Nexus Awakened (An Isekai LitRPG Gender Bender Story)

858. Beethoven, The Teacher and Ara

“Bzzt. The Curse of the Descent is non-binding to Ara. Bzzt. Neither are our instruments reacting. Bzzt. It must be related to the Red Wing’s orders. Bzzt.”

Beethoven stood above the battered body of Ara’s self-proclaimed grandmother. A Greatmage of her caliber was formidable and had managed to stall Beethoven for hours, but it was ultimately a losing battle.

A Maestro of his caliber could not be outdone by a lowly Greatmage. Needles made of bones peeled from his Instruments pinned the woman’s twisted limbs to the ground. The flesh from her exposed back was stretched apart like the pelt of an animal over a drying rack.

The woman had failed the battle over Ara. Now there was nothing left to stop Beethoven. The scars that ran throughout the auditorium revealed signs of desperation rather than confidence. Beethoven’s side of the room was barely scratched compared to the ruins behind the woman.

The Impuritas were as durable as they were powerful. A large portion of it was thanks to the type of cloth they used for their suits. Beethoven’s suit was made of a high-quality cloth that could easily repel magic and physical trauma. When compared to the robes that the woman wore, it was like comparing the apparel of a knight to the impenetrable chitin of a monster.

Horrible groans from his many agonized instruments drowned her mutters of suffering as he reveled in her final moments. But his jitters said otherwise. The transparent wings on his back violently trembled after receiving news that the Red Wing had ordered their retreat.

“Bzzt. We were close. Bzzt. But the blame does not fall on my failure here. Bzzt. If we had another hour, then Ara would have shone as the brightest Maestro to ever walk. Bzzt.”

“… Your brother Haydn… if he were still alive…” The Greatmage croaked.

She tried to reach out towards the unconscious Ara.

“Bzzt. Allow me to demonstrate what kind of world exists beneath us. Bzzt.”

Beethoven extended his arms as he waved his conducting wand. Then, he retrieved a deep, almost pitch-black shard of obsidian. It was a Looking Glass; one that could have only come from the depths of Elysia.

All eyes were drawn to it, and at once, it shattered.

An invisible force immediately invaded the room and applied a bone-crushing amount of pressure on all those within. It was not a psychological force, but one that physically burdened the body.

The spines of his Instruments snapped under the pressure, especially those who were frozen at odd angles. Ara was the only one unaffected, which meant that Beethoven had a degree of control over this force.

“Bzzt. Our bodies have numerous openings. Bzzt. Pores alone give rise to an invasion of unwanted impurities. Bzzt. Ara is a marvel born from an unlikely crossbreeding between an ‘Impuritas’ and a human being. Bzzt. As nature would have it, she is quite resistant to this. Bzzt. I’ve heard of a story of how she was one of the lucky ones who had their wish granted by the Piece of the Fallen Star. Bzzt.”

Suddenly, the woman’s fingers which reached out for Ara decayed into a maroon mass. Then, it clumped together, merging into a single dough-like form. The infection spread down to her wrists as her flesh peeled from inside out, revealing tendons and bones that peeled away into a hideous, inhuman shape.

“Gh… What… is this…? My fingers? My hands…? It hurts…!”

It was not just her whose flesh was reshaped by this unnatural force.

The dozens of hands that lifted the platform carrying Ara merged into a homogenous mass of viscera and flesh. A thin layer of fur covered what was once flesh as they spilled out from the small gaps, only for the platform to squeeze down and sever them entirely.

A ring of this writhing, furry mass surrounded Ara. It trembled with distress. Tears tumbled down their fur as they quivered in agony. They had no mouth to scream, but the woman could hear every single one of them in her mind.

“Bzzt. Relax. Bzzt. It’s no more than a simulated experience of the Curse of the Descent. Bzzt. Not quite like the Ascent that gave me this imperfect form. Bzzt. As you should know, the Curse of Descent gives a less practical form to those who cannot endure it. Bzzt. But those who rise become a parody of who they are. Bzzt.”

“Urk… Bwagh… Ghrgh…” The old woman’s arms were reduced to a near sludge-like form as her nails grew into curled claws.

Those claws dug back into her flesh. It ploughed through muscle and meat, coming out the other side only to repeat the torturous process.

“Bzzt. But this depth of corrosion you are experiencing was meant solely for this one. Bzzt. You will not last another hour. Bzzt. Haydn chose his spouse poorly. Bzzt. Ara must not know yet. Bzzt. That her biological mother has chosen the orphaned blonde child over her. Bzzt. Raoul must have felt a connection over it. Bzzt.”

The mangled symphony of groans and cries reached a crescendo when the Instruments realized what was happening to them. Their shrieks of misery did not compare to the howls of helplessness as they watched their bodies being reduced to a hideous, inhuman state.

Some had their mouths melt down to their chests. Others grew multiple limbs, organs, skeletons… What they each became was a creature that did not mimic an existing creature.

It was the utter destruction of the self.

“Bzzt. The Veil can only exist for a fraction of a second outside of the depths of Elysia. Bzzt. One interaction is more than enough to force the antithesis of what the Seeds can invoke. Bzzt. Had it been directed solely to Ara, then she could have ascended as our Star. Bzzt.”

The method Beethoven had hoped to use to transform Ara revolved around two things. The first was a powerful Looking Glass that could cause one to begin questioning their sense of self. It made one’s physical form susceptible to the Veil which was not a condition that could be psychologically endured.

Secondly, the Veil itself was required. Uriel was poised to return to finalize Ara’s transformation. After all, the Red Wing could open doors into varying Layers of Elysia. However, with the Red Wing’s absence, Beethoven could only rely on a simulated version of penetrating the Veil during one’s descent into the world.

This was what ultimately caused Ara’s grandmother and his Instruments to lose their physical sense of self.

“… Gh… Aaaghk –! *Crunch*”

The woman’s body began to squeeze on itself. The infection had only taken over her arms due to her physical resilience, but it was like a rot. An infection that required hacking off. Her own malformed arms began to suffocate her.

“Bzzt. A waste of an otherwise valuable resource. Bzzt. It will be easier to cast Ara down into the depths of the Maw of the World and rapidly ascend her through its layers. Bzzt.”

* * *

The Maw of the World was one of the highest points in Elysia. Located in Emvita, the Maw of the World was heralded as the largest entrance into the Timeless Ruins. It was speculated to be between 35,000 – 50,000 meters deep. The only reason why there was an estimate was because this was where the Beholders, particularly the young Galia and Caldera Industries had reached a point of certain death.

That place was called Deep Time.

Despite it being open to the world and potentially a gateway into all Layers of Elysia; the Impuritas nor the Beholders touched the Maw of the World. Additionally, the rules of the Descent and the Ascent applied here more heavily than anywhere else, which heavily disfigured the most powerful of beings.

A subspecies of Dragons – the Paxilla were said to originate from its depths. They were a mindless, animalistic beast whose body was like that of a starfish but with thousands of writhing flesh-eating tongues.

The story went that a dragon once flew in hoping to appear on the other side of the world. The kind dragon was convinced that there had to be another hole on the other end.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

But what came out could not be called the same thing.

Rarely, if ever, did things come out of the Maw of the World.

But it was where many became partial or full Impuritas. If one sought for treasures beyond imagination in the form of the Gifts, then the Maw of the World was the chalice whose waters carried their desires.

* * *

Essentially, it was the next best method to transform Ara. Beethoven did not have the resources to force a transformation. A Seed would not bear the same results he was searching for. An Apple was no different.

Ara needed to be bound to music.

She had to become a Maestro.

“Bzzt. The dead don’t tell tales. Bzzt. What occurred here will never reach the light of the Nexus. Bzzt. Raoul will have to wait for an Ara who will be able to withstand the new world. Bzzt.”

The Instruments fell silent all at once. Their forms spilled from their frozen prison like melted ice cream. Inhuman sounds that were inseparable from that of whimpering infant filled the room as Beethoven pulled out an Etched Coin.

“Bzzt. Ara, will you be able to bear the truth of why you were condemned to S7? Bzzt. When you hear it, then you will have no choice but to side with us. Bzzt.”

Beethoven reached for Ara’s sleeping face with his free hand.

But to his shock, a bone fragment which had been laying beside Ara quickly found itself embedded into the side of his head.

“BZZT!?"