Ascension of the Nephilim



"Hurry!" Branze shouted as they moved towards the misty region and did the uphill climb.

The Midlands was home to a massive mountain range that released a thick mist of poisonous clouds. This region was one of the things that hindered the light from entering the Lowlands. It extended right below the region of Central Midlands and was just beyond the boundaries between the Lowlands and the Midlands.

But only the valleys and mountains were passed, and this region was known as the Poison Peak Mountain Range. There was great mystery regarding the nature of this place. Even Kyros didn't know the truth of this region in his past life, and he could not make any certain guesses of what mysteries the place held.

The mystery of how it protected Daradiel from Sheolrah was also unknown to them, and Branze investigated all of these to understand the region's secret.

"Why did you go to all that trouble even though Kyros already marked the location of where he met Greater God Daradiel?" Demerus asked.

"Demerus, you have forgotten that the past has already changed. Ever since our adventures began, the journey that Kyros had affected Sheolrah and Daradiel's fight. Destiny and Fate are working to outsmart each other and stop the other from succeeding. Fate is hiding Daradiel, and Destiny is seeking him out. The odds that the location where Daradiel is hiding has changed are very high. So it's not about simply following a map, but understanding why Dardiel can hide within this region." Branze answered as they continued to hike.

The mountain's gravity and energy made the flight a very tiring skill to maintain. It is said that even the light from the celestial body is being pulled down by the mountain to create the strange poisonous mist.

Everyone was moving as fast as they could. The living Embderdons were struggling the most as physical resistance was weaker. Demerus, Triona, and Ressi were undead despite their already human-like forms. So they do not get tired. But Faye and Stellya were still human and even used their magic to resist the mountains pressing weight to fight their exhausted body.

"Come on! All of you have taken secondary jobs already and are fighter-mage hybrids! So you guys should be able to resist it!" Branze complained as their ascent needed so many breaks because of the exhausted Emberdons.

The group continued their ascent and finally reached a point no Commander or Cardinal dared to cross.

The mist was getting thick and covering the entire peak.

Demerus saw the mist of many colors. It was moving around, and it never seemed to stop moving.

It was as if the wind was constantly blowing around, and the Mist was alive.

"Are you sure it'll work?" Diana asked.

"You can't kill what's already dead. So this spell we prepared is designed to temporarily transform you to a dying state and uses the Shaman's power to make it work. Kyros said the same thing. He survived because he was in a state where he was technically dead as he was preparing for [Death Stance] when he entered the depths of this place." Demerus explained.

"That doesn't help at all. Being undead or dead doesn't make us immune to all forms of poison!" Diana asked.

"Because this doesn't look like poison. I am a person whose elemental affinity is Entropy. And this energy is far from the poison and decay."

"Then what is it then?"

"It's an Unlife spell. Not a spell of death but of life. This energy devours and feeds on light. It's a strange power. When Nightwing brought forth those creatures of Mammon, he gave us a unique power that we have been analyzing." Ressi approached the mist and reached out.

"Ressi. Be careful." Mezal answered.

"I am. The power that we received, we used to scan the region using the alchemy and energy formation circles we invented, hoping to find an element of similar fluctuations. We could tell that it was Holy. But a different kind of Holy. Lord Branze. You spoke that you tried to investigate the region to find out the truth. We thought it was just curiosity, but if you believe that this entire region could now be the hiding place due to the changes of this future, then we can tell you the source of this power and why we think being undead works. The power is similar to the magic that Bar-Mammon was trying to gain. Unholy."

"Unholy? If you claim this magic mist is unholy, then give me proof?"

Ressi stretched her hand into the mist to touch it.

As she did, a fluctuation and ripple appeared around the Mist as if it was water occurred.

Everyone who was there had studied the books of the Fortress and would even spend time reading in their free time. They knew that the fluctuation was a certain elemental reaction.

"Elemental Acceptance. Your powers...! Matched with the Mist!" Branze was amazed.

"Not just matching... That ripple. It looks like the Mist is just moving everywhere, but most of it is a divergence! There is a barrier of some sort here!"

"As we expected. This place isn't some form of misty place with some curse or a battleground. It's something placed here." Demerus smiled.

"From here on, it's easy to understand the power of the mist...: Faye began.

"This is why the light of the Celestial Body is drawn into it. Unholy is a reanimation of the Holy, as Undead is a reanimation of the dead. Both use the same concept, but creating this effect is vastly different. Through the Nephilim's powers, the Fortress that produces a great amount of energy, and the darkness that Nightwing has been feeding all of us, allowed us to perfect this research. Most Skeletons and Liches perform the shaman magic of binding to transform into a stronger mage. The reason why we have our physical form is because of Unholy." Faye explained. She was still panting and tired, but she spoke so fast that no one could interrupt her.

She then took a step forward and did something even Ressi didn't. She walked into the thickest part of the mist.

The mist spread out as if a drop of water had added to the ocean of misty waters.

The power of the Mist began to empower Faye, and she was quickly recovering her body.

"You're recovering?!" Diana was amazed.

"Unholy is feeding her body. Faye and Stellya may not be Liches like us, but they are practically one. While they still feel tired and weak, a place like this mist is the perfect place for them to fight. And because they have taken physical classes, they could even create shields and sword attacks similar to the Steele family." Triona chuckled.

"Yes. In that regard, they are stronger than us. As Liches, we had to cultivate numerous things to replicate the creation of the force. But the Unholy Liches can easily draw in energy like this. It's perfect for our plan. The misty mountains extend over towards the places where the enemies are said to drop. If we find out the source of the Mist and if we can move it..."

"Move the Mist?" Branze frowned.

"What? Is it too impossible to ask?" Demerus laughed.

"He's right, Son. We are the fighters of the Nephilim. If we can't do this, we'll die. So we better find that source."

"...Fine. But Daradiel takes precedence. The battle draws near, and we'll chase after the shot in the dark after we have our Code. Cast this Unholy spell on us."

The five Emberdons steeped into the mist, and a ripple appeared as each stepped inside.

"Perfect. This will allow us to constantly imbue Unholy over the three of you." Demerus raised his hands, and the rest of the Emberdons followed.

The group was coated with a massive amount of energy, and they had Unholy.

Mezal saw the power and smiled.

"Interesting. So Unholy is the basis of Shaman Power." Mezal stepped into the mist without fear and entered it without any problems.

Seeing his father walk in, Branze followed. Diana also did the same.

"It's working. Let's go. Can you all fly?" Branze asked.

"Yes. It seems that the Unholy area has no gravitational interference." Demerus nodded.

"Alright. The best way to draw out Daradiel is to use the Celestial Code." Branze answered.

"Use it?! That will draw Sheolrah here!" Triona exclaimed.

"Exactly. We just need to use the Celestial Code for a short time to find out where Daradiel is. And once we do that, it will force Sheolrah here. This place is a place of Fate. In short, whatever God or Fallen who is sealed or died here is one of us. With all the chaos and advantage we have, now is the time. We unleash the power of the Celestial Code and let it move out. A power like that will cause the Code to return to the Source." Branze explained.