The battlefield had long been cleared. What remained now was silence.
Only three of us stood there, away from the others, positioned at the edge of the now-empty sector where the rift had once existed. The void felt calmer here, almost too calm after everything that had just taken place.
I looked at Xeron.
"We’re not stopping here," I said.
He turned slightly, his expression already serious.
"I want you to start preparing your forces," I continued. "Not just for defense. I want intelligence, scouting, everything you have. We are going to start hitting the major Grade 4 rifts as well."
That got a reaction.
Xeron’s brows furrowed slightly.
"Grade 4 rifts?" he asked. "Why push for that now? We’ve just stabilized the Grade 3 level. Most would consolidate after something like this."
I shook my head.
"I don’t have that luxury."
He didn’t interrupt.
"Before I enter the Crimson Zone," I said, "I need to make sure that our side is as stable as possible. If I get delayed in there... or worse, if I’m not able to come out quickly, then I don’t want the rest of the galaxy collapsing in my absence. Since by closing the grade 4 rifts, I am sure our galaxy will be on the Eternals radar."
"I want our galaxy to be capable of handling things when all the powerful leaders are not present."
Xeron held my gaze for a moment, then nodded slowly.
"That makes sense," he said. "If we are going to push into all Grade 4, we will need proper coordination. I will begin preparations immediately."
Beside him, Azalea stepped forward slightly, her expression thoughtful.
"If we are planning to escalate like this," she said, "then why not involve the other races directly?"
Both of us looked at her.
"We should call a meeting," she continued. "Bring in representatives from the major races. If we’re going to start clearing higher-level rifts, it’s better if everyone is aligned instead of acting separately. It will increase efficiency."
I considered it for a moment.
Then nodded.
"That’s a good suggestion."
Her eyes flickered slightly at that.
"Go ahead and arrange it," I said. "You can take the lead on this."
Azalea gave a small nod.
"I’ll handle it," she replied.
Xeron glanced between us, then gave a short nod as well.
"That will help," he said. "If we can unify the response across races, it changes everything. We will be much faster as well."
The path ahead was already clear.
"I’ll leave this to you two," I continued. "Let me know once the meeting is ready."
Xeron straightened slightly and gave a smile.
"It will be done, kid. I am excited to actually see this plan come to fruition."
Azalea gave me one last look, then smiled faintly.
"Try not to disappear before that," she said.
I let out a quiet chuckle.
"No promises."
With that, we bid goodbye to each other and Xeron, Azalea along with a few commanders left.
*****
All of us stood inside the central command chamber of the spaceship, one I had very casually claimed from the Naga forces without asking. The ship moved steadily through the void, heading back toward the relay base.
The atmosphere inside was calm, but everyone was thinking.
North was the first to speak.
"So you’re planning to hit all the rifts?" she asked, looking directly at me.
I nodded.
"Yes," I said. "All of them."
I leaned slightly against the console.
"As I already told you, I don’t know what the Crimson Zone really is. I don’t know how long I’ll be there, or what might happen once I enter it. So before that, I want everything here to be stable."
I looked at all of them one by one.
"And not just the Grade 4 rifts," I continued. "We remove the traitor organizations as well. Completely. After that, we send high-level forces across the galaxy, every world, every sector and clean up whatever remains. Abominations, phantoms... anything left behind."
Silence followed.
They all understood what I was saying. Ash was the one who broke it.
"That’s not going to be easy," he said calmly. "Covering the entire galaxy will take time. There are too many worlds, too many sectors. Even with our current strength, this isn’t something that can be done quickly."
I shrugged.
"I know," I said. "And I don’t care."
I pushed myself off the console and began walking slowly across the chamber.
"This needs to be done," I continued. "Not because it’s easy, but because it’s necessary. And I do have a plan."
That got their full attention.
"First," I said, "all of you need to cross the Saint threshold. Just like Lyrate did."
My gaze moved across them.
"She showed us it’s possible. Which means it’s not something out of reach anymore."
Then I continued.
"Second... I don’t want to handle everything myself."
They looked at me, slightly surprised.
"It’s time we formalize things," I said. "The Order of Absolute isn’t just a name anymore. It needs structure. Each of you will take responsibility. You will lead forces, take charge of different sections of the galaxy, and carry out operations independently."
I stopped and looked at them directly.
"You won’t just be fighters anymore. You’ll be leaders. So let’s think of the position that you are going to handle. There will be no vice leaders and that decision is not up for debate."
Aurora and Lyrate clicked their tongue at the same time but did not interrupt me.
I resumed walking.
"We also need to understand something clearly," I said. "Our galaxy is mid-level. Right now, we’re not their main focus. The Eternals are busy elsewhere, dealing with bigger threats."
I turned slightly, looking back at them.
"But that will change. After what we just did, after removing all Grade 3 rifts and preparing to hit Grade 4, they will notice us. And before that happens....we hit first, fast and hard."
"I have a fight coming up for my quest," I said as I looked at my summons. "I’ll be going into seclusion to prepare for it. During that time, I want all of you to cross the Saint threshold."
My gaze lingered on them for a moment before shifting to North and Steve.
"As for you two," I continued, "your goal is simple. Reach level 499."
Steve straightened slightly and nodded without hesitation. "Yes, captain."
North smiled softly.
I snapped my fingers once.
"Good," I said. "Then we have a clear plan. Now we focus on executing it."
The room settled after that. A few minutes later, the ship exited its jump and arrived at the relay base.
But the moment we stepped out, something felt off.
There was movement everywhere.
Soldiers were rushing through the corridors, commands being shouted, teleportation gates activating one after another as units moved out in a hurry. The usual order of the base had turned into controlled chaos.
I frowned slightly.
"Something’s wrong," I muttered.
Without waiting, I stepped forward and vanished, reappearing directly on the surface of the asteroid base. Knight followed instantly, emerging from the shadows beside me.
The scene outside was no different.
More soldiers, more movement, more urgency.
The guard stationed near the main teleportation gate saw me and immediately straightened, snapping into a salute.
"Lord Billion," he said, his voice slightly unsteady, "we have been trying to reach you."
"What happened?" I asked, my tone direct.
He swallowed.
"Abor... is under attack."
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Will be doing mass release for privilege readers on 1st April.