46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlamxXFbVHJ"Was this supposed to happen?" Naomi exclaimed. "Why was I affected this way?"
"Hm, I can't confirm since zenith marks have hardly been dispersed in my life, but if zenith marks are supposed to change one's body to its current full physical potential, maybe this is what you're supposed to look like," Raina offered as a thought.
"It's okay, Naomi," I said. "This is the version of you Viraa saw."
"If you ask me, you look even better," Trevor complimented, making Naomi blush as I got everyone together.
I handed Damien, Arne, and Naomi their spendil boxes. Then I approached Wren and Trevor with a box.
"This one's technically Verin's, but you two can keep it. There's 87.5 billion spendil in it," I told them.
"You can put them in these," Avarice handed them both a spendil box he had prepared already. "They're empty. I intended to have funds transferred before giving them to you, but this works just as well."
"You already had spendil boxes prepared for them?" I looked at him.
"Of course I'd have something set up for them."
"But you didn't know we'd be at this moment right now when you did so," I pointed out. "Were you planning to help them run?"
"You don't sound surprised," he said smugly. "Of course, I wasn't going to let you imprison them again."
He looked at them proudly.
"I wasn't planning for any of us to become so powerful – or you welcoming them here. It's fortunate, really, we don't have to go through what I was prepared to do."
The glare in his eyes suggested he was prepared to cause some mayhem, probably even sacrifice some lives if it meant he could use the commotion to get Wren and Trevor and escape.
I sighed, irritated. I couldn't take my eye off him; otherwise, he'd pull the rug from under my feet.
Suddenly, an eruption of power surged as Trevor was the first to transform into his hybrid form. Unlike the mythical creature forms we were used to, Trevor's transformation was more like mine. Some of his power manifested by sheathing him in a cloak of his orange energy. Then, as it settled, it changed to shape itself like his orange and green cloak.
He stood there marveling at his impressive output.
"This is insane!" he boasted. "If we're this powerful now, why do we need to train? Let's just go take them out now."
"Don't overestimate yourself," Avarice warned him.
Our goal is to prevent the war and to ultimately stop Aeric, I reminded him telepathically. I've seen what he can do. I've felt how strong he is. Even together, as we are now, we'd lose. Besides, we don't know how many others he has on his side. We don't know what else he has up his sleeve. We know he can control others, so it's safe to assume we'll be facing more klevonians and possibly even pneumarians once we decide to interfere. We should learn how to use our new power before we step into battle; that way, we're better prepared.
Okay, so why are we talking telepathically, again? Wren asked, stopping mid-turn as she spun in her robe in admiration.
Precautions, Tymon stepped, admiring his new clothes in his own, stoic way. Just keep following along when you notice.
Wren shrugged, then continued spinning with light hops to make the robe fan out.
I looked at Za'Fia, who looked a little peeved about something, and placed a concerned hand on her.
"Hey, you okay?"
"I can still feel the internal rage clawing at me like before," she replied with an irritated tone. "I half hoped it'd go away, but I still have control..."
Meira approached Trevor and stared in awe.
"A true hybrid...," she said softly.
"What's that?" Trevor asked, not minding the attention.
"Long ago, I was in the archive room, and a statue gave me a prophecy about true hybrids saving Cindar. It's been so long that I haven't thought about it, but this form clearly isn't of a bestial nature. It's pure energy manifested however you like. Thanks to Alissia's lack of a bestial form, I imagine each of your transformations will lack one as well."
There was another sudden burst of energy as Wren was the next to transform into her hybrid form, followed by everyone else, proving Meira's hypothesis right.
"This is quite the development," Raina stated. "It's a bit unsettling, but between my trust in Viraa and my trust in Meira, it appears you all will be the key, valuable allies to our world."
"Um, is it just me, or have I gained two new elements?" Wren got our attention as vines wrapped around her and the blue energy of astral-e flared from her hands.
"That makes six, doesn't it?" Za'Fia pointed out.
"Looks like we each have much to figure out about our new abilities," Michael stated.
"I look forward to putting them to the test," Arne slammed her fist into her palm.
"Yeah, but first...," Tymon approached Trevor and Wren, causing everyone to fall silent. He looked down at them with his power imposing around them, causing them to huddle together to avoid touching it. "Alissia likely gave you this power with the expectation that you won't be a problem in the future. But I can't see the future. If you betray us, I won't hesitate to kill you wherever you stand."
The two looked nervous. Avarice watched Tymon closely, ready to move. Damien watched with amusement. Arne nodded to Trevor. Then Trevor's expression changed to one of conviction, and Wren straightened herself as well.
"We won't," she vowed.
"We're on a different path now," Trevor claimed. "We won't betray any of you."
Tymon gave them a subtle nod of approval, but his eyes remained with a silent intensity before saying, "I hope that's true. If not, you won't live to regret it."
Trevor laughed awkwardly as Tymon turned away.
"Man, you don't mince words, do you? But thanks for giving us a chance to prove ourselves."
I looked at Wren and Trevor's hearts.
I don't think they'll be any trouble. You sure that was necessary? I reached out to Tymon.
We're allowing enemies to join us. Even gave them more power. They need to know that there will be consequences if they use that power against us, he responded.
They're not so bad. Sticking with us will do them some good, Damien chimed in, noticing Tymon's skeptical glare.
After that, everyone reverted to their normal forms. Which reminded me...
I used the memories of Viraa and how she created ascension marks to generate a mark for myself. It was still two infinity symbols stacked perpendicular to each other. I then designed its function to operate similarly to a zenith mark, but instead of boosting my power tenfold, it reduced it by just as much. It also halved my strength and reduced my speeds as well — judging from my new stat categories, I ran three times slower and flew 1.5 times slower. Even then, I was still stronger and faster than I ever was before.
I looked down at myself and saw that I still looked like I was transformed, so I used my pneumarian traits to alter my appearance to look more like I did as a human.
"Why don't you summon Fuse here?" Avarice directed at Meira with a cunning smile. "I'd like a rematch now. Just me will suffice this time."
"You're not doing that," I told him, then looked at Meira. "But could you summon him?"
She brought back Fuse, who was trapped in cindium-cement within a spatial barrier.
"Can you set him free?" I asked next.
"Are you certain? His abilities are tricky," Meira protested.
"Yeah, I want to try something out."
When she set him free, before he could even move, I transformed to my released state and showed him how much more powerful I had become as a zasshu.
"You're a zasshu...?" he staggered. "I have to let Aeric know..."
"Or...," I placed my hand on his head and closed my eyes. With concentration, I was able to view into his mind and see that he hadn't informed Aeric of anything he saw before being brought into the spatial realm with us.
That was good news for us. It meant we still had time.
Next, I focused on his memories of everything since he arrived at the Royal Palace, and then made it so that he wouldn't remember them before letting him go. Fuse slumped as he collapsed, unconscious.
"What did you do?" Meira investigated to confirm that Fuse was knocked out.
"Turns out a powerful zasshu's telepathic abilities are a little stronger than the norm," I said with a shrug. "Now we can drop him off outside once we're finished, and he'll report to Aeric that nothing happened."
As I watched the others start praising me, saying how impressive my abilities were now, or Raina and Meira agreeing with one another that having a zasshu on as an ally would change things in the future, I also noticed Avarice looking at Raina from behind with a scheming expression.
His heart's aura revealed a deceptive, curious violet-yellow aura of intention.
--------------------------------------------------------
So, did you enjoy the chapter? What are you looking forward to seeing further down the road? Give me your honest review. If you like the story, leaving a rating helps it reach other viewers. It only takes 10 seconds and makes a massive difference!😊
Earthly Ties Saga Layout:
The Primordials: Death's Fury (Volume 01 - Chapters 1-30)
The Primordials: A Joyless Joy & Life (Volume 02 - Chapters 31-50)
The Primordials: Lustless Prides (Volume 03 - Chapters 51-78)
The Primordials: Retribution (Volume 04 - Chapters 79-110)
Legacies Saga Layout:
The Primordials: New World (Volume 05 - Chapters 111-165)
The Primordials: Transcension (Volume 06 - Chapters 166-195)
The Primordials: Culling War (Volume 07 - Chapters ???-???)
The Primordials: Secret Vendetta (Volume 08- Chapters ???-???)
Super Supporters: Read 2-3 chapters ahead in The Primordial Archive. There are also extra perks, lore, images, and character info!
(SPOILER WARNING: If you aren't caught up to the story, viewing the character profiles will also likely expose you to parts of the story you haven't reached yet.)
Join Me LIVE!
Monday, June 8th 5pm EST.
All Patreon members (Free and paid are welcome!)
I want you guys to get to know me as a person, not just as a figure behind the series. Express your thoughts, pick my brain, learn about what inspired such a story, or simply say hi! Lookin' forward to seeing you there!
patreon.com/primordials
Words of Virtue:
Most certainly, I tell you, whoever doesn't receive God's Kingdom like a little child, he will in no way enter into it.
- Luke 18:17
Jesus loves us all! Stay safe out there, new chapter(s) posting Wednesday/Sunday!
Media
IG: otherworldsjt
Patreon: patreon.com/primordials
Amazon link: Want your own copy of the volumes? Grab them here! https://a.co/d/0j2UvVpD
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaqDM4Suepe
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBwWP7AiJvc
and then Add to home screen.