World Filter

Mark ground his teeth as the system prompt came through. It insisted something was missing and yet forged on ahead anyway. It was then that he realized the Aura he was generating from filtering the Corruption was acting as a stopgap. Allowing him to temporarily supply the process.

At that point, the light built up nearest to them and grew in intensity as the seconds ticked by. Slowly expanding out of them as a perimeter. The disk increased its rotations and the process doubled its energy intake. Pulling everything it needed from their dwindling reserves.

Three rings began to form around them, one near their head, chest, and abdomens connecting all three of them. As it did so steams of information began to rush through their minds, Sam took the brunt of it but the rest rushed past Mark and Jonathan as tides of runes. By now the modules were hard at work and there was no controlling this process, only enduring it.

This became far more difficult as the seed had begun to sprout a multitude of branches and leaves, creeping its way up the staff, while roots began to wrap around the disk. The nectar from the pod acted as a guide and when the tip of the branches reached Jonathan's hand, it latched on. Coiling up to Mark’s and then Sam’s wrists and fixing them in place. Bringing with it the largest draw of power yet, hollowing them out in seconds. Mark could feel their crests changing, evolving as they graduated from mere batteries to generators. Forcing their bodies to pull in power beyond what they could handle.

The pain was tolerable but the process left them all gasping for air as they couldn’t draw enough for themselves, the First Rite monopolized every shred of their power. To combat the drain, Sam got them to fall into [Meditation], which helped by a small margin but didn’t solve the problem. The reason Dr. Haley thought they would burn out became clear, the First Rite was gathering the power it needed. Yet it completely disregards the strain it puts on their bodies. Mark would liken the crests to overclocking a computer. Sure it made the components more effective but it damaged them in the process. To make matters worse it was a balancing act, if one of them weakened, the draw would increase on that person, further causing them to waste away.

The surrounding light and sound had built to a crescendo and then at a snail's pace, a white slip of light began to crawl into the sky. Power was pouring out of all of them endlessly, and Mark felt the degree of information increase as though trying to submerge them.

All around them, the light began to burn away at the Corruption, but the beast was so large that it was barely affecting it as of yet. As though making its claim in front of the light, the Corruption swelled up Mark's back and fixed them all in place, refusing to release them.

Ever so slowly Mark's grip on the world around him was slipping, and he felt himself being pulled under in the process. Mark blinked rapidly, but runes and shadows were beginning to edge into the corners of his vision. That’s when Mark felt a sudden imbalance between the three of them. Sam, inundated with the bulk of the First Rites began to fall. When she did so, more of the burden moved to her, and Jonathan and Mark felt their burdens lessen. Realizing this they panicked and tried to help her but this just caused Jonathan to begin to fade as well. The shortness of breath continued to grow, but Mark held on. It was like they were balancing a triangle on the head of a pin. As one side fell the others rose. Mark realized that it was likely only one of them could survive this. Their bodies couldn’t handle the collective strain, at least not without more energy.

Mark’s heavy eyes fell on the beast and he felt the acidic bile trying to claw its way up his throat. If the choice was between sacrificing one of his companions or getting more energy, what did it matter where that energy came from?

Swallowing it down, Mark reached out to the construct, and it came without hesitation. The stake—still plunged into the creature—warped towards the three of them, smoke wafting off it, as the system glow attempted to burn it away. Pushing through the light, Mark connected to the spell and moved [Draw Corruption] to the construct. Taking in a massive gulp of Corruption and forcing it through his Resistance.

The hit of power came fast and potent, sending their connection into disarray as fresh pain pulled them back into equilibrium. Mark then directed the new power towards the other two, allowing them to breathe easier. They all grabbed onto the pain and used it like a liferaft amongst a stormy sea of runes. Mark then pulled in even more Corruption and funneled it into the First Rite buying them a breather.

However, as though the world were against them, this just seemed to cause the process to adjust and increase its intake further. So to accommodate, Mark increased the amount they pulled in. It became a constant tug-of-war between them, both sides adjusting to match the other.

With the three of them working together, they were able to handle more Corruption than Mark had ever been able to alone. He would draw in the power, and the connection afforded to them by the First Rite and would spread the burden equally among them, further lessened by the crests. The cleaned energy would flood their core and then promptly be siphoned away by the staff. So it was no wonder when the three of them got a notice from the system.

Warning: Energy levels exceed First Rite’s theoretical limit.

Accessing backup registries to compensate…

Energy was still being pulled freely from them and the crests were working overtime, but with all that the First Rite was still trying to drain them completely, so Mark never let up. There was ample Corruption around them, so they’d hold on for as long as they could. They didn’t know how much power this process would take, but they drew in so much Corruption that it was affecting the creature.

A bridge of mycelium had grown from the beast, using his construct as a framework, and had wound its way from the moten floor to Mark's back. In turn, the creature had continued to liquefy around them. Its body completely halted where it was, as mycilium burrowed into the tar in search of the network below the city. Droplets of dark ichor were unrestrained by gravity as they floated around them. Calcified Corruption crumbled from the structure around them.

The white beam of light had reached beyond the roof and was climbing into the sky as though reaching for the clouds. The cold shadowy night accentuated the trail of white gold as it streaked up from the city and adorned it like a crown.

Backup registries overwhelmed…

Sector overload! Resolving…

Sector overload! Resolving…

Sector overload! Resolving…

Sector overload! Resolving…

Sector overload! Resolving…

Constant pings kept ringing in Mark's ear, but he blocked them out and kept circulating the energy between them. Joy, sorrow, and resolve spilled over from each of them, and were swept up by the connection.

The light was condensing around them now, beginning to take form. When it reached this stage Mark could feel they were approaching some sort of limit. The stream of information bloomed and they all felt their part in the process. They were shallow imitations of the forces at work, but even still the power was intense.

Jonathan almost collapsed; as it felt as though the full burden of the earth had fallen on him. They could all feel the weight of law as its roots were built from his Aura. Sharp, cold strength exploded into the city, expanding over several blocks as Jonathan’s Aura reached further than ever before.

Mark in turn felt every bone in his spine groan as power shot up from the roots, and the weight of countless lives crashed through him. Weaving themselves into a trunk that stretched beyond the sky. Yet every strand wove itself so tightly to one another, that even the most powerful microscope would be unable to tell them apart.

Finally, the energy spun into the branches and leaves, where Sam took in all their splendor, and used it in the creation of all things. The mind reached the stage where there was no unknown to it. A wave of her hand could create anything. Yet, it came with a bone-aching loss that she had to bear on her own.

All three of them felt pressed to failure and yet the First Rite was just reaching completion when another prompt came through.

Sector reserves at critical capacity.

Elevating to Caretaker…

Caretaker has invoked the system scenario [First confluence]

The light that was spilling out around the three of them slowed and with it arrived a presence Mark was all too familiar with. Its power rushed to envelop, them even as the process continued. There was no physical manifestation of the Caretaker, and yet they all knew it was here. Power was still being drawn from them, but the overwhelming clockwork of calculations seemed muted. When it did speak, endless strength that Mark had not been able to detect before, echoed through its laughter.

"You know I was pretty sure you three would show me something interesting, but I never thought you would create so much work for me."

Their connection had deepened so much, that the three of them answered as one.

“Then you should have given humanity more to work off, we do not apologize for doing what we needed to survive.”

The caretaker paused as though making a gesture out of sight.

“Nor should you, but before that we need to speak about the current predicament you three find yourselves in. Mark, Corruption was never meant to be a component of this process. However, what’s done is done, now we need to fix it or risk losing it all. I’ll open up your energy to the other sectors, just for a moment to bleed off the excess.”

As it spoke it was as though they heard it from different directions, almost as though the Caretaker were circling the three of them.

“And what does that mean for us?” they asked.

The response came quickly.

“For you, completion of the first rite and all that entails, for the other sectors it could even increase their chances of survival.”

Frustration grew in the link.

“You promised us answers. About what is going on here, not more questions” they glared around themselves.

“And you’ll get your three questions. I’ll even compile a user guide for the populace, but now you must finish what you started. Fail to do so, and everything you have fought for up until now will be null.”

Its voice shook with finality, the flash of a gold light briefly flashed around them.

“I need verbal confirmation. Do you agree to allow your energy to be transferred to the six remaining sectors?”

Mark looked at Sam directly and then Jonathan. There wasn’t a whole lot they could do in the current situation, so they nodded.

“We agree.”

Another flash of gold as though a panel had been opened, flashed around them.

“Good, then with my remaining time how about a couple of hints? First, if you want to protect your home you’re going to need to delve deeper into your new reality, forget those that can’t follow. The second is more for Mark, but you two need to keep this in mind as well. Try your best not to catch the system's attention, you don’t want it, not yet, not when you’re so tiny.”

The Caretaker's voice echoed and got quieter as it spoke, and by the time it got to its last sentence, they had the strain just to hear it.