Nexus Awakened (An Isekai LitRPG Gender Bender Story)

600. The Icon of Judgement

Frost struggled to keep herself upright under the immense weight of her sins. Her knees buckled as her legs cracked the stone. The weight was tangible, and it brought those from the upper floors of the homes around her crashing down to the bottom.

Strangely enough, in the corner of her eye she spotted people who were able to flee. The silent hysteria disorientated her as she felt something resonate deeply from inside of her. It was not a ticking like what she had expected. Rather, it was something that desperately wished to come out as she felt the roar of a silent trumpet emanate like a foghorn from the bird itself.

Desperation nearly consumed her. Frost didn’t know if dying here meant a true death. She couldn’t gauge her stats at all. Nothing save for the Paradise Lost prompt was shone. Even her inner voice, which called for Nav could not be heard.

Suddenly, a deafening voice spoken from the sharp beak of the humanoid, bipedal Icon of Judgement caused her heart to wrench.

< “Arbitration began when thy kin made a collective cry to the reaches elsewhere.” >

< “Fear not what hath fallen from elsewhere. Embrace the laws etched into the gifts I bestow.” >

The voice was inaudible. It was something that could only be felt. The divine mannerisms alluded to a God-like entity, proven by its Risk Classification of Paradise Lost.

Something wriggled deep inside of Frost. The sensation caused her to clasp the earth, crushing stone between her fingers as the wingbeat of all twelve wings manipulated what she could only describe as her soul.

< “Believe in my blessed teachings. It will bring thee ever closer to the fruition of my kingdom come.” >

Countless trampled over those who prostrated as red liquid left through all orifices. Red, bony tendrils shot out from their upper backs, which were then spread like wings.

< “Abandon thy flesh.” >

But those wings did not allow them to fly. Instead, the people that prostrated were instantly pierced by their red wings, pulling back their flesh to expose their ribs and backbones to the light of the Icon of Judgment.

< “Become reborn anew.” >

And before Frost realized it, pale, cross-shaped markers emerged from their backs as golden and red, bloody particles rose from their bodies. Those who prostrated were transformed into Markers of a Price of Paradise.

A blue stream of Liquid Nex gushed from their orifices. The golden and red particles that burst forth from each victim combined into giant tendrils which were syphoned into the chest of the Icon of Judgement.

Frost was shaken by the event as she desperately fought this terrible urge to transform. Something pale and abstract was born from the reconstitution of the human flesh. The wingbeats of the Icon of Judgment caused ripples to form along the earth as a red, golden glow emerged from within, carrying an abnormal power.

That wave eventually reached the fleeing crowds of countless. Screams suddenly accompanied the mass transformation. People were temporarily lifted from the ground before their bodies exploded as a Marker of a Price of Paradise unwillingly emerged from within.

< “Thy will constitute the walls of my kingdom. Thou will become the decree of the earthly paradise I promised to create.” >

Frost managed to turn onto her side. The remnants of her one thousand golden eyes showed a pale Paradise that was swept in sea of gold, red and blue. The initial pulse of red and gold had only just reached the second wall, completely transforming countless into Markers.

A white forest of Markers formed within the city of Paradise as a million screams were caried by the red and golden particles, as though the Icon of Judgement was a black hole in disguise.

< “Behold. The forest of pale that lies beyond the borders of understanding. I hail from a place bearing gifts for a most excellent purpose.” >

< “Absolve all sins before my grace, for I have descended to create my earthly paradise.” >

< “On this rock I told thee to call home that I shall create walls. They will withstand the agents of hell.” >

< “As thee will heed, regardless of the One Sin of thy kind, repentance shall arrive in the form of pale abstraction derived from reverence. It shall be thy salvation and the nine walls of my kingdom.” >

Frost finally caught her breath. Her Painkiller Passive reached a level where she could now withstand the agony. Her body was still incredibly sluggish, but she could at the very least move now.

I shouldn’t be alive… When I faced this thing with the Arbiter, we both died immediately. So how come I’m still alive? Just barely, though.

Her surroundings were ripped apart by the wingbeats of the Icon of Judgement. The lands beyond the walls of Paradise were torn asunder by its divine powers. Frost still did not understand the meaning of this Corrupted, but considering it mentioned the existence of nine walls.

The City of the old world?

She struggled to push herself onto her feet. The screams still echoed around her as another sweep of the red and gold particles transformed those that were missed in the initial rapture.

Frost nearly toppled over when she finally stood up. The immense pressure of the Icon of Judgment painted the bleak picture of the future, as well as the past. If this hadn’t been contained, then it would have resulted in the end of Elysia as she knew it.

To think that she’d have to become as strong as something like that one day…

She shook her head and lightly slapped her cheeks.

“I have no idea where to start.” She began, barely audible due to the influence of the Icon of Judgement. “The Icon of Judgement is nothing like the One Thousand Eyed Bird. Even at my level I don’t even know what I’m supposed to do. Nav? Can you hear me? Please… say something.”

Nav has always been Frost’s lifeline. It was her guide and one of the first friends in this world. Not being able to hear Nav’s voice unsettled Frost more than her inability to see the status or the prompts of the System.

Regardless of this, Frost had no plans to give up. Not when it meant death.

“My only clue right now is the ‘Wound’. The Markers?” Frost stumbled towards the closest, five-meter-tall Marker and plunged her hand into its bloody innards. “… If there’s one thing I know best, then it’s to eat my way up. So, give your heart!”

Frost plucked the golden apple slice from within its cavity and devoured it greedily. She felt something course through her, but she could not figure out what it was due to the absence of Nav.

Dark Memoria’s interfering with Nav. Fuck… But if this is anything like the Black Forest, then maybe eating these golden things like the eyes will give me a special power. Or at least be able to hear Nav. Dammit…

< “Soon, a trumpet will sound as my teachings have foretold.” >

Frost moved as fast as she could through the streets. A part of her couldn’t help but wonder if she was still alive because this version of the Icon of Judgement was a memory rather than the real thing. Regardless, it didn’t change that it had nearly killed from its wingbeats alone.

She scrambled, plunging her bare, ungloved hands into the Markers, plucking sweet apples and drenching herself in bloody One Sin.

Suddenly, after devouring her fifth apple slice, she felt a presence watching over her.

< “Vital punishments shall be enacted for the fruit that was plucked from my garden. Thou kind – O Mankind – The Sin of One was always here. It only waited for Man and its lesser neighbors. Therefore, I shall arbitrate worldly judgement.” >

Frost could still use her magic and Skills. Even her Corrupted Skills were intact. Now that she realized it, the prompts were mostly a visual thing. But how did it have the knowledge to see and show things that Frost could not readily decipher, such as the Conditions or Stats without extensive testing?

Just what is the ‘System’ in the first place… gah. No, don’t think. Just do. Just eat as much as you can, Frost!

She cheered herself on. The Icon of Judgment didn’t appear to have any other attacks aside from its wingbeats. Her emotional state fell into strange lull. She felt like she was on the cusp of manifesting the next State, or even an Affinity, but that never arrived.

She threw herself around the middle layer of the city, devouring as many Markers as possible. The strands of her hair could not be detected by her external eyes. But in her peripheries, she could tell that it was steadily becoming brighter.

However, something suddenly fell from the skies.

< “Arise, my Apostles. The trumpet has called. Serve me in life and death; in darkness and light; in here and elsewhere; now and evermore.” >

A portal from elsewhere swirled like a black void in space, and from it came forth a winged entity that crashed into the ground a hundred meters ahead.

< “Thou art the first who sought the light from elsewhere and stumbled into the pale forest that borders thy understanding. Follow me. Thou will take my hand into the new world.” >

The winged entity, whose face was covered in a pale helmet and armor that radiated in a divine light, stared back at Frost with dark-brown eyes.

 < “O Adam of a world freshly brushed by the light of the stars, bring them hither anew to atone for the One Sin of thy collective kin.” >

//////// < WARNING > ////////

< ETERNAL NIGHT >

< THE ARBITER’S TRUMPET RESONATES >

A warning appeared unexpectedly. Was it only the warnings that could be shown? Frost didn’t know as she kept her distance from the entity, not knowing whether it was friend or foe. Her instincts ordered her to shoot, but a part of her rational self-wondered if shooting it would only hurt her.

It’s a Judgement Affinity Corrupted. If I attack it first, then wouldn’t that be a bad thing? The Icon of Judgement is seeking repentance from people. So, if I commit a sin first, then I’ll probably be hit by that damned sensation again.

It took a step forward. She did not have enough time to weigh her options.

However, a voice suddenly spoke to her, causing her mouth to curve into a grin.

< Hello? Can you hear me? >

< Of course you can. This is a cognitive message >

< You must be surprised. This is not the same person you know who is speaking to you >

What do you mean? This isn’t Nav? You sound just like her.

< You’re not that far off from the truth. Introductions will have to wait. For now, I sincerely hope you are prepared. I did not expect to Awaken so soon.” >

That means –!

< Indeed. I am an Archetype. I am now, strangely enough >

< That aside, please pay attention. This is the Rewound – the domain of Dark Memoria. All events of the past will be reenacted as accurately as possible. The consequence of this means that it can also be interacted with in an accurate manner >

 Meaning?

< The past is not a closed storybook. It can be changed, but the future will not be altered. In the end, it is a manifestation of the Nex of this domain >

< The past is a tale that yearns to be told. Other times, it seeks to be rewritten >

< Frost. Maintain your Mana. You have less than 30% left. When it reaches 0% you will be susceptible to the Icon of Judgement’s [Salvation] >

< The Conditions and the Stats of the Icon of Judgement will come soon >

< For now, you must deal with… >

The voice didn’t say the name of the entity. The way its voice trailed off caused Frost to wonder if it had a deeper connection with whoever it represented. Instead, only a prompt was shown.

< ‘That’ >