2352 - Throne of Dreams
A Space Gate activated, and Morval emerged from it—a man who appeared to be in his thirties, with drowsy eyes, light eyebrows, and fair hair. He wore a long white robe and scattered pieces of armor that seemed purely decorative.
"Open the Arrays!" Morval waved his hand the moment he stepped out of the Gate.
Then he let the soldiers scurry like frantic ants before him, and he looked upward. He had traveled nearly halfway across the planet to reach this place.
It was a fantastical stone fortress, beyond the imagination of any ordinary person.
The walls were made of smooth white stone, interlaced with faint orange veins that moved slowly, like living pulses. Whenever light reflected off them, fleeting images of cities, mountains, and seas formed, then vanished before anyone could focus on them.
It had tall, pointed towers that pierced the clouds, each window the size of a house, each balcony large enough to serve as a field in a densely populated country.
The fortress was surrounded by strange plants and vast expanses of gardens, scattered with pets and statues. Its gate alone was as tall as the castles of other Behemoths, engraved with images of fairies and mythical creatures.
*Cccrrrrrrack*
Before Morval's eyes, a wall of blue Energy appeared, then collapsed.
Then a wall of red energy collapsed, followed by purple, then yellow, and so on, until all twelve walls had completely fallen.
Then a voice was heard: "You may proceed, Lord Morval. Only the long-range arrays and the Fate Monitoring Array remain as active defenses."
Morval bowed to his brother, then, placing his hands respectfully by his thighs, began to advance.
*Crackle*
After Lord Morval entered, the walls began to rise from the ground once more, covering the strongest anti-sensing dome in the universe. Then, in the next moment, it vanished into the folds of the air.
*Humm*
Morval stood in awe before the massive gate as it opened. He did not attempt to advance until it had opened to its fullest extent and the walls struck behind it. *Bam*
Only then did Morval swallow for an extra two seconds, hesitating to step forward in reverence.
Then *Bam*, the door closed behind him.
"..."
"Can we talk now?" one of the soldiers outside, a Seven-Star Spirit Master, spoke.
"To say what?" replied another, a Ten-Star Spirit Master. "Relax like your brothers and prepare to go through this entire process again when he comes out."
"I know." The young man sat among a group of youths, both male and female, all exhausted from what had just transpired. "...This is the first time I've participated in opening The Gate since I was assigned here a thousand years ago. It's exciting, and worrying." Then he furrowed his brows. "I wonder what happened for Big Brother to come for a visit."
"His name is Lord Morval to you." A completely different person spoke, then looked toward the massive Gate with envy. "Even among the First Tier Sons, he is the only one who can cross that door..." Then he closed his eye again. "Whatever he does inside is none of our business anyway. Just wait for orders."
"..." The young man nodded after some hesitation.
*Step* *Step*
Morval continued walking through the castle with heavy steps.
An amount of time he could no longer recall had passed since he last came here. Since that day, no footsteps had been heard here, and not a single speck of dust had entered either.
The place that had remained sealed for millions of years was completely clean, extremely luxurious, with brilliant lighting at first that gradually diminished the deeper Morval went inside.
He could have flown or used accelerated steps to cover any distance quickly, but he continued moving forward slowly, with respect, with hesitation.
Deep within the fortress, the corridors branched out in all directions—some leading to libraries with endless shelves, others to inner gardens where trees with crystalline leaves grew, while still others led to high balconies overlooking a sea of clouds. It seemed as if the fortress itself did not obey the laws of space, its pathways and chambers shifting according to whoever walked within them.
Until finally, a hall of immense size appeared, its ceiling invisible.
Then, after walking for an additional hour in that hall, Morval stood before a majestic crystalline throne.
An empty throne.
He then dropped to his knees and bowed until his hands touched the ground. His energy stirred, and he spoke in an audible voice, "My Mistress and Lady, O Giver, this servant begs for your audience."
*Silence—*
The profound silence that followed Morval's words did not prompt him to rise or repeat his plea. It did not move him to stir his spiritual power again. Instead, he held his breath and waited.
Minutes passed slowly during this summons, then hours. Morval did not budge an inch.
Until finally—
*Huum*
A radiant orange sphere emerged from between Morval's brow, and soon the sphere took on a female human form before the throne. The features of her radiant body were clear, but it was also evident that she wore a legendary robe of orange light.
That Lady sat quietly on the Throne, then looked down at Morval. "What is the matter?"
"Something new has arisen, My Mistress. There is a new movement shaking Universe B-14, and I need direct instructions from Your Highness." Morval barely held back beads of sweat. "It concerns the All-seeing God's candidate for this generation."
"The title of the All-seeing God has become active again? His current candidate is a Truth Chosen, then... how ironic." The Lady furrowed her brow for a moment. "What has the Truth Chosen done to warrant my presence?"
"He declared war today on two Behemoths simultaneously and requested a live broadcast to the entire universe using the Mechanisms that Your Highness taught us," Morval spoke quickly, fearing to waste time. "The problem here is that the two Army leaders are Liberated."
"....?!" The Lady stood up slowly. "What did you say?" Then she raised her voice slightly. "Do you mean soldiers or Executioners? Those who were partially liberated? The All-seeing God has begun to play in such an open manner? Since when does that man interfere so directly? This violates everything he stands for..."
"My Mistress, I mean Liberated in the literal sense." Morval was nearly in tears, "I just saw Renara, a girl who was a trivial Nexus State a few decades ago, cut an Eight-Star Spirit Master into eight pieces without even exchanging a blow or two with him!"
"……" The Mistress sat back down very slowly, "Real Liberated ones? Two of them?" Then she looked down and muttered, "Why… why would someone cut from his own power to create Liberated ones, and at a time like this? His reputation and standing will take a massive hit as well…"
Then she looked into Morval's eyes, "Has a major event occurred in the past few years? Something capable of angering the All-seeing God?"
"The entire Last Millennium has been full of major events—an acceleration of events and developments in governance, power distribution, influence, and even the thinking of mortals in the streets has changed more than what we witnessed in the last 10 million years." Morval replied quickly, "Ever since the Current Candidate appeared, he hasn't stopped turning the universe upside down in every possible way, and in ways we thought were impossible."