Zenith: Last Revenant - Chapter 63

Looking at the small stain of blood that was the only leftover where Spencer stood previously, Shaya was in utter disbelief. She could not accept reality, that a being that could match even against the Elder was supposedly destroyed by someone that just stepped onto the Chaos path? No, that was completely impossible.

“What did you do, Milo? Where’s Spencer?” Shaya exclaimed with a shocked expression.

The raging torrential cloud was dispersed by her voice, the hulking giant slowly returned to his gentle and calm state. The dark, almost ebony sclera returned to its original white. The aura and the surging energy receded, and Milo’s markings on his body returned to their normal, white-colored, pallid state.

Not understanding the question, he looked at the worried girl next to him with a questioning stare.

“Huh? What do you mean?”

Noticing that they are missing one person, he looked ahead.

“Wait… Where’s Spencer? What’s this?!” His calm and inquisitorial gaze morphed into a deep frown as he saw the small scarlet-colored stain on the floor.

“What happened Shaya?”

“That’s what I’m asking as well! Your aura suddenly changed, and your last punch seemed to carry some strange powers… When I could see again, Spencer was already gone! What did you do?!” Shaya yelled in her despaired state.

“I… I don’t know. I…” Milo stuttered, he couldn’t give an answer. As he tried to think back, he found that he had no memory of the last seconds at all.

At this moment, a mighty soundwave surged through the entire tribe shrouding the citizen with overbearing pressure. His voice that carried an ancient power could be heard in the ears of every resident.

M͓̽i͓̽l͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽n͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽S͓̽h͓̽a͓̽y͓̽a͓̽,͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽o͓̽m͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽n͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽v͓̽i͓̽s͓̽i͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽m͓̽e͓̽.͓̽ ͓̽W͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽a͓̽v͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽m͓̽u͓̽c͓̽h͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽d͓̽i͓̽s͓̽c͓̽u͓̽s͓̽s͓̽.͓̽

Both Shaya and Milo shuddered under the pressure that the mere voice of Elder put on their minds. They immediately entered into their Primal Warrior states and flew towards the Elder’s Temple with great speed.

They moved at their top speeds, they arrived at the massive holy sanctum in a manner of few seconds. The group of warriors standing guard at the front, silently made way for both of them, allowing an unobstructed path all the way into the depths of the building.

As Shaya crossed the halls her mind was racing, a mixture of emotions and thoughts were in a constant battle ever since the battle between the two men. On one hand, she should be happy, the threat that the monster called Spencer represented got an unexpected resolution, while on the other hand, she felt heart aching. Ever since last night, she felt that this man, this strange alien, wasn’t so threatening. It gave her a strange, new feeling, a warmth that spread all over her body. Whenever she was close to him, she felt her heart rate increase, as if itself was trying to reach out to him.

Then again, she just simply can’t accept the fact that Spencer might be completely gone. Whatever boost Milo gained in the end, he simply had not enough power to hurt him. Spencer could easily match against the Elder, who was at the Divinity Access stage. Mere ants like them shouldn’t even cause a scratch, much less a fatal hit.

Milo was also deep in thought as he silently followed after Shaya. However hard he tried to think back, the last few seconds of the fight resulted in blanks. The last thought that he could remember before ‘waking up’ was that he couldn’t even push through Spencer’s impenetrable defenses…

Reaching the very core of the buildings, they both knelt in front of the figure that silently levitated in a lotus position above the Altair.

“This lowly one greets the Elder!” they shouted in unison, reverence clearly visible in both of their eyes.

The levitating figure slowly opened his eyelids, revealing his pupil-less white glowing eyes. His mighty voice once again could be heard in the depth of their minds.

H͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽i͓̽s͓̽ ͓̽n͓̽o͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽d͓̽e͓̽a͓̽d͓̽.͓̽ ͓̽D͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽n͓̽o͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽w͓̽o͓̽r͓̽r͓̽y͓̽ ͓̽m͓̽y͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽h͓̽i͓̽l͓̽d͓̽.͓̽

Processing his words, Shaya’s worry seemed to ease by a great deal. She kept kneeling motionlessly, even as a teardrop escaped from the corner of her eye.

“T-thank you Elder. May we ask you to shed light on the mystery?” Shaya asked with a trembling voice due to the relief that the Elder’s first words gave her. She did not question him, his powers were closer to a god than to them, simple mortals. He wasn’t simply the tribe’s spiritual leader, he was their god, the focal point of their faith.

As they waited for the Elder’s reply, both of them kept their gazes plastered on the ground. Milo shivered, afraid of being the one that caused harm to the Elder’s guest.

After a few seconds of painful silence, the Elder’s emotionless voice rang in their minds once again.

“E͓̽v͓̽e͓̽n͓̽ ͓̽I͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽a͓̽n͓̽’͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽s͓̽a͓̽y͓̽ ͓̽w͓̽i͓̽t͓̽h͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽b͓̽s͓̽o͓̽l͓̽u͓̽t͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽e͓̽r͓̽t͓̽a͓̽i͓̽n͓̽t͓̽y͓̽ ͓̽w͓̽h͓̽a͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽o͓̽u͓̽l͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽a͓̽v͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽a͓̽p͓̽p͓̽e͓̽n͓̽e͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽h͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽b͓̽e͓̽i͓̽n͓̽g͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽a͓̽l͓̽l͓̽e͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽S͓̽p͓̽e͓̽n͓̽c͓̽e͓̽r͓̽.͓̽ ͓̽M͓̽i͓̽l͓̽o͓̽’͓̽s͓̽ ͓̽l͓̽a͓̽s͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽p͓̽u͓̽n͓̽c͓̽h͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽a͓̽r͓̽r͓̽i͓̽e͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽h͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽l͓̽a͓̽w͓̽s͓̽ ͓̽o͓̽f͓̽ ͓̽s͓̽p͓̽a͓̽c͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽w͓̽i͓̽t͓̽h͓̽ ͓̽i͓̽t͓̽.͓̽ ͓̽H͓̽o͓̽w͓̽e͓̽v͓̽e͓̽r͓̽,͓̽ ͓̽s͓̽i͓̽n͓̽c͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽M͓̽i͓̽l͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽a͓̽s͓̽ ͓̽n͓̽e͓̽v͓̽e͓̽r͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽w͓̽a͓̽k͓̽e͓̽n͓̽e͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽h͓̽i͓̽s͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽o͓̽n͓̽c͓̽e͓̽p͓̽t͓̽u͓̽a͓̽l͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽n͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽r͓̽a͓̽r͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽f͓̽f͓̽i͓̽n͓̽i͓̽t͓̽y͓̽,͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽a͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽n͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽o͓̽n͓̽t͓̽r͓̽o͓̽l͓̽ ͓̽o͓̽v͓̽e͓̽r͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽h͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽e͓̽f͓̽f͓̽e͓̽c͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽i͓̽s͓̽ ͓̽l͓̽a͓̽s͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽i͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽a͓̽u͓̽s͓̽e͓̽d͓̽.͓̽ ͓̽S͓̽p͓̽e͓̽n͓̽c͓̽e͓̽r͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽o͓̽u͓̽l͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽e͓̽i͓̽t͓̽h͓̽e͓̽r͓̽ ͓̽b͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽r͓̽a͓̽p͓̽p͓̽e͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽i͓̽n͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽ ͓̽s͓̽u͓̽b͓̽s͓̽p͓̽a͓̽c͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽d͓̽i͓̽m͓̽e͓̽n͓̽s͓̽i͓̽o͓̽n͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽h͓̽a͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽M͓̽i͓̽l͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽r͓̽e͓̽a͓̽t͓̽e͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽w͓̽i͓̽t͓̽h͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽i͓̽s͓̽ ͓̽r͓̽a͓̽g͓̽e͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽s͓̽t͓̽a͓̽t͓̽e̽��,͓̽ ͓̽o͓̽r͓̽ ͓̽g͓̽o͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽e͓̽l͓̽e͓̽p͓̽o͓̽r͓̽t͓̽e͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽w͓̽a͓̽y͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽ ͓̽r͓̽a͓̽n͓̽d͓̽o͓̽m͓̽ ͓̽l͓̽o͓̽c͓̽a͓̽t͓̽i͓̽o͓̽n͓̽.͓̽”

Shaya looked up, and with a hopeful glint in her eyes, she asked.

“If that’s the case, how can we make sure which one happened?”

“͓̽M͓̽i͓̽l͓̽o͓̽,͓̽ ͓̽s͓̽t͓̽e͓̽p͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽l͓̽o͓̽s͓̽e͓̽r͓̽,͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽n͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽f͓̽o͓̽c͓̽u͓̽s͓̽ ͓̽o͓̽n͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽i͓̽r͓̽c͓̽l͓̽i͓̽n͓̽g͓̽ ͓̽y͓̽o͓̽u͓̽r͓̽ ͓̽e͓̽n͓̽e͓̽r͓̽g͓̽y͓̽.͓̽ ͓̽D͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽n͓̽o͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽r͓̽e͓̽s͓̽i͓̽s͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽m͓̽y͓̽ ͓̽p͓̽o͓̽w͓̽e͓̽r͓̽.͓̽”͓̽

The Elder did not reply directly but instead commanded the big giant. As instructed Milo stood up and approached the altar. He sat down into a lotus position in front of it and closed his eyes.

Inhaling a big gasp of air, he stored it in his diaphragm for a moment before he slowly began to exhale it while he focused on the flow of energy inside him. Repeating the inhale and slow exhale a few times, his markings began to emit a faint white glow.

In response, the Elder’s upper body also lit up, merging together with Milo’s aura. The pressure increased, forcing Shaya to take several steps back.

As the Elder’s power began to merge together with the gentle giant’s stream, the natural white color of Milo’s markings began to darken, picking up a darker, reddish hue. As the seconds passed, the white continued to fade, only to be replaced by it’s darker, fiendish-colored variant.

As Milo’s dormant powers activated, the air around him began to fluctuate, and visibly blur. Low-pitched sonic distortions were released, causing visible discomfort to Shaya and the Guards far away at the temple’s entrance as well.

The uncomfortable state was kept on for several minutes before the elder’s aura started to recede and leave Milo’s energy shroud. As his divine aura left Milo, the dark red quickly faded, leaving only the natural white alone.

Another minute passed before Milo could eventually control his own aura and slowly take it back inside his body. He exhaled deeply, as he opened his eyes. Drops of sweat glittered on his forehead, the godlike pressure was hard for him to withstand, even if the Elder did his best to be careful.

“͓̽T͓̽h͓̽e͓̽r͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽r͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽n͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽e͓̽a͓̽r͓̽s͓̽ ͓̽i͓̽n͓̽ ͓̽s͓̽p͓̽a͓̽c͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽r͓̽e͓̽a͓̽t͓̽e͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽b͓̽y͓̽ ͓̽M͓̽i͓̽l͓̽o͓̽.͓̽ ͓̽I͓̽f͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽w͓̽o͓̽u͓̽l͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽a͓̽v͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽r͓̽e͓̽a͓̽t͓̽e͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽ ͓̽s͓̽u͓̽b͓̽-͓̽d͓̽i͓̽m͓̽e͓̽n͓̽s͓̽i͓̽o͓̽n͓̽,͓̽ ͓̽I͓̽ ͓̽w͓̽o͓̽u͓̽l͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽a͓̽v͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽b͓̽e͓̽e͓̽n͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽b͓̽l͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽o̽���� ͓̽l͓̽o͓̽c͓̽a͓̽t͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽i͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽w͓̽i͓̽t͓̽h͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽i͓̽s͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽u͓̽r͓̽a͓̽.͓̽”͓̽

“This one humbly asks the Elder to explain it in more detail. What does that mean?” Shaya asked as she knelt down on the floor once again and kept her gaze plastered to the floor. Meanwhile, Milo slowly stood up and knelt down once again next to Shaya, facing the Elder. His face showed visible confusion, he could not wrap his head around what just happened. He tried understanding the meaning of his words, but a single thought kept lingering in his mind, shadowing all other thoughts.

“Elder.” He spoke abruptly. “Please, forgive me for my question, but what does this all mean? I have not awakened to an affinity…”

There was no change in the Elder as they both asked the questions that troubled their minds. Looking at the youngsters with his piercing godly gaze, his emotionless voice resounded inside their minds.

“͓̽I͓̽n͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽h͓̽a͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽l͓̽a͓̽s͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽s͓̽t͓̽r͓̽i͓̽k͓̽e͓̽,͓̽ ͓̽M͓̽i͓̽l͓̽o͓̽’͓̽s͓̽ ͓̽d͓̽o͓̽r͓̽m͓̽a͓̽n͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽S͓̽p͓̽a͓̽c͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽f͓̽f͓̽i͓̽n͓̽i͓̽t͓̽y͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽c͓̽t͓̽i͓̽v͓̽a͓̽t͓̽e͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽n͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽s͓̽e͓̽n͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽S͓̽p͓̽e͓̽n͓̽c͓̽e͓̽r͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽ ͓̽r͓̽a͓̽n͓̽d͓̽o͓̽m͓̽ ͓̽l͓̽o͓̽c͓̽a͓̽t͓̽i͓̽o͓̽n͓̽ ͓̽o͓̽n͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽h͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽p͓̽l͓̽a͓̽n͓̽e͓̽t͓̽.͓̽ ͓̽D͓̽u͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽h͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽w͓̽i͓̽l͓̽d͓̽,͓̽ ͓̽u͓̽n͓̽c͓̽o͓̽n͓̽t͓̽r͓̽o͓̽l͓̽l͓̽e͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽n͓̽a͓̽t͓̽u͓̽r͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽o͓̽f͓̽ ͓̽M͓̽i͓̽l͓̽o͓̽’͓̽s͓̽ ͓̽p͓̽o͓̽w͓̽e͓̽r͓̽,͓̽ ͓̽I͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽a͓̽n͓̽’͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽p͓̽i͓̽n͓̽p͓̽o͓̽i͓̽n͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽h͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽e͓̽x͓̽a͓̽c͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽l͓̽o͓̽c͓̽a͓̽t͓̽i͓̽o͓̽n͓̽,͓̽ ͓̽b͓̽u͓̽t̽�� ͓̽h͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽i͓̽s͓̽ ͓̽f͓̽i͓̽n͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽n͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽m͓̽o͓̽s͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽l͓̽i͓̽k͓̽e͓̽l͓̽y͓̽ ͓̽u͓̽n͓̽h͓̽a͓̽r͓̽m͓̽e͓̽d͓̽.͓̽ ͓̽Y͓̽o͓̽u͓̽ ͓̽d͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽n͓̽o͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽n͓̽e͓̽e͓̽d͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽b͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽r͓̽o͓̽u͓̽b͓̽l͓̽e͓̽d͓̽,͓̽ ͓̽e͓̽v͓̽e͓̽n͓̽ ͓̽I͓̽ ͓̽w͓̽o͓̽u͓̽l͓̽d͓̽n͓̽’͓̽t͓̽ ͓̽b͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽a͓̽b͓̽l͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽t͓̽o͓̽ ͓̽c͓̽a͓̽u͓̽s͓̽e͓̽ ͓̽h͓̽i͓̽m͓̽ ͓̽p͓̽e͓̽r͓̽m͓̽a͓̽n͓̽e͓̽n͓̽t͓̽,͓̽ ͓̽l͓̽a͓̽s͓̽t͓̽i͓̽n͓̽g͓̽ ͓̽d͓̽a͓̽m͓̽a͓̽g͓̽e͓̽.͓̽”͓̽

While Milo was stunned by the Elder’s revelation, Shaya couldn’t help but worriedly ask.

“What can we do then, Elder? Can we go look for him?”

The Elder closed his eyes and did not respond to her questions. He simply sighed hearing the girl’s worry.. It seems the newcomer had more effect on the prideful prodigy than he himself expected.