After the scream - 900 million universes remaining

Once through the portal, Jason found himself before an interstellar canvas of stars and planets. The universe was inhabited and vibrant with life, with many ships traversing the void. The scene before him was one of the most mundane he had observed countless times during his existence.

Yet the landscape felt dissonant to him. He felt deep inside that something was wrong. A feeling of unease grew progressively with each teleportation as if his instincts knew that a catastrophe was approaching. Arden must have sensed that something was wrong too, but he just continued to approach his target. He seemed unconcerned with what was happening around them.

'He already knows what's happening here. The Director must have informed him in his letter,' thought Jason, furrowing his brow.

Another explanation was that he didn't care about anything unrelated to his mission. Jason knew how much Arden was like a machine, following the Director's orders with an almost obsessive determination.

He understood that something was brewing within this universe, but for now, he would just follow Arden.

Because that's what he wanted to do today: follow Arden to understand him better.

They were now approaching a planet. Jason could sense that it was inhabited only by mortals, particularly humans. They were often the most widespread race across the various universes due to their reproductive capacity, second only to certain insect species. They might be the most widespread, but they often paled in terms of power compared to Singularities and other behemoths. This planet harbored only the aura of simple mortals, except for the oppressive aura of Hammond, which did not seem to impact the inhabitants' lives.

A Monarch could mask their aura to limit its impact on those around them or let it flow in a torrent like Zoltar, which had a dramatic effect on nearby mortals and eternals.

Hammond had chosen to let his aura flow freely, probably to appear in Jason and Arden's perception like a beacon in the middle of the universe.

He was waiting for them, but not on the planet's surface.

Hammond was known among the Monarchs for his exquisite mastery of spatial rifts. One of his hobbies was creating worlds within universes, and this planet must unknowingly harbor one of them.

The only reason the inhabitants could survive the contact with his aura was that he must be deep within the spatial rift. Indeed, an aura weakens progressively with distance until it dissipates entirely.

Jason and Arden approached the planet. They now had to trace the source of the aura. For some unknown reason to Jason, Arden did not seem in a hurry. He walked at a leisurely pace in the sky, flying over several cities with each step.

The landscape unfolding beneath their feet was occupied by vast stretches of water interspersed with immense urban spaces, fields, and forests stretching sometimes as far as the eye could see.

Their presence must have been detected by the planet's inhabitants, who tried to intercept them with a few missiles. Unfortunately for them, the two Unleashed were far too fast for their targeting systems. Their aircraft were also of no use, being too slow to pursue them.

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This might have been the first time the planet's inhabitants encountered an external life source, for after a few unsuccessful attempts, nothing else came to meet them. Jason could now see in the cities beneath them immense crowds of mortals, looking up to the sky in hopes of catching a glimpse of them.

After walking in the same direction for a few minutes, Arden finally stopped. They were in the middle of nowhere. Around them was only a dense forest, letting through just a faint trickle of light through the treetops.

There was no human presence nearby, but a decrepit white building could be distinguished in the dense vegetation.

It bore no marks of destruction, as if it had been forgotten over time.

One of the facades, infested with climbing plants, read:

[A-sync: Research Laboratory]

Arden had already approached the laboratory's entrance. There must have been numerous security checks to access the building in the past, but all that remained were a few badges necessary for crossing certain doors. The laboratory's research must have been secret, given the impressive armor of certain areas that the planet's weapons would have a hard time piercing.

In the face of their efforts, Arden simply drew his katana and cut his way through the armor with its sharp blade. After several minutes of walking through the deserted corridors of the research center, Jason could finally see the spatial rift. They had arrived in an immense room. It had been equipped with numerous measuring instruments and desks where researchers must have worked. Everything seemed to have been built to point towards the white wall at the back of the room. It was studded with countless sensors, all connected by black cables to their dedicated measuring instruments. There were so many cables on the wall that it appeared almost entirely black except for the opening in its middle.

In the center was a simple threshold from which the Monarch's aura emanated, and Jason could see a strong concentration of spatial law around it.

They had arrived before the spatial rift. The researchers must not have known it, but they were knocking on the door of the most powerful being in their universe.

Once through the threshold, Jason could feel the surroundings saturated with aura. He had no doubt that the Monarch had created this place and was waiting for them inside, standing firm.

The walls had given way to wallpaper, the rubber floor had transformed into old, decrepit carpets, and the ceiling was now just a few dozen centimeters above their heads.

From floor to ceiling, the industrial white of the laboratory had given way to a dull yellow that was the same no matter which direction one looked. Any human would be troubled by the environment, but Jason and Arden continued their way through the maze of corridors before them.

The arrangement of the walls suggested that of a labyrinth, and the buzzing of the lamps on the ceilings only reinforced the place's confusion. If a mortal were to find themselves trapped here, Jason had no doubt they would probably die of despair after a few days.

Perhaps to test his theory, a man literally fell through the ceiling just in front of them. Arden and Jason had already stopped, sensing the accumulation of spatial law ahead of them.

The man seemed in shock as he sprang to his feet before exclaiming:

"I found the backrooms!"

But the man didn't seem confused; he seemed... excited?