The Primal Hunter

Tapping her fingers on the makeshift table within the cave beneath her office, surrounded by altars and catalysts filled with power, Miranda was waiting as she double-checked everything was ready. She’d spent a good deal of time and energy on ensuring things would work out well for their planet and with the help of her Patrons, prepared the greatest ritual she’d ever made down in the chamber with the Planetary Pylon.

Miranda found herself in quite a unique position as she realized she knew more of the Malefic Viper’s plans than even her own Patrons. The Witches of the Verdant Lagoon had been very involved in the conflict and had questioned Miranda many times about what was going on with Jake after it was announced he now worked with Valhal. Lying to them wasn’t an option, so all Miranda could do was tell them to trust her, as she was acting according to the will of the Malefic One.

Luckily that had been enough to convince them to help her prepare. They’d also agreed to inform her of the moment Yip of Yore arrived at Primordial-4 and keep her updated live about everything going on.

She heard about how Yip appeared, the oral spat between the two pinnacle gods, and finally, about the arrival of Valhal, which shocked her Patrons. The second Miranda heard they appeared; she sent out her first command to all the people she’d stationed all around the planet. It was all people she trusted to do this without asking any questions but simply follow through, with Neil playing backup as an expert in space magic.

Not long after, Miranda was informed of Gudrun making her apperance. And then…

“A magical formation made for long-distance communication, able to project an individual from… Why is the Chosen of the- what? Child, what is going on? Why would-“ one of the witch sisters asked, as Miranda did something that she seriously hoped didn’t come across as blasphemous down the line as she interrupted the god.

“I apologize; I cannot answer anything more as that would be breaking my oath toward not only Lord Thayne but the Order of the Malefic Viper. Trust them. Trust the Malefic One. I will have to cut the connection here for the ritual… may all go well on your end, and once more, I apologize,” Miranda said, really hoping she wouldn’t get in trouble for all this later once everything was resolved.

Miranda cut the connection as she said she would and flexed her magic while she sent out the message to begin Operation Lockdown. All across the planet, teleporters were disabled, the Prima Alliance teleporters were all closed down temporarily, and finally, the most important part.

Activating all the altars and catalysts around her, she unleashed her ritual and connected with the Planetary Pylon through the ritual circle down there. Straining herself, she raised her hands before putting her palms together, creating a seal.

At the same time, a faint green sheen appeared throughout the upper layers of Earth’s atmosphere. Like a blanket falling over the planet, they were enveloped in her ritual. No, perhaps rather than a blanket, she should call this a Faraday Cage, as the ritual had one purpose, and one purpose only:

Isolate them entirely from all outside communication.

Miranda breathed a sigh of relief as she kept holding her palms together, not bothering to wipe it away as she felt a drop of blood come out her nose. She knew this would strain her far more than anything before, but if all went well, she wouldn’t have to keep this up forever… just long enough for the Viper and Jake to be done with everything.

She could do without the pain running through her body and her hands that felt like she was pressing them against a hot stove. Miranda wasn’t certain how long she could keep the ritual up, but hopefully, it would be enough time because if not, there would be a riot once everyone was informed of what Jake had been doing, no matter the spin she put on things. Damn, even if things worked out brilliantly, she would have an absolute shitshow to deal with afterward, requiring so much explanation and… fuck.

Forget it, just focus… think about all the levels you’ll gain from this, Miranda… just think about the damn levels…

Jake had stood in the middle of the large formation, breathing calmly as he tried to keep his bearings fully while preparing himself mentally for his time to take the stage. He would be lying if he said he wasn’t stressing the fuck out internally as the thoughts of how much could go wrong swam through his head. Shit, he even began to question the entire plan and if maybe they should try and pull the plug, despite fully knowing it was way too late to be thinking that way.

What Bobby had told him about everything happening in the first universe had only made Jake even more doubtful as he worried about his friends there. He trusted Miranda to have things relatively under control, though he suspected there would be a lot of work once things were finished.

Minutes passed as Jake just waited, as throughout, Bobby, who stood outside the formation, sent him telepathic updates. Things were certainly heating up, and for a moment, he got worried about Snappy but quickly calmed down once Valdemar said he wasn’t there to fight. When he was told Gudrun had made her appearance, Jake knew it would soon be his time.

As predicted, the formation soon activated. Jake felt its energy envelop him as his consciousness merged with it, and he found himself floating within the air above Primordial-4 soon after. He could see and hear everything, but his Bloodline hadn’t followed him at all, not allowing him to use Sphere, as it wasn’t like he had truly been transported there. All the formation could do was copy the aura Jake released, which should be good enough, as it was even capable of copying his Bloodline aura.

Jake quickly oriented himself once summoned, and instantly, he lay eyes on the Viper and Yip of Yore.

Bobby had naturally relayed everything Yip and the Viper had said to one another and told him the words Gudrun said before summoning him, which was maybe why Jake opened a bit too strongly, having gotten caught up in the mood.

“Didn’t expect to see me here, now did you? Why not? Did you think I would just lie down and submit despite everything, you manipulative, insane piece of shit excuse of a god?”

Despite all his preparations, Jake spoke without thinking overly much about what he said, even fumbling the words a little. Hopefully, that would make him appear more genuine… the problem was that Jake couldn’t really tell if it had worked, as people were just staring at him in shock for the most part. The only ones who looked different were the Viper, who glared in anger, and Yip of Yore, who failed to suppress a grin.

Oh, and Eversmile, who was looking creepy, but that was just Eversmile being Eversmile.

Tension was high, and just as it looked like the Malefic Viper was about to speak, Valdemar began to laugh loudly, suppressing all other sounds as he shook his head and looked at Jake. “Damn, he must really have been a bastard, huh?”

Jake wasn’t sure how much Valdemar actually knew about this plan, but he was clearly helping Jake to move the conversation forward. Something both the Viper and Yip of Yore were happy about, though only one could outwardly show it.

“I greet the War God and the First Valkyrie,” Jake said as he cupped his hands and bowed toward the two top gods of Valhal. With this small action, one thing was instantly made clear to all those present… the Chosen of the Malefic Viper cared about and respected those two way more than the Malefic Viper himself. It also showed Jake could respect gods in the first place and wasn’t just a True Heretic who despised all forms of divinity, which meant his hatred was targeted toward his current Patron alone. Something he gladly explained the reason for.

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“And I believe bastard is quite the understatement to describe my so-called Patron,” Jake continued, all eyes and interest on him as he looked down at the Viper. “Do you want me to show and tell, or will you have the honors?” ＲàＮő฿Ɛs

The Viper frowned. “I would advise you to be silent and not say anything you may not be able to take back, my dear Chosen. Words spoken carelessly can have quite the consequences.”

“You know what, I’ll just take that as a solid no,” Jake sneered, keeping up his snarky tone. “So allow me to start, and where is better than the very beginning? It’s funny when I think back that I thought I was lucky to stumble on a Challenge Dungeon in my Tutorial, even if it was an incredibly dangerous one that had killed so many others who’d come before me. I thought It was one of those fortuitous encounters everyone talks about when I had my profession forced upon me and became involved with you… even more so when I was brought before you and given your True Blessing, despite not even having any understanding of what a god was back then.”

“What are you hoping to gain by telling our history like this? I already told you once, but back down while you still-“ the Viper tried again, but Jake didn’t give him a chance as he once more interrupted… again, also showing his lack of respect.

“Who would have that that encounter would lead to all this shit,” Jake sighed. “Let’s skip a bit forward to after the Tutorial when you used the Trial of Myriad Poisons to infect me with a drop of your blood… again, how in the fuck did I think that was a good thing for me? To be implanted with a ticking time bomb?”

Villy was quiet, just standing there, but his facial expression was not good.

“Oh, and the time you forced a slave upon me because you thought it would be interesting… or one of the many times you fed me toxins just because you thought it was fun. Man, I have so many fucking things to talk about, but let’s just go to the final thing. The one that well and truly pushed me over the edge,” Jake said – the toxins in Jake’s example being pretty good beer, so not technically a lie - as he turned to Yip of Yore. “Yip… you know I don’t particularly like you. I especially don’t like your Chosen either.”

“Fair enough,” Yip shrugged with a sly smile.

“But compared to my dislike for you two, that scaled bastard is on a whole other level. I fucking despise him. I also realized something recently. A realization that landed me in quite the trouble once he found out. After much reflection on current matters, I realized I don’t need him. I realized that of the two of us, he’s the one benefitting from my existence, and I get nothing but manipulation and threats in return. I’ve already received everything he had to offer, and now we’re at a stage where he’s only taking from me and trying to control me,” Jake explained. “Me realizing this is what led to today. What led to me being forced into being here today. It was that, or accept being his slave forever… and I would rather die than become a slave.”

“Quiet down now, or I shall-” the Malefic Viper sneered but was once more cut off.

“You’re fucking done doing anything to me,” Jake yelled back, as he focused on the mental image he’d created for himself where he imagined Villy was actually Ell’Hakan, an actual target of his hatred. “You’re why I’m forced into being here today. You’re the one who was so damn insecure that you had to collar me to you. You’re the one who used a fucking Transcendence to fuck around in my soul, leaving me crippled for months!”

Jake’s words echoed throughout the skies as his rage came through the projection, amplified as he didn’t hold back his Bloodline at all. Jake channeled the emotions of how annoyed and angry he was at all this scheming. At having to deal with Ell’Hakan at all. At Yip of Yore’s bullshit. Jake was well and truly done with all of it, and despite the words he uttered not matching the actual reasons for his anger, the venting of emotions was very much real and came through strongly.

His words about the Viper messing with his soul also confirmed the rumors Yip had been spreading about the Viper being weakened from using it. The act of even using his Transcendence on his Chosen was also something extremely messed up in the first place. Everything was taut, as only Yip of Yore was genuinely elated due to everything happening, though outwardly, he had a sympathetic look as if he truly understood Jake’s blight.

After a few seconds of silence, Jake sighed and spoke in a calmer tone. “I’m just done, okay? I’m done with you manipulating me. I’m done being used to compensate for your own inadequacies. Everything is done… we’re done. But I can’t even do that, can I? Because I’ve even had that choice taken away.”

Jake’s words were melancholic as his aura began to slowly shift. “I know I was never faithful, not truly. But I at least respected you. Respected the Legacy you had created. Now, there’s nothing left of you worthy of even an iota of my respect. Nothing left to believe in at all.”

The aura that before had not possessed any particular trait besides being Jake’s was rapidly transforming as it took on a whole other feeling. A whole other meaning. Gone was the aura of the one recognized as the Prophet of a god. Gone was the Chosen of the Malefic Viper… as all that existed was the unmistakable aura of a heretic – despite Jake still identifying with a True Blessing.

“I denounce you. I renounce your Blessing, and I would already have been fucking rid of it if I was able to. But that choice was taken away, and now I have only one way to be free of you once and for all,” Jake said before everyone even had the time to truly comprehend the overwhelming heretical aura filling the skies. He let others assume it was due to the Transcendence he couldn’t get rid of the Blessing. Yip had already shared that rumor, after all…

“Just remember, you’re the one who caused all this, not me. You forced me into a corner and should have known something like this would happen,” Jake said in a harsh tone as he stared down at the Primordial. “Once, I genuinely believed I would walk the Path to godhood as your Chosen… now I see my only true Path forward requires your death.”

“Shut up… once I’m done here, I will come for you and make you realize just how foolish you’ve been,” the Viper said, his own aura pushing back and suppressing Jake’s. “I’ve been nothing if not benevolent despite your antics. If I were you, I would know when to stop acting the fool and when to pray.”

“The only thing I’ll pray for is your death,” Jake answered coldly. “You’re a manipulative piece of shit. A fucking stain on the history of the multiverse. You know, before the system, snakes were mainly known as pests on my planet... turns out not much changed even after the integration.”

“I told you to shut up…” the Malefic Viper sneered as Jake just continued.

“But don’t worry, even snakes can have their uses. I swear before everyone that in the event of your death, I shall not let your Legacy go to waste. You’ve taken so much from me already. Used me so much. It’s only fair I take a little back… no, I think it’s more accurate to say I’ll usurp a little back,” Jake spoke loudly and clearly, leaving little room for interpretation about what he was trying to do.

“Shut. Up. Now.”

“So please, Yip of Yore… continue. Make history. I shall watch expectedly at Valhal’s side, hoping your quest will succeed,” Jake said in a mocking tone, still looking at the Viper. “I do find it a shame I cannot witness it in person, but hopefully, you’ll have a good story to tell after the fact. One I’ll be sure to enjoy and-“

“SILENCE!” the Malefic Viper roared, finally having been pushed beyond his limit as a shockwave of energy was released, and before Gudrun could react, the entire formation that projected Jake was torn apart, Jake himself getting sent back to his own universe, unable to see what happened next.

“What pathetic farce is this!?” the Viper yelled, looking all around him before his eyes settled on Yip of Yore, and he spoke some proper villain dialogue. “You bring an army to my home. Try to use my own Chosen against me. But fine. You want to die by my hands? Then come! Lay down your pathetic life!”

Yip of Yore smiled, the conceptual energy gathering around him like never before, as his power reached a level not even he had expected, the Chosen of the Malefic Viper having gone above and beyond expectations.

Holding out his hand, an object appeared that would be crucial for what came next. A hard-earned item from a Void God, capable of ensuring this would be a proper duel. A top-grade Void Sphere, capable of sealing only the two of them in their own little world, with only one of them leaving. Yip of Yore held this as he looked at the Viper, with the full knowledge that he had the majority of the multiverse at this back, believing in – wishing for – his victory. They wanted to see history be made and a new legend formed, as the hero would slay the villain...

It was only right to give it to them, as Yip answered:

“For the sake of the multiverse… for your former Chosen… let’s end this once and for all.”

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