As Ash approached, not only he but also his wives, still seated, shed their varied skin tones, returning to their natural hues.
It was only meant to last a moment, just long enough for the women to grasp the situation.
The General fixed his gaze on the man he considered unbearably arrogant, unwilling to yield.
His eyes narrowed, the air heavy around him, and he shook his head before speaking.
"I donât know what faction you arrogant whelps crawled from," he rumbled, his voice echoing through the chamber like distant thunder in stone.
"But youâd best learn some respect. Outside, Peak Hyperversals might mean something up to the Peak of the Middle Dimensionsâbut here, it means nothing!"
He took a heavy step forward, the obsidian floor splintering beneath his boot.
"I told you... arrogance gets people killed here, kid. So, before you ruin yourself... let me show you what humility feels like."
FWOOOOM!
The General raised one enormous four-fingered hand.
A bright orange flame roared to life around his fistâthick enough to warp the light, hot enough to make the air scream.
He swung toward Ash, who only watched with a calm smile.
The General surged forward at speeds unthinkable for someone over thirty feet tall, his arm driving toward Ashâs chest like a siege ram built to shatter worlds.
But the strike.... it never landed.
|Quantum Apotheosis|
Ash simply willed his power into action.
The General, much like the woman named Vetri, was an Eternal Hierarchy Saintâa twelfth-dimensional being.
Normally, that would be an intimidating challenge for someone like Ash, who was still at the Peak of Hyperversal Weaver, standing at the pinnacle of the eleventh dimension.
This usually meant he operated within 110 Layers of Reality, maybe 180 at most if he was exceptionally gifted.
The General, on the other hand, worked within at least 120 Layersâbut Ash had already gone far beyond that. In his battle with the Infinite Weaver, he hit a wall at 300 Layers, so in his eyes, this manâs power was nothing.
Ash tilted his head and Creara waved her hand from behind as a projection appeared. All around the Bastion of Existence on the first inversion each inhabitant could see what was taking place.
"Now, I donât fault you for the way youâve been thinking." Ash said casually, "But you know, you should never read a book by its cover."
As he said this, he looked at the General who had been frozen in place along with the orange flame still burning in his hand.
Seeing all of this the entire briefing chamber went deathly silent.
The two Generals stared in stunned disbelief as the first, once the unbreakable wall between them and certain doom, froze mid-strike like a statue caught mid-breath.
"Now, I wonât kill you all. Consider your defense against the Eldritch as life-saving merit. Instead, whether you like it or not, today youâll be following a new General."
Outside, the Devas watching drew sharp breaths.
It might not seem like much to the naked eye, but for Ash to render their strongest completely useless without even lifting a finger was nothing short of terrifying.
That was telling enough.
Ash glanced at his wives, spoke, then turned back.
"The Deva here will be your first troops for your Pantheon branches. Elysia will transform them into the Unus, each reflecting your essence."
Only Katherine and Seraphiel had troops for their branches, and Seraphielâs were a recent additionâstill a work in progress.
Looking straight into the projection, Ash spoke, this time releasing the full force of his All-Origin essence.
HUMMMM!
A wave of golden light rolled out from his body â warm and gentle, yet carrying an undeniable weight.
It swept through every Deva in the Bastion â passing through walls, armor, and flesh â touching each one at the very core of their being.
Instinct took hold.
Thousands upon thousands of Devas dropped to one knee in perfect unison. Not by choice, but because existence itself demanded it.
Ashâs voice flowed through the projectionâcalm, unwavering, and reaching every mind.
"Since they call us the Frontier... the most important land, we will treat it as such."
He paused, letting the words sink in.
"Forget any plan youâve heard beforeâthatâs nothing but a highway to the abyss." He knew this too well; following those generals in some of the timelines was why heâd died so many times.
âTalk about hero syndrome,â he thought, raising one hand.
"From now on, you are part of the Ineffable Pantheon. These six women are my wives and your new Branch Leaders. Meet them, choose your path..."
"But when the horn sounds, you must be in the main plaza. Today, you donât need to move a muscleâjust keep your eyes on the lands beyond the gates. Nothing more. Nothing less."
The projection shifted, revealing a perfect countdown in glowing gold numbers.
"Ten hours," Ash said. "Thatâs when the next wave begins. Be ready."
After those words, the projection blinked out of view. He then adjusted the now Ex-Generalâs position allowing to move.
He then said with a casual tone, "After the showing in ten hours, if you think you can be a better General then I will gladly allow it."
With that he went back to join with his wives.
This entire time, Morgana had been fairly quiet. Even when she saw the nonsense of them all becoming an entirely new race. It was truly like they became more beautiful in a blink of an eye.
So much so, she found it hard to not pounce on one of them.
And as Ash, made his way back she spoke.
"Just... what are you?" She asked with genuine curiosity.
When she first noticed Ash back when he was slaughtering Sables, she knew he was different, operating beyond the Oathâs influence.
Still, the longer she stayed around him, the more incomprehensible he became.
"Tsk, donât even bother trying to understand," Rune said with a dismissive wave of her hand before stepping toward Ash and throwing herself into his arms.
"Yeah... this man has been quite the mystery to me, even after more than fifty thousand years," Seraphiel said, recalling when Ash first alerted her with his Nirvana.
Ash chuckled and shrugged. "Well, I guess I can be considered the Origin of Unus now."
"Anyway, go get those Devas settled. In the meantime, Iâll be painting."
As he spoke, he ran his hand over Runeâs ass making her whimper softly against his neck.
"Ugh, youâd give us such a task instead of just doing it yourself," Katherine said, rolling her eyes.
Still, she stood, accepting a hug and kiss before heading off.
Once everyone had done the same, they left to tend to the horde of kneeling Devas, while Vetri and the others watched on with deep intrigue.
[Vetri Aloâs Affection - 95%]
âAre you planning to have a woman from every new race you meet?â Creara teased as she appeared on his shoulder.
âHmm, you know I donât have a plan. But who knows.... I might?â
As he said this, he sat down in the air and as he opened his hand the necklace around his neck hummed.
Then primordia shifted into a paint brush that could paint with any color he desired.
Then using the very fabrics of this place as the canvas, he began.
|Ineffable Artisan|