Elder Cultivator-Chapter 1203

It wasn’t possible to precisely compare a large scale formation to one that operated at a much smaller scale, but it would be foolish not to test at all. Thus, Catarina prepared some experiments at standard scale. It would be trivial to build a micro scale test, but it would be so divergent in result it probably wouldn’t matter. So they were instead using a lone system as their representation for the entirety of the Scarlet Midfields.

Another confounding factor would be creating a secondary spatial distortion inside of the primary one. That would be more difficult, and much less representative of what they wanted. Thus, they had to provide security… and determine exactly who and what they were most worried about.

For Catarina, that was Everheart. He’d been helpful to the Scarlet Alliance so far, but simply presuming that would continue into the future was a mistake. It wasn’t like he’d never done anything negative to them, it just happened to net positive. It wouldn’t be strange if he was planning to seem allied with their interests for a few more centuries before he decided he was done. And even if Everheart himself never directly attacked them, it was good practice for Catarina to not become too trusting of the people around her. Close family and ancient friends being an exception.

With all that pushed to the back of her mind, Catarina watched as the minimum number of people necessary for safety finished setting up their first border formations. The more people they drew away from their normal lives, the more likely someone was to slip up and mention where they were going- or for people to get curious about their location and dig into it. Usually secret work was done in a lab, but this simply couldn’t.

When everything was set up, Catarina drew upon her energy to empower the formation. This wasn’t a system that the Scarlet Alliance had built up over long periods of time, just an average star with average planets. The formations would require much more energy than the system could naturally provide… though hopefully that was something that would scale more efficiently.

Once the formation was in place around the system- including a majority of the void space on the way to the next systems- Catarina sent a message with a standard communicator to one of her aides. The return message time was measured in minutes, which was… standard. The timing indicated that the message went around this particular spatial distortion, which was unfortunately expected. It was different from their normal barrier, and standards comms just didn’t know how to work with it. Which would mean that if this project expanded they would have to replace everything.

Maybe Uzun could come up with a software workaround, but Catarina had one with alternative hardware meant to take advantage of the new version of spatial distortion. She sent a message and got a reply instantly. No, there was a slight time delay, but it was pretty good for multiple lightyears of space between them.

Next they sent several probes through different parts of the distortion. Everything Catarina knew said that it would go flawlessly. Her desire to not have her body torn apart by space itself told her that the tests were necessary.

The best part about these tests was how quick the feedback was for the distances involved. She got a message of the probe’s arrival almost instantly- at least the ones that were meant to pass out the other side. Others had to enter the area, since they weren’t working on total isolation.

The probes had to be scanned for integrity, but more than that they had to wait a week or so for the other probes to take the long way. Catarina had to continue to empower the formation during that time, which was not her favorite use of her time but ultimately necessary.

Fortunately, it was all worth it. Both results came back exactly as expected. They repeated the tests with living subjects- not humans yet. Same results, so finally humans got to go through.

Catarina was the last one, because she was empowering the formation. However, she was least at risk if it messed up- they might just lose the materials used. It was shaky for a moment as she slipped through space, arriving far from where she had been yet still close to the formation. It was mostly her own disorientation that caused a hiccup in the flow of energy, but she caught it before the formation collapsed.

Such movements weren’t new- they happened every time anyone entered the territory of the Scarlet Alliance… though usually they went from outside to inside. This went from the outer edge of one formation to the other. Now to test the alternative.

Catarina moved through space, ending up in the space directly in front of where she had been. In short, nothing happened- which was exactly the intended result. She could even go out. In this unique case, simply not having the formation cover the area would have been appropriate. However, their calculations indicated that layering formations would be more stable if they were space-filling. Having holes everywhere wasn’t what they wanted- even if the current setup didn’t block or deflect anything at various points.

Skipping past systems was good. The new comms working with that was also good. But they couldn’t have something so convenient without a way to get into the actual systems. Creating a secure system would take some work, though a modular approach might be appropriate. If they could transform the formation to bring intruders where they wanted- likely requiring active control- then they could achieve similar defensive results while gaining utility. Currently, the outermost planets were actually the hardest to get through from outside the Scarlet Alliance.

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There was also the possibility of not having direct passage into the system. If they cut off ninety-nine percent of the space and went straight to the system itself, they could have rapid travel times through all of the Scarlet Alliance. Weeks could become hours. But all that would take study and testing. It was good that the prototype worked, at least. Now they needed to stack them. If they were to be space filling, cubes might be the most intuitive option for travel. That meant twenty-seven was the most logical next step. That was… a significant jump from a single system. It would probably take at least a few years to even get started on that next step.

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Hoyt looked up into the night sky, his eyes piercing the darkness beyond what mortal sight could see. A distant asteroid passed by, a sight he would never see in Xankeshan. Any large comets or asteroids that would pass near populated planets were diverted into a safer orbit. That was why he and his grandfather came to this empty system, to grow their insights.

Another hunk of rock struck the thick atmosphere of the planet, rapidly heating up. Predicting where such a thing would fall was a fairly easy task. A true falling star… though it was not a star at all. It sparkled as it burned up, turning into smaller chunks that disappeared, leaving nothing more than the size of a fist. Some would be larger, while others would turn into dust. Either way, it was a brief moment.

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That wasn’t what Hoyt wanted, a transitory moment of power and glory. The Alliance needed more than that. He needed more than that. It would be too late if he waited for further troubles to arise. Everyone knew that, and Hoyt but was one of many looking for their path forward.

“It’s time,” Hoyt commented.

With him was Prospero- his grandfather, in a reincarnated form. For the past centuries after they had reconciles, more like a brother. “I wish you all fortune,” Prospero said sincerely.

There was nothing else for him to say. He had already voiced his prior concerns. His wish to be the one to first take the risk. However, Hoyt wouldn’t wait. No, he couldn’t. Prospero understood that. If his heart told him it was time, then there was nothing else he could do. Not unless he was planning to give up on advancing altogether. 𝙧ÃƝȏ₿Ëṩ

Prospero Vandale himself had done so, long before. He’d had his reasons. The Order of Ninety-Nine Stars had needed him. But perhaps if he had been brave enough to take that step, they might have become the Order of One Hundred Stars far earlier. Or perhaps it would have led to disaster. Prospero didn’t regret his choices, ultimately, but he understood what failing to take an opportunity was like.

Hoyt had already chosen his target. A powerful comet- though not the grandest that passed through the system. Instead, it was one that he had a special connection to- even if it was merely based on personal bias. A cultivator could do little but focus on how cultivation felt right to them, once the proven guidance of prior generations was surpassed.

Theatrics were not Hoyt’s chosen method. Timothy and Catarina had chosen to publicize their advancement, and for good reason. Domination drew strongly on devotion, after all. Hoyt simply didn't think the same exact method was right for him. He had told a specific number of individuals who mattered the date and time, calling upon them to be prepared. But only Prospero was chosen to watch directly.

He had learned so much from the techniques he had stubbornly refused to study, even if others would have given anything for access. He needed his grandfather to be present when it happened.

Hoyt could feel it. The power of devotion flowing into him. Prospero’s confidence solidified his own. His chosen asteroid was on a grand orbit around the system. Hesitating would simply pass up his best opportunity.

Fire within him flared as he flew towards his chosen asteroid, locking his relative position as he followed it. He reached out with himself, wrapping it with him and himself with it. He had saved up every ounce of energy he had for the last year, even overfilling himself. It was a risk, but without sufficient energy Domination simply wasn’t possible. Once he crossed the threshold far more energy would fill and transform him.

Flames wrapped around him and his chosen asteroid, growing in intensity as devotion was converted into something more. Hoyt was certain he had enough. Power continued to grow, until finally a spark of Domination energy appeared within him. From there, it grew like a forest lit aflame. Feeling such power from the outside was far different from possessing it himself. As its name implied, it was domineering.

Hoyt spread the energy between himself and his chosen anchor. The asteroid grew red hot in an instant, passing into white hot territory beyond that. It threatened to vaporize, but Hoyt kept its form with pressure from his energy. Domination was transformational to the anchor. He just had to guide and channel it.

Everything was over in an instant. Whether it was a lack of control, overestimating his insights, a flawed choice of anchor, or some other factor… Hoyt failed. There wasn’t even time for a thought as the Domination energy within him expanded, leaving behind nothing more than a flash of light.

Prospero didn’t react, refusing to believe what he had seen with his own eyes. The traces of lingering energy could merely be his grandson suppressing his new energy. A trick. As if he would do so, instead of creating a grand display.

Eventually, however, he was forced to accept the results, as the image of nothingness burned into his retina faded to reveal the glowing remains of the asteroid that Hoyt had been attempting to bind as an anchor. An anchor that had no more than a single speck of Domination energy remaining within it, fading rapidly away.

He should have been the one. Was he a coward, waiting for Hoyt to succeed so he could learn from him? He hadn’t thought so… but he had lied to himself before. Perhaps, even if he wasn’t ready, he should have insisted. An intentional sacrifice from which they could learn. Anything would have been better than this, where he remained alone.