Cracked Pillars of Fate

Chapter 19: Preparing for the Expedition

The purple light from the holographic map cast a cold hue over their weary faces. Amidst the ruins of the emergency base, the silence felt heavy, broken only by the subtle hum of machinery and the crackle of dying embers in the corner. The map pulsed, displaying intersecting paths of light leading toward a single central point known as the heart of the system.

Dylan Smith leaned over a strategy table cluttered with blue rune diagrams. His fingers moved nimbly across the surface, shifting coordinates and calculating energy fluctuations. Occasionally, he wiped his sweaty brow, his eyes bloodshot from staring at the binary glow for too long.

"The distance is beyond all logical calculation," Dylan muttered without looking up. "We won't be traveling through physical space, but through overlapping layers of reality. If our coordinates are off by even a fraction, we could be trapped forever between dimensions."

El Joe stood at the side of the table, observing the map with a sharp gaze. His iron pipe leaned against the wall, bent and scarred from the previous great battle. "How much time do we have to prepare?"

"Three days, Joe. That’s the maximum time before the stability of the Omega Dimension Core shifts again," Dylan replied. He rotated a crystal module, trying to find the safest transmission path. "I need every energy fragment we have to recharge the Genesis Portal."

Joe nodded slowly. Outside the strategy tent, he could hear the sound of hammers striking metal. The survivors were repairing the barricades under Miller’s direction. Life at this Safe Point had only just begun to stabilize, and now he had to decide to leave them behind.

Meanwhile, in the camp's backyard, the sound of heavy rhythmic impacts echoed. Archen Huge stood in the middle of a cloud of dust. He was no longer crudely lifting massive weights. He was practicing concentrating his entire gravitational mass onto the tip of his index finger. A pebble floated before him, then suddenly disintegrated into ash as Archen touched it with a faint, thin black glow.

"Focus... don't let the energy overflow," Archen whispered to himself. The muscles in his arms tightened until his veins bulged like tree roots. He felt that his body was no longer just flesh, but a vessel for cosmic power that demanded absolute control.

Joe stepped out of the tent and approached Archen. He saw the pebbles around Archen's feet beginning to float erratically, a sign that the spatial pressure there was unstable.

"You're mastering it faster," Joe praised, though he kept his distance to avoid being affected by the gravity field.

Archen lowered his hand, letting the dust fall back to the ground. "Dylan is right. Our enemies won't die just because I hit them hard. I must be able to pierce them at their weakest point without wasting energy."

Joe gave a thin smile, but his eyes couldn't hide his unease. He looked toward the crowd of residents queuing for leftover food rations. There were children laughing softly near a campfire, as if their world wasn't on the brink of destruction.

"You're worried about them, aren't you?" Archen asked, following Joe's gaze.

"I'm the one who brought them here, Archen. I promised them protection," Joe's voice sounded hoarse. "Leaving them while the situation is still chaotic feels like a betrayal."

"If you stay here, Joe, you're only delaying their death," Archen placed his large hand on Joe's shoulder. "Only we can stop the source of this disaster. If we succeed, they will have a world that is truly safe. That's not betrayal. It's sacrifice."

Joe fell silent. He knew Archen was right, yet his conscience as a local leader continued to rebel. For years, he had lived by a simple rule: look after your people, and they will look after you. Now, he had to break that rule for a mission greater than any human imagination.

Three days of preparation passed in a tense atmosphere. Dylan practically didn't sleep; he constantly tinkered with detection devices and ensured their logistics were sufficient. They gathered Energy Cores from monster remains to be used as fuel for the Genesis Portal.

On the afternoon of the final day, Joe called Miller to a corner of the barricade. He handed his old iron pipe and a small communication device to the man.

"Miller, this place is yours now," Joe said firmly. "Use everything you've learned from me. Don't let the gates stay open after sunset."

Miller stared at the iron pipe with trembling hands. "We'll be waiting for your return, Joe. Don't stay too long over there."

Joe only nodded, not daring to promise anything. He turned and walked toward the center of the camp where Dylan and Archen were already waiting. A three-meter-high hole of blue light vibrated in mid-air, tearing through reality with a sharp electric hiss.

"The portal is stable," Dylan announced. He wore a backpack full of crystal equipment; his face looked thinner, but his eyes shone with determination. "This path will take us to the Threshold Zone. From there, we won't be able to return by conventional means."

Archen adjusted his arm guards, his black aura beginning to pulse slowly around his fists. "I'm tired of looking at this place. Let's finish this."

The three of them stood side by side in front of the portal. Behind them, hundreds of Safe Point residents gathered in silence. There were no cheers, only silent prayers offered by people who had lost everything.

Joe took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of Earth's soil for the last time. The smell of dust, metal, and a hard life. He glanced at his two companions—the Strategist and the Vanguard. Without them, he was just a junk dealer waiting for his end. But with them, he was part of the pillars supporting the universe.

"Don't look back," Joe ordered softly.

They stepped forward. As Joe's foot touched the threshold of the portal, a shockwave of energy hit his senses. A blinding white light swallowed their figures, separating them from the human world.

Beyond the portal, the scenery changed drastically. They were no longer standing on soil or asphalt. They stood upon a bridge of transparent light stretching across a cosmic void. Below them, galaxies looked like swirling grains of sand, and in the distance, a giant disc-shaped black structure began to come into view.

[Entering Threshold Zone: Path of Destiny.]

[Status: Distance to Omega Core – 5,000 Spatial Units.]

Suddenly, a cold laugh echoing throughout the void made them all freeze.

"You've arrived sooner than I expected, little insects."

At the end of the light bridge, a giant shadow clad in a cloak made of thousands of dead stars stood blocking the way. In its hand, it held a mechanical heart beating with purple fire.

Archen clenched his fists until the air around him cracked. Dylan immediately prepared his data shield, while Joe gripped his new weapon—a green energy sword crystallized from his own power.

"Who are you?" Archen roared.

The shadow stepped forward, and its energy pressure caused the light bridge beneath them to begin cracking into pieces. "I am the Gatekeeper of Nothingness. And here, human prayers have no power."

Without warning, the bridge beneath Dylan's feet collapsed.