Rhyes's final words—"I will guarantee your survival over my own."—hung in the air like a blade poised over still water.
For a few heartbeats, no one moved. No one breathed.
Then the murmurs began.
Soft at first—barely whispers between the armored men and women standing atop the ring, surrounding the powerless Catalysts like a wall of steel.
"…Did he just say he'd protect them?"
"…Supreme Commander himself?"
"…But they're Class 0 threats…"
"…They're anomalies… even the scans couldn't pin them down."
"…Should we really be taking this risk?"
"…They could tear through us the moment those cuffs are off…"
"…Why not finish them now, while they're suppressed?"
Jahanox's sharp hearing caught every single one. He walked forward slowly, hands casually tucked behind his back, that usual grin resting on his face like a blade wrapped in silk.
"Well, well," he said, glancing at Rhyes with playful eyes. "Seems your soldiers don't trust your decision, Supreme Commander. That's a bad look for a leader."
Several heads turned sharply toward Jahanox. Tension rippled. The triggers of rifles tightened just slightly. They were all ready to blew his brain out.
But Rhyes didn't even blink.
He slowly turned his gaze away from Jahanox and swept it across the gathered ranks. His pale blue eyes scanned each soldier—each helmet, each doubt etched into the furrow of a brow or the twitch of a glove.
"Enough," he said.
Just one word. Quiet. Sharp. And final.
The murmurs stilled like wind beneath snowfall.
Rhyes stepped forward. His voice rang louder this time, not just for the Catalysts—but for every soul under his command.
"They are unknowns. Yes. Their abilities are beyond are unknown. Yes."
He paused, his cloak swaying behind him with the wind of the high ring.
"But they are not enemies. Not yet."
A silence followed, but he didn't stop.
"If we judge every unknown as a threat, we sentence all potential allies to death before they ever raise a hand to help."
A few soldiers shifted, uncertain. Still tense.
Rhyes lifted his chin slightly.
"If they are lying," he said, "we'll know."
"If they betray us… we'll end them."
"But if they are telling the truth—if their purpose is to repair the multiverse—then they may be the only chance we have left to rely on to stop this war."
The weight of those words pressed down on every soldier's heart.
For a long second, the air was still.
Then, slowly, heads began to nod.
One soldier muttered, "If Supreme commander says it's fine, I'll believe it…"
Another, "If they try anything, we'll end it quick."
Someone else, "Guess it's worth the gamble."
Commander Keith stood silently to the side, arms crossed. His brow furrowed, still visibly unsure—but not protesting.
Jahanox chuckled under his breath and clapped lightly. "You're good with words, Commander. Quite the manipulative speech."
Rhyes turned to him, expression unreadable. He closed his eyes for a moment—then opened them again, cold clarity piercing through.
"A leader who cannot control doubt… cannot command loyalty."
He stepped forward again, walking past the Catalysts.
"A leader who cannot win trust… will never deserve it."
Jahanox raised an eyebrow, clearly impressed.
Rhyes's final line echoed behind him as he walked:
"A leader who cannot earn belief… should never carry the burden of power."
The wind brushed past the ring, fluttering the hem of his cape.
The Catalysts looked among themselves—still bound by uncertainty.
One by one, the Catalysts hesitantly placed the small silver discs—energy suppression modules—onto the center of their foreheads. A small pulse of dull blue light blinked once, twice, and then settled with a faint hum. The moment the connection completed, an invisible wave washed over their bodies.
It felt like the breath of their own powers had been locked behind a steel vault.
Jennie frowned, brushing her hair back and muttering, "Feels weird… like I've gone half blind…"
Miwa pouted, tapping the disc. "Mine's buzzing."
"You'll live," Ai grumbled under her breath, trying to ignore the unfamiliar vulnerability crawling across her skin.
Minos gritted his teeth. "This feels like handcuffs for my brain."
Kiyomasa muttered, "I feel like I'm missing a limb…"
Still, despite the complaints, no one took it off.
They trusted Zazm.
And he was silent.
He stood a few feet away from the group, arms folded, eyes low, his expression unreadable. That air of quiet command still clung to him—even without his powers.
Then, with a soft ripple of light, Zephyra appeared, floating into view.
She hung upside down, long violet hair falling freely toward the ground, her hands locked behind her head in a relaxed pose. Her purple irises sparkled with mischief as she looked at Zazm.
"Well, well," she said with a playful smirk, "Supreme Commander Rhyes.....His leadership doesn't stop impressing me."
Zazm didn't even look at her. He stepped forward, passing by her floating form with calm steps.
"Don't get too impressed," he said casually.
Zephyra raised an eyebrow, that smug smile growing wider. She dropped down beside him and gave his side a poke with her finger.
"Oho? Is that jealousy I hear?"
Zazm didn't answer.
His eyes stayed ahead.
The rest of the group followed behind, still grumbling but keeping formation as Rhyes led them through a wide metallic corridor etched into the ring's upper layer. The walls were made of shimmering black alloy with glowing red veins that pulsed like circuitry.
After a short walk, the corridor opened to a platform overlooking the descending skyline of Nyxion Base.
And that's when they saw it.
The Vehicle.
Parked at the center of the platform was a beast of a machine, sleek and sculpted, easily the size of a bus but built like a predator. Its base was a black reflective alloy, shaped like a sharp-edged wedge, the kind of design that defied gravity through intimidation alone. Twin curved wings extended from its sides, edged with thrusters that shimmered with rotating crimson rings. Floating turbines hummed silently beneath it, keeping it effortlessly airborne.
The front wasn't a windshield—it was a transparent command field, a thin film of shifting data overlays that blinked as if alive.
Its rear held a modular expansion unit that gleamed faint violet, while the top bore a shifting antenna crown, reaching skyward and folding in elegant spirals of rotating tech.
From the sides extended retractable landing arms, and soft blue light glowed along its undercarriage like veins of a sleeping dragon.
Minos let out a low whistle.
"Commander… is that thing a flying car or some divine artifact?"
Commander Rhyes looked back, just faintly amused. "It very well is. High-altitude aerial cruiser, model Astra-X. Custom-built for field command and high-speed stealth deployment."
Jahanox smirked as he approached the cruiser, his fingers trailing across the humming side.
"Well," he said, glancing over his shoulder at the others, "if we're gonna be dragged through this madness… at least we get to ride in style."
Miwa grinned. "Shotgun."
Ai groaned. "We're not calling seats in a war vehicle."
Jennie chuckled. "I kind of want to sketch it later…"
As the group approached the cruiser, its side panel lifted with a smooth hiss, revealing an inner cabin lined with matte black seats and a central table surrounded by soft blue interface lights.
Zazm paused just before stepping in.
His eyes lifted.
No longer locked in calculation—just observing the sky above. The sky was artificial… but the stars were real.
Zephyra floated beside him again, quieter this time.
"You made the right call," she said softly. "Even if they don't know it yet."
Zazm exhaled, barely a whisper of breath.
Then stepped into the cruiser.
The doors sealed shut behind them with a quiet click, and the ship rose—leaving behind the platform and rising toward the skies.
Supreme Commander Rhyes sat at the center of the lavishly spacious flying car, its walls paneled in polished obsidian-like alloy that shimmered faintly under ambient blue light. The flooring felt smooth like silk, and every seat was cushioned with dark velvet, giving the entire interior the air of a modern airborne castle.
Around him sat the Catalysts — each of them quiet, cautious, and curiously observing everything.
Keith sat near the entrance, his arms crossed. "Before we reach the main base," he said, his voice firm, "it would be better if you told us where you're really from. And who you truly are."
Jahanox exhaled through his nose, slouching slightly in his seat. "That's gonna take a while… Just take this thing off—whatever this is—" he gestured to the glowing suppression module on his temple, "and I'll show you directly. Much easier."
Rhyes didn't even flinch. "What's rule is rule," he said evenly. "You'll explain it to us in words."
"Tch," Jahanox clicked his tongue. "Fine."
He straightened up and began, "Our world's called Earth. I don't know how it compares to this one in terms of age, but it's just one planet—one universe. We have continents, oceans, countries. Different people. Most of us grew up in normal cities and towns. No flying cars, sick military outfits and stuff."
Ai picked up next, brushing her hair back as she explained, "People travel in cars. Four-wheeled, ground-level, fueled mostly by petrol or electricity. Flying cars aren't… a thing there yet." She paused. "Some people are trying to develop prototypes, but nothing like this exists."
Jennie chimed in, her voice soft but clear. "Our homes are made from brick, cement, steel. Tall buildings are made with glass, sometimes over a hundred stories. But still… nowhere near this."
Minos leaned back with a shrug. "Most of the population doesn't even know about outer space in practical terms. Like, yeah, we've sent people to the Moon, we have space stations, but interplanetary travel?" He scoffed. "That's still sci-fi to us."
Miwa raised a hand casually. "We don't have big beasts or talking horses either just in case they exist here I said that. Most animals can't do much beyond bite and run."
Jennie added, "But we do have a lot of entertainment — music, TV shows, movies… storytelling is a big part of our culture."
Ai nodded. "And technology too. Phones, satellites, AI. But the development is mostly commercial, not military like this place. And no one's merging universes."
Rhyes had his arms folded across his chest, listening silently, observing each speaker with careful eyes. When everyone quieted, he finally spoke.
"Your world doesn't sound half as technologically advanced as this one… But in terms of people, social structure, lifestyle—it's not too different. Interesting."
Jahanox tilted his head. "Your world is crazy advanced. But the way you talk… it's still just people, huh?"
Miwa sat up straight and pouted slightly. "I wish we could see out the windows or something. Just a little peek at all this."
Rhyes, still standing, gave a small smile. "Don't worry. You'll get a full tour once you've settled in. But for now—just fit in this closed space a little longer."
He turned to face everyone fully.
"Now that I know where you come from," Rhyes said, "it's time I explain where you are."
Everyone leaned in instinctively.
"But I won't go into too much detail," he said, adjusting the red insignia star on his chest. "For now… just enough for you to understand the scale."
He looked out the front of the vehicle, eyes narrowing slightly.
Rhyes stood with hands behind his back, posture immaculate, voice calm and composed as ever.
"You're currently on the planet Euphoria," he began. "A planet far beyond Earth in scale. In terms of size... it's massive. Vastly, impossibly larger than your world."
He paused before speaking again, "The population of Euphoria exceeds 500 trillion."
Everyone blinked.
The silence that followed was thick with disbelief.
"Five… hundred trillion?" Ai let out a bewildered chuckle, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "Did I hear that right?"
Minos's eyes shot wide open. "How the hell do you even manage a population that size?!"
Rhyes glanced toward him, unfazed. "The same way your world manages eight billion."
"Still…" Jennie muttered, her voice trailing off.
"You don't seem to understand how big Euphoria is," Rhyes said, a faint edge in his tone. "Only 60% of the planet is currently inhabited."
Kiyomasa blinked and raised a hand slightly. "Is the other 40%… oceans or something?"
Rhyes turned toward him. "We've colonized the oceans — undersea cities, floating arcologies, flying structures above tidal zones. That 40%? It's dense wildland. Ash forests. Floating islands. Regions where megafauna roam. Some areas are… untouchable."
The Catalysts sat frozen, minds struggling to grasp the scale. Jennie mouthed "Floating islands…?" under her breath.
Before the growing flood of questions could escape their lips, Rhyes raised a single hand. "As I said — I won't be going into too much detail."
He straightened his shoulders slightly. "Euphoria is located approximately 100 light-years away from Earth."
Jennie jolted upright. "A hundred—?!"
But before she could finish, Jahanox leaned forward, elbows on his knees. "Alright. That's enough for now. We've got a picture of this 'Euphoria' planet—how big, how impressive, how far. That's not what we're asking."
His voice stayed firm but polite. "What we want to know now is where we're being taken. This place specifically. You said you won't go deep into details, so start with that."
Rhyes narrowed his eyes slightly, locking onto Jahanox. "You're not curious about how this planet came into existence? Or what happened to cause such a fusion of worlds?"
Jahanox nodded slowly. "I am curious. We all are. And above all…" — he paused, catching himself — "…above all, we're confused."
His gaze swept toward the others. Miwa nodded. Kiyomasa looked away. Jennie clutched her knees slightly.
"But right now," Jahanox finished, "what matters is knowing where we're going. The rest—we'll talk about later."
Ai crossed her arms, voice sharp. "We came here because our leader said so. But at no cost will we accept any harm or disregard to our people."
On the other end of the flying car, Zazm sat still — silent as a shadow.
His eyes were half-lidded, staring toward nothing in particular. Next to him, floating invisibly to all others, Zephyra hung upside down with her legs folded at the knee, gently swinging like a child on a swing.
She smirked, her voice laced with teasing sarcasm. "Yapping a lot is your old hobby, isn't it?"
Zazm didn't move.
But his voice responded — not from his lips, but directly into her thoughts.
"Supreme Commander Rhyes isn't some run-of-the-mill officer."
Zephyra blinked, momentarily surprised. She sat upright in the air, twisting to look at him from her invisible perch.
"Speaking in thoughts now? How polite."
No answer. His expression didn't change.
She tilted her head slightly. "What makes you say he's different?"
Zazm's voice echoed into her again, calm and low.
"He's told us a lot. A lot. But not once has he given us any real information."
Zephyra's swinging slowed. She looked at him more seriously now.
"He's speaking like someone guiding children through a museum."
She stopped floating completely, dropping her knees down so she was now hovering cross-legged beside him. Her usual playful air had dulled.
"You're right," she said, her voice now just above a whisper. "This guy's acting all kind and open… but everything he's doing is cautious. Strategic. He's measuring us."
Zazm's gaze didn't shift.
"That's what makes him dangerous."
"But Jahanox caught onto it." Zephyra spoke leaning forward clearly intrigued.
As the flying vehicle glided effortlessly through the shimmering sky of Null-Flux Bastion, Rhyes remained seated, hands calmly folded in his lap, eyes distant yet sharp. Around him, the Catalysts had settled—though uneasily—into the luxurious interior, every movement of the craft a reminder of just how alien and advanced this place was.
Rhyes's voice returned, deep and steady.
"This place you're currently standing on," he said, "is called Null-Flux Bastion, or NFB for short. It's not just any facility—it's the largest military base in the entire world of Euphoria."
The weight of his words was not lost on the Catalysts.
Ai leaned forward slightly, her brow furrowed. Her eyes scanned the surreal world just beyond the craft's window, glinting from the memory of what she had seen earlier.
She asked, her voice cautious but curious, "What is that gigantic flower? The one with the floating petals, the towers, and… that huge dome in the center?"
Rhyes looked at her, slightly surprised by the precision of her observation.
"That gigantic flower," he replied, "is the medical zone. The petals you saw floating around it each serve different purposes—hospitals, labs, healing centers. The towers? That's the engineering zone. Each one houses entire technological districts. And the dome…" He let the sentence hang with reverence. "That's our main base of operations."
A heavy silence lingered for a beat, and then—
Zazm, who had remained quiet till now, finally spoke.
His voice was cold, unwavering. Everyone turned toward him as his words cut clean through the air.
"You've mentioned the words military threats more than a few times now," Zazm said, locking eyes with Rhyes. "Don't you think it's about time you stopped beating around the bush… and tell us exactly what it is humanity is fighting against?"
The room stilled.
Rhyes met Zazm's gaze. The tension sparked subtly between them—two leaders, two perspectives.
"We are fighting… Remnants," Rhyes said.
Zazm narrowed his eyes. "That's what you're calling them?"
Rhyes nodded once. "To simplify—Remnants are people with supernatural abilities… like yours. But those people are not exactly on our side."
Ai's eyes widened in shock.
"There are more people with supernatural powers?" she asked, voice tinged with disbelief.
Rhyes nodded. "There are. But Remnants have a different goal. Their aim is to take over the entire universe—this universe and as many others as they can across the multiverse."
Jahanox, now leaning back with arms crossed, raised a brow.
"Why would they do that?" he asked.
Rhyes's answer came with a darker tone.
"Their powers are linked to someone from the past," he said. "Ever since then, they've been waiting for that man… a man they call their True King—the one responsible for the multiversal distortion."
The weight of the revelation was immense. The name hung in the air like a curse.
Before anyone could question further, Jahanox stepped in again, his mind rapidly connecting the dots.
"So… you're saying you're in a constant war with these Remnants. How do you even fight them? Do you also have superpowers?"
Rhyes shook his head. "We don't have superpowers. We fight them with technologically advanced gear. And as for war… no. We are not currently in war."
He then lifted a finger and pointed at their foreheads—more specifically, at the energy suppression devices strapped onto them.
"The source of a Remnant's power is linked to their forehead," Rhyes said. "The fact that those suppressors work on you… proves that you are Remnants, too."
Silence.
The realization washed over them like ice water. Jennie subconsciously touched the suppressor on her forehead.
Zazm's voice was steady as he asked, "How are these Remnants formed? Are they… born like humans? Or created?"
Rhyes nodded. "That's what we call a Pure Remnant. They're humans, yes—but born with powers. They are strong."
He paused, his expression hardening.
"We have to stop them from destroying us from getting out of this universe....doing this we have our lifes for the sake of humanity."
Zazm parted his lips to respond, his tone preparing to shift—but before a single word left his mouth—
The gates of the dome opened.
A booming hiss echoed through the car as sleek mechanical partitions pulled back, revealing a glowing landing pad bathed in white-blue light.
Supreme Commander Rhyes stood up, smoothing his vest.
"We'll discuss it all later," he said calmly. "For now… we've arrived at our destination."
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