The ruined battlefield slowly quieted beneath the crimson skies of Tartarus.
The winds carrying ash, frost, and burning embers drifted through the shattered remains of the domains, sweeping across broken mountains and cracked plains left behind by the clash of rulers. Far away, the fires caused by Albatros still burned along the horizon, while frozen storms from Tikadello rolled endlessly through distant valleys.
And in the middle of that devastation stood Youri.
Silent.
Thinking.
Behind him, Altopereh remained motionless, towering over the broken terrain like a black monument of war. The dark hues moving across its damaged frame continued repairing sections of its armor slowly, almost organically.
But Youri barely looked at it now.
Because one name had buried itself inside his thoughts.
Almosis.
The Name That Changed Everything
A low laugh echoed through his mind.
Altopereh's voice.
"That thing is still around?"
The orbiton almost sounded amused.
Then it laughed again, deeper this time.
"This is going to be interesting."
Youri frowned slightly.
He had heard Altopereh speak arrogantly before. The monster mocked almost everything in existence. It looked down on rulers, kingdoms, entire civilizations.
But this—
This sounded different.
Not fear.
Not concern.
Excitement.
Youri slowly crossed his arms as he looked toward the endless desert surrounding the domains.
"Who is this Almosis?" he finally asked.
For a brief moment, Altopereh didn't answer.
The silence lingered long enough to make even Lea glance toward him suspiciously, noticing the distant look in his eyes again.
Then Altopereh finally spoke.
"Among the ten rulers of Tartarus…"
Its voice lowered slightly.
"There was one other presence."
The dark hues around the orbiton pulsed faintly.
"And that was Almosis."
Youri narrowed his eyes.
"You never fought him?"
The question almost sounded absurd considering what he had witnessed from Altopereh already. The creature had spoken of itself as one of the original rulers of Tartarus—one of the monsters that once dominated the realm before the Sacros arrived.
A being like that should have crossed paths with every ruler.
But Altopereh laughed.
Not mockingly.
Almost knowingly.
"You can't avoid Almosis."
Youri blinked once.
"What do you mean?"
Then Altopereh answered.
And the answer made his blood run cold.
"The endless desert beneath the crimson sky…"
A pause.
"…is Almosis' domain."
The Endless Domain
Youri froze.
For the first time since arriving in Tartarus, genuine disbelief crossed his face.
The desert?
The endless wasteland stretching across Tartarus itself?
His mind instantly replayed every moment since he arrived.
The endless dunes.
The crimson sky.
The storms.
The silence.
He had walked through it thinking it was empty space between domains.
But now—
"You're saying…"
Youri slowly looked upward toward the blood-red heavens.
"…this entire place belongs to one ruler?"
"Yes."
The answer didn't come from Altopereh this time.
It came from Lea.
Lea had been watching him closely. She had noticed immediately when he began spacing out again, likely hearing Altopereh speak within his mind.
Her expression beneath the mask remained unreadable, but her tone had grown serious.
"That's how I found you."
Youri turned toward her fully.
Lea looked up toward the endless sky.
"When you first stepped into Tikadello's domain…"
The winds around them weakened slightly.
"…the sky glowed."
Youri frowned.
"What?"
Lea nodded faintly.
"Every time something enters Almosis' domain, the sky reacts."
Her voice remained calm, but there was unease hidden beneath it.
"A ruler."
"A creature."
"Or even a mortal."
She slowly looked directly at him.
"The crimson sky shifts toward the intruder."
Youri remembered it now.
The strange glow.
The unnatural shifting light in the distance when he first wandered through the desert.
At the time he thought it was just another part of Tartarus' madness.
But now—
"That was him noticing me?"
Lea hesitated for a second.
Then answered honestly.
"Yes."
Lea slowly walked toward the edge of the broken cliffs overlooking Gaisen's ruined domain.
"When I saw the sky change," she said quietly, "I thought another ruler was making a move."
The wind tugged at her dark cloak as she spoke.
"In Tartarus, that usually means war."
Youri remained silent, listening carefully.
"So I went to investigate."
Lea's gaze drifted toward the distant frozen mountains where Tikadello had retreated.
"That's when I saw you."
A faint exhale escaped her.
"You were thrown directly into Tikadello's domain like someone who didn't understand where they were."
Youri let out a quiet breath through his nose.
"That sounds about right."
For the first time in a while, Lea almost smiled beneath the mask.
Almost.
"I followed you after that," she admitted. "And when Tikadello noticed your presence…"
Her expression darkened slightly.
"…I realized you were going to die."
Youri looked down briefly.
If Lea hadn't interfered…
If Gaisen hadn't saved him…
Tikadello would have torn him apart long ago.
Silence settled again.
Heavy silence.
The kind that lingered after learning something impossible.
Youri slowly looked across Tartarus once more.
The desert suddenly felt different now.
Before, it was emptiness.
Now—
It felt like he was standing inside the body of something sleeping.
Watching.
Listening.
Waiting.
Inside his mind, Altopereh's voice returned.
Cold.
Sharp.
"If you want that ship…"
The orbiton's tone lost its amusement completely.
"…then you will have to go through Almosis."
Youri's jaw tightened slightly.
Far away, lightning flickered across the crimson sky.
The endless dunes shifted beneath the winds like waves across an ocean.
And for the first time—
The scale of Tartarus truly settled into him.
Tikadello ruled ice.
Albatros ruled fire.
Gaisen ruled storms.
But Almosis?
Almosis ruled everything in between.
The One Presence All Feared
Youri finally spoke again.
"What kind of ruler is he?"
Lea immediately answered.
"The oldest."
Altopereh answered at the same time.
"The strongest."
The two responses overlapped almost perfectly.
That alone told Youri enough.
Lea slowly folded her arms.
"The others clash constantly," she explained. "They expand their domains. Fight each other. Hunt weaker rulers."
Her eyes lifted toward the endless desert again.
"But Almosis never moves."
That answer disturbed Youri more than if she had called him violent.
"Why?"
Lea was silent for several seconds.
Then she answered quietly.
"Because he doesn't need to."
The wind suddenly picked up violently.
The crimson sky shimmered faintly overhead.
And somewhere far beyond the horizon—
A deep sound echoed across Tartarus.
Not a roar.
Not thunder.
Something heavier.
Older.
Alive.
Even Altopereh went silent for a moment.
Youri slowly turned toward the endless desert stretching beyond the ruined domains.
Toward Atlantis.
Toward the buried city beneath the crimson skies.
Toward the ruler whose domain had surrounded him from the very beginning.
And deep inside him—
For the first time in a very long while—
Youri felt anticipation.
Not fear.
Not hesitation.
But the feeling that his path forward had finally appeared before him.
No matter how monstrous it might be.