Chapter 359: Into The Shadow Universe

Michael’s eyes widened as well.

Aiden’s expression remained calm and unmoved by their reactions. “I have to”

“Aiden, no,” Uriel said, stepping closer to him. Her voice was filled with desperation now. “You, more than anyone, understand the gravity of what you’re suggesting. And yet you still intend to place yourself at his mercy?”

Aiden met her gaze. “I know the risks. And before you say it, yes I know I have kids now, I have laela, arianna and I have you”

“Then why?” Uriel demanded, his frustration boiling over. “Why would you willingly walk into that which counts as a trap?”

Aiden sighed. Then said, “listen, if we all stay here and do nothing, we will get fucked, eventually. It’s that simple.”

There was a brief pause before he added,

“If we are to stand any chance of defending ourselves against the others, we will need help, or at the very least ensure that our closest neighbor does nothing against us.”

Then he softened, placed his palm gently against Uriel’s cheek and said,

“Moreover, I have contingencies in place, my love. No harm will befall me”

Uriel stared at him for a long moment. She still did not like the idea, not even a little, but eventually she nodded.

A while later, Aiden and Uriel were ready to leave as Ah’Me was beginning its slow process of recovery. Angels moved through the ruins with, repairing most of it using their abilities.

Aiden and Uriel walked along the path leading toward a portal he’d created near the edge of the pavilion.

But before they could reach it, Michael landed to the ground from above. As soon as his feet touched the ground, his wings folded into his back.

“I know how things turned out,” Michael began in a sincere tone. “And I thank you both once again for coming to our aid.”

Michael continued, his gaze shifting specifically to Uriel now. “But I want you to know… this will always be your home.”

Aiden said nothing. Frankly, he wasn’t a fan of any other angel that wasn’t Uriel.

And To be fair, he had come only out of duty. He was the protector of the Seventh Universe as a whole and the darkness had threatened that balance.

Uriel, however, looked back at Michael and nodded in acknowledgment.

Then she and Aiden turned and walked through the portal together.

——

Not long after, the gates of the Dragon King’s castle opened, and Aiden walked in with Uriel at his side.

It had been several hours since they’d left, and the moment they appeared, everyone else within the castle stepped outside.

They had all been waiting, worried and restless since the time period when Aiden and Uriel had rushed off.

Katherine was one of the first to speak as she and Piers emerged from one of the corridors. “What happened?” she asked urgently.

Laela and Arianna came out next. This time they weren’t with their babies as Tristan and Andrea had both fallen asleep beside each other in the room.

Within moments, everyone had gathered near the entrance, all wearing expressions of concern as they waited for an explanation.

Aiden took a breath and explained what had happened: the attack on Ah’Me, the shadow soldiers, the encroaching void that had consumed half the First Firmament before he managed to destroy it.

They looked even more worried as he spoke, and when he finished, there was just heavy silence.

Then Aiden reached out and took both Laela’s and Arianna’s hands gently in his own.

“I intend to meet with the Herrscher of Shadows,” he said.

Both women’s eyes widened immediately.

Laela then asked. “Will you come back to us as always?”

Aiden smiled at her question and nodded.

Laela exhaled slowly, then said: “Then go, my love.”

Arianna nodded in agreement and reached up to place her hand gently on his cheek.

They had both been with Aiden long enough to trust he’d always make it back to them.

Uriel watched them all from a few steps away with a surprised expression on her face. She hadn’t expected that kind of blind faith.

Infact a part of her had hoped that both Laela and Arianna would be able to get Aiden to stay.

Aiden leaned forward and kissed both women on their foreheads before pulling them into a gentle embrace. They held him tightly for a moment before letting go.

Then Uriel stepped forward as well, then said in a tone carrying a note of caution, “Try not to do anything to piss him off. Don’t forget, he has home ground advantage.”

Aiden nodded once in acknowledgment before Uriel walked over and wrapped her arms around him in a brief hug.

He looked at them all one last time, his wives and his friends standing together with expressions of trust mingled with worry.

Then said, “I should be back by the time the Holy Grail War starts.”

A portal began forming behind him as he spoke. Then he gave them all one final nod before turning and walking through it without hesitation.

A heavy quiet settled over the castle after he left.

——

Aiden stepped through into absolute darkness.

For a brief moment there was nothing. There was ground beneath his feet, no sky above him, just an endless void stretching infinitely in every direction.

Then slowly… shapes began forming around him.

The ground solidified beneath his feet first, but the surface wasn’t quite solid nor liquid. It was hard to make true sense off but it felt cold underfoot, even through his boots.

The sky above, if it could even be called that, was an expanse of pure black punctuated by faint streaks of deep purple and crimson.

There were no stars here, not even distant ones.

In the distance ahead of him rose towering structures made entirely from solidified shadow. There were bridges suspended between impossible angles defying any sense of natural physics or geometry.

And then Aiden felt it.

There were eyes watching him from somewhere unseen within this realm of shadows. It felt like a presence so vast and ancient observing his every move.

Without a doubt, Aiden knew this was the Herrscher.

If this was within the 7th Universe, The Dragon god’s power as “Dominator of the Void” would have made his portal bring him directly towards Lord Shadows.

However this wasn’t his Universe, and the same rules did not apply. But Given his partial status as Herrscher Of the 7th, his portal still brought him pretty close.

Far away within one of those towering structures made from solidified shadow, was a figure cloaked entirely in darkness so absolute it seemed almost tangible, as if he wore nothingness itself.

The figure tilted its head slightly as the sensation of a new presence close to his own, registered in his awareness.

Then slowly… it grinned widely enough that faint traces of pale light reflected off teeth.

“False Ruler…”

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