"You had fought well."
Penumbra says after sending Amadeus to the depths of the deepest nothingness. He was gone. No amount of anti-supernatural traits would let him get away from that.
With the result of the conflict being settled, Penumbra turned away and calmly walked towards Walkure, who wasn't far from him.
"Call back the troops. We are going back home."
"Wait a moment, brother."
Walkure materializes a sword from her right hand and throws it in what at first seems to be a random direction. However, after a few seconds, the sword, which was flying in the vacuum hits what seems to be an invisible object.
CRACK!
A sound of glass breaking. Penumbra tilts his head slightly into the direction of the sound.
"It seems we were being observed this whole time, says Walkure.
Another accursed one that was with them since the beginning. However, its presence, which was also soon noticed by Penumbra, soon disappeared at the same time. It had likely returned to whatever place it came from. Was its purpose to just observe? Gather information? Penumbra thought to himself.
"Irrelevant."
Penumbra decided to ignore the unknown accursed, dismissing it as a trivial matter.
"Mother is calling us. I suspect she managed to discover the truth about Antrax. If we don't go now, sooner she is the one who will be visiting us."
Walkure listened to those words quietly, for she knew there was nothing good that could come out of a pissed Venus. Worse, there was a possibility she was already angry, due to Antrax being defeated by a race she would consider worthless. It was unacceptable, a disgrace for the ethernal family.
"...Very well", says Walkure.
And with that, Penumbra and Walkure warped out of that universe, and her troops did the same.----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Underground of WAN, 19:28.
In the room of the supreme court, many of its integrants were discussing what to do next, while His Majesty Volstander wasn't uttering a word.
"It seems their troops are returning to their place of origin..."
"They are running away?"
"No. I believe something else among themselves may have prompted this retreat. After all, they were defeating everything we used against them. They had nothing to fear and certainly no reason to run away from this war."
"Please tell me you managed to track them."
"I believe so. One of our accursed ones hidden in the battlefield has sent us precious data about their extradimensional warp mechanics."
"So...?"
"If it is what I think it is. Those creatures came from another multiverse entirely."
The court remained quiet and tense for a few seconds. They now knew this wasn't simply an abnormally powerful race that happened to pop up in the Material Substrate. They weren't from here at all. Just like the Hex had their own plane of existence. The similarities were unnerving.
"Can we access their place of origin?"
"Certainly, but building said technology will take some time."
"No matter. If we can knock on their doors then we'll do it when they least expect it and take them by surprise."
One of the integrants of the court approaches Zophades Volstander and kneels at him.
"Your Majesty, the accursed ones were proven ineffective against these mysterious beings. I request an eradication of them with our strongest forces, and as soon as possible. The threat they represent to our race and world is immaculate, and will eventually lead to our doom if we don't take drastic measures. Let me lead our troops and engage them right behind their noses. Please, give me permission to use METATRON."
Zophades says nothing. He simply gets up from his throne and walks to a corner of the room.
"Your Majesty?"
In that corner, Zophades takes a knife from his pocket and stabs his own hand slightly, just enough to create a drop of blood. Afterward, he throws the drop into the floor and speaks.
"It's true, we have to act as soon as possible. However, our technologies won't be ready in time. Thus, we shall use something that would break the entrance for us in a more efficient and quicker manner."
A power that no technology would be able to replicate. One that was achieved purely through hard physical, mental, and spiritual training, after the domination of one's own desire. The desire to destroy everything.
"Vivificantes."
The drop turns into a mark, which carves itself into the ground, and on top of it, a dazzling light appears.
The integrants of the court had no idea what their commander was up to.
The light gradually takes a humanoid shape, from which then its brightness starts to lower, revealing a familiar figure.
"That's...!"
"How can that be...?!"
People didn't know what just happened.There, in front of Zophades, was an individual thought to be dead.