Chapter 111: 2,315 Unspent Points

The thought of absorbing another Reservoir Cube evoked within James a complete sense of negation. He’d barely been able to retain his sense of self with one Cube; a second would double his power at the expense of his soul.

No. That way lay annihilation.

Then?

James sat up. Ten cubes. He knew a few good people who could make the most of them.

But first he had to square away his own growth. James closed his eyes, rested his hands on his knees, and pondered himself.

That illimitable sense of grandeur and power was already fading. The unbridled wonder at being one with the cosmos. It felt like a dream, a brief glimpse of infinity that had been vouchsafed him and then stolen away.

James exhaled slowly and opened his eyes. He’d chosen to be himself, James Kelly, and now he was. He studied his callused palms. Himself in every dimension. Bounded and ruled by his thoughts, emotions, memories, and desires.

How had he thought of his being? An old boot?

James smiled wryly. How appropriate.

But he was an old boot with some momentous choices to make.

Again James closed his eyes, and this time he summoned his statistics.

Name: James Kelly

Class: Eradicating Crusader

Rank: Lord of the Increate 1

Title: Vanguard, Master of Mysteries, Overlord, Keeper of Humanity, Divine Bulwark, Prime Servant, Light Against the Dark

Virtue: Justice

Benedictions: All

First Miracle: Unchosen

Second Miracle: Unchosen

Third Miracle: Unchosen

Corporal Perfection: 125

Mental Dominion: 100

Spiritual Exaltation: 75

Summons:

Angelic Host x10

Archangel x5

Dominion x3

Throne x1

Aura: Silver

Aura Strength: 1

Aeviternum Points: 6

Strength: 15 (51)

Stamina: 10 (48)

Speed: 8 (44)

Agility: 4 (41)

Power: 10 (53)

Arete: 145/28

Unspent Points 2,315

Benedictions: All, read James, and snorted in amusement. He could barely wrap his mind around that. In battle now he could summon the Aureate Buckler and Angelus Armor, drop a Righteous Obelisk overhead as he Blessed himself, see through magical darkness and Shadow Step, turning into living shadow, a demon, or Becca’s shadow demonic form, fire Smite-enhanced bullets eternally or drop Smite grenades, drain demons of their power, and control his Aura in every way, inspire and terrify in equal measure, and temporarily increase his Arete even as he had the chance to keep any Aeviternum he spent.

His mind fairly spun with the implications.

He’d become a one-man army.

And that was the least of it.

What did his new Summons ability imply, exactly? That he could now evoke angelic allies in battle? Basic logic implied that a Throne was the most powerful ally he could bring into play, but the ‘finite’ nature of the summons insinuated it was a onetime deal.

Still. Summoning angels to battle.

James didn’t even know how to process that new power.

And his Miracles. He could pick three. James read through the descriptions, but again, as always, there was no clear sense of what each did. Some were obvious, such as Flight, Invisibility, or Teleportation Circle. Others he could only guess at, such as Refill the Cup, Forced Humility, or Infernum Crush.

How was he supposed to choose three? Each option was incredibly powerful and unique.

Overwhelmed, James put those decisions aside and focused on his unspent points. 2,315. What would happen if he placed all of that in Arete?

But no. He’d seen how important physical stats were in battle. His Silver Aura had burned Jane, but if he’d not had his physical stats buffed to ridiculous heights he’d never have been able to bring her down.

That and he couldn’t place all his eggs in one basket. Whatever came next, he was going to be playing in the big leagues. For all he knew there were demons who could negate his aura. Then what? No; intuition had guided him this far. He’d not make an extreme choice like that.

How much was Aeviternum costing him now? James focused on his sheet and hissed. 50 points for a single dose. That was harsh. Fortuna Aeviternum would help with that, along with Infernum Reaper, but still.

James focused on his breathing, regained his calm, and considered. There was no need to unilaterally spend all his points at once. He could go drip feeding them into his stats and see what happened.

With great deliberation he spent 10 points on Arete.

His Aura Strength rose to 3.

Another 10 points, bringing it to 165.

Aura Strength rose to 5.

Ten more points. His Aura bumped up two more ranks. Ten more. Aura rose to 9.

Arete 185, Silver Aura 9.

Five more Arete, and his Aura flipped to Gold 1.

There were no demons nearby to trigger his Aura, so he couldn’t see how it functioned, but it made sense to drop a final 10 points into Arete and bring it to 200.

Your Arete has reached 200

You have gained the Divine Pool Regeneration Ability

Your Divine Pool will now regenerate at Lead Rank

“Well all right,” whispered James. He couldn’t guess how quickly that might be, but seeing as his Divine Pool powered most of his Benedictions, that was a huge plus.

So far he’d spent 55 points on Arete.

2,260 to go.

On impulse he dropped another 100.

Your Arete has reached 300

Your Divine Pool will now regenerate at Iron Rank

His Aura jumped from Gold to Platinum and then straight to Ruby 1.

Again James raised his palm. There was no sign of the aura, but he could sense it, a faint coiling disturbance in the air just above his skin. Like swirls seen in near frozen vodka.

2,160 to go.

James inhaled sharply, and spent 47 points on Power, raising the total stat to 100. The synergy bonus that hit every 10 points above 5 gave him +10 to Strength, raising that to 15 (61).

Nothing happened when his augmented Power hit 100, however. Perhaps there was an effect when the base stat did so. James dropped another 43 into Power, raising Strength by another +8.

Your Power has reached 100

You have gained the Power Stat Limit Break Ability

Understanding dawned in James. Limit Break was a version of the Benediction Void Break. Once a day for just a few moments he could double his Power’s base stat. With it being 100 (143), that meant he could briefly raise it to 243. That was almost three times the Power rating of the War Hound.

James let out a low whistle.

2,070 points left to go.

In quick succession he raised each physical stat to base 100.

Strength: 100 (169)

Stamina: 100 (138)

Speed: 100 (154)

Agility: 100 (154)

Power: 100 (159)

Arete: 145/28

In quick success he earned a Limit Break for each stat.

1708 points to go.

James felt a wave of giddiness wash over him. Other than his Stamina, he was now more physically powerful than the War Hound.

He blew out his cheeks and rubbed his face.

Time for more Arete.

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Another 100 points.

Your Arete has reached 400

Your Divine Pool will now regenerate at Bronze Rank

His Aura growth slowed. No longer did it bump up a rank every 5 points, but now only every 10. As such, he rose from Ruby Aura 1 to Emerald 1.

James focused on his Divine Pool. It felt as vast as the ocean, making what he felt he’d been working with before feel like a puddle.

Time for some Aeviternum. At 50 points each they were expensive, but they were what fueled his greatest powers and allowed him to regenerate completely.

500 points bought him 10.

Another 500 points raised each base stat to 200, making his new totals staggering:

Strength: 200 (289)

Stamina: 200 (238)

Speed: 200 (274)

Agility: 200 (274)

Power: 200 (279)

Arete: 400/28

608 points left.

James’s mouth was dry. It was frightening on some level to spend points so quickly, yet also exhilarating. What next? Another 100 in Arete.

Your Arete has reached 500

Your Divine Pool will now regenerate at Silver Rank

And another 100.

Your Arete has reached 600

Your Divine Pool will now regenerate at Gold Rank

His Aura jumped twice, from Emerald to Sapphire, from Sapphire to Diamond.

408 points left.

James licked his lower lip. More Aeviternum? He was at 16. He could bring it up to 20 and then dump the rest in Arete.

200 more points raised his Aeviternum to 20, and he put the remaining 200 points in Arete.

Your Arete has reached 800

Your Divine Pool will now regenerate at Ruby Rank

His Aura rose from Diamond to Diamond Sublime, then to Diamond Materia. He’d no idea what those distinctions meant, but they had to be good.

With a gasp James sat back.

All his physical stats were in the 200’s now. His Arete was an astonishing 800, his Aura was Diamond Materia, and his divine pool now regenerated at Ruby Rank.

“Holy shit,” he whispered, dazed. “That’s… I don’t even know.”

“Get the fuck outta here,” said Jelly, slowly rising from the floor to hover before James. “Ow. That hurt. I’m… whoa.”

Jelly had changed.

That one touch of the Reservoir Cube had caused his Gloria-edging of gold to wash over him completely, so that he now appeared to be completely made of that luxurious metal.

James smiled. “Looking good, Jelly.”

“Feeling good, Kelly.” The Anima spun in a slow circle, sword-arms rising, and then stopped and focused on James. Wait a second. Why does it suddenly feel like I’m sitting next to the sun?

“You just noticed how bright I am?”

“Power has done nothing for your humor.”

James chuckled. “I’m, ah, Lord of the Increate level 1 now.” And in quick order he shared the rest of his new abilities.

“Get the fuck outta here!” exclaimed Jelly in amazement and spun so rapidly he blurred. “You what? You can summon angels? Your Strength and Power are almost 300? Infinite holy shit!”

“Infinite holy shit is right.” James let out a deep breath. “I still need to pick out some Miracles. You got any insight on what they do?”

“Hit me. Tell me what they’re called.”

James repeated the list, and to his immense relief Jelly recalled what each one did as James spoke its name.

Flight was simple, and allowed James to fly with control and speed determined by his Arete. Resurrection was the same once per past twenty-four hour limitation as the Light Eternal. Dimensional Anchor locked down a location whose radius was again determined by James’s Arete and prevent demons from gating in or out. Word of Slaughter was brutal: it allowed James to speak a word of heavenly power that would ring out and slay every demon that heard it beneath a certain power level, again determined by his Arete. The more powerful the demons, the more of his Divine Pool he spent. Banishment allowed him to send demons back to their layer in the Pit, while Divine Bastion was a super-augmented Circle of Protection that would provide James and whomever was with him reprieve, healing, and complete immunity to all attacks for a set amount of time. Aeviternum Hurricane allowed him to spend as much of his Aeviternum as he desired to summon cutting winds and endless Gloria-infused Heavenly Assaults that would last for a long duration while Refill the Cup allowed him to regain all his Divine Pool and Aeviternum once per day. Infernum Crush caused paralyzing pain in even demons of greater strength than himself, while Forced Humility caused anyone - demon or human - who opposed him and whose strength was below a certain threshold to repent and join his cause. Create Demiplane allowed him to create a small pocket realm into which he and eight other individuals could escape for up to twenty-four hours, disappearing completely from the world and becoming undetectable, while Teleportation Circle allowed him to instantly transport up to nine total individuals to any place he had previously visited. Invisibility was self-explanatory, with its strength determined by his Arete, while Freedom allowed him to break all bonds, mental, emotional, spiritual, or physical that constrained him and his allies in a given area.

James frowned. “I want all of them.”

It seems you can choose three.

James rubbed his brow. “Flight has immediate appeal. Resurrection would have allowed me to bring Joanna back, and save my friends in the future. I mean, I can make a case for all of them.”

Then think on it. You don’t need to decide right away.

Right.

James stood and moved to the Reservoir Cubes. There were nine remaining on the warped shelves. Hesitantly, with great caution, he picked them up.

You have acquired nine Reservoir Cubes.

Absorb them all?

James shuddered. The instinct to say yes was terribly strong for a fraction of a second. What would such monumental power do to him? Make him a god?

But no.

He knew what it would do.

Turn him into the equivalent of a sun, endless power and no identity.

One cube had nearly erased his very being.

Even a second would probably destroy him.

Ten?

He’d go supernova and never even realize it.

No, he thought, and the message disappeared.

Cradling the cubes, he turned to Jelly. Ready to head outside?

Once we leave this Node we will not be able to return.

I know. James looked around at the wondrous petals and shifting sky. But my friends are out there. And I’ve got presents for them.

Jelly spun in a circle once more, gleaming gold. Then let’s go.

James took one last look around the Node. So much had happened here in such a short time. The entire course of the Apocalypse had changed. As a Lord of the Increate he would change the tide of the war, could now summon down the heavenly hosts, wield miracles, and become a force that even the Monitors could no longer reckon with.

“You know, the Monitor once told me that even if I reached level 500 I’d only buy our species another month.”

Jelly turned to him. “What level are you?”

“500, I believe. But here’s the thing.” James looked down at the Reservoir Cubes. “I don’t think she once in a million years calculated what ten of us could do if we reached that power level. I don’t think she ever thought this was possible. That she even dreamed that humanity could muster this kind of power. But you know what?”

“What?”

James’s expression turned grim, his whole being filling with fell intent. “They’re about to find out.” And with that he squared his shoulders, stepped into the invisible archway, and emerged back into the world.

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