Under the brilliant veil of moonlight, two distinct forms shot towards the sky over Valkara. One was a figure of fierce serpentine lightning, the other was a radiant sphere that resembled a star.

  Both figures didn't stop ascending till they were far above the first layer of clouds. Here, the moon's glow was even more prominent, giving the scenery an ethereal beauty.

  Odin shifted back to his humanoid form. His brown eyes assumed an azure color as he looked around with strange intensity. Up here, there was nothing but concentrated clouds, so it was unknown what he was searching for.

  “Why do you look so furious? What's wrong?” The radiant star reverted to the small frame of Saturn.

  Odin didn't respond. After a while of hovering, he looked at her and asked, “Can you feel anything up here?”

  Saturn frowned. “You're going to have to be more specific.”

  The wind suddenly picked up, causing both their attires and hair to sway violently. A shrill howl tore through the dead silence of the night, signaling the coming of a storm.

  Odin, still with striking blue eyes, watched lightning flash in the distance. Yet, thunder never came. The clouds which had gathered abruptly dispersed, causing the winds to lessen drastically.

  Both he and Saturn looked at each other.

  “They're stealing the storms.” Odin announced.

  Saturn's eyes flickered with understanding, yet she failed to grasp the true implications of his words. Just as she was about to say something, her eyes caught sight of a faint pulsing in the distance.

  Her natural frown turned even fiercer as she flew over, with Odin in tow. As they drew closer, they soon discovered a carefully crafted array of magic circles hidden in the clouds.

  “What in the Abyss…” Saturn's mouth gaped slightly.

  Odin approached the magic circles and tried to touch the formation. However, his hand merely passed through. The magic circles had vanished without a trace.

  Saturn gasped, “They're gone.”

  “No, they're still here. Simply not here.” Odin muttered with an expression of utter disdain. Noticing the lady's confusion, he explained, “I recently paid a visit to the Dark Tower. There was an abominable stench in the first level, one that smelled like scorching rot. That forest surrounding the citadel also seemed freshly burnt. But we all know that the forest turned to ash during that battle years ago.”

  He sucked in cold breath as he asked, “ One of their subordinates is a Radiant, right?”

  Saturn nodded slowly.

  “That confirms my guess. The magic formation is actually all the way in the tower, projected up here with the help of the gateway ability grasped by Nulls.”

  “I mean, I get that part, but why would they need to draw power from the storms?” Saturn wondered.

  Odin glanced down, and his gaze seemed to pierce through the distance, landing on the isolated tower in the Upper Ring. He said, “My guess is that they're building something. Something utterly despicable that requires them to force a Radiant Vestige to do something so risky as contain the force of multiple lightning bolts. That rotten smell I talked about, I believe, is the Radiant.”

  Saturn followed his gaze and looked down. She muttered with sudden realization, “You're saying the backlash from the unbearable heat is what keeps the forest burning?”

  Odin nodded heavily. He then said to her, “Saturn, I need you to go down to the Middle Ring and search for such similar magic circles. Even if you don't find any, it's best to have the people evacuate to the Lower Ring."

  The lady with fierce brown eyes bobbed her head, then asked, “What will you do?”

  “Teach some fools a lesson.” Odin answered without the slightest hint of amusement.

  As his figure exploded in a show of lightning, Saturn descended from the clouds. Like a fallen star, she crashed into the neatly cobbled road of the Middle Ring, stirring up dust and rubble.

  The figures on the streets jumped in fright at her sudden appearance, but quickly calmed when they saw who it was.

  “It's her!”

  “A Paragon…” One muttered softly.

  Saturn of The Deep looked around with a frown. Something tugged at her heart, a deeply unsettling feeling— the intuition of a Paragon. She approached a middle aged man, and reached out her hand to grab him.

  However, at that moment, he withered to dust before her eyes.

  “What?”

  Before Saturn could turn around, everyone on the street had vanished, with ash serving as the only proof of what they once were.

  The lady's eyes narrowed.

  The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

  …

  A number of slithering blue streaks coalesced into the figure of Odin right in front of the Dark Tower. He stormed through the humongous doors without invitation, tearing apart the thick brass with an effortless push.

  The interior of the tower welcomed him like the arms of a horrific Deity. Odin’s nose twitched slightly at the smell of rot. He glanced at the stairs affixed to the distant walls and calmly walked over. This figure with an overbearing presence unhurriedly ascended the various levels of the tower. Following his intuition, he randomly halted at the fourth.

  The place was dead silent. In front of him was a large, brass double-door, embedded with a number of levers. Odin stood before the locked doors and randomly pulled on the metal rods. He noticed how incredibly hot they were, but shrugged off the scorching heat.

  After a number of tries, a loud groan reverberated throughout the fourth level of the tower. The brass double-door let out a chilling hiss, before slowly opening. A wave of hot air blasted against his face, and he winced.

  He had winced because of the suddenly intense smell.

  This seems to be the place… He pinched on his nose and walked in.

  Odin’s vision opened up to a nave devoid of pews, or an altar. Instead, there was a large mechanism in the very center, one that resembled a gigantic metal pillar with numerous protruding components. Odin couldn't wrap his head around what he saw, but he still noted other things like the brass chair at the base of the ‘pillar’, the magical formation surrounding said chair, and large pipes that slithered around, before burrowing into the tower’s walls.

  There was a person slumped in the brass chair.

  “Calling that thing a person is a bit of a stretch.” Odin sighed as he approached the source of the terrible stench. He didn't seem to be afraid of traps or an ambush.

  The person on the chair was practically bones, with only a tiny film of skin. They had shriveled to a point of being unrecognizable. Odin stopped in front of the gigantic machine and stared at the seemingly dead figure for a few heartbeats.

  At that moment, the magic circles flashed with strange intensity, releasing a number of lightning bolts that slithered up the brass chair. These lightning bolts surged into the shriveled figure, causing them to jerk violently.

  Odin watched the person struggle for a long time, before releasing an agonizing moan that pleaded for death.

  After a while, the lightning bolts faded out, now replaced by a burst of green energy that was absorbed by the giant metal pillar.

  Looks like my guess was spot on. The magic circles steal the storms from above the sky, bringing it here directly. Then, this poor Radiant is forced to withstand the sheer force, converting it into another type of energy, which is swallowed by this pillar. Hehe, feeding the machine, are we?

  He glanced briefly at the various pipes on the floor.

  The pipes collect the residual heat and distribute it across the ash forest from underground. It's a good plan, considering how people wouldn't pay attention to a forest which burned out long ago. The only thing I still do not understand is the exact use of this machine. What could those idiots be planning?

  Odin rubbed his nose and studied the metal pillar. It was a mesh of various metallic bulges and rods, as well as runic texts. If only he was a scholar of ancient languages, he would've been able to decipher the meaning. Unfortunately, Odin had always shied away from books or anything of the sort.

  Eventually, he groaned and swiped his right arm across the air. A fine line of liquid flew out, cleanly slicing the machine in half. A loud rumble shook the entire tower as the top half of the machine fell to the floor.

  After destroying the various pipes with similar methods, he placed his hand on the shriveled figure’s forehead.

  “I hope you find rest in the embrace of Lord Hanuman.” He muttered.

  The person on the chair exhaled with relief as their head slowly dropped.

  Odin sighed quietly and left the strange chamber. Next, he followed his intuition and arrived on the uppermost level of the tower. Similar to the previous place he had been, a brass double-door stood before him, held shut with various enchantments.

  “Really, this place should be called tower of brass instead.” Odin clicked his tongue and thrust out his fist, bringing down the doors with ease. He stepped in and looked around. There was a raised platform in front, to which a statue knelt with repentance. In the open palms of the statue was a swirling green orb that seemed to contain a thousand grieving souls. The brilliant hue of the orb was rapidly being devoured by a strange darkness, however.

  In the center of the hall was a rectangular brass table surrounded by six high-back chairs. Seated in the chairs were the corresponding members of the Six Of Swords.

  Odin’s eyes narrowed.

  “Dead?” A snort escaped his lips as he walked over to them. His gaze shifted from Silas, to Frido, to Amadeus. Their bodies slumped lifelessly, eyes hollow and bleeding a black liquid. Their faces had shriveled just like the corpse in the chamber below.

  Upon closer inspection, Odin realized that there were two distinct runic engravings on their foreheads.

  “The runes read ‘Bound’ and ‘Ascend’.” A penitent voice came from the far corner of the hall.

  Mary Magdalene stepped into the light, wearing a solemn look as she approached him. She bowed reverently, “Lord Odin.”

  Odin’s eyes flickered with a certain emotion. He tugged at the stubble on his chin and said, “Bound and Ascend? Ah, I see. They attempted to bind their souls together and force themselves into the Paragon Grade. That machine I destroyed was fueling this?”

  Mary Magdalene nodded. She said with a pained sigh, “In a way, yes. It most certainly is a pity that they failed at the most crucial step.”

  Odin asked with a smile, “Will they be missed?”

  Hearing the question, Mary Magdalene's sorrowful expression slowly grew into a cruel smirk. She said, her hands tucked into the sleeves of her garment, “Rather than them, you should have been wary of me from the very beginning.”

  The reverent woman was no more, seemingly replaced by a lunatic. She laughed hysterically and yelled, “I have plotted the deaths of Six Null Luminaries! Six! And you, Stormbringer, have walked right to your doom! When I am done with you, your corpse will be fed to the vultures! Then I will move on to deal with that arrogant mousekin by the name of Sa—”

  “Be deceased.”

  Odin had his hand stretched towards her, and in the next instant, she burst apart, her flesh and innards raining down in tiny chunks.

  Just like that, she met her demise at the hands of this terrifying Paragon.

  A black orb that swirled with bluish specks of stardust fell from where she once stood, hitting the marble floor and rolling to the far end of the wall.

  Odin pinched his nose in frustration. He grumbled loudly and said, “You tried manipulating me last time and failed. What makes you think it'll work this time?”

  There was silence throughout the hall, and it was unknown who he was referring to.

  Odin glanced at the black orb. “I'm talking to you.”

  There was still no response. The Paragon clicked his tongue and walked over to the wall, before picking up the orb swirling with stardust. As he did, a melodious laugh resounded throughout the hall.

  Then, a feminine voice rang out, “How utterly impressive. You Paragons really are something else. Hah, I'm impressed. I truly am!”

  “Who are you?” Odin asked with a frown, his gaze locked fiercely on the orb.

  “My name?” The feminine voice chuckled. “My name is something you'll learn sooner or later. But, for now, I guess you can call me… the Witch of White.”

  Witch of White? I've never heard the name… Odin raised one of his brows and said, “Doesn't ring a bell.”

  “Of course.” The voice responded. “I'm only active in the Northern Continent. Even then, only a few people are aware of my existence.”

  “What's so special about the existence of a mere Luminary?”

  The voice was silent for a moment, before saying, “What makes you think I'm a Luminary? I could be an Ascendant for all you know.”

  Odin didn't respond, prompting the voice to laugh. “Alright, alright. You're right. I am indeed a Luminary from the Mind Ascent.”

  Odin glanced around the hall. He wore a slightly puzzled look as he asked, “Why do all this? Why put on such a spectacular show? Why waste the lives of six Nulls? Surely, they would've made a great addition to whatever evil faction you represent. You know, considering how you have the means to completely take over people's minds.”

  The voice, which claimed to be the Witch of White, responded, “It's all for the ritual.”

  “You mean the one that just failed?”

  The voice laughed. “Oh, sweetness, it was never meant to succeed. We do not need a Null Paragon. What's the use? They will only end up being completely suppressed by that annoying Ascendant. Moreover, we have two Paragons in our faction. That's plenty enough to accomplish our goal.”

  Two Paragons in a single faction? Is she having a laugh? No. She's serious. That faction has to be sufficiently powerful to have such members in their ranks.

  After some thought, Odin decided to probe, “Oh, really? What's the name of your faction?”

  “The Starved Sect. The Starving. Whichever one you prefer.” The voice responded casually.

  The Starving… I'll have to ask Heather later... Odin sighed and glanced at the orb in his hand. He said with a smile, “This artifact seems to be of a very high level. Almost equal to a Paragon, I assume. Are you okay with letting it fall into enemy possession like this?”

  The voice didn't seem to mind, as it said, “You don't have to worry about that. The Eye Of Meru always finds its way back to me.”

  Before Odin could speak, the voice laughed and continued, “Anyway, it appears to be time. From the bottom of my heart, I hope we meet later on. So, try not to die tonight.”

  “What do you mean?” Odin asked with a frown.

  The voice seemed to grow a bit sinister as it added, “Do send my best regards to Micheal. Goodbye, and goodluck, for the strange ritual of Magdalene is beginning.”

  What?

  Odin’s lips parted to speak, however, strangely, the Orb fell out of his hand and bounced once against the floor, before falling into a tiny hole and disappearing from view.

  What the hell?

  At that moment, Odin’s premonition sent out violent alarms and he froze. Slowly, his head turned to look at the dead Nulls seated around the table…

  …and the pitch-black gap that had spawned there at some point in time.

  This gap, profound and imposing, d ropped to the core of the island and swelled to a thousand times larger.

  And then, the entirety of the Upper and Middle Rings fell. Straight into the boundless chasm that had appeared without warning.