Web Novel Chapter 0: Heart of the Titan
The vastness of the universe was so immense that even imagining it strained the minds of the smallest beings. Each star shone within its own solar system, and each system contained planets of various sizes and conditions. Some planets were home to life, with creatures ranging from the tiniest species to the most intelligent. In one galaxy, there were nearly 200 billion stars, and it was estimated that between 50,000 and 100,000 intelligent species lived in each galaxy. Billions of galaxies together formed galactic clusters, and a hundred superclusters made up the entire cosmos. Every galaxy was like a massive, bustling city—but in one corner of the universe, an immense group of beings had gathered to confront a threat that endangered everything.
Each of these beings displayed extraordinary power, experience, and intelligence: a golden dragon crackling with lightning, a being made entirely of molten fire whose every movement cast off flames, a phoenix-like woman with blazing wings that radiated both light and heat, a three-meter-tall green-skinned man whose steps shook the ground, a mantis-like man with razor-sharp claws moving with lightning speed, a creature made fully of molten matter, and other bizarre races. Among them were angels, demons, titans, elemental warriors, and beautiful genie women.
All were clad in battle armor, ready for war. Some hovered in the air, some rode ships, and others rode winged horses. Even their breaths and heartbeats seemed synchronized with the intensity of the battlefield. But a pressing question hung over them all: Who was their enemy? The threat they had gathered to face was a magical ritual being conducted by the sorcerer Anded, who held the Titan king's heart. He had sacrificed countless races with the goal of creating a demonic god and infusing a part of his own soul into it.
Cosmic forces intervened, and a massive army of the dead clashed with them. Explosions, flames, and strange lights filled the battlefield. As the ritual neared its end, the Titan's heart shrank, but its beating generated immense pressure, and the surrounding beings felt an intense gravitational pull.
In the final moment, an elderly man in golden armor, crackling with lightning, hurled a fiery spear charged with electricity, obliterating sorcerer Anded. At the same time, a colossal molten giant, like a falling meteor, struck the ritual. The sorcerer's still-living skull shouted, "By disrupting the magic circle, the heart's rhythm will falter, and the entire galaxy will be destroyed!"
The battle ceased. The dry, menacing voice of the skull echoed with terrifying laughter: "Heh heh, we shall all die together…"
At that moment, an old sorceress appeared. The space around her was under the Titan's heart's gravitational pressure, making it nearly impossible even for the strongest heroes to breathe. She spoke firmly, "We have no time! I've spent years studying dimensional magic… I will open a portal to the farthest galaxy I can reach, but to succeed, I need the power of all of you!"
All eyes fixed on her. She continued, "We must send this heart to another galaxy before it explodes… Quickly, help me!"
Every warrior—from angels and demons to dragons and molten beings—channeled their magical energy toward her. Their magical streams intertwined as they reached the sorceress, who stood beside the Titan's heart. She formed a magical circle, and as the energy of all the beings surged into it, the circle trembled. A rift tore open in space-time. The Titan's heart, on the verge of explosion, was drawn into the portal and swallowed instantly. The crushing force and pressure that had torn at the universe suddenly vanished. The battlefield was flooded with light, fire, and shadow. The beating of the heart was no longer audible.
For a moment, everyone exhaled in relief—the battlefield fell silent, carrying the sensation of salvation. Yet all eyes remained on the space where the portal had been.
In a remote corner of the universe, the Titan's Heart appeared in the void of a sparsely populated galaxy. Each beat of the heart was like a ticking bomb, sending invisible waves across stars and planets. The few inhabitants of this region struggled to breathe; their skies grew unnaturally heavy.
Then, in a blinding moment, a sound of light erupted—visible even from distant galaxies. A colossal explosion engulfed the entire galaxy. The Heart released ninety percent of its energy, devastating the system; stars went dark, orbits shattered, and ecosystems collapsed one by one.
The ritual to birth a demonic god had failed—the magical circle shattered. The internal pattern of the Heart twisted and transformed, creating a new, mysterious arcane circuit.
The explosion consumed everything, leaving the galaxy a silent ruin. The released energy hurled the Heart of the Titan across space until it collided with a massive rocky planet—a world a hundred times larger than Earth. The impact caused a cataclysmic detonation: the planet's inner layers fractured, molten pressure surged, and waves of heat and magic spread through the crust.
The planet's surface quaked; mountains and plateaus shattered into clouds of dust and stone. Red and black magical flames erupted into space. Yet the Titan's Heart, though cracked and glowing with its leaked essence, still pulsed—it was still alive.
Thousands of years passed. The galaxy was reborn: stars reignited, life returned, civilizations rose anew. Deep beneath a mountain on that wounded planet, the Heart remained buried in a cavern formed over millennia. Around it, stones infused with its leaking energy became magical crystals, and nearby, a small blue pool shimmered in the dark. Even after all those eons, the Titan's Heart glowed faintly.
Near that mountain lay a quiet, small village. Inside one of the modest homes, a pregnant woman named Anna whispered softly to her husband, Adrien.
"The orcs have set up camp near the village, my love," she murmured.
"They'll attack tomorrow. But don't worry," Adrien said, kissing her forehead. "I'll protect you."
He rose, donned his armor, and said, "It's my shift now. I have to stand guard."
Anna gently placed her hand on her belly and smiled.
"The elder said through his magic that our baby will be a boy. We've decided to name you Atysh."
The baby shifted slightly, as if responding to her voice.
Meanwhile, deep inside the mountain, the magical stones surrounding the buried Titan's Heart pulsed faintly.
In the distance, from the northern hills, the drums and cries of the orcs echoed—chains rattling, weapons clashing. Adrien appeared atop a ridge; the dark mass of the orc army rolled forward like crashing waves.
He raised his sword and rallied the villagers into defensive lines. The battle began—blades and spells danced through the air, fire and lightning erupted across the land and sky.
Yet deep below it all, the buried Titan's Heart still pulsed, its rhythm synchronizing with the chaos above—as if the universe itself were holding its breath, waiting for a new birth that might reshape the fate of the entire galaxy.