Unchosen Champion

The darkened sky doused Coop with a gentler rain than what he had left behind when he delved into the temple. He closed his eyes when he reached the open air, angling his head into the drizzle, feeling deeply exhausted. He took a moment to let the rain wash over him and provide a small mental reset. The droplets struck his face and he turned his hands to catch a few drops in each of his palms. The arm of mists caught the rain as if it was real, and he felt the normal sensations as water splashed between his fingers.

“Cool skill.” He muttered to himself, watching as he clenched the misty digits into a fist, then released it. He hoped the Infusion ability would be enough to keep him going until he could see the battle through, but it was definitely asking a lot of the new skill.

Coop made his way across the rubble pile that had substituted the enormous pyramid and gazed upon the rest of the former settlement. Without the civilization shard, he wasn’t sure what to call it. The framework of the city would be added to the ruins of pre-assimilation developments without the protection of a shard’s territory soon enough.

For now, it remained one of the most populous settings on the planet, except the residents were feral minions without a master. They filled the roads and fought within the wreckage of the incomplete temples with groups of Jaguar Warriors. Members of the local resistance had pressed forward, unshaken by the insanity that had taken place upon the central temple, leaving the security of the jungles in favor of engaging in an urban guerilla campaign while others held the line. Coop imagined that the individual mud-covered warrior with his pit traps hadn’t moved since the battle began, but the group of stealthy ranged warriors were probably sneaking through the ruins in order to pick enemies off.

However, the main event didn’t involve the lowly skeletal Acolytes. The Empowered Bone Titan was still in play. It was so large, towering over the rest of the settlement, it was impossible to miss. Coop made his way to the edge of the temple and watched as the Bone Titan kicked through a stone edifice, sending enormous boulders flying as if they were weightless. It violently spun its torso in an effort to free itself from the annoyances of the Jaguar Elites.

Another pair of thermal lasers raked across its exposed femur, aiming to disable the massive skeletal construct, but ultimately failing to have a significant effect beyond momentarily drawing its attention. As it turned its head, purple lightning arced across the bones of the minion’s upper body, highlighting cracks that had formed in the gargantuan skull, and sending gouts of energy exploding out of its eye sockets and jaw as it spun around, receiving another massive blow from Tzultacaj. In the purple and crimson light, Coop spotted dozens of giant claw marks that were gouged across the ivory surfaces of the Bone Titan. The Jaguar Sun hadn’t given up on the enormous enemy.

Coop’s spear appeared in his mist-hand, solidifying with a speed that shocked him enough to cause him to hesitate. He checked the weapon to make sure it was really ready, and to his surprise, it was. The difference was only a fraction of a second, but to Coop, who had summoned thousands of weapons with each iteration of Retribution, the difference was obvious. His quickswaps always required compensation for the lag in between manifestations, but he was able to fit them in his backswings or while evading his opponents as long as he was proactive. The speed that his current spear solidified represented an advancement that could help enhance even his basic techniques. Coop tossed the spear up and down as he appreciated the evolution of his skill, feeling like a pitcher in extra innings.

He turned his attention back to the minions of the Lich, satisfied with his spear, and considered how to help given his current physical state. Recognizing that he was already just about spent, he considered the feasibility of diving into the minions first, in an effort to fully utilize his Reaper title recovery to get himself back into physical shape. The problem was the lingering exhaustion after being stretched thin by his application of Inheritance of the Mists. It wasn’t something that he could recover with health and mana, as important as both resources were. Jumping into the melee was asking for a bit much in his current state, but it might be what was necessary.

Coop stood at the pinnacle of the pyramid with the night sky brightened by flames and magic despite the sun’s retreat beyond the horizon. The rain had diminished to a light drizzle. Without the swirling death mana that had clouded the settlement followed by the series of domains that had imposed themselves on the horizon, nightfall had actually brought improved visibility. Coop had a clear perspective of the settlement.

Before he made any commitments to where to apply himself, he realized his renewed contribution to his allies might need to wait a bit longer. In the distance, at the end of the highway beyond where the Bone Titan and the Jaguar Sun contended with each other, a disturbance in the battlefield was taking place.

Near the treeline, at the edge of the horizon, hundreds of skeletal minions floated in the air, untethered from gravity, silhouetting their ivory bones against the deep dusky night. They drifted like they were in the vastness of space for a moment, reacting in slightly different ways. Some of them flailed, struggling to find leverage while they slowly rotated, but many seemed to have switched off, lacking the capacity to resist, like a cat being held by the scruff of the neck. Then, as if a lever had been flipped, they all crashed into the ground and were scattered into clouds of bonedust. Gravity made a terrifying return for the minions, thousands of times stronger than normal. The increase was enough to make a drop as small as a few feet lethal.

Coop blinked the drizzle of rain away, unsure of what he had witnessed. The only thing he was certain about was that a powerful contender had entered the fray. While they destroyed the necromancer’s feral minions, it felt presumptuous to assume they were on his side. In any case, there was at least one person as powerful as any of the Jaguar Elites joining the melee before Coop did.

Another group of hundreds of skeletal minions lost their tether to the ground, floating into the air for a few moments along with clods of dirt. Then, they were flung away, evaporating into more clouds of bonedust before they even hit the ground, torn apart in midair as gravity twisted and they were pulverized. Coop raised his eyebrows, a feeling of anxiety climbing into his chest. Someone out there was quite scary, and he was in no state to take on the challenge. Considering his flirtation with the pressure of the Abyss, he had a renewed respect for abilities that could manipulate fundamental principles like gravity.

The night on that end of the highway was erased as an enormous sword of blue light ignited like a torch, dead center in the space that had been cleared of minions. The luminous blade rose straight up toward the sky, growing impossible large. After not quite piercing the wispy clouds, it fell forward, the scale making it seem slow. When it reached the ground, it sliced a narrow channel, hundreds of yards ahead of its wielder. It sheared a narrow strip in the crowd of minions, cleaving straight down the highway, and the light extinguished.

A moment of darkness later, countless smaller blades erupted from the ground at the sides of the new channel, slashing the army of skeletons from below with a tranquil blue light show that expanded in waves toward the buildings on each of the sides.

Coop watched without blinking, assessing the incredible damage being wrought at the edge of the settlement. A second powerful newcomer revealed potent abilities that certainly matched the High Priests, if not outright exceeded them. The pair were obviously aiming to penetrate deep into the settlement, directly where the Jaguar Sun Elites fought with the Bone Titan.

As the light from the silvery-blue blades faded, Coop squeezed his spear. Before he did anything, he needed to figure out who these monsters were. He would scout the newcomers, mistjumping closer in order to ascertain whether they were friend or foe. He aimed high, to the side of the road, so that he would end up above the jungle, relying on the Jaguar Sun’s militia members to back him up if it became necessary. He had barely recovered any health or mana, but it wouldn’t be the first time he was pushed while on the brink.

More light erupted, contrasting the serene blues with fiery red and orange, further along the highway. This time it was like an out of control freight train, rushing down the road. Flames danced across the front as the skeletons were crushed like brittle debris caught by a cowcatcher. When the forward charge of the train ceased, the flames formed the shape of a dragon’s maw and continued a small distance more, igniting bones before fading away.

A dome appeared where the train had stopped, glowing with green and yellow energy and revealing that the locomotive had been a single individual with an excessively large triangle shield. They were now surrounded by surviving skeletons and looked to have overextended themselves. The dome temporarily prevented the minions from closing in and arrows of blood collapsed beyond the perimeter, piercing bones as easily as flesh. Coop now assessed the newcomers to be a group of at least four, maybe a full party of five.

Another bright blue light glowed into life behind the foremost warrior, this time in the form of hundreds of orbiting shields. With each of the shields highlighting more individuals, the full extent of the new arrivals was made clear. More than a thousand organized soldiers had been bolstered by buffs of the same type as the blue-light swords, orderly exiting the treeline, prepared for battle. They charged forward in the wake of the first flaming tank, maintaining a combination of discipline and coordination that had been completely absent in the region, no matter which faction Coop considered. The blue glow highlighted the dark colored matte uniform that each and every one of them wore, matching their dark weapons as they hummed to life with empowering spells and abilities.

Coop laughed. He had been really worried that another faction was making a decisive move at an inopportune moment. The timing was so perfect, with himself weakened and both the remnants of the Cult of Chakyum and the Jaguar Sun locked in a final battle, he couldn’t help but anticipate the worst.

A wave of relief washed over him as he finally recognized the newcomers. The third party that dove headlong into the battle was equipped with the Ghost Reef Standard Issue equipment. It was reinforcements from home. Those weren’t unfamiliar abilities, but the likes of Emmanuel, Mr. Gibson, Shane and his Dragon Knight.

Coop prepared to join them in spite of his exhaustion, feeling an urge to make sure they would succeed, like an overprotective parent, but first, the night was brightened even further. Coop raised his mist-hand to shield his eyes as the light grew overwhelming. Unfortunately, he found that the mists were unsurprisingly ineffective for blocking light and had to switch arms.

He blinked away the flash and witnessed a celestial chariot appear in the sky through a rift of heavenly brilliance, pulled by a team of white unicorns armored in gold and silver alloy that magnified the light, galloping in the air above the highway ahead of the Ghost Reef army. Light emanated from the construct, like a magical contrail, transforming the entire section of the settlement into a sparkling depiction of Elysium overlaid upon the ruins. A serene pure color chased away what remained of the night, revealing a heavenly domain that swept across the northeastern portion of the settlement before the chariot faded into its own exquisite splendor, returning to the celestial plane with the escalation of luminescence.

A magnificent bell rang out afterwards, echoing across the Yucatan, and the glare intensified, growing like headlights in a cloud, softening edges with a blur of transcendental illumination that soothed Coop to his soul. It felt like the world paused to bask in the glory of Ghost Reef’s escort. The bell’s chime repeated, like it was patiently heralding a king’s arrival.

Then, an angel of vengeance rose into the sky, safely behind the army. Her halo ignited with golden flames as she hovered with wings that unfurled hundreds of feet across, far beyond the limits of the highway. Rays of light radiated down from the feathers and her elegant spear was lifted to the heavens. When the golden weapon reached its apex, spikes of golden light rained down from the heavenly clouds, smiting thousands of the frenzied skeletal minions ahead of the soldiers’ charge with a glorious volley of holy fire. Simultaneously, spotlights landed on every living person within the domain, finding hidden guerilla fighters, cleansing them, healing them, and empowering them all at once.

As Coop witnessed the majestic skills, he thought that maybe it wouldn’t be necessary for him to contribute after all. He glanced at his basic ethereal spear, sending off wisps of aqua mana, and felt just a bit inadequate in comparison.

The soldiers of Ghost Reef continued charging forward, passing through clouds of the vaporized dead, heading straight for the most ominous target: the Empowered Bone Titan. They crashed against the remaining skeletal minions, barely losing momentum as they fought their way forward, with miles to go. Shards of ice and gouts of magma carved through their enemies, but the Undead Acolytes were countless. It would take a long time for the reinforcements to reach the central portion of the settlement thanks to how massive the development had grown.

Just as he reconsidered his contribution, a burning orb rose in the wrong part of the sky, behind the ferocious soldiers as they swept down the highway. The glowing orange ball expanded as it rose, becoming larger and larger until it dwarfed the head of the Empowered Bone Titan. Solar flares leapt from its surface, ropes of pure flame, barely contained by the gravity of the manifestation as it continued to amplify. It hovered forward until it was leading the charge from above, evaporating skeletons with its heat alone when it eclipsed their positions. The highway shimmered, but the Ghost Reef soldiers sprinted behind the burning star, claiming more ground with every minute and making better time than Coop with his phalanx of phantasms.

Then, as howls echoed across the settlement, the orb spun, expelling a massive solar flare that arced like a whip directly at the Bone Titan. The orb shrank as it expelled the accumulated energy, pouring it all into the single attack. The flames unraveled from the sun until they grew taught at the moment of contact with the giant. The formation cleaved the spine of the enormous minion, searing the bone at both ends, causing the Bone Titan to collapse as darkness returned to the Yucatan and the miniature sun faded.

Members of the Jaguar Sun scattered as the Titan fell, barely escaping the bulk of the tumbling bones. As soon as the head landed, crushing an entire block of stone, sending a wave of debris like a falling meteor, purple lightning coalesced in its wake.

Tzultacaj’s empowered axe slammed down and finally demolished his target, sending an explosion of bone fragments to chase the wave of debris. The leader of the Jaguar Sun was spotlighted with levels as the experience cascaded across the resistance fighters. He raised his still arcing axe toward the night sky and roared.

“Death to the Death Gods!” He shouted clear enough for Coop to hear at the top of the grand temple with the light highlighting his raised weapon.

A cheer erupted across the settlement as the Jaguar Sun’s primary enemy was toppled by the combination of overwhelming attacks. The remaining army’s morale exploded. Victory was possible, and Coop didn’t even need to do anything. Coop let the Ghost Reef reinforcements fulfill his role, trusting them to be up to the task.