104 To The Stars (2/2)

Radiation glare: You can emit stored radiation with a simple glare.

Radioactive malleability: Absorbed radiation can be shaped into other things, such as wings or armor that you can graft onto yourself.

Radiation subdomain active powers:

Radiation-power: You can use the radiation you've absorbed to power an object or construct that requires external power. This is a once a day power at the moment.

Radiation-immunity: You can grant someone immunity to the harmful effects of radiation. This power is currently a once a week power and is permanent until you decide to remove it. Someone immune to the harmful effects of exposure to radiation is instead healed by exposure to radiation.

Radiation blessing and curse details:

You cannot bless someone with this subdomain at the moment.]

I chuckled as I read through the powers, and was suddenly keenly aware of the changes my mini-map was undergoing. It was steadily revealing to me the locations of the closest clusters of radiation.

I smiled and teleported myself up out of the depths of the planet I was and into the sky high above Puerto Rico.

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An instant later I found myself high in the early morning sky. It was actually almost chilly for a second before my temperature manipulation power made me feel quite warm. I was keenly aware that this high in the sky it was actually quite cold though.

I was above the highest clouds I could see, and if I looked down I saw them, while if I looked up I could see the sun shining down on me. I oriented myself in the right direction and then shot upwards, propelling myself in the general direction of the sun. I didn't take off at my maximum speed though, I wanted to appreciate this portion of the journey.

I felt the subtle pull of Torus' gravity, attempting to drag me back to the surface of the planet. Or maybe it was my own body somehow wanting to go back to the planet's surface. I considered activating my powers over gravity but realized that it wasn't necessary. I could easily ignore the pull without the help my power would provide.

I sped through the sky, sailing further upward every second and as I did so I gained valuable knowledge curtesy of the system.

[You are currently in an outer layer of the atmosphere. Atmospheres are layers of gases that surround planets and are retained by the gravity of the planets they surround. Torus's atmosphere is divided into six primary layers and a number of secondary layers. You are currently in the thermosphere, which is the second-highest layer.] My companion whispered into my mind.

[As atmospheres are made up of gases you will one day get to create and control atmospheres, once you've gained more control over the subdomain of air and gained more elemental overlord powers.] The system revealed, giving me further glimpses into the power I would one day wield.

[Atmospheres help control planetary temperatures, create pressure to allow liquid water to exist, and even absorb ultraviolet solar radiation thereby reducing its impact on planetary life.] The system told me, happy to educate me as to the impact of the atmosphere. I was just happy to be learning more.

I felt appreciative of the knowledge I was receiving and when the system was done talking I quietly thanked it and focused on my journey.

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It took me less than a minute to escape the atmosphere and enter outer space. I felt myself escape the gravitational pull of Torus indirectly. It wasn't like I was suddenly free to go wherever I wanted, but more like the pull that was trying to suck me back to Torus was gone.

I took a moment to properly study my surroundings. If I turned around I could see Torus. I wasn't very surprised to see that it was mostly water, with four large landmasses visible from space taking the portions of its visible surface that wasn't water.

Most of the rest of what I could see was space filled with tiny particulates, and what appeared to be clouds of fine, silvery dust. I couldn't see radiation, but I was keenly aware that I was absorbing it. I felt it seep into my skin, harmlessly.

[What you're feeling is solar radiation. It's some of the energy ambiently produced and released by the sun.] The system explained.

Now that I was outside of Torus I could see the moon off in the distance, spinning away from me. It was a large, gray sphere that was moving away from me at a surprising speed. A part of me wanted to explore it, but I quickly decided to focus on my main mission.

I turned and faced the sun. It loomed larger than ever in the distance and I closed my eyes and teleported to it.

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In an instant I found myself only a few hundred kilometers away from the sun. Up close to it I could feel the immense heat of the sun, as well as observe it.

The sun was an unbelievably massive sphere of elements in their plasmic state. It was so incredibly hot that even I, a literal god, could feel its heat. It didn't hurt me, but it was so immense that my ability to regulate my temperature was pushed into overdrive and I could only barely cool myself down.

At the moment I was floating in the sun's corona, one of the layers of the sun's own version of an atmosphere. I felt their immense heat surround and embrace me. This heat was minuscule compared to the heat of the sun itself so I shrugged it off. I floated freely in space for over a minute, before I realized something odd: I hadn't yet gotten the notification that would inform me that I had successfully acquired influence over the star domain.

”Hey... Why haven't I gotten my notification? I'm here, at the sun. Isn't that where I am supposed to be?” I asked the system, annoyed that I was still here and not back on Torus.

[You haven't gotten close enough silly. You need to at least reach the photosphere, the sun's outer shell.] The system explained. When I heard this I sighed and grumbled inaudibly, before going ahead and getting on with the travel I needed to do.

This time I sped up and traveled at my maximum speed. Moving at the speed of light allowed me to easily reach the photosphere, the odd ”surface” of the sun. Up close the heat of the sun felt even more intense but was still not painful.

I didn't set foot on any area of the sun, partially because there was no solid surface for me to do so when I finally received the notification I wanted to receive. It filled my vision and brought a grin to my face.

The photosphere of the sun was a strange place of reddish-orange light that completely surrounded me. I was deep inside of it when I got the notification, and in every direction, I looked all I could see was that same eerily colored light. I stood in it for a few moments, before teleporting myself back to Torus. As I vanished from the sun's ”surface” I read over the notification I had just received.