible. And, above all, I want them to see other Denizens not as competition, enemies, subjects, or merely allies, but as people—to help, to teach, to learn from, to band together with, or simply to let live in peace beside… I want every Denizen to feel a part of something bigger, something good, even if they choose to live a solitary life.” The young dragonkin paused. “I know how naïve that sounds. I suppose in the grand scheme I sound like any other conqueror, any other imperialist, talking about extending my rule for the ‘betterment of the people’ without considering how much harm it will cause to get to my utopia.”

Palini blinked as he took all the man said in, the highly sceptical parts of himself cringing at the way the man spoke of peace and unity. It sounded like nothing more than a dream—a dream that could never come true. The Greater Universe was one driven by conflict, a conflict the System that governed everything, whatever one’s beliefs about it, not only pushed for but essentially enforced with the way it assigned quests and how they were ultimately carried out.

What Xavier wanted was the exact opposite of reality.

“Well, I can’t say you sound exactly like other conquerors. I do believe your intentions are good—I wouldn’t have come with you otherwise, nor would I have talked all those people into trusting you. I certainly think you won’t do worse for the Ventorin sector than The Collector did.”

Xavier laughed. “That’s not quite a ringing endorsement.”

“It’s still early days. Perhaps my opinion of you will only grow.” Palini looked at the spell patterns being drawn. All this talk of unity couldn’t distract him from the seriousness of their current situation. He’d thought The Collector would be the true threat when they came here. This Void Being… It had come from nowhere, yet its presence didn’t appear to faze the young dragonkin in the least. “These powers of yours, something tells me I’ve only scratched the surface of what you can do. The spell patterns you use are clearly powerful, but they can’t be what made you strong enough to hold your own in a swordfight against me. They certainly can’t have been what allowed you to cut The Collector in half. Even watching as closely as I have, I’ve only seen hints of how you do what you do. What exactly are you going to share?”

“Everything, Palini. I’m going to share everything. This knowledge, this power, shouldn’t only live within me.” The dragonkin opened his eyes and looked directly at Palini. “Not when there’s so much at stake.”

“You spoke of a threat coming to your sector, to your world, when negotiating with Sovereign Fouran. Is that what’s at stake? Is that why you want people united, why you want to share you power with them? To combat that threat?”

Xavier shook his head. “I’m not talking about that.” He dipped his chin down. “There is something I must tell you. Perhaps everything will become clear when I do.”

Palini straightened, his focus heightened. “Then tell me.”

“The universe is coming to an end,” the young dragonkin in a matter-of-fact way.

Palini paused, his sceptical nature at work again. A truth contract only reveals what a Denizen believes is true, he reminded himself. “And why do you believe that’s true?”

“Because it is an undeniable fact. The System is watching me, Palini. It wants me to become its weapon so I can stop the end. The System is not my only source of information, either.” Xavier raised his chin. “It won’t happen for a very, very long time. But it will happen, and it’s the reason the System was created in the first place. That, too, I have on good authority.” He frowned. “At least, this System. I don’t know about the others…”

Outwardly, Palini seemed to freeze up. There were a lot of things to unpack in what Xavier had just said. The universe is ending… The System is watching him… He has been chosen by it… And somehow this young dragonkin knows the origins of the System?

Then there was the last thing he’d said, almost as an afterthought. That there were other Systems.

Palini moved as though to run a hand through his hair but stopped midway, glancing at the stumps where is arms used to be.

He looked at Xavier anew. In his experience there were things that weren’t worth doubting—the System was one of them. True, Xavier could be completely delusional. He could have had his memories altered—whether by another or himself—so these things were believed even if they weren’t the truth. But there were a few occasions in his life when putting aside his scepticism had been the right course of action. Like when he’d fallen in love with his wife and decided to start a family. Scepticism and love were two things that simply didn’t mix well.

When Palini had agreed to go with Xavier, he had been incredibly sceptical about the idea. Hell, he still was—but he’d pushed that aside, and continued to push that aside, because his gut kept telling him this was the right path. Again, listening to what this man was saying, alarm bells went off—these things can’t be true, they must be lies—and yet he believed them. So, once more, he pushed aside his doubts and stared at the young dragonkin he’d so recently pledged his life to, knowing there remained unseen depths to the man, and that he was only now scratching the surface.

Palini cleared his throat and thought of his wife. Thought of his long line of descendants. “When you say a very, very long time, forgive me if I want something more specific, considering how differently we define such things.” His voice sounded dry.

“Oh, several billion years, I think.”

Palini frowned, his entire body relaxing. “Several billions of years? You… You made me think this was serious! That is forever away!” He might have been inclined to pull out his hair if he had his arms back.

Xavier stared at him, tilting his head to the side, and spoke more seriously than Palini had ever heard. “To me that length of time is unfathomable, but I have spoken to those who have watched the births and deaths of countless universes. With the power we are able to gain, we are able to wield, immortality is within our reach. For me, at this stage in my life, a hundred years, let alone billions, is barely comprehensible, but tell me this: If you knew of a threat a hundred years from now, one that would destroy everything you ever loved, everything you ever knew, including yourself, would you ignore it? Would you wait until the last decade, the last year, the last month, to do something about it?”

Palini shook his head slowly. “No. But a hundred years and billions of years—these are not the same.”

“Hmm.” Xavier turned his head away. “No. They are not. But to almost anyone from my world, up until quite recently, a hundred years into the future, or a billion years into the future, were both things barely worth contemplating. Hell, people had trouble thinking fifty years ahead, even ten years ahead. Individuals trapped themselves in bad habits that tore their lives apart or significantly reduced their lifespans because they couldn’t think forward. Governments and powerful companies used up finite resources at staggering rates, in almost every case thinking only of their own benefit, their own wellbeing, not the legacy they would leave—not the state things would be in for their children, or their children’s children and beyond. If the System had not come, this thoughtlessness would have had dire consequences to my planet’s ecosystem.” He shrugged. “As it was, the System ended up doing more damage, but I digress.”

The young dragonkin blinked. Sighed. “There are times when I find myself thinking like them, because you are right, billions of years is forever away. But not so long ago a year felt like a long time for me. Even a month, a week—hell, a single day felt long when there was something I was looking forward to. So, who cares what happens far into the future when we are all living now?” Xavier looked at the Void Being locked in place. His drones still hard at work on the spell patterns. They were in the middle of a battle, even if it didn’t feel like it. “But that kind of attitude is where things go wrong. Pushing problem after problem into the future, to be done later, onto the next generation. Let them worry about that.” His fingers tightened around his sword. “It doesn’t matter whether the universe is ending in a single second or in a trillion years. What matters is whether we can do something now that will make a difference. If we can, then it’s our moral imperative to do so. I will not stand idle and allow our reality to fall into ruin.”

Palini glanced at the scene in the room, glanced at his stumps, then summoned a simple wooden chair from his Storage Ring—he’d salvaged it from one of his dismembered arms, fast-equipping it onto one of his toes. His toes twitched, the feeling of the ring there unnatural. He sunk into the chair and let out a long sigh, and for what felt like the hundredth time he looked at Xavier Collins anew. “That is an awful lot to put on one person’s shoulders.” He closed his eyes, allowing himself a moment of vulnerability—even if the Void Being broke through of its Time Prison and somehow got into their time dilation field, he was convinced he wouldn’t make much a difference to the fight in his current condition—and imagined life billions of years from now, trying to think in the same terms.

The more he thought on it—the end of the universe—the more anxiety and dread welled up in his chest until it felt like a large rock had been lodged into his ribcage. He had contemplated his own death before. What fighter hadn’t? Still, his death had always been an abstract thing, and for much of his life he’d been reassured by the fact that even if he did die an untimely death, he would be leaving behind so much. His family would live on.

He’d stared death in the face what felt like moments ago. Xavier had been nowhere to be seen, and Palini had been at the mercy of Gregori The Collector, waiting to be given the choice between a torturous death and signing his life away. The Void Being before them, if it got loose, could spell his end—what reassurance did he truly have of Xavier being able to face and defeat the unknown monster, especially without casualties? And yet, even with all that, death felt like an abstract thing. Something that could happen to him, but certainly never had.

Palini was already B Grade. The longer he lived, the chances of him reaching A Grade would only increase. If he made it that far, why wouldn’t he make it further?

All the way to the end…

Palini swallowed. He was looking into the future. Him, his wife, and a family so large and diverse it might very well take up an entire sector—if not more. For if he were to survive that long, becoming stronger every year that passed, he would bring his family with him.

We would be a dynasty unto ourselves…

Billions of years. After so long alive, would he be ready to face the end? Maybe. Maybe not. Either way, he wouldn’t be ready to face his family’s end; they had long ago become the reason he worked so hard. The end of the universe would mean that countless members of his future descendants would never have the chance to live even a fraction of a full life.

Palini opened his eyes and stared at Xavier. “The end of the universe. That’s why you do what you do?”

Xavier gave a curt nod. “It has become the driving force behind almost every one of my actions.”

Palini looked past the Void Being, its existence seeming insignificant after where his thoughts had gone, toward the gathered Denizens in the hall. “You truly want to unite the universe against this threat.” It wasn’t a question, so the other man didn’t respond. Palini sighed. “I’m beginning to understand who you are.”

Xavier smiled. “Still glad you decided to come with me?”

Palini gave a long pause. There was plenty of time, after all. He knew from previous experience it took a while for these spell patterns to be drawn. “I’m even more sure now that I made the right decision. I have always wanted to dedicate my life to a higher cause—something I thought I was doing. I aimed to one day lead an army for the sovereign and further help in the defence of my sector, and not only that, but help the sovereign expand his domain. I thought that was the worthiest cause I could ever find, being in service of a just and kind ruler.”

Xavier’s eyes were closed again. Palini wondered where he went when he did that.

“Now I know I was right to believe that. I had simply chosen the wrong person.”

The young dragonkin did not reply. Palini hadn’t expected him to.

He took a beat, looked at the dozen drones and the runes they were drawing into the air. He recognised more than one rune being drawn, but he only had a rudimentary knowledge of runes, a knowledge he’d never intended to expand.

“I’ve always believed specialisation is the best path to power,” Palini said. “But the things you do…”

Xavier grunted. “You don’t need to fight like me.” He raised his chin. “Specialisation is important. I’m just… not very good at it.” The young dragonkin chuckled. “But if you want to wield powers like mine, you will have to change the way you think and expand your repertoire.”

“Change the way I think…”

Palini walked over to one of the drones. The dragonkin drone extended its wings and flew a few feet into the air, continuing the drawing of the runes, hovering perfectly still. Palini peered at the way the stylus moved. There was something graceful about it, an economy of movement he couldn’t deny—and this was merely one of Xavier’s drones, the man himself had far superior abilities. “You want to teach me how to draw these?”

“In time,” Xavier said. “But there is something else that I think would benefit you far more. Something more suited to the type of fighter you already are.”

Palini frowned. “What’s that?”

“Tell me, what do you know about cultivation?”