The first light of Aetherion's sun filtered through the tall, crystalline windows of the Dreamveil estate. In the nursery, the soft cries of a child echoed, tiny hands flailing in the morning light. Arios Dreamveil's eyes fluttered open. The world around him felt vast and new, yet comforting. His senses tingled with a strange familiarity—a system, faint and persistent, spoke to him in a soft, ethereal tone, only he could hear.
"Welcome back, Arios. You are alive in the Era of Gotterdammerung. Your potential has been recognized. You are the firstborn of the True Sole Exception, Lucien Dreamveil. Training begins now."
Arios yawned, squinting at the warm light. Slowly, his small frame wriggled against the sheets, and his system spoke again.
"After what is known as the White Flash—twenty years ago—everything changed. Awakening is now common. Gods are no longer untouchable. Mortals and those connected to the White can challenge the divine. Your sister, Lysera, shares your age, and your mother, Selene Dreamveil, remains the strongest being on this planet. Your father… Lucien Dreamveil… has ascended beyond all known creation."
Arios blinked, taking in the words as if he understood them instinctively. A smile spread across his small face.
"I… I can feel it. Dad is watching over us. He's always watching," he whispered to himself, his tiny hands curling into fists of determination.
A sudden wail interrupted his thoughts. Lysera Dreamveil, his twin sister, was crying in her crib, small fists smacking against the bedding. Arios rolled over, looking toward the sound. Moments later, Selene entered the room, her presence calm yet impossibly powerful.
"Hey, Lys. What's wrong?" she said softly, voice like velvet yet brimming with authority.
Lysera's cries didn't abate, but her eyes brightened at the sight of their mother. She was already feeding, and Arios' small brow furrowed as he watched his sister latch. Selene's gaze fell on him.
"Arios, come. It's your turn," she said gently. Her hands guided him closer, and he crawled to her, instinctively understanding. The warmth, the comfort, the energy—it all felt… right. Even at two years old, he could feel the faint, resonant pulse of his father's influence radiating through Selene, through the estate, through Aetherion itself.
As Arios fed, his mind wandered in ways children couldn't normally comprehend. His system whispered softly, teaching, reminding, and awakening the slumbering potential within him. Lysera, already nourished, gurgled and giggled, reaching out small hands that seemed to brush against the threads of the world tree Ydris itself, as if unconsciously connected to the lifeblood of the multiverse.
And then, time moved forward, unrelenting yet gentle in its progression. Five years passed.
By now, Arios and Lysera had grown enough to walk, to run, to speak. Arios, always curious, had begun sensing something extraordinary within himself—a fragment of the White that flowed through him, a subtle yet unstoppable current of creation and potential. Lysera, in her own way, pulsed with the essence of Ydris, able to reach out and touch the world tree, feel its life, and sense the guardians that slumbered within.
It was on one clear morning that they first saw them.
A small black dragon, scales shimmering like onyx under sunlight, rose lazily from the edge of the estate. Its eyes, intelligent and ancient, flicked toward Arios, who froze in awe. Beside it, slithering through the tall grass, a nine-headed snake appeared, born from the dark fruit of the world tree Null. Its serpentine heads hissed softly, each gaze filled with wisdom and patience.
Arios' eyes widened. "Dragon…" he whispered.
Lysera's laughter rang out, and she clapped her hands. "Snake!" she exclaimed, her tiny fingers brushing the nearest head. A bond, unspoken yet eternal, formed between the children and the guardians.
Selene watched from the porch, arms crossed yet smiling warmly. "Your father sent them," she said softly. "Veythar, the black dragon, and the nine-headed snake, born from the fruit of Null. They are the guardians of the world tree Ydris, entrusted to watch over you and your sister."
The children turned their gaze to the horizon, the guardians beside them, the world vibrant and alive. Even at their young ages, they could feel it—the weight and promise of the new era, the legacy of their father, and the dawn of the Gotterdammerung.
Arios looked at Lysera, then at the dragon, then at the snake, and finally at Selene. A small grin crossed his face, pure and innocent.
"This… this is going to be fun," he said softly.
Selene chuckled, the sound resonating like music across the estate. "It already has begun, Arios. And your father… he'll always be watching."
The wind carried the faint hum of Ydris, the guardians stirred, and in that moment, the world was perfect—balanced, alive, and full of potential.
And so began the first true chapter of the Era of Gotterdammerung—the Twilight of the Gods, under the watchful eye of the children of the True Sole Exception, guided by a father whose presence would be felt across all realities, yet whose influence would never overshadow the choices and growth of those he cherished most.