ULTRAMagic Chaos - Chapter 8
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Maxima was expecting Percival to pull a fast one here and there, but that did not happen. The only time he deviated from his swordsmanship was to erect a magical barrier to stop Razor from sneaking past him. Tusk and the group were strategically taking turns against Percival. It was a little tricky to coordinate everyone given that Vlastimir’s magic was not present and their fighting styles were fairly disparate, but they managed. For a motley crew hailing from different backgrounds, they fought surprisingly well together.
Percival made notes of each of his opponent’s fighting styles, given that it was quite the task to deal with them all at once (something he would not admit aloud). Maxima was well refined and relied on finesse to catch her foe off guard. Mizuki was predictable, yet hard to evade and devastating when her attacks landed. Her sword was also interesting, as it gave off a glorious aura and it was clear she had been practicing with it. Razor needed refinement, as his style was using alchemy to fortify his arms and hands so he could mindlessly brawl. Tusk was the most intriguing as his style was that he lacked style. Any technique was fair game, which made him tricky to read. One constant was his love of greatswords, however.
Tusk ran up and slammed his makeshift sword into Percival’s blade, shattering his weapon. “SHOOT!” He then belted out a burst of air from his lungs to propel himself back.
Percival laughed, as it was quite unexpected. “I’m not sure what you were trying to accomplish, but I’ll commend your recovery.”
He coughed and sighed. “I was never supposed to be a fighter,” Tusk said as he waved the hilt around before tossing it aside.
“Well then all the more reason for Wulfric’s mission.” Everyone paused to let Percival speak. “We could easily find a place for all of you amongst our ranks.”
“I suppose such a conquest could be fruitful” Maxima began to say as she cleaned the dirt off of her rapier. “If your leader wasn’t a Discordant God of Chaos. You’ll have to pardon our apprehension. Now I will give you credit in that all of you are vastly more behaved than the things calling themselves the Gods of Order over in Purgatory. Of course you surely must realize that there is a reason why the Cosmos proper is so hard to traverse…”
Percival nodded. “Aye, I am aware of the eldritch barrier. I’ll concede that Wulfric has handwaved that, much to our chagrin.”
Mizuki eased her stance. “The eldritch barrier?”
Tusk cleared his throat since he was a little hoarse. “There’s a moral and ethical concern to universes coming into contact with each other. Can people handle the fact that patterns of matter eventually repeat and how will they react to alternate timelines?”
“Yeah, dad and Chief Sigmund told me about a battle that happened in The Unlight before I was born,” Razor added. “Basically two groups of people from different universes couldn’t stand that the other was in the opposing political party. They ended up wiping each other out because they couldn’t come together in understanding.”
“I… wow…” Mizuki was having a hard time processing the idea of such an event happening. “I would have hoped other timelines would be more sensible than mine, not ten times worse.”
The magus twirled his sword and sighed. “Adding insult to injury, The Running God has been going to various universes to use the eldritch barrier as an excuse to stifle learning and progression.”
Maxima took offense to this. “That impudent, vile little waste of enlightenment! All that advancement and he uses it to spread irreverence!?
“If nothing else, we can all agree that the rogue gods are a menace to the Cosmos” Percival stated as he got ready to fight again. Of course he cleared his throat once he realized his gaffe. “I mean, the majority of the rogue gods, my apologies.”
Just as the bout was to resume, something stopped it in its tracks. It was a great presence, similar to that of Adelheid and Ulrich. A giant cloud of thunder and crystals rushed down to the group. What emerged was a man in black robes with dazzling, blue stripes. His black hair was messy and his smile looked as if it was struggling to keep itself from laughing over something amazing he had learned. The man’s eyes studied everyone before him, gleaming in an impossible shade of blue. Tusk and the others quickly realized it was Kleitos himself.
“That’ll do, Percival,” Kleitos assured. “Come in, all of you!”
“My liege! You can’t just let them in…”
He held up his hand. “Ah, I’ve been intrigued ever since they arrived.”
Percival could sense he was not going to change his lord’s mind and sheathed his sword. “Very well, my lord. You four may enter.”
Kleitos’ castle was the pinnacle of his realm, a true wonder to behold. The interior was gorgeous, made of rare metals and gemstones, with a particular focus on marble and granite. Along nearly every wall were countless bookshelves made of the finest wood, stuffed to the brim with tomes and grimoires. Lizard-like entities were climbing all over them, moving around the books and returning some to their rightful places The organization and beauty of it all was truly mesmerizing.
“Normally all of you wouldn’t be able to get in here so easily, but this is a special occasion after all,” Kleitos remarked with a chuckle.
“I trust you know that we’re here to address the obvious then?” Maxima asked as they were led to a rather cozy parlor.
The discordant god sighed. “Given my boundless wisdom, I figured this would come up eventually. I’ll admit that I thought it was going to be Cynerberht and Beorhtric that would speak to me, however.”
“I can’t say I blame Wulfric for his ambitions given the nonsense I had to go through with the Lich,” Tusk said as he took a seat. “I’m sure King Sten would also be sympathetic towards him too.”
“Mm, yes, it is quite the conundrum,” Kleitos replied as he lit the fireplace with a snap of his fingers and took his seat. “There’s no doubt that Wulfric’s war against the rogue gods would be a time of great learning, as conflict is the catalyst of progress. Alas, books are usually the first to go on the field of battle. I’m torn between fostering the Cosmos and securing it, truth be told.”
Maxima nodded sympathetically. “I can certainly relate to this plight. The Atlantean Civil War taught us a lot at the cost of our peace. This is what I hate about learning: It requires a reason. It can’t just be I want to learn, no, it has to be because two of your sisters went off their rockers!”
Kleitos laughed. “And sadly the solution isn’t getting rid of conflict. I can’t even begin to tell you how many fools have to come to me asking how to do that. Not to throw Aeron under the bus, but he was one of the first.”
Tusk thought back for a moment, feeling some insight from his past tug at him. “Well it’s just like The Child of Old once said: It’s all just something that happens. Otherwise life would be meaningless… Don’t quote me on that, I’m paraphrasing from memory.”
That seemed incredibly familiar to Maxima. “Tusk, do you mean Hermes Trismegistus?”
“Is that what he’s called now? Again, I’m drawing from a lecture my father attended in The Magician’s Labyrinth a while before I was born.”
“That Hermes is quite the special one,” Kleitos asserted. “He was visiting my realm not too long ago. In fact we discussed my current state of affairs. He suggested I really start spreading my knowledge amongst the Cosmos. The problem is that I don’t know what to do at the moment. I’m a scholar, not a soldier; but I feel that I need to take up arms and fight alongside my kin. And here I thought everything would become clear to me when I inherited my honors from Zertherhar. I guess I know how dad felt when he was in my position.”
“It’ll be alright, Kleitos,” Maxima reassured. “You’ll just have to be patient and keep searching for those answers. It sucks when you find nothing, but it will be all the more sweeter when you find what you’re looking for.”
“True, but is it worth the hassle to do so?” Tusk put forth. Both Maxima and Kleitos groaned as he had a point.
Kleitos exhaled and pinched his bridge. “Tusk, you wouldn’t believe how many times that has kept me up at night, amongst a myriad of other quandaries. Being the Discordant God of Knowledge isn’t all sunshine and rainbows.”
Tusk nodded and turned to Razor. “Hey, have anything you want to say?”
“Not really. It would just amount to stuff you guys have already said.” He shifted in his seat slightly, a little nervous. “What I can say is that this is confusing, but I’m not complaining, as usual.”
This made Kleitos chuckle again. “I bet you were expecting more action, weren’t you?”
“Yeah, but I won’t curse that fact. This is giving me a good feel for what I have gotten myself into.”
“Many think we gods of chaos are mere identical hooligans, but in reality we’re all vastly different from each other,” Kleitos replied. “Keep that in mind as you traverse our domains.” He then turned to Mizuki. “You may have the floor, Ms. Kitagawa.”
“Oh, my apologies, but I don’t have much to say as all of this is well beyond the knowledge of my people…” Mizuki could not just leave it at that. She had to say something worthwhile. “Kleitos? Do you know what happened to the demon I was pursuing?”
“Well if my sources are correct, he’s dead. A beastman with electrified, purple fur defeated him in Great Torrent Canyon in The Unlight.”
“Ha, told’ya,” Tusk cut in.
Upon the realization sinking in, Mizuki slumped in her chair. “Now what do I do with myself? That was the reason I left my homeland in the first place.”
“Don’t despair, dear,” said Kleitos. “You could join that ULTRAMagic guild Ultimatum is working on.”
She sat up. “Tusk, would you have me as a member of the guild?”
He smiled and shook her hand. “Welcome to the guild, Mizuki.”
A steward entered the parlor, informing everyone that dinner was ready. Naturally Kleitos invited the four to come eat and they happily accepted. Within the grand dining hall was a majestic long table adorned with a lavish feast. There was a wide variety of meats, vegetables, breads, and fruits with every dish meticulously prepared. The scents wafting through the air were incredibly delectable and one would be forgiven for thinking they were in Delphine’s realm.
All of this was thanks to Kleitos and his followers having too much time to study on their hands. Why not learn how to cook and prepare meals? The feast reminded Maxima of her time in Atlantis, given how luxurious the whole situation was. Kleitos was flattered to receive her praise. Despite being a god higher than her, manners and first impressions were paramount for him.
Tusk was enjoying a plate of spaghetti and bread when he thought of something to say. “You know, Kleitos? If Wulfric had come to me back when I was a tree, I probably would’ve sided with him.”
“Oh? What changed your mind?”
“Blood-Wraith. His determination inspired me to get off of my roots and do something. Life is annoying and uncertain, but do what you think is right. And if not, oh well, there’s always next time. There’s plenty of time to fix your mistakes and then some.”
“Tusk, you have a very good outlook on life,” Percival complimented after finishing a sip from his mug.
“Thanks. I mean, it cost me an arm, but all miracles require some form of sacrifice” he remarked as he flexed his stone hand.
Percival patted him on the back. “The man who gives the most receives the most. Never forget that.”
“Well spoken, the both of you,” Kleitos concluded. He then noticed something was not right, as if someone was listening in. “Hold, on the walls have ears…”
Upon Kleitos snapping his fingers, someone was sent flying from the outside of the castle. Karnage had been listening in, but now he was rocketing back to his fortress in Wulfric’s domain as a ball of fire. He landed by crashing through his roof. His servants then came to assist him as he frantically put himself out.
“YOU WORTHLESS, BOOK-HUFFING COWARD!” Karnage cursed as loud as he could. His servants coward away, except for one who looked to be a knight of fairly high rank.
“My liege, what happened?”
“Never mind that, Sanguine!” Karnage snapped. “I think we now have another target for my plans to revive The Tyrant God” he explained as he doused a tiny flame on his facial hair. There was a hint of foul pride in his voice, like he could barely contain his excitement.
“And who would that be, General?”
Karnage went over to his study, which was a bit messy from his rough entrance. “Send a message to Anne Vozenilek. Tell her to have that miserable son of hers and that infernal gold digger he bums around with to start gathering information on Blood-Wraith Raynot and The ULTRAMagic Guild. Perhaps that bumbling cult Milosh was so insistent on starting can be useful after all.”
The servant accepted his orders with a bow. “With utmost haste, my lord. Will there be anything else?”
“Bring me the finest blood wine from the depths of Wulfric’s vault. And when you return, we shall have a toast to Mr. Raynot.”
“As you wish…” The knight then vanished in a haze of red.
Feeling triumphant, Karnage let out a maniacal cackle with utmost pride. “Is it the date of my birth?! Because all of this is just too easy!”
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Maxima was expecting Percival to pull a fast one here and there, but that did not happen. The only time he deviated from his swordsmanship was to erect a magical barrier to stop Razor from sneaking past him. Tusk and the group were strategically taking turns against Percival. It was a little tricky to coordinate everyone given that Vlastimir’s magic was not present and their fighting styles were fairly disparate, but they managed. For a motley crew hailing from different backgrounds, they fought surprisingly well together.
Percival made notes of each of his opponent’s fighting styles, given that it was quite the task to deal with them all at once (something he would not admit aloud). Maxima was well refined and relied on finesse to catch her foe off guard. Mizuki was predictable, yet hard to evade and devastating when her attacks landed. Her sword was also interesting, as it gave off a glorious aura and it was clear she had been practicing with it. Razor needed refinement, as his style was using alchemy to fortify his arms and hands so he could mindlessly brawl. Tusk was the most intriguing as his style was that he lacked style. Any technique was fair game, which made him tricky to read. One constant was his love of greatswords, however.
Tusk ran up and slammed his makeshift sword into Percival’s blade, shattering his weapon. “SHOOT!” He then belted out a burst of air from his lungs to propel himself back.
Percival laughed, as it was quite unexpected. “I’m not sure what you were trying to accomplish, but I’ll commend your recovery.”
He coughed and sighed. “I was never supposed to be a fighter,” Tusk said as he waved the hilt around before tossing it aside.
“Well then all the more reason for Wulfric’s mission.” Everyone paused to let Percival speak. “We could easily find a place for all of you amongst our ranks.”
“I suppose such a conquest could be fruitful” Maxima began to say as she cleaned the dirt off of her rapier. “If your leader wasn’t a Discordant God of Chaos. You’ll have to pardon our apprehension. Now I will give you credit in that all of you are vastly more behaved than the things calling themselves the Gods of Order over in Purgatory. Of course you surely must realize that there is a reason why the Cosmos proper is so hard to traverse…”
Percival nodded. “Aye, I am aware of the eldritch barrier. I’ll concede that Wulfric has handwaved that, much to our chagrin.”
Mizuki eased her stance. “The eldritch barrier?”
Tusk cleared his throat since he was a little hoarse. “There’s a moral and ethical concern to universes coming into contact with each other. Can people handle the fact that patterns of matter eventually repeat and how will they react to alternate timelines?”
“Yeah, dad and Chief Sigmund told me about a battle that happened in The Unlight before I was born,” Razor added. “Basically two groups of people from different universes couldn’t stand that the other was in the opposing political party. They ended up wiping each other out because they couldn’t come together in understanding.”
“I… wow…” Mizuki was having a hard time processing the idea of such an event happening. “I would have hoped other timelines would be more sensible than mine, not ten times worse.”
The magus twirled his sword and sighed. “Adding insult to injury, The Running God has been going to various universes to use the eldritch barrier as an excuse to stifle learning and progression.”
Maxima took offense to this. “That impudent, vile little waste of enlightenment! All that advancement and he uses it to spread irreverence!?
“If nothing else, we can all agree that the rogue gods are a menace to the Cosmos” Percival stated as he got ready to fight again. Of course he cleared his throat once he realized his gaffe. “I mean, the majority of the rogue gods, my apologies.”
Just as the bout was to resume, something stopped it in its tracks. It was a great presence, similar to that of Adelheid and Ulrich. A giant cloud of thunder and crystals rushed down to the group. What emerged was a man in black robes with dazzling, blue stripes. His black hair was messy and his smile looked as if it was struggling to keep itself from laughing over something amazing he had learned. The man’s eyes studied everyone before him, gleaming in an impossible shade of blue. Tusk and the others quickly realized it was Kleitos himself.
“That’ll do, Percival,” Kleitos assured. “Come in, all of you!”
“My liege! You can’t just let them in…”
He held up his hand. “Ah, I’ve been intrigued ever since they arrived.”
Percival could sense he was not going to change his lord’s mind and sheathed his sword. “Very well, my lord. You four may enter.”
Kleitos’ castle was the pinnacle of his realm, a true wonder to behold. The interior was gorgeous, made of rare metals and gemstones, with a particular focus on marble and granite. Along nearly every wall were countless bookshelves made of the finest wood, stuffed to the brim with tomes and grimoires. Lizard-like entities were climbing all over them, moving around the books and returning some to their rightful places The organization and beauty of it all was truly mesmerizing.
“Normally all of you wouldn’t be able to get in here so easily, but this is a special occasion after all,” Kleitos remarked with a chuckle.
“I trust you know that we’re here to address the obvious then?” Maxima asked as they were led to a rather cozy parlor.
The discordant god sighed. “Given my boundless wisdom, I figured this would come up eventually. I’ll admit that I thought it was going to be Cynerberht and Beorhtric that would speak to me, however.”
“I can’t say I blame Wulfric for his ambitions given the nonsense I had to go through with the Lich,” Tusk said as he took a seat. “I’m sure King Sten would also be sympathetic towards him too.”
“Mm, yes, it is quite the conundrum,” Kleitos replied as he lit the fireplace with a snap of his fingers and took his seat. “There’s no doubt that Wulfric’s war against the rogue gods would be a time of great learning, as conflict is the catalyst of progress. Alas, books are usually the first to go on the field of battle. I’m torn between fostering the Cosmos and securing it, truth be told.”
Maxima nodded sympathetically. “I can certainly relate to this plight. The Atlantean Civil War taught us a lot at the cost of our peace. This is what I hate about learning: It requires a reason. It can’t just be I want to learn, no, it has to be because two of your sisters went off their rockers!”
Kleitos laughed. “And sadly the solution isn’t getting rid of conflict. I can’t even begin to tell you how many fools have to come to me asking how to do that. Not to throw Aeron under the bus, but he was one of the first.”
Tusk thought back for a moment, feeling some insight from his past tug at him. “Well it’s just like The Child of Old once said: It’s all just something that happens. Otherwise life would be meaningless… Don’t quote me on that, I’m paraphrasing from memory.”
That seemed incredibly familiar to Maxima. “Tusk, do you mean Hermes Trismegistus?”
“Is that what he’s called now? Again, I’m drawing from a lecture my father attended in The Magician’s Labyrinth a while before I was born.”
“That Hermes is quite the special one,” Kleitos asserted. “He was visiting my realm not too long ago. In fact we discussed my current state of affairs. He suggested I really start spreading my knowledge amongst the Cosmos. The problem is that I don’t know what to do at the moment. I’m a scholar, not a soldier; but I feel that I need to take up arms and fight alongside my kin. And here I thought everything would become clear to me when I inherited my honors from Zertherhar. I guess I know how dad felt when he was in my position.”
“It’ll be alright, Kleitos,” Maxima reassured. “You’ll just have to be patient and keep searching for those answers. It sucks when you find nothing, but it will be all the more sweeter when you find what you’re looking for.”
“True, but is it worth the hassle to do so?” Tusk put forth. Both Maxima and Kleitos groaned as he had a point.
Kleitos exhaled and pinched his bridge. “Tusk, you wouldn’t believe how many times that has kept me up at night, amongst a myriad of other quandaries. Being the Discordant God of Knowledge isn’t all sunshine and rainbows.”
Tusk nodded and turned to Razor. “Hey, have anything you want to say?”
“Not really. It would just amount to stuff you guys have already said.” He shifted in his seat slightly, a little nervous. “What I can say is that this is confusing, but I’m not complaining, as usual.”
This made Kleitos chuckle again. “I bet you were expecting more action, weren’t you?”
“Yeah, but I won’t curse that fact. This is giving me a good feel for what I have gotten myself into.”
“Many think we gods of chaos are mere identical hooligans, but in reality we’re all vastly different from each other,” Kleitos replied. “Keep that in mind as you traverse our domains.” He then turned to Mizuki. “You may have the floor, Ms. Kitagawa.”
“Oh, my apologies, but I don’t have much to say as all of this is well beyond the knowledge of my people…” Mizuki could not just leave it at that. She had to say something worthwhile. “Kleitos? Do you know what happened to the demon I was pursuing?”
“Well if my sources are correct, he’s dead. A beastman with electrified, purple fur defeated him in Great Torrent Canyon in The Unlight.”
“Ha, told’ya,” Tusk cut in.
Upon the realization sinking in, Mizuki slumped in her chair. “Now what do I do with myself? That was the reason I left my homeland in the first place.”
“Don’t despair, dear,” said Kleitos. “You could join that ULTRAMagic guild Ultimatum is working on.”
She sat up. “Tusk, would you have me as a member of the guild?”
He smiled and shook her hand. “Welcome to the guild, Mizuki.”
A steward entered the parlor, informing everyone that dinner was ready. Naturally Kleitos invited the four to come eat and they happily accepted. Within the grand dining hall was a majestic long table adorned with a lavish feast. There was a wide variety of meats, vegetables, breads, and fruits with every dish meticulously prepared. The scents wafting through the air were incredibly delectable and one would be forgiven for thinking they were in Delphine’s realm.
All of this was thanks to Kleitos and his followers having too much time to study on their hands. Why not learn how to cook and prepare meals? The feast reminded Maxima of her time in Atlantis, given how luxurious the whole situation was. Kleitos was flattered to receive her praise. Despite being a god higher than her, manners and first impressions were paramount for him.
Tusk was enjoying a plate of spaghetti and bread when he thought of something to say. “You know, Kleitos? If Wulfric had come to me back when I was a tree, I probably would’ve sided with him.”
“Oh? What changed your mind?”
“Blood-Wraith. His determination inspired me to get off of my roots and do something. Life is annoying and uncertain, but do what you think is right. And if not, oh well, there’s always next time. There’s plenty of time to fix your mistakes and then some.”
“Tusk, you have a very good outlook on life,” Percival complimented after finishing a sip from his mug.
“Thanks. I mean, it cost me an arm, but all miracles require some form of sacrifice” he remarked as he flexed his stone hand.
Percival patted him on the back. “The man who gives the most receives the most. Never forget that.”
“Well spoken, the both of you,” Kleitos concluded. He then noticed something was not right, as if someone was listening in. “Hold, on the walls have ears…”
Upon Kleitos snapping his fingers, someone was sent flying from the outside of the castle. Karnage had been listening in, but now he was rocketing back to his fortress in Wulfric’s domain as a ball of fire. He landed by crashing through his roof. His servants then came to assist him as he frantically put himself out.
“YOU WORTHLESS, BOOK-HUFFING COWARD!” Karnage cursed as loud as he could. His servants coward away, except for one who looked to be a knight of fairly high rank.
“My liege, what happened?”
“Never mind that, Sanguine!” Karnage snapped. “I think we now have another target for my plans to revive The Tyrant God” he explained as he doused a tiny flame on his facial hair. There was a hint of foul pride in his voice, like he could barely contain his excitement.
“And who would that be, General?”
Karnage went over to his study, which was a bit messy from his rough entrance. “Send a message to Anne Vozenilek. Tell her to have that miserable son of hers and that infernal gold digger he bums around with to start gathering information on Blood-Wraith Raynot and The ULTRAMagic Guild. Perhaps that bumbling cult Milosh was so insistent on starting can be useful after all.”
The servant accepted his orders with a bow. “With utmost haste, my lord. Will there be anything else?”
“Bring me the finest blood wine from the depths of Wulfric’s vault. And when you return, we shall have a toast to Mr. Raynot.”
“As you wish…” The knight then vanished in a haze of red.
Feeling triumphant, Karnage let out a maniacal cackle with utmost pride. “Is it the date of my birth?! Because all of this is just too easy!”
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