An enormous black dragon, about a hundred meters long, was soaring through the skies at high speed. The flying nightmare creatures fled like mere frightened birds at the sight of the dragon.
On top of the black dragon's head, Uriel lay lazily, observing the twilight sky of the Stormsea.
In the distance, a massive black monolith could be seen piercing the sky like an enormous needle.
According to what he had discovered, that monolith was actually part of an imposing statue sunk in the abyssal depths of the Stormsea.
Advancing beyond the monolith, a few thousand kilometers further, a thick fog emerged that completely enveloped them.
For a time, the dragon kept flying, slightly altering its trajectory through the mist.
Deciding he could rest, Uriel closed his eyes, sinking into the dragon's darkness.
Closing his eyes, Uriel dreamed.
---
Before anything existed, and before nothing existed, there was only an infinite and boundless void inhabited by nameless creatures whose sole purpose was to wander through the immensity of the void, completely unaware of one another.
The creatures lacked dreams because they could not dream; they lacked ideals because they had no ambition; they lacked chaos because they only possessed their existence.
Amidst all the immensity of the void, there was only one small, insignificant creature that was different from its other kin.
The creature, though not as vast, terrifying, or boundless as the others, possessed something that the other creatures lacked—consciousness.
The weak and insignificant creature wandered for an eternity through the infinite void, observing other creatures far larger than itself, wondering what it was.
The creature searched for a long time for an answer, but never found one. One day, the creature, in its search, encountered something interesting: something that disturbed the void—a flame so bright and vast that it illuminated the void completely with a dazzling white light.
The creature felt a desire arise within itself to consume that flame and feel complete.
The flame was bright and searing. Countless creatures lunged at it to seize a piece of the primordial flame.
The flame defended itself and destroyed the largest and most devastating creatures without a trace.
No creature could approach without being consumed—yet that weak and insignificant creature achieved the unthinkable.
It positioned itself upon the flame and devoured a piece in a single bite before retreating when the flame attacked it.
Fleeing from the flame, the small creature felt something change within itself. For the first time, it felt the desire to know what it was and the direction to guide its desire. The small creature wandered for another eternity, understanding more about itself.
Though it now knew what it was and what it wanted, it was still insignificant and felt empty. It looked at the flame, and a desire was born within it: to consume the flame.
Feeling hunger for the first time in its existence, the small creature committed the first sin: devouring one of its own kind.
It discovered that by devouring, its being became much stronger and far vaster than it had been before.
Blinded by this insatiable desire, it continued devouring its brethren—one after another, one after another, after another, after another—for a long time.
When it finally stopped, its immensity was absolute, so much so that its being extended so far that it divided the void completely, splitting the white and pristine domain of the flame with its abyssal and hungry darkness.
At some point, other creatures began to join it, earning it the title of king.
Deciding to consume the flame to finally understand existence, it led its army against the flame.
The flame, once vibrant, was now weak as a flickering ember that needed protection.
From its flames, seven entities were born to protect the flame as their treasure, initiating a battle that would give rise to existence itself.
---
"Hey, Uriel, we've arrived."
A sudden voice made Uriel open his eyes, somewhat disoriented.
Emerging from the dragon's darkness, he landed on stone ground as the dragon completely vanished.
Looking ahead, Uriel observed multiple servants who had already been waiting for him.
Following the servants, Uriel arrived at the castle's central hall, where a man in his mid-thirties with a dazzling appearance and a carefree smile awaited him.
That man was none other than Chronos, the Time Killer, one of the two supremes from the Great Tomb of Ariel, and his disciple.
Chronos, upon seeing Uriel, gave a smile between arrogance and amusement.
"Master!" Chronos said with a grin on his face.
"Welcome to Twilight. I thought you'd come in a week."
Uriel yawned.
"Oh, Chronos, did you say something?"
Chronos felt one of his eyebrows twitch at Uriel's attitude.
"No, nothing. Just that you arrived quickly."
"Well, I finished some things early and decided to come," he replied.
"And how is Twilight?" he asked.
"Oh, incredibly welcoming. The climate is stable, the land is fertile, and there's plenty of room to keep expanding. If we keep going like this, within a few years our population could increase by a few hundred thousand more."
"That's good to hear," said Uriel.
Chronos furrowed his brow and stood up.
"I can tell you're worried, Master. Is something wrong?"
"Hmm. Well, I think so."
"Is it because of the war between those two supremes?"
"No," Uriel replied.
Chronos and Uriel began walking through the castle's great halls.
"It's just that lately, I've been feeling strange."
"Strange?"
"Yes, I feel strange with myself. It's hard to explain—it's like wearing an uncomfortable, tight outfit you can't take off. Just like that, I've been getting very sleepy, much more than before."
"Hmm. That is strange. There could be various factors: mental exhaustion, high stress levels, or you might be under some curse."
"No, if I had one, Soul and Stygia would have already removed it. It must be something else—maybe Shade has something in mind."
"But enough about that, how's the project going?"
"Oh, it's going great. We're already working on starting the forging, though materials are hard to come by. It'll take longer than expected."
"I understand," he replied calmly.
Chronos personally guided Uriel through the enormous castle, descending into its depths directly to a large forging chamber.
Upon arriving, Uriel felt the hot air emanating from the chamber, heard the constant sound of metal being shaped by hammers, and saw hundreds of forgers crafting weaponry and utensils for the daily life of the island's inhabitants.
At the center of it all, a great multitude of forgers and smiths gathered, moving enormous plates of transcendent steel for the greatest construction of all.
"We have the left arm, the right arm, and the head ready. The upper torso and lower torso are still in the creation process."
Uriel watched as a titanic metallic arm, the size of a building, was lifted through a series of pulleys.
"How long do you think the Jaeger project will take?"
"At this pace, and if there are no setbacks, I'd say about two years—three and a half after testing."
Uriel wore a thoughtful expression.
Three years. That was the time he had. He was certain that the Moon Man was making moves to return to the game board.
If Uriel was sure of one thing, it was that that supreme would be a huge pain in the ass. But there was nothing he could do about it.
For now, he could only deal with two Supremes.
If he played his cards right, he could win.
In fact, he would simply need to launch all his Supreme echoes by surprise to attack together and kill him—but by doing so, he would kill tens of millions and hundreds more in the future, and he didn't plan to carry out a massacre of hundreds of millions.
Leaning against the railing, he fell silent, watching the forging continue.
"By the way, Chronos, can you see what will happen in the future?"
"Hmm... Fate is broken, so I can't see what will happen like I used to in the tomb. However, there is something I can see clearly."
"And what would that be?"
Chronos's voice turned serious as his blue eyes locked onto the pair of black eyes.
"I can see an absolute sea of darkness commanded by something truly abominable and foul, fighting against something equally horrifying."
"What does that mean?"
"I don't know. Maybe it's a portent, or maybe not. But if I know one thing, it's that soon you will have a long and hard battle ahead."
Uriel said nothing upon hearing that.
"I suppose I should be going now—I just came to take a quick look," Uriel said, stretching to leave, but was stopped by Chronos.
"Oh, not so fast. You just arrived after a week of travel. So rest. There will soon be a feast to celebrate five years of freedom from the Great Tomb, and you are the guest of honor," Chronos said with a smile, giving a thumbs up.
"No..."
"Yes, it's already decided."
Chronos dragged Uriel along, letting out light laughter at a dismayed Uriel.
Supremes were supposed to be imposing and serious figures—not carefree brats like Chronos, a lover of parties.
---
The feast was held in the castle gardens, illuminated by thousands of floating lanterns that created a spectacle of dancing lights. The inhabitants of Twilight, dressed in their finest attire, celebrated with music, dance, and abundant food. Uriel, seated in an elevated place, observed the scene with a goblet in his hand, his hood hiding his face.
Chronos, beside him, laughed with some of the island's most prominent citizens, his natural charisma drawing in everyone who approached.
"You know, Master," Chronos said, approaching, "sometimes I forget that you also need moments like this. To relax, to enjoy, to remember that not everything is war and strategy."
"You're right," Uriel admitted. "But I can't help thinking about what lies ahead."
"That's precisely why we should enjoy the present. The future is uncertain, but the now is real. And right now, we're alive, we're free, and we're celebrating."
Uriel smiled beneath his hood.
"You're a good disciple, Chronos. Sometimes too optimistic, but a good disciple."
"I hope so, Master. After all, I learned from the best."
"Don't flatter me too much."
"It's not flattery—it's the truth."
Chronos raised his goblet toward the crowd, which responded with a roar of joy.
"To the Great Tomb!" he shouted. "To Twilight! And to the Lord of Darkness!"
The crowd echoed the toast, and Uriel couldn't help but feel, if only for a moment, part of something greater than himself.
And as the night continued, with laughter and songs filling the air, Uriel allowed himself to forget, if only temporarily, the worries that tormented him.