The soldiers one a weary Soldier of El, the other a bloodied Valkyrie flickered into existence in a desolate clearing far from the battle. They leaned against a jagged rock, their forms still partially translucent from the emergency teleportation.
"Whoever that person was, he's dangerous," the soldier wheezed, clutching his side. "At least we got the intel. We know there's a resistance base nearby. I need to report this to our leader immediately."
"Damn it... she got away again," she hissed, her wings twitching in agitation. "But at least we finally confirmed it. We found Modi's wife and daughter. After all this time, the trail is finally hot." She turned toward the horizon, her grip tightening on her blade. "I need to hurry. I have to report this back to Modi immediately before they vanish into another universe."
Without another word, she ignited into a streak of pale light, vanishing into the distance to deliver the news.
High above, the Shadow Dragon glided through the clouds, its massive obsidian wings barely stirring the air. Apeiron stood near the beast's head, his cape billowing in the cold altitude. Darius and Cassiel approached him, settling onto the scales nearby.
"I want to thank you again, my friend," Darius said, his voice soft but sincere. He shot a pointed look at his partner. "And you, Cassiel. You were quite rude. You owe him an apology for calling him weak."
Cassiel crossed her arms, her jaw tight. "I'm not apologizing. But I will say I was wrong about his strength. That doesn't mean I trust him yet. I'm still watching you," she added, fixing her gaze on Apeiron.
Apeiron didn't flinch. "It's fine. Trust is something you must earn." He looked back at the crowd of refugees huddled on the dragon's back. "Tell me why are the Knights after these specific people? The energy I felt from them... it wasn't purely evil. It felt holy."
Darius turned to look at the refugees. Among them, men, women, and children sat in exhausted silence. Many of them looked up, and for the first time, Apeiron noticed their eyes a striking, misty gray, identical to his own.
"These are the Ashborn," Darius explained. "You see, it didn't use to be like this. In the beginning, there was only the Source and the Nothingness. From that emptiness, Elyon emerged. He was a God of honor and respect. He created the infinite multiverses and appointed the Gods of El to act as guardians and shepherds, giving each dominion over their own realm."
Darius's expression darkened. "But everything changed when the Demon Fist warriors and the Norse gods launched a coordinated assault on our cosmos. Elyon ascended to the higher realms to defend us. We don't know what happened in that final clash, but when he returned, his decree had shifted. Elyon demanded that the Gods of El—the very deities he had created—turn over their people to him to be sacrificed. Most of them refused to betray their creations. In his rage, he stripped the Gods of El of their sovereignty and allowed the Demon Fist to occupy our worlds. He declared that only a 'chosen' few were worthy; the rest were labeled as cattle for the altar."
Darius looked at Apeiron's gray eyes, a flicker of reverence in his gaze. "But one very powerful God of El fought back. He is the one who created the Ashborn, imbuing them with the will to never give up. It is one of the primary reasons why Elyon hates them so much—they are a living testament to the god who dared to say 'no'."
Cassiel's voice trembled with rage. "They sacrifice them, Apeiron. They slaughtered everyone I ever loved, claiming it was for the 'greater good' of Elyon. They don't just enslave them to work—they harvest them."
Apeiron's grip tightened on the dragon's reigns until his knuckles turned white. He thought of his own past, of the void he was reborn from and the things he had lost. "What are they sacrificing them to?" he asked, his voice a low, dangerous rumble.
"We believe it's a pact," Darius whispered, looking toward the horizon. "A dark union between the Demon Fist and the Norse deities. Whatever they are building with these souls, it threatens the foundation of all the Cosmoi. It must be stopped."
The dragon glided over the dense canopy of a massive jungle, its obsidian scales shimmering against the green. Ahead, a colossal waterfall thundered down a mountain face, its spray creating a permanent rainbow in the humid air.
Darius stepped to the edge of the dragon's back. "Tell your beast not to be afraid, Apeiron. Tell him to fly directly into the falls."
As they plummeted toward the roaring curtain of water, Darius raised his hand, his Eldritch Mandalas spinning rapidly to activate a localized phasing spell. They burst through the water not into stone, but into a hidden sanctuary. It was a completely different world within the cavern; a massive, high-tech citadel where the wounded were being healed, former slaves were finally striking the chains from their wrists, and children played in the open squares while soldiers trained for the inevitable return of the enemy.
Shadow landed with a heavy thud, and the refugees began to dismount, weeping with relief. Apeiron remained on the dragon's back. "I'm glad I could help you. Stay safe."
"At least stay for a meal, my friend," Darius called out as he stepped onto the stone. "Let us pack you some supplies for your journey."
The Shadow Dragon let out a low, rumbling roar, its throat glowing with a flicker of dark fire. Apeiron chuckled. "You hungry, girl? That glowing grass wasn't enough for you?"
He checked his gauntlet. The holographic map pulsed. "Source of Olympus detected... Pandora's frequency is active within this cluster of universes," the machine chimed.
"We can't stay long," Apeiron said, jumping down as the dragon collapsed back into the form of the Black Unicorn. "But I suppose I am pretty hungry."
As they walked toward the mess hall, Cassiel kept her eyes on him. "Earlier, you spoke as if you didn't know about the war. Where exactly are you from?"
"I am from the Olympus Cosmos," Apeiron replied simply.
Darius stopped in his tracks, eyes wide. "Truly? A different Cosmos entirely? I was certain you were Ashborn. You have the same gray eyes as them... and you look just like Ren, except for the eye color."
"He does," Cassiel adds, her voice dropping some of its sass. "And he fights a bit like Veyron."
Apeiron keeps walking, but his heart skips a beat. Ren? he thinks. No, it's impossible. Ren died that day. As they continue through the fortress, they pass a shimmering magical portal. Former slaves and Rebel soldiers stream in and out of the rift.
"What is that?" Apeiron asks, gesturing toward the swirling energy.
"Whenever we land on a planet, we find a hidden location and establish a portal," Cassiel explains. "When we save the slaves, we send them through to a safer world one of the planets we have already liberated. We do this before we fully take over the current planet so we can go all out in battle without risking civilian casualties. Once everyone is rescued, the real fight begins."
They sit down to eat, and for a moment, the crushing tension of the multiverse fades. Through the window, Apeiron watches Shadow; the unicorn is playing with the children, shifting its shape into various cosmic creatures they have defeated to make them laugh. Warriors walk up to Apeiron, whispering in awe about the man who one-shotted a Holy Knight.
Suddenly, a violent commotion erupted near the entrance. An explosion of ice and fire collided, sending a shockwave through the room.
Apeiron rushed toward the noise. In the center of a hostile circle of rebels stood Skuld, her daughter Hildara trembling behind her. The rebels were screaming, their weapons drawn.
"We can't trust her!" one shouted. "Look at her tattoos! She's a Valkyrie from the Norse Cosmos! She's one of the invaders!"
"She's a spy!" another roared, a blade of fire flickering in his hand. "Let's gut her right now before she leads Odin's raiders to our gates!"
The tension in the sanctuary snapped as Skuld's massive Valkyrie wings unfurled, shimmering with a cold, ethereal light. "I am here for refuge," she warned, her voice trembling with a mother's desperation. "I am fleeing the Norse gods and the Demon Fist as much as you. But if you force my hand, I will kill every last one of you who stands in my way."
Apeiron stepped into the center of the confrontation, his purple cape flickering in the magical heat. "She's no traitor. I advise you to leave her alone."
The Resistance warriors didn't listen. "If you want to protect a spy, you'll die with her!"
Eldritch Mandalas of crimson light flared around their palms, their geometric rings spinning with a high-pitched hum as a torrent of concentrated flames surrounds them.
Apeiron didn't even flinch. Entering Stage One, he simply clapped his hands. The resulting shockwave didn't just extinguish the fire; it shattered the magical intent behind it. Before the warriors could blink, Apeiron moved with impossible speed, his fingers striking their pressure points. He reached into the flow of their energy and stripped the permission from their souls to move their limbs.
They collapsed instantly, paralyzed on the floor. "Don't worry," Apeiron said calmly. "It'll only last a little while. I didn't make it permanent."
Skuld retracted her wings, exhaling a breath she had been holding. "Thank you."
But before Apeiron could respond, the ground beneath him erupted.
Stacks of red and black Eldritch Mandalas manifested in a vertical column around his body, their geometric rings spinning with a violent, dark hum. From the center of these shifting patterns, heavy obsidian chains surged from the earth, coiling around his torso and arms with a supernatural weight.
"What's going on?" Apeiron muttered, straining against the links.
He looked up toward the balcony of the great hall. Standing there was a man who radiated the aura of a high-tier mage-warrior. He wore an elite fusion of white and red flowing cloth seamlessly integrated with sleek, dark-silver armor a design that spoke of both ancient tradition and modern warfare. A massive, heavy-bladed sword was strapped across his back, its hilt pulsing with a low, dangerous hum.
His spiky hair framed eyes that glowed a piercing, lethal red. This was Veyron.
He leaned against the railing with a posture of absolute, unshakable confidence. A sharp, predator-like smile played on his lips the kind of smile that said he had already played out the next ten seconds of the fight and seen himself as the victor.
"Wanderer," Veyron said, his hand outstretched as dark mana swirled like a miniature storm around his fingers. "I don't know who you are, but you have a lot of nerve to attack my soldiers. Why shouldn't I kill you where you stand?"
In the crowd, Cassiel and Darius turned pale. "Oh no," Cassiel whispered. "We have to stop him! Veyron will kill him!" She rushed forward, screaming, "Stop it, Veyron! He's with us! He's not an enemy!"
Veyron didn't lower his hand. "I don't care who he came with. He dared to strike our men when we need every soldier we have. The Holy Knights are closing in on this base every day. He needs to be taught a lesson."
Apeiron felt the Chains of Revenge tightening, the enchantment attempting to crush his very spirit. These are strong, he thought, his jaw tightening. He began to flex, his Black Presence leaking out like ink in water. With raw, conceptual strength, he shattered the links. With a thunderous crack, he ripped himself free, the obsidian shards dissolving into a dark mist.
Veyron's eyes widened. "He broke through my Chains of Revenge? Interesting." A sharp, competitive smirk crossed his face. "Maybe this will be a good warm-up before we march on the Capital. You interest me, wanderer. You broke my spell, yet I sense no power no magic coming from you."
"That's because I don't need any of it," Apeiron said coldly. "If you don't step aside, you're going to find out why."
Cassiel lunged forward. "I have to stop them!"
Darius grabbed her hand, his expression solemn. "No. Let them fight. Their fists will tell them the truth of who they are. They are warriors; if their values don't align, one will die. If they follow the same path, they will collide and move forward together."
Veyron moved first. Purple Eldritch Mandalas flared around his hands, humming with the power of space-time manipulation. "I'm going to send you to my Omnipotent Dimension," he declared, aiming his palm at Apeiron. "I will defeat you there, where I am law."
The magic touched Apeiron instantaneously or it should have. Apeiron twisted his body, dodging the vacuum. The space where he had just stood was swallowed by a purple light, teleporting the very air into Veyron's realm. Veyron raised his hand again, trying to track him, but Apeiron continued to blur, dodging the instantaneous teleports.
Apeiron clicked a button on his gauntlet; his purple cape vanished to give him full mobility. He took a single step back, then rocketed forward, swinging a punch at Veyron's face. It was less than a centimeter from impact when Veyron vanished, reappearing directly behind him. Veyron threw a strike that sent Apeiron flying across the hall.
Apeiron caught himself in mid-air and rocketed back, but Veyron was ready. More purple circles manifested. A pulse of energy slammed Apeiron backward, pinning him into the floor and creating a massive crater. The refugees screamed and scrambled for cover.
Apeiron struggled to rise. "What's happening? I feel... heavier."
Veyron began to laugh. "I have Holy Blessings. The first attempt to hit me will always fail; the entire world tuned to guarantee my safety. And when you tried to touch me, I activated an infinite distance between us. That gravity you feel? It will increase until it crushes you into the stone."
Veyron aimed his palm down, raining a barrage of energy blasts upon the crater. With his other hand, he maintained a barrier to protect the surrounding people.
Apeiron felt the weight of the world pressing his bones into the dirt. I can't mess around with this guy, he thought. I need to get back to my journey.
"Stage Two: Presence Stare Permission Severance."
Apeiron looked up, his Presence Glare focusing with lethal precision. He emptied the "permission" of the energy blasts to function; the projectiles simply exploded and vanished the moment they entered his line of sight. The glare reached Veyron himself, causing the active spells around him to fail. Veyron's hand began to bleed as the gaze struck him, the sheer weight of Apeiron's presence wounding his flesh.
Veyron looked at his hand, shocked. "How? That's a rare technique..." He immediately channeled his magic, the red and purple energy knitting his skin back together as he healed the wound.
Apeiron didn't wait. He emptied the distance completely, appearing in Veyron's face to throw a punch. Veyron vanished again. "My blessing reactivates every few moments," the commander taunted. "The universe bends to get me out of the way. And you aren't the only one who can throw a punch!"
Veyron's fist glowed as he lunged, his strike going straight through Apeiron's face. Veyron's smile vanished. "What? My hand went through him?"
He turned around to see the real Apeiron standing behind him. "You're not the only one with tricks," Apeiron said. "You punched an illusion."
Apeiron's fist connected with Veyron's jaw, sending the commander crashing into the ground. They both stood up, facing each other in the dust of the ruined hall.
Veyron's smile widened, a look of genuine realization sparking in his eyes. "Your fighting style... it's familiar. As if I know you. Your fists speak of kind words. No more tricks. Let's see what you've got."
Apeiron settled into his stance, his gaze unwavering. "That last hit... even though it was a projection, your technique was flawless. You're more than just a mage. Show me your fist."
Veyron dropped into a low, predatory fighting stance. Stage Two: Empty Fist. Unlike Apeiron's pure void, Veyron's hands were encircled by Eldritch Mandalas glowing with a prismatic, rainbow-colored light. "You are correct," Veyron said, his voice dropping an octave. "I am more. I am more than just a mage; with every fist I throw, a spell will curse you down."
Apeiron watched the way Veyron balanced his weight. That stance... it couldn't be, he thought. There is only one way to find out.
Gemini said
They exploded toward each other, emptying the space between them as they collided. The air screamed as they traded a blur of punches and kicks in a high-level conceptual battle. Both were constantly severing the permissions of the other's strikes, only to instantaneously restore their own permissions to maintain their momentum.
As the combat intensified, they began erasing parts of each other's bodies upon impact. Apeiron flexed his presence to heal, forcing what was erased back into existence, while Veyron channeled his magic to restore his own physical form.
Veyron's fists became a chaotic elemental storm. One punch carried the bite of Helheim's ice, freezing the very air where it landed on Apeiron's body, while simultaneously stripping permissions and erasing matter to cause devastating damage as he stepped back. Apeiron countered by erasing Veyron's hand and his permission to cast magic, though Veyron immediately forced his hand to manifest again.
The next strikes erupted with Solar flames, followed by Lightning and Space-Time distortions. As Veyron threw his punches, they warped both probability and causality. Apeiron took the hits, his body absorbing the shock, while he dodged the more lethal distortions with millimeter precision.
"How?" Veyron shouted mid-clash, his eyes burning red. "How do you know the Empty Fist? I can see it in your movements your style tells me everything. You know Master Kujin!"
Apeiron caught Veyron's incoming fist, the force creating a shockwave that cracked the floor. "Yes. He is my master. He taught me the Empty Fist... and I am his successor."
Both warriors froze. The lethal energy vanished instantly.
"He chose you to be his successor?" Veyron asked, his voice breathless.
"Yes," Apeiron replied.
Veyron immediately dropped the defensive shields protecting the crowd. A look of pure, joyous relief washed over his face. "I was wrong," he announced to the room. "This is not an enemy. This is a brother!"
He walked up to Apeiron and pulled him into a fierce, brotherly hug. "Two warriors with the same master... we are as close as blood. Has Master Kujin sent you to help us on our journey?"
"No," Apeiron said, stepping back. "I am on my own path. But how do you know him?"
"I am one of the few he taught Stage Two," Veyron explained. "But he refused to teach me Stage Three or name me his successor. So I left and came back home... only to find this mess. My cosmos, ruled by the Demon Fist."
Darius and Cassiel approached, looking stunned. "I tried to tell you he was on our side!" Cassiel said, though she still looked at Apeiron with new-found awe. "He's the one who saved this latest group of refugees."
"Then you'll help us," Veyron said.
"I have my own journey," Apeiron replied, "but I will do what I can while I am here, especially knowing we share a master and a common enemy."
"Good. Then you know how dangerous the Demon Fist is. We must stop them. Come with us to the war room." Veyron extended his hand. "I never caught your name... or where you're from."
"My name is Apeiron Logos."
The name hit the room like a physical blow. The warriors gasped, whispering the name in shock. "Logos?"
Veyron stepped back, his eyes wide. "Your father... is he the great revolutionary, Anaximander?"
Apeiron looked confused. "Yes, that was my father's name. But he died a long time ago. He died in the Olympus Cosmos protecting me, my brother, and my mother."
Before anyone could respond, a massive figure emerged from the back of the crowd. Standing a towering 8 feet tall, he is a titan of a man, ripped and imposing. He wore black, red, and gold armor with cloth textured like dragon scales, perfectly framing his massive build. With curly black hair, deep brown eyes, and a prominent scar running across his face, his presence alone commanded the entire room.
The man stopped, his voice trembling. "It couldn't be... is that you, little brother?"
Apeiron's heart nearly stopped. "Ren? Ren! How is this possible? I saw you die that day!"
Ren pulled Apeiron into a crushing embrace. "Father saved us," he whispered. "I will tell you everything. Come."
Skuld stepped forward, her expression resolute. "I am coming with you. I want to help."
The group turned as one, heading deep into the fortress toward the War Room. As they walked, Apeiron and Ren fell into step, their eyes locked.
"It seems like you've gotten so much stronger, brother," Ren said, his voice echoing with pride as his massive 8-foot-tall frame loomed over the hallway. He looked down at Apeiron, shaking his head in disbelief. "To see you go toe-to-toe with the great Veyron, the Messiah... your martial arts, your combat awareness... it's unreal. You moved like a ghost out there."
"I've trained every day since I thought you were all dead," Apeiron replied, his voice thick with emotion. "I trained to avenge you. Is Mother still alive? What happened that day?"
Ren's face darkened. "When Anaximander and Thaleia were shot out of the ship, Father tapped into the last of his strength. His Ladon Dragon powers activated; his wings spread to shield Mother, and I was thrown clear. That's when I got this scar.
Father rescued me, but then Modi and the Norse gods captured us. They conquered our planet and the neighboring galaxies, enslaving everyone. They sold us across the Cosmoi until we landed in the Ein-Olam Cosmos. It was there that Mother revealed it was the place where she was originally born only for us to find it had been completely overrun and occupied by the Demon Fist and the Norse gods. We were tortured and forced to build statues while watching our kin be sacrificed.
Eventually, Father regained his strength, transformed back into a Celestial Ladon Dragon, and freed most of us except for Mother. We fled to a hidden world and started a revolution. Anaximander was our leader, the most wanted man in the sector. He spent years freeing slaves, but when he finally got the chance to go back and save Thaleia, we weren't strong enough. Father died at Modi's hand. If Veyron hadn't saved me, I would have died there, too. Every day since, I've fought to get Mother back and save our people."
Apeiron clenched his fist. "So you believe Mother is still alive? They haven't sacrificed her yet?"
"I hope so, brother," Ren said grimly. "That's why we have to hurry."
They reached the War Room, where Veyron stood at the head of the council.
"We are close to breaking the Holy Knight dominion in this sector," Veyron announced. "We have taken back multiple universes, and we will continue to drive them out. You will see your brothers and sisters free this I promise. But it is time for the final push. We must find the main base where they are sacrificing the souls, locate Elyon, and stop the Demon Fist and Odin so this endless war can end."
Skuld stepped forward. "I know where it is. I know where they are sacrificing the souls, and if you find that, you find the Outer Realm where the gods reside. I was a captain of the Valkyries. I can take you there; every base has a portal that leads to the Outer Realm."
Suspicion rippled through the room. "Why should we trust her?" a soldier shouted.
Gemini said
Skuld snaps, her voice echoing off the cold stone walls with a jagged edge. "Because I'm tired of Odin and the Demon Fist! When they showed up, they changed everything. Odin became even more of a tyrant more powerful, more ruthless. The missions they had me do as a Valkyrie... the things they did to me... I still have nightmares about it."
She clenches her fists, her wings trembling slightly against her back. "That's why I left being a Valkyrie. I left the leadership of both of them. I understand now that they need to be taken down. I need to repent for what I have done, and this is the only way."
Veyron nods, his gaze lingering on her with a newfound respect. "She speaks the truth."
He turns to address the council, his red eyes glowing with a tactical fire. "All we have to do now is free the rest of the people on this planet who are still enslaved. There are only a few left. We use the teleporter to take them to the new world we have built for the refugees. We destroy the Holy Knight and the Dementia Leader of this sector, along with the rest of their forces in this part of the universe."
Veyron slams his fist onto the map table, the holographic display flickering. "After we free this universe, we attack the main base. Until then, rest. We will need our strength."
The council disperses, the heavy tension of the upcoming war hanging over them.
Later, in the quiet of his assigned quarters, Apeiron paced. He began tinkering with his gauntlet. "Why can't you tell me exactly where Pandora is? You only give me a general area."
The gauntlet chimed, its tone synthetic and regretful. "It is hard to locate the Source of Olympus, Pandora. It is likely she is in a higher plane of existence. We can only sense she is in this general cluster of universes."
Apeiron slumped against the wall. She's probably at one of their main bases.
Suddenly, the gauntlet began to flicker. A static-filled, back-and-forth frequency erupted. Apeiron's heart jumped as a voice broke through the noise.
"Apeiron? Is... is that you?"
"Pandora!" he gasped. "Yes, it's me! Where are you?"
"I don't know, I'm so scared," she cried, her voice cracking. "They took me to a place, then through a magical portal. I think I'm in a higher realm. I'm surrounded by other 'Sources' from other Cosmoi. They keep taking one of us away... and they don't return. I'm scared I'm going to be next."
Gemini said
"I promise you, nothing will happen to you," Apeiron vows, his voice trembling with intensity. "I'm so close to finding you. Stay strong!"
"Please... be safe," she whispers. "I love you."
Before he can say it back, the signal breaks. The flickering light of the gauntlet dies, and her voice vanishes into the hollow void of the multiverse.
"Pandora!" Apeiron screams into the silence of the room. "Pandora!"
He slams his fist against the wall, but there is no answer only the low, persistent hum of the fortress. He stands there in the dark, the gauntlet dimming to a cold grey, his resolve hardening into iron. He has his brother, he has his allies, and now, he has a target.