Ash led them through the heart of Astralisâa world reshaped and transformed by his inner cosmos. It hadnât literally been altered by some function but had instead adapted to the splendor of that vast inner universe.
The ground was soft marble laced with rivers of liquid starlight, flowing in gentle pulses like a living heartbeat.
Above, the sky stretched as an endless canvas of rose-pink, gold, white, and blue auroras drifting in slow, hypnotic waves, stars nestled within like captured dreams, their glow warm and close.
Around them, vast crystalline spires spiraled elegantly toward the heavens, encircling the grand palace Celeste had forged years beforeâits halls formed from translucent essence.
Ash walked at the centerâeasy, unhurried, his presence a subtle pull that naturally aligned their steps.
A soft rose-pink glow drifted from him like the fading echo of creation, his dual-marked eyes reflecting the auroras with easy amusement, hair stirring in the breeze as if the world itself sighed around him.
Aeloris walked to his left, her starlit green hair streaming like rivers through ancient groves, with illusory vines and blossoms drifting in her wake, blooming softly on the marble path before dissolving into light.
Her deep, verdant eyes seemed to quietly hold his vast potential in awe.
To his right was Seraphiel, her rebirth flames reduced to contemplative embers that warmed the air without burning, wings folded but still flickering with restrained supernova light.
Her gaze was wary yet drawn in, the artifactâs lingering power echoing faintly.
Closest to him walked Lady TruthâLaylaâher silver-purple hair flowing in cosmic currents, nine-pupiled eyes turning slowly with knowing depth, a subtle smile on her lips as if already savoring truths yet unspoken.
Ash lingered in a meadow alive with blooms, where night flowers unfurled more fully as he neared, their faces lifting toward him in quiet reverence.
"Ask away," he said with an easy warmth, his voice flowing through the breeze like an invitation stitched into the rhythm of the world.
"Now that you have the chance."
He knew well that Seraphiel and Aeloris, in particular, were two of the last four true progenitors left in the entire lower dimension.
Yet the things heâd done lately... well, theyâd shattered their worldviews in more ways than one.
The words hung in the scented airâplain, yet heavy with the gravity of his presence. That strange, irresistible pull, like standing at the edge of something vast and new, unable to stop leaning in.
Questions swirled in their mindâuncertain, all tangled up in him.
Seraphiel was the first to break the silence, her voice warm yet edged with caution, like a crackling hearth pulling her closer.
"What... are you?"
Her twin, firelit eyes locked onto his, the flames within flaring brighter.
"And how did you claim my bloodline? My blood... it flows in you, purer than even Aureliaâs..."
Aeloris followed, her forest-deep gaze flickering with a potential that seemed to appear and vanish in the same breath. One moment her eyes brimmed with endless promise, the next, they were hollow and distant.
Her voice, soft as rustling leaves but laced with ancient curiosity, murmured,
"A True Progenitor... not seen since the 21st cycle. And here you are, no signs, nothing that marked your coming. How did you slip past those cursed records... and why did none of us know?"
As the questions poured in, Ash smiled and glanced at Lady Truth, who remained silentâher knowing smile deepening, nine pupils swirling with patient amusement.
She knew she wasnât here to ask questions, but to answer them, so she simply waited.
Noticing this, Ash nodded, resumed walking, and began to speak.
"What am I? Well, I am the Primavus, and we are something that cannot be defined." He shrugged as he went on, speaking with complete honesty, unconcerned whether they believed him or not.
Then, he turned his gaze to Seraphiel,
"And I attained your bloodline from your very first tears."
Those words made all three women freeze in place. It sounded ridiculous to themâwere they really expected to believe heâd been born before them, the very first beings of the third cycle? (Aeloris and Seraphiel)
Before they could speak, he pressed on.
"From your very first Nirvana, you shed nine tears into the void... from those tears, the flames I claimed were born... and after nine Nirvanas, here I stand."
"Wait!" Seraphiel interrupted sharply.
"How is this even possible? I donât remember my first Nirvana at all... it was that very Nirvana that gave me life!"
Indeed, her first Nirvana ignited the void, burning it for eons. In truth, before learning of the Lower Dimension, he knew little about the tears beyond their description.
Yet he was certain they came from the birth he had witnessed.
"Hmm, I donât know," Ash said, raising an eyebrow. Truth was, he didnât know a damn thing about the Treasury of Existence... but now that he thought about itâ
âThat place did give me a crazy starter kit...â
âI already know what youâre thinking... but thereâs no location in the lower dimension,â Elysiaâs voice echoed in his mind.
He didnât respond, though he didnât have to. If the place wasnât in the lower dimension, he would simply find itâwho knew what such a place might hold?
"Look, I wonât have an answer to every question. Iâm an enigma... sometimes even to myself," Ash said before he and the three women vanished.
They reappeared in the void of his cosmos.
"And this... this is how I bypassed the records. Weâre not in any universe outsideâthis is my cosmos, inside my body."
Once again, the women felt as if explosions were going off in their minds.
Seeing this, Ash gave them some time before continuing to answer their questionsâabout his connection to the Dragon of Absolute Endings, the intricacies of his race, and even his plans.
He was completely honest about it all, though his explanation of the Dragon remained vague. There was a good reason for his openness. Yes, he wanted them for himself.
But that wasnât all. As Elysia had said beforeâif it wasnât women, then it was power.
Before anything else, his eyes shifted to Lady Truth, and he smiled.
----
[Lady Truth
Race - Truth (Bloodline of Cosmic Truth (Paragon)
Age - 38 Cycles
Rank - Peak Cosmic Emperor
Concept(s) - Truth 100%, Fate 100%, Destiny 100%, Karma 100%, Knowledge 100%
Aspect - Cosmic Eyes of Truth
Verity - Eternal Revelation
MP - 3B
Remarks - She embodies the absolute mastery of Truth...
She took on the guise of Laya on a whim, a playful diversion born from boredom that soon led her to create the Vossmere family and the Consortium with Archie, adding yet another thread to the intricate tapestry of her endless life.]
---
"You know... not many escapes my eye" he said, genuinely intrigued by her existenceâsomething he didnât have to worry about, having already copied it.
"I could say the same," Layla replied with a smile that matched his.
They shared the same issueâor perhaps not exactly a problemâbut when they first met, neither of them could see what truly lay beyond the façade.
"So, whatâs your decision? Are you done with The Eternal Deceiver?" Ash asked, cutting straight to the point.
Lady Truthâs smile dimmed as she thought of Archie. She couldnât be blamed; they had spent 38 cycles together. Yet, was any of it real? For her, it had been everything, but sheâd seen how Archie acted once his disguise fell.
He had even left in the midst of the chaos, without so much as a word.
"Of course... will you make me a Primavus too?" she asked with a smile. She remembered Ashâs words clearlyâfollow her heart, and right now, it was beating for only one person... one enigma she couldnât quite understand.
Ash winked at the question before turning to Aeloris.
"Although we havenât been properly introduced, I have a request for the two of you..."
"Join my clan, join meâbe mine in heart, mind, and soul." His words completely caught Aeloris off guard, though Seraphiel was already prepared, the seeds of affection within her fully ripe.
"And I promise you will reach the pinnacle of power... far beyond this pitiful Lower Dimension."
"Lower Dimension?" the three women echoed in unison, unfamiliar with the term, and the confusion on their faces made Ash grin.