Cruising over and beyond the sleepless world's dark skies, a shuttle headed out into the void of space. It had been on this journey for almost a day now and it was swiftly nearing its destination. A few hours later, the shuttle finally slowed down as it prepared to dock at a huge space station. This was the Rima Prime Station, the main base of operations of the Federal Army and a major relay point toward the first extraterritorial colony in another world.
The Rima Prime Station was a grand beast of an infrastructure, a gargantuan undertaking during its construction process requiring absurd amounts of resources nearly depleting the world and a few other neighbouring planets. Its size was about a quarter of the world itself and was situated about half a year's worth of travel on a normal space shuttle away from the Federation's homeworld. It not only housed the military, but even some of the most important scientific and political minds.
Upon alighting from the shuttle, a man in his early thirties strode in. Soldiers lined up by the sides saluted him, but he did not reciprocate. Instead, his brows were furrowed in contemplation and anxiety. He was a renowned General holding one of the highest seats in the military. Owing to his brilliant mind and his personal prowess allowing the Federation to gain a foothold in another planet fraught with wars, he was an inspiration to many soldiers.
He had just returned from the frontlines to get some much needed rest. He had been spending his time with his family when a sudden call came in, ordering him to return to the Prime Station at once. He had barely spent a week in his house before being dragged out due to an emergency.
Apparently, a powerful being suddenly appeared in one of the cities. His sudden appearance had set Rima Prime Station in a state of emergency thinking an enemy had managed to slip through them. Soldiers were sent down immediately with orders to either capture if possible or kill if they resisted. But the being just stood there, waiting for the soldiers to come and obediently followed them back to Rima Prime Station.
All this time, the being had never spoken a word. He just silently remained in an interrogation room with an entire battalion of soldiers standing guard outside. He had not caused a fuss either, seemingly harmless as a kitten. But it was precisely his silence that terrified the higher-ups which prompted them to call on their most powerful asset to confront this being.
The General sighed as he arrived right outside the interrogation room. The soldiers saluted him and made way, but all of them remained wary and vigilant of any movements from within the room. The General opened the door and stepped in only to find a man who looked a bit younger than him staring at the white wall.
"It's tiny, isn't it?"
"Pardon?"
The young man's sudden words confused the General who continued to walk toward the table in the middle of the room. According to the reports he received, this man had never once spoken a word. And yet, the moment he entered the room, the man spoke about such a random topic. The General sat down in front of the young man while following his gaze, trying to see if there was anything on the white wall that could attract this being's attention. Unfortunately, it was just a plain white wall.
They were in the deeper parts of the Rima Prime Station where most of the prisoners were held. Of course, only the important prisoners were kept in the Prime Station while those who were inconsequential were sent off to the frontlines as fodder. All this to say that there were no windows in this interrogation room, only blank white walls. And yet the young man continued.
"The world, from upon its surface, it seems unfathomably huge. But out here, you realise how tiny it is..., how tiny we are."
The General stared at the young man with a solemn gaze. He did not understand if those words carried hidden meanings, a concealed threat perhaps. But from the young man's appearance, he did not seem the type to do such things. The young man had short neatly groomed black hair. His formal attire gave him an air of gravitas that was both similar and different to veteran soldiers.
There was a profound and intimidating air about him, especially the way his eyes seemed to peer through everything, even the walls. His words hinted at a mind unbound. And although the General could not feel any form of power from the young man, his heart beat in trepidation. He realised in an instant what this young man was. This was not the first or second time he was seeing such a being after all.
"Sir, are you an Ascendant?"
"Yes."
The young man answered with an indifference that did not quite fit the General's image of Ascendants. The Ascendants that the General met were all arrogant. They disdained the common folk and the mortals who strove for ascension. Even if they were enemies on the battlefield, the Ascendants would not step foot upon the same soil that mortal soldiers do. In fact, they would not march into battle at all if there were no other Ascendants for them to fight.
Of course, there were a couple exceptions like a few blood-starved warmongering Ascendants who thrived in strife. But all the same, they were arrogant. And yet this young man spoke as though being an Ascendant meant nothing to him. The young man then turned to look at the General, his silvery eyes seemed steeped in nostalgia and melancholy.
"How long has it been since all this emerged?"
"I don't understand your question, Sir."
The young man lowered his head in thought. The General was in stupor. This was indeed supposed to be an interrogation. He was supposed to question this young man, but before he could even begin, the young man was already questioning him. And yet, he could not bring himself to interrupt. There was an inviolable sense of calm patience that permeated the room. The General could not rush to question nor did he have the power to intimidate the young man. So he only waited. Fortunately, the young man seemed to have gathered his thoughts quickly.
"What is this world called?"
"It's called Rima, Sir."
"Rima..., that's a nice name. Back then, we didn't have a name for it. We didn't even know how big the world was. Or that there were countless other worlds beyond the dark skies. Back then, all people knew was that there was too much land..., and too many people greedy and ambitious enough to take it all."
The young man once again stared at the white wall as though his gaze could pierce through it and actually see the world beyond. And it was not just the world he was seeing. The world before him and the one in his mind overlapped, but it was like fitting a puzzle piece in the wrong hole. It was unrecognisable, irreconcilable with what he called home.
Perhaps his home had already vanished completely. What he was seeing now was only a shell inhabited by a different soul. The General could roughly guess that this Ascendant was once a denizen of Rima. But he had never heard or seen records of Rima ever giving birth to an Ascendant. Suspicious, he asked plainly.
"Who are you, Sir?"
"The lord of my hometown, I think his name was Efrein, he would lead soldiers to conquer new lands almost every year. I didn't want to waste my life on something so base so I dedicated myself to scholarly studies. I wanted to be a civil servant. But before I could even achieve my goal, I was laid to rest."
The General's eyes grew wide. His face turned horribly pale in both shock and horror. Perhaps others who heard the young man's words would only be confused. Everyone knew that when one enters the Final Slumber, they are forever laid to rest. But being a world in the fringes of the universe with a very young history of interstellar travel and an even weaker foundation with regards to the Pinnacle War, very few among the higher ups would understand what this young man was. The young man turned to the General with a bitter and somewhat pitiful smile.
"And now, here I am."
"You...! You're a Graven Lord!"
Graven Lords, mythical beings who walked in the Final Slumber. Their powers are said to be capable of eradicating entire armies. Throughout the duration of the Pinnacle War of Dreams, there had been no less than twenty Graven Lords, and each of them were monstrosities feared by all forces.
They did not actively participate in the Pinnacle War despite being the ceremonial leaders of the Path of Dreams. But all who stood between them and the Flame of the First Dream were annihilated, whether friend or foe. The Graven Lords were a calamity, their closed eyes made them blindly chase the Flame. And now, one of them was here.
"Indeed, the final one."