Is this really a Game?!

"Yes, this is the core of the artifact," Reign confirmed, his voice filled with reverence and determination. "This is where we must take control to prevent it from doing what it had done in the past, destroying entire civilizations."

Liara looked around, her eyes scanning the chamber. She could sense the immense energy emanating from the core and understood the gravity of their task. "But how do we take control of it, Reign? What should we do?"

Reign gently descended to the chamber's floor, setting Liara down beside him. He walked toward the central crystalline structure, his steps purposeful and resolute. "We need to establish a connection with the core, to communicate with it on a fundamental level. It's not just a matter of control; it's about aligning our intentions with the artifact's purpose."

As they approached the core, Reign extended his hand toward it, his eyes glowing with the purple hue of his soul power. He began to speak, not with words, but with the raw power of his soul. His thoughts, emotions, and intentions flowed into the crystalline structure.

Liara watched in awe as she sensed the profound connection forming between Reign and the artifact. It was as if their souls were merging with the ancient power that resided within the core. She knew that her role was essential in this process, too, as her soul which had been fused with the fragments would be the key that allowed them to trick the artifact and have it come under their control.

She placed her hand on Reign's shoulder and closed her eyes, focusing on the artifact and the presence within it. She channeled her own energy, a fusion of her soul's essence and the world energy that flowed through her. It was a delicate dance, a harmony between light and darkness.

The crystalline structure responded to their combined efforts. It began to resonate with a gentle, harmonious hum, and the symbols etched on its surface glowed with a soft, iridescent light. It was a sign that their connection was being acknowledged by the artifact itself.

Reign and Liara continued their silent communication, their intentions clear: they sought to ensure that the artifact would not fall into the wrong hands, and that its power would be used wisely. The artifact in its current state was easy to trick as the spirit had gambled and only left a small piece of itself in the artifact.

Without the spirit there to use the power of the artifact, the remnant consciousness of the artifact was weak, it was akin to a plain board waiting to be drawn upon. The artifact didn't possess any intelligence right now, it was pure, like a small child.

As their connection deepened, they felt a presence, it was the spirit of the artifact, the essence of the demoness who had created it. This presence was not hostile, nor did it seek to dominate. Instead, it seemed to acknowledge their purpose and intentions.

The spirit they felt was not the same spirit from the outside, this was the original spirit of the artifact, the one that had been almost completely destroyed when Hades attacked the demoness.

The spirit was not even a true spirit anymore, it was merely a fragment of it, the only thing that allowed the artifact to slowly regain its powers over time and give birth to a new spirit that was almost identical to the original one.

What Reign and Liara were now trying to do was to create a connection between the core where the final fragment of the spirit resided, and themselves. If they could do that, then the artifact would change, it would, in the future, give birth to a new spirit, one that was more in line with what they wanted to do, not one that was malevolent like the one they battled against.

This would be the main way that Liara would be able to withstand the influence of the souls deep inside her consciousness.

With the help of the artifact, she would be able to fight back and keep them in line while also being able to strengthen her soul, as well as to create her own army with the help of the artifact.

Neither knew how powerful the artifact would be after they finished creating the connection. They would be severing the connection with the spirit that was outside, and that would definitely cause the artifact to lose some strength, but as long as Liara was able to create Tier IV beings with its help, it would be more than enough in the beginning.

Not only would she be safe, but she would be able to use the artifact and slowly create an army that could go against the demons, taking over their regions and letting the world regain some of its powers.

That was Reign's plan.

Not getting the artifact was a shame, but he also felt that there was no real need for him to have it. The power of the artifact would ensure that he would always have an army to help him out, but he was also certain that even without it, he could become more than powerful enough in the future.

Such an artifact, in his opinion, didn't suit him that well.

He could already utilize souls, but his most powerful way of fighting was still with his swords. With his speed and the combination of lightning, light, and darkness, he could explode with incredible power, allowing him to fight against even those who were more powerful than him.

The connection slowly formed until Reign and Liara both felt a sort of click in their heads. The core, as well as the area they were in, slowly started changing. As the connection deepened, the crystalline structure underwent a transformation. It began to emanate a powerful yet serene light, casting a radiant aura throughout the chamber. The ancient symbols etched on its surface rearranged themselves into a new pattern.

Reign and Liara could feel the artifact's power flowing through them, a surge of energy that resonated with their very souls. They were now linked to it, and it to them, a symbiotic relationship forged in purpose and determination.

With that finished, Reign and Liara glanced at each other before the surroundings blurred, and suddenly, they found themselves in front of the monolith again.

The guardians, the rest of the group, as well as the spirit, were all staring at them.

"NOOOOO!!!" The spirit suddenly shouted as its form started changing.

"You ants, you bastards, how dare you do this?!" The spirit shouted in great anger as his power was being taken by the artifact.

"I will not allow it, I will not!" 

Suddenly, the power that the artifact had been taking increased in power before the spirit's entire body was destroyed. Without a single instant passing, the artifact suddenly shook before a powerful ray of red was shot from it.

"You shall not have it, I will not allow you to take the artifact, you will all die." A calm, but angry voice echoed through the cave as Reign and the others realized what the spirit had done.

It used the last remains of his powers to manipulate the artifact and shoot out an incredibly dense ray of energy through the underground. Reign and the others didn't know just how powerful the ray was, nor from how far away one would be able to see it, but they knew that it was enough for the demons nearby to notice it, and if they weren't idiots, they would realize it had something to do with the artifact.

"Dammit, we have to leave, now!" Reign said with haste as he grabbed the artifact with Liara.

"Dammit, we can't teleport through the dungeon, he severed it from the artifact, the only way out is up, and the only way we can go up is by walking there by ourselves." Reign said with a solemn expression before he looked to the side.

"You, the guardians, do you know any way of getting out of here quickly?" Reign asked the guardians who were now loyal to him and Liara.

"There is a way, but it's just faster, it will still take you some time to leave." One of the guardians said as Reign nodded at him.

"Let's go, it's only a matter of time before the demons arrive, we need to get out as soon as possible, the ray was the last attempt of the spirit to kill us, I doubt only 2 Tier Vs will show up, the monsters and more demons will definitely start making their way to this position, we need to get out as fast as possible and make our way back to the Lumon region!"