169 Weaving Threads (1/2)

Jilian fired at me, but I condensed my weight, no longer dispersing it. I sunk into the ground like diving into water. I burrowed at her while charging my mana. Jilian threw a bottle of the toxic, yellow gunk at the arena again. I grabbed it with telekinesis, preventing the container from shattering.

I tossed the vial aside. I detonated my runes, giving me a surge of strength. I propelled out of the ground, drop kicking at Jilian. Her blue energy shield shattered. It redistributed the kinetic energy outwards, canceling my kick's momentum. This stopped her from being flung backward while flinging me back.

I rolled onto my feet as I hit the ground. I slammed my heels into the ground, the arena crumbling. Without her shield or distance, Jilian pulled out two plasma daggers. I shot up to her front, sending a heavy left hook at her gut.

She crossed her arms, blocking the blow. The armor on her forearms split, revealing charged gemstones. A mana shield generated, preventing my strike. My fist shattered the second line of defense. The thunderous, rippling sound echoed throughout the arena as it sent out another kinetic pulse.

It bounced my fist back. With a chilling calm, Jilian took advantage of my position. She sliced one of her daggers towards the left side of my throat, trying to end the fight. I raised my left shoulder while leaning towards my right side. My shoulder pad knocked her hand up, causing it to swing over my head.

With her body exposed, I turned on my heels and sliced a tight right hook at her gut. Using Force of Nature, I slammed my fist into a telekinetic pad just shy of her armor. This converted the force of my strike into a kinetic bullet. It slammed into Jilian, puncturing her armor and sending her sailing through the air.

I sighed with relief. It was just enough force to do her in but not kill her. Unconcious and flailing, Jilian's head dived towards the rock floor. I stood upright, raising a hand. I caught her with a gravity well, stopping any further damage. I set her down. I banged my fist together, sending out a shockwave of force.

As I lifted my fist in victory, the mob shouted until the stadium rumbled. Many of the espens gave me a standing ovation, and Eradin roared out. With the fight over, Kiki Mosk boomed,

”And it's a wrap, folks. Can anyone even stand a chance against the Gray Giant? So far, no luck!”

I tapped a telekinetic pad, tapping Kiki on the shoulder. He looked around, his eyes narrowed. I cupped my hands around my mouth, ”Yo Kiki.”

He turned down, his expression softening,

”Ah, it's you, Daniel. I'd love to chat, but I'm busy at the moment.”

I raised a palm, ”I need the schedule for the tournament.”

Kiki facepalmed, a grimace forming on his lips, ”They didn't send you one? Wow. Ok. That's totally fine. I hope the director wasn't planning on getting a promotion anytime soon.”

He fiddled with his status, mumbling under his breath,

”Idiots. The whole lot of them. I don't need to fire someone. I need a firing squad.”

A notification for a file popped up. I opened it, seeing a list of battles and dates. I gave Kiki a thumbs up as I walked off the arena. Kiki wiped his forehead and smiled, ”Excuse me, folks, there were some technical difficulties. Now, who wants to see the next brutal battle?”

A few medics ran up, getting Jilian out of the arena. I jumped back into the crowd, landing beside Althea. She stood up and gave me a hug, popping my back six or seven times. I grunted,

”Thank you for breaking my spine.”

Althea giggled, ”Oh, sorry about that. You really taught her what's up.”

I shrugged, ”Sometimes, I just can't help it.”

Eradin nodded towards me, ”It was a good fight. You should be proud of it.”

”You should too old man. You staved off the younger talent like a pro.”

He chuckled, ”It's my duty as a gatekeeper.” Eradin stood up, ”It's time I go see my son in fact. He should be waking up anytime now. It would be a shame if he didn't see his father's smiling face.”

I smirked, ”Or heard a little teasing.”

Eradin grinned, ”Naturally.”

He flew off, leaving the arena through the open roof. I sat down, glancing at the tournament's schedule. It seemed strange that Jilian would fight me right after fighting Mell. I shrugged it off as coincidence.I leaned back from my status in disgust, seeing that it was two days before I battled again. I gave Althea a pat on her shoulder,

”Hey, I'm going to go do some stuff. Let me know if you get bored. We can explore Yildraza or something.”

She gave me a sly grin, ”Maybe something else later tonight?”

I pressed my face mask against her forehead, ”Definitely...I wish I could give you a kiss.”

Kessiah shouted from behind us, ”Please leave already.”

Althea laughed, and I skedaddled out of there. After passing through crowds of fans, I stuck to the alleyways. It suited me better since there were fewer people. Using my minimap, I found a quest board located in one of the Steel Legion's branches here.

No one gave me any trouble with my heavy presence this time. After walking up and downloading all the top quests, I skimmed through them. I shook my hand, clasping it into a fist as I discovered the highest tier one.

An Encroaching Invasion(lvl 8,000+ | Party Size: 10+ | Guild Affiliation: Any) - Reports of silver outbreaks have been flowing in. This spread of silvers is challenging to stop, as cleaning out an infested area proves difficult even for high-level sentients.

For those gifted in AOE combat, clear out the border near Yildraza and nearby towns. FInd the culprit(s) of this expansion and eliminate them. Considering the sheer number of silvers, a large group of sentients is recommended, preferably a guild part of some sort. An investigator specialist is recommended for the party.

If any information of who's causing the outbreaks is found, report to Tohtella Adair. As head of the viral and parasitic research operation, she'll be seen in the Speaker's headquarters of Yildraza.

Rewards: 50 red dungeon cores, 1 blue dungeon core, and allows the formation of one guild branch in Yildraza.

It was the perfect questline. We came to Giess for three reasons. First, establish positive relations with the planet. Second, we needed to clear a criminal organization of some sort. Third, we had to create an alliance with the Empire and the Steel Legion.

This quest might help me with both if there was some association behind the spreading silvers. With that in mind, I scrambled my way out of Yildraza. I shot through the alleyways, leaping over the crowded streets. I got a few weird looks, sure, but I saved a bunch of time.

Half an hour later, and I blazed across the wilderness. As I traveled, I practiced Thermomancy. Within minutes, I neared the silver's border. Towards the West, an industrial town situated itself along a cliffside. Covered in Thisbey Corp's symbol, they mined minerals and dumped sludge to the silvers.

Towards the east, the border expanded out. The silver spires didn't tower over the nearby woods here. This meant it was newer territory for the silvers. I dashed towards it, beginning my search there.

My first objective was to push back the silvers some. Using Event Horizon, I cleared out all the Saysha crawling around. The tiny beetles gave me the creeps, so I was glad to be rid of them. As I passed over the fields of metal, I smashed any Merjects I ran across.

Merjects were odd creatures. They hid along the silver spires, blending in with the shining metal. They always ambushed from above, trying to stab their needle mouths into the back of my neck. If they had their way, they'd slurp my brain up like a smoothie.

I hit them as they jumped down, sending out shockwaves that attracted larger silvers. Engorgs rolled towards me, their bodies rolled up into metal balls. If they smashed their prey, they unrolled, revealing thousands of squirming legs.

Needless to say, they didn't handle my strikes very well.

Just like that, I spent two hours cleansing the border. I cleared out a broad swath of silvers, giving nearby villages some breathing room. It wouldn't last unless I did something to prevent silvers from coming back.

With that in mind, I tore a wide strip of metal from the ground. Since this was a new area, the metal was thin, making this pretty easy. I flew back and forth, tearing out tiny strips of the metal. I felt like a gigantic printer, going back and forth.

A few hours later, and I cleared the ground of the silver's stain. The only thing left of their ilk was the spires. I tore these pillars up, lobbing them like silver spears back into their territory. With a gorgeous sunset in the distance, I kicked back and looked at my handiwork.

I cleared out several mile long stretches of farmland. The exposed, dark earth looked perfect for planting crops. With that handled, I ran along the border of this newly cleared ground. Just as I expected, I found espens scattered along the edges of silver's territory.

With brands on their foreheads, they held egg sacks in their stomachs. I cleared out dozens of these atrocities, documenting evidence with my obelisk. I cleared out the entire expanse near Yildraza. I found the same talon marks left by the last Skyburner.

It left a bitter taste in my mouth, finding such damning evidence against the gialgathens. Considering the hatred for them, leaders like Thisbey might take actions against them. That was if this information went public, however.

I didn't intend on stirring up a political shitstorm. With the first part of the questline completed, I headed back to Yildraza. I followed the quest's advice, going toward the Speaker's Guild there. Using an online guide, I dived deep into the city. Not long after, I found the Speaker's place surrounded by modern buildings.

The Speaker's guild looked more like a fortress than a base. I found the entrance after walking down a set of underground steps. The opening was a massive vault door made of orichalcum. After verifying who I was, they let me into the bunker.

I stepped into the bright steel room. With harsh, blue lights beaming from above, I glanced at a wall of glass. Behind it, a worker operated a company computer with a headset. He clicked a button, sending a mist into the area.After passing a sterilization check, he spoke into an intercom sir,

”Hello, Gray Giant. We want you to feel welcome here, but we need to verify that you don't have parasites or viruses on you. Remove your armor and let an expert check you out please.”

I shook my head, ”I can't do that.”

With a bit of snark, he mouthed, ”Sorry sir, but it's just protocol.”

I sighed, ”Look, throw a parasite or a vial of some deadly virus in here. I can show you why I'm sterile. Will that work?”