Bro, I'm not an Undead!

At once, Replicus made a large storm cloud crackling with Levin appear far above them in the dark sky. He then urged his subordinates to leap towards it and soon they stood over its surface, watching the pandemonium that ensued below.

"Boss... I thought we couldn't fly here because of the Reverse Clusters..." Allora said while looking at the colourful rays shooting in every direction from the Curses.

"We can't. That's why I didn't manifest the cloud under us and have it float us up. It's just fixed in place like the natural clouds above," Replicus explained. "The space is very rigid and unstable with Reverse Clusters around. My Distorted Gravity and Stagnant Space might get really hard to use even for menial tasks while we are out here, unless of course, I either increase the output for each and add extra penetrative power, or create a stable space of my own before using any of them. A firm Territory would do."

As Allora nodded in understanding while confirming that indeed, the natural clouds over them were stiff below the cracked sky, an awed look hidden behind her helmet, Replicus pointed his finger forward and manifested a large network of small clouds all over the boiling gold.

While completing the task, he saw a pretty interesting exchange down below.

Dander, the Ardent Curse adorned in a maroon cloak zipped with ridiculous speed towards a gathered group of Faction members and their Faction leader.

It happened to be the same group where Nedalia had come from.

A Master with a lanky build from the group, while supported by a young lady who began to sing in a blissfully sonorous voice, prompting several cog-like symbols to appear behind his legs, burst ahead while splattering the gold below!

Around him, an ugly mix of red and blue with a neon glow drained from his body and formed a large axe with a surprisingly reflective edge!

With the agility boost from his teammate who was obviously a bard, and the boost from Genuine Incarnation, few classifications of enemies could have handled the attack without absolute caution.

However, Dander did not even raise his wand for a counter when the attack came. The red and blue axe swung heavily at his neck... and was contorted into an immensely different shape!

It rolled and twisted like a serpent... and then somehow grew so hot that its Master roared in pain as it melted his gauntlets!

The axe then shook violently as though furiously agitated, and then exploded like a firecracker, disorienting its summoner!

...!

In the split moment where the precarious implication of attacking Dander was established to the Master – who was halfway through immensely dazed – and those watching around him, the Ardent Curse then jabbed his wand at the Master's chest and a shrieking golden light pierced into him with a beautiful, rainbow-like flare!

At once, the Master buckled... and started laughing in a bitter sort of way.

He knelt down, and laughed so hard that tears came from his eyes, whatever made him feel such intense emotion completely incapacitating him.

Dander didn't bother with the Master any more, however, there was a thin cord now linked from the Master to the Curse's wand.

Several other combatants rushed to their fellow's aid.

One sent a jet of concentrated water zooming towards Dander, but like the Genuine Incarnation, it whirled, boiled and even evaporated before it could touch him, and Dander retaliated by skilfully sending bolts of golden light that seemingly couldn't miss, towards any one who fled, dodged or attacked!

Soon, several of the members of this Faction – those that the Faction leader didn't whisk away from danger immediately – were overwhelmed with emotion. Some began crying terribly, some laughing like the first Master and some stricken with a kind of sorrow that might as well have been a plague because of how much it changed their appearance.

Cords linked from all of them to Dander's wand.

In another section of the battle, Musing cackled humorously as an Incandescent Stager bolted towards him, the gold around with its smoke and steam bellowing at his mighty approach.

The Incandescent Stage expert seemed privy – after glancing at the collisions between the Factions and the Curses so far – to the fact that Curses had some kind of obscene protection from all attacks. Dreading what might happen if he actually went for a physical blow, he decided to go something else.

"Stand still!" he commanded.

If attacking the body was difficult, wasn't it better to strike the soul?

Compulsion normally didn't work offensively, unless the soul of the user was much stronger than that of the target and the Incandescent Stager. Having accounted for this, the burly Incandescent Stager opted to restrain his opponent and figure out how to kill them afterwards.

However....

"Hihihihi! I see, I see. What an amusing attempt. It's far weaker than I expected!" Musing said in a way that his opponent could hear and then pointed his wand forward with gusto.

...!

It didn't work!

The compulsion didn't work!

The Incandescent Stager dashed away as a series of golden and green beams roared from Musing's wand attacking anything and everything the man was close to in addition to him!

The gold ones raced after the Incandescent Stager without pause, turning fluently around every obstacle he rushed past.

The red ones bombed everything they touched, creating massive explosions on the boiling gold that left striking chasms, and causing the humans they struck to ignite into fiery, blood pulps!

The lesser Ardent Curses, seemed capable of the same feats as their superiors.

They too were impervious to attacks and while their own attacks seemed incapable of locking on to their victims, they were able to achieve the same shocking results if they managed to come into contact!

Elements and simple, but powerful beams littered the battlefield while thin white cords, much like spider webs, drew from helpless humans that were taken by the gold they stood or lied on, bawling out or laughing out loud.

'They are really immune to all attacks?' Replicus thought, feeling the same degree of shock that his subordinates were feeling. Even Baddan wore a befuddled look. 'Every attack that reaches close to them simply bends... no, perhaps it also becomes susceptible to emotion. The same emotion that that Curse represents?'

But that was absurd!

A Genuine Incarnation, made of Aura – an energy form – boiled and shook with rage?!

How was that even possible?

Short of perhaps using Creeds and Territories, there was no way to harm these bastards then?!

'No. There must be attacks that can reach them. They can't be invincible...' Replicus thought as he watched dozens of the Curses clump together and fire golden beams at Faction squads that dodged and kept attempting to attack with long range abilities.

It wasn't working.

Faction leaders seemed to be sizing up the threat with disposable members of their Factions, but with how things were progressing, they would lose everyone if they didn't step in. It was unthinkable to lose so much just for these inexplicably troublesome Cluster beasts who didn't even seem to be accompanied by a Cluster General.

'The bulk of their abilities seem to be centred around making others feel certain emotions, emotions different from what they represent. How does that work? And what are they doing to those that remain alive?'

Replicus was forced to postpone the plan he had with the clouds currently set up around the battlefield. If he didn't figure out the mechanics of the enemy's power, he would be sending his Unlimited to their deaths.

He was willing to let them risk it all if they wanted to though.

After all, the threat that he needed their help with in the future was worse than this.

"Let's call the nectar of the heavens!" a voice suddenly while staring up at the group.

It was Thrill.

He wore two grins and raised his wand toward them from below.

...!

"Damn it!" Replicus cursed, preparing a counter to whatever attack would come their way.

However, they were not the target.

A jet of silvery flame spawned from the tip of Thrill's wand with an unreal girth and force behind it!

It raced past a few meters from Replicus' cloud, and shot beyond the clouds above to the dark, torn sky.

Replicus' sockets flashed brightly.

"No way!" he murmured quickly and summoned an outrageous portion of his mana.

That silvery pillar of fire... It wasn't imbued with mana.

It was actually fuelled by Nitros!

The ability to imbue Aura into skills, making them more powerful, was known to the Penetrator, but he hadn't been sure if the same was possible with Nitros.

Now... he had it confirmed.

And the potency...

Oh, the potency...

Perhaps it was the nature of the ability used by Thrill, or perhaps because his Nitros was just so much stronger...

Regardless of which one it was, the result was godlike.

The sky seemed to burst open with a rumbling noise that resembled that a whole continent would express when caving in on itself, its massive floating bits erupting under the silvery searing impact of the beam!

In that moment, the reddish orange light that was suddenly cast over everything and everyone almost seemed to pause time.

After all, the flood of Scorching Tears that descended like molten sun to the open gold ocean, threatened to bring an end to the Severed Union's forces all in one instance of time...

---

[Author's Note]

MASS RELEASING INCOMING ON 10/09/2023!!!