The Primal Hunter

Vilastromoz made sure Jake had safely passed through the void and back to his planet before he regarded the being before him. Today had been a stark reminder that even with all of his preparations, there existed beings in the multiverse that could circumvent them.

The Viper had used several methods to hide Jake traveling through the void. The biggest one was, of course, Shroud of the Primordial, but the teleportation itself should also help hide him. These preparations should have been unnecessary anyway, as locating anything traveling through the void in such a brief period was beyond even the Viper himself. Finally, why would some ancient and powerful being even bother with interfering with someone teleporting through? Trillions went through the void every moment, so what was one in so many?

Yet none of that mattered before the being in front of him. It was the same being that had originally spotted Jake when he traveled to the Order. The fact he had been spotted the first time around was no surprise, as the being saw most everything that ever passed the void, with the only surprise being Jake noticing the gaze. Well, not a surprise to Vilastromoz, but probably the creature.

“Snake Who Holds Forgotten Knowledge, you seek compensation?” the voice of the being echoed as the ever-shifting reptilian eyes moved before him.

“I first seek answers,” Vilastromoz said, not minding the title the being had assigned him.

“Traveler of the void, passing the veil of the new world. A gift given to be delivered to that which I gaze upon,” the Void Dweller answered as cryptically as ever.

The Viper frowned at the answer. For the Void Dweller before him to gaze upon someone was just a fancy way of saying it had blessed them. Normally that would be whatever, but the situation was different when dealing with beings like this. A god’s Blessing would affect the target, yes, but the Blessing of a Void Dweller, much less one like the one before him? The effects would be significant. Merely seeing a Void Dweller could make mortals lose their minds and have their mental faculties irreversibly corrupted, so it was no surprise a Blessing did even more.

“What did you ask to be delivered?” the Viper asked.

“Gift. Knowledge. Power.”

“And who is it supposed to be delivered to?” Vilastromoz kept pressing.

“He Who Commands The Many Eyes That Dwell Within the Soulless Vessels of Metal and Lightning. Seeker of knowledge like I,” the Void Dweller explained without much care for the overly long title.

Vilastromoz finally turned his gaze towards Earth and quickly did a scan. He had never bothered to scan the ones around Jake much, just a cursory one. He had assumed none could hide from his probing, but upon a deeper inspection, he noticed there was indeed one person with a Blessing he hadn’t noticed before, making him frown even more.

“You could have asked before making my Chosen a mule,” the Viper protested as he stared into the many eyes.

“Yes… decision made in haste. Apologies, Keeper of Lost Knowledge. Compensation will be made,” the Void Dweller answered, as the eyes shifted a bit in apology. Vilastromoz could read this particular Void Dweller as it wasn’t one of the mindless beasts that usually roamedthe endless void, but one most gods of any repute had found themselves in contact with several times in the past.

“What do you offer me?” he asked.

“To the Primordial? None shall be given. Compensation for He Who Hunts. An equal, is he not? Nascent seeds will be planted, more futures planned. Outcomes predicted falsely before, corrections required,” the Void Dweller answered.

Vilastromoz just sighed as the eyes kept shifting. He felt movement from afar as he stood in the middle of the void as the attention of more beings began gathering as the Viper had let his aura flare. “Fine. Just don’t have this repeat itself. Even if you want a favor from him, ask through me. Finally, why are you playing with the minds of mortals? I never figured you to be the kind of being to break a weak mortal like that.”

of Steel,

come in words but in shapes and expressions made by its body. The Viper didn’t ask further but just looked at the Void Dweller and the ever-flowing ocean of eyes it consisted of. It was a physique not like any other creatures in the multiverse, and these

“May your gaze land upon all of existence, Oras

will shape reality, Malefic

disappeared as Vilastromoz sighed again. Oras was a difficult one to deal with. A creature as ancient as could be, a true god of the

he felt the many creatures close in on him, their auras dominating the vast nothingness, every single one of them able to slay gods like were they children before men. The weakest Void Dwellers in the void were a match for a newly ascended god, with the ones closing in on the Viper being far

threaded by those belonging to the universes. The mere aura of a god attracted them as they sought to feast and grow from the

had a sense would happen, or they had led to positive outcomes above expectations. However, someone like Oras was not predictable. VIlastromoz did not understand the Void

just a little

around him was filled with his own mana as he found himself in a defensive position. Instinctually he knew that he

patterns on it and what looked like eyes marking its surface. He instantly recognized the faint energy it gave off as

out of commission instead and found out he had been knocked out for well over

come from? It had the same

Jake pulled off his cloak and threw it over the cube on the floor, making his headache instantly subside. At the same time, he remembered everything far more clearly. That damn box was able to make him forget

finally asked. A few

as it is known. An ancient

with Shroud? Also, are you okay? I remember seeing you appear just as I

am fine. And Oras spotted you because the Shroud and everything else I do isn’t good enough to hide you when in the void. Not from Oras,” the

that thing want? Something about a gift? Who for?” Jake asked,

I reckon only a few can even facilitate this return trip. Oras spotted you and decided to have you bring something into the ninety-third universe. The gift you received is not for you, but the one Oras has “blessed.” I use that word very carefully as the usual result from someone getting blessed by a Void God is a cult that makes the Order of the Malefic Viper look like the good guys in comparison. Luckily, Oras cares little for anything besides knowledge and seeing new things… at least as far as I can tell. I

is this god-forsaken box

“Arnold.”

he did find it confusing why some being from the void would bless

to discover, but in my experience, the logic of a Void Dweller is not worth trying to comprehend. However, it does seem like

deliver the box?” Jake finally

ahead. Oras said you would get some kind of compensation, and while I do not understand the creature, it somewhat understands

their conversation. He felt that the Viper seemed somewhat distracted during their talk, but that wasn’t anything new. What was new was the Viper actively using the name of another mortal. This indicated that Villy actually viewed Arnold

to split open. He took out a black piece of cloth from his inventory and wrapped the box in it before putting it inside a wooden barrel he normally used for water. The entire thing was only about the size of a shoebox, and when he tried to lift it, he noticed how it didn’t weigh anything. That wasn’t an

lodge above and over to the pond, where he quickly washed the blood

on the troll down in the cavern. Rick, as he had been named, was still just chilling with what was now a sprawling garden down in the biodome. His kids were

for the city center of Haven and met up with Miranda. They had a good talk with Jake getting updated on