Across the galaxy, the moment the Aethelian War Council's deployment list was made public, the news spread to every empire and clan.
Right in the middle of the official record, one name ignited chaos across every corner of the galactic network.
Origin Clan – Assigned to Edge Sector: Drakthor
The shock was instantaneous.
Even for the galaxy's most hardened warriors, an Edge Sector was whispered of like a cursed legend, a place where even Stellar Warlords prayed to return with their minds intact.
And now, the Origin Clan, barely a few months old, had been chosen to be deployed there.
Seeing this, some top clans laughed first.
"Finally, the Aethelian Emperor remembered his place."
In the gilded halls of the Ironspire Dominion, Patriarch Korith raised a crystal glass, "The upstart finally gets what he deserves."
Around him, elders nodded, their smiles sharp.
"Origin Clan grew too fast; someone needed to put them back in line."
For months, they'd watched the Origin Clan grow out of control, absorbing refugees, freeing vassal clans, refusing taxes, treating commoners like equals.
Everything Adrian built undermined the foundations that had kept the great clans rich for millennia.
He had turned what was once privilege into right. And the galaxy's nobility could not forgive him for that.
Not just the Ironspire clan, Many of the wealthy clans had already suffered losses, refugees abandoning them, minor clans disbanding to join the Origin system, trade routes shifting away from their territories.
To them, it was blasphemy.
In contrast, the other empires didn't laugh.
They knew the Aethelian Emperor, his pettiness, his pride, and his endless need for control.
In the Duranthian Imperial Court, Empress Alice stood before a tactical map of the Edge, "Drakthor," she murmured. "He sent them to Drakthor."
Her advisors shifted uncomfortably.
"Your Majesty," Lady Seris said, "this is clearly—"
"An execution," Alice finished. "The Emperor doesn't want Adrian subdued. He wants him erased."
Many suspected that the deployment was an execution.
And so, messages began to arrive at the Origin Capital, silent transmissions, delivered directly into Adrian's node.
"If you abandon the Aethelian empire, we will grant the Origin Clan protection under our domain."
"Shift your registration to our territory. We will handle the Emperor's outrage."
To shift domains was no small offer. It was an act of defiance against the Aethelian Emperor himself, but the empires were willing to gamble for Adrian.
But for all the secrecy in their words, each message carried the same undertone.
They wanted to own him next.
But even in all this chaos, the Lexarian Empire didn't do anything; it was like they knew something was going to happen and were waiting.
...
Inside the Origin Clan hall, Adrian stood at the head of the chamber, the deployment orders projected with a sigil burning with imperial authority.
The hologram hovered above the central table, crimson and gold, impossible to ignore.
Around him sat his core members and the Twelve Celestials: Gary, Selric, Orin, Max, Ilyas, Elliot, Aurelia, Draven, Septimus, Cassian, Lucian, and Sentinel.
And beside them, Varik, Thomas, Elara, Selena, and Kael.
The moment the words "Edge Sector: Drakthor" appeared in the hologram, silence fell.
Gary was the first to speak, "Drakthor? That's suicide."
Selric's gaze darkened, "We served there before. We survived because no siege came during our cycle. If it had…" He didn't finish. The implication was enough.
Varik brought up a new hologram, filled with numbers and data.
"We have roughly 300,000 Origin Warriors now," he said, fingers swiping through lists of names and ranks. "And many of them are new recruits. They're loyal, but inexperienced."
He zoomed in, highlighting combat statistics.
"Even our veterans, those who came from Drakenholt or Serpent worlds, have only fought on normal frontlines. None has seen the Edge."
Kael leaned forward, "What's the casualty rate for clans deployed to Drakthor?"
Varik hesitated. "Forty percent within the first month. Sixty percent by the third."
This was for experienced warriors.
Elara's hand tightened on the table, "And the Emperor expects us to hold for six months?"
They fell silent again.
Selric crossed his arms. "If we go there as we are now, we won't last a month."
Aurelia frowned, "We can't just march into slaughter, Adrian. You know that."
Adrian nodded slowly. "I do."
He glanced down at the messages hovering above his node, dozens of imperial offers glowing faintly.
"The other empires offered sanctuary. They want us to move Origin under their protection."
For a brief moment, hope flickered in their eyes.
Gary straightened. "Then… will we?"
Adrian's gaze hardened. "No."
He looked at them all, "Each empire wants the same thing, the Knowledge Spheres and the Origin Net. Moving to them isn't an escape. We'd be leaving one lion's den just to enter another."
Selric grimaced. "Then what do we do? Go against the Aethelian Empire? Against all empires?"
Adrian shook his head. "No. That's not the answer. The problem isn't the empires. It's us."
"We're not strong enough."
"If the Origin Clan was strong enough, no emperor would dare move against us."
Those words silenced the hall again; everyone knew the truth.
Thomas leaned back, "He's right. We just don't have enough powerful warriors. If we had, then the edge sector would not have been a death sentence to us."
Selena nodded, "We need more time."
Adrian nodded. The first thing that came into his mind was the structure at the edge. He didn't try to bring it back since he 'Sneaked' into the edge, and he couldn't just bring a structure that large without anyone noticing, and when he came back, he learned that this was not a unique one, but rather, these types of structures were actually spread throughout the edge, and the empires also use it.
So now, he couldn't take all his warriors to train there, since he couldn't 'sneak' into the edge with this many people with him, and even if I ask for permission, Adrian was sure the emperor would predict his plans and would only let him step into the edge when the official deployment date comes.
The emperor seemed to create perfect blockades for Adrian, but he could never have predicted that Adrian had comprehended the time concept, at least the basic galactic level. If he can't take his people to the structure for now, then he would create his own structure inside the origin capital!
Adrian raised his hand, and from the ceiling, golden essence flowed downward, spreading through the chamber.
Everyone stared as they somehow felt like time itself seemed to ripple in slow waves.
"This," Adrian said, "is the Time Field. Built into the main formation using the Time Concept from Lexaria's archives."
He gestured, and the flow stabilized into a dome, wrapping the entire hall in shimmering gold.
"One day outside equals four years inside."
For a moment, no one spoke. Then Varik whispered, stunned, "A… four-year dilation?"
Adrian nodded. "It won't be easy to maintain. It will drain the treasury and our mana reserves. But it gives us what we lack most. Time."
Realization dawned on them. Training, forging, mastering new techniques, all of it could now be done if they had this time.
Gary grinned, fist slamming onto the table. "Then in twenty days outside, we get eighty years."
Orin laughed sharply. "Eighty years to turn recruits into veterans."
In contrast, Varik's expression darkened. "Then this means we have to stop all our development."
Adrian nodded. "Yes. We trade progress for survival."
Varik frowned, pulling up economic projections. "The planetary expansion, diplomatic missions, all of it halts?"
"Everything," Adrian confirmed. "All resources go toward training and preparation. Nothing else matters if we don't survive."
Selric added quietly, "If it gives our people even a chance… it's worth everything."
Elara looked at her son, pride and fear warring in her eyes. "And if eighty years still isn't enough?"
Adrian looked at everyone present, "We will try everything we can in these eighty years. But if those fail, and if we still can't reach the level we need…"
"Then we'll seek help from other empires. No matter what, we will not lead our people into death."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Sentinel spoke for the first time, "You've chosen wisely, Adrian."
Adrian nodded. "Good. I'll deploy the Time Field."
Adrian blinked from the room, vanishing in a burst of pale light.
...
He reappeared deep within the Origin Construct's heart, where the core of the main formation lay.
A massive Source Essence Crystal floated at the center.
But Adrian knew it wouldn't be enough.
A full-scale Time Field across the entire training arena would drain even this core crystal in a day. Maybe less if he pushed the dilation to its limit.
And he didn't have time to sit and create more source essence crystals. Not when twenty days was all he had before deployment.
So, he decided to do something he hadn't dared till now.
Closing his eyes, he let his Source Essence pour into the formation, not into the crystal, but into the mana ink itself that formed the foundation of its runes.
He had never infused Source into already-etched symbols.
It was dangerous. The slightest imbalance could destabilize the entire formation, triggering a collapse that would rip through the construct like a detonation.
He wasn't sure if it would hold… or shatter.
But the formation pulsed steadily, responding to him.
The mana ink drank in the Source like parched earth absorbing rain. Symbols flared brighter, their glow shifting from gold to pale luminescence. The entire network hummed, vibrating with new power.
Within an hour, he had infused Source essence into the entire mana ink used on the main formation.
Now this formation was using Blackwood Ink, which solved his problem. Just a pure mana crystal could power the main formation now, no longer requiring the finite reserves of the Source Essence Crystal.
The golden glow of the formation faded. In its place, a pale white-grey light rippled across the entire star system.
Adrian frowned slightly, watching the shift. "Too soon… but necessary."
He knew the risk. If anyone strong enough scraped the mana ink from the formation, they could identify that it was not pure mana ink. They'd see something else woven into its foundation, and questions would follow, questions he couldn't afford to answer.
But there was no alternative.
He then blinked back toward the training arenas in the Origin Construct and extended his hand.
From the main formation, Time essence wrapped the entire arena in a translucent barrier, golden light folding over itself in layered waves.
Adrian watched it stabilize, feeling the hum of time flow bend to his will.
"This just buys us time," he murmured. "But we'll need more…"
At that moment, his Node pulsed.
A direct call.
He answered, and Kaelith's voice carried through, "I saw the deployment notice. This is an open attack on your clan."
"Yes," Adrian replied, "I know."
"What are you going to do? Shift to another empire?"
Adrian chuckled faintly, "You should know better than anyone. Running from one to another doesn't change the leash."
"But you can't do anything now," she argued, "You'll be marching into death if you go to the edge."
"I have plans," he said simply.
She didn't respond immediately. When she did, her voice was quieter. "You've got millions under you now, Adrian. One mistake could destroy everything you built. Don't gamble their lives."
There was silence for a long moment.
Adrian stared out at the arena, watching the golden shimmer of the Time Field settle into place.
"But…" Kaelith continued, "If you still decide to go to the Edge, don't go alone. Hire my clan. The Duskbane have one hundred and fifty thousand veterans, seasoned in edge-sector wars."
Her words caught him off guard.
Even knowing the dangers, she offered her strength.
"All right," he said quietly. "Bring them to the Origin Capital as soon as you can."
"So soon? You have twenty days before deployment."
"It's not for the war," Adrian replied. "It's for the training."
Kaelith hesitated. "…I see. I'll gather my forces. Give me a few days."
The line went dead.
Adrian stood in silence for a long time, looking out through the transparent dome.
"There's a lot to do," he murmured.