Chapter 307: Armies Of The Gods
Through the gaps, a sea of stars, colours and weaves of colour belonging to the void. Towers of energy reached towards the sky, attempting to fix these tears but the Abyss\'s expansion outpaced the repairs.
Beneath this radiant sky, an army of Hunters, each with a minimum of six Sigils while the Lord level beings stood beside the Apostles.
Just seeing the seriousness in their expressions was enough to cause Alice to swallow her saliva nervously.
\'Once a fight breaks out, even if we take the blood of a Lord you need to be careful. We can\'t replicate their Resonances since it\'s a manifestation of their contract and powers. The most I can do is to give you their Sigils.\' Alyss warned as she knew that Alice planned on fighting Lords if the situation called for it.
However, they have the benefit of two resonances while Alice only had one. Even with the increase in Sigils, she\'ll need a way to defeat their second Resonance.
\'I know. The plan right now is to get as many useful beast bloods as I can. Since we\'re going against the Will, it\'s safe to say that it\'ll summon an army of beasts. We can\'t interfere between the battle of Gods and Apostles.\' Alice agreed.
Even on her best day, she wouldn\'t imagine herself fighting in this kind of battle.
\'Good. However, there\'s another issue isn\'t there.\' Alyss narrowed her eyes as the two of them glanced towards Nyer who was now standing beside Velouria.
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After making the outfit for Alyss, Velouria called Kaden and Allura back from their jobs of setting up the defences. They gathered all of the six Sigil bearers from Ayr along with any Abyss Lord level beings.
On Ayr\'s side, they had 4 Lords aside from Kaden and Allura.
Abyss Lord of Inferno, Illusion, Puppetry and Curses.
Once everyone was gathered, Velouria was still worried about Nyer and Cayla when a portal opened up thanks to the item that Kaden gave to Nyer.
Seeing the two step through the portal, Alice immediately froze up as a deep rooted fear was now stronger than ever.
It was to the point where her entire body was shivering uncontrollably.
"You\'re back, are you okay? Did something happen?" Velouria asked curiously, feeling glad that the two were back safely.
"We\'re okay your Majesty. I\'m sorry for taking away Cayla without permission. There was a slight issue we needed to resolve and I needed her help. However, the issue has been dealt with and I\'m back in time." Nyer reported while kneeling in front of Velouria.
"I\'m just glad you\'re safe. Same with you Cayla." Velouria nodded with a smile.
Hearing this, Cayla bowed before unravelling into energy that entered Velouria\'s body, giving her back full control over the Eyes of the Abyss.
As he stood up, Nyer glanced over to Alice before giving her a smile and looked away towards the army.
That one look was enough to send Alice into a fight or flight response as she had to hold herself back from doing anything.
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\'He\'s bad news. Every part of my being is telling us to avoid him as much as possible.\' Alyss crossed her arms.
\'Something must\'ve changed in the time he was gone and it was not good.\'
Regardless, he was on the side of Ayr so they couldn\'t say anything about it. When the fight begins, Alice and Alyss just need to avoid him as much as possible.
\'Alright, I\'ll be careful. But he was fine before, what happened?\' Alice furrowed her brows. The kindness that Nyer showed her wasn\'t one that was faked. He was indeed trying his best for her in their short training session.
\'Not sure. But we can\'t assume everyone is like Kaden and Allura so maybe he has some grievances with us that we don\'t know about.\' Alyss shook her head.
Agreeing with Alyss, Alice glanced over to the other Gods.
They\'ve all taken different forms now that their followers are with them.
For Solaris, his form grew many times larger than normal. He sat on a golden throne while holding his spear. Behind him, a halo of gold radiance shone brightly as his radiant golden eyes swept across the battlefield.
Lumiria sat upon a crescent moon above the battlefield. A graceful figure draped in silken cloth and silver accessories. Like a lone moon on a midnight sky, she saw aloof above the masses, eyes closed.
Enris became a figure of terror. A shrouded armoured being with countless weapons piercing out from her back. A dark hood obscured her face while a malevolent red aura wrapped around her. Anyone whose gaze lingered upon the God of Eclipse\'s body for too long felt as though they would be killed at a moment\'s notice.
With these three Gods standing by their armies, Velouria felt pale in comparison but no one dared to belittle her in any of the armies.
After all, she was the Goddess of the Abyss. One snap of her finger could turn the Abyss Blood within your body against you or so the rumours go.
The army only knew one thing and that being this was a crusade against the Will of the Abyss. A being who desired power of the surface so much that even the Goddess of the Abyss arrived to deal with them.
Within the silence of the battlefield, tension grew. No one knew when it was about to begin and all they could do was look towards their Gods for guidance.
Creating a portal for herself, Velouria appeared before the three as they did the same.
"Seems like everyone has gathered. No one has been left behind." Velouria smiled while Solaris simply kept his arms crossed.
"Are you sure you\'re okay? I believe that staying away from the castle too long is bad for you is it not?" Lumiria asked with concern. Even if they were enemies at the end of the day, Lumiria still preferred to be a neutral party if she could help it.
"It\'s a little taxing but I\'ve already made my preparations. It would be unbefitting of me if I was to miss this fight now wouldn\'t it?" Velouria dismissed with a wave of her hand.
To them, she was here to help them deal with the Will so that she could be free from its shackles.
Little did they know, things were already set in stone and her successor was here to witness the end of Ayr.
Whatever happens today will act as a foundation for Alice\'s understanding and actions as the next Goddess of the Abyss.
"Let me know if you ever need covering." Enris grinned.
Naturally, this was just an act for the others without them knowing that they\'d already come to an agreement. Right now, it simply sounded like Enris was going to backstab Velouria the moment she showed any weakness.
"Don\'t worry, even if I do feel weak I don\'t need you to cover for me. I got others that are more capable of doing that." Velouria narrowed her eyes with hostility.
\'Yikes Veli~ I know we\'re acting but do you have to be that harsh?\' Enris thought to herself but made sure not to show it on the outside.
She simply raised her hand in surrender.
"So how do we find the Will? I hope you didn\'t call everyone here without a proper method." Velouria asked as Solaris stepped forward.
"I have it covered. I\'m not someone who\'ll waste time calling everyone here." He scoffed.
Clearing his throat, he turned towards his army.
"Casters step forth! Prepare the formation!" He shouted out as his army began to move all at once.
From the centre, a group of casters began to activate their Sigils one after another while overlaying a ritual to their cast.
Around them, the others stood as guards, protecting them from outside interference.
*CRACK!!!
Above them, the sky began to fracture. It was a different wound compared to the wound caused by expansion.
It did not lead to the Void but rather somewhere far sinister, twisted even.
"Would you please? They need your help if they want to track down the Will properly." Solaris gestured to Velouria as she nodded her head.
Taking a step forward, she activated her divinity as a purple and black aura erupted around her. Her eyes transformed while the Crown manifested above her head.
Snapping her finger, a pillar of darkness burst forth in the middle of the formation. Using her power as a reference point, several strands of golden energy shot into the tear in search of a similar source of power. The Will of the Abyss.
Not long after the golden energy shot into the tear, the entire world began to tremble.
The ground cracked from the rumbling as strange ink like fluid began to splash through the cracks.
"Avoid it! It\'s the Waters of the Abyss! One touch and you\'ll be corrupted!" Velouria shouted out as each army began to deploy their own countermeasures from sealing the cracks to fighting it back using a myriad of abilities.
Above them, the tear grew larger as slender fingers grabbed the edge of the tear before ripping it apart in one go!
Countless tendrils, soaked in the same black fluid, crawled out of the tear as a sea of eyes snapped open, glaring at the army below.
The sounds of mountains falling served as a choir of the end as beasts began to spill out from the rupture.
Yet despite the size, Alice could see that it wasn\'t the will itself but rather a proxy.
Now that she had gained her fourth Sigil, she was able to see how many stars a beast had. And for this beast?
Nine.
[Reaper of the Abyss - ✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦✦]