"A sensible precaution," Julian observed.
They had reached a secluded area of the gardens, away from any potential observers. Julian stopped and turned to his daughters.
"Are you three ready to teleport? I’ll take us directly there rather than spending a day traveling."
"We’re ready," all three confird simultaneously.
Julian reached out with his power, sensing the location Seraphine had ntioned. He locked onto those coordinates and reached for his daughters’ arms.
The world blurred.
They materialized in a completely different environnt. Gone were the manicured gardens and comfortable climate of the mountain region. Instead, they stood in a harsh, rocky landscape. Jagged cliffs rose on both sides of a narrow valley, and the air was hot and dry.
"Welco to the Borderlands," Seraphine said, gesturing to the desolate landscape around them. "Not exactly hospitable, is it?"
"It serves its purpose," Julian observed, his eyes scanning the area with interest.
Ahead, Julian could see signs of civilization. A fortified structure had been built into the valley, constructed from the sa stone as the surrounding cliffs. Walls stood fifteen feet high, topped with watchtowers at regular intervals. He could see guards patrolling.
"The garrison," Lyanna explained, already moving toward the gate. "They know us, so entry should be quick."
As they approached, the guards on the wall noticed them. Recognition flashed across their faces, and they imdiately stood at attention. One called down, "Lady Seraphine! Lady Lyanna! Lady Cassandra! We weren’t expecting you!"
"We’ve brought our father," Seraphine called back. "He wishes to inspect the portal."
The reaction was imdiate. The guards’ eyes widened, and within monts the entire garrison seed to be mobilizing. The gate opened rapidly, and dozens of warriors poured out, forming neat ranks.
They all dropped to one knee, heads bowed, fists pressed to their hearts in a gesture of absolute respect.
"Creator!" they murmured, their voices echoing off the valley walls. "We are honored by your presence!"
Julian felt slightly uncomfortable with such reverence but understood it was necessary. To these beings, he was quite literally their god—the one who’d made their world and given them life and purpose.
"Rise," he commanded gently. "Go about your duties. I’m here to inspect the portal, not to disrupt your important work."
The warriors rose but remained at attention, their eyes following Julian with awe and barely suppressed excitent. News of the Creator’s return had clearly spread throughout the realm, but seeing him in person was apparently overwhelming for many.
A particularly large warrior stepped forward—clearly the garrison commander. He was humanoid but with distinct features: his skin had a faint tallic glow, his eyes glowed red, and his physique was muscular. He wore armor that looked like it ca out of a fantasy novel.
"Commander Thorne," he introduced himself. "I have the honor of leading this garrison. The portal is this way, Creator. We’ll escort you."
They proceeded deeper into the valley, past the fortifications, following a worn path through the rocky terrain. The temperature increased as they went, the sulfur sll growing stronger. Julian noticed scorch marks on so of the rocks, signs of combat or perhaps the energy from the portal itself.
Finally, the portal ca into view.
Julian stopped, genuinely impressed.
The portal was massive—a swirling vortex of energy easily thirty feet in diater, suspended in the air between two natural rock pillars.
"Magnificent," he breathed. "And this has been stable for three centuries?"
"Completely stable," Seraphine confird. "We’ve monitored it carefully. The energy output varies slightly—more active during certain tis of year—but the portal itself never wavers."
Julian approached slowly, analyzing the portal. His daughters and Commander Thorne followed at a respectful distance, letting him examine it without interference.
"This is definitely my work," Julian confird after a mont. "But it’s evolved, matured. The portal has been active for so long that it developed its own characteristics."
He reached out with one hand, letting his fingers approach the swirling energy. The portal reacted imdiately—the swirling intensified, colors brightened, and for a mont an image flickered in the vortex.
Julian caught a glimpse of the world beyond—Arenath.
"Impressive," he murmured. "Arenath has beco exactly what I intended."
"The creatures that erge are always powerful," Lyanna confird. "Most are at Grand Mage level minimum. We’ve had several stronger than Grand Mage co through, and once, about fifty years ago, a Early-Demigod erged."
Julian’s eyebrows rose. "Demi-God? That’s remarkable. What happened to them?"
"He was hostile initially," Lyanna explained. "Attacked the garrison, killed three warriors before we could subdue him. Seraphine eventually managed to communicate with him, explain where he was and that we weren’t enemies. Once he cald down and understood the situation, he actually beca one of our most valuable assets. He’s currently serving as an officer in one of the major territories."
"Good," Julian approved. "That’s exactly the kind of talent Arenath should be producing."
He continued his examination of the portal, walking around it, observing it from different angles.
"Has anyone ever gone through from this side?" Julian asked. "Into Arenath?"
The three daughters exchanged uncomfortable glances.
"We’ve tried," Cassandra admitted. "We sent exploration teams through the portal to map Arenath, to understand what was on the other side."
"And?" Julian asked, though he suspected he already knew the answer from their expressions.
"None of them returned," Seraphine said quietly. "The first team was five Grand Mages, our best warriors at the ti. We waited three months, but they never ca back through. The second team was larger—ten warriors, all powerful, all experienced. They also never returned. The third ti, we sent just two scouts with instructions to return within one day regardless of what they found. They went through, and we never saw them again."
"Arenath consud them," Julian said, and it wasn’t a question.
"That’s our assumption," Lyanna confird. "Whatever is on the other side is dangerous enough that even our strongest warriors couldn’t survive long enough to return. We stopped sending expeditions after the third failure."
Julian nodded slowly. "A wise decision. Arenath was designed to be nearly impossible to survive. The fact that anything manages to make it through to this side is testant to their incredible strength and adaptability."
He reached out to the portal again, this ti letting his heavens energy flow through it, sending his consciousness into Arenath to observe what his secondary world had beco.
The vision that ca to him was both horrifying and awe-inspiring. Arenath was a world of constant struggle, where every creature fought for survival every mont of every day. Massive predators hunted in packs.
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