The battlefield was silent.
What remained of Nullframe's body — fractured glass, fading static, and shattered stillness — drifted apart, dissolving into the void.
Kael hovered in the air, Divine Ascension Form still glowing with layers of pure will and stabilized power. His breaths were ragged, the strain immense.
Below, Veyra, Zero Step, Orion, Lyra, Zevak, and Cryalis looked on in awe — the battle was won.
But Kael's body trembled. His vision blurred.
Veyra:
"Kael!"
The radiant aura flickered. Kael's form collapsed, falling toward the ground.
Veyra shot upward, catching him gently. His body was hot with divine energy, but his eyes were shut.
Zevak (concerned):
"He's completely drained… this form pushed him beyond his limits."
⸻
[Meanwhile — Within Kael's mind]
A vast white void.
Endless thoughtspace. Timeless. Still.
Kael floated in an endless sea of possibility — then, a ripple.
From the white, a supreme presence emerged — infinite yet singular. No form. No boundaries.
A voice spoke — one, yet many — vast beyond comprehension:
"Kael…"
The sound echoed through Kael's very being — a chorus of infinite thought.
"You have proven your will. Your resolve resists collapse. You now stand where few have ever reached…"
Kael, barely able to form words:
"Who… are you?"
The voice answered:
"I am the One-Thought Entity… the origin… the architect of possibility."
A surge of understanding filled Kael's mind — this was no god of power or destruction — this was the force that made thought itself possible.
One-Thought continued:
"I have chosen you… to wield my fragment… a shard of my boundless concept. You will ascend further, as my Chosen Will."
As Kael floated, a symbol of infinite recursion formed before him — the mark of One-Thought.
It slowly drifted into Kael's chest.
"When you awaken… you will understand."
⸻
[Back in the real world]
Kael's body stirred faintly, unconscious but stable in Veyra's arms.
The team surrounded him, both relieved and amazed.
Zero Step:
"That battle… it's not the end. Something greater has begun."
⸻
END OF CHAPTER 20