The sorcerer did not resist at all. He was calmly escorted out by the guards, as if his entire existence—his birth, growth, and learning—had been leading up to this moment, to deceive Arken into paying an unnecessary price.
The guards took the sorcerer to the next room, injected him with a drug to keep him conscious, then connected him to various life-support devices before subjecting him to every known form of punishment in the galaxy.
Soon, the sorcerer's agonized screams pierced Arken's ears, easing his fury slightly, allowing him to refocus on the matter at hand: using Krie to satisfy his thirst for knowledge.
"How is the situation in the Talon Hive World?" Arken asked.
"Your position has been usurped by another. This person… though, it seems he is not human. In my eyes, he appears as a void—an emptiness. He is the new governor," Krie responded.
Arken already knew the state of affairs in the Talon Hive, and this question had merely been a test of Krie's abilities, to see if he would tell the truth. Now, the test passed, Arken could ask what he truly wished to know.
"I had a subordinate named Venomspike. I left him behind in the Hive World, but I've always suspected he and his servant might betray me," Arken said, laying out the details.
Krie interrupted him midway, providing an answer. "Venomspike never had any intention of betraying you. His loyalty to you is so profound that even I find it astonishing."
"He doesn't want to betray me? Then where is he now?" Arken inquired.
"Venomspike had a plan—to perform a ritual that would make him more powerful and knowledgeable. However, his idea was manipulated by his servant. The ritual didn't make him stronger or wiser; it merely turned him into a mass of decaying flesh," Krie explained.
Arken was stunned by this revelation and intrigued. "What was his servant's plan?"
"The servant's goal was to turn Venomspike into a heap of flesh, bring him back to kill you, and then, through a series of schemes, achieve a final objective," Krie trembled, his voice shaking with fear. "To summon the master I serve into this world. I dare not speak its name, but its title is the Weaver of Fates... Yet, the servant failed. He was struck by pure lightning, reduced to ash, leaving not even a trace of his soul."
Arken closed his eyes, contemplating the information he had just received.
Krie's words were still vague, like a summary, but Arken no longer cared. These were events of the past. What truly interested him now was the future.
"What does my future hold?" Arken asked again.
Krie fell silent for a moment, as if wrestling with something more difficult. His eyes began to glow, his gaze piercing through the present, glimpsing the future.
After a few moments, Krie finally spoke.
"You will remain undefeated in all the schemes that surround you. You will slay all the nobles disloyal to you. Not only will you rule over Talon One and its Hive World, but also this planet we now stand upon. Talon Three will fall completely under your dominion."
"You will sit upon a throne of adamantine, carried by countless servants through the shadowy, filthy lower-hive tunnels, like a true king."
"Your ambition will swell until, in the end, you betray the very empire to which you owe your throne."
"..."
Arken was astonished. He had expected Krie to foresee his death, yet this prophecy was beyond his wildest dreams—a vision of power he had only ever dared to imagine.
"When will I have this future?" Arken asked, barely able to contain his excitement.
"Four months ago..." Krie answered.
"Are you joking?" Arken laughed bitterly. Four months ago, he had fled from the Hive World.
"You were meant to have this fate, but it has been altered," Krie continued to gaze into the future, where Arken was destined to become the master of the galaxy, only to ultimately betray the empire.
In Krie's eyes, apart from the unseen void, the past and future of everyone still alive in this star system were laid bare.
Krie saw a warrior named Grey, and he also saw Grey's death: dissected for food, consumed by a gene-stealer. This should have happened five months ago.
But now, Grey was alive, preparing for battle right before the void.
Krie had never encountered anything like this. He was shocked, terrified, trembling.
For him, this was a deeply disturbing situation.
To look into someone's past and see their death, to look into their future and see only death, yet to look at them in the present and find them alive—it was terrifying.
And it wasn't just Grey. The fates of every living being in this star system were twisted and distorted beyond recognition.
"What is this void you keep seeing?" Arken asked.
"A void... I can't even describe it. When I look at him, I can only think of one word: emptiness," Krie shivered, speaking with profound dread. "He is soulless. You call such beings 'Untouchables,' but he is not entirely one of them…"
"Can you explain more plainly? What exactly is this void?" Arken pressed.
Krie didn't respond immediately. He knelt on the ground, feathers falling from his body, his glowing eyes flickering in their sockets, thick blood seeping from the corners of his eyes.
"The void is partially divine—a god from an ancient material universe. But I cannot see its true nature. It feels as though it shouldn't exist at all, as if it wasn't created or birthed within this universe. Perhaps it comes from somewhere unknown, a place we cannot perceive. And its presence has twisted the destinies of everyone in this system."
After this cryptic explanation, Krie looked up, his gaze piercing the ceiling above. "The void has brought many with it. They have appeared above the ice, seemingly out of nowhere."
"How do we fight him? What will he do? What should I do to defend this fortress?" Arken asked urgently.
Krie's eyes dimmed as the light faded from them. He lowered his head and looked at Arken, offering a brutally honest reply. "I don't know. I can't even see the void itself. I only saw it appear above the glacier with many soldiers. I cannot predict what it will do, nor how we should defend ourselves."
Arken's eyes widened in disbelief. His fear turned swiftly into anger. "Then what was the point of summoning you?!"
"Don't blame me. I've never seen anything like this before," Krie said, gently patting Arken's shoulder. "And don't blame yourself. You've done all you could. It's just that the enemy you face is too powerful."