Chapter 423: _You Can Have It

Back On Earth

Ramona walked down the streets of Aurelia, wearing a huge black hat that shielded most of her face.

The bounty on her head was still very much active in this city and in Los Angeles. Being around neighbouring Washington DC alone had been a risk.

But she had to come back.

’Adonais.’ She reached out to the only other Archon present in the vast multiverse. ’There’s a... problem.’

Silence was all that streamed through the telepathic link at first.

Ramona’s jaw tightened. ’If you’re hearing me, it’s the child. He’s missing. I can no longer sense him within this universe or any other one, for that matter.’

’... You lost the child.’ Adonais’ voice finally hit her, calm yet resounding with disappointment. ’Asherah. Has your current mortal shell made you so incompetent already?’

’It wasn’t supposed to happen. Things were going according to plan. His mind was on the verge of fracturing and then he just—’

’Excuses.’ The mere word made her insides recoil. ’The boy couldn’t have gone out of creation. If he had, he’d be far more vulnerable.’

She made a pause before a book shop with a see-through glass wall showing a good view of the rows and rows of shelves within.

’Find him.’ Adonais said at last. ’I’ll try expanding my senses from here without making myself vulnerable to this reality’s expulsion. And Asherah?’ A pause. ’If your current shell has become a hindrance... get rid of it.’

The link dissipated.

Ramona sucked in a breath, head turning to the glass. Her sight moved beyond the shelves, books and a few customers browsing through the place.

Then it landed on someone standing by the counter.

Someone familiar.

Inside, Hunter Augustus wore a smile as he showed the cashier the books he’d bought.

"Those are interesting choices, sir," the lady behind the counter said, nodding with a smile of her own. "Do you have kids?"

"Oh, no." He quickly shook his head. "These are for the children in a school I’ve been teaching at since the beginning of the term. They’ve recently been through something... traumatic."

His fingers brushed against one of the books. "I was hoping these would cheer them up today. I mean, look at the pictures on here."

The cashier’s expression was torn between a chuckle and admiration. "That’s truly kind of you."

Outside, Ramona watched the interaction, a small smirk touching the corner of her lips.

"Yes, Augustus," a white glow glinted in her eyes. "Truly kind of you indeed..."

★★★★★

Amazon Rainforest

Ambrose skidded backwards through the muddy ground, Grave Keeper keeping him steady. Before he could make another move, a large vine was already snaking his way.

He opened his mouth.

A torrent of blue flames came out, burning the vine to an ashen crisp before it could even hit him.

Ji-Hoon and every other SS-Rank had been noticing his powers throughout this battle and were beyond lost on exactly what his classification was.

He could control frost. Teleport and manipulate space. Summon flames.

Not to mention the few times when he used necrotic attacks, phantoms sticking to him with each strike from Grave Keeper.

They understood he was a reawakened.

But just how many more cards did this monster of a man have in his arsenal?

Another vine lashed toward him.

Ambrose vanished before it could connect, reappearing several metres to the left with barely a ripple in space. Grave Keeper carved through the attack in one clean sweep, blue flames racing along the blade until every severed fragment crumbled into glowing embers.

At the same time, his thoughts reached Gabriel.

’We’re doing this now.’

’I figured.’ Gabriel answered almost instantly. ’I’ll start moving everyone into position.’

Without drawing attention to himself, the Canadian Hunter disappeared and reappeared throughout the battlefield. To every observer—including the entity—it looked as though he was simply rescuing the Hunters who hadn’t escaped far from lethal attacks.

An injured Esper vanished moments before a thorn pierced his chest.

A support Hunter who’d gotten stranded atop a collapsing tree suddenly found herself several kilometres away.

Two unconscious A-Ranks disappeared from beneath a falling root system.

It looked random and chaotic.

Exactly what an emergency evacuation should look like.

Only Ambrose knew every destination had been chosen with meticulous precision.

Aura’s voice echoed inside his mind.

[Spatial anchors established.]

Tiny pulses of spatial energy spread beneath the rainforest every time Gabriel completed another teleport.

The entity never spared them a second glance.

[Spatial lattice... 19% complete.]

Valentine’s undead beasts dove from above again, tearing into Javier’s regenerating armour while the Australian SS-Rank hammered him with enough force to send shockwaves through the jungle.

The Japanese Esper twisted entire sections of forest into colossal wooden spears, while the Egyptian Hunter crashed down in another explosion of white lightning that briefly illuminated the rainforest brighter than daylight.

Every attack served the same purpose.

Distraction.

The entity laughed as another section of its armour regenerated.

"So many insects..." it mused through Javier’s mouth. "You prolong the inevitable."

Gabriel teleported another wounded Hunter away.

[Spatial lattice... 43% complete.]

Ji-Hoon’s crimson eyes flickered between countless intertwining threads of fate before she reached out and pulled one with both hands.

"Three seconds!" She shouted. "That’s all I can guarantee!"

Ambrose understood immediately. "Push!"

Every SS-Rank attacked together.

Lightning.

Telekinesis.

Death aura.

Living metal.

Blue fire.

The barrage forced the entity to raise an enormous wall of intertwined roots around itself.

Exactly as planned.

Its attention narrowed entirely upon the attacks crashing against its defences.

[Spatial lattice... 71% complete.]

Gabriel continued blinking around the battlefield.

Another evacuation vehicle vanished from the battlefield.

Then another.

Eventually there was nobody left inside the designated zone except the seven SS-Ranks... and Javier.

The entity finally tilted its head. "You’ve stopped protecting them."

Gabriel smiled faintly.

"No."

His spatial sense expanded one final time.

"We’re just making room."

Aura’s notifications accelerated.

[91%...]

[96%...]

[Spatial lattice complete.]

Invisible geometric lines instantly connected every hidden anchor buried beneath the Amazon, forming a continent-sized framework that existed just beneath reality itself.

Gabriel appeared beside Ambrose.

Neither man looked at the other.

"You ready?" Ambrose asked quietly.

Gabriel’s smile widened. "Always."

Both space gods extended a hand toward the earth.

The hidden anchors answered simultaneously.

The forest began to hum.

Reality itself vibrated.

The entity’s expression changed for the first time since possessing Javier.

"What..."

Its glowing eyes darted across the jungle as invisible seams appeared through the air, outlining a colossal section of rainforest stretching far beyond the battlefield.

"...What are you doing?"

Ambrose’s gaze remained cold. "You wanted the Amazon."

Space folded, the horizon bending upward like paper.

The sky fractured into countless translucent planes as the entire battlefield, along with miles upon miles of rainforest, peeled away from Earth itself.

"Fine." His hand closed into a fist. "You can have it."

With a deafening crack that echoed across the continent, the newborn pocket dimension sealed shut around them.