Chapter 15: To Ash and Obsidian*
(Year: 3565 BC)
——
The morning light struggled to pierce the dense ash clouds hanging low over the charred remains of the once-glorious city. What was left of stone and metal gleamed dimly under the muted sun, a ghostly monument to a time when gods and men still dared to dream alike. Pluto stood silently at the edge of the ruined plaza, the weight of centuries settling upon him like a shadow he could never shake.
He had returned—not as conqueror, nor savior, but as witness. The ruins whispered secrets only the dead dared to speak, fragments of histories lost in the endless tides of time. His deep silver eyes scanned the horizon, piercing through layers of dust and memory alike.
The System pulsed faintly at his wrist, its cold light a stark contrast to the fiery world around him. His mind, honed sharper than any blade, cataloged everything—the composition of the soil, the traces of energy lingering in the air, even the faintest tremor beneath his feet.
He could feel it—something dormant, a pulse beneath the ash, calling to him.
But before he could move, a sudden shiver tore through the air.
The ground cracked.
From the depths beneath, a roar erupted—raw, primal, and furious. The beast of old legends, Uruk reborn from the nightmares of time.
Pluto's lips curled into a faint smile.
This was only the beginning
*****
The roar echoed through the ashen skies, shaking loose more dust and sending shadows to dance across broken columns and shattered statues. Pluto's eyes narrowed, the calm storm within awakening.
From the cracked earth emerged Uruk—the ancient beast whose name had become legend, whispered in terrified tones across centuries. Towering and sinewy, its obsidian scales shimmered like molten glass, each movement sending ripples of heat and darkness into the air. Its eyes, twin embers of rage, locked onto Pluto.
The system beeped softly, updating:
*[Entity Detected: Uruk — Prime Deviant Behemoth]*
*[Combat Rating: Alpha+]*
*[Threat Level: Extreme]*
Pluto took a step forward, feeling the ancient vitality pulsing in his veins. His blood—gifted by the enigmatic being known only as "?????"—burned with immense power, ready to awaken dormant forces within.
Uruk growled again, a sound that vibrated through bones. The ground cracked beneath it, fissures spiderwebbing outward.
"Come," Pluto said, voice steady. "Show me what you've learned in the dark."
Without hesitation, the beast lunged, claws raking the air in a storm of shadow and flame.
Pluto sidestepped with fluid grace, adapting instantly. The energy of the attack coursed into his system, fueling the eternal flame within. His skin rippled with vitality, a shield forged from raw life essence.
Their battle was a tempest of fury and precision—each blow, each dodge, a dance of infinite adaptation. The longer the fight dragged on, the stronger Pluto grew. The beast, no less ferocious, began to show cracks in its relentless assault.
Suddenly, with a burst of speed, Pluto unleashed a strike charged with concentrated vitality. The force shattered Uruk's defense, sending the beast crashing into the ruins.
But instead of killing it, Pluto placed a hand on its trembling head.
"You will serve a greater purpose now," he murmured.
Uruk's eyes flickered, recognition dawning.
The ancient beast roared—not in defiance, but allegiance.
Pluto's journey was no longer solitary.
***
The beast's towering form lowered, folding its immense limbs beneath it in a gesture both submissive and respectful. Pluto's gaze softened just a fraction, a spark of something almost like warmth breaking the eternal ice around him.
"You are bound now," he said, voice echoing softly through the smoky air. "A shard of my will in this fractured world."
Uruk growled low, a sound that resonated with centuries of primal instinct and newfound loyalty. Its obsidian scales shimmered faintly as if absorbing Pluto's essence—melding ancient power with eternal vitality.
The System hummed, updating with a steady rhythm.
*[New Ally Acquired: Uruk, The Obsidian Beast]*
*[Abilities: Super Enhanced Strength, Regeneration, Elemental Fire Manipulation]*
*[Bond Status: Symbiotic — Linked to Pluto's Vitality]*
Pluto felt the surge immediately—a deeper well of strength, the pulse of endless resilience flowing through his veins, fueled now by Uruk's own ferocity.
He turned away from the smoldering ruins, eyes set on the horizon where storm clouds gathered like silent sentinels.
"The world shifts beneath our feet," Pluto muttered. "And I will be its unyielding constant."
A distant rumble signaled the arrival of something else—something vast.
From the sky, shadows descended like an ancient judgment.
Figures clad in celestial armor, faces veiled in starlight, arrived to witness the rise of a force they could barely comprehend.
Pluto and Uruk stood ready.
The storm was far from over.
****
The celestial figures hovered with a quiet authority, their forms radiant yet inscrutable. Among them, an aura of command emanated from a woman whose eyes gleamed like distant stars—Ajak, the voice of the Eternals.
She observed Pluto with a mixture of curiosity and caution, the air thick with unspoken challenge.
"You walk a dangerous path, mortal turned eternal," Ajak's voice rang clear, cutting through the ash-choked air. "Your power disrupts the balance we've sworn to uphold."
Pluto met her gaze without flinching, his silver eyes calm, unyielding.
"I am no mere mortal," he said simply. "I am adaptation incarnate."
Uruk growled low behind him, muscles tensed and ready.
Ajak's expression hardened. "Then show us if you can truly bear that mantle."
Before the air could still, the celestial warriors surged forward, light clashing with shadow as battle erupted once more. But this was no mindless fight. Words and wills collided as much as fists and powers.
Pluto's adaptation flared, weaving through attacks, growing stronger with every hit. Uruk's fire lit the battlefield, scorching stars into the fabric of the sky.
Yet even as the conflict raged, a deeper understanding began to form—a fragile truce born of respect and necessity.
Then, with a sharp command from Ajak, the fighting ceased.
"We will watch you," she declared, eyes lingering on Pluto. "But know this—any threat to the cosmic order will be met with swift judgment."
Pluto inclined his head, voice steady.
"I welcome the watchful eyes. They will see the rise of something unstoppable."
As the Eternals retreated into the gathering clouds, Pluto turned once more to the horizon, Uruk at his side.
The age of legend was awakening, and Pluto's story was far from over.
****
The charred winds whispered through the ruins as Pluto and Uruk moved away from the remnants of the battle. The air was thick with the scent of sulfur and forgotten power—a reminder of what had been destroyed and what still lay hidden beneath the surface.
Pluto's mind was a storm of calculation. The encounter with the Eternals had only confirmed what he had suspected: his growing power was a threat to forces older and more complex than he had imagined.
Uruk's heavy footsteps shook the cracked earth, but the beast moved with surprising grace, ever attuned to Pluto's unspoken commands.
"You sense it too, don't you?" Pluto murmured, eyes scanning the darkening skies. "The threads of fate pulling tighter."
The System chimed softly at his wrist, a stream of data scrolling across the holographic interface.
*[Threat Assessment: Cosmic Watchers Increasing]*
*[Potential Interference: High]*
*[Recommendation: Exercise Caution in Upcoming Engagements]*
Pluto's lips pressed into a thin line. Infinite adaptation meant endless challenge, and every encounter was a test.
Yet beneath it all, a flicker of anticipation stirred—this was the crucible he had been forged for. The slow rise of his empire across time and space was only just beginning.
Uruk let out a low growl, a sound almost like agreement.
Together, man and beast strode forward, shadows swallowed by the dying light.
The world was vast, its secrets deeper than any star.
And Pluto was ready to claim them all
*****
Days passed beneath the heavy sky, each one folding into the next like the endless pages of an ancient tome. Pluto moved with measured purpose, exploring the ruined landscape where the echoes of lost civilizations hummed beneath the ash.
Uruk prowled beside him, ever watchful, a living sentinel forged in shadow and fire.
Their bond deepened with every step—the beast's fierce vitality intertwining with Pluto's endless adaptation. Together, they were more than mortal; they were an elemental force shaping the destiny of a broken world.
As twilight bled into night, Pluto's eyes caught the faint glimmer of a distant flame. The ruins of a forgotten temple lay hidden beneath tangled vines and crumbling stone.
Intrigued, he approached, the System humming with quiet alertness.
*[Discovery: Ancient Structure — Unknown Origin]*
*[Energy Signature: Weak but Persistent]*
Inside, the air was thick with the scent of incense and mystery. Strange glyphs adorned the walls—symbols that pulsed faintly with an energy neither fully cosmic nor wholly earthly.
Pluto traced a finger along the carvings, feeling the faint thrum of power beneath his touch. The system flickered, processing the foreign script.
"This place... a remnant of something greater," he whispered. "Perhaps a key to the puzzle."
Suddenly, a soft movement caught his attention.
From the shadows emerged a figure cloaked in silks, eyes gleaming with quiet intelligence.
"Ilias," Pluto said with a faint smile.
The figure inclined his head in acknowledgment, muscles taut with restrained strength.
The time for quiet exploration was ending. The age of alliance was dawning.
****
Ilias stepped forward, his presence commanding yet controlled. His body bore the marks of a warrior tempered by countless battles—muscles honed to perfection, movements fluid as if every step was poetry in motion. His eyes locked with Pluto's silver gaze, an unspoken understanding passing between them.
"You tread a perilous path, Pluto," Ilias said, voice calm but edged with warning. "This world is fractured, and forces beyond even the Eternals stir beneath its surface."
Pluto nodded slowly, weighing the man's words. "I am no stranger to peril. Adaptation is my essence."
The System chimed softly, a gentle reminder of their growing power.
*[Ally Acquired: Ilias — Super Enhanced Body, Tactical Genius]*
*[Bond Status: Pending Synchronization]*
Uruk growled softly, sensing the shift in energy. The bond between man and beast was strengthening, but a new variable had entered their equation.
Ilias's eyes flicked toward the ancient glyphs lining the temple walls. "These markings speak of a power source—older than the Deviants, older even than the Celestials."
Pluto stepped closer, fingers brushing the cold stone. "Then it is a source we must claim before others awaken."
The weight of fate settled on their shoulders. In this age of ash and shadow, alliances would be forged not just in fire, but in unyielding resolve.
****
The chamber's air thickened as the glyphs began to glow faintly beneath their touch, ancient energies awakening after millennia of silence. Pluto's eyes narrowed, absorbing the surge coursing through the temple like a living heartbeat.
"This power…" he murmured, "it resonates with my own vitality, yet it's unfamiliar—primordial."
Ilias scanned the room, alert. "We are not alone."
From the shadows, a presence emerged—tall, cloaked in dark robes that seemed to ripple with unseen energy. His eyes gleamed like molten silver.
"You seek what is not yours," the figure's voice echoed, laced with menace. "The source belongs to those who remember the true dawn."
Pluto's gaze hardened, the cold edge of eternity cutting through the air. "Name yourself."
The figure's lips curled into a cruel smile. "I am Kael'thar, Keeper of the Lost Flame. And you, adaptation, threaten the balance I preserve."
Uruk growled, flames licking along his obsidian scales as tension tightened like a coiled spring.
Pluto stepped forward, unflinching. "Then you will face what you cannot withstand."
The chamber trembled, shadows twisting as the ancient power awakened fully. A battle unlike any other was about to ignite—a clash between relentless evolution and unwavering preservation.
****
Kael'thar's voice was a thunderclap, echoing through the ancient temple as tendrils of dark energy coiled around his form. The air pulsed with raw power, the very ground beneath them quivering with the clash of titans about to unfold.
Pluto's silver eyes gleamed with unyielding resolve. His body shifted subtly, muscles tightening as adaptation surged through his veins. The system hummed softly at his wrist, displaying vital stats updating in real time.
*[Power Spike Detected]*
*[Ability: Enhanced Vitality & Adaptation — Active]*
*[Status: Engaged]*
With a fluid motion, Pluto lunged forward, energy crackling around his fists. Uruk roared beside him, a living inferno blazing as the beast launched into the fray.
Kael'thar met their assault with a wave of shadowy tendrils, each strike a dance of destruction and defense. The temple shook violently, ancient stones cracking as cosmic forces collided.
Ilias moved swiftly, his super-enhanced body a blur as he intercepted dark blasts aimed at Pluto, protecting the evolving immortal.
"This one fights with more than strength," Kael'thar hissed. "His very essence warps reality!"
Pluto's voice rang cold and clear. "I adapt. I endure. I become."
With every blow exchanged, his body absorbed, grew, and transformed — resistance blossoming into power.
As the clash intensified, the flicker of an ancient artifact embedded in the temple wall caught Pluto's eye—a cracked celestial shard, faintly glowing with hidden energy.
He knew this was no coincidence. The source of Kael'thar's strength and the key to this conflict.
The war for supremacy was only beginning.
****
*Chapter 15: To Ash and Obsidian*
*Part 10*
Pluto's gaze locked on the celestial shard, a beacon amidst chaos. With a sudden surge, he darted toward it, Uruk and Ilias covering his flank as Kael'thar unleashed torrents of dark energy in desperate fury.
The shard pulsed beneath Pluto's touch, reacting to the infinite vitality coursing through him. Ancient power intertwined with his own, the temple's stones vibrating as the energy crescendoed.
Kael'thar screamed, a sound torn from eons of rage and defeat. "You cannot wield what was never meant for you!"
But Pluto's voice was an unyielding decree. "Everything can be mastered. Everything can be adapted."
A blinding light erupted from the shard, washing over the chamber in waves of cosmic brilliance. Kael'thar staggered back, the shadows unraveling as Pluto absorbed the energy into his very being.
The battle ceased—not because one fell, but because a new force was born.
Standing amidst the ruins, Pluto was no longer just an immortal adapting to the world. He was a harbinger of change, a cosmic force reshaping fate itself.
Ilias and Uruk stood silently beside him, allies forged in fire and shadow.
The path ahead was uncharted, but one truth was clear:
Nothing would ever remain the same.
——-
A/N: As promised the last chapter please any error tell me
*And in reply to red eclipse I remember that ge hast already meet them but my reply is that he is not in good term with them, they don't know what he truly his and they don't trust him.
*Please which year did the eternal go their separate ways