Apex Star

50  Great Breakthrough! Stepping upon myself.

Nova continued to walk until he arrived before the Monkey King. When the Monkey King saw his apathetic look, he couldn't help but shudder also seeing his golden-red pupils and floating crimson stars in his eyes.

"W...what are you?! You can't possibly be a human! Why are you helping them?" The Monkey King, a glorious World Stage was trembling from fear, he couldn't muster any strength seeing the look Nova gave him.

He felt that he looked at the Beast Emperor's eyes, the same feeling of suppression and majestic air surrounded Nova.

Nova didn't say anything and black chains were released from his body, embedding in the Monkey King's own before weakening him.

As Nova felt the influx of energy from a World Stage enter his body, it gave him a feeling of euphoria.

He saw the path to Evolver Stage opening before him slowly. After Destiny woke up from her stupor, she came behind Nova and looked at him in silence. Seeing that Destiny came besides him, Nova reassured her with a nod.

She breathed in relief, seeing that it was still the same Nova and not a unknown entity playing pranks on her.

After checking the surroundings, Destiny tried to regrup those people still alive.

City Lord's Payne condition was by far the worst, his right hand was missing and almost a quarter of his head was in a bloody state.

Seeing him and the others in a state like this, Desiny quickly grouped them together, before using a mass regeneration technique.

"Blue Flames of Nirvana: Recuperate." Barely finishing her words, she emitted blue flames from her body that enveloped the remaining 40 persons alive from the group of 200. They all felt something warm coming in contact with their bodies and could see their wounds started to regenerate.

Even Nova was surprised by Destiny's flames that could heal dozens of people together. In his memory, not even Imperia could use her flames like that. No...her Blue Star of Nirvana's flames, more exactly. By now, Nova was 99% sure that Destiny was a part of Imperia's flames that should combine together to form a whole again.

Not wanting to think about this subject anymore, Nova's attention was once again on completely devouring the Monkey King.

Fifteen minutes later. BOOM! A storm of energy formed with Nova at the center. Even the people that were a distance away and barely recovered a little, after Destiny healed them were affected.

The ground 100 meters around Nova started cracking, the trees were almost rooted by the powerful currents that formed from his breakthrough.

Evolver Stage! Nova broke to become an Evolver Stage, but his devouring wasn't complete yet.

Early Evolver Stage, Middle Evolver Stage, Late Evolver Stage and finally Peak Evolver Stage.

 Nova almost broke through an entire realm. When he thought he was done, he was surprised by a majestic energy that came from his Soul World, more accurate from the Apex Star inside him.

It poured its energy into Nova's body to help him continue advancing.

Five minutes later another BOOM was heard, this time, Destiny and all the other who could move actually retreated hundreds of meters, afraid of being crushed by the pressure emitted by Nova's breakthrough.

At this moment Nova's consciousness seemed to enter another world as he stepped in the Nebula Stage.

----- n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

When he opened his eyes, Nova was surprised by what he saw, as he was back home. His old home on Earth, the one he moved after a certain incident...

Seeing his old room, he was flooded by emotions, a sense of nostalgia almost took control of him, and he wanted to cry. That was when he realized that tears weren't coming out, even though his body was already moving.

Taking a better look, Nova was surprised to see his body moving without him issuin a command to do so. It seems only his consciousness was present and this was a memory of his.

The more Nova looked, the more he felt something wasn't right.

'It can't be that...'

A little Nova could be seen running to the bathroom, he slammed the door open and was caught in someone's arms.

"Waa! Put me down, put me down! Pee!" the 6 years old Nova was in Arin's arms, his mother.

"What did I say about knocking when entering the bathroom?" Arin pretended to be angry with Nova, earning only his scornful look.

"Come on, mom! I really need to pee, can't you lecture me one minute later? Pretty please!" Said an adorable Nova to his mom as he struggled to escape her demonic claws and the two weapons that pressed his nose almost suffocating him.

"Hahaha! Our little boy won't even listen to his mother now that he can use the toilet." Arin giggled and left Nova alone, finally.

"We're going to the playground in ten minutes! Be ready!" Arin's voice could be heard down the hallway.

It was a usual Saturday, the Calypso family had a habit of going to the playground with Nova to play. They didn't miss a week since two years ago.

Today only Arin was home, she took Nova to the playground, much to the latter's excitement as he would meet his bestfriend there, Logan.

When Nova entered the playgroud, he hurriedly took fly to the swing where another young boy was present. he seemed to be waiting someone.

"Logannn!" Screamed Nova.

"Novaaa!" Could be heard back.

Seeing the two kids hugging as if they saw each other after ten years, Arin and Logan's mom started laughing and continued to chat a few benches from where the kids were.

Nova and Logan were fooling around, playing tag or hide'n'seek. They did contests of who could climb the 2 meters rope faster or who could spin and walk more steadily.

They finally walked some stairs so they could go down the slide, when a shout was heard from where their moms were. "Nova, Logan! Where are you two guys?" It was their childhood friend, and crush Lexi.

Both Nova and Logan liked her and decided to compete for her heart by all kind of stupid contests. Logan looked at Nova.

"Let's do a final battle for Lexi! The last one to go down the slide will lose her forever!" Said Logan.

Nova looked at his bestfriend and was pretty scared seeing him like this.

Still, he made his mind to win this. He didn't know at that time, but a strange power slowly circulated inside him.

"Okay, Logan! Let's battle for Lexi!" Nova's green eyes had a little tinge of gold in them, it was so small no one would be able to observe it.

When Nova saw his younger version accepting Logan's proposal for battle, he felt as if his world collapsed.

"YOU FUCKING SHIT! LET ME OUT!!! LET ME STOP THEM!" He was screaming like a madman at the Apex to release him.

He knew exactly what happened later, it was an event so tragic that he cut all connections with the world for a few years.

He completely shut himself down. When he barely recovered, he was already in the first year of highschool.

Not wanting to see that happening again, Nova tried to close his eyes, only to see that he wasn't capable of doing so.

A voice resounded in his head. "Look closely my wielder, as this is the first time you used my powers..."

Not having a choice, Nova continued to watch the scene unfurling before his eyes. The young Nova and Logan started a 'brawl', a fight between childrens normal for their ages. They tried to take a hold of each other and pushed as hard as they could.

Logan finally found enough power to try and push Nova on the stairs...at that moment, Nova was scared to death.

Seeing the stairs that were almost 3 meters high, no matter how young he was, he knew that if he fell, he would die.

Time seemed to stop, the birds stopped chirping and the wind didn't blow anymore. There was a single thing moving in the world at that moment, a little golden dot that formed on Nova's forehead.

It quickly expanded to cover his entire forehead, looking like a 10 pointed-star. When the time started flowing again, Arin was the first to feel it, owing to her Space-Time Bloodline.

She frowned and wondered what could possibly happen, before hearing a scream that made her freeze.

In that moment, when time flowed once again, with the power coursing through his body, Nova in his falling position took hold of Logan's arm and slowly rose up, while using the inertia...he threw Logan in the stairs direction.

Thud! Thump! His heart was beating like crazy, the mark on his forehead already disappeared.

When he looked down all he saw was his bestfriend's cracked skull with his brains out, as he fell from almost 3 meters on the hard concrete ground.

He was frozen in place, not knowing what to do, tears were forming in his eyes, and he screamed.

"AHHHHH!!!" The scream alerted Arin and Logan's mom as they rushed over with Lexi and also her mom.

The sight made their hearts froze in place.

Logan's mom almost collapsed on the spot, only the tears and her screams kept her strong enough to approach her dead son.

Lexi started bawling her eyes out, her mother also couldn't take it anymore and took her hand, preparing to leave and call an ambulance.

Arin quickly approached Nova, she was scared for her son as she saw him in that state. With tears falling down his eyes and a blank look, he collapsed in her arms.

After that incident took place, everyone thought Logan slipped and fell down the stairs, hitting his head on the ground enough to crack it open. Even Logan's mom thought so.

Nova was also categorized as a victim as he didn't even talk for a few months, barely doing so six months later, only with his mom and dad.

Their family moved from their city to Metropolitan City.

Nova lost his connection with Lexi, his crush, and more importantly, his bestfriend. Barely at 14 years, when he entered highschool did he start talking again. He became a social person, but without any friends to speak of.

His only 'friends' became Juan and Maria when he moved to Pearl City to start anew. He never spoke about that incident with his parents, though, he could feel that they actually knew what happened.

From that moment onwards, as if to repent for what he did, Nova tried to suppress everything about him. Starting from his brains and academics, to his talents, he even practiced martial arts only for himself and never showed it to anyone.

He knew that he could do everything he proposes to do, but he stopped himself from doing so. In the memory of Logan, he decided to live an ordinary life.

When he entered high-school, Lexi's parents contacted his parents to ask about Nova's highschool, they wanted to send Lexi over.

Their business was blooming and wanted to move out to another country.

They thought of Arin and Martin, and wanted them to raise Lexi as she could've attend the same highschool as Nova.

When Nova heard this, he immediately rejected them. Scared because of what happened with Logan and scared of facing her. How could he meet her eyes, when, even if by accident, even if Logan was the first to push him to his death, he still killed his bestfriend for her.

How could he face her? At that point, he lost every connection with Lexi and her parents. Still, he didn't regret it.

-----

The moment this flashback ended, Nova's consciousness was a total mess. Everything became a crimson red inside his Soul World, if there was ever a world ending catastrophe, it would look like this.

He didn't know how many hours passed, or days.

Nova kept crying and screaming his heart out. The memory he kept buried inside, all the emotions, the time he spent trying to accept that situation, all came back at him.

Not knowing how many hours later, after venting enough, a Nova with crimson eyes look at the Apex.

"You...you should have let me die instead." He spoke calmly as if it was not his death he was talking about.

"Do you understand now?" Asked the Apex, seemingly not hearing Nova.

"Of course. From the first time you asked me, I knew what you talked about. I just wanted to distract myself from accepting the truth."

Nova's placid voice could be heard inside the Soul World.

The Apex was surprised seeing the Crimson World recede from Nova's Soul World and his eyes being back to normal.

"If there is one thing I understand though...if you are strong enough, you can do everything. Even when the [Awakening] hit the Earth, deep inside of me I could feel it. It kept growing, that lustful feeling, all the emotions buried deep down wanted to resurface once again.

I once again oppressed them, locked the door and threw the key away. When I discovered the dungeon, heard about the Star Sect, when I found out about the Realms and the Multiverse.

Everything made me excited without me knowing it. I once again stopped myself from growing to my real potential as I suppressed everything again and again.

When you showed me this memory...I knew what was coming. And I realized something, how could I be such a fool when the answer was right in front of me?

I... I just have to grow strong enough to defy even death itself and revive Logan. I just have to become the strongest and end the 'Slumbering'.

The name now makes sense, it's because people die, that the 'Slumbering' is constantly getting stronger, right, Apex?" As Nova finished his long speech, he looked towards the Apex.

The Apex was silent for a while, before the golden star formed a mouth that seemed to be grinning wildly.

"That's right."

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VOLUME 1:Stepping upon, END.

VOLUME 2: Rising, Coming up next.