Factory Reset: Divine Corruption

Chapter Ninety-Three

Chapter Ninety-Three: Going to win

"I've got to stop being like this, don't I?" A soft mutter escaped Mason's lips, his neck shining brightly as they neared the end of the cavern, nearing where they left Viscera and their group. Ja'Kle glanced down at him, raising an eyebrow.

"What do you mean, love?" He asked, his wings slicing through the spikes that covered the top of the cavern. He could feel the vibrations in the air behind him already reaching them. They had to hurry, and keep hurrying. Mason clenched tight against Ja'Kles body.

His fist clenched against Ja'Kles shirt, feeling the absent matter coating the surface. It tingled underneath his soft touch, and the rabbit softly sighed, "I'm the one that needs to be always saved. I know I've... done so much, but it feels like I'm not doing anything anymore. Like I'm the one that needs constant saving."

Ja'Kle frowned a lot as he drifted to the side, into the middle of the tunnel as a large rock that was too thick to fly through was in their way. Renaissance was doing a steady job keeping up. Ja'Kle clenched his fist against Mason's backside, his wings beating against the air for more speed.

"I know what that feels like. I mean, I was the one that needed constant saving just a week or so ago..." Ja'Kle responded, dropping slightly lower to the ground. They were so close to leaving the cave, "But, you don't need to be the one that has to fight. You've gotten us so very far with that brilliant mind, you don't need to fight."

Mason's purple eyes glanced up at his, pleading and almost sorrowful, his body aching, "No, I know I don't need to fight, but this is my crew, my family, that are risking their lives. I don't need to fight, but I damn sure want to, Ja'Kle." His tone, however sorrowful, was filled with fierce intensity.

Ja'Kle was about to respond with a consoling remark, but their eyes were soon blinded by intense rays of light shining from up ahead. They made it out of the stretched Orange Boson-Energy zone. They were nearly out, Ruinate and the others shouldn't be far behind.

Waves upon waves of mixing and intertwining Boson-Energy then hit the trio as they arrive at the exit of the cave, light so bright coming off in waves. Ja'Kle wasted no time, grabbing Renaissance and attaching him to his body via the Absent matter. Like a second layer of skin, it partially fused with Renaissance to keep him with Ja'Kle.

"Get down!" A scream interrupted the flow of Boson Energy, radically shifting the environment as gravity became heavy. Ja'Kle felt his body instantly dive down as gravity increased a hundredfold, his body falling so quickly it was near instantly to the ground floor, to the bedrock.

Mason felt the air itself press tight against his body, his chest. He could hardly breathe as a cacophony of screams and infernal sounds erupted around him. More Residents, of course. Did Marissa find Fallout? Nebula certainly didn't have this level of control.

Mason strained his neck, pulling in the ambient Boson-Energy to give him a modicum of strength. He glanced upwards towards the kaleidoscope of light, and saw a shining figure floating up above, with a thin tail whipping back and forth. Marissa was there, and by the looks of it, carrying Fallout.

"We have to leave now!" She yelled, her voice carrying with it a harsh and frenzied tone. The gravity only began to increase harsher and harsher, Mason felt Ja'Kle crush down against his body, he felt his chest heave as he tried to take oxygen that did not want to move. It was hard to breathe, so hard to breathe.

Mason could feel Ja'Kle press against his body as gravity only increased further. No fault to him, of course, Ja'Kle couldn't move either, and he was internally screaming as his own weight due to gravity increasing not only disallowed him to move, but also was crushing Mason underneath him. The bedrock was cracking beneath them.

Mason's eyes soon became hazy as darkness seeped in from both sides. He could hardly breathe at all, though the gravity crush seemed to be fading already. Mason felt the blood pumping through his very veins, his nerves on fire as he struggled against the dirt, feeling the many sharp rocks piercing his flesh.

Mason bore his teeth, his claws doing their very best to dig into the dirt. He would need to do more in the future, he needed to be stronger, he needed to be the strongest leader he could be. And he would not die here, not by the hands of a friend that was not aware, not by the hands of the creatures that surrounded him or the weight of his love, no.

Pull in the energy, come on Mason, pull in the energy... Mason grunted to himself in his own mind, feeling around for anything to take. The dangerous electric waves of Boson-Energy wafting from each of the protogen around him was of availability. Mason had to draw it now.

Mason felt relief course through his body as he focused on the Red Boson Energy leaking from Viscera, from their strain and courage and abilities. Red Boson-Energy was the Boson Energy of biological life and adaptation. Meaning, it could alter organic life. Hence Viscera's derived blood power. And Mason could take the ambient energy that it's usage left over.

Mason felt strength return to his body. Breathing had not gotten easier, but that didn't matter. He would survive, as would the others. He just needed their energy to survive. And that's what did it for Mason, the fact that he needed to parasitize his own crew, draw their energy to survive his friends ability. That was wrong in his eyes, he needed to be stronger.

Especially when the universe was at stake.

Mason pressed his palm against the dirt, feeding more and more off of the remnants of the Boson Energy around him. He couldn't stand, no one could, but he could at least start to. Gravity was lessening as he pushed back, and Marissa was getting to the ends of her rope.

He could hear the screams of the Residents around him, though he could not see them. He could feel their voices' tremble the dirt and disturb the rocks. His head was forced to look directly down, due to the force of the increased gravity. Mason steeled his nerves as he reached towards Ja'Kles hand, and clenched it together.

They needed to just get through this wave of gravity, even as it lessened further, and get through the sea of Residents around them. Get through that, and grab the beacon, and they would be so close to defeating Divento and Juda. They just needed to survive this onslaught.

They could win. They were going to win.

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Howdy!

So... apologies for the wait, even if it's literally half the length of an average chapter from just a few chapters ago...

And the story is getting stretched since I don't know how to write out my plans for these last thirty or so chapters...

But, hey, I'll try my best! I promise!

I hope y'all enjoyed, and I thank all those that are still reading, because my god, haha! Thank you!

~ Candle

2/12/2022