The deeper we moved into Sector Zero, the quieter the place became.
The density of activity behind us faded, patrol routes thinning until the stars once again felt distant and indifferent. Sector Zero was a hub, not a cage, and once you knew where to look, it offered exits as easily as it offered scrutiny.
I stood near the central display while Aurora overlaid the star map the demons had given us. It wasn’t decorative or symbolic. It was practical, stripped of sentiment, showing only what mattered. Major powers. Stable routes. Zones that were best avoided unless you were prepared to deal with the consequences.
"There," Aurora said, highlighting a region far from the primary corridors. "That one’s been marked as inactive for a long time."
The image zoomed in.
A dead star.
It barely registered as a celestial body at first glance, just a massive sphere of collapsed matter drifting through space, its surface dark and uneven, absorbing light rather than reflecting it. No flares. No radiation storms. No orbiting system. Whatever had once burned at its core was long gone.
But the space around it told a different story.
Aurora adjusted the projection, letting the image resolve further.
"Dead stars like this don’t just go quiet," she said. "When something that massive collapses, the laws it once hosted don’t disappear. They linger. Broken. Twisted. Some fade slowly, others overlap in ways they never would have while the star was alive."
Steve leaned forward, studying the distortion around the star. "So it’s unstable?"
"Not exactly," Aurora replied. "It’s settled, but not healed. Space bends slightly near the surface. Residual forces circulate without direction. It’s the kind of place where interactions still happen, just without a central order keeping them aligned."
North’s gaze narrowed as she watched the slow warping near the outer shell. "So the laws are still there," she said, "just no longer cooperating."
"Exactly," Aurora said. "Nothing here will respond cleanly. Whatever you bring with you, you’ll have to impose structure on it yourself."
I nodded. "That’s why we’re stopping here."
Both of them turned toward me.
"You’ve both been sitting at the threshold for a while now," I said. "Your foundations are solid. Its time for you to rank up."
He grinned faintly. "Sounds fair."
The ship slowed as we approached the dead star’s effective gravity range. Even from this distance, the hull creaked faintly as systems compensated, adjusting thrust to maintain a stable position.
"We’ll stop here," I said.
Steve frowned. "Not going closer?"
"There’s no need," I replied. "You don’t need to be inside it. You need to be close enough to feel it."
I stepped forward and placed a hand against the air. Space responded immediately, folding inward just enough to create a stable teleportation anchor.
"You ready?" I asked.
Steve rolled his shoulders. "Been ready."
North met my eyes and nodded once.
I activated it.
The three of us vanished from the ship and reappeared in open space near the dead star, held in place by a thin shield of Essence I extended around us. The silence here was absolute. Just the presence of something massive and unyielding hanging before us.
Up close, the star was overwhelming.
Its surface wasn’t smooth. It was fractured, scarred by its own collapse, layers of matter compressed beyond reason. Light bent as it passed near it, stars behind it stretching into faint arcs. The pull wasn’t aggressive, but it was constant, demanding acknowledgment.
I released the field around Steve and North first.
Gravity pressed down on them immediately.
Steve grunted, boots skidding slightly before he planted his feet, lightning crackling instinctively along his arms. Shadows pooled beneath him, reacting to the absence of light more than his command.
North steadied herself without a sound. Air compressed around her, space folding subtly to distribute the pressure instead of resisting it outright.
"This thing doesn’t care about us," Steve muttered.
"No," I said. "And that’s why it’s perfect."
I took a step back, maintaining only the minimal connection needed to intervene if something went wrong. This wasn’t my trial. It was theirs.
Steve hesitated for a fraction of a second, then sat down cross-legged, lightning dimming as he forced himself to stop reacting. Shadows thickened around him, unstable at first, then slowly settling as he pulled them inward.
North followed, lowering herself. The space around her tightened, then relaxed as she adjusted, breathing evenly as she aligned herself with the distortions instead of smoothing them out.
I watched.
Minutes passed. Then more.
The dead star loomed silently, its gravity unwavering, its presence relentless. Steve’s lightning began to change, no longer lashing outward but circling his body in tight, contained arcs, shadow weaving between them instead of clashing.
North’s field grew sharper. Space bent cleanly around her now, air currents stabilizing into something.
Then the void answered.
From every direction, Essence began to gather. It flowed in slow, heavy streams at first, emerald in color, thick and luminous, before accelerating into a swirling storm that wrapped around both of their bodies.
Steve’s lightning flared instinctively, shadows stretching and recoiling as the Essence pushed inward, forcing the two forces to coexist under pressure. Around North, wind compressed into layered currents, space tightening and folding as the incoming Essence threaded itself through her control, testing every boundary she had built.
Neither of them moved.
They let it in.
I let my voice carry to them without raising it, steady enough to cut through the storm of Essence without disturbing it.
"This isn’t just about breaking through," I said. "When you cross into Transcendent, you won’t just be refining strength. You’ll be shaping a domain."
Neither of them opened their eyes, but I felt their attention shift.
"A domain is built on the laws you’ve comprehended, yes," I continued. "But that’s only the framework. What truly defines it is what you choose to stand for. The way you fight. The way you endure. The things you refuse to compromise on."
The green Essence thickened as it flowed into them.
"Your domain will stay with you as you grow. It will evolve, but its foundation won’t change. So don’t just think about power. Think about the path you’re choosing, and the kind of presence you want to impose on the world."
I paused, letting the words settle.
"Build something you’re willing to live inside."
As both of them continued, I looked at my talent panel which was ticking upward for another level up.