"Uh..." A single sound, barely more than a word, escaped her mouth. Her words dissolved before they could form.
Quintessa's mind recoiled, folding in on itself like paper touched by flame. In that moment, language, thought, and even the concept of speaking felt meaningless.
She slowly tilted her head, every movement feeling forced and sluggish, like trying to move underwater.
Her gaze landed on Merita, the ancient robot, Emperor Vorex, and the other powerful individuals.
They were all trapped in the same crushing stillness, their bodies frozen mid-motion. Their faces were locked in expressions of horror, confusion, and helplessness.
No matter how they struggled inwardly, no matter how much their wills burned, they couldn't move. Not even a flicker of resistance was allowed.
They were like puppets with their strings cut, suspended in a moment stretched beyond time.
Then, through the fragile karmic thread they had unknowingly created when they spied on Lex, retribution arrived.
The sky over the entire continent blackened.
And a maw; vast, ancient, and seething, ripped open the sky.
It was so enormous that the entire continent looked like nothing more than a snack, a pitiful speck drifting toward inevitable consumption.
On a distant grassy field, a young boy practicing sword swings looked up when darkness covered him. His wooden blade trembled in his hands. "Dad, what is that?" he asked, his voice small and wavering.
Beside him, his father paused cleaning his sword as he realized the darkness creeping in, the cloth in his hand slipped to the grassy ground.
Slowly, he lifted his head and the blood drained from his face when he saw the abyssal maw that had countless white sharp teeth.
Without hesitation, he grabbed the boy, shielding him with his body. "Don't worry," he whispered, forcing calm into his voice. "Father will protect you." But his hands trembled.
Across the continent, panic spread like wildfire.
Some hid wherever they could. Some simply dropped to their knees praying, some were paralyzed with terror, their minds blank.
Others stood staring, lost in the sight of the abyssal maw so monstrous it shattered their very concept of reality.
"Hahaha, First an eye, now th...this!!"Screamed a man near a crumbled marketplace, his hysteric laughter twisting into sobs.
He clutched his head, sinking to the ground, laughter and despair merging into one.
Back at Quintessa.
"Move, damn it, why isn't my body responding to my will?" Quintessa's heart raced as panic surged through her frozen body.
She felt like her body betrayed her will at the worst possible moment.
She poured every ounce of her remaining energy into the drive, willing it to activate with whatever it takes.
"Everyone! Death is upon us! Lend me your energy, lend me your essence, lend me your everything!" she screamed, using a quarter of her strength to break free from the stillness.
Without hesitation, the powerful individuals around her channeled their energy into her, the only hope they had to turn the tide.
If the drive could work, it might just reverse the course of the battle.
As her energy flowed into the drive, its rings began to spin, each rotation a heartbeat that matched her growing desperation.
She barely had time to think as she cried out, "Fate's Lock!"
Then, with a sudden shudder, all their energies poured into the core of the drive.
Then, a mechanical sound rang out from within.
[What is your desired outcome?]
Lex, observing from his universe, raised an eyebrow.
"An interesting weapon, partially sentient, but where would a young universe even acquire such a thing?" His mind raced with possibilities.
"Guess my idea of devouring them was correct. Now, I'll get to know where it is from."
Devouring them was the right path, he was sure of it. Soul-searching could never match the power of consuming another's essence.
In one act, he could relive their experiences, their memories, and even hidden secrets if they have it.
Although even this came with a price but to Lex it was negligible.
"What do I ask for?" Quintessa's thoughts raced.
She had no time to hesitate. Should she ask for the invasion to never have happened?
The thought was tempting but impractical. She did not know if this could be defined as invasion by the enemy what if the drive thinks of it as something else.
"No… I need a solution now." Her mind snapped into focus. "I can't afford to be picky. I just need to end this."
"I desire to protect the universe from all existing threats."
As soon as Quintessa spoke those words, time in the universe froze for a brief moment.
The Oracle Drive's rings spun so fast they became blinding halos of light.
Then, Boom!!!
A wave of light exploded outward from the drive; pure, searing, and terrifyingly precise.
It moved throughout the universe like divine judgment, incinerating every entity or force that harbored malice toward the universe.
And yet, for those who bore no such threat, it was like standing in a warm breeze, gentle, and strangely comforting.
Far away, in Lex's Universe, "That light, it's spreading too fast," Lex muttered as he sat upright instantly.
"Do you think that weapon is from the Voidsea?" Lex asked.
Luna narrowed her eyes. "Unlikely. The laws in that universe are still very young—even younger than you by a certain degree."
"So it can't be from the Voidsea," Luna concluded.
But Lex raised his hand and summoned his crystal ball. "This," he said, motioning toward the ball, "existed before time flowed. It was here when the universe was still forming. So, there's still a chance. A small chance that the weapon is from the Voidsea."
"And if that weapon really is from the Voidsea," he continued, "it's worth more than the entire universe combined."
Luna frowned. "But how could a mortal girl like her use it?"
"She can't use it," Lex said. "But what if the weapon chooses to be used?" he continued.
"Well, that's another way to look at it," Luna replied.
"Do you think the cosmic door would be affected by this light?" Lex asked.
"No I don't think so, my innate ability is Dao emperor-level ability it is not that easily affected," Luna replied, and true to her words the brightness that enveloped the universe couldn't even reach the surroundings of the door as the it was stopped by an invisible wall.
As for Lex's Heaven's Maw, the light that reached it was simply devoured—disappearing into the abyssal void of the maw as if it never existed.
The Zerg Queen, sensing danger, moved the prime Hivemind to hide near the Cosmic Door, outside the light's path.
After seven days, the brightness finally ended, and every creature in the universe opened its eyes.
Quintessa blinked slowly, her gaze sweeping the world around her. The mood was a fragile mix of fear and hope.
Relief shimmered on the exhausted faces of the powerful individual once consumed by dread.
But when she looked up—everything changed.
Her back went cold and she forgot to breathe.
Those who were about to thank her, who had begun to smile in gratitude, fell silent when they saw the terror etched into her face.
"No… it can't be," Merita's thoughts trembled as she slowly tilted her head upward when she saw the absolute terror on Quintessa's face, her heart pounding, her mind whispering desperate pleas: "Please don't be there… please!"
But the Maw still loomed, dark and vast, above the continent.
Instantly all their hope shattered.
They all felt it, every single soul.
"How is this possible?" Quintessa's thoughts spun in a storm. "Didn't I wish for all threats to the universe to disappear? Then why is this thing still here? Or… or is it not the threat?"
Lex stood and said, "Let's finish this."
The Heaven's Maw opened wider.
The sky trembled. The ground ruptured. And the entire continent began to rise, dragged toward that abyssal mouth like dust into a storm.
Some of the strongest among them panicked, they flared with their divine energies and attempted to flee.
But the space around them was sealed. Not by a technique but by the sheer pressure emanating from the maw.
They couldn't even move.
RUMBLE.
A cosmic ripple passed through the universe and across the sky, opposite the Maw, a massive Eye; cold, divine, and utterly still appeared.
A Mechanical, and Absolute voice echoed from the eye.
[ Enemy detected. Activating final reserve of Origin Energy. Attempting expulsion. ]