In another solar system with five planets orbiting a sun, the third planet, closest to the star, is a massive gold and greenish world encircled by two rings and orbited by two moons. Shimmering sands blanket the entire planet, while chunks of gold lie scattered as rocks. Lakes and seas dot the landscape, their waters a pale greenish hue.
At the far end of the planet stands a city of towering buildings crafted from gold, encircled by a fence of gold and dark porcelain. The city's gates, also made of gold and dark porcelain, are flanked by two golden statues, each holding a large lever to open the massive gates.
Within the walls, beings of diverse races, beast folk with fur and claws, humans, metallic beings of gold and silver, plant-like creatures, fairies, insectoid, demonoid and humanoid creatures alike thrive in a bustling tapestry of trade and daily life. Merchants barter glowing trinkets imbued with faint energy, while others hurry to their tasks.
At the heart of the gilded city rises the tallest and grandest building, its gates guarded by two silent sentinels, admitting no visitors. Inside, numerous servants and guards are stationed in various places as they mill about tending to their various tasks.
Deep below, in a vast chamber with open doors, voices echo in cheer.
In this expansive room, a complex obstacle course dominates the far end. A striking young woman with grey hair tied in a ponytail, accented by two braids on each side, navigates it with practiced ease. She deftly avoids whirring blades, flying daggers, and arrows, her momentum unbroken by the rapid succession of traps. She completes the course, landing with a flourish, sweat glistening on her taut muscles and abs.
Across the room, four individuals cheer her on two handsome young men and two beautiful young women, all seemingly of the same age, the women's faces alight with admiration. The grey-haired woman approaches the group just as one of the girls with short, shoulder-length white hair, dressed in black gym clothes, bounds forward and sweeps her into a tight hug. "That was amazing, Astrix! You were amazing out there. I can't believe you finished it that fast," she says, gesturing toward the obstacle course.
The second girl, her bright yellow hair cascading down her back, joins them. "That was incredible, Astrix. Totally unbelievable, even he'll have to admit that" she says, glancing toward a tall, slender man with a long, smooth dark beard and dark hair standing on a landing above, his cold expression fixed on them.
Astrix exhales, a wry smile tugging at her lips "It doesn't matter, I just want to keep improving more."
The man's voice booms from the landing. "Gwayne, you're next!"
The white-haired girl squaring her shoulders and strides to the obstacle course. Astrix and the blonde girl join the two young men to watch. One of the men, with dark hair styled in a textured spiky fade, leans forwards, elbows on his knees. "It's too bad you chose to set a new record today of all days Astrix, I'm feeling good today so don't feel bad when I break your record so soon."
The other, with medium-length, swept-back light brown hair, fidgets with a small trinket, his voice softer with a mocking tone "big talk from someone who couldn't break her previous record."
The group laughs at the remark as the dark-haired guy replied
"Today is different, you'll see".
Astrix lets out a chuckle. "Didn't you say that last time?"
The group laughs once again.
Gwayne is already halfway through the obstacle course, dodging traps and blades with precision, though a few graze her arms drawing thin lines of blood. She completes the course, pausing to catch her breath before rejoining the group. She fist-bumps Astrix and the blonde girl.
The man's voice booms again. "Kelvin!"
The dark-haired man smirks and exhales. "here goes," he says, smoothing his hair as he heads to the obstacle course while the others wish him luck. He starts shakily but soon finds his rhythm, navigating the traps with growing confidence. The blonde girl turns to Gwayne, her tone teasing. "Hey, I hear your twin is coming."
Gwayne groans, rubbing her temple. "I don't know, It hasn't been confirmed yet."
The blonde girl adds, "I thought you'd be more excited. Your mom certainly seems happy."
"yes, she does." Gwayne replies, with an exasperated sigh
Astrix chuckles, leaning against a wall. "I remember years ago when you found out you had a twin. It was all you could talk about too".
Gwayne blushes fiercely. "That was ages ago," she mutters, as the group laughs warmly.
Kelvin finishes the obstacle course and rejoins them, wiping sweat from his brows.
The brown-haired man teasingly saying "you failed to set a new record yet again".
The blonde girl cuts in, "aww, cut him some slack, nobody was expecting him to break that record after all".
The group all laugh even kelvin smiling as he seats with a heavy sigh.
The blonde girl then bounds to him, eyes gleaming "hey kelvin, what's rion like, you guys grew up together, right?"
"Rion?" Kelvin shrugs his tone casual but with a hint of unease "he's just a cold, selfish, arrogant, narcissistic, asshole, that's all to it."
Gwayne then speaks "huh? Mom says he's some kind of super genius though, guess she's wrong about that huh".
Kelvin letting out a soft breath "no, she's not wrong about that, he is a genius in every sense but he's also all those things too".
"Huh, can't wait to meet him then", the blonde girl says as the group let out soft laughters
Suddenly, the man's voice calls out from behind. They line up, standing at attention with arms crossed and heads slightly bowed, chanting, "Master."
The man regards them coldly. "Terrible, all of you. With this performance, you might as well abandon your dream of becoming Sovereigns." He continues, "Sovereigns are the pinnacle of power and existence. To attain such power, you must achieve peak mastery, surpassing every being in the world. At the rate you're improving, my infinite life might end before you become Sovereigns."
They stand dejected as he calls out, "Reya!" The blonde girl steps forward. "abysmal, double strength training for the rest of the week" she raises her head abruptly face looking struck"what, thats" but as she looks up under the piercing gaze of the master she simply nods and returns to the line.
"Diffon!" The brown-haired man steps up. "Terrible, Triple endurance training." he doesn't wait and continues
"Gwayne, work on your strength."
"Kelvin, work on your speed."
"And Astrix…" he looks at her with a piercing gaze before he continues, "decent, but don't slack off".
They stand in line as he shouts, "Start Now!" They disperse to different parts of the room, beginning their routines.