Babel

Though she had made preparations for a worst-case scenario type event, Meylp was still surprised when Eondu, heading an army of several thousand Verum, arrived on the 100th Floor. Her army still vastly outnumbered his, but, due to the contract Eondu had made with the Tower, a group of elites, consisting almost entirely of his children, greatly exceeded the LV100 threshold.Under the banner of the Dragon God, Eondu's forces managed to conquer several territories within the 100th Floor almost immediately after their emergence. This wasn't that surprising, but, instead of trying shore up their defenses, they formed several aerial squadrons focused solely on dealing as much damage as possible before fleeing. They didn't even try to act with the characteristic pride of the Verum, and, rather than directly engage Meylp's superior forces, they focused on guerilla tactics and causing as much collateral damage as possible.Meylp had heard the rumors of Eondu's sly and cunning behavior, but, as he had always acted in a very open and arrogant manner, she hadn't anticipated that his forces would continually flee from a direct engagement. To make matters worse, some of the agents planted by the Verum had worked their way into positions of influence and authority over the centuries. They managed to develop an underground network that fed information directly to the Verum forces. This allowed them to avoid the subjugation forces sent after them, and, at times, even allowed them to prepare traps to heavily damage Meylp's army.Though she had never been the critical-thinking type, Meylp easily saw through Eondu's ploy from the moment the first reports reached her ears. It was apparent he had taken her greatest weakness into consideration, and, instead of fighting on her terms, he was doing everything in his power to destabilize her position as Ruler. He had even started to forge alliances of his own, promising much the same benefits as she had while also promising to spare specific cities and regions from plunder and destruction.Gradually and methodically, Eondu, who had remained hidden since his arrival on the 100th Floor, managed to expand his forces and dominion of control. Meylp had always been a well-respected Ruler, but, due to her nature, she had failed to inspire devotion and loyalty among her subjects. She had the zealous support of the Bapho and a few other tribes, but, when forced to choose between loyalty and death, a considerable number of people chose to join the Verum faction.Unlike Meylp, who built relationships on trust and mutual respect, Eondu forced those beneath him into binding contracts that guaranteed their obedience. Those who resisted would have their cities burned, and, as had been proven numerous times, Meylp's forces were unable to hinder them. The mobility of the Verum was simply too great, and, while her forces were indeed greater, maintaining a supply line and preventing the reduction of morale were becoming exponentially more difficult as the war progressed.Though some of the native tribes had tried to adhere to the treaty they had made with Meylp, even they abandoned hope when she was left with little choice but to pull back her forces in an attempt to shore up the defenses of select cities. She wanted to try and clear out some of the dissidence in the core cities, and, though she established a policy to accept refugees, there simply wasn't enough space to accommodate the members of every tribe.Ultimately, Meylp was able to regain control over the core cities, weeding out many of the forces that had been working alongside the Verum, but, in exchange, she lost the support of numerous factions that had allied with the same people who had persecuted them. This was something that vexed her to no end, but, as there was little she could do to change their minds, Meylp committed the singular act that lost her the greatest amount of support.As the Ruler of the 100th Floor, Meylp had control over its structure, and, though it would take a considerable amount of time for drastic changes to occur, she could even modify entire regions and biomes. Thus, in an effort to try and pressure the Verum while simultaneously increasing her ability to supply her own people, she gathered the energy from the entire Floor to drastically increase the fertility around the core cities at the expense of everything else.Meylp believed that, if she had enough resources, she could gradually expand the core cities and accommodate all refugees who sought sanctuary. Unfortunately, her actions were misconstrued a great deal by those outside the core cities, and, believing they had been completely abandoned by their former leader, many of the tribes that had been resisting the Verum's control ended up joining hands with the very enemies who had been slaughtering them wantonly.What Meylp had originally intended to be a singular climactic battle turned into a prolonged war that spanned literal decades. This resulted in the citizens of the core cities becoming gradually more complacent from excess, while, outside the pristine and highly-maintained walls, a vast wasteland as far as the eye could see had dominated much of the Floor.Due to the existence of such a disparity, people born within the cities began to disdain those born outside, while, inversely, those born in the wastelands began to vehemently hate those born inside the city. This rift only became more prominent with the passage of time, and, though she had tried to maintain a policy that accepted refugees, excess always led to rampant corruption and groups of people who wanted more than they already had.Though they should have been doing their best to help those seeking refuge, city officials began to proactively turn away and even harass those born hailing from the outside. Some even accused the outsiders of being spies for the Verum, and, without any proof, they would severely torture or even kill those trying to seek aid. In truth, they just didn't want to share their resources with outsiders, as, despite there being plenty to go around, it was hoarded by the various prosperous families that had come into power following the consolidation of people and resources.For her part, Meylp did her best to try and prevent things from getting out of hand, but, as she was just one person, it was impossible to micromanage the affairs of every City. It didn't help that many of the affluent families that had come into power were her principal supporters in the war against the Verum. She had tried to rein them in early on, but, after confronting the patriarch of one of the most powerful families, they actually began to secretly support the Verum in an attempt to stage a coup against her. This resulted in the loss of countless lives, and, ever since then, public support of the war effort had waned considerably.With even the public gradually turning their back on her, despite the fact she had always done her best to try and protect them, Meylp became progressively more jaded towards ruling. She still had the support of the Bapho, but, as more and more time passed, everyone else began to regard her as some kind of tyrant. They seemed to completely ignore the fact it was the Verum who had been wantonly slaughtering people in order to bring them under their thumb, and, despite the hundreds of years she had sued for peace, they conveniently forgot about it the moment their exorbitant and excessive lifestyles were endangered.In an effort to alleviate her frustrations and increase public rapport, Meylp began hosting the once-annual tournament that had been so popular prior to the war's onset. She needed a way to vent her stress, and, with both herself and the title of Ruler on the line, the event drew just as much interest as it always had. Powerful people from all the core cities arrived to participate in the event, and, as an added bonus, it allowed Myelp to demonstrate her power, hopefully preventing future problems from arising.What she never could have expected was that one of the participants, a young man with ruby-red eyes and golden hair, ended up being Eondu himself. Most Verum possessed horns, a tail, and even wings, but, due to his father being a simple Hume, Eondu had always been able to transform into a purely humanoid form. This allowed him to infiltrate the core cities long ago, and, over the years, he had risen to become one of the most successful merchants on the entire Floor, specifically focusing on black market goods and smuggling.Meylp had actually been familiar with the golden-haired youth prior to his participation in the event so it came as a surprise to her when he suddenly demonstrated his power. All of the reports related to him mentioned that he had been born on the 100th Floor, and, though he was very influential in the underground markets, his power was limited by the fact he had yet to climb the Tower. He had always relied on the hands of others to enforce his authority, and, if not for the political connections his deceased father had forged, she assumed he would have been eliminated by rival organizations long ago.It was only after seeing Eondu demonstrate his might that Meylp realized she had been completely played by the infamously arrogant Dragon God. None of the rumors surrounding him mentioned he was the type to scheme and conspire over decades, as, during his climb, he had always acted in an extreme, open, and direct manner. He was even known to kill or cripple thousands of people just because someone spread a negative or embarrassing rumor, seemingly incapable of allowing even the smallest slight against his pride...In truth, Eondu had always been a very calculating individual, as, during the period where he had yet to awaken his Blessing, he had been treated poorly even by his own mother and grandmother. He had been born a prince of the so-called most powerful species, but, as his father was a Hume, many within his tribe had looked down on him due to his relative weakness and small stature. The treatment he received after his awakening only reaffirmed the reality that his race was crippled by their own mentality, so, before he had gained enough power to forcibly change things, Eondu had embodied all the negative aspects of the Verum to the extreme.With a chance to seize control without a prolonged engagement, Eondu decided to use Meylp's own tournament against her. If he could defeat her in the event, he would have completed several of his objectives, as, with the Queen of the Bapho as his bride, it was only a matter of time before they were able to produce an offspring with the ultimate potential. What he hadn't anticipated was the impact his machinations had on the famously pacifistic Queen, as, the moment she realized his identity, Meylp completely discarded any sense of propriety and attacked in full force.Ignoring the fact they were in the center of the largest core city, Meylp ended up transforming into her Behemoth form and entering a berserk state where her only goal was destroying Eondu. At the same time, she activated the city-wide defensive barrier that was supposed to keep enemies at bay, using it to seal the hateful Dragon God within the city. Then, without any regard for the devastation their battle would cause, she engaged his transformed state alongside nearly every member of her tribe.What was originally intended to be a festive event quickly turned into the climactic battle Meylp had envisioned for hundreds of years. She used all of her might in an effort to crush Eondu then and there, but, due to his ridiculous speed, most of her attacks were ineffective. This turned the battle into a war of attrition where large chunks of her body were cleaved away, but, due to the unique constitution provided by the Behemoth transformation, even having her head blown off was barely enough to shave away more than ten percent of her Health.Unlike normal physical transformations, the Behemoth form was more of a physical construct made from pure energy. There was no way a normal person would be able to increase their mass to the size of a small mountain under normal conditions, so, unless the core hidden within her body was destroyed, Meylp could effectively fight until her SP had completely run out. As for her Health, it would completely regenerate in a very short period of time, so, despite his attacks having no real counter, Eondu was unable to put her down due to his inability to locate her actual body.With the benefits provided to them as Guardian Gods, the battle between Meylp and Eondu was able to continue for several days without either securing a definitive advantage. The disheartening thing for most survivors was the fact that the majority of the devastation had been caused by Meylp herself, rather than the enemy they had constantly been told to fear. They began to see Eondu as a Hero fighting against a tyrannical beast, as, despite being their greatest adversary, all of his attacks were aimed away from the city, purely focused on the raging Meylp.Though several of Meylp's allies started off by coming to her aid, even the most fervent amongst her supports became dispassionate after seeing the devastation she had wrought. She wasn't even trying to control her strength, and, with many other Bapho also taking on monstrous forms, it was like they were under attack by a wave of beasts rather than defending their homeland. As a result, they began focusing more on evacuating the civilians, and, though there were only a few isolated incidents, some of Meylp's staunchest allies even began fighting against the rampaging Bapho.In the end, the battle was decided when Eondu, nearly killing himself in the process, hit Meylp with a Void Breath that had erupted from his maw in a massive cone. It had taken the remainder of his SP and most of his Health, but, in the process, he managed to completely erase the lower half of Myelp's real body. This spelled her defeat, but, as she was still alive, Meylp used the remainder of her strength to forge a new contract with the Tower. She had never been a vindictive person, but, having suffered due to Eondu's machinations for so long, Meylp was unable to forgive the Verum and their hateful God.Nobody knew the exact terms of the contract she had made, but, in the wake of the battle between the Dragon God and Bapho Queen, the former's race reigned supreme while the latter's was forced to live in perpetuity as a Slave race. Since then, the Dragon God's might was rumored to be without equal in the entire Tower. This allowed him to create an Empire that had survived until the present day, and, despite the average lifespan of a Verum only being a few thousand years, he had reigned for more than forty-thousand without contest...

Despite their best efforts, the Verum were unable to completely regulate the spread of information between the 90th and 99th Floors. There were countless non-standard methods to climb the Tower, and, every now and then, powerful groups and individuals had managed to slip through the cracks thanks to a subset of the Verum Nobility that privately disagreed with their race's tyrannical pursuit for a completely arbitrary title.Thanks to the efforts of these outliers within the Verum species, Meylp was well aware of Eondu's rise and the inevitability of a cataclysmic war. Thus, for several hundred years, she had prepared for the inevitable by forging powerful alliances. As a result, her army had grown extensively, but, rather than consist of standard climbers, it was almost entirely comprised of various different monsters.As you moved progressively higher up the Tower, encountering 'native species', monsters that had reached a certain degree of sapience, became increasingly common. These groups would often be hunted by the Rulers that obtained Authority over their respective Havens, but, as Meylp had never been the type to indiscriminately slaughter, she chose to coexist with those who had resided in the Tower for millennia before anyone disturbed them.With her phenomenal strength, Meylp had been able to forge powerful alliances with the leaders of various native tribes. This often frightened new arrivals to the 100th Floor, as, prior to their arrival, it was considered 'normal' to wipe out native species as soon as they were discovered. Finding several million coexisting in relative harmony with each other was actually rather terrifying, as, unlike those fated to climb the Tower, the native species were inordinately powerful from birth. Though they had an upper limit to their growth, as they were unable to climb the Tower, they had more than enough power to threaten those who had managed to reach their Floor.Due to the many alliances she had forged, the 100th Floor Haven, Avalon, was considerably more peaceful than most. The vast disparity between the number of climbers and monsters was enough to cow all but the most prideful and egotistical. Even then, only the foolish dared to cause a scene, as, unless they were confident in being able to defeat Meylp and other members of the Bapho tribe, doing so was the same as inviting death upon themselves.Though she was known by many to be a pacifist, Meylp hadn't earned her title as Queen of the Bapho due to an aversion for conflict. Rather, it was her overwhelming might that allowed her to reach the 100th Floor and rein in the various native tribes. She was not shy of violence, but, due to possessing 'too much' power, she had simply grown weary of most conflict. This was evidenced by the fact that, at the end of every year, she would host a grand tournament.Tournaments within the Tower were common affairs, but, rather than a conventional event, the one hosted by Meylp had an inordinately coveted prize. Victory would not only grant you the right to rule over Avalon, but, if you were somehow able to defeat her, Meylp, herself, would be your prize.Unfortunately for her would-be suitors, there had yet to be a single person who could match Meylp within the arena. She even created a rule that forbade the use of her Blessing, but, even when other members of the Bapho tribe joined the tournament, she was able to completely suppress them with pure physical might. This was the main reason she was so respected among the Bapho tribe, as, not only was she their strongest, but, due to their peculiar nature and unique culture, they were inclined to obey anyone who managed to defeat them in a fair contest.Due to her fame and her people's propensity to seek out stronger members of their tribe, nearly every member of the Bapho that managed to reach Avalon came under the leadership of Meylp. To them, defeating her was necessary if they wanted to advance to the 101st Floor. Avoiding her would be a sign of disrespect and cowardice, so, while not an actual requirement to advance, there was not a single Bapho who thought about ascending to the 101st Floor ahead of their Queen.What most didn't know was that, when the belief of many people was consolidating onto a single person, the Akashic System took notice. When enough belief was gathered, it would these chosen individuals a special contract, and, should they accept it, they would effectively become one of the Guardian Gods of their people. Should they refuse, all memory of this offer would be erased from their mind, but, as someone who had accepted, Meylp was well aware of the fact that the ordinary members of her species would never be able to surpass her in strength.When someone was elevated to the status of Guardian God, they become the literal representative of their people. This granted them nigh-absolute authority over members of their own tribe, and, in certain situations, it was the main reason for the rise and fall of many species.Due to her status as Guardian God of the Bapho, Meylp had been able to make a contract with the Tower to ensure that her people were able to climb without being suppressed by the Verum. It was for this reason so many of her tribesmen had been able to reach the 100th Floor, but, in exchange, she had lost the ability to climb further. The only way to break the contract was to be defeated in a contest of strength, but, unless it was another Guardian God, the odds of that ever happening were slim, at best.If she were being honest, Meylp didn't particularly care about being a Guardian God, but, knowing her daughter would eventually climb the Tower, she wasn't left with much choice. The Verum had been a problem during her own climb, and, even if she found powerful companions to protect her, Meylp knew the Verum would spare no expense to capture, torture, and humiliate her daughter. It was for this reason that she decided to become a Guardian God, as, if it meant her daughter would be able to climb safely, Meylp did not care about her own future.Unfortunately, though she already suspected it was the case, Eondu had also been elevated to the status of a Guardian God. This was the main reason for his meteoric rise through the Tower, as, even before his climb, he carried the 'hope' and 'pride' of his entire race. As a result, he was able to move through the Tower with impunity, as, due to the strenuous requirements to become one, there were simply no other Guardian Gods to stop him...Meylp knew it was only a matter of time before she would be forced into a climactic battle against the tyrannical Dragon God. The moment he began traipsing through the Tower with impunity, she began expanding her army and forging powerful alliances with the native tribes. They might not be a match against a Guardian God on their own, but, as he would undoubtedly be backed by an army, she needed one of her own to repel it.Becoming a Guardian God provided a considerable boost to parameters, a functionally limitless lifespan, and immunity to Instant Death attacks but it didn't make you immortal. You still had to abide by the same set of rules as everyone else, and, once your HP hit 0, you would die. This was an inviolable truth, and, no matter how powerful a Guardian God became, they could still be defeated by a reasonably powerful force. This was true for both Eondu and herself, but, due to the massive size of her Behemoth transformation, Meylp knew she was at a distinct disadvantage...Though it was rarely ever discussed, it was common knowledge that, regardless of how powerful someone's Endurance, it was impossible to completely mitigate damage. You would always take, at the very least, one point of damage from even the weakest of attacks. This made it infinitely more important to dodge attacks, but, when your body was literally the size of a small mountain, dodging wasn't exactly an option.Without an army of her own, Meylp knew she would be overwhelmed by the thousands of Verum that would accompany Eondu's rise to the 100th Floor. Most were bound to fail the trial of the 99th Floor, but, even if it were just a few hundred, their aerial mobility, combined with their ability to dish out powerful attacks, had always made the Verum notoriously troublesome opponents. This was the reason they had been able to suppress the other races, as, prior to breaking through the Level 100 bottleneck, flight was impossible for the majority of races.Though her individual attacks were strong enough to kill the average Verum in a single blow, Meylp had never been known for her Agility. Her transformation made her even slower, so, with rumors of Eondu's breath being able to completely mitigate regeneration abilities, she had spent hundreds of years mastering her base form. This would drastically decrease her strength, but, unless she could get Eondu in a one-versus-one situation, her transformation was a death sentence against groups of foes with superior mobility.Fortunately, with hundreds of years to prepare her defenses, Meylp was able to build an army that outnumbered the Verum nearly a thousand to one. This gave her an absolute advantage, as, even if the Verum were exceptionally powerful, overcoming the challenge of the 99th Floor required a lot more than strength. It represented one of the most challenging bottlenecks in the entire Tower, as, without consuming some valuable treasure, exceeding Level 99 required conquering the 99th Floor.What Meylp could have never anticipated was the fact that Eondu had made a contract of his own with the Tower. In exchange for removing the limiter from his biological children, he vowed that he, and all of his children, would never exceed the 100th Floor. He didn't believe there was actually a top to the Tower, so, rather than waste time trying to reach an impossible goal, the only thing that mattered to him was securing a place for himself and realizing the goal his ancestors had failed to achieve.Under normal circumstances, trapping yourself on a specific Floor would be a death sentence, as, after enough time had passed, a Reset was bound to happen. This was what ultimately forced the Verum to abandon the 90th Floor, but, just as Meylp's contract had a negation clause, so too did Eondu's. His required that he produce an offspring between the Verum and the Bapho, combining the two 'penultimate' species into a singular, perfect, form.Unlike the majority of his kin, Eondu had never particularly hated the Bapho. Instead, he disdained his own race for their short-sightedness and bigotry. Their bias towards members of a specific race had limited their growth, and, despite thousands of years of effort, they ultimately failed to produce the so-called 'strongest' species. All they accomplished was inflating their ego and causing greater embarrassment for themselves when other species, despite being 'inferior', managed to completely surpass them.With his father being a member of one of the 'weakest' species, Eondu had never once believed in the superiority purported by the Verum. They had numerous advantages over the majority of other races, but, in spite of this, they continually failed to meet expectations. Many even lost their lives in situations they should have easily been able to overcome, all because their ego and hubris blinded them.Eondu believed that the greatest strength of the Verum was their ability to adapt and subsume the traits of other species. They might not be the strongest, but, so long as they didn't limit themselves by assumption, it was only a matter of time before they produced, not the strongest race, but the one with the greatest potential. His own existence was a testament to this, and, even if it required him to gamble the future of his entire species, there was no sense in perpetuating an existence that was limited by their own hubris. He was determined to live a life without any restraint, and, even if it cost him everything, he wouldn't have any regrets...

Chapter 99: Echoes (3/3)