81. Earthquake

Earthquake

Out in the wider world, almost no survivors noticed that anything was wrong.

The distortion was both subtler and grander in scope, and the people inside it were part of it.

Military drones and satellites in the sky, however, were sharper than human eyes. When photographs of a region suddenly stopped matching previous geometry and could no longer be described by any known mathematics in a way that made sense, computers tended to notice very quickly.

That drew attention.

Unfortunately, the authorities soon had far more urgent problems.

Back in the chamber, the two figures stopped burning and settled into their final forms.

Their weapons shone with magic granted directly by the archon, while their existence was sustained by all the power collected from the sacrifices used to create them.

That power had been guided into specific pathways, losing some of its strength in the transformation, but remaining formidable.

Their minds were granted whatever magical knowledge the archon knew and believed they ought to know.

This aspect of the ritual, despite its enormous potential, was brutally inefficient. Sixty-six souls with the potential for growth had been destroyed to create two monsters that could still develop, but lacked the creativity and imagination of their makers.

And yet, when driven by the power of darkness, it had to be done.

When all the Dark Masons gathered their power into the now-empty runes carved across the chamber floor, the entire city shook again.

First, the runes filled with black adamantine summoned through the void from distant Mavis. Then they gave off black light that devoured every sound within a kilometer.

After that, more adamantine walls and structural supports began to grow.

The new structure pushed aside the weight of the earth overhead without effort, rising like a new plant and then surpassing every green thing this remote world had ever produced.

It climbed to a height of six kilometers.

Lightning crackled across the new tower’s outer surface and stretched into the clouds above, a thousand times brighter, louder, and more world-shaking than the lightning cast by the invaders’ smaller towers.

To everyone who saw it, it was a threat, a challenge, and a clear focal point for the invaders’ efforts, exactly as intended.

And as if that were not enough, it began to rain.

After yet another long day, I was enjoying a nice soak in my steaming bath when the earthquake hit.

Everything began to sway in slow motion. Cracks opened between plaster and brick with dull snapping sounds, like brittle chalk breaking apart.

The one repaired electric light flickered, then burst in a shower of sparks.

A brick dropped from the ceiling, tumbling through the air before landing in the water with a splash.

I cursed at the sudden interruption and floated out of the pool.

When I removed friction, bathwater and soap bubbles slid off my skin. More importantly, all the dust kicked up by the chaos could not cling to me. It was pushed aside before it could irritate my face.

Clearly the finest use of superpowers so far. Civilization may collapse, but at least I can stay dust-free. Humanity, take notes.

Unfortunately, I had only been in the pool for five minutes. Thanks to the stretched perception of time that came with Forced Acceleration, that felt more like sixty-five minutes, and my Super Suit could not be reshaped for another fifty-five.

Before a quarter-ton chunk of masonry dropped and destroyed the towel rack, I hurriedly snatched a towel, wrapped it tightly around the important parts, and used Nearby Object Manipulation to make it cling to me.

Then I considered myself fully prepared to investigate the screaming.

I used Time Leap and appeared instantly in the dining hall.

Dozens of survivors were already activating defensive abilities or trying to hide under tables.

Most of them would be fine. Even the elderly people who had not taken an active part in combat had become tough enough to…