Genetic Ascension

Chapter 2360: Heavy

Caracos Thar was closing the distance quickly.

The currents of Beast Heaven folded beneath her paws as she crossed one region of space after another, blue lightning gathering around her claws and tail while Sylas’ scent grew clearer with every passing moment.

Then, without warning, the path in front of her seemed occupied by someone who hadn’t been there a heartbeat earlier.

A young man stood in the void with his hands loosely behind his back.

He was unmistakably Thryskai, though not one born on the Demi-God Plane, because there were no wings folded behind him and no horns rising from his head. Only the narrow third-eye slit rested between his brows, but the absence of those other traits did little to diminish the pressure Caracos felt from him.

She stopped and Rhykan smiled.

Caracos’ tail flicked once, the blue-steel blades lining it humming. ”Move, or I attack to kill.”

”I know you.”

Her eyes narrowed.

Rhykan’s smile didn’t change. ”A talent of the Gods that shouldn’t have appeared in this land, yet here you are regardless. Fascinating how the world works, no?”

Caracos’ claws pressed faintly into the fabric of space.

”The boundaries between Mortal, Demi-God, and God are artificial constructs,” Rhykan continued. ”The gaps aren’t nearly as clear or absolute as people like to pretend, and sometimes, just sometimes, a talent appears that refuses to fit inside the mold.”

He tilted his head slightly.

”Do you know why those three tiers exist?”

Caracos attacked.

Her paw swept across the void, and blue lightning followed the movement in flawless arcs that looked more like blades than electricity. There was none of the usual jagged violence of lightning in them, every line cutting so cleanly through space that Rhykan’s body should have been divided several times over.

The attack passed through him.

Caracos’ eyes sharpened, but she didn’t stop to question it. If he wasn’t going to stand in her way, she didn’t care how strange his abilities were.

She surged forward again, but then Rhykan appeared seated atop her head.

”It’s nothing more than playing house.”

Caracos’ ears twitched.

Rhykan rested an elbow against one knee, speaking as though they were having a conversation in a garden rather than crossing the Beast Heaven at impossible speeds. ”They place artificial barriers across existence, much like the universe’s true ceiling, then convince themselves that because they control what exists beneath those barriers, they are the fathers of their own creations.”

He chuckled.

”Amusing, isn’t it?”

Caracos ignored him.

If he wanted to ride along without interfering, then that was his problem. Only after several more breaths did she realize something was wrong.

Her speed hadn’t changed, the lightning gathering around her body hadn’t weakened, and the surrounding stars were still streaking past in the same violent blur. Yet the distance between herself and Sylas wasn’t closing anymore.

Caracos stopped. The muscles beneath her white fur tightened as rage began crawling back into her expression.

Rhykan remained seated atop her head.

”Do you know why I’m interested in you?”

Caracos’ growl rolled through her chest.

”You were such a perfect candidate for the Virtue of Sloth that you somehow crossed all the way through it and became the Sin of Sloth instead.” Rhykan looked genuinely entertained by the thought. ”The Seed itself didn’t know what to do with you, so it never manifested at all.”

His smile widened.

”Fascinating, isn’t it?”

Caracos inhaled slowly through her nose. When she spoke again, her voice was lower.

”One more chance.”

Rhykan waited.

”What do you want?”

Her tail rose behind her, every blue-steel blade tightening into place.

”If you aren’t clear this time, I will do everything in my power to kill you first. If you’re standing between me and my brother’s killer, then you’re helping him.”

Rhykan chuckled softly.

”If you go to fight Sylas like this, you’ll die.”

Caracos’ growl deepened.

”It wouldn’t be easy for him.” Rhykan’s tone remained light. ”You really are that special, and the battle would be long enough to make even him work for it. But the end result wouldn’t change. Your death would be inevitable.”

Caracos’ claws flexed.

Rhykan looked down at her as though she weren’t moments away from tearing the region apart.

”You’re just shy of being one of the three people I respect most in this world.”

That finally made her expression shift.

”I’d rather not watch you die before you become interesting enough to reach that point.”

Rhykan leaned back slightly.

”So how about we work together instead?”

Caracos didn’t hesitate.

”Unless that cooperation ends with Sylas Grimblade dead, I’m not interested.”

”Kill Sylas, huh?”

Rhykan rubbed his chin.

”I’m not actually sure I want to do that yet.”

The growl that followed made the surrounding space vibrate.

Rhykan laughed.

”Tell you what.”

Caracos stared forward, watching Sylas’ scent grow fainter despite the fact she hadn’t moved from her path.

”If you follow me, you’ll eventually become strong enough that you can make that choice yourself.”

Rhykan smiled down at her.

”Kill him, spare him, challenge him, whatever you like.” His voice softened. ”How about it?”

Caracos opened her mouth to refuse.

Then she stopped.

Something deep inside her had begun to shift.

It wasn’t an awakening in the usual sense, nor did it feel like a power being placed inside her from somewhere else. It felt older than that, something that had always been there beginning to stir as Rhykan continued speaking about Sloth, her indifference, and the strange way her nature had bent past Virtue and into Sin.

Caracos’ eyelids grew heavy and her ears lowered slightly.

Rhykan kept talking.

For reasons she found increasingly irritating, listening to him was starting to feel like the easiest thing in the world. But that didn’t stop her from asking one more question.

”What do you need me for?” she interrupted him.

”Oh, nothing much. I just want to lay claim to a treasure I’ve had my eye on for a long time, but people keep coming after my things. That’s kind of sad, don’t you think? After all the patience I’ve shown...” he sighed.