The two ships slowed gradually as they approached the asteroid, their engines dimming until both vessels came to a complete halt some distance away from the base. The vortex behind them collapsed soon after, leaving nothing but the quiet darkness of space stretching endlessly in every direction.
For a few seconds nothing happened.
Then the hull of the larger ship shifted.
A section of its outer plating slid open smoothly, forming a wide ramp that extended outward into the void. A faint shimmer of energy surrounded the opening.
Three figures stepped forward first.
The first was a middle-aged Naga male. His posture was straight, his presence composed and deliberate as he stepped forward and stopped at the edge of the ramp. His features were mostly humanoid, but several patches of dark scales ran across the side of his neck and along his jawline. His eyes carried the unmistakable vertical pupils of his race.
The second figure moved slightly behind him.
This one was clearly older.
His body was hunched slightly with age, though the faint aura surrounding him made it obvious that whatever physical frailty he appeared to have meant very little. The scales covering his skin were darker and thicker than the others, and his reptilian eyes held the cold patience of someone who had lived through many wars.
The third figure stepped out last.
She was a female Naga.
Tall and elegant, her movements carried a natural grace as she came to stand beside the other two.
Her scales were lighter, running across her arms and collarbone in delicate patterns that contrasted with the sharp reptilian glow of her eyes. Even from this distance it was easy to tell that she was just as powerful as the others.
All three of them were Transcendents.
Behind them the rest of the soldiers began to emerge.
Rows of heavily armed Naga warriors stepped onto the ramp one after another, their armor dark and uniform, weapons already drawn as they spread into disciplined formations. In total nearly three hundred Grandmasters assembled behind the three leaders, their presence forming a solid wall of trained soldiers.
At the same time the two ships adjusted their positions slightly.
Weapon systems unfolded from the hulls, long cannons rotating outward as targeting arrays locked directly onto the base below us.
Every gun was aimed at the tower.
The message was clear.
They had arrived prepared.
The older Naga stepped forward slightly, his hunched form straightening just enough as his gaze settled on me.
For a moment he studied the group floating above the tower.
Then his lips curved faintly.
"We heard that the flag of the Order of Absolute was flying over this base," he said, his voice carrying easily across the void. "So we thought we would pay a visit."
His eyes lingered on me for a moment longer.
"But who would have thought," he continued slowly, "that we would meet the leader himself."
He inclined his head slightly.
"I am General Xeron."
The middle-aged Naga beside him stepped forward next.
"Commander Xebec."
The female Naga gave a faint smile but said nothing, her sharp reptilian eyes studying every one of us carefully. Behind them the three hundred soldiers remained perfectly still, weapons raised and ready.
My eyes moved immediately toward General Xeron.
I knew I had never met the old Naga before, yet as I studied him a strange sense of familiarity brushed against my thoughts. It was not recognition, not exactly, but something about his presence felt oddly familiar.
I said nothing about it.
We remained where we were, hovering above the tower, and I spoke calmly.
"Welcome to Base Thirty-Four of the Order of Absolute, General Xeron. I hope your travel was not difficult."
The old Naga’s lips curved into a faint smile.
"Of course not," he replied smoothly. "Our crafts are built for luxury."
"Yeah, it looks like that," I said with a small nod. "But you see, I don’t like the fact that their weapons are pointing at my base."
As I said the words, I raised my hand slightly.
The reaction was instant.
The three Transcendents tensed.
The hulls of both ships suddenly groaned as the metal structures shifted under the strain of something unseen pressing against them. Warning alarms began flaring across their vessels, sharp signals echoing through the void as the weapon systems tried to compensate.
The long cannons aimed at the base trembled.
The ships themselves began to fold inward, the sleek armored hulls bending slightly as if invisible pressure had wrapped around them and begun to squeeze.
The alarms grew louder.
Several of the Naga Grandmasters shifted uneasily as the vessels behind them creaked under the pressure.
General Xeron watched the ships for a brief moment before raising his hand slightly.
The pressure stopped.
The vessels remained where they were, though the weapon systems slowly powered down as the targeting arrays disengaged.
The alarms faded.
Xeron looked back at me.
"We simply wished to talk," he said calmly. "What exactly do you mean by this?"
I lowered my hand slightly.
"I never talk with guns pointed at me."
Commander Xebec stepped forward this time, his expression sharpening.
"You really want to do this?" he asked.
He gestured lightly toward the ships behind him.
"Those guns can fire."
I met his gaze without moving.
"Sure," I said calmly. "Let me see how they work."
Xebec scoffed.
In the next instant his body vanished from the ramp and appeared directly in front of me.
"Xebec wait—" Xeron shouted, but it was already too late.
Xebec’s fist clenched and shot forward toward my chest with explosive force. Behind the strike, the projection of a massive snake head surged forward as well, its jaws opening wide as if to swallow me whole.
And then the strange sensation returned. The same distant awareness from earlier washed over my senses again. For a moment it felt as though I had stepped outside my own body.
The world slowed.
Xebec’s fist moved forward inch by inch through the air. The swirling energy behind it stretched like a frozen wave, the spectral snake head forming slowly around the strike. I could see every detail of the attack, the tension in his muscles, the tightening of his jaw, the shifting currents of power around his arm.
Even the soldiers behind him appeared motionless. Then something else stirred inside me.
Anger.
A sharp, sudden surge of it. Xebec had dared to strike me. His fist stopped inches from my chest.
Not because he chose to stop. Because he couldn’t move any further. The invisible force that surrounded me held his body in place. The projection of the giant snake head collapsed instantly, dissolving into scattered fragments of fading energy.
The strange slowed world vanished as quickly as it had appeared.
Everything returned to normal. My hand shot forward. My fingers closed around Xebec’s throat.
The moment I grabbed him, the entire Naga formation behind him erupted into motion as weapons were raised and energy began gathering for attacks.
But none of them moved any closer.
I lifted Xebec easily off the invisible surface we were standing on, holding him suspended in the void by his throat as he struggled against my grip.
Then suddenly a silver glow burst out of my body, spreading across me in an instant. Fine silver particles began drifting upward along my form like countless fireflies rising into the dark.
I blinked in surprise at the sudden change.
Even Xebec’s eyes widened in shock as the glow surrounded us.