[Brimstone Castle] The Darkness Below

Gunhand4171

Active Member
Outskirts of Brimstone Castle:

As night fell over the ancient castle, a lone figure emerged from an outcropping of black igneous rock. Ulysses S. Werner removed his hood as he stared up at the black walls of the castle. He had been tasked by an NSMC commander to scout out the castle to be a possible base for them. The man accepted, leaving his pregnant wife Aashi to remain safe on Nightwalker station.

Ulysses pulled the hood back up and began climbing up the volcano towards the castle. He had heard the rumors from some of the locals as he passed. How the castle is haunted by vampires, or the vampire’s servants. Ulysses wasn’t a superstitious man, but he packed his combat knife and his service pistol. He patted both reflexive as he thought about all the disappearances.

As he reached the top, he was greeted by Brimstone Castle’s walls and bridge. He looked over the side of the bridge to find an active lava flow, which occasionally sent up geysers of molten rock. When Ulysses returned his gaze to the ancient stone doorway, he felt a chill run down his spine. The castle was eerie, made worse by the fact there was no signs of life or sounds to be heard of besides the lava flow below the bridge. He swallowed hard and placed one foot in front the other as he entered the haunted castle…

As he passed through the gate house he drew his pistol in his right hand and combat knife in his left, holding both in a ready position. Once inside the walls, he found a village frozen in time minus all the inhabitants. The buildings and stalls were all written in a perplexing language, however they were all to faded to even attempt to decipher it. As he continued walking further in, he was shocked to find no signs of battle. Preliminary reports from the last successful scouting party had mentioned that a battle of some sort took place. Yet now, the city looked clean… preserved.

“How is this possible?” Ulysses thought to himself as he pressed on. He finally found his way to the outer bailey of the castle, which seemed to also function as the city’s center. At the far end of the courtyard was another gate house, leading into the castle proper. On all three sides were more preserved building and at the very center was an empty fountain. However there were stalls scattered about the city center. It looked like there was a bazar going on… and everyone just up and left without taking their things. He walked between the stalls towards the fountain, when out the corner of he noticed something…

He spun quickly to find just more stalls. His heart thundered in his chest and he chuckled nervously. “It’s nothing…” He said to himself. However, he couldn’t shake the feeling of someone or something watching him. As he reached the fountain, he heard a low growl emanating from all around him. He spun holding his gun up at the ready.
Then Werner found something that made his heart stop. Standing before him were dozens… no at least a hundred figures. All dressed in preserved dresses and coats; however they had the face of rotting corpses. And their eyes… no not eyes. Their eyes were gone, replaced by red orbs of light.

For several seconds, everyone remained still until one of the creatures took a shambling step forward. Ulysses turned and fired a shot that hit the monster, what used to be a woman in an immaculate green dress, in the chest. The monster was knocked off her feet, but in that moment, they all surged forward!

Ulysses fired round after round, trying to hold them back. He pulled a grenade from his cloak and hurled it into the crowd, jumping into the fountain to take cover. The explosion shattered the windows all around the square, and another blood curdling scream resounded from everywhere at once. Ulysses popped back up and began firing at the monsters. His grenade took a good 20 monsters, yet more were steaming from the out of the buildings. Why hadn’t he seen all these things!?!

“Shit!” he cursed as he reloaded. He took several steps back instinctively, but his back pressed against the fountain’s central statue. “No… this can’t be it. I am not biting it before I see my child!” Ulysses cried as he unloaded another salvo from his pistol. He pulled the pin on a second grenade and hurled it at the group. As it disappeared into the horde he moved to take cover, but he slipped. In the briefest of seconds before the grenade went off, he opened his eyes to find that the fountain was quickly filling with liquid. However the fountain wasn’t spewing water, it was spewing crimson blood…

The grenade went off and the ground quaked once more. Ulysses felt something crack underneath him, and then he found himself falling…

The light began to fade as he fell deeper and deeper, into the city…
 
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Somewhere under Brimstone Castle:

Several hours after the fall, Ulysses stirred. He blinked a few times, before finally realizing that it was pitch black. He reached into his pocket and pulled out an emergency flare. He struck it and his surroundings were bathed in a red light. As he looked around he found that he was in a tunnel, however it looked like it was man made so it wasn't a natural cave. He stood and looked up to see that the whole he fell through was no longer there. He shook his head. Monsters? There were monsters up there?

Ulysses examined himself, finding that he lost his gun and knife when he fell. Luckily his injuries were rather minor for taking such a fall, only some minor cuts and bruises. At least he had that going for him...

He had to get out of these tunnels and get up to the surface. He needed to get back to Nightwalker station. He looked to one end of the tunnel and found that the way leading up was collapsed, yet the way leading further down was clear. "No choice then... down we go." He mumbled to himself. Ulysses held his flare out in front of him and began walking down deeper into the tunnel.

He walked down a long stairwell that led to a large domed cavern. There were four doors; one behind him, one in front and on either side of the dome. Ulysses scanned the walls and found that these were more than just tunnels. It was a catacomb…

Coffins lined the entire lower half of the dome’s walls. More lead down each of the tunnels.

Before Ulysses could think, a huge gust of wind that seemingly came from nowhere knocked the flare from his hand and sent it spinning into a puddle. It went out instantly and he was again in the dark.

He cursed and fumbled through his pockets, but stopped… He felt a calming presence… Ulysses couldn’t put a finger on it.

“This way…” The words were a mere whisper, but they seemed to rebound off the walls of the catacombs.

Ulysses stood and looked to the path to his left. He felt that it was the way he was supposed to go. But why? Why did he need to go that way?

“Come along now…” the voice said once more.

Ulysses swallowed hard and began walking towards the door. He walked through the rows and rows of coffins for several minutes, driven on by the voice.

“You’re almost there…” “Just a bit further now…”

Then abruptly, the voice commanded him. “Stop!” Ulysses still couldn’t see anything until torches along the wall burst into flame, bathing the room in light. Ulysses blinked the stars out of his eyes to find another cavern, but much smaller than the first. And unlike the larger cavern he left, this one had only a single tomb.

The tomb was covered in chains, and surrounded by a huge circular rune. He then heard the voice once more. “Welcome to the catacombs, Ulysses…”

Normally if you heard a disembodied voice, you’d run like hell. However, Ulysses felt that same calm wash over him as he heard the voice. “Who are you?” he asked.

“Me? I am but a humble spirit. And you are a poor traveler who got himself tangled in the queen’s trap.”

“The queen? You mean the vampire family that used to rule this castle?” Ulysses asked.

“The very same. You see I was once the queen’s mage. She was once a kind leader, but was corrupted by greed. Soon she was driving the people like slaves into her mines. I could not stand by any longer and tried to lead a rebellion against her.”

Ulysses finished the statement. “But you failed… didn’t you?”

The voice chuckled. “Did the undead give it away?” It asked. “Yes… we lost. Our rebellion caused the queen to go feral. She lost what little reasoning she had left and turned our beloved city into what you see above. What’s worse is she won’t her subjects rest in peace.”

“How long?” Ulysses asked.

“For nearly 200 years…” Came the reply. “I saved you from the queen. I caused the collapse. She doesn’t know you are down here, but she will find out eventually…” Suddenly, the rune below the coffin began to glow bright yellow. “Step into the circle, Ulysses.”

He hesitated, before moving into the circle. He felt a warmth envelope him and felt power surging into his body. As the light faded, Ulysses fell to his knees and gasped for air. “What… what the hell was that!?” He asked.

“I have just unlocked your magical potential. You have quite a bit stored up in your body. It’s a wonder you never discovered it on your own…”

He had magic? But how…?

“Now reach out with your hand, imagine channeling a tiny sliver of that energy into your finger tip.” The voice ordered.

Ulysses closed his eyes and imagined a huge ball of light in his chest. Then he imagined pulling off a tiny piece and sending it into his fingertip. As he opened his eye, he found that his finger was glowing with white light. Ulysses eyes went wide.

“Good! You learn quickly. Now flick that energy at my tomb. There’s something in here that will help you.”

“Wait you want me to destroy your tomb!?!” Ulysses asked, incredulously.

“Just do it! You’re running out of time!” The voice snapped.

Ulysses closed his eyes again imagined pushing the light out of his finger tip and towards the chain covered coffin.

The coffin exploded in a shower of stone. Ulysses was blown backwards and onto his side. He shook his head and stood, looking back at the tomb. It was blown open, chains lying all over the room. He tentatively stepped forward and peered into the tomb.

Inside he did not find a skeleton, but rather an old book… He reached in and grabbed it, then wiped the dirt and dust off the cover. The cover was leather, and in the center of the book was a silver comet.

This is my grimoire. It is yours now, but there is a price…”

Ulysses stared down at the tomb. He opened the cover and found that he could read the words. As he flipped through the pages, he found more and more spells and enchantments. Several caught his eye as he skimmed the Grimoire; Solar flare, Meteor shower, Eclipse, Big Bang…

“What’s the price.” He asked looking up.

“You will use this new power… to kill the Vampire queen!”
 
Catacombs under Brimstone Castle:

Ulysses felt the power surging within him as he held his new grimoire aloft. As he did, the voice spoke one last time. “We haven’t been able to rest, my friend. The queen went mad after our coup, and in her madness has tried to preserve her precious castle. She punished all her subjects, young and old. She made them her puppets.” The voice said softly. “End our suffering. Kill her…"

With that the voice faded, and he could feel its presence leave as well. Ulysses looked down at the book and flipped through the pages again. He found a spell and did as before, releasing a small amount of power from a finger as he spoke the words “Genesis Star…” As he opened his eyes, a small silver sun leapt from his hand and hovered over his shoulder. The room was bathed in the sliver light, while the torches around the room faded one by one. Ulysses looked at the cracked tomb and laid a hand on an intact corner, before turning and striding back down the corridor he just walked. Determination burned in his sliver eyes. He would set these people free.

As he reentered the domed cavern the ground shook violently, causing him to stumble. Fortunately he caught the edge of the door way and righted himself in time to see the top of the dome begin to open. “You thought you could hide down here with the mage? That old fool cannot save you!” Called a whispery voice. There was no mistaking it, Ulysses could feel the power in her very words. “You will make a fine addition to my collection!” As she said this, several monsters from before began to jump down the hole. However unlike last time, they were armed with spears, swords, and bows. “Now be a good boy and die!”

Ulysses gritted his teeth as one of the undead archers notched an arrow. He held the book and found another spell. “Solar flare!” As he spoke the words, the miniature star next to Ulysses grew, and ejected a plasma stream towards the undead. The miniature solar flare struck the front ranks of soldiers and incinerated them in a flash of light. Ulysses dove for the ground as arrows flew past the space he was just previously occupying. He rolled to his feet and began running around the edge of the dome. He pointed at the archers and fired a second solar flare at them, a few were able to shamble back away from the blast, but a good portion of them were caught in the extremely hot plasma.

More bodies began to fall through the hole once more, with no end in sight. Ulysses fired another flare at the horde, before sprinting down the first tunnel he had found himself in. As he reached the cave in, he scanned the grimoire for another spell. He found a simple telekinesis spell and was able to lift the rocks out of his way, pilling them up behind him to stop the horde that was pursuing him.

He sighed and caught his breath as the horde pounded against the rocks behind him. As he stood once more, the queen screamed out in anger. “Why won’t you die and be perfect!”

Ulysses smirked as he stood, and climbed the stairs back towards the surface.

He found himself in the basement of one of the building he passed on the way to the town center. He walked back into the street and clenched his fist. Flipping to a new page, he looked a new spell that he wanted to try out. He stepped back into the square to find the undead horde had grown by at least two fold. All lined up like toys on a shelf, they stood resolute as they guarded the entrance to the castle. Ulysses strode forward and planted his feet as the undead all spoke at once. "Join us! Join us and live forever..."

Ulysses sneered. "Be free from you're demonic bonds and rest." He raised a hand into the open night sky. "Meteor storm!"

As he spoke, dark clouds began to swirl overhead and out of the center flew flaming meteorites! As they reached terminal velocity, they created sonic booms as they smashed into the horde. The ground shook over and over as the meteorites rained from the heavens and obliterated. everything in their path.

As the dust began to settle, Ulysses walked through the ashes and towards the gate. The star hovering over his shoulder had grown again, and spun slowly on its axis. Ulysses looked up at the walls of the castle and sneered. "You're next, Vampire..."
 
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Inner Bailey Gatehouse

Ulysses strode towards the entrance only to have a black gate fall into place before him. Behind it, more undead soldiers began to amass before him. Ulysses shook his head. "Did you think it would be that easy to stop me Vampire!?" He called out to the wall.

The undead drew bows and began to take aim at the wouldbe sorcerer. He spun and took cover behind the wall. He attempted to lean out to see, but found several arrows coming for his head. He ducked back just in time for them to go sailing by. Ulysses cursed as he opened his grimoire again and searched for a spell to use. After flipping for several seconds he found it. He brought both of his hands together and closed his eyes, concentrating his power on one point. As he began channeling his energy into the point he spoke. "Dark matter creation!" As he spoke, a spear of pure blackness erupted from the point. It was so dark that it seemed to warp light around its very being. He took a heavy breath and stood straighter. He then turned towards the gate and pointed the spear at it. He pooled more energy into the point of the spear and a glowing black orb began to form. "Dark matter, Singularity!" As he finished the incantation, the black orb fired from the end of the spear and blasted through the gate, shearing a massive hole in the very metal. It continued on towards the undead, pulling them into the small gravity well. As they were all engulfed by it Ulysses held up his hand and closed it into a fist. The singularity grew smaller and smaller before detonating in wave of pure energy, knocking back all those that had managed not to get too close.

Ulysses gritted his teeth and walked forward into the inner courtyard, his dark spear held by his side as he walked. The inner courtyard had multiple smaller entrances to the castle, but directly in front of him at the far end was a set of two massive wooden doors. If Ulysses had to guess, the queen would have been in the throne room, and his best shot was going through there. As he walked towards the doors, they swung forwards to reveal two men, dressed in immaculate clothing. "You dare enter this castle unannounced?" One of them spoke.

Ulysses stopped, his miniature star halting with him. "Oh? And I am assuming you two are here to stop me?" He asked, looking the pair over. Both of them had pale skin and white hair. The one who had spoken had his hair in a tight ponytail, while the other had let his hair drape behind him. Both stared at Ulysses with bright yellow eyes, full of hatred.

"That's right. You broke our toys, and now you will pay dearly for it." The other answered. "You will regret ever being born, sorcerer. You will remember the Etern name!"

"Now now, Damien. Let's not be to hastey. Mother wants this one for her collection." Spoke the first. He then turned back to Ulysses.

Damien gritted his teeth and nodded. "Yes Kalon..."

Ulysses smirked. "Finally, a name to put with this wretched place. Since I haven't addressed myself I guess I will show you the courtesy." He gripped his dark matter spear tighter, his knuckles turning white. The star next to him began to swell with Ulysses's anger and began to emit small eruptions all over the surface of it. "My name is Ulysses Werner, and I am your judge, jury," he raised his spear at the two vampires. "and your executioner!"

The two sneered at Ulysses. "Come brother! Let's kill this fool!" Called Damien, who charged at Ulysses with superhuman speed. Ulysses raised his hand and caused his miniature star to eject a massive supernova right into the path of the reckless vampire. Damien attempted to dodge, but was caught by the flare. He howled in agony and held his arm which was currently smoking. Ulysses ran forward ready to run the vampire through but was hit from the side with enough force to send him flying across the courtyard.

He hit the ground with a thud and rolled into a crouch. Kalon was standing next to Damien, looking at his brother's injuries. "You fool... I will handle this." He then spun and looked to Ulysses, "You aren't half bad Sorcerer, you will make a fine addition to mother's collection." he said crouching low.

Ulysses held his spear at the ready and got into his own low stance. In the blink of an eye, Kalon charged at Ulysses his own sword in hand. The vampire swung his sword upwards towards Ulysses, but the sorcerer blocked the attack with his black spear. He used the chance to get close and kick the vampire's midsection. His foot connected and managed to make Kalon stager backwards. Ulysses smirked and fired another solar flare, then another. Kalon managed to dodge just in time, barely escaping the two blasts. "Nice try... but you'll have to do better than that!" he yelled, charging once more.

Ulysses was ready for the assault and called out. "Mass ejection!" The star fired another massive stream of plasma, but this time it was much larger than any of the previous attacks. It formed a massive arc of superheated plasma to fly towards the charging vampire. Kalon's eyes widened and he attempted to dodge the shot, but the blast was to large. He was engulfed in the blast and was incinerated instantly.

"Kalon no!!!" Called Damien. He roared with anger and charged at Ulysses, much slower this time however. Ulysses sneered back and waited for Damien to get into range, before he used his spear to sweep the injured vampire off his feet. Damien crashed onto his back and cursed and tried to get back up. However, Ulysses planted a boot into the vampires stomach and hefted his spear. Damien roared at Ulysses again and squirmed underneath him, yet he was unable to move.

Ulysses brought the dark spear down, stabbing it into the vampire's undead heart then twisted it. Damien gasped as dark blood began to seep from his chest. He brought his one good hand up to clutch feebly at the spear lodged into his chest. Ulysses bent down towards Damien and whispered. "Die, you monster." As he said this he pulled his spear free from Damien's chest and flicked the dark blood off the tip of the black spear. Damien's breathed his last breath, arm falling to his side as Ulysses strode through the massive double doors and into the castle itself.
 
Great Hall of Brimstone Castle

As Ulysses entered the castle proper, he found himself in a grand room. The ceiling was high up, at least 20 feet high. It was also very large. There were hallways leading off deeper into the castle on all sides. Further back though were a pair of double stairs that lead to another immaculate door. It was leafed in gold and obsidian and looked very imposing and regal. If Ulysses had to guess, the queen was hiding out back there. It must have been the throne room. He remained still for several moments, listening for any noise yet he heard none. As Ulysses walked forward, the only sounds were his own footfalls.

As he reached about halfway into the expansive room, a lone figure stepped out into his path. Ulysses stopped and brandished his spear as he examined the newcomer. "That's far enough, trespasser." Said the man. To Ulysses the man looked like a butler. His suite was clean, one that a butler would wear. A gold chain led up to his breast pocket, which Ulysses guessed must have been a pocket watch. His eyes glowed red, and his hair too was snow white, however his hair was cut short and was slicked back. "You have destroyed my mistress's playthings and you have killed Masters Kalon and Damien. For this, I will ensure that you pay dearly..." He said evenly, but Ulysses could detect a hint of anger in the main voice and could see the hatred in his eyes.

The butler held his hand high and snapped his fingers. In the fraction of a second, Ulysses was surrounded by undead. They seem to have just appeared out of thin air. All of them were dressed in armor, most likely what was left of the castle guard. Ulysses readied his spear and cursed. How could he have been so foolish?! This butler must have used illusion magic on the guards to let them completely surround him. He held his grimoire in hand and looked back to the vampire. "Well played, sir." He said cooly. "You know magic as well then?" He asked.

The butler nodded. "That is correct. I know basic spells to help me in my duties as the estate's caretaker, however I never learned advanced magic like the Astral magic you are playing with. To think a mere human could play with the heavens themselves." He scoffed

Ulysses smirked. "Yet, this mere Nepleslian has. Plus I only learned these spells only a short time ago. I guess I am a natural." He replied.

The butler sneered. "Once I have finished torturing you, it won't matter much. You will be as they are." He said gesturing to the undead soldiers. As he did they drew their swords and brandished their shields. The butler smirked and lept backwards, landing in front of the ornate door in the back of the room. "I will not sully my hands with your blood. I'll let them do it." At this, the undead crept forward.

Ulysses spun as the first of the undead lunged forward. It brought it's sword down at Ulysses, but he was able to block with his spear. He parried the blade and stabbed the undead soldier threw the heart. It fell backwards, only to be replaced by a horde...

He gritted his teeth and sprang forward into the horde, hacking and slashing with his dark matter spear. He plunged his spear into one undead soldier and used it to vault over the others, landing outside of their encirclement. He held his hand up and sent forth several solar flares from his miniature sun. The sun sent for stream after stream of superheated plasma into the ranks of the dead. Most were incinerated in the blasts, but several still remained. Ulysses ran forward, and cut down the remaining few undead.

As he finished removing his spear from an undead soldier's chest plate the butler began to clap. "What a show. Now I see why her highness wants you as part of her collection." He stepped forward and hopped the banister, landing to the ground below as if it were nothing. He strode forward, hands clasped behind his back. "Why won't you make this easy and submit already? You are only tiring yourself out. It is inevitable." He said.

Ulysses panted, trying to catch his breath. "No. I refuse to become one of them." He replied between breaths. Ulysses turned and faced the butler. "Now why don't you tell me your name, before I end you."

The butler shook his head like a disapproving father. "Very well, if you wish to do this the hard way." At Ulysses's question he replied. "I am Edmund, butler to the Eterns. Now... let's end this charade"

Ulysses raised his hand and called forth another solar flare, but Edmund easily dodged it. He was incredibly fast, much faster than the brother's were. Ulysses jumped back as Edmund jabbed out with what appeared to be a dagger. He cursed and placed his hand on the ground. "Nebula!" As he spoke, a wall of dense stardust formed between Edmund and Ulysses.

Edmund stopped and looked up at the Nebula cloud before him and smirked. "Is this really the best you have? A wall will not save you from me." He pulled out several daggers from his coat and began threw them at the wall in a fan. The blades all penetrated the nebula and passed harmlessly through the stardust. "Hah! What good is your wall? It doesn't even block my attacks." With that Edmund charged through the wall of stardust.

Ulysses stood several feet back from the Nebula wall, appearing calm. He was near one of the passageways. "Did you think you could seriously escape me?" Edmund asked incredulously.

Ulysses stood straighter and smiled. "Oh no. I knew I could never out run you. Outsmarting you is a different story." He replied.

Edmund's eyes widened and he looked back at the Nebula wall. From his new position behind the wall, he could see that Ulysses was actually using the Nebula to create new stars, as well as block Edmund's line of sight. He could see at least two new protostars which glowed. Ulysses smirked and clapped his hands together. "Nuclear Fusion!"

The jetstreams from the protostars began to spew massive amounts of stardust and the surrounding nebula was sucked into the two accretion disks. Ulysses jumped back through the corridor and covered his head.

Edmund staggered back, in horror of the sight. The two protostars grew and grew till finally, in the blink of an eye, they erupted in a fiery inferno. He turned to run, but it was too late. "No!!!!!!!!" He cried as the entire room was engulfed in the resulting explosion...

As the dust settled, Ulysses turned back to see that the castle's great hall was in shambles. Debris was strewn everywhere, and the roof of the great hall had been blown out. In the carnage however, were two brand new stars. One bright blue star, which was being orbited by a much smaller purple star. As Ulysses walked into the destroyed room, the new stars moved from their position in the middle of the room and hovered over Ulysses's other shoulder. He looked back towards the entrance to find nothing but a pile of dust, the remains of Edmund.

Ulysses looked back towards the ornate door and walked towards it. As he walked, his three stars spun slowly around their axis and hovered over his shoulders. His dark matter spear in hand, he climbed the stairs and reached the door. He steeled himself and took a deep breath, before pushing the door open and strode forward.

The final battle was about to begin...
 
Throne Room of Brimstone Castle:

Ulysses walked forward into the grand throne room, and watched as on the other side of the long room sat a beautiful woman. Her skin was pale and looked cool to the touch. Her hair was long and flowed down her back. Her yellow eyes glinted in the torch light as she sat upon her throne. Her dress was ornate and as black as the obsidian walls outside. As Ulysses entered she uncrossed her legs and stood up from her throne. "Well... I must admit that I underestimated you. However, how are foolish to believe that you could go toe to toe with me." She said smiling seductively. "Though... you are rather cute. Why will you not just give up? Wouldn't you like to stay here with me, forever?" She asked.

Ulysses could feel the power behind her words, and it sent a shiver down his spine. As she made her offer though, he couldn't find a reason why to deny her... It did sound nice to stay with the queen forever...

'NO!' His mind screamed out to him. He clenched his fist and felt his wedding band digging into his skin. "Never, you blood sucker." He said spinning his spear.

The queen frowned. "You are much stronger willed than most men. You must really love that wife of your's. Aashi was it?" She asked, walking slowly and deliberatley.

'How did she...? She must be able to read my thoughts.' He thought.

"Oh yes. I can read your mind like an open book." She laughed, melodically.

Ulysses gritted his teeth. He funneled more energy into his dark matter spear, causing it to morph in his hands. The tip of the spear elongated out to form the blade of a scythe. The shaft of the spear became longer and somehow grew darker still. "Dark Matter creation: Scythe!" Ulysses shouted. The scythe was much larger than the spear he had held before. It seemed to warp light and space around it. "Enough of this charade." Ulysses gritted his teeth and swung his Scythe down in an arc towards the Queen. A wave of pure dark matter seemed to cut through the air towards her.

The queen frowned and dodged the attack easily. "If that is all you have, then this will be over quick." She retorted. In a flurry of movement she charged Ulysses. He tried to block her strike, but the Queen read his movements and sliced into his chest with her claws. Ulysses howled in pain and fired several solar flares from his three stars at her. She launched herself backwards and smiled. "You make it too easy, my dear."

Ulysses shook his head to clear it of all thought. He can't think about what he was doing or she would read him like a book. He had to act without thought. He took a deep breath and held his scythe in a ready stance. After a moment, he rushed forward. The Queen smiled once more and giggled. "Why must you try so hard. You will end up in my collection one way or the other." She charged forward as well and her claws met the shaft of his scythe. In a fluid motion, Ulysses spun the blade and nicked her dress before she backed away. "Better, but not good enough." She sneered, looking at her damaged dress.

Ulysses calmed his mind and began to recite word in his mind. As the Queen attempted to read his mind again, she frowned. "What is this? You..." Ulysses didn't give her a chance. As he continued to recite the words he held out his hand and a black orb began to form in his hands. It was a singularity just as before. The queen sneered once more and charged him, however as she approached Ulysses sliced his scythe directly in her path. She dodged left but Ulysses followed up the strike with a volley of solar flares. The Queen's form seemed to blur as she quickly dodged the attacks. When she looked back to him, the singularity had disappeared from his hand. She looked around desperately for the black orb, but was cut off by another attack from Ulysses.

"What are you doing, welp? You know you're attacks can not hurt me." She yelled, growing impatient.

Ulysses shook his head and continued to recite word in his head. The creed of DIoN. The words of his instructors at the academy, the vows he took on his wedding day... He attacked again and fired more solar flares in her direction and followed up the attack with a slash from his scythe. Her claws caught his scythe, causing sparks to fly. She shouted in rage and flew upwards dragging Ulysses up by the spear. He dropped to the ground, allowing the scythe to disintegrate in her hands. He it the ground with a thud, causing his breath to catch in his throat. She cackled from her place in mid air. "Come on! I thought you wanted a fight!" She yelled diving towards him.

He held both hands up and created a shield grey shield in front of him. As she hit the shield, it shimmered from the energy behind her attack. She clawed at the shield again and again, each time causing the shield to shimmer and spark. The queen giggled madly as she sliced at the shield. "Die die die die die die die die die die die!!!" She screamed with every hammer blow.

Ulysses's brow beaded with sweat as the shield began to crack. He took a hand off the shield and placed it on the ground. "Wormhole." he said. Suddenly a hole of pure blackneed appeared and Ulysses was sucked through it, appearing several feet away. As quickly as it appeared it vanished.

The Queen's next blow hit the ground with such force that the stone cracked and shattered beneath her fist. She sneered as she found Ulysses once more. "How?"

Ulysses leaned against a column. "I can control celestial forces. As such, I can manipulate space around me, creating portals." he explained, standing up right and wiping the sweat away. "Now then, why not try that again?" He goaded.

The Queen roared in anger and charged at him, but Ulysses disappeared behind the pillar, to reappear directly behind her. She realized her mistake too late and was met with a punch that sent her stumbling forward. By the time she turned back to strike he was gone. "Come one now, your highness. You seem to be getting tired." Ulysses said, his voice seemingly coming from everywhere at once.

She looked all around and cried out. "Just die already!" She held out her hands and screamed, causing a sonic blast to radiate around the room. It caused Ulysses to cry out, blood trickling from his ears as the attack ruptured his ear drums. Dazed he stumbled out from his spot, to instantly be flung across the throne room. He hit the far wall with a thud, and felt multiple bones crack. He cried out in agony as the queen strode forward.

"I wouldn't have to hurt you if you would have just come quietly. Now I will have to teach you what happens when you defy me." Her arm was outstretched, seeming to hold him in place. Her other arm raised and Ulysses could feel his blood begin to move against him. He cried out in agony, as his arm bent in a way that was not humanly possible. "Oh my. That looks quite serious. My doll is broken." The queen cackled. She then controlled a leg and caused it to bend far past it was supposed to do. Ulysses cried out as his bones snapped one by one. The queen sighed out in pleasure. "Yes! Scream, my play thing. It's music to my ears." she giggled.

Ulysses dropped from the wall, landing on his broken leg and slumping against the wall. It was hard enough to not pass out from the pain, but he managed to stay conscious. The queen walked forward and smiled. "Now my little play thing, I grow tired of this game. Time for it to end." She said, but as she stepped forward, she found herself anchored in place. "What!?" She cried out, finding the black orb from earlier, directly behind her. Its gravitational pull so strong that it held her in place. It had grown much larger than before. "How?!" She asked in frustration as she tried to fight back against its pull.

Ulysses chuckled weakly from his spot on the floor. "All those attacks I sent at you? I wasn't aiming for you." He replied. "I was feeding it." He replied with his good arm.

The queen gasped and struggled harder, though it was futile. "And you were so preoccupied that you didn't even notice my stars disappearing." Ulysses said, pointing upwards. The queen followed his gaze to find the three stars circling high over head. The heat and plasma being absorbed by the growing singularity. Ulysses held up a hand and smiled, speaking the words "Supernova." He then held then created a wormhole that brought him back to the courtyard.

The queen cried out in frustration and anger as the wormhole closed behind him. As he landed on the other side, the castle exploded! It detonated with such force that the castle itself was decimated. Ulysses closed his eyes and created a shield with the last of his energy, barely weathering the destruction of three stars. As the blastwave subsided, Ulysses weakley looked up, finding that there was a crater where the inner bailey used to be, which was quickly filling up with lava.

Ulysses sighed in exhaustion and stared up at the sky, which began to turn auburn with the sunrise. He reached up to his ear and tapped his comm device. "This is Ulysses Werner, requesting immediate extraction." He said softly into his comm. Letting his hand fall weakly to his side, he stared off at the sunrise, watching as the sky changed burned with color. He smiled softly as he watched it, and eventually succumbed to the exhaustion.
 
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