Cosmic Ruler - Chapter 476

Chapter 476: War XLIX
Aiden looked down at the war table, his fingers clenching into fists. “‘You are not ready.’ That’s what it said.” He lifted his gaze, determination burning in his golden eyes. “If it wasn’t an enemy… then why warn us?”

Nexus’s voice echoed in his mind once more, steady yet urgent. “Because something worse is coming.”

Aiden straightened. “Worse than the Abyss?”

The AI hesitated before responding. “Not worse, Aiden. Deeper. Older. Whatever we just saw… it’s not here to destroy. It’s here to observe.”

Dren scowled. “That’s not making me feel any better.”

Rick sighed, shaking his head. “Great. So we just went from stopping an abyssal invasion to being noticed by something ancient and unknowable. Just another day in paradise.”

Aiden pushed away from the table, exhaling. “One thing is clear—we can’t afford to be caught off guard. If that thing was a warning, then we need to figure out what it was warning us about.”

Myne nodded. “Agreed. But that means we need information. More than what we have now.”

Rick rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Then we start digging. Someone, somewhere, has to know something. If this thing’s been watching us, maybe it’s been watching others too.”

Aiden turned to Nexus. “Can you analyze any traces of energy left behind from our encounter? Anything that might tell us more?”

There was a brief pause before Nexus replied. “I’ll try. But Aiden… be prepared for what we might find.”

Aiden exhaled. “We always are.”

The war room remained quiet as the weight of the unknown settled over them. The battle had been won, but the war was shifting. Something vast and ancient had turned its gaze toward them.

The war room remained eerily silent, each member of Aiden’s team processing the weight of their situation. The Abyss had been their enemy for so long—an unrelenting tide of darkness. But this? This was something different. Something beyond their understanding.

Aiden straightened, his golden eyes burning with quiet resolve. “We need answers. Fast.”

Rick leaned back against the wall, arms crossed. “Easier said than done. If this thing is older than the Abyss, then where the hell do we even start?”

Myne’s eyes flickered as she considered the possibilities. “There are old records. Forbidden ones. Some locked away in places no one dares to enter. We might not be the first to encounter this presence.”

Dren scoffed. “Oh, great. Ancient texts, hidden knowledge, maybe a few cursed ruins along the way. Sounds like a fun field trip.”

Aiden ignored the sarcasm, turning to Nexus. “You said it was watching us. Can you track any lingering signatures? Something we can follow?”

A pause. Then Nexus’s voice echoed in his mind. “I’ve already begun analyzing the battlefield data. There is… something. Faint traces of an energy signature that doesn’t match anything in recorded history. It’s not abyssal. Not celestial. Not even divine.”

A chill settled over the room.

Rick exhaled sharply. “That’s comforting.”

Aiden pressed forward. “Can we trace it?”

“Yes. But the trail is unstable. Whatever it was, it didn’t linger. However, there is a convergence point—an anomaly forming in a sector outside our usual territory. It’s subtle, but it matches the residual patterns left behind after your encounter.”

Myne’s gaze sharpened. “Then that’s where we go.”

Dren cracked his knuckles. “Finally, some direction. Sitting around talking about it isn’t gonna change anything.”

Rick sighed. “I have a bad feeling about this, but what else is new? Aiden, if we do this, we need to be ready for anything.”

Aiden nodded. “Then let’s prepare. We move at first light.”

As the team dispersed to ready themselves for the mission, Aiden lingered, staring at the holographic map where Nexus had marked the anomaly. His fingers tightened into a fist.

“Whatever you are… I’ll find you.”

The war against the Abyss had been only the beginning. Something deeper, something older, was waiting in the dark.

The journey to the anomaly’s location was anything but simple.

Aiden’s team traveled through war-torn landscapes, desolate battlefields where remnants of past conflicts lay silent. The air was thick with lingering traces of abyssal corruption, but something else lurked beneath it—something ancient. Even Myne, with her affinity for shadows, seemed uneasy.

After days of travel, they arrived at their destination—a ruined temple, half-buried in the scorched earth. It was unlike anything they had encountered before. The architecture bore no resemblance to known civilizations. The stone was dark, but it shimmered strangely under the light, as if it were absorbing rather than reflecting it. Symbols covered the walls, shifting subtly when looked at too long.

Rick let out a low whistle. “I don’t like this place.”

Dren crouched near the entrance, brushing his fingers over the markings. “These inscriptions… they’re not abyssal. Not celestial. I don’t recognize them.”

Aiden stepped forward, his eyes scanning the temple with caution. “Nexus, what are we looking at?”

The AI hesitated. “This structure predates known history. It doesn’t align with any recorded ruins or civilizations. But… there is something inside. A pulse. Faint, but steady.”

Myne’s eyes flickered as her shadows stretched forward, probing the entrance. “No active defenses. But there’s something… watching.”

Rick grunted. “Fantastic. Let’s add ‘mysterious watchers’ to our growing list of problems.”

Aiden ignored the tension and stepped inside. “Stay close. No unnecessary risks.”

The interior was vast—far larger than it appeared from the outside. The halls were lined with towering statues, their features worn but vaguely humanoid. The deeper they went, the colder the air became, until their breaths misted in the dim light.

Then they saw it.

At the center of the chamber, floating above a pedestal, was an obsidian sphere. It pulsed with slow, rhythmic waves of energy—like a heartbeat. The moment Aiden stepped closer, the sphere reacted.

A deep voice rumbled through the chamber, vibrating through the very stone.

“A traveler who carries the light… and yet, bears the shadow.”

The team froze. Weapons raised. The statues around them groaned as if waking from slumber.

The voice spoke again.

“You seek answers. But are you prepared for the cost?”

Aiden’s grip tightened around his sword. “Who are you?”

Silence stretched for a moment before the voice answered.

“I am the First Witness. The last remnant of an age forgotten.”

A chill ran down Aiden’s spine. This was no ordinary ruin. This was a remnant of something beyond their understanding.