Aldred held the three stones atop his palm: The Stone of Time, Stone of Space, and Stone of Soul.
"So these are the Veil Stones," Zarael said with admiration in her eyes.
The cosmic energies emanating from the stones intertwined, creating a mesmerizing dance of light and power.
Aldred's eyes sparkled like stars, reflecting the sight he saw.
"How are you going to use these stones to find Ascendria?"
"Before I arrive in the Veil of Shadows, space anomaly sucked in me and I appear near a massive, strange ship. My team and I entered it to find any resources that might be useful for our journey. But there, we meet an entity that is apparently one of the guardian of Ascendria."
"How could a guardian be stranded in the middle of nowhere?"
"I am not sure either, however, it told me that Lord Malgorth was the culprit."
"Lord Malgorth? Why?"
"Lord Malgorth tried to enter Ascendria forcefully. The guardian stopped him and they fought until lord Malgorth was kicked out of Ascendria, however, using the Space Weaver, Lord Malgorth manage to bring the guardian to real-space."
"So what happened to the guardian now?"
"She stayed inside the ship of an ancient race. They are technologically advanced, much more than humans I would say. From what I learned, they are running from something, but we don't know what what. My first thought was these races were defeated and the guardian used the wreckage of the ship as its shelter."
Aldred continued. "The guardian gave us some deadly test and when we passed it, she gave us this."
The Eye of Clairvoyance appeared in Aldred's other hand. "This thing guided us to the Veil and protected us from its chaotic energy. It also helped us locate the Time Stone."
"The guardian gave you that?"
Aldred nodded. "I will start now. I don't know what will happen so stay guard."
Zarael, intrigued by the cosmic spectacle, watched as Aldred prepared to use the Eye of Clairvoyance to combine the stones' power.
Aldred raised the Eye of Clairvoyance, and the moment it activated, a kaleidoscope of ethereal hues surrounded him. The Eye resonated with the stones, creating an intricate dance of magical energies. Three neutron star-like lights, each representing a stone, spun around Aldred in a celestial ballet.
As the stones revolved, their energies intertwined, releasing waves of transcendent power.
The ambient light in the vicinity warped and bent, creating ripples in the fabric of reality itself.
Zarael shielded her eyes as the brilliance intensified, and the courtyard echoed with the harmonic hum of cosmic forces. The Eye of Clairvoyance, now radiating with a radiant glow, became the focal point of this mystical convergence.
Aldred's voice echoed, carrying a resonance that seemed to transcend mortal comprehension. "Bring me to Ascendria!"
The stones, now spinning faster, released pulses of radiant energy. The Stone of Time glowed with the shimmering essence of temporal manipulation, the Stone of Space resonated with the vastness of the cosmos, and the Stone of Soul pulsed with an otherworldly heartbeat.
With a surge of power, Aldred aimed the Eye of Clairvoyance towards the heavens. A powerful ray of light shot forth, cutting through the veil of reality. It opened a portal to a transcendent dimension, a realm where only Aldred, guided by the Eye, could venture.
Everyone on the planet looked up, gazing towards the strange portal in the sky.
The portal shimmered with a myriad of colors, forming an intricate gateway to the mysterious realm of Ascendria. Aldred, surrounded by the whirling dance of cosmic energies, flew through the portal, leaving behind a courtyard filled with awe-struck allies.
Right after Aldred entered, the portal closed and vanished immediately.
The courtyard, now devoid of the celestial display, remained in silence. Zarael, Vortimer, and the others exchanged glances.
Shuzib looked up from his library. "Aldred finally done it. He's entering Ascendria! It's too bad I can't enter it with him." Shuzib gritted his teeth. "After he return, I will ask him to tell me everything he learned."
Aldred felt a moment of disorientation as he traversed through the portal. The transition was swift and left him suspended in a space where everything was empty and completely white. The sensation was akin to floating in an ethereal void, devoid of any discernible landmarks or boundaries.
He looked around, trying to make sense of this pristine emptiness. No stars adorned the celestial canvas, and there was no sense of direction. It was as if he had stepped into a dimension beyond the confines of conventional space.
"Is this Ascendria? Why is there nothing here?"
Aldred walked towards a particular direction. He walked and walked for a few minute, but he couldn't tell if he was actually moving or not. Everything was completely white canvas.
Minutes turned to hours, and Aldred began sprinting.
Soon. Hours started to felt like eternity.
Aldred's young face began to grow beard in seconds. His skin wrinkled at a rapid rate.
"What is going on?"
Suddenly, his form changed. His wrinkled skin peeled off like oranges before they vanished, replacing them were plump red skin.
That was when Aldred realized that his form now was a baby. Still, he kept on running and running.
His form grew into a teenager, middle-aged man, and lastly an old man.
This cycle repeated numerous times.
However, when he stopped, he felt like he was in the same place as before. He didn't know how much time had passed.
His temporal sense were completely void.
Lastly, there seemed to be something gnawing inside his head as if tingling his very soul.
"Agh!"
His head hurt and he knelt on the ground screaming in pain. However, he realized there was no sound coming out of his mouth.
"Fuck! Is this really Ascendria? What the hell is this place?"
Aldred roared and he sprinted again. His eyes were bloodshot as his mind neared the level of insanity, then suddenly, he crashed onto an invisible wall.
"Who's there?" A voice came.
