The barren wasteland was silent save for the howling wind as Kiera Voss sprinted forward, throwing her arms around the towering figure of her brother. Tears of relief streamed down her face as she buried her head into his chest.
Xavian "Deadshot" Voss returned the embrace, a rare, soft smile crossing his usually stoic features.
Captain Alaric Voss walked up a moment later, his heavy, armored footsteps crunching against the dry earth. He extended a hand, grasping Xavian’s firmly before pulling his brother into a tight, warrior’s embrace. "Good to see you," Alaric said, letting out a breath he felt like he had been holding for days. He stepped back, his eyes scanning the endless wasteland. "How did you find us out here?"
Xavian casually rested the barrel of The Omega Reaver—his sentient, cosmic sniper rifle—over his shoulder. "I talked to Queen Lila over the feed," Xavian explained, his sharp eyes looking over the battered group. "She ordered me back to Stellara Prime as quickly as possible because they needed my strength. But as I was on my way there, traveling across the Universal Ring, my transmission completely cut out. I felt a shadow pass right by me."
Xavian’s eyes narrowed as he recounted the event. "I dropped to a knee and scoped out the entire Universal Ring using the advanced optics of The Omega Reaver. Way out in the distance, I saw Kenshiro Takamura of the 'Seventh' Universe, and what looked like a doctor in a lab coat, riding on the back of a massive Shadow Dragon. They were flying across the ring, headed in my direction, but still many miles away."
Xavian paused, his grip tightening slightly on his rifle. "Suddenly, they were struck down by a shadowy figure. I watched them disappear into the void. But right before they vanished... I quickly aimed The Omega Reaver and fired a micro-sensory pellet directly into Kenshiro."
Xavian stepped forward and gestured to the battered samurai. "Lift up your shirt."
Kenshiro, wincing slightly from his injuries, complied. To the absolute shock of everyone present, resting just beneath the surface of the skin on Kenshiro's lower abdomen was a very, very small and completely harmless metallic pellet. Xavian walked over, placed his hand over the tiny device, and effortlessly extracted it.
"After that," Xavian continued, flicking the pellet away, "I finally made it to Stellara Prime. But the planet... it was completely destroyed."
A heavy silence fell over the group as they processed the horrific fate of the Seventh Universe's capital.
"I saw Queen Lila standing amidst the rubble," Xavian said quietly. "Thousands of people from other planets within the universe were actively being transported there just to help clean up the devastation and begin rebuilding. But she wasn't alone. King Kael was there as well."
Captain Arcturus Valen perked up at the mention of the Requiem King.
"He was visibly upset," Xavian noted. "He was just staring into an empty sphere of writhing shadows. I asked him what was wrong, and he told me that he had successfully captured King Arion and was going to place him under surveillance under Queen Lila and the 'Seventh' Universe. But when he opened the shadowy sphere to hand him over... it was completely empty."
"Arion escaped?" Alaric asked, his fists clenching.
"It seems that way," Xavian replied. "Kael said he was going to head back to the Azure Universe immediately to finish what he started. Queen Lila urged him not to go, warning him it was too dangerous, but he didn't listen. He said he had to stop back by his universe to make sure a specific someone was back by the deadline he gave them."
Xavian shook his head. "After Kael left, I checked the tracking device for the sensory pellet. For days, it wasn't popping up with a location. I thought it was futile, that the signal was lost in whatever dimension you were dragged into. But today, the location suddenly pinged. I let Queen Lila know, and she ordered me to come here to retrieve you all."
Xavian shifted his gaze to his brother. "Now, how exactly did you get captured?"60Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCus9zMVzgo
Captain Arcturus Valen stepped forward first, adjusting his cuffs and saving Alaric from embarrassment. "I was originally heading to lend my hand to Queen Lila and the 'Seventh' Universe. I intended to use my Planetary Battlefield Insight and strategic knowledge to investigate and put a stop to King Arion's plans before the situation escalated." Valen looked over at Kenshiro. "It was probably Vesper who intercepted you and Dr. Vorst on the ring, considering we were all captured and dragged into the exact same dark plane."
Alaric then crossed his arms, looking at his sniper brother with a slightly defeated look. "Actually, I was commanded by Queen Nia to seek you out, Xavian. She wanted me to ask if you intended to aid us in the impending fight." Alaric let out a dry chuckle. "But I ended up going with Valen instead. I figured you wouldn't come help us anyway, since you usually work solo."
Xavian let out a genuine, booming laugh. "You know me so well, brother," he smiled, though his expression quickly sobered. "Though things are looking like they are making a turn for the worse."
Xavian looked around at the battered heroes of the 5 Universes. "I will join the fight alongside you all. But listen to me very carefully: we must NOT return to Fort Vigilance."
"What?" Captain Elowen asked, her brow furrowing in confusion. "But Queen Nia and the others are there. We need to regroup with them."
"No," Xavian said, his voice deadly serious. "All this time I’ve been gone, I have been surveying everything from far away. I found out about The Judge, his 12 Elders, and the current Kings and Queens of the 6 Kingdoms. They are not a force to mess with, and right now... they are all heading directly to Fort Vigilance."
The revelation hit the group like a physical blow. The absolute rulers of the Land of Spade were marching on their doorstep.
"Even though we want to help out in the fight," Xavian continued, his tactical mind mirroring Valen's logic, "it would be best to leave that to Seraphina and Queen Nia for now. If you all go there in your current, battered state, you'll only be a liability."
Xavian raised The Omega Reaver, checking its chamber. "We will head over to the 'Seventh' Universe to go back and regroup. From there, we will aid King Kael as he tries to finish off everything going on in the Azure Universe."
Without waiting for further objections, Xavian aimed The Omega Reaver directly at the dry earth beneath their feet. He pulled the trigger. Instead of a destructive bullet, the sentient weapon fired a concentrated round of spatial energy that tore through the fabric of reality.
A massive, glowing portal spiraled open in the ground, revealing the ruined but recovering landscape of Stellara Prime on the other side.
"Let's move," Xavian ordered, stepping into the rift. One by one, the heroes of the 5 Universes followed the sniper through the portal, leaving the barren wasteland behind as the true war for existence continued to escalate.60Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡil7S1Oi6av
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