"Are you ready?" asked Xi Wangmu, her voice as serene as the wind through the jade temples.
Nathael and Celestia nodded in unison. They stood in the center of Mount Kunlun's main hall, dressed not as travelers, but as warriors prepared for any threat they might encounter on the other side of the dimensional veil. Nathael wore his usual attire, refined by weeks of intense training: boots of reinforced leather etched with cushioning runes, tear-resistant brown trousers, his classic white linen shirt open at the chest, a light vest of magical mesh woven with acromantula silk threads, fingerless leather gloves for greater spellcasting precision, and a sapphire-blue cloak that flowed gently with every movement—the same color as his eyes and Celestia's.
Celestia, for her part, wore her ancestral collar engraved with the Grauheim symbol in white gold, and a fitted vest tailored to her body, woven with silver threads and ancient protective runes that glowed faintly under the moonlight. It had not been only Nathael who trained over the past month. Celestia had grown as well, perfecting her control over blue magic, increasing her speed, endurance, and ability to anticipate threats before they manifested.
Nathael raised his left hand and placed it over his right wrist, where the silver bracelet rested. He closed his eyes for a moment, concentrating. Then, with precise and fluid movements, he began tracing runes in the air around the bracelet. Each symbol was a coordinate, a direction in the vast ocean of the Omniverse. The silvery lines intertwined, forming a complex spiral lattice that floated and vibrated with dimensional energy.
Xi Wangmu watched in silence, a faint smile on her lips.
"With time and practice," she said, "you will set the coordinates faster. Today, it took you three minutes. Tomorrow, perhaps one. In years to come, it will be a single thought."
Nathael did not respond. He was too focused. Finally, the last runes locked into a perfect circle. The bracelet emitted a deep hum, and its surface began to glow with intense purple light.
Without hesitation, Celestia leaped onto Nathael's shoulder, clutching his cloak with her claws. Instantly, the purple light expanded, enveloping Nathael first and then Celestia, like a wave of energy that pierced them to their very souls.
And then, they felt the pull.
It was not like Apparition. It was a thousand times more intense. Their bodies stretched, atom by atom, as if disassembled and reassembled elsewhere in the cosmic fabric. The pain was sharp but brief. Then came the sensation of free fall, of being dragged through currents of realities that were born and died in seconds. They glimpsed flashes of worlds: floating cities, oceans of fire, crystal forests, skies with two suns… and then, everything went dark.
Moments later, they began to feel their cohesion returning. Their atoms reorganized. The pull ceased. And then, they touched ground.
They appeared in an endless meadow under a starry sky so vast it seemed endless. It was night. The air was dry, cool, laden with the scent of earth and wild grass. There were no lights, no sounds of civilization. Only the wind whispering through the underbrush.
Celestia, slightly dizzy, shook herself on Nathael's shoulder and meowed with a smile:
"I haven't felt this dizzy since that roller coaster in Italy."
Nathael, also a bit disoriented, chuckled softly.
"Not bad," he said, and raised his wand with a somewhat loose motion, his magic still unsteady from the journey. "Sanare Vertigo."
A soft glow enveloped them, easing the discomfort. Celestia licked a paw, regaining her composure.
But before they could exchange another word, both sensed a presence.
It was not exactly magical. It was… different. An energy vibrating on a frequency they did not recognize. Instinctively, they shifted into combat stance. Nathael raised his wand, ready to cast any spell. Celestia extended her claws, muscles tense, blue magic beginning to envelop her body.
More than twenty meters away, a female figure stood in the middle of the meadow. She was bald, with serene yet firm features. She wore a sober, multi-layered robe in shades of dark blue, gray, and brown, with a crossed design like a habit. Over it, an open, structured overtunic with wide collars, all cinched by a wide belt at the waist. She carried no visible weapons, but her mere presence radiated authority.
She observed them with a gaze that was neither clearly hostile nor peaceful. It was… evaluative. As if measuring them not with her eyes, but with something deeper.
"You have arrived in a world that was not expecting you," she said, her voice clear and calm, yet carrying a weight that resonated in the air.
Nathael, seeing that she did not attack, lowered his wand slightly but did not put it away.
"Greetings," he said. "I am Nathael Grauheim. And this is my companion, Celestia. Forgive the abrupt entrance, but we have something to search for."
The woman studied him a moment longer. Then, with a minimal nod, she replied:
"You may call me the Ancient One. I am the Sorcerer Supreme of this world, and its guardian against dimensional threats."
Celestia, from Nathael's shoulder, meowed clearly:
"We are not a threat. Our intentions are not hostile."
The Ancient One raised an eyebrow, visibly surprised by a talking cat. But she made no comment on it. Instead, she crossed her arms and asked:
"What are your intentions, then?"
Nathael spoke.
"We are searching for my father, Williams Grauheim, and his companion, Guillermo. Also for my sister, Anneliese Grauheim, and her companion, Lysander. They were pulled into other worlds by dimensional artifacts. We believe they may have arrived somewhere in this universe."
The Ancient One's expression did not change, but her eyes grew more piercing.
"You have arrived in an immense universe," she said. "I protect Earth. Not the universe. And within this universe… there are thousands of realities, thousands of planets with life. If your loved ones arrived on Earth, I would have known. It has not happened. If they arrived on other planets… I cannot know. It is not my jurisdiction."
Nathael and Celestia exchanged a glance. This information was crucial. In their world, intelligent life existed only on Earth. Life on other planets had never been confirmed. But here… the existence of other inhabited worlds was a fact. This changed everything.
"Unfortunately," the Ancient One continued, "I cannot help you. I ask that you leave."
Nathael did not move. He knew they could not leave. The bracelet needed time to recharge before another dimensional jump. Besides, traveling interstellar space was practically impossible for them. They could create spells to survive in the vacuum, yes, but moving at faster-than-light speeds was beyond their current reach.
Their best option was to stay on Earth and search for clues.
Then, he remembered Xi Wangmu's words.
"We came here on Xi Wangmu's recommendation," he said without hesitation.
The effect was immediate.
The Ancient One, for the first time, showed a visible reaction. Her eyes widened slightly, and her expression softened with surprise.
"Who is she to you?" she asked, her voice lower.
Celestia answered before Nathael:
"He is her heir."
The Ancient One stared at them intently, as if trying to pierce their souls with her gaze. She searched for lies, deception, arrogance. She found none. Only truth, respect, and silent determination.
For a second, her face turned melancholic. Then, almost in a whisper to herself, she said:
"It is a pity what happened to her…"
Nathael and Celestia, with their senses honed to the maximum, heard it clearly. They grew alarmed. Xi Wangmu had told them her main physical form was somewhere in the cosmos, and her remnant in Kunlun had a year of life left. But this woman… seemed to know something more.
Before they could ask, the Ancient One raised her left hand. She wore a strange ring covering two fingers, made of metal with softly glowing symbols. With her other hand, she traced circles in the air, directly toward Nathael and Celestia's feet.
"I've changed my mind," she said. "You may stay on Earth. But I will be watching you. If you endanger this world, I will expel you without mercy."
She finished drawing the circle.
Instantly, beneath Nathael and Celestia, a brilliant portal appeared, with golden edges crackling like living fire. It was a perfect circle, filled with spiraling symbols. There was no time to react.
The ground vanished beneath them.
Nathael and Celestia fell through the portal, surprised but not frightened. They analyzed the spell instantly: it was a teleportation portal, activated by that ring. Now, they were falling from the sky, in the middle of the night, toward what appeared to be a desert. The wind roared in their ears, Nathael's cloak billowed violently, and Celestia clung with all her strength.
They were plummeting through the skies toward the ground.