Chapter POV: Liv Ivaldi Smith Your adventure continues at My Virtual Library Empire
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The rough texture on the ground caked under my boots. A pungent and acrid scent filled the air. The hairs on my body all stood up as I moved. A testant to the tyrannical display I was a part of.
It was unlike anything I have ever seen. A sight so unbelievable one would assu it was not even real. Yet it was. A singular attack that laid waste to thousands of undead. And it was not done by a Revenant nor a Specter but re Phantoms. A handful of them at that.
"{REWIND}" X2
Leo and Nyda, the ones who annihilated everything in front us restored their states.
"{MAN OF STEEL}! SETTING: [MAGE], [THIEF], [BARBARIAN]! {KNIGHT OF VALOR}!" x2
And is if venting their rage, they summoned suits of armor along with oversized blades of war. Even if it was with out aid, their last attack was reminiscent of a specter. I didn't know how they fought before they joined Hellsend but as it stands they were far more powerful than the Phantoms in my holand.
Phantoms in the North were hardly of ntion. Wraiths even more so. In my holand Wraiths were the people we used for cheap labor. They were the ones who hardly contributed to the war. Any soldier was naturally at least a Phantom.
Over 60% of my people were Phantoms. They were the overwhelming majority. Wraiths made up 30% percent. Specters were 9% while humans were the remaining 1%. Thus to a Northerner, only Ufore or won were allowed to remain as Wraiths.
Wraiths were treated like slaves in the North. They didn't even have the right to voice their opinion. Despite joining the Northern armies I was little more than a guard who got posted in unimportant spots.
Phantoms were the ones who fought the undead every day. They were the ones that created the graves and the ones who laid in them. But, there was hardly any stories of valiance among them. Only of death.
They were the most common of the common. And as Wraiths were not even considered combatants, Phantoms were the weakest of the weak. That was what I considered commonsense.
But it was broken by Hellsend. Or mostly my new family.
My beloved {Kindred} along with my sisters.
They were re Phantoms yet the feats they achieved were worthy of the Northern halls! To reclaim an entire floor! To fight off a Greater Demon! And what's more in Hellsend even the Wraiths joined the war!
But despite the amazing results of Hellsend as a whole, they were still pitiful compared to the Sirens. My sisters were monsters among n. Far greater than any Phantom in the North, they were warriors without peer.
Each day that passed turned them even more dangerous. It was because of them that my ntality changed.
Jo fought like a demon in search of death. Even able to turn foe into friend, her re presence could overturn even the direst of circumstances. This was not even taking into account, her devious mind nor uncontrollable ferocity.
Bella commanded an army of tal that had neither fear nor rcy. Without conscience or restrain, she was frightening. She would use everything at her disposal even the corpses of ally and enemy.
Aki was soone who was fine dancing on the line between life and death. Wielding blood and stamina as both sword and shield, few have the capability to fight harder than her. Even more so when you learned just how far she was willing to go for victory.
Robyn abandoned even reality in her search for power. While her ntality was simple, her combat abilities were not. Capable of leveraging power beyond what should be possible using nothing but her beast like instincts.
Lilly broke the laws of this world just because she could. Accomplishing feats that should not be possible, her {Portals} broke any concept of distance and space. Even more when she ingeniously fights with mundane objects like water and rocks.
Jas went so far to control even light to accomplish her goals. Still unsatisfied she even began to look to the future for strength. The outco of such an outlook gave her the ability to influence even fate to her wishes.
Finally you had my {Kindred}. The man who broke every rule I knew about {fates}. With {Limitless} he wielded seven {fates} together as one. With various {Kist} he kept creating unbelievable abilities one after the other.
Why were these people were so different from the Phantoms in my holand? Was I more like them or the ones from the North? What was the fundantal difference between my current family and the people I left behind?
After so thought, I finally found my answer. It was desperation. My {Kindred} was desperate to turn my sisters and I to Revenants. This was how he wished to protect us. And he did so by putting his body, soul and life on the line to do it.
My sisters were similarly desperate to protect him. Thus they pushed themselves to the absolute brink all to gain the right to stand beside him. But what about ? What was I willing to do?
{Withstand} traded pain for power, but {Block} and {Shelter} began minimizing the pain I felt. {Adapt} while a powerful soulgear used bio energy. It was sothing you gained just from breathing and eating.
Sohow it turned into a situation where I was the one who shed the least blood.
Jo, Jas and Bella strained their minds to the limit for their abilities. Robyn and Aki anwhile did the sa with their body. Lilly even electrocuted herself to regain her stamina. But I…I was in relative comfort.
Was this why the North had weak Phantoms? Even Soul Enhancent ant nothing in front of the Sirens and my Beloved. In re monts, my {Kindred} copied not only my shield techniques but even one of the few legacies of the North with the program,[Combat Shadow Silhouette].
Due to undergoing the Northern Ceremony, everyone of my countryn knew Soul Enhancent. We all learned how to wrap every organ and muscle with soul. This grants us bodies stronger than even descendant.
I thought I was doing enough, but in the midst of such powerhouses, my diocrity only revealed itself ever more. But luckily my path wasn't set in stone. Just like my sisters I could change. I just had to be willing to let go of the familiar and embrace the unknown.
In my desperation, I sought the wisdom of the man I loved the most. And he gave an answer to a question I didn't know I kept in my heart.
***
It was while we were resting from our passionate lovemaking. Despite being taller then him, he cradled on his chest like I was his most prized possession. His tenderness lted all my insecurities and drowned in warmth.
While I was asking him about how to get stronger, I ntioned {Extremity}, an ability my soulgear possessed which I could not use. And like the Sun, my beloved showed the way.
"I don't know about that. But anyway the first ti I saw {Extremity}, the only thing I could think of were Buddhist Asuras."
'Asura? What are Asuras? Exa, can you please…'
[Right away, Lady Liv.]
Our combat AI Exa then showed pictures of beings crossed between man and monster. They were demons or gods in ancient Indian religions and mythologies. But while I couldn't care less about what they were, their appearance left conflicted.
They were often depicted to have three or more faces and six or more arms. Capable of wielding many weapons they were depicted as the fiercest of warriors. They were human, but were also not human.
I didn't want to beco like them. They were…disgusting. My cowardice made them look revolting in my eyes. There had to be a different way. Was this really how my Beloved wanted to see ?
While the North had soulforms, most of us believed the human body to the absolute pinnacle. Two arms and two legs were all that was necessary. Anymore and you were no longer human but a monster.
I needed strength. But I wanted to stay human. As I searched within I noticed that my reasons were just plain petty.
I wanted to stay human so that I could bask in the love of my {Kindred}.
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