After the scream - 900 million universes remaining

'Always so mysterious.'

He was dressed in a long white garment as usual, contrasting with the badge over his heart: a white salamander on a black background whose eyes seemed to harbor an endless darkness.

He was the only one wearing this badge, revealing his identity, even though most members of Promise had never seen him.

The Unleashed accompanying him wore a salamander of amethyst purple on a black background. The first person to walk through the door after the Director was his messenger. Gaël still did not know his name, not that anyone did. The creature was dressed in an exquisite tunic, a sort of imperial robe that was the most opulent garment Gaël had ever seen in his life. It was made of sumptuous silk that would have made the Monarch of Vision salivate and was encrusted with countless precious stones of unknown origin, reflecting the ambient light.

All this display of wealth and light contrasted with the morbid black cage with a dark interior that stood above his shoulders.

Gaël had heard some stories about him, but no proof or trace seemed to lead back to him. He had no idea what powers the Unleashed possessed.

The second Unleashed to enter was Orion, a radiant smile on his lips. He was dressed in a simple garment whose golden color matched his hair perfectly. The difference between his adult physique and his childish demeanor led Gaël to think there was a reason behind it. However, he hadn't sought to find out those reasons because having experienced his powers once, Gaël understood that Orion was a double-edged sword: benign in appearance but perhaps the most lethal of all the Unleashed.

The last person to enter was Arden. His face was unreadable, and he wore his usual attire, a red silk coat with his katana strapped to his back. If Orion was a double-edged sword to Gaël, then Arden lacked that ambivalence. He was perhaps the only person no Monarch ever wanted to see knocking on their door. As the executioner of Promise, some Monarchs would even prefer to see the Director knocking on their door, as there would be at least a slim chance, albeit slim, but a chance nonetheless to reason with him.

Once they had all arrived at the center of the room, the Director announced in a calm voice:

"We will now begin the auction."

As soon as he spoke these words, all the Monarchs present in the room were teleported into the cosmic void. The Singularities had not resumed their colossal size, and the Monarchs could see the void around them and the stars twinkling in the distance.

Below them were stands that seemed to stretch infinitely, so many people were there. The stands were divided according to different universes, but also and especially according to the number of stars on the participants' badges. Members without stars were seated at the bottom, and those with a total of nine stars were seated just below the Monarchs. Some, like Nyxara, observed them with curiosity. Since she couldn't interact with them, she took notes to contact some of them once the auction was over. Magnus also began taking notes for potential candidates as he couldn't afford to fall behind his eternal rival.

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Of all the Monarchs who had joined Promise, only one was absent. He was one of the chosen ones and lived in one of the most distant universes Gaël had visited. Zoltar had taken a long time to overcome his fear of young Orion, but he was now an integral part of Promise, even if he stood in his vermilion suit as far as possible from the Unleashed. Franck was also there, sitting in a wheelchair pushed by Isadora. Though she had become accustomed to meeting Monarchs, she still felt out of place among them. A Monarch badge was attached to her dress, obtained by becoming Franck's heir. This badge was the only reason she could stand among them because even the family of Monarchs did not have that right.

At the center of the stands was a stage clearly visible even to the Monarchs several thousand light-years away.

On this stage stood an old man. Over his heart was a badge with nine stars: two stars replacing the eyes of the salamander and seven surrounding it.

He then announced in a voice full of anticipation:

"Welcome, Ladies, Gentlemen, and Singularities. Today, we present to you items and artifacts from the Director's collection!"

He then turned his eyes to the sky before bowing. All the mortals and eternals present followed the presenter's movement, even though most of them had never seen him.

The Director was seated among the Monarchs, his gaze not turned towards the crowd below but towards the twinkling stars in the distance.

None of the Monarchs or Unleashed bowed. They knew very well that none of these formalities interested him.

He then announced after a few seconds:

"Let's begin."

At his words, the world seemed to lift its head and resume its course.

The presenter then resumed speaking.

"I will now remind you all of the rules. The time you will have to think before the auction of the current item begins will be displayed on the screen behind me. All its characteristics will be communicated to you on your personal responder. When the counter hits zero, you will have one minute to bid. Each new bid will allocate an additional ten seconds to the countdown. You are not allowed to bid more than what you have in your account within Promise. Of course, you can go into debt with other members during the minute of reflection you will be granted. I remind you that all bids will be made exclusively in Promis. I wish you all good luck. Without further ado, here is the first artifact."

The presenter revealed the first item, which was simply a branch.

But before confusion could set in among the audience, mainly the mortals and eternals, the characteristics of this branch appeared on the screen.

'A branch from the first tree ever created. Will not break under any attack from a mortal or an eternal, no matter their power.'

The countdown began.

Mortals and eternals began borrowing from each other. The idea of buying this branch had crossed the minds of some Monarchs, but a voice had resonated.

This voice was the Director's, seemingly murmuring to himself:

"They will know the fruit of your labor, my brother. They will know your genius, your inventiveness, and they will honor you as much as they learn to fear and hate me. Let your name resonate, my brother, and let the celebration begin."

When he finished his words, the countdown had reached zero. The auction could finally begin.