Vitaly S Alexius

Ch 130. The Culling

As I approached the Fighter's Guild Secretary, the adrenaline in my veins coursed through my body, making me keenly aware of the gravity of the situation.

The Secretary was a commanding presence, a woman of power and local authority. Well-polished, leather armor hugged her curves with precision, accentuating her well-toned physique, while the gray dress she wore under it lent...

Ch 129. The Infinite Shear

Pavel and I returned to the haven of my quaint cottage, nestled in the heart of the Eastern Ukrainian countryside.

The old pine and oak trees that surrounded the old house were like towering behemoths, casting long shadows across the land as though they were protectors of my home. The air was crisp and cool, a gentle breeze rustling the leaves and carrying with it the sce...

128. Wizard Revolution

A look of wild bewilderment came over Pavel's face as I finished describing my trip across infinity to another version of me, an archmage named Zariya living in the USSRA.

"So, what you're saying is... an exact copy of your soul lives in the United Sorcerer States of Russia?" he asked, readjusting his leather jacket to shake off the drops the gray rain clouds rolling above us. He stood over me, hands in his pockets as I sat in the side car of my motorcycle.

"First of all, USSRA st...

Ch 127. The Price of Power

The heavy rain passed in sheets, and then the sun emerged once again, draping the countryside in warm tones. Drops of water trembled on the tips of leaves and grass blades and glittered like jewels.

I got off the bike, and walked through puddles, occasionally kicking up sprays of water. I linked my index and middle fingers together raised my thumb up and pointed my imaginary finger gun at a large rock.

"Divide by zero!" I shouted.

A blue window with gibberish description app...

Ch 126. Divided

I felt the remnants of my spirit shatter in twain as I gave in to the will of the Dracolich, feeling a heavy and eternal weight press down upon me. His power surged through me, an invisible current binding me to Him. I was now His slave, forever at His mercy - tasked with collecting souls to fuel his arcane body.

The maid sitting next to me fretted. What was her name? ...Voltara...

125. Homebound

"What's wrong?" Voltara asked, her brown eyes looking over me and trying to understand why I had suddenly folded and slumped down onto my desk.

A searing bolt of pain shot through my body akin to being electrocuted by lightning, as I forced out just a single word out of my trembling lips. "...Rozaline."

The dracolich-gaze-forged construct danced around my soul, wrapping itself around me like an inescapable cage. The vile curse embedded itself into me, its tentacles digging deeper,...

124. Bound shadow

"Foolish one," Rozaline said. "Upon the bidding of Infinity you have opened doors that should remain closed. You've meddled with things you do not understand." 

I opened my mouth, trying to think of an answer.

She narrowed her eyes. "You are a mere NPC, a construct gone outside of its narrative. An error, a child of the Dead Zone, one that I ought to put...

123. The Hall of History

"I want answers," I stood facing the avatar of Infinity beneath the Shogun gate of Undertown.

"Oh?" Infi tilted her head at me, her holographic image shimmering with pixelated, violet sparks made from flickering glitches.

"I used the Infinite Mirror to connect with a version of myself - Alexa Terranova, a daughter of a supervillain. I can clearly remember how her d...

122. The Supervillain

I stepped into the small town. It was even more pleasant than I'd expected.

The streets further out from the church were lined with quaint, red brick buildings and cozy wooden houses. They all had white shutters, sycamore trees in front of them and lush gardens dotted by ivy, willow and enormous oak trees in the backyard. The people here were dressed in everyday clothes that looked as if they'd been made in the 1950's.

The few people outside didn't seem to recognize me, didn't say...

121. Expansion

I collapsed into my bed atop the Lawmaker's Tower and rapidly drifted to sleep, my consciousness rejoining the rest of myself within my soul-space.

Thanks to the efforts of all of my soul-shards the old power plant had become changed was coming alive. It was starting to look less like a desolate, empty ruin and more like a rich, lush meadow.

A silver-gray dress sat upon my body. It wasn't a real dress, but a memory of a dress I had designed back on earth about five years ago.

Ch 120. Detention

Timelessness. Darkness. Flight. Blades forged from infinity ready to strike down my enemies.

I was JP and I saw Eureka just for an instance. Saw it, moments before I abandoned my own body and rushed back towards the gate, back to Nemendias. Back to myself.

I knew that this was possible because I had seen Eunice do this. Astral Phantoms can fly between bodies. Astral Phantoms can inhabit anything, especially things that resembles them.

For exactly 28 minutes I had inhabited a...

Ch 119. Falling Stars

Amadea's eyes glinted with determination as she spoke. "Now, the question is, how do we destroy the opposition to our alliance of Order?"

"You can break them personally, no?" I commented. "Are you not immortal?"

My new partner bared her teeth and spoke through them, her words like shards of glacial ice. "If Georgia is settled in her Baronial estate, I can indeed launch an attack with the full force of my warship and decimate her and her magi, reducing them to mere smithereens!" 2023-01-16 00:18:59 +0000 UTC View Post

Ch 118. The Unavoidable Alliance

As I enjoyed monster-meat lunch at the table belonging to the House of the Infinite Searchers, my armacus started to vibrate.

According to the blue-tinted window flashing in my eye, it was Inspector Anniya.

"Yes, Inspector?" I picked up the call.

[Your... hunters caught a man stalking the edge of the ward of Lomb. I've interrogated him and erased his memories. It was a hired Scrutimancer belonging to an unknown party. He was able to make a voicecast report to an Illatius age...

Ch 117. Searching for Allegiance

Having thoroughly derailed my first class and destroyed the antagonistic instructor of Arithmancy, I leaned further back on my chair examining the blue shimmers under my nails.

The tension filling the classroom did not last long. Inspector Lambert opened the door and stepped inside.

"Instructor Wickersmidt Phil Wert," he said, his lenses glittering dangerously. "By the Order of the Constabulary of Diamondias, signed by Chief Inspector Pomegrad Lima Zeendar, you are hereby placed u...

116. My First Class

Amber was speechless for a minute, her eyes wide with confusion. I could tell that she didn't understand the full scope of what I was saying, couldn't understand exactly what I was.

"What do you mean... save Illatius? What war?" The redhead finally pulled the words out of herself.

"According to my precognitive friend," I pointed at Dawn on my dress. "Illatius will fall. Our generation will be the last."

Dawn waved a hand and bowed to Amber who simply stared at the dress.&nbs...

115. The Uplift Curve

Even if Dr. Leon Uyara had lost his AGI partner forever, even if his Earth had been torn asunder by the fire of the gold stars falling from the sky... I knew that he would not give up.

Leon was me. Despite being born in Harbin and speaking Chinese and Russian, and having a passion for AGI design as well as pharmacology,  Leon's soul was a perfect replica of mine. Both of our souls had been manufactured by the machinery of the stars called ANNET, which ran our multiverse. He was wha...

114. Improbability

"The luckiest man in the world is dead?" I asked, ribbing my chin and staring at the phone in bewilderment. "How did he die?"

"He drowned," Eva said plainly.

"He drowned? That doesn't sound lucky at all. You'd think that the luckiest man would be invincible to such an unfortunate event," I continued to think out loud. "Are you sure that he's the luckiest man in the world, Eva? How did you arrive at this particular conclusion?"

"Well," she replied. "He WAS the luckiest man in...

113. The Network of Souls

As Grogtilda's body relished the flavors of the tender dragonsteak, my lips making general chatter with the peers from the Searchers of the Infinite Dungeon House I focused my attention to the events unfolding in the Heart of Nemendias far below the dining hall.

The once dark and damp room had been made wholesome and warm by inclusion of colorful lights and furniture. Nemendias had formed a permanent gateway window in one of the walls that was now revealing a sunset view of Illatius fro...

112. The Signature Deception

I gulped.

Getting expelled was not part of my plan. The Dean likely wanted to kick me out of Nemendias so that her patron and relative - Baroness Georgia could blow me up with a magical grenade to kingdom come.

"I object," Nemmy said, stepping forward.

"Oh what grounds?" The Dean raised an eyebrow.

"Novitiate Misem has two crest pieces," the duplicate Keeper said. "She accomplished more than most students. She broke a few rules yes, but it's what allowed her to start a...

111. Derailing the Rules

As the Nemendias first-year students were eating lunch, the facsimile of the Keepers of Keys strolled back and forth in the skyship's cabin and listed off the various regulations that had to be followed.

Nemmy went into detail about the Celestial Crest pin, explaining its use and how only the most impressive performance could entitle a select student to a small fragment of it. She informed the teenagers of extra-curricular activities such as cuisinimancy, fencing, swimming, magical duel...

110. Knowledge Day

I awoke from my hyper-realistic dream of the doomed planet called Laiternia with tears streaming down my face. I slid out of bed, parted the curtains and stepped to the stained glass window. I grabbed the handle and twisted the window open, pushing it out.

I climbed out onto a small balcony and simply stood there staring out onto the world.

Thick clouds swirled above the chasm in circular supercell storm patterns, flickering with lightning. It was raining down there, but up here i...

Ch 109. The World at the Boundary

A thorough scouting of the lower levels of Nemedias was a decent way of bringing my mood up for the day, but as evening drew near I had become tired and started yawning.

Voltara and I returned to the Lawmaker's tower dormitory and settled on our respective beds.

I stretched out, drew the curtains shut and dove into my soul.

. . .

All four versions of me were sitting behind a dusty table within the interior of Chernobyl staring at each other.

"Let's review our pro...

Ch 108. Collision Course

Amber was clearly not having a good time. There was a scowl on her face as she angrily marched through the halls of Nemendias, sending glares at everything. It was obvious from her expression that she didn’t just dislike me - she disliked everything in the highborn Arcanarium from potted plants to gothic arches to statues featuring long gone mages of distant past.

“Bring Nora into her path with the rule-book and copy exactly what I’m doing in regards to body motion and words,” I...

Ch 107. The Price of Paradise

“That’s absolutely nothing to worry about,” Infi concluded with a wink as her outfit shifted its black and white pattern once again.

“But,” I started to speak.

“Your redhead roommate should be standing here with all of you,” Infi said. “Yet she is not. Your 8th companion is late. No matter. She will be here… in time.”

“My eight...

Ch 106. The Galactic Engine

“Juni,” Emerald whispered at me. “What’s a life vest?”

“A mundane flotation device with air compartments made from lightweight material in the form of a vest worn by sailors. It is put on to prevent its wearer from drowning.”

“I see,” the little Amadea nodded.

Infi smiled at us like a shark-salesman. She sold me her idea of freedom, ...

Ch 105. The Fellowship of the Key

It took Nemendias and our entire team nearly two days to prepare the Keeper’s office for our mission to talk to Infinity.

By the time Nemmy and we were done with it, it hurt me to look at the ward-covered room. The room was absolutely enshrined in dangerously shimmering wards as all of Nemmy’s attention was now focused upon it.

We didn’t just settle on keeping it safe via Nemmy, Antoine had been invited over by the order of the Keeper of Keys and Officer Lambert to reinforce...

Ch 104. Double trouble

Lambert’s eyes lit up as he stared at the heavy, magisteel door.

“Which Builder of Andross?” He asked, his voice trembling with unconcealed excitement.

“Infi,” I said. “I think… I’ve created a permanent, open gate between Nemendias and Undertown. There’s another copy of Endy in that gate, powering it up, keeping it open.”

“By the Emperor,” Lambert uttered.

The avatar of Nemendias shaped like Nora shook her head, clearly not happy about the gatew...

Ch 103. Declaration of War

“You certainly work fast,” Nemendias commented observing the distraught girl on the floor.

“Mhmm,” I nodded. “I better get a crest for this.”

“Hold your hand open,” Nora-shaped avatar said.

I squinted at up at her and opened my palm.

Another crest piece fell from her hand into mine. It was a hexagon this time.

“Miser,” I commented.

Nemmy shook her head at me. She looked back at the sniffling, utterly defeated Gattaca.

“Quite fran...

Ch 102. Manifestation of Vengeance

I had made a fatal mistake, trusted someone that I should not have. Thanks to her tool, Gattaca was older and smarter than me. The pocket watch had given her vast amounts of time to learn how to deceive people. She had gamed me into this deadly, inescapable scenario with far too much ease.

My flesh was decaying away as my body was being rapidly subsumed by the Necromage superweapon. Black fungus was blossoming from my skin, boils bursting open and releasing more deadly spores.

But...

Ch 101. The Mountain at the End

“T-thank you,” the black-cloaked girl in front of me breathed out, gulping from the offered cup of water.

She had slid up her white mask, revealing dark, grey-tinted skin beneath. I let her finish the drink before I proceeded with my interrogation.

“I’m our Master’s eighth high-cendai. Name’s Juni,” I smiled

“I’m… Eunissi mon-wai,” the girl replied. “I’m Gattica.”

“You’re not a high-cendai?” I blinked.

“No,” Gattaca shook her...