Chapter 382

Adulation (I)

It was suffocating still, having to fight this way, Cain mused inwardly while human-like frames were continuously spat out through the ethereal membrane shielding Earth. Holding back, picking his spots. It was akin to playing a game of basketball and never being allowed to dribble the ball.

Though he seethed, he didn’t let it get to him too hard. The fights had already broken out—Quinn and the twins had quickly picked up on their opponents and shuffled toward them, transpiring into a different dimension at Cain’s behest to do their fighting. In the meantime, he could practically breathe in the terror of those below—the insane Mana outpour of the newcomers was practically a shower of dread for all those who witnessed it.

Few, though, began waking up and rousing others. This wasn’t a battle he would win alone; it was a good starting point, though, for those who would follow him on a long journey. For others, perhaps, it would be a story, or a memory, or yet a cautionary tale—whatever it may become, it would not be the day that this world ended, that much he was certain of.

He blinked forward and surrounded himself with a storm of Mana, engulfing a massive domain around within his grasp. He would be the tank and the distraction of the battle—and everyone else was a support. During the brief respite, he managed to recover to some 50% of his total Mana which, while not perfect, ought to suffice, he mused.

Spells soon came streaking from the above, some intentionally flanking him and trying to get past him toward those on the ground. He wouldn’t let them, however. Wings of fire spurred outwardly like mad, creating a mile long shield that seemed to eclipse the sun itself. Like the black hole, they drew all spells toward themselves as Cain pushed forward, facing the armada of the thousands of the armored soldiers head-on.

Down below, Senna stared in awe while still maintaining wide flanks with her weapons. It had been a long while since they last saw Cain fight—and fifteen years, at least, since they last caught a glimpse of his peak strength. Nobody was quite sure where he stood—even Quinn admitted that she would be blindly guessing, as there stood few things in the cosmos that could push him to go all out.

It was worrying, yet inspiring at the same time; the fiery figure in the shape of the phoenix that was shielding the world would be viewed by the rest as a messianic figure, there was no doubt about it. Within days, news will spread and the whole world will know of the mysterious figure who fought back an invasion almost all by himself. What would be lost in that translation was that, just before facing what would for many be a battle of life and death, he was… goofing around.

Further down below, Emma’s eyes began to shine in a glimmering radiance. The man she loved was blanketing the horrors all by himself, yet again. But now, at least, she knew there was hope. He needed them, in however little of a capacity. He still needed them. Unlike before where he would send them off or simply send himself off to face the horrors beyond their comprehension, he now needed them to help him. It was a start, however tiny, and however seemingly pointless.

Even if they were merely used as a mask, as a distraction, it didn’t matter. There would be a purpose to them, always. And there would be a purpose to her.

Her demons tried to wiggle free in her soul, but the unrelenting fire burned them all down. She recalled the visions she glimpsed—unlike what Senna seemed to think, it wasn’t that she was afraid he would leave and never return. It wasn’t that she never moved past the past, and that she was still hanging onto the old fears. Her greatest fear was that one day he would leave… and she would be unable to follow. And the second one was that he would never leave… because she would be unable to follow.

There was a level of dependence and obsession among the two of them that was likely unhealthy. But she didn’t care. Not anymore, anyways. She was too old to care for the façade of a relationship. Looking at him, her heart burned just like the wings behind his back. Lifting her warhammer, she joined the ranks of Kramer, Chriss, and other tanks in preventing the various after-effects from reaching others on the ground.

Yuki and Shawn stayed still for too long, foregoing their job of tossing all the heals they could at him. He was just a man, that much they both knew. They knew him, and all those who know him would never make of him anything more than a man. And yet… he was. Perhaps, for the first time since meeting him, Yuki especially, they realized that he was a man by choice, not by nature. He could have been anything, from a hermit to a God, but he chose to remain a man.

A blade of lightning came streaking in and pierced Cain’s shoulder, but he ignored it, retaliating by firing off a massive surge of starlight disguised as a basic element of fire. He never gave away his class and only used the most basic elements while fighting, primarily fire. All the while, he tried to give away as little information about him as well as the world as possible—the main one being hiding his class. He could do so only because they never went all out while aboard the ships, and now because the thrice-Awakened were otherwise preoccupied.

Suddenly, he noticed that someone was trying to send him a mental message—due to the nature of the Mind element, Cain by default elected to block all incoming messages as he didn’t have a great control over it. Someone who could alert him through the blockage… likely had at least a quasi-heroic rank of the Element. His eyes veered across the incoming spells, but none of them carried a similar Mana signature. While defending and deflecting and surviving, he temporarily undid the block and, a moment later, a voice spoke in his mind—a voice of a young man, it seemed.

“For someone who looked to be dying weeks ago while fighting us, you are remarkably capable of answering my call,” eerily, the young man spoke English, of all languages.

“Can’t find you,” Cain mumbled. “Are we playing hide and seek?”

“I’m not fighting,” the young man replied. “I’m not of their world, but one of those who rejected their call. They were right to be worried, indeed. But they vastly overestimated themselves… and us. Who would have a thought an infant world would have a Divine Seed? They couldn’t have known.”

“… I’m guessing your actual age doesn’t reflect your voice, huh?” Cain knew that his disguise wasn’t perfect. Those with keen senses were likely capable of piercing through and noticing that, at least, he had a touch of Divine within him.

“Not quite, no. But old people, you will learn, are very vain. Perfect skin, teeth, hair, jewelry, and, yes, even the voice… you will hardly find an unmodified soul across the cosmos.”

“So, will you sell me out?”

“I can’t afford to, I’m afraid. If you are a Divine Seed… there’s a Divine—and likely not just one considering the infancy of your world—behind you. And while I may be mighty, neither I nor my world can afford that kind of offense.”

“Then why contact me? Just to chat? Or perhaps to distract me so they can cause more damage to my world?”

“This is hardly enough to distract you. I merely wanted to catch a glimpse of who you are. Luckily, you are not the vain, proud, vengeance-fueled kind… yet. So, there is hope still of forgiving this transgression.”

“Yours or theirs?”

“Both,” the young man said.

“Oof. That’s difficult.”

“Understand, kindly,” the young man continued calmly. “That this isn’t the war of conquest--but of survival. Beat them, punish them, and teach them a lesson--but spare them. You will gain little in obliterating them, and will form many bonds in salvation.”

“Still, pretty difficult,” Cain shrugged it off. “If you’re going around invading worlds, ain’t you just asking for an ass-whooping?”

“Your world exulted in Mana, thieving from the nearby cluster,” the young man elaborated, still maintaining the calm tone. “It truly was a matter of survival. Besides, they never stood a chance. Not only due to you and the unexpected wall they faced, but because the Warden was dispatched almost immediately. Whatever bonds you have with the world of Divine... they are immaculately strong.”

“... I’ll consider it,” he said. “Now, I’d like to focus back onto the fight. Come and visit after this is all over. My wife makes a mean vegetable stew and I make to-die-for steaks.”

“If fate wills so.”

“Haah, of course. If fate wills so...”