2

  INTEGRATION

  Scyris immediately picked up the bottle, looking it over as she did. In an attempt to retrieve her weapon, she turned the bottle upside down and shook it with fervor. Her face shifted from anger to surprise as she was lifted off her feet.

  “I’ve told you before. There will be no unnecessary fighting! Although you’re not on Rime anymore, the rule still stands!” Rigel said while glowering at the squirming woman.

  Turning to Sorene, his expression turned to a curious one. “Who might you be, and how do you know how to make spatial artifacts?”

  Sorene, piercing Scyris with a steely glare, answered his question.

  “I learned by observing people using their power on others, and I just applied that to objects. In my case, it was these bottles.”

  Moving her gaze to Rigel, she continued. “Kalex taught me the rest.”

  Dropping Scyris in a heap, Rigel turned to Kalex inquisitively. “You may relinquish your weapon. As I’ve told Scyris, unless it’s constructively, there will be no fighting amongst each other. With what I see in you, there wouldn’t be much of a fight anyway.

  Scyris sneered triumphantly but was cut short as Rigel finished his statement.

  “If you desired, you could destroy this Lumen with only a meager use of your power.”

  Scyris sputtered but was saved by a hand wrapping around her arm, helping her to her feet.

  “It’s alright, Scy, calm down. You may be able to get the best of me most of the time in our sparring matches, but from what Ekk has told me, Kalex is not someone you want to fight.” Lyla said with a prideful hint in her tone.

  “I’ve fought him once! And I would’ve been victorious if not for Shurai’s interruptions!” Scyris sat back in her chair, crossed her arms, and pierced Rigel with a look. “And I am not a Lumen anymore!”

  Rigel’s stoic facade started to break as his lips curled at the ends. “Since you’ve thrust yourself into the center of everyone’s attention, why don’t we get to know each other better, starting with you, Scyris. It seems you and Kalex have a history, and I think we’d all like to learn more.”

  Everyone looked at Scyris as her face turned bright red.

  A minute passed in silence until a surprised peep came from Kalex.

  He had only had a grasp over his Domain for a short time, and most of the time that one of his residents decided to exit his inner world, he knew beforehand, so it still surprised him when one of them decided to leave without notice.

  White light drowned the room as Kalex’s face scrunched up. A tall, gangly man followed the display, but instead of surprise, everyone present looked on with horror.

  “Fool! Your advancement will be destroyed! Baseborns can’t survive in the higher worlds!” Rigel’s voice carried as he motioned to create a barrier around the lanky blacksmith.

  Wren was quicker to draw and set up a barrier, to which she started channeling energy from her Domain.

  Caught in the middle of waving to all the new people, Timik froze, looking around at the solid sphere around him. “Uh, Could you let me out please? I just wanted to say hello. Actually, I wanted to see what Lex was talking about. In the Hammers, we always spoke of making something that could pierce the heavens, and now that I’m here, I’d really like to start making things!” Timik put his wounded hand on his chin and thoughtfully lowered his head.

  “Does this fancy school everyone has been talking about have an opening for a blacksmithing instructor? I could teach these novices a thing or two.”

  The eyes around the room stared at the man in disbelief—all except one pair. From the moment Gretex established Enternia, he nurtured it as much as possible until there was nothing more to be done. His next step was finding inhabitants.

  Growing up as part of the Noxsis was unlike any other upbringing. His time was structured and monitored until he was chosen to inhabit the newly contracted planet, Diat. After learning everything he had from Wren and how terrible the Noxsis were when it came to seeding worlds, Gret decided to go with an option against his better judgment.

  Compared to the Noxsis, the Lumen Cabal was a shining star when it came to outward appearances, and their contracts followed suit. They offered so much and requested so little, usually only requiring unfettered access to the Domain and a place where their Lumen could act as guardians. In return, the Cabal would provide vital energy to incorporate into the planet and the host and seed the world with inhabitants if needed.

  The length of the contract was manageable, and there were minimal downsides if terminated, so Gret gladly accepted the terms.

  The inhabitants were given to him the instant the Cabal gained access to his Domain. A population of Bunderfoots that needed relocation after their planet’s host was slain were the perfect candidates. Gretex made his burgeoning planet as hospitable as possible and began to reap the rewards of a stable population.

  Years passed in relative calm as the Bunderfoots made a home for themselves. Fine buildings bearing the style of their previous world were erected everywhere a large population settled. Woodworking, masonry, smithing, and leathercraft were among the most popular professions, with most knowing a bit of everything. Part of the contract became effective as the world’s inhabitants separated into distinct countries.

  With the contract’s integration complete, Lumen began to descend onto Enternia to rule over the formed Realms.

  The change in the world involving the Lumen ‘guardians’ did not go over well, and soon, Enternia was full of uprisings and death. The Lumen, unhappy that their influence was almost non-existent with the prideful Bunderfoots, began to thin the population indirectly and show favor to those who venerated them to any extent.

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  As the Bunderfoot population dwindled, it was bolstered by newcomers eager to show faith in the Lumen.

  Gret saw this, of course, and he had to admit that he had grown fond of the Bunderfoots, but to fulfill the contract, he accepted everyone the Cabal offered to him. The Bunderfoots were replaced with Humans when Gret decided to give his Domain an in-depth look. Enternia had become a mecha for growth and, most importantly, energy that he could meld with his own to make himself stronger. It seemed like there had been Bunderfoot and Human mixes on his planet, but after a cursory look, he found that everyone looked mostly human.

  This was the fate of most planets contracted to the Lumen Cabal. The owner took a hands-off approach and soaked in the energy they wouldn’t have had without the contract.

  As Gret grew stronger, he was offered a new contract as a trainer, giving would-be Lumen access to his planet, but he graciously declined. Even with the promises of increased power, he was happy with the world that had been created.

  But this Timik fellow. He would assume that he was almost a full-blood Bunderfoot if he didn't know better. He was taller than most Humans, with strong, corded muscle wrapping around his thin frame—a slightly hooked nose and wiry hair that didn’t take to styling.

  When he pulled up his status, Gret was surprised that his race was shown as Human, but unfortunately, not much else was shown.

  “Timik,” Gret said in an even tone. “With your heritage, I’m sure you’d succeed in the Academy. Though I have one worry.”

  Timik stopped trying to wave at everyone with one hand and attempted to pierce through the barrier around him with the other to give Gret his full attention.

  “The integration of the Academy does grade highly on specific skills one may have, but there is also an aptitude and weapon skill test. If those are passed with high merit, you can move on to the survival test.” Gret’s eyebrows sagged as he looked at Timik’s face.

  “From what I know about those who work in the Hammers, learning anything other than the hammer was not interesting, and I fear you would hit a wall in the testing.”

  Silence fell on everyone in the room, with each pair of eyes firmly planted on the awkward man and the man whose planet the former called home.

  After a minute, Timik perked up, startling Gretex.

  “There’s no need to worry! I passed a test that Lex gave to me a while ago. He told me I was a Savant, and my status showed it too. It doesn’t show it anymore. Actually, it doesn’t show much of anything! It's probably that chipped-in-the-head ghost messing with the way it looks again. Before all of my information disappeared, it showed that I was an Axiom or something like that. I didn’t pay much attention because the only axiom I’ve ever heard of was a baby. Look at me; I haven’t been a baby in 20 moons!”

  Most of the room blankly looked at the eccentric man with slack jaw expressions. Kalex was the first to school his expression.

  “Wait, the status system isn’t working?” He said as he pulled a rock out of his pocket. “Is everything alright, Lex?”

  The faceted black stone in Kalex’s hand started to shine brightly enough to light up every corner of the room.

  “I apologize, Mr. Wounder. I've had to reconfigure the status window after looking into a few people here on Karthis. The myst in the higher worlds fundamentally differs from what we are used to. While on a planet in someone’s Domain, the inhabitants are essentially using the myst of the owner of said planet and synthesizing it for themselves.”

  Lex lifted off from Kalex’s hand and hovered above the central table.

  “The myst here is not tied to anyone and is far more aggressive than any previously aspected myst. It’s much more potent than the myst of the lower worlds but is integrated into the myst channels more slowly. I’ve gathered that most people in Karthis live their entire lives without much advancement, just living with what they are born with.”

  The rock burst into light and floated back into Kalex’s pocket as the figure of Lex’s Berrian form sat cross-legged above the table.

  “I first noticed it when Mr. Wounder’s presence was—tempered—after he first saw Ms. Everblade. The ambient myst attempted to invade his body, but he kept it at bay. Ekk has provided information that leads me to believe Ms. Graves is in a similar situation. Since those in the lower worlds cultivate their myst more so than the small sample I have seen of the higher world inhabitants, I’ve had to find a way to universally denotate statuses.”

  “I believe I have found a suitable system, but it will take time and trial and error to perfect it. In the meantime, I have restored the basic level and rank function.” Lex sighed, realizing he was missing something.

  “Being on the higher worlds changes the initial ranks, as copper, silver, and platinum ranks are useless here. Most born in the higher worlds start around the Axiom rank, bypassing all prerequisites needed to achieve that rank in the lower worlds. Moving forward, The ranks of the higher worlds will start at the Axiom Rank and move up from there. The previous maturity stat will be dropped as it is not accurate for the growth of the people of the higher worlds and will instead be level-based.”

  Lex looked around to make sure everyone had his attention.

  “Axiom rank will have 20 levels, moving to the Harbinger Rank. Harbinger will have 40 levels before reaching Celestial rank, with 80 levels until Dreadnaught. Since gaining power becomes more difficult the stronger you become, the level cap per rank will be 100 after breaking through the Dreadnaught rank and becoming a Sovereign. The highest rank I’ve cataloged is above Sovereign, which I believe perfectly fits into the stories told throughout Karthis. It’s called the Deathless rank.”

  With a kind smile, Lex looked at everyone in audience.

  “Go ahead, have a look!”

  Without needing to be told twice, Kalex opened his status.

  Name: Kalex Wounder

  Level: 186

  Race: Human (Enternia), Beer (Diat)

  Rank: Dreadnaught

  While Kalex stood with a look of consternation, Lyla mentally activated her status window.

  Name: Lyla Graves

  Level: 43

  Race: Human (Enternia)

  Rank: Harbinger

  This iteration was underwhelming after previously seeing her status full of numbers and skills. Turning to Scyris with a curious glance, Lyla found her face with an expression opposite hers, but before Lyla could comment, Scyris whirled around to face her.

  “How are you already this close to matching me in level? I was one of the highest-ranked Lumen allowed on the lower worlds. I led subordinates and held sway over an entire world for most of the time it was around! I had power filtered into me from the Ancestor himself, not to mention the myst stipend I was granted daily!”

  While Scyris stared at her with bloodshot eyes, Lyla opened her status to see what she was talking about.

  Name: Scyris Everblade

  Level: 59

  Race: Fontling (Cragfont)

  Rank: Harbinger

  In an attempt to calm the barely contained wildfire that was Scyris, Lyla walked up to her, planning to state her case and speak to her advantages without sounding too prideful.

  “Him,” Lyla said, pointing directly at Kalex. “He’s the reason I’m catching up.”

  She gave Kalex a small smile and hoped he wouldn’t take her instigation poorly, but after being beaten in practice matches nine times out of ten against Scyris, she was eager to see what Kalex could do now that they had reunited. Scyris turned to the door leading to the training yard behind Rigel’s home as if on cue.

  “Kalex. Training match. NOW!” The clipped sentence was backed up with power as it ended.

  Kalex let the myst-empowered word flow off of him and shrugged.

  “Sure.”