Sovereign of the Karmic System

Daniel's presence came as an equal source of relief and frustration.

Many a time had Der and Roley begged for their old friend to help them in the search of their long lost friends and family, and yet, Daniel had never agreed.

In their eyes, the bright and talented young man had changed. In the thousands of years they had been separated, something had taken the humanity out of him, and left behind the aloofness that a disinterested king would reserve for the poorest of his subjects.

It was only after completely giving up on his help that the two had finally decided to take matters in their own hands, and leave Daniel behind. And yet, here he was.

While they felt somewhat grateful for his appearance, an action that was likely to have spared the lives of countless of their followers, they also felt anger. 'If you were going to help, why couldn't you help from the start?' They wondered as the lone figure of the aspect of Karma looked into the distance, completely unbothered by their piercing gazes, as well as the pleading voices of the four champions of Sacrifice.

"So you've finally decided to show up?" Roley hissed through his teeth. Such anger was uncharacteristic of him, and yet, whether it was due to their history or because of the system he now possessed, the sight of Daniel's face brought in him as much comfort as it did antipathy.

Unbothered by Roley's audible feelings, Daniel finally turned his gaze from the depths of the white space, towards the two. Lacking a main target, his gaze rapidly shifted from Der to Roley, before turning back towards the four kneeling figures.

"I do not feel like I am fit for footwork anymore." Daniel responded as the corner of his lips curved into a faint, almost unnoticeable smile. "Not as much as you, now that you have a system."

To Roley's ears this remark sounded scornful, but in reality, Daniel was only thinking out loud. He had no problem with Roley being in possession of a system. In fact, he found it quite useful. After all, he still had to fulfill his promise and ensure the safety of the rest of his former self's friends and family. Being able to do so without having to bear the pointless traveling and broad investigations, he would not have had it any other way.

"After all these years, the first thing you-"

Der immediately noticed Roley's angered state of mind, so before he could say anything that could anger their now unpredictable friend, he decided to interject, "Who are they?" He asked while nodding at the four kneeling individuals, who shifted in place nervously as they felt the attention of Daniel land back on them.

"The source of a conundrum." Daniel responded before casually gazing back at the four shivering champions.

"And what would that be?" Der asked while shaking his head disapprovingly. His voice, mildly curious, was directed at Daniel, while his actions were aimed at Roley, asking for him to drop the argument and regain his composure.

Daniel noticed the quiet exchange between his two former friends, but did not care. His attention was now fully captured by the four individuals, as well as the immense amount of karmic debt they possessed. An amount that, in fact, was far higher than most creatures he had encountered so far.

Such negative power of Karma could only have been built upon uncountable corpses, and unimaginable evil. A debt that he could have easily forced them to pay for, and yet, he didn't. "I am not sure." He said with uncertainty. "Saying the number of lives these four combined have taken would take minutes, and I could make them pay for all of it.. But do I care to?"

"What do you mean?" Roley asked, now calmer.

Despite the way Daniel had changed, Roley still considered him a dear friend. In him he still saw the same person he had met in front of the black castle, leading a small team of cultivators hardly more powerful than mortals into what he could only consider life changing events.

Because of their unique relationship, the hope that the Daniel he had known could not be gone, but only sleeping, ready to be awakened, could not escape his mind regardless of what Daniel did or said. So when the latter started talking about his beliefs and thoughts, Roley could not help but listen, as each word, for all he knew, could contain a clue to come closer to that moment.

"I can make them feel the weight of their actions, but what good does it make? Why not kill them outright, and turn them into power at my disposal." Daniel answered in a cold and calculated manner. He considered none of the moral implications of murder or penitence, and only what could come of the power of karma these four possessed was a matter of importance in his eyes.

Der, surprised by the nature of Daniel's problem, chose to ask, "Does giving retribution weigh on you?"

"Not one bit." Daniel answered.

The simple answer caused the eyes of the old warrior's to narrow. "With what authority would you deny rightful penitence? Isn't your power an arbiter of justice in itself?"

The faint smile on Daniel's face widened. Something he had found out about himself, ever since becoming an aspect of existence, was that being the topic of conversation was something he very much enjoyed. He found himself to be the most interesting topic in existence, and being humored in his ramblings only brought further elation.

"Undoubtedly. However, dead people can't feel any vindication, nor are these four worthy of redemption." Daniel pointed out while slowly leaning forward, allowing for the massive amounts of negative karma to drift into his nose, land onto his tongue, and stick to his skin. In each of those feelings, he felt a few sporadic good deeds drowned by an infinite number of screams and cries.

The weight of these few words was heavier than anything the four had ever felt. Aware of what type of creature Daniel was, as well as of the nature of his power, they had begged, hoping to gain enough time for the aspect of Sacrifice to come save them. Yet, if given a true opportunity to make a request, they would ask for death, rather than experience a never ending hell. After all, paying back their karmic debt, for them who had sacrificed countless civilizations for their Lord, was the worst possible outcome.

"I suppose the real question is whether you are meant to uphold that power, or if that power is there to serve you."

As Der's words reached Daniel's ears, for the first time, the latter turned to look back directly at him. His satisfied smile parted as he said, "Then you understand my problem."

"Wait, hold on a second." Roley interjected, annoyed by the surreal conversation, "Aren't you afraid that Sacrifice is going to barge out of one of these universes to save these four?"

Daniel's smile turned into one of contempt. "He wouldn't dare show up out here. There is little to no power of sacrifice in the Trigate. He would be facing me with a power comparable to the power these four possess."

These few words were enough to flush the color off the faces of the four cultivators, who started cursing for not running away alongside their followers the moment Daniel had made his appearance. But now it was too late. They could only look as a strange power engulfed them in a pure golden light. One which burned the gift of Sacrifice right out of their body, and squeezed them into specks the size of atoms.

By the time they could even start begging, familiar sceneries had already started playing out around them. This time, with them as the victims.

"Oh well." Daniel shrugged his shoulders with indifference. "I can always kill them later, if I want to."

Seeing this side of Daniel caused the two friends to swallow dryly. "Why have you shown up now? We could have handled this much on our own." Roley asked as a few of the Armada's admirals emerged from the portal. Beside them, thousands of cultivators were busy crossing the same gate.

"Maybe. But unfortunately, you still need my protection." Daniel answered with a matter-of-fact tone. "Like it or not, you are a champion of Destiny. That makes you as much of a target for the other aspects of existence as I am."

Roley's nostrils flared up. "So why did you refuse to help us before, why come now?!"

"With the amount of questions you're asking, you'd believe you are not on a rescue mission." Daniel scoffed with feigned indignation. "Now, since you have come out of your burrow, I assume you must have made some progress." He added while shifting an inquisitive gaze between the two. After a few seconds of quiet confirmation, Daniel added, "Well then, off we go."

-----

Sacrifice's oldest universe, Archives of Blood and Bones.

"Your holiness!" exclaimed a scrawny cultivator in white and golden robes. His elated tone, resounded between the stone walls of a large cathedral, dying at the touch of large multicolored glasses, which vibrated slightly at every word. Behind him, several hundred more cultivators in brown robes prostrated themselves to the altar, bowing rhythmically at the sound of coordinated hymns.

Standing behind the altar, the holiest of creatures. A fair skinned and beautiful woman, with smooth and kind features, hair of gold, and eyes as clear as the sky. Wrapped around her body was a loose fitting veil, which threatened to fall down her sides at the slightest of winds

"The forces of evil have abandoned the universe, my lady." The first individual reported with elation, secretly taking peeks at the woman's appearance not out of lust, or desire, but out of pure admiration and devotion. "I believe they might have abandoned the idea of finding the domain's archives."

As he finished speaking, his heart started palpitating. His skin, now covered in goosebumps, crawled as the sweetest and kindest of voices came in contact with his ears. "They have not." the woman said before grabbing a small bell that was resting onto the altar. A relic only she had seen, and which she held with a great deal of care and affection. A treasure born from one of Destiny's gifts.

"But it matters not. The next time the boy will set foot into my universe, I will keep his little planet, and those who inhabit it."