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Rating:
Teen And Up Audiences
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Fandom:
Parahumans Series - Wildbow
Relationship:
Alexander/City Building
Characters:
Rebecca Costa-Brown | AlexandriaDragon (Parahumans)Director James TaggEmily PiggotColin Wallis | Armsmaster | DefiantBastion (Parahumans)
Additional Tags:
Self-InsertCYOAEndbringerA man finds his hobbyThe rest of the world is terrifiedCausing major wars by accidentTeehee~Misunderstandings
Language:
English
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Published:2025-02-16Updated:2026-02-21Words:227,115Chapters:82/?Comments:555Kudos:1,453Bookmarks:363Hits:86,393
(End)Bringing You A New Home! (Endbringer SI)
10moorem
Chapter 54: Chapter 54: Deleterious Departures
Summary:
I ship it.
Chapter Text
Chapter 54: Deleterious Departures
-Liu Ming, CUI Soldier POV-
The watchtower they had erected was a rickety thing, built from wood sourced from the surrounding trees. It was a rushed job, the frenzied nature of the construction ripping up the earth and toppling trees – damage born from the mistakes of soldiers only taught to guard and kill.
Liu Ming had the 'honour' of being stationed atop the hastily thrown together mess since it was first built. Every day he would wake up at six and keep watch until two in the afternoon and he still flinched every time the aging wood groaned as it swayed in the breeze.
Today was shaping up to be much like any other day. He had woken up, the crick in his neck still present despite his best efforts, and gotten an unappetising breakfast before climbing atop the watchtower with only a bottle of water and binoculars to keep him company.
He shivered as the cold wind lashed at him, cutting straight through the meagre protection of his uniform and chilling him to his core. He grimaced, his arms wrapping around his torso in an effort to keep warm.
Every few minutes he would take out his binoculars and check to make sure nothing had changed. It never did, the city of traitors and cultists never did. Liu Ming sneered, the thought still causing him no end of anger.
Eris, that new Endbringer, had insulted them like none other. First they release prisoners judged unworthy by the Emperor himself, they then compound that arrogance by building them a fortress by which to further dishonour his country and even set upon them that monster.
He shivers again, and this time it has nothing to do with the cold. Echoes of insane laughter still haunting him, the fires that engulfed Beijing still licker behind his eyes.
Then there was that declaration. Proclaiming that they had 'lost the Mandate of Heaven', an outdated concept Liu Ming thought no longer held sway to the leal sons of China. Evidently not the case, or perhaps they were merely donning a mask of piety to benefit, for not long after the obscene announcement multiple rebellions started cropping up.
This weakening of China only invited the serpents sniffing at their borders the opportunity they had been waiting for, just as the Emperor foretold.
Did those fools not realise that by rebelling they only put their country at risk of being divided up?
Well, he had been vindicated in the end. The proof of Jinzhou's creator being an Endbringer had been fortuitously timed, the loss of momentum from the rebel groups had allowed the proper sons and daughters of this country the chance to regroup. It had allowed them to begin fending off the invaders from the North and South.
Despite the moment to breathe, the rebellions and invasions were still ongoing, the puppets all too eager to play into the scheming monster's hand.
Liu Ming stewed in his bitterness, idly swigging his bottle of water – lamenting that alcohol was not allowed for such an 'important duty', as if the traitors of Jinzhou would invade through this section and not through the teleporters that rumours had claimed them to have.
He sighed, placing his water bottle back down, the uneven wooden floor making it wobble precariously – ensuring he would have to dote on the bottle, ensuring it found the scarce stable ground that was available.
Once that herculean task was complete he rose to his feet, swatting away a few flies that had taken to roosting near him, and taking out his binoculars. The sight was about the same. The same obsidian bulwark stood in defiance of the proper ruler of China, blasphemous sigils carved by an Endbringer were still scrawled across the walls.
Beyond that the same city still stood in stark contrast to the unwelcoming walls intent on keeping them out. For the first few days he had thought, loathe as he was to admit it, that the city of glass and crystal was beautiful, even serene.
He no longer thought that, familiarity breeds resentment and he had been staring at that fucking city for far too long. He had counted every window on every damned building that he could see, and then did it again when the near suicidal amount of boredom had really kicked in.
Still the same fucking trees, he didn't think they had even grown an inch – what sort of rubbish trees didn't grow?
Still the same…eerily…growing…black crack?
What?
He blinked, taking his eyes away to rub the sleep out, and looked again. No, it was still there and seemed to be getting bigger by the second – the void staring back at him making the blackest of nights seem full of light.
He scrambled, searching for his radio. He swore quietly, mind racing as to where it had gone.
'This was why you don't grow complacent! Foolish Liu Ming, your family will be strung up if you don't find that blasted – there!
His grasping fingers, buried deep in one of the many discarded bags present in the watchtower, finally found the radio.
His pressed down on the button that would transmit his message "I've see-"
Then, with a terrifying crack – the sound piercing into his deepest subconscious, telling him that something very wrong had just happened- he was interrupted. He turned, the speed at which he did so almost throwing him from his feet.
The city's walls were flickering, the green light from the many symbols placed on that horrible wall shimmered like a heat haze. The air seemed to roil and bend, as if it had a mind of its own.
Liu Ming's eyes bulged in his sockets and his mouth hung open. His head pounded as the city seemed to take on properties that made his mind scream at the impossibilities of their geometry.
But what was by far the worst was something he could barely make out, just passed the cities edge. With his watering eyes he could just barely see something…
He couldn't find the words, he only knew the sight made him sick to his stomach.
He could hear the sound of yells below, panicked screams and the barking of orders, but he gave them none of the attention they deserved – eyes still locked onto the impossible sight before him.
With a suddenness that defied belief, the city snapped back into focus – somehow seeming clearer and closer than it had before.
Yet that wasn't all that had been made clear, because now – just a few dozen metres away from the camp were two enormous monsters biting and tearing at one another.
One was long and slender, serpentine in form and by far the most wounded. Blood dripped from every surface, muscles hung loose and swayed in the wind. The metal and circuitry Liu Ming could just barely see was cracked and sparking, yet the robotic snake fought as if none of that encumbered it.
The other was tall and skeletal, a once white frame blackened by what appeared to be countless blows. Yet, unlike the other it was whole and presented a far more horrifying visage. The soldier shivered as the skull- like face leered with murderous intent, all while it flickered across the form it's opponent – tearing out chunks of metal with each swipe.
The screams below gave way to disciplined shouts and the sound the rolling wheels and marching feet. He looked down and saw his fellow men setting up positions, manning the artillery and doing whatever they could in case the two titans turned their fury upon them.
One of the monsters, the metal serpent, jerked in place – head turning to face Jinzhou, ignoring the strikes its enemy landed while its attention was diverted.
Then, with a final flare, the serpent turned and began slithering away – somehow moving through the air as easily as it had on the ground.
The pale titan stopped in place for a moment, perhaps shocked that it's opponent had shamelessly ran? If so, the shock only lasted for a few seconds.
When it next swung it's arms, waves of darkness leaped out and crashed against the fleeing form of the metallic reptile. The blackness cut into the construct, violent sparks leaping from where it was struck – yet the being didn't flinch or look back.
Once the wriggling form crossed a certain distance the tall spectre of death ceased it's attacks, seemingly content that it had sent its enemy running scared.
Then, with bone chilling smoothness, it's head turned to look at them.
He felt himself freeze in place, the hand that had been reaching for a gun abruptly halting. Liu Ming gulped, feeling a cold sweat begin to make its way down his back.
The being didn't move, its's pallid figure draped in dying sunlight made for an eerie figure. The stillness, the inhuman proportions and insane power all told him that whatever this thing was it couldn't be human.
Was it a creation of the Endbringer? Surely it had to be, right?! Because the alternative didn't bear thinking about.
The silence was shattered with the sound of a sharp bang, and the sight of a bullet fragmenting on impact with the slender thing before them.
Liu Ming, and what seemed like the rest of the army, turned to look at the one responsible. It was a boy, barely out of training by the looks of it, he was white faced and trembling – and Liu Ming realised with horror that the young soldier probably hadn't even meant to fire the gun, his nerves simply getting the best of him.
The tall figure, for its part, simply looked down at the place the bullet had impacted it – with what seemed like an air of faint humour – before turning back to them.
There was silence for a brief moment.
Then the carnage began.
-NOMAD POV-
5 standard earth seconds had elapsed since it engaged the host species. All had been rendered non-functional.
Spatial rends had been deployed liberally, the gathering sight of the non-hosts had been split by regions of still-space fields. After the glut of data the last three opponents had provided it had been hopeful the non-hosts of a clear soldier caste would prove just as informative.
This was not the case, the chemical propellant weaponry they deployed was nothing special – and indeed that was all they had.
Perhaps it should return to the host hive it had previously occupied?
It's sensors, now completely unencumbered by the spatial barrier, passively logged the city within its databases – and observing it in real time.
The three anomalies it had encountered were far from the only ones, there were more. Twelve in total.
Yet, it seemed it was not to be. Spatial fluctuations had begun appearing in the higher dimensions that mapped to the host hive. Signatures consistent to a large scale act of teleportation was present, even if the source was unrecognisable.
Usually this would only be more reason to investigate, NOMAD was a Shard that studied space after all. However, this unknown phenomena mixed with the passage to Shardspace already present within the city elevated the risk level beyond acceptable parameters.
So, as quantum fluctuations became more and more rampant, and the host hive became more and more of a 'maybe' instead of hard fact – the Shard turned all sensors to maximum. Cycles worth of energy drained away in seconds, but like this they could observe every quark and every iota of space-time eddies.
The dwelling of metals and glass vanished, the vacuum left in it's wake drew the surrounding air in with a resounding crack. Trees were ripped from their soil and sent hurtling towards the sudden hole in the world, the bodies of the non-hosts it had dispatched were yanked upwards violently – exploding in a squall of gore from the sheer pressure exerted on their frail forms.
All the while the Shard watched on, their form on that plane anchored down using science the host species couldn't fathom.
Anomalous Energy Registered.
NOMAD felt a burst of glee, a novel form of data! The energy observed was highly chameleonic, only observable through the effects it had on other particles. Those effects were near random, the sheer chaos they caused to the subatomic world was unlike anything it had observed before.
However, the area of observation had included quadrillions of such interactions, it would take many cycles to sort through such a detailed simulation – but NOMAD was sure bountiful data would be procured from such work.
Truly, this was a fantastic deployment – despite the oddities.
Still, where to go next? Their host was refusing to interact, for whatever reason, and NOMAD's understanding of human sensibilities was too low to understand how this might have come about.
NOMAD pondered on this conundrum for quite a while, before past data made the answer obvious. She was clearly feeling 'sadness' from being away from her domicile. Their Mary placed quite a high mental value on her peers and the domesticated lower lifeform (colloquially named her 'pet cat Steve') that ate her food.
Humans sure could be silly.
Their destination was decided then, Boston.
They detected a flood of simulated chemical and hormone responses from their Mary at their decision, so she was listening! She must be so happy to be leaving this awful place!
Space bent and twisted, contracting around them an flinging them halfway around the globe.
Sure enough, the chemical responses only grew in intensity the closer they got - their Mary's psyche building towards another crisis point. NOMAD was pleased, joyous even. An even closer connection would soon be facilitated! Truly, it had chosen the best host!
AN: UGH. Not too pleased with this. I planned on making this chapter several hundred words longer. Then I got dragged out today to look at a broaches collection. It made my mum happy, but it also ate up a lot of time. We were supposed to get the first part of Alexander's plans for the South Pole! UGH!
So yeah, show of hands, who forgot the emergency teleport that Alexander built into the city? A rare sign of forward thinking from our protagonist! RIP those CUI bozo's tho.
In worse news, NOMAD got a decent look at magic. It's a long way off actually understanding and using it, since the current state of the cycle isn't conductive to studying an OCP at the moment - but still not a good thing.
NOMAD and Mary's relationship continues to be very toxic, and the last part of what makes that relationship so toxic is shown right at the very end. Mary's trigger was essentially a loss of freedom while still being on the move, very bad luck in the foster system basically. And now Mary is trapped while her body is still moving, and her avatar in Shardspace can still freely move around. Yeah, the entire situation is just as likely to cause more trigger events as her time in Jinzhou.
NOMAD actually views this as a good thing for the both of them. A greater connection and more power allowed for Mary can only be a good thing, right? Naturally there's a limit to how much stronger the Titan can get, but it hasn't reached that limit quite yet.
Thanks for reading, please leave a comment below!
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Entire Work ← Previous Chapter Next Chapter → Chapter Index Comments Share Download
Work Header
Rating:
Teen And Up Audiences
Archive Warning:
Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Category:
Gen
Fandom:
Parahumans Series - Wildbow
Relationship:
Alexander/City Building
Characters:
Rebecca Costa-Brown | AlexandriaDragon (Parahumans)Director James TaggEmily PiggotColin Wallis | Armsmaster | DefiantBastion (Parahumans)
Additional Tags:
Self-InsertCYOAEndbringerA man finds his hobbyThe rest of the world is terrifiedCausing major wars by accidentTeehee~Misunderstandings
Language:
English
Stats:
Published:2025-02-16Updated:2026-02-21Words:227,115Chapters:82/?Comments:555Kudos:1,453Bookmarks:363Hits:86,393
(End)Bringing You A New Home! (Endbringer SI)
10moorem
Chapter 55: Chapter 55: Frozen First
Summary:
Alexander contemplates whether risking the invasion of Cthulhu is good or bad. He decides it's good.
…Ayo?
Chapter Text
Chapter 55: Frozen First
-Alexander POV-
The South Pole was…an endless expanse of snow and little else.
Go figure.
But that's not to say it was empty. With my senses I could feel the millions of bacteria in the water below us, extremophiles who had adapted to this arctic niche. Krill fluttered about in the oceans, subsisting on tiny phytoplankton and being fed on by larger fauna in turn.
I couldn't feel the seafloor from where I was, but I already knew it would be densely populated and diverse, unlike the white desert that lay before me.
Alas, I had yet to see any penguins. Much sad.
Though that was probably in no small part because of the excited samurai, trying desperately to create the largest snowball ever constructed. He had been rolling that sucker along for nearly an hour now, only pausing to stop whenever the mass fell apart under its own weight – at which point he would beg for me to fix it.
Which had happened five times now, by the way.
"Ah! Alexander! It broke again!"
Make that six times.
"You know I could just levitate that for you," I repeat myself – already knowing what Renji's answer would be, yet still hoping he would give in.
"Nah, that would be cheating." Renji's voice was upbeat as his snowball reassembled under his vigilant gaze. He examined every particulate as I painstakingly used my eldritch control over matter to accomplish every five year old's greatest dream.
Creating the largest snowball ever.
It wasn't as big as me, only coming up to my chest in height, but it dwarfed Renji himself.
"We should have been there an hour ago," I grumbled, despite not feeling quite as upset as I sounded. It was hard to when my friend was so upbeat.
Renji simply snorted, and began rolling his prized possession of frozen water towards the horizon again. "That piece of flat land you found isn't going anywhere, now could you maybe help me roll it? With your hands?"
Renji's last words are punctuated with a slight groan of frustration as the ball veers off the straight line he had been expecting it to go. Yeah, while he was more than strong enough to move the frozen mass, he didn't have the fine control needed to have the best hold over it. That and the uneven ground.
I feel my lips curl into a playful smirk.
"Oh? But Renji! That would be cheating!" I attempt to use my best scandalised tone of voice, but couldn't help letting out a slight giggle at the end.
The raised middle finger I get in return doesn't help to stop the laughter either.
Eventually my laughter fades with the wind as I continue to watch him attempt to carefully manoeuvre his prize in a straight line.
"Okay," I say as I snap my fingers, "How about this instead?"
At my gesture the rock and snow beneath my feet twist and morph. The stone gaining grooves as carved wood emerges from the ground, before curling into the form of an elaborate and enormous sleigh. It was Antarctica, after all.
"You can use this to push it, no cheating required."
Renji's groans in relief, visibly slumping against the white sphere of snow. Then, before he can chide me on the non-existent ethics of snowball moving, I hoist the ball up onto the sleigh with my powers, earning a horrified look of dismay from Renji as he clambers over to make sure I hadn't damaged his creation.
The pussy.
I ignored the fussing going on in the background, continuing onward – even as I mused on what path to take going forwards.
I had three charges. Two were from the remaking of Hyderabad while another had been gained on my way here. What I build here would be used as my base going forwards, and while I could remake it later doing so would cost precious time I could be dedicating towards my plans of killing the entity and freeing this world from the Shard's clutches.
The landscape around me made me think of DesertPunk, but while that would be fitting would that really help me? Such a branch of technology would likely revolve around scavenged and ad-hoc machinery. Not exactly the advanced super-tech I would undoubtedly require.
No, it wouldn't help here. I needed something more advanced, something the entities wouldn't see coming.
Magic was the obvious answer to that. It was something I had used to great effect in Jinzhou, yet the thought left me uneasy. Shards thrived on the study of phenomena and adding it to their arsenal, would they do the same with magic?
Yet how could I not seek to know more about one of the few weapons that might be effective against an entity in my arsenal? Even if I didn't use the knowledge I gained in my construction of the base, I still needed to know. No more running away and pondering on what ifs.
I reached out-
AetherPunk Level 1 – The use of high fantasy themes to create wonders. Magical airships, wards that defend sanctuaries, aether powered artifacts and more are yours to grasp.
And I breathed, pure potential filling me.
No, it had already been there, I could simply feel it now. Rivers of energy flowed outwards from my core, the bleeding ocean of gold that filled me was leaking into the world and subtly adding to it. It was thick and viscous close to me, yet grew more and more diffuse the further away I was.
I could see the difference between this and SilkPunk. The latter had been based around the manipulation of mana through stories, poetry, art and more. All of which shared a single trait, it was indirect. It relied on Magic's own properties to respond to such manipulations, yet with AetherPunk it was different. This was direct manipulation. Less powerful and versatile because of it, perhaps, but more precise.
My mind whirred, already I was breaking down these new principles. Ancient pentagrammic equations informing me of the density of the surrounding mana and the wonders I could build with it.
I looked to Renji, still patting down his snowball and occasionally sending the odd disgruntled look my way. His core, too, was a furnace of arcane power. Magic flowed from him, just like it did with me.
The same, I realised, was likely true for the Paragons as well.
A cold realisation came over me then. If I hadn't created the Paragons would the magical protections I had weaved through Jinzhou not have remained after I departed? The idea that the people I had saved were so close to losing their protections if not for a unknown synergy between my projects was not a comforting one, the icy sting in my gut rose as I further considered the possibility.
I shook the idea off. No use dwelling.
Now that I could feel the mana with my senses I could also feel the way it manipulated the physical world. The motes of mana were etched deep into the world, somehow existing on a more fundamental level than everything else around them. So if the mana was manipulated? The world followed in kind.
Yet the answers I had found were also disheartening. Magic wasn't something native to this reality, it was an invasive force that I had brought with me. The ambient mana levels in most parts of the world were zero, not even fit to power the lowliest of cantrips, let alone world sundering projects.
I could seek to spread it, but that had its own problems. The more exposure to magic the world had, the more likely it was for the Shards to figure it out. Even the barest understanding could still catapult them to heights previously never imagined.
Which would not be a good thing.
Yet, if I didn't spread it then magic would be of no use in the final battle. One of my best tools left to rust and wither.
Then there was the other problem. If magic was truly something not native to this reality, what would be the effects of bringing it to this one? I had only been here for a little over a month, who knew what the long term effects were?
And what about the one who had placed me here? Before I could content myself with vague notions of being a personality implant from the original shard, some accident that gained too much control. But now?
What if I was a trojan horse? Placed here simply to do more harm at the whim of some unknowable entity, one potentially worse than Scion?
It was a catch-22, a bunch of bullshit that ensured I may well be fucked regardless of what I chose.
I hated it. What was with this shitty world and impossible choices?
My breath quickened.
Could I even trust my power? My technology?
I looked towards Renji, who glanced back – his eyes crinkled in a small smile as he dragged the sleigh behind him. He was whistling something, some random tune he had heard on the radio. I felt something in my gut unclench.
No. No, that simply wasn't a productive line of thought. If I had been placed here, powers and all, for some malicious purpose then I was fucked regardless. I needed to focus my efforts on possibilities that weren't so grim. I needed to believe victory was possible in order for it to become so.
My breathing slowed, as I began calming down. I wasn't going to spiral, not with Renji here.
Yet a thought tickled behind my eyes. A fleeting possibility that offered both endless opportunities and endless ruin.
"Hey Renji?"
The Red haired samurai stopped in his tracks to turn and look at me.
"Yeah?"
When we get to our destination I have something I want to run by you. A potential risk."
Renji's eyes narrowed, head begin to swivel subtly – looking for threats.
"Not that kind of threat," I chuckled – drawing a slight blush of embarrassment to Renji's cheeks.
"It has to do with a strategy against our enemy."
My friend's mouth parts in an expression of realisation, and he nods as his walking resumes – no longer casually meandering but setting a brisk pace.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"-and that's the problem I'm having."
I had, once more, established a barrier to ward off precognition to the best of my ability, something that had only been improved by my newfound magical acumen. Renji had listened silently throughout my talk, only occasionally breaking that silence to ask me a few questions.
"Quite the pickle, so what's this potential solution you mentioned?"
I hesitated.
My solution, the potential doorway towards salvation or damnation, was something I needed to articulate clearly, and I found myself struggling with it.
"The problem with magic," I began, "is that it's a force from outside this universe, potentially outside this multiverse. The effects of its introduction could be anything. It could be mutagenic, cataclysmic or even a doorway for some eldritch abomination. I don't know, which is the problem."
Renji nodded, having already heard this part but allowing me to repeat myself to get everything straight in my head.
"AetherPunk isn't of much help when it comes to understanding what magic is. It only shows me how to use it. So, I was thinking, what if I used my next specialty on something that might give me knowledge on such things?"
"Which sounds dangerous."
"Which is dangerous," I corrected. "A specialty like that would have to be something that focuses on things outside of reality. I've never heard of a Punk specialty like that, so I'll also be finding out whether my power can wholesale make new Punk specialities."
It was an audacious plan, one that straddled the line between brilliance and stark idiocy. There were many, many, things that could go wrong with this plan, but at this point I might be willing to risk it.
The technology I possessed was measly in comparison to the Shards.
My matter manipulation was likely crude in comparison to their true capabilities.
Magic, my one advantage, might be a hidden trap.
Paranoid? Perhaps, but I had a responsibility to think things through - to consider all possibilities.
As things stand I didn't even have enough to make the beginnings of a plan, that was how unstable my foundations were.
"Okay."
I blinked.
"Okay?"
"Yeah, do it."
What? My mind grinds to a halt as I struggle to find an answer to what had come out of my friend's mouth. That nonchalant response to my plan of messing with eldritch knowledge.
"Renji, I'm not sure you understand. I'm talking about calling up a Lovecraftian specialty. This may very well end the world. Or worse." My words, when they eventually manifest, are an outpouring of confusion. Did he not get it?
Actually, now that I thought about it, Renji may genuinely not know what the term 'Lovecraftian' even means, I certainly can't imagine Renji enjoying those types of books with his 'humanity fuck yeah' attitude.
Ah, Lovecraftian means-" I go to explain, before Renji cuts me off with a snort.
"While I may not know the exact definition, I can piece it together using context clues. It's something bad, on the level of Scion or worse?"
While that was a vast oversimplification, I nodded my head. Yes, Lovecraftian entities were indeed 'something bad'.
"Then it's no issue." Renji flippantly stated, before continuing. "You believe you were granted these powers by some higher entity, correct?"
I nodded once more. "Yeah, the inclusion of magic is a big indicator of that. While the entities are strong, I don't think they possess something like this."
The samurai grinned, and pointed his finger at me. "And that's why I think it'll be fine to test it." Renji sauntered closer as he said this, a manic energy gripping him in it's clutches.
"There are three possibilities. This higher being is either benevolent, uncaring or malicious." Renji's raised finger was joined by two others as he explained this, illustrating the three possibilities he saw.
The idea of mapping human logic to such entities seemed like folly to me, but human logic was all I had – so I simply grunted in affirmation.
"We can likely rule out that this entity as uncaring, seeing as it actively interfered by placing you here, so that leaves us with two possibilities!"
Renji spun around and struck his gargantuan creation of snow and ice, the blow splitting the sphere in half with a might thunk.
"If it's malicious, then we've already lost – just as you've said. All our strategies rely on your presence. The alternative would be attempting to use stolen fire, as Cauldron does. Given how that turned out, it's not a great solution."
"No kidding, I'd never follow a method those pieces of shit used" The grumble that left my lips was harsh, the reminder of Cauldron looming over my plan still wearing on my nerves. God, what were they going to do in response to my actions in Hyderabad?
No doubt it would be something stupid.
"Right. So then it only makes sense to assume good intentions from this entity, or at least not active malice. So what would such a being do when gifting immense power to a stranger?"
My eyes widened in realisation.
"They would add in safeguards," I exclaim – my thoughts running at a million miles an hour.
On the one hand, the thought was nauseating. The idea of my abilities being shackled by a being I didn't even know, one who had essentially kidnapped me, was not something that was easy to stomach.
On the other hand, I had already messed up with the power I currently had. So fair enough. It would also be intensely hypocritical given that I had also added safeguards to some of my more troublesome creations.
Plus, if Renji was right, it might be what allowed my insane plan to work. Plunging straight into the abyss with a safety rope was a far more appealing idea than going at it alone, like I had been planning.
Despite the slight disgust I felt a smile form upon my face.
"Ever the optimist, eh Renji?"
He only shrugged.
"It's only logical to be an optimist, being a cynic certainly doesn't help," Renji quipped.
I sighed, my smile slipping off my face as I inspected the land before me once again. There were no edges here, only the smooth expanse of white extending to, what appeared to be, forever.
"I'm not quite sure I believe this god, or whatever, to be wholly benevolent. But you're right that it doesn't do much good to assume malice. So…"
I trail off, Renji's encouraging expression being the last thing I required to reach deep within myself and touch upon the sparks of potential.
'Please. Please don't let me be wrong!'
I'm not sure who I was directing those thoughts to. Perhaps the being who had gotten me thrown into this mess to begin with? Perhaps the Judeo-Christian God, despite never being a believer. Maybe it wasn't directed at anyone, just a simple hope released into a desolate ocean – longing for a prayer answered.
EldritchPunk.
The spark burned against the skin of mind, this was wrong! For a brief, horrifying, moment I thought this was it. I had just killed myself, and the world alongside me. The fire burned hotter, the pain more intense. More concerningly was the feeling of utter wrongness. Like I had attempted to fit a square into a circular hole, something fundamentally wasn't working!
E#dr{t$+Punk
Then, there was a shift. There was no cool release of knowledge, not yet. But the spark shifted, writhing against my wishes. My grip only tightened, emboldened as hope once again surged through me. Keep going!
£[&({!$Punk
The spark was still hot against my mind, and distantly I could hear screaming. Was it Renji's? I couldn't tell. Yet that brilliant potential was yielding, it's form being hammered into place by sheer, unrelenting, bullheadedness as I used my power in a way it wasn't supposed to be used. Almost there!
S[ar{!Punk
The pain eased, the branding iron against my mind cooling slightly. I gasped, my body taking in cool gulps of unneeded oxygen. Blearily, I could see Renji – his form hovering over me.
Had I collapsed? When did that happen?
ShardPunk.
Finally, resistance fell away completely. The knowledge beginning to pour into my already beaten and battered mind – and, oh dear god that was a lot of it!
ShardPunk Level 1 – The barest essence of the Entities, the lowly god viruses that stalk creation. With this specialty you gain the most basic blueprints on the creation of Shards and Entities. Of course, with this speciality alone, you'll never be a match for even a weak entity.
My mouth opened in a silent sob of pain, and in the ice pressing against my face I could see my features clearly reflecting my agony. My form arched and writhed in the snow, paroxysms caused my body to convulse upon the ground.
A single hand remained pressed against my head, offering comfort even as my arms cracked the air like a bullwhip – several striking the one standing over me.
'Who is that?' I feverishly thought, mind blurring as the information continued it's assault upon my mind.
An alien planet filled my vision. Primordial life slumped onto dry land, a mirror to life on Earth. Barbaric evolution followed. Then, a change. Horrid energies wracked the world, life and locations bleeding into each other. Senses adapted to sense new directions their minds could not yet decipher.
Then, consumption. Endless, mindless consumption.
Every resource was plundered.
Every other lifeform taken and absorbed.
Then they fell upon each other until a final signal called for a change.
No, not a change, simply more of the same on a far larger scale.
The knowledge kept coming.
The visions blinded me.
I was only partially aware of my ever more violent spasming physical form.
Then, mercifully, darkness.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"OOOOOWWWWWWW," I groaned as I was dragged back to consciousness with little mercy. One of my hands reached up to cradle my forehead in a futile attempt to stave off the pain. It was awful, like someone had taken a pick to my frontal lobe and kept on hacking away.
I don't even have a brain anymore, how the hell is my head hurting?!
"My liege?! My liege, are you okay?!" I felt movement at my side, the crunch of snow reverberating loudly in my ears – yet not nearly as loudly as his voice, fucking ow!
"Not so loud Renji," I whimper into my hand. "Unless you can get me the Shard equivalent of Ibuprofen, please whisper instead."
The shifting shadow at my side ceased it's sudden movements, instead carefully shifting their weight to make as little noise as possible.
Ah, Renji. Ever reliable.
"Also," I said, "I thought you stopped calling me that?"
Renji coughed lightly, no doubt embarrassed.
"My apologies, for that, and the noise." I peeked through my fingers, the light earning a hiss of pain, and examine the samurai at my side. He was sitting completely still -fuck, I don't think he was even breathing- eyes darting across my form as if it would reveal the cure to my pain.
"S'fine," I slurred slightly. The worried look merely intensifying in response, and I groaned. My fingers slid back over my eyes, bringing blessed darkness.
We stayed like that for a while, basking in the silence with only the wind to offer any disturbance.
"So. Good news and bad news," I say, drawing an exasperated huff from Renji.
"Oh, here we go." I could hear the mutter, voice thick with weariness.
"Bad news, I still don't know jack shit about what magic truly is or where it's coming from."
"Unfortunate."
"But, good news, I've gotten something arguably better! The knowledge I've gained is about the Entities. How they work, how they're structured, everything!"
Renji was silent for a moment, absorbing the immensity of my statement, even the hand that had idly been rubbing my shoulder stopped for a moment before continuing.
"That's…that's huge. That would mean we have actionable intelligence on how to hurt our enemy!"
I grimaced slightly. "The limitation of planetary levels of tech still applies, unfortunately, and I've still only explored the lowest level of this tech tree. But if I'm right it should give us a starting point."
Renji hummed in agreement, mind no doubt categorising the new information.
"And?" How advanced is the tech you're seeing?"
I was silent, because I truly didn't know what to say.
The information I had gained likely wasn't the peak of what the Entities could do, and yet the picture it painted was not a comforting one.
While I had been playing with nanomaterials and thinking myself oh so smart, The entities were casually utilising super materials far beyond even that. Picotechnology, the utilisation of miniature black holes to create superimposed materials, banded formations of space-time to act as a physical material. It was all there.
I had shielded an entire city in a region of expanded space, and I had still had to resort to magic in order to do it. The entities utilised higher dimensions to shunt energy and matter across endless realities, creating virtual realities that were somehow simultaneously real and fake and had dragged entire planets screaming into regions of unreality.
Every branch of technology you could name they possessed a horrifying understanding of it. Their knowledge of biology and engineering had no distinction in their archives because, to them, they were precisely the same. In the billions of years since they had evolved they had improved upon their forms. Upgrading, mutilating and mutating until they arguably couldn't even be considered biological life at all.
And this was still only the 'planetary level' that I could see. There were entire sections of science that I knew were absent and missing. That's not even mentioning the sheer requirements that these advanced manipulations of reality cost. Antimatter was the base starting level of what was required, and they viewed it in much the same way we viewed burning wood. Utterly primitive.
Properly utilising even a fraction of the knowledge in my head would take…years, maybe even decades. So much of this required precision far beyond atomic levels. Which meant, for the very first time, I was stuck in the same boat as every other Tinker, needing to build the tools to build the tools.
"Immensely," I finally answered.
"That's a good thing, right?"
"Our chances have certainly shot up but we'll have to be selective in what we choose to pursue building."
My hand finally raised away from my face, the light no longer as agonising as before. The pain was slowly, but surely, ebbing away into something manageable.
"But I think I know what I want to build."
Renji's eyebrows rise in interest, and I continue.
"It comes from a book I read a long time ago. A group of researchers mount an expedition to Antarctica to explore some ancient ruins they had found. Much to their misfortune, however, they're picked off one by one by an unknowable eldritch beasts and elder creatures of immense intellect."
"Sounds dark."
"I was going through an edgy phase at the time," I say, pouting slightly. Sixteen year old me just wanted to look cool, okay?!
Renji simply nodded, surprisingly understandingly. I blink, surprised.
"It's understandable for anyone to have such a phase, my friend. I'm also in an edgy phase, and will likely never leave it!"
I glanced at him in confusion. Renji wasn't edgy, what on Earth was he-
Oh.
My confused expression melts into a blank stare as I observe Renji patting his sword like a beloved pet.
I didn't mean that kind of edgy, Renji.
Well, whatever.
I cough to regain his attention and continue. "My memory of that book is quite lacking, but I enjoy the idea of such a place. Dark, foreboding and incomprehensible to the human mind! While I doubt I'll be able to match up to the original, this specialty will definitely help me get close," I chuckle – already imagining immense black pillars dotted across the barren whiteness of this continent.
Underground tunnels would also have to be a must! My inner gremlin was cackling in delight at the thought of all the fake lore I could add to those catacombs.
It would all have to culminate in a massive underground centre, of course. One riddled with impossible geometries and higher dimensional art. Sure, augmented humans might bleed a little just from seeing them, but it's not like I was planning on having any of them around.
My inner chuckles quietly escaped the confines of my mind as I instead began to vocalise them.
Ow!
Okay, maybe I'm still not over the headache just yet. I'll start building it once that was gone.
AN: Okay, so this ballooned in size. I'll be honest, this kind of just wrote itself. Alexander, now that he's actually thinking, is examining everything critically right now. Including the circumstances of how he got here. This leads him to attempt to understand more about magic and potential ways of how he got here.
Which leads him into getting two of the most powerful specialties he could get, and an understanding that he isn't just limited to 'classic' punk themes. As for why he got ShardPunk from attempting to obtain an eldritch theme, it's because entities are the closest the Wormverse has.
Then, at the very end, we get a hint as to what the base will look like. Lots of you thought it would be the Fortress of Solitude or Santa's Workshop, but may I instead introduce you to a Lovecraftian Fortress of Weirdness instead?
Thanks for reading, please leave a comment!
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Rating:
Teen And Up Audiences
Archive Warning:
Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Category:
Gen
Fandom:
Parahumans Series - Wildbow
Relationship:
Alexander/City Building
Characters:
Rebecca Costa-Brown | AlexandriaDragon (Parahumans)Director James TaggEmily PiggotColin Wallis | Armsmaster | DefiantBastion (Parahumans)
Additional Tags:
Self-InsertCYOAEndbringerA man finds his hobbyThe rest of the world is terrifiedCausing major wars by accidentTeehee~Misunderstandings
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English
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Published:2025-02-16Updated:2026-02-21Words:227,115Chapters:82/?Comments:555Kudos:1,453Bookmarks:363Hits:86,393
(End)Bringing You A New Home! (Endbringer SI)
10moorem
Chapter 56: Chapter 56: Pentagonal Edifice
Summary:
The ritual circle requires more bodies.
Also, Scion.
Chapter Text
Chapter 56: Pentagonal Edifice
-Alexander POV-
Dark stone collapsed in on itself, forced into an impossibly singular point. The matter was crushed, contorted, and flattened to form an impossibly small singularity. There was a flash of light and heat as Hawking Radiation bled from the black hole, like blood from an open wound. It existed for barely a millisecond, arguably less, but it was enough.
The dark, glassy, material that made up the pillar I was creating shifted.Superposition rendering the material distinctly different. Within the pillar I saw a darkness that went on forever, an unnatural shadow that seemed to sprout from the ground in defiance of the blazing sun above.
Any human who glanced upon it would be incapable of properly understanding it with their eyes alone, the darkness of the pillar so absolute that it would appear as if it was a 2D object imprinted upon the world. They would stop and stare in fear as they wondered what nefarious purpose it served.
The truth: vibes.
The most important purpose of them all.
It was the entire reason I was making five of these pillars, despite how stupidly expensive they were to make in terms of matter. It was the reason they had been made 55 meters tall, 5 meters wide exactly.
No, it wasn't for any magical effects. I simply knew that some Thinker was going to drive themselves up a wall trying to understand the significance when there was none. I could only imagine the endless nights full of caffeine and painkillers, the endless departments obsessing over my new home.
'Take that Lisa'.
I cackled slightly, calcium weaving into being before my eyes. The white substance quickly solidified to form human skeletons, complete with fabricated evidence of ritual sacrifice being performed. Rags and chains covered their forms as they were dragged to cover the circumference of the massive spire I had made.
Again, five of them. The agenda had to be maintained.
Want to know the best part of being a known Endbringer?
It was that my reputation couldn't get lower than it already was! So the idea that I may have ritualistically sacrificed twenty five people didn't even add a drop to the bucket next to the metaphorical sea of resentment that Earth Bet held towards me. Perhaps a saner man might have considered adding to it at all to be an unwise move, but you had to search for silver linings when you could find them. Right?
I stepped back a dozen feet, or so – bringing a hand to my chin as I inspected my work.
Ugh. I scrunched my nose up.
Well, to a human it would appear appropriately scary at least. However, to someone who had glimpsed the barest workings of the Entities? It looked like a third grade science project, like one of those shitty baking soda volcanoes. Not one of the good ones either.
The materials I had crafted were…subpar at best. With my matter manipulation I could feel the faint flaws in my work, the miniscule fracture lines that could see my work undone in a few thousand years. An unimaginable amount of time for a human, but not for an entity - which was the standard I was going to need to judge my work by in the coming years.
It was unfortunate, but it would have to do. There was only so much time I could devote to what was basically exterior decorating.
Not to say it had been a complete waste of time, I had figured out that I could make short lived black holes with my power, after all.
Initially I had wanted to utilise the properties of a black hole in my building process by constructing a Kugelblitz generator. Essentially a series of lasers that focused on a singular point to create a microscopic black hole.
Unfortunately that apparently wasn't possible. Quantum effects would ensure the energy would be dissipated by generating electron-positron pairs before a black hole could be formed. Which was a bummer, I had always enjoyed the idea of Kugelblitz black holes.
"Oi, Renji! Come see what I've made!" I jump up and down, waving in the direction of a distant red haired figure as I yell.
He disappears, and a sudden explosion of snow is kicked up where he had been as he reappears by my side.
"Alexander? What is it? Do you need – OH, HOLY FUCK!" Renji suddenly screams, jumping five feet in the air in fright.
I blink, startled by Renji's bout of yelling. What the hell had caused that? I swivel my head from side to side, attempting to locate what had caused my friend's distress.
"Alexander!" My head swiftly turns back as Renji's disapproving voice causes me to flinch slightly.
What?! What had I done?!
"I LEFT YOU ALONE FOR FIVE MINUTES!" Renji's face was a mix of disappointment and genuine amazement as he spoke. "HOW DID THIS HAPPEN," Renji yells, face covered by his hands in exasperation.
My head turns once again, turning to where Renji had been looking and – oh.
A chuckle escapes my throat.
"Don't worry Renji, I made those. Honestly I'm surprised you're freaking out so much, haven't you seen worse?"
Renji's face twisted into a flabbergasted expression, had I said something wrong?
"Alexander, this is literally the first time I've seen a dead body."
I froze.
"What?! Nah, surely you would have seen it in…uhh…huh." My expression became equally poleaxed as I realised he was telling the truth. I had mostly seen the horrors of China through drone footage while Renji had helped make new arrivals, delivered by teleport, more comfortable. He had seen people in dire situations there, but no dead bodies.
Then, in Hyderabad, I had sent him away before the killing started in earnest. By the time he had made his way back the fighting had ended, and most of the dead capes had either been eaten or vaporised.
Wow, Renji seriously hasn't seen a dead body yet. That's so weird!
Wait, why was I viewing that as a odd thing?
"Uhh, well technically you still haven't, these are just very-" one of the skeleton's jaws detached and clattered to the floor, and I ignored Renji's look of disgust as I powered on "-lifelike. But they're still not actual corpses, so I guess you haven't popped that cherry just yet!" I added in an upbeat tone, an awkward smile on my lips.
Oh god, why the fuck did I end my sentence like that!
I coughed and turned around. Definitely not to ignore whatever face Renji is showing right now, no siree!
"Back on topic, what do you think!"
"It's…scary?"
I nodded enthusiastically, waiting for more praise.
Renji glanced away, biting his lip nervously.
I'm waiting Renji!
"I…don't think it'll do wonders for you reputation?" The samurai offered weakly.
"Fuck 'em," I responded brightly – well and truly sick and tired over worrying about the opinions of others. This was my home, dammit! If I wanted to make it scary I was going to make it scary.
"I'm actually thinking of placing a curse over the area, make low level auditory and visual hallucinations – I think it would make the whole thing come together quite well!"
I spent the next hour chatting to Renji regarding my plans. He didn't seem too enthused though, so I eventually let him run off to go get harassed by a bird that had been stalking him for a while.
Watching one attempt to maul Renji while he gave it head pats was just hilarious.
Meanwhile I got started on the tunnels linking the surface to what would eventually become the main hideout. To an outside observer they'd make absolutely no sense, the physical tunnels themselves were elaborate winding pathways that constantly doubled back and ran through one another. It would likely take a whole team of explorers weeks to fully map them out, so extensive was the work I put into them.
Then I added portals, and what was once hard to navigate tunnels became a nightmare that made absolutely no sense. A maze that would make Escher proud, before quickly becoming disturbed at what I was filling those tunnels with.
I mean, it's not like I'd be using those tunnels, I have teleportation.
Honestly I wonder how long it'll take for the rest of the world to realise how little sense the whole thing made, it's not like I could even fit in those dark and cramped enclosures!
Eh, I give it a year. They're not the brightest, these Earth Bet folk.
Once that was done I started littering those tunnels with secret rooms, letters written In a made up language, traps, symbols carved in blood, more human corpses, biotinkered abomination cadavers and a whole plethora of hidden (and very fake) lore. It was just after creating the backstory of a team of explorers, including where they went to college and all their dreams and aspirations, that I realised I might be getting a bit too absorbed and hastily finished that bit of work.
Eh, horror through absence was a thing. If anything my plotholes would probably add to the whole thing.
It's just kind of a shame no one was ever going to see it. I briefly considered letting Renji spelunk in my magical tunnels of horror, but thought better of it. If he was scared by my work earlier then he really wouldn't enjoy what I had done down there.
Creating the pillars and tunnels had taken approximately a day and a half, but it wouldn't surprise me if the next part took a week or more to make. I would be carving out a massive underground cave and then spatially expanding the insides to fit all of the junk I wanted to cram into it.
Sure, a decent portion of the base would be set aside for research and accommodations, but the rest I would reserve for my very own haunted mansion. It would be great!
I whistled an upbeat tune as I tunnelled back to the surface, angling myself in the direction I could feel Renji was currently at.
Feeling a mischievous smile dart across my face I slowed down, my momentum slowing as I felt out the world using my power. Renji had found an outcrop of stone that stubbornly stuck out of the surrounding environment. My friend had clearly brushed the snow of off it in order to sit upon it and meditate.
Mapping Renji's body to that of a human's wasn't an exact science, there were entire parts of Renji's psyche that would be absent in a normal human – and vice versa. Because of that I couldn't tell how 'in the zone' he was, but going by the deep breaths, and minimal energy usage, I was willing to bet he had been at this for a while now.
Sure would be a shame to surprise him~
My form broke through the snow with a burst of speed, showering Renji in snow and rock. "OOGIDIE BOOGIDIE BOOGIDIE!" The outpouring of nonsense from my mouth made Renji's eyes burst open in surprise.
He only had a moment to gape in shock before he was covered in the snow, making me burst out into laughter.
The sodden, and covered in white, form of Renji sagged slightly – accepting his fate as I continued to belt out my laughter.
"…Really?"
I snickered, even the stare of disappointment Renji gave me couldn't dampen my spirits.
"Really! Weren't you the one who said you should always be prepared?"
"Don't use my own words against me, please." Renji's frown deepened, his mood only blackening further.
My giggles abruptly stopped. The words that left his mouth had a touch of bitterness to them that was unlike how Renji normally acted. His posture was withdrawn and sullen, something wasn't right.
I frowned, concern beginning to fill me as I sat down next to him.
"You okay, Renji?"
The crimson clad man said nothing for a time, his face a mix of emotions not easily discernible. Then, with gingerly care, he withdrew his sword from his scabbard.
His very broken sword.
Was that what it was?
I looked at Renji's face once again. There was anger there, flashing across his face intermittently – like a thunderbolt. There was a dash of shock too, as if he was still unable to understand the sight of the broken blade before him.
But it was guilt that pulled at his brow and made his eyes occasionally dart to me.
So Renji was guilty about what happened at Hyderabad? That didn't sound right, he wasn't even there for the most part. Heck, I was the one who sent him away, it wasn't even his fault he couldn't help.
My eyes returned to that sword, the metal warped at the end by the grip of a single woman.
Except that wasn't totally true. There had been a moment, before I had sent Renji away, where he had treated with the Protectorate. Where Alexandria had taken him by the throat and broken his sword. I could still remember the look of stubborn defiance on his face, even as focused as I was on tearing him from that bitch's clutches.
"Are you not happy with how that went?" My finger pointed towards his sword, my words causing him to stiffen slightly.
He sighed, deeply and wearily. Clearly he wasn't pleased with it at all, still inspecting the shard of metal with an uncomprehending gaze.
One of my fists clenched. It wasn't enough for that group to hurt me was it? They just had to do this to Renji too.
The temptation to rage was strong, a siren call to rend this snowy bastion of tranquillity into a battered -molten- crater. I resisted it. There was something more important than my own petty wants right in front of me.
I let none of my internal struggle appear on my face as I sat down next to him.
"Why exactly do you feel that way? You're not the reason it came down to a fight. That was Alexandria's fault, my fault."
He mumbled something under his breath, and I scooched over - trying to make out what he had said.
"Yes?"
"I'm not mad about that," Renji sighed – still looking despondent before turning to me.
"I wanted them to start a fight, you know? I was even excited for it. There I was, an immortal ideal of battle, given a sword and a duty to protect you and facing enemies that clearly wished you ill. I was elated. I thought it would be my chance to show you…" Renji trailed off, looking away in shame.
I suddenly understood. He wasn't ashamed that the talks went south, he was ashamed he was beaten so easily – and why wouldn't he be? Renji wasn't wrong to call himself an 'ideal'. I had drawn his very essence from the abstracta of a warrior, a peerless blade to defend and kill at my command.
In truth I felt guilt regarding that decision now. While he had a great deal of personal freedom, and the ability to choose, Renji would always end up wielding a blade in hand – unable to ever let it go.
It just wasn't in his nature. His nature was to fight and kill and win.
Then came along Alexandria. An individual against which perfect skill didn't matter. She was too strong, too fast and absolutely impossible for Renji to hurt in any meaningful way.
No wonder he was thinking of this, he had likely been doing so in the back of his mind since Hyderabad.
I bit my lip, rolling it against my teeth as I contemplated a solution.
There was absolutely no way he would ever view this defeat as anything other than a failure, no matter how I tried to reframe it. I could explain the nature of Alexandria's power, explain to him that it was completely improbable that he could have won. I could have told him that expecting to beat not just Alexandria, but all the parahumans that had accompanied her was beyond optimistic – it was foolhardy.
Yet, this was Renji. Mr 'fuck the odds, we're going to kill Scion' himself. Low likelihood of victory was no excuse to him.
So instead…
"Well, I guess that blade was getting a bit old anyway," I say – completely ignoring the fact that the blade was barely a month old. "You should get a new one, and while we're at it... If I'm already upgrading your sword, I may as well go all the way."
Renji jolted, as if hit by a lightning bolt. He looked up at me in wonder, dark thoughts banished by my words.
"So…you mean you'll make me stronger?" Renji asked.
"That's exactly what I'm saying. I've gotten a lot more knowledgeable since I created you Renji, by the time I'm done you'll be able to fight an Endbringer and come out swinging!"
I swear, just looking at Renji's expression you'd assume I had told him he was getting a hundred puppies and a swimming pool full of ice cream on his birthday. His face brightened like the rising sun, and his smile could have given diabetes.
-Lim Kun, CUI Soldier POV-
"Repeat that, over." The voice coming out of the radio in his shaking hand seemed incredulous.
Not that he could blame the operator.
The area before him was foreboding. Dark, and unsettlingly quiet for a place that had once held an entire city. The wind picked up, the howling gale blowing dust across the barren rock. It felt oppressive and clawing, it reminded him too much of the few correction camps he had seen before.
Desolate, and lacking in hope, but for a very different reason.
He, and the battalion that had accompanied him, had arrived in good cheer. Full of songs and bluster, for why would they not? They had just received word that the miserable artifice of Eris was gone, blotted out and never to return.
But any cheer that had once been present was now gone, sucked out by this atmosphere devoid of anything but the whipping wind and abyssal dark. They had, nevertheless pressed on, now suddenly all the more eager to finish this reconnaissance and return home.
They had crested the hill blocking their sight of the, now vanished, city and looked upon what remained for the first time. The land sported scars, that was the first thing they had seen – yet these were no ordinary marks of a battle gone. They were jagged cuts, taken to the world itself and opened into a yawning abyss that was haunting in its emptiness.
Yet even these wounds in reality paled before the spectacle that was at the centre of the empty bowl of land that had once been so populous.
Protrusions of red crystals, as wide as entire buildings in some cases, wormed their way through the land and air. They twisted and split in patterns that seemed incomprehensible until you looked closer, and saw the pattern repeating again and again.
Even the lines, the scars in the air, were not implacable before these strange burrowing things, as the crystals inexorably cut through even them. It reminded him, horribly, of Huǐhuài, an 'annihilator cape' as the American's would call him.
He had been present for the man's capture, and that day still haunted him. What the official briefings wouldn't tell you was just how many people went down in order to capture him alive. Those fractal blasts had cut through buildings, people, tinkertech and powers with the exact same ease, an irreverence to any laws that Lim Kun knew.
The crystals were still moving, flowing outwards from the gaping void they had originated from. Light was refracted oddly by the crystals, first appearing black, then red, then a colour he had no words to describe and then back. Over and over.
The void itself was…he didn't know. Nobody from his squad liked to look at it, despite all swearing they saw nothing within the darkness they could feel a gaze upon them. Atavistic instincts clawing at the back of their minds, urging them away.
Yet this void, these crystals or the scarring on space itself wasn't what caused him to lock up – to tremble as he called the situation in. It was a familiar golden figure staring down into the void, consideringly.
"It's Scion, Ma'am. He's here, over."
The radio was silent at that, and Lim Kun was right there with her – for what was there to say.
The man, the first parahuman, hung in the air, suspended by nothing but his own power as he stared contemplatively down. His expression didn't change, yet he could tell the man was curious.
The aura of sadness he had heard so much about was shockingly absent, in it's place was a deep desire to understand – Lim Kun could feel it projected onto him.
Why was he here? Lim Kun had never been interested in the Golden Man, never been an expert, but he knew Scion was constantly moving – heading from disaster to disaster without a single break. Sure, his idea of what constituted a disaster could be a little off but he had never just stopped like this.
Lim Kun had the briefest idea of trying to communicate with the man, but quickly dismissed the idea. Scion didn't talk to anybody, he wasn't going to start with some no name soldier.
The man was eerily still, like some perfect statue crafted by a renowned sculpture. The only imperfection to this stillness was the slight movements of his head, as if he was tracking something unable to be seen by Lim Kun's own eyes.
"Sergeant Lim Kun! Do you copy?!"
The voice shook him out of his musings, the operator clearly having been trying to catch his attention for a while now.
"Present, over."
A sigh, perhaps of relief or weariness, was transmitted from the radio.
"What is the current status of Scion, over?"
"Present over the anomaly, ma'am. About-" He ran some quick calculations in his head. "-forty meters above it. He appears to be observing it, over."
"…Your mission remains the same Sergeant. Keep a lookout on the anomaly, and keep an eye on our visitor too, over."
Lim Kum wanted to roll his eyes, but didn't dare – not even over radio.
"Yes ma'am, over."
With that he strapped his radio back onto his belt and looked back up at Scion. Still there, still hauntingly beautiful.
But, if he looked closely, did the man look almost frustrated?
AN: Here's another chapter. Woooo! Back to building, I know some of you have missed that and it will be continued in the next chapter too. Yeah, Alexander genuinely doesn't give a fuck how his Antarctica base is seen at this point. He's just choosing to flex his horror writing chops.
Renji is frustrated, mostly because he got owned by Alexandria in about two seconds. He'll be getting an upgrade, courtesy of Alexander.
Finally that opening to Shardspace, that wasn't taken with the city, is coming into play again. Scion has noticed and is investigating. I'm not going to spoil what he's thinking, but it's probably not what you think!
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Rating:
Teen And Up Audiences
Archive Warning:
Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Category:
Gen
Fandom:
Parahumans Series - Wildbow
Relationship:
Alexander/City Building
Characters:
Rebecca Costa-Brown | AlexandriaDragon (Parahumans)Director James TaggEmily PiggotColin Wallis | Armsmaster | DefiantBastion (Parahumans)
Additional Tags:
Self-InsertCYOAEndbringerA man finds his hobbyThe rest of the world is terrifiedCausing major wars by accidentTeehee~Misunderstandings
Language:
English
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Published:2025-02-16Updated:2026-02-21Words:227,115Chapters:82/?Comments:555Kudos:1,453Bookmarks:363Hits:86,393
(End)Bringing You A New Home! (Endbringer SI)
10moorem
Chapter 57: Chapter 57: Domicile Difficulties
Summary:
*Alexander standing within a base capable of causing global catastrophes if touched wrong*
"Try me, bitches."
Chapter Text
Chapter 57: Domicile Difficulties
-Alexander POV-
Question. What is the best way to defend something in a land of precognitives and postcognitives, a world where privacy is non-existent and a Thinker could have your name, email and social security number by day's end if they wanted to?
Well, as I had already made use of, you simply made it too inconvenient to go after you. Nilbog had used it, the Machine Army had used it, Bonesaw had used it and I was using it again, but with a twist.
There would be no horrifying plagues this time, instead the central chamber itself was my weapon. Or it would be, if I could get it working.
I hummed, a nano-tipped gold and uranium alloy buzzed to life as energy poured through them and the room grew. The air wavered, visibly roiling as more air was pulled in to fill the empty space that had just been created.
As for me, my eyes were closed in concentration. This technology that produced the spatial warp was still immature and unlike other examples, such as Vista, the matter that was stretched over dozens of miles had a tendency of…not holding up too well.
Cracks and seams formed, breaking apart, and I hurriedly fixed them – drawing in more matter from the outside to keep up with the expansion. This was the twelfth time I had done this, all previous attempts failing for one reason or another. Each time I had learned from that failure and crafted solutions.
I had also made sure none of those failures were too dramatic in nature, always quickly reversing the effects if I suspected the mechanism was about to fail. In fact, it was vital I did this because a sudden failure would be...highly explosive.
Picture this. There is a room dozens of miles wide. It's empty, for now, but you know it's current size is a result of something artificial, and if it fails the room would instantly revert back to a room only a few meters across.
Why was that a problem? Because suddenly all that gas, that had filled a room miles across, was now occupying only a few meters. The gas would quickly heat up, becoming plasma in less than a second and would expand, destroying the room in a conflagration of fire.
But the fun doesn't stop there! That explosion would almost certainly cause sea level rise and massive tsunamis across the globe. The intense heat produced by the explosion would whip up super hurricanes that would ravage this world for years to come.
Literally nobody wanted that. Not Scion, not the Simurgh and not any Shard.
So, just like with Hyderabad, nobody will want to venture here in fear of a sudden catastrophic breach. Even my enemies, whether they be Cauldron or the Simurgh, will work towards ensuring that never happens.
They'd also subtly work towards disarming my little trap, but frankly I only needed it for a few years. If they managed to render my contingency void in that amount of time then they deserved it.
Now you might be wondering 'Alexander why the fuck are you doing this?!'
Which was a fair enough question, but ask yourself this: if you knew the scary and intelligent Endbringer was building megaprojects in Antarctica would youleave them be? The answer is no. It's: fuck no.
As much as I was a fan of some deep immersive lore building in my creations, I hadn't just created those tunnels for fun. They were simply another means of dissuading others from entering my crib. Literally every part of what I was building was designed for that, fashioned around that singular idea. If I had to bludgeon the idea of leaving me alone across the head of every sapient watching, then I would do it.
I grimaced as a part of the Spatial Expansion Mechanism sparked violently. I quickly throttled the power down, swiftly stopping the expansion and allowing it to slowly begin contracting. The stone I had shifted, I returned to its proper place.
I kept a metaphorical eye on the technology the entire time, if so much as a single circuit began to crack I would step in and utilise the magic circle I had constructed in the chamber to shunt the excess matter into space.
Wasteful? Sure, but it was better than the alternative and with any luck it might confuse the space pigeon.
I mentally reached out to inspect the mechanism and, to my complete lack of shock, the wiring had once more begun to melt under the strain of channelling so much energy. The cooling measures I had devised using my knowledge of specialised thermotrophic bacteria, a strain that could quickly absorb and move away from the source of the heat and dump it elsewhere, had failed.
Evidently The temperature had been too much for even those hardy critters.
Should I tweak the alloy of the wiring once more?
No, in terms of mundane metallurgy this was the best I could accomplish without dipping my toes into something more…exotic.
I was trying not to go crazy with magic until I had a better grasp on it. Maybe if given another two or three levels in AetherPunk, but I lacked the charges for that.
Besides, if there were better alternatives then why not use them?
Theoretically I could create a region of altered space-time that allowed for 100% energy absorption without loss, which was fucking bonkers by the way. Unfortunately, in order to make that, I would need a stable way to alter space-time to that level, and the slightly smoking mechanism before me showed just how far away from that I was.
Thing is? Expanding an internal volume over a thousand times over? Baby stuff, barely an inconvenience compared to what I was dreaming up.
I grumbled slightly, my plans for the complete subjugation of physics stymied for now. I once more turned my attention back to the slightly melted wires.
It had taken longer for the mechanism to fail. Previously it had endured for only two minutes before I was forced to halt the spatial expansion. After several iterations on the base technology it had lasted for over ten minutes.
The efficiency of Nanopunk had allowed me to create stronger alloys to endure the strain of manipulating reality.
AtomPunk had helped with more efficient power generation, preventing waste heat from building up too quickly.
CyberPunk was of great aid in terms of programming, greatly shaving off bloat and allowing the speed of Spatial expansion to quicken by about twenty percent.
SolarPunk had come in with a suplex and thankfully reminded me that I was in fucking antarctica, and allowed me to use that to my advantage.
I've already explained what BioPunk had allowed me to cook up, an all purpose coolant a century beyond modern day versions.
All of that and I was still a few minutes away from completing the goal I had set for myself,
A goal that wasn't strictly necessary. With my matter manipulation I could still the movement of atoms, stifle heat transfer in the crib and allow the mechanism to work unhindered. I could do all of that, yet I didn't.
Partly because the plan I was cooking up, the skeleton of it at least, required machinery and inventions that could be operated and understood by a normal human.
And because, as much as it hurt to admit, I had undoubtedly become too reliant on that power.
Perhaps it shouldn't have come as a shock to realise that. After all if given a power that seemed purpose built to synergise with your other power wouldn't you use it. It had allowed me to craft entire cities in the span of a few days, and call into being wonders that humanity could only dream of.
It had given me a sense of not quite arrogance, but certainly complacency.
It wasn't until ShardPunk had arrived that I realised just how much I had relied on my ability to shape matter as a crutch.
Sure, I had blended tech trees before, I had done it in the cities I had built but it was never quite to the extent I was doing it now. Each of my specialties could compliment and build on each other, if allowed to, and I had never truly thought of the implications of that.
Part of that was my fatalistic mindset at the time, but another had simply been because I didn't need to eke out every advantage. After all, I could manipulate matter. Why attempt to streamline the production of housing and necessities when you could print them on demand? Why attempt to push the boundaries of medicine when you could directly alter the human body at your whim?
So very logical, and so utterly stupid!
I resist the urge to sneer as I close my eyes and begin to count to ten.
It was something the internet had recommended, not exactly the best place for self help but I would take what I could get. I focused on my breathing, letting the world fall away. I turned away from my matter sense, allowing darkness to cloud my vision.
I had tried meditation before, when I was much younger. I hadn't been something I enjoyed, but unlike most other kids I possessed the patience for it. The coals burning in my chest gradually cooled, simmering down to mere embers.
I opened my eyes, slightly calmer. Okay, I was good – I was so good!
I fist-bumped the air, attempting to hype myself up.
Let's look at this burnt piece of crap one more time!
I examined the mesh of circuits, yet came up with nothing. I had been working on this for hours now, and -despite my efforts- my mind felt like a soup of grey boredom.
'...Ugh, this sucks.'
Y'know what? Fuck it, I'll just make the heat sink bigger! That should do something.
I turned around and made my way to the smooth round opening I had left in the side of the chamber. Knowing me I was probably going to turn it into a sickass giant gate when the spatial expansion was finished.
Maybe add some gold filigree to it? Or should I make it more foreboding and austere? Decisions, decisions.
Ducking down, I heading down the flight of stairs that were to the right of the entrance I had just came from. The heat sink I was heading down towards was deep, near an underground aquifer I was using to help in dissipating the heat.
As I descended the air rapidly became more and more humid, and as I reached the final level I could even see faint wisps of steam reaching through the door that lead to my destination.
Please don't tell me I have to build a heat sink for my heat sink," I moaned quietly – mostly as a jest. I reached towards the door and pulled it open, releasing a slight waft of steam that caused me to squint as the warm air reached my face.
The room within was a dimly lit cavern, the light originating from bioluminescent lichen I had littered across the cave. An endolithic lifeform I was quite proud of.
Near the centre of the room was a smooth circular hole, revealing waters that had been untouched by humanity – perfect and pristine.
Oh, and Renji was taking a soak next to the cables that extended down into the aquifer.
"Oh, Alexander! Come to join me?" The samurai asked, turning to face me.
Despite him interfering in my experiment my lips curled into a faint smile.
"I don't think it's quite big enough for that," I observe, tilting my head to view the pool at a better angle.
"You could just make it bigger."
"True," I nodded, now slightly conflicted. I didn't exactly want to interrupt Renji, but in order to cool this back down -to redo my experiment with the mechanism- I would need to return the water back to an icy temperature just above zero.
I also don't think he'd appreciate me carving out more room when he was trying to relax, it was a fairly loud process after all.
I sighed, ready to tell Renji to get out as politely as I could before stopping.
'Wait, isn't expanding this room and making it cooler just me using my power as a crutch again? Didn't I just chastise myself for that?'
The realisation percolated in my head for a brief second, before I let out a weary sigh.
"Yes, I think a soak would be for the best. I'm clearly not thinking straight." Renji gained a curious look at that, but I didn't give him an explanation as I widened the hole to accommodate my girth and quietly slipped in.
Despite my efforts to be gentle waves kicked up as I displaced the water, causing Renji to sputter as he attempted to shield his face with his arms.
For my part, I was just groaning in pleasure as the warm water reached my skin.
'It's been so long.'
It felt like the presence of an old friend, I had always enjoyed a good bath back when I was still human. The last time I had been submerged in water was back in Kyushu, and that had not been a fun experience.
This was much better.
I closed my eyes, luxuriating in the peace of the moment.
"So, uh-"
"Renji? Do you want me to go back over my unhealthy interest in Flechette and Parian's relationship."
Renji let out a sound eerily reminiscent of a dying horse, which was all the answer I needed.
"Exactly, so let me have a moment of peace." I sank deeper into the water, letting it come up to my chin.
Bathing in warm water, in Antarctica of all places, and enjoying the quiet companionship of a friend. My time since being stranded here may have been stressful and full of pain but, at times like this, it was almost worth it.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Renji and I eventually left the waters once they began to cool, which took a while. Given that I possessed the body of an Endbringer and Renji was a magical android neither of us had to worry about wrinkles from staying in too long, which was nice.
The soak had also been desperately needed because, upon coming back to my prior problem, I realised that I had been something of an idiot.
I was having problems regarding charge and the transfer of energy? Wasn't there a specialty literally built around that.
TeslaPunk Level 1 – Welcome to the world of electricity, Victorian styles and lots of brass! With this specialty you will gain the capability of wide spread and cheap electricity for all!
I had been hoping to save my last charge for another level in ShardPunk, but I would inevitably gain another charge from building and innovating upon my home base. Besides, the more variety I obtained in my knowledge base the better.
And upon gaining this new specialty the very first instinct I had was to smack myself.
TeslaPunk was a world that imagined cheap and affordable electricity in virtually every facet of life, all wrapped up in Victorian imagery. So of course they had the solution to my problem, and it was a blindingly obvious one in retrospect.
If you couldn't use a physical medium to transfer the energy without their integrity failing then just don't use a physical medium dummy!
The solution, as it turns out, was lasers. Sweet, ionizing, lasers. Enough to create a laser-induced plasma channel, which allowed for an electrical current to pass through. Easy enough in theory, but back home the idea wasn't anywhere near viable enough to become practical.
With TeslaPunk? I knew a thousand different ways to manipulate electromagnetism, and with that knowledge my ability of interface with the higher truths of this world, without the use of my power, had skyrocketed.
I chuckled, as the mechanism once more unravelled before me – gold spooling outwards like the web of a spider.
Things were proceeding apace.
AN: I was actually a bit sick while writing this. Had a cough, a headache and it felt weird to swallow. Still not as bad as it was a few days before that though.
Bit more of a building chapter, focusing entirely on one specific aspect of the base: the spatial expansion of it. Partly I wanted to go into this as it shows just how much thought needs to go into each bit of entity tech Alexander deals with. Another was to show the pitfalls of his overuse of matter manipulation.
Sure, it's useful to have but it's ensured he never needed to dive into certain aspects of his Tinker power. Which he'll need to, as it's apparently part of his super-secret plan to take on Scion.
Also, if you couldn't tell, Alexander might be a bit too quick to resort to MAD scenarios. It works, but it's certainly concerning.
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