The Emperor's Apprentice: (A Lord of The Mysteries/ Goddess of Victory NIKKE Crossover)

[Stimpak Medic]

Prologue: Fallen Emperor and desperate Heroine

A young girl who was of thin stature and almost completely emaciated stumbled down an alleyway in the outer reaches of the Ark. Her thin body and disheveled appearance gave her the all too correct appearance of a vagrant. Her sunken blue eyes, and thin wispy blonde hair looked as if it could fall out at any moment. Her raggedy cheap clothes could only really be considered rags at this point.

She leaned against the metal wall of a factory and watched the artificial clouds move across the false sky of the Ark. Slowly dropping down to a sitting position, she leaned back against the wall. Her dull blue eyes giving almost no notion of life. She was in critical mental condition, and she looked like she couldn't hold on much more.

"Damnit! What the hell, This isn't what a Hero does! Come on, pull it together" She grit through her teeth, and she had a very poor grip on her reality around her.

The girl stumbled as she stood up, her head snapping from side to side as her body shook and quivered.

"I'm a Hero. I can't fall here. Please, someone help me!" She grit through tears, and blood dripped from her thin dry lips, it's dark red contrasting sharply against her ghost pale skin.

She wobbled side to side as she stumbled about in the alleyway. Eventually she hit her head on a pipe that ran down the side of the factory, and she fell unconscious.

When she opened her eyes, everything was calm, and she sat in a large courtroom that was full of magnificently dressed men and women. Suits of fine cloth with white lace, black and purple dresses were ever present on the beautiful men and women in the courthouse.

It was immensely overwhelming, and she felt herself being drawn into the podium as if her body and very soul itself was being dissolved and turned into part of the room.

Her mind flashed through hundreds of thoughts, and suddenly all the eyes of the men and women in the room were directly on her, and she felt a tidal wave of fear wash over her.

Words of an indecipherable origin filled her mind, and her blue eyes coated over with a black inky film. She seemed lost in a black dimension with no doors or exits, before she was forcefully pulled back into the courtroom.

She looked down from her seat at the Judge's podium, and time seemed to freeze.

She heard the fluttering of wings in the left side of the room, and saw the man who had fed her the strange elixir earlier. He was tall, and dressed in quite brilliant fineries. His robes were black, and he had golden embellishments on their shoulders. His skin was healthy and pale, and he had long brown hair with blue eyes that were looking over her with the softness of understanding.

A black crown of thin black spikes rested on his head. If she were to picture a fallen angel, or a powerful villain, he would be it.

Illusory black feathered wings rose from his back, and a sword rested in a sheath at his waist.

"So, you couldn't do it?" He asked, walking up to the small girl and taking her in his arms.

"Relax, for I will protect you while the process of advancement happens, though I will need to rest afterwards, for almost all of my power is gone" he said, holding her tightly but gently.

Before the small girl could do anything, the man wrapped his wings around her and the tumultuous feelings in her soul instantly faded to a soft feeling of tiredness. As if the strain in her mind had been taken away and held by the man.

"Who are you?" She could only ask through her exhaustion.

"I am an old fool that has outlived his use, but if you must know my name. You can call me Roselle" The man said, as he gently held her. They stayed like that for a few minutes, with her curling up within the large black soft wings of his.

"The process is over. Congratulations on your advancement Laplace, my new Arbiter" He said, letting her go, before walking over and sitting down at one of the benches.

"I don't understand" She spoke with a fearful gaze and tone.

"The world of mysticism is a scary place, full of questions without answers young lady. Though perhaps when you advance far enough, and you work with me more, I can allay some of your questions. But for now, you can wake up. I will be expecting you to stop by my home to pick up food for me as we have agreed, as alas, I cannot leave my home so easily to buy food and drink." The man chuckled a soft self reflective chuckle, and the world spun.

When the young girl woke up, she had a pounding headache, and lay at the ground leaning against the factory pipe. The Ark around her was full of vibrant colors, and her vision seemed to have sharpened considerable, even the sounds seemed sharper and clearer. The smells of the metal, oil, grime and blood were quite close.

She noticed a trickle of blood coming down from her forehead from where she had struck the pipe earlier.

However, despite that, the normal foggy depressed and hopeless haze that had normally hung over her had been pushed away, replaced by a budding sense of self.

"Am I a Hero now? "She asked no one in particular, looking at her emaciated self. Even though it was just a little, she felt taller, and more sturdy, as if her existence went through a noticeable almost qualitative change.

"Mister Roselle, what did you do to me? Who are you really?" She whispered out. A shiver of fear filled her body. He had said she was an Arbiter? What was that? What did that mean?

She was so confused.

When she was stumbling through the alleyway earlier, she had noticed the man, this time without the wings, crown, robe, or sword limping down the ally towards his home.

When she began following him, hoping to ask for some food, he invited her to his house. This was a terrifying and scary thing, but he had an air to him that made her not want to argue with him. It was so potent it was almost supernatural.

Against her better judgement, she joined him.

For a small home in the outer district, his home was clean, well lit, and full of strange, old timey contraptions, art, and books. It was as if this man had appeared out of the annals of history.

He invited her to a long wooden table covered in a black and gold tablecloth, and he offered her a cup of tea, which she hurriedly drank.

He sat down at the head of the table, and she sat next to him to his right.

"Little miss, what's your name? You look in quite the dire condition" He asked her.

"Laplace" She said calmly through the tea, as if this house had made her feel safe and secure, like all the fears of the Ark could not reach her here.

"Where are your parents?" He asked, and Laplace lowered her head sadly.

"They died" She said, not elaborating further.

"Oh...Sorry to hear that. If you need food and drink, you can come to my home, or if you need somewhere safe, I can provide that for you" He said, taking a sip from his tea cup.

Red flags began blaring in her mind, but at the same time, she did feel safe here, like this old man really could protect her from everything. She had no clue why she felt this, but as soon as she entered his house she felt a sense of immediate calmness and safety.

She looked around, trying to understand.

He noticed her looking around.

"You feel safe and warm here right?" He asked, causing her to look at him oddly.

"Yes, mister. Why is that?" She asked.

"Well, this house is part of my domain. Nothing happens in this house without my express permission. It uses up almost all of my remaining power to maintain this, but in here, I am Emperor" He chuckled a self depreciating chuckle before looking at the girl who had turned fearful and put down her cup.

"Worry not young lady, I have no interest in controlling you or forcing your actions. Instead, I have an offer for you and your heroic spirit" He said with a smile. The he took another sip of tea.

"How do you?..." She trailed off, but was beginning to just accept this man's absurdity at face value.

"You wear your mind on your shoulder young lady. For what that I used to be, this much is to be expected, and you can as well if you work with me" He spoke, giving her a nod.

"What?" She could only ask.

"I meant what I said. If you help me return to power, I can provide you with mystical secrets and powers, so that you can be what you always wanted to be. A hero" He gave the spiel of a conman and unfortunately for her, she ate it hook line and sinker.

"How can I become a Hero? I want to be one. Oh I so want to be one" She asked, her worry fading away at this chance dangling before her.

"Well. If you promise to work for me, I can help you on that path. But ultimately it will be up to you if you make it through" He spoke, getting up and walking over to a small black box that rested on a shelf.

"I made this not too long ago this morning, for I felt it would be needed. It may not be everything a hero needs in this city, but it's the closest thing I know, without you becoming a Nikke of course" The man said, his brown hair shifting slightly as he brought the black box to the table. Opening it, he took out a small corked vial full of a black liquid that looked like a galaxy spiraled within it. Uncorking the vial, he handed it to her.

"If you drink this, I will give you the powers of an Arbiter, and I can help you grow stronger as we work together. What do you say?" He asked, and the girl took the potion in shaky hands.

"Is this safe to drink?" She looked down at the glass vial in her hands.

"Before you drink it, let me explain some-" He trailed off, as the girl took a deep breath and chugged down the potion.

"Oh, that's not good" The man said with worry, before the girl screamed and ran out of the house in terror, grasping her head.

"I'll have to make sure she completes this advancement. Seeing her fall to corruption would be quite unpleasant" the man said, taking a slow step towards the door, but then falling to his knee.

"I really have lost almost all my power..." He trailed off.

"Still, I can't let the girl die. I'm going to need a long rest after this. HAHAHAAHAHA, me the once Black Emperor using all his power to stop a Arbiter from corrupting" He said in a self depreciating manner before standing up and walking over to a drawer and pulling out a crystal sphere. Tapping the top three times, he sat down at the table, and scried the girl.

If anyone interrupted her, he would smite them with divine black lightning.

 

[Stimpak Medic]

Chapter One: Reflections



Recovering from the spiritual and emotional turmoil of what had just happened caused Laplace to rest for a few minutes, just leaning against the pipe that stretched the whole gray metal factory wall. She took several fast deep breaths, that slowed to firm stability after a few moments. It seemed to her, that her usual panicked and depressed mentality had been relieved to an extent.

The lights and colors that had been spinning around her and making her dizzy receded, and the strange whispers from somewhere far beyond the planet receded. Whatever had entered her mind in this experience had left, seemingly content with saying whatever it said.

This experience. This dream, had challenged everything she thought was true. Nikkes were protectors of humanity, and there were none that could match them, except perhaps the Raptures. Yet, this man, this Angel, this Black Emperor, he turned it all on it's head.

There were powerful people in the Ark, secretly living among them. People nobody knew about. People that were invisible, yet held great power, and she had finally met one in her hour of need.

She wondered what it was like. What it was like to hold power, to be an observer like that man. Maybe she could think more calmly if she was in his position. Still, she remembered his words. He had lost almost all of his power, and he could influence her dreams and mind to such an extent. Imagining what he could do when returned to full health might be a terrifying prospect.

Despite the temperature being fairly warm, she felt a coldness grow inside her body, and deep from within the back of her mind, she heard a whisper. much like the ones before, but this time she felt she could understand the intent vaguely. It was impressing in her mind the desire to lash out at him, curse him for doing this strange experiment upon her.

For a moment, her eyes began turning black again, as she felt an ice cold wind blow around her.

What did he hope to accomplish by doing this to her? What was she now? What did she become? What would she become? Her thoughts swirled through her mind, and she walked back in the direction of where the Roselle man lived.

Perhaps she could force the thoughts out of this man with her newfound power that was filling her from somewhere else. What she wasn't aware of was that her skin was starting to harden around her into an almost opaque scalelike carapace.

Corruption was beginning to take hold of her. The power of the Gods beyond the stars was leaking out of her, and turning to air around her freezing cold.

However, her thoughts were stopped short, as she saw the man walking out of his house, and limping towards her, his left leg seemingly not working as a human's should. She could see his immaculate suit and top hat, and his short brown moustache. In his right hand was a black cane and his left a red jewel the size of his fist, which he raised in front of him as he approached, and she began to feel the power of the strange being that had whispered in her mind be sucked into the gem, leaving her in her normal state, only shaken and upset.

As she came to, and realized the world around her with fresh eyes, she felt quite worried and sufficiently scared.

"Was something controlling me?" She asked, trailing off at the end.

The man let out a relieved sigh and spoke.

"I was going to explain to you the risks that came with drinking the potion, but you drank it too quickly. Thankfully, I was able to contain the outcome. What you just experienced was the beginning stages of corruption. If I wasn't here, you likely would have been killed by a team of Nikkes, or worse... began the spark to a Evil God's descent" The man trailed off, kneeling down in front of her.

"I'm sorry that I had placed this burden up you so quickly. You are young, and in my desire to return to my previous existence, my haste I put you in danger. I promise this won't happen again. If you would give me your time, I would like to explain everything to you so this doesn't happen again" The man spoke, taking his top hat off and looking down in shame.

The girl, who up until this point could not imagine him apologizing or kneeling in front of her, just let out a quick "It's okay, don't apologize to me. I'm just a homeless girl" She let out, shaking her head in panic. The idea of such a great being kneeling in front of her and apologizing did not sit right with her.

"I see, then I will take it as my apology is accepted. Here, come with me and I will explain everything at my house. Away from any unsavory watchful eyes" He spoke, looking up at the false sky above the Ark. The danger and secrets of magics and mysticism - Gods and Angels were not for everyone's ears. Especially not for the upper Echelons of the Ark.

And thus, he stood up turning around and walking back to his home with the young girl behind him.

When they returned back to his house, Laplace's exhaustion had caught up with her, and when she walked in the house, she walked over to a black couch at the far end of the lounge, and sunk into it, resting in the soft cushions.

Roselle walked into the kitchen that wasn't far away and opened his refrigerator.

"I don't have much that a kid would like, but I do have milk, Tea, or coffee. Would you like something to drink, he asked. However there was no response.

"Hello?" He called out a bit louder.

No response.

He closed the refrigerator and looked out the kitchen door. Sure enough, the girl was softly sleeping. It looked as if she didn't have much sleep recently, this compounded with advancing, and the traumatic experience of almost being corrupted, she must have been exhausted. For a girl that looked no older than thirteen who was emaciated, homeless, and with no real future, her perseverance was quite admirable. One might even call it amazing.

Roselle had seen his fair share of amazing people, be it from Beyonders to admirable everyday folk. she was hardly a star in the sky, but she definitely did catch his attention as a good candidate for advancement. As he poured a cup of iced tea for himself, he held off on taking a drink of whiskey or wine, for it would not be appropriate to be intoxicated around a young girl like her.

Walking over to his table, he placed the drink down on it, and walked over to his bedroom and opened the closet in it. He took out a soft black blanket from it, and carried it over to her, carefully placing it over her for warmth. Then, he walked over to his table and picked up his cup, then took a book he had been recently been reading from a shelf near his kitchen called "Fear and Trembling", an old book of Pre-Rapture philosophy that he had picked up from a thrift store not long ago.

He enjoyed sitting and reading, for indeed, it was all he could do at the time. However, now that this young girl was willing to help him return to his former glory. Perhaps he might put down the books, and raise his sword once again. These raptures weren't much of a threat to him, even in his vastly weakened state, yet still, he did not raise his sword, as there would be much more time to do that in the future. He was, after all immortal, even though he had fallen from his sequence as Black Emperor.

After his meeting with Klein Moretti, no. His partner in reincarnation, Zhuo Mingrui, and his subsequent battle with the Outer Gods in the late 1300s he had thought he had died, but in his last moments, he fled, freeing himself from his corruption, and regressing to a lower sequence. It was shameless, but he didn't want to truly die. In his last moments, he remembered sending off his daughter, and telling her the secrets of his existence and that he still lived, he thought it was the end. Yet something in his mind, something in his very existence protested his final death, and he fled shamelessly.

Fitting enough for him. He was always somewhat shameless, and even more so in his youth. Still, perhaps in the face of his death. His true death, he didn't find such a shameless fleeing action so easy to accept for himself, especially after he had resigned himself to his end.

No, he could only sit and waste time for only so long.

He closed the book and set it on the table with a sigh, making sure his bookmark stayed properly inside. It was at this moment that a feeling crossed his mind. He missed his daughter. It had been ten years since he arrived in this world, and all he had done is establish his domain, while sitting and wasting time reading. Still, it was interesting to see a world like this one.

The Raptures had taken over the surface, and Humanity had fled below the surface. Well, this wasn't the first time. The were many failed Arks, full of corpses, but that was all he knew. If he was a sequence two or one, he could perhaps read the minds of everyone in the Ark, but he had regressed even further down than that, being a Sequence Seven right now, with many characteristics of some higher sequences, so his body was in severe disarray, and it took all of his knowledge and spiritual existence to keep his body together.

Such a situation made any chance at advancing on his own impossible, yet now that he had gained some trust from this Laplace girl, perhaps she could help him advance?

Advancing much higher would require much more than just her, but she could be a catalyst towards a start, and he wasn't such a fool as to not take an opportunity that presented itself to him. Besides, it wouldn't solely be him benefiting from it, she would as well, for a decent extent, though he would have to explain to her much about mysticism, and the cosmological existences over time.

When he escaped, he had returned to the beginning of time to recover many artefacts, characteristics, and reagents that he had kept hidden there, and brought them to this new world with him, lest someone Like Adam, Sasrir, Amon, Klein, or some other Angel or God find them there.

Yes, he would have to build up forces of his own. If he, say advanced to sequence two, or one, he could likely begin to retake the surface, and as a sequence zero Black Emperor, getting rid of the Raptures and whoever leads them, would be as easy as a swipe of his hand, or a thought. The very laws of reality would be twisted to demand their destruction, and there was nothing in this world that could stop a Black Emperor.

He sighed again, resting his arms atop the table.

Things never turned out as he wished them to, even from day one under the Red moon.

He looked over to the girl, who was sleeping soundly. It would be nice to be her, not having to worry about Outer Gods, the corruption from beyond the stars, and great evil beasts, only Raptures and what to eat the next day.

They truly did live in different universes, fortunately for the girl, this one was untouched by the corruption that plagued his second world. Away from angry gods that could wipe out everything she loved with a mere thought.

And so, Roselle continued to ponder and reflect.

There were things one could not just think about or grasp until one ascended high enough as to not get instantly corrupted and devoured. The nature of higher beings was such. These creatures, Gods, and Angels were so large and incomprehensible, that if one looked upon them they would die or go mad with just a glance.

It was best he not speak of those to the girl just yet, lest she go mad and tear her skin off, or some other such atrocity.

No, he would not do so, for he could not bear to see such a thing happen to such a kind girl.