On the distant frontier of the Concordian Empire, there was a gas giant called Algol. An ethereal, silent world the size of Jupiter, so far away from its sun that it looked like a faint moon in a black sky.
A dozen satellite planets, each the size of Earth, orbited around the blue and white sphere. One of them was Nibiru, a world of ice and iron. A prison at the very end of an imnse galaxy, where temperatures reached absolute zero.
Had it not been for Murs Heatriser providing them with heat, or so mbers using protective spells to shield themselves from the cold, the group would have frozen to death on landing. Long before the battle with the local Concordian forces.
Hundreds of Gearsn laid around them, broken by spells and brute strength. Shroud had taken a few hits, his glass armor bent at so sides from resisting blasts, and he had his summoned creatures secure the periter with Mur. Their target, a giant do of reinforced glass, lay before them, covered with fading snow.
Youre not fighting at full power, handso, Ace reproached him. Maggie, whose guns were steaming, had saved his life twice during the battle. Youre distracted, reckless.
No. He was mourning.
Youre thinking of Kari.
She hasnt woken up, even with the Heal spell, he said. Taiyougami watched down on the icy planet, having shot the orbital defenses on arrival. Much like light itself, the space station could move at trendous speed through space at tis, allowing them to flee Oceanis to the other side of the galaxy in the blink of an eye.
Stitch is taking sweet care of her. She will recover. If he cant help her, nobody can.
Thats precisely what I fear.
Ace realized her mistake at once. I didnt an it that way.
I know. But Im still afraid it will end the sa. He glanced at her, noticing she cast no shadow. Why did you try to save back then?
Youre seriously asking that? Why I would try to save a friends life?
You were a better woman than . Hell, I think you would have been a better leader.
You didnt know that much, handso. Im surprised you even care all that much, since we only knew one another for a few weeks.
Im surprised you are so okay with being dead.
We live, and in the blink of an eye, we are gone. It is how we lived, and what we left behind, that matter. Not us. Ace shook her head. You may think you are a bad leader, and maybe you are right but youre the only one this group has. Absolutely nobody else wanted the job. I never challenged you for control of the group because, in the end, you are the one pushing us forward. I go along with the flow; you try to set it. Sotis it doesnt work, but sotis, you set the right tempo and we dance as one. That is life. You dont win all the ti.
When have I ever truly won? I feel like everything I did just served the ends of soone else.
When you killed Smokefang, wrestled control back from Aster, or saved your team from Mammon? Who were you fighting for then? She shook her head, patting him on the back, although he felt no contact. Dont call yourself a failure.
I could revive you, Shroud said, glancing at his Load feature, I could alter the past.
Are you ready to pay the price though? she asked, glanced at Maggie and the others.
No.
No, he wasnt. Thats the path to beco Wyrde. And mother.
Yes, handso. Youve got to accept that sotis, you lose, and move on. But a battle is not the war. You have much to do, Shroud. Dont give up no
Nerd, Maggie approached him, interrupting the late Violet Sorceress. Who are you talking to?
Aces hallucination vanished, leaving him alone in his mind again.
Ace, he said. Shroud could have lied, said it was Stitch, but he was so sick of lies he couldnt manage a white one anymore.
Alright, Youre creeping out. What the hell was that? Hallucinating? Talking to yourself?
He suspected overuse of Accel Premium Thought had allowed him to create a vivid ntal representation of their late teammate. Or lack of sleep and depression caused him to hallucinate.
Shroud knew he should take it as a warning, but he couldnt bring himself to care the way his friend did. He hastily changed the subject. The favor you asked from , what was it?
Dont hide, Mathias. Youre not fine, at all.
Not nerd.
Dont hide, dont run. That was what Mom always did. Where do we go next? he replied to Maggie.
We kick Concordias ass. She glared at . Dont tell you were bullshitting about that grand talk of freeing Earth for mankind? Or did you just care about avenging your mom?
I mostly cared about avenging my mother, Mathias replied bluntly. But my motivations have changed. Even knowing she is on the other side, I intend to take down Concordia. Especially since she is on the other side. I ant, where do we go, as the Dragonslayers? As a group? Ashmal has a window into my mind, lusine can hack our Locks, and our secret safety net is gone. Now, its kill or be killed.
It was always kill or be killed with Concordia.
But Blackcinders and Wyrde will now treat as a priority target. I am too dangerous to the Grandmaster to be left alive, and I killed Aster.
Nerd, if youre considering disbanding the group and running away to protect us like so selfish would-be martyr, Im going to kick your ass so deep even Perse wont have gone that far. She crossed her arms. We all knew what could happen when we followed you. Ace did. Full disclosure here, she knew and she was ready to die. We talked about it.
I know, Shroud replied, who didnt want to talk about it any further. What was the favor you wanted from ?
She frowned at him but answered. I want to settle things with my brother.
With Jack? Settle or settle, settle?
I dunno, nerd, she sighed. Like you and your mother, I suppose. I wont ever be free from his shadow until I confront him.
Jack was probably in an interstellar prison sowhere, but from what he had gathered, the Maleking was gathering his forces to strike soon. Jack among them. We will cross paths on Earth, Mathias foresaw. He will co to us, I believe. Not the other way around.
Why do you sound so casual about it? Shroud didnt answer right away. Nerd, youre scaring . Youre just so cold and depressed, its not like you at all.
Au contraire, Shroud turned to look at her dead in the eyes, so she could see the intensity in his own through the transparent helt, I have never been so determined.
She couldnt find her words, and Shroud flew toward the do. With Glass Field, he created an opening and moved through. He heard Sol and Maggie follow him, but didnt pay them any attention. He was a ghost walking on auto-pilot.
The do covered a small, protected biosphere, a perfect copy of the park he had fought Smokefang in back in Evermarsh. This place must have been a prototype of the arc cities, a self-sustaining world ant to keep Concordians citizens safe and docile.
A dragon waited for him, resting on the artificial grass near a lake, with her head on both hands. The creature was the smallest dragon Shroud had encountered yet, with eel-like deep blue skin. She had fins for wings, and her horns cackled with thunder.
Guests. The troubleso kind. The dragon spoke with a womanly, deep voice, kinder than Blackcinders but as resigned as Shrouds. Have you co to finish off?
That depends, Shroud said, landing in front of her. Are you loyal to Wyrde?
I would not be here if I was. Her eyes settled on Shroud, then Sol, then Maggie, as they ca into sight. Are you agents silencing a liability, or would-be liberators? In the first case, while there is nothing proper about it, try to kill properly. I am sick of this place.
The second case, Shroud said. Our superiors thought you might enlighten us on Concordia.
I wondered if this day would co. You do not sll like Midgardian humans. You are earthlings, are you not? The lost cousins of Midgards manlings. Has our lost howorld been located?
It was conquered, ten years ago, Shroud said, the dragoness raising her curious eyes to look at them better. How long have you been here?
Since the Gintargo Rebellion.
That was more than three hundred years ago, Sol pointed out.
Is it? I have had little contact with the outside world. The Golden Prince, that soft-hearted weakling, often sends holo-books to read, but they are censored or out of date. Loctis often visits when he wants advice, although he doesnt listen all the ti.
Weakling? Maggie chuckled.
He should have opposed Wyrdes design as I did, but chose to close his eyes, the dragoness replied, with an irritated tone. My na is Gungnir, the thunder spear. Welco to my gilded cage. I would offer you grass or fish, but I am not sure you earthlings eat it.
Gungnir? Like Odins weapon? Sol asked, ever the cultured man.
Whom? The dragon seed to vaguely recognize the na, but little else. I forgot where my na ca from. What are yours, little earthlings?
Shroud, the sorcerer introduced himself. They are Sharpshoot and Sol.
Hmm not your true nas. You have had terrible experiences with dragons, havent you? I can see it in the way you look at .
Shroud said nothing, while Sol cleared his throat. Blackcinders savagely killed one of our own, the priest said. And nearly destroyed our planet, a decade ago.
The dragon didnt seem very surprised, although she sympathized. In fact, she seed almost as saddened as the humans in front of her. Has our dream fallen so low?
Sol told her about Concordia, about the Conquest of Earth, and Wyrdes plans. Shroud zoned out, his eyes moving to his previous discussion with the Administrator before they landed there.
ADMINISTRATOR: Mathias, I cannot let you access this area. Especially not in your current state of mind.
SHROUD: The re fact that it exists and that Ashmal can alter the system ans you intended for it to be used. I would not have won against Aster without it.
ADMINISTRATOR: Like Loctis, I believe that color has a role to play. It makes Hacks possible and may prove instruntal in countering Wyrdes control over tilines. But if you do not master it, like the other colors, it will master you. It was ant to be a weapon of last resort when faced with an urgent situation.
SHROUD: Doesnt State Zero count then? You can kill if you fear it gets out of line. I dont care anymore.
ADMINISTRATOR: That is exactly why I am wary about giving you access to that color. I barely allowed you even to exit on a Quest. You were never ntally stable, and now you have hit rock bottom.
SHROUD: Maybe. But the alternative is that I pump into Ashmals power directly by accident. Doing it in controlled conditions would be the safest option.
ADMINISTRATOR: There is no safe option with Black.
SHROUD: How can anyone master it if it is only unlocked during an ergency? If no one is given ti to experint with it under controlled conditions, of course that color masters you. You never learned how to use it.
ADMINISTRATOR: I will ponder it, but for now, my answer is a firm no.
SHROUD: I see. What about the other proposal?
ADMINISTRATOR: I will allow you to make modifications to parts of my source code, under Mars supervision. If your knowledge of AI can complete the way Alice did, then this would help trendously with protecting our system from her.
SHROUD: I learned from Mom. What she created, I can finish.
ADMINISTRATOR: I understand. The sponsors will never fully trust you anymore, however, especially since your own died on Oceanis, so your editing privileges will be very minor.
-Wyrde was always too proud for her own good. Realizing the conversation had taken a new turn, Shroud returned to the real world.
The dragon exile exchanged details with Sol about the early days of the Empire. But she was brilliant, the greatest mind our kind has ever produced. Loctis was her apprentice and always at her side, while Halcyon was a human explorer whom they befriended while studying the Neurotowers. The three were thick as thieves since before I knew them, forming the perfect balance. Wyrde had the vision and the drive, Loctis provided the creativity needed to make it a reality, and Halcyon kept them grounded.
When Halcyon died, the balance was broken, Solomon guessed.
Halcyon was murdered by one of Gintargos leaders during the war, and Wyrde never fully recovered from it. Without him to keep her grounded, she beca more and more obsessed with the ancient technology slumbering beneath our world, and Loctis was too shy to restrain her. I had already been quietly shelved back then when I protested the Grandmaster office had no check to its power, but it wasnt until then that my criticism earned a house exile in the galaxys backyard.
She couldnt stand the idea of dragons disagreeing with her vision, Shroud said. How many had suffered the sa fate as Gungnir, exiled and forgotten by their own empire?
Even back then, Wyrde had a nasty tendency to rewrite history in her image. She had just upgraded her thods.
Midgard was a world of constant conflict back then, and we dragons created Concordia back then to establish peace, and guide younger species towards uplifting, the dragoness told them. It was intended to give them back the power to govern themselves with ti, after a proper tutelage. I started protesting when we couldnt agree on when, and after Gintargo, when beca never.
You think she can pull it off? Maggie frowned. This isnt so mad sche?
Wyrde thinks she can, so she will try. That is all that matters. The dragon shook her head. I always found it worrying that every person who tinkered with that technology, from the Seeker of Worlds to Ashmal, went mad. Wyrde thought she could succeed where they failed, that she could master it; I replied that her mindset would let her the power to master her instead.
Looks like you were right, Shroud said grimly.
The dragon shook her head. There are others like dispersed across space, she said, We are few, and most of my kindreds have been too indoctrinated by Wyrde to consider changing their ways, but we could turn a few. Loctis, especially, is a keystone.
He looked like Wyrdes stooge last ti I saw him, Shroud replied, irritated.
Because he is too attached to Wyrde to defy her openly. She is his ntor and the one who gave him a chance when many looked down on him. But I guarantee you that if any dragon regrets what Concordia turned into, it is Loctis. The Golden Prince may be kind, but in the end, his faith in Wyrde is stronger than his conscience.
Do you know where the other exiled dragons are located? Solomon asked her, the dragoness predictably shaking her head. We will try to find them, and you are welco to co with us.
With pleasure. The great being rose up. Our reckoning has been long overdue.
Shroud watched the dragon walk away, Maggie guiding her outside. He almost followed her, when he received a new notification.
ADMINISTRATOR: After much consideration, I decided you were right about one point. That color will always destroy us if we do not study it. While I still believe that we will never be fully safe from it, having you be our experintal tester for the Forbidden Area would be much better than allowing Ashmal to exploit your despair in a mont of weakness. It may give you an edge against lusine, maybe against Wyrde, as this is the one color she always disdained.
SHROUD: You know what Ashmal wants to do with it, though? There are risks that it corrupts my Lock. The only reason Im even considering it is that were running out of options.
ADMINISTRATOR: Which is why I demanded Mars to check on the proposal, and if approved, your moderator role will be transferred to Sol.
SHROUD: Good. It couldnt be anyone else.
ADMINISTRATOR: As for corrupt I wouldnt say that. Mathias, I will ask you again. Are you truly sure you want to do this?
SHROUD: I am not alone. Not like Wyrde, or Ashmal. And you are still allowing to access it, so you know only I have a shot at mastering it. Do the other sponsors even know?
ADMINISTRATOR: No. I have many safeguards, but assigning this color was Mars and my choice alone. Do not make regret it. I still believe you will make or break our revolution, but as you said, your safety net is gone.
SHROUD: I know. Thats why you allowed it.
Shroud glanced at Sol, seeing that the priest had been inford of the decision. Mathias, he spoke up first. Do not do this.
This is the only way to stop her, and you know it.
No, it is not. We can adjust our tactics, prepare better-
They have mastered all the other colors and can sabotage our own Locks whenever they feel like it. Manah accepted us with the Oceanis base destroyed, and the Maleking is clearly gunning to invade Earth in the near future. Our world will be at war again, except ten tis worse than the Conquest. All bets are off, Sol.
The fact they are willing to cross lines, does not an you have to imitate them. How will you be different from them then?
Shroud wasnt sure he was. He wouldnt pretend he was better. If he started thinking so, he would fall into sorcerys insidious trap.
Im tired of being weak, of running, of being a pawn. It is the color of freedom as much as entropy, Sol. This is the only weapon we have against that magitech of theirs, and Im ready to pay the price for it.
I told you once that making mistakes was part of growing up, Mathias, but if you go there, you may never co back. I The priest shook, the first ti Shroud had seen him truly perturbed. I do not want to put you down the way Kari had to with her uncle.
You wont. Shroud sensed the root of the problem. Sol, I dont intend to die. If you think Im letting the last fiasco drive to so kind of suicide run, hoping that I die avenging the others, you are wrong. Im done fighting for the dead. Im fighting for the living.
The priest prepared to speak up, but Shroud kept going on.
I want to end that cycle once and for all, to see Concordia fallen or reford, and to witness a better future than the one Wyrde has in store for us. That is what I am ready to fight for. That is the only choice I truly made of my own, and I know this will never go away. I am Mathias Martel, I am Shroud, and I will never stop fighting, until the battle for Earth is won.
If Aces death, Alices betrayal, and Blackcinders hadnt broken him, then nothing would.
But then what, Mathias? Sol asked. Once the battle is done, what do we do?
We rebuild. We live. Shroud glanced above his head. We make a life for ourselves in that universe full of stars.
Well spoken, Martel.
Shroud had already noticed Mars sneaking in before he spoke up. Both Players glanced at the sponsor, clad in his shining armor. I am glad to see the recent events havent tarnished your determination, the war god said. I have co to give you my blessings, as your acting sponsor.
You wanted that post, even before Amaterasu Shroud trailed. You wanted to oversee us.
Your group always had potential that should have been nurtured with the proper guidance. Especially you, Shroud. Network was always oriented towards Blue, as it was customized by Manus, and thus never ant to fit you. You were to fit it. As I observed you, Mathias, I realized you were a darker shade than blue. The reckless drive to learn the truth, the urge for absolute freedom, the potential for chaos and change in equal asure, the determination to survive at all costs those are the purview of Black.
You think it will fit more?
You will not know until you try. And the fact remains, what alternative do we have? According to your debrief, you would not have overco Aster without it, and we will need all weapons available to prevent State Zero.
You know the risks though, Sol said, perhaps the sole voice of reason.
Mars shrugged. There is no such a thing as a victory won without risks, priest.
Realizing that he was outvoted, Sol turned to his protegee. Mathias. The grandfather he never had put a hand on his shoulder, warm and firm. I want you to know that, whatever you do, wherever you go, I will always be by your side.
I know. Never will I leave you behind, old friend.
Mars raised a hand, and the procedure began.
Moderator role transferred to: Sol
Forbidden Area opened to: Shroud.
Password: Blackiscolor8
You can now access the Color Black.
Take down Wyrde, and mom, and end their ambitions for good. Protect the Earth, so the people he loved could live free and safe.
That was all that mattered.
Players' StatsAccount
Dragonslayers Guild Black Beta Tester
NaShroudNetworkProgressHolderMathias MartelBroadcastUnlockedLevel3 (Magister)Grant SpellUnlockedAffinityBlueSynergizeUnlockedLockNetworkLocked Feature(0/7)Spellcoins19Overlock(0/1)Stored Saves5Save?Load?I am comingcomingfor youShroud...Spell CompendiumNaDotAffinityPremium Thoughts1BlueBabel1BluePurge1GreenAccel1WhiteBeastmaster2BlueMindshield2BlueDoppelganger2BlueHeal2GreenPowersurge2GreenLightbringer2Red/OrangeMad World2Blue/GreenGlass Field2Blue/OrangeMaster Mirror3Blue/Orange/VioletAccountDragonslayers GuildNaYoshikageOversoulProgressHolderKari MatsumotoRemberUnlockedLevel3 (Magister)Channel SoulUnlockedAffinityYellowLocked Feature(1/3)LockOversoulLocked Feature(0/7)Spellcoins4Overlock(0/1)Spell CompendiumNaDotAffinityBabel1BlueWallcraw1GreenPeak1GreenNeedless1GreenWard1YellowDoom Sense1YellowSpiritsight1YellowDeathgem1YellowDreamwalker2YellowPowersurge2GreenHands of Slaughter3Yellow/Violet/RedSpaceslash3VioletTulpa3YellowAccountDragonslayers GuildNaThe Mur!AdamantProgressHolderMurmur the ImpHarderUnlockedLevel3 (Magister)FasterUnlockedAffinityOrangeLocked Feature(0/3)LockAdamantLocked Feature(0/7)Spellcoins12Overlock(0/1)Spell CompendiumNaDotAffinityReinforce1OrangeDiceweight1OrangePitborn2Green/RedFormless2OrangeHomunculus2OrangeIntegrator2OrangeReload2VioletTiloop3VioletCarbonskin3OrangeAccountDragonslayers GuildNaDocInseminateProgressHolderNathaniel StitchSpawnUnlockedLevel3 (Magister)IncubateUnlockedAffinityGreenLocked Feature(0/3)LockInseminateLocked Feature(0/7)Spellcoins1Overlock(0/1)Spell CompendiumNaDotAffinityPremium Thoughts1BlueIntuimotion1BluePsychotry1BlueDeathgem1YellowDoom Sense1YellowSpiritsight1YellowTisense1VioletPathfinder1VioletAlchemic Grasp1OrangeFlux Sight1WhiteAccel1White
AccountDragonslayers GuildNaSharpshootSpellgunProgressHolderMaggie Jesse PowellsCrimson BulletUnlockedLevel3 (Magister)Homing BulletUnlockedAffinityRedLocked Feature(0/3)LockSpellgunLocked Feature(0/7)Spellcoins25Overlock(0/1)Spell CompendiumNaDotAffinityStockmight1RedBabel1BlueAccel1WhiteThunderling2Green/RedBullseye2Violet/BlueSoundwave2RedLightningrod2RedAccountDragonslayers Guild ModeratorNaSolAegisProgressHolderSolomon NicholaeSpell MartyrUnlockedLevel3 (Magister)Accel AllyUnlockedAffinityWhiteLocked Feature(0/3)LockAegisLocked Feature(0/7)Spellcoins34Overlock(0/1)Spell CompendiumNaDotAffinityPeak1GreenNeedless1GreenBabel1BlueBlue World1BlueQuasar1RedBiosurge1RedReinforce1OrangeEncode1WhiteSpell Syphon1WhiteAccel1WhiteForcefield3Red
Spell of the Day
Recursion
Affinity: Black
Dot: 3
Price: 18
Activation: Passive, Thought.
The spellcaster glitches the space ti continuum, creating an area where ti behaves erratically for ten seconds. Within the glitched ti bubble, people and events happen as they would have, had the caster not used Recursion, victims sleepwalking through ti; however, the caster is fully self-aware and can adjust their actions. Victims feel as if ti skipped. To outsiders, the area is swallowed by darkness and cannot be interacted with, unless through the use of Black Spells. Pandorians and Black Sorcerers possessing the Recursion spell can react in the glitched ti, and the caster must wait ten seconds before casting Recursion again after ti resus; ignoring this rule will permanently damage the space continuum in the area and cast it into Pandoria.
Magik Online will return on
October 9th, 2019
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