Meanwhile, on Twilight Lotus, a Fifth-Tier World…
A sudden gasp sliced through the silence as Adrien bolted upright, drenched in sweat, his chest rising and falling in quick, shallow breaths.
He blinked against the ambient golden light that filtered through the translucent silk curtains swaying gently across the vast windows.
The air was thick no, rich with something he couldn't quite describe. It was like breathing in liquid energy, dense and invigorating. He could feel it in his veins, warm and buzzing.
His mind reeled as he tried to make sense of the scene.
The room was vast, more a personal palace than a bedroom. Marble floors with gold and silver inlays formed ancient sigils that pulsed faintly beneath his bare feet.
Velvet drapes, embroidered with intricate celestial patterns, adorned the tall arched windows, and a series of crystal chandeliers floated midair, glowing softly.
Intricate paintings of divine beasts and landscapes that seemed too vivid to be mere art hung on the walls.
It was beautiful. Alien. And absolutely luxurious.
"What the…?"
Adrien slowly brought his hand to his forehead. His body felt… fine. More than fine. He glanced down and immediately grimaced. He was stark naked. Completely bare, in all his glory.
His little brother dangled down below his waist as if to say, 'Hello'.
"Why am I naked?" he muttered, standing up and gripping the silk sheets to wrap around his waist. His body, he noticed with some shock, was subtly different, more defined, like every part of him had been fine-tuned and honed.
He didn't remember having this level of muscle tone.
He tried to jog his memory.
The rift.
The final explosion.
His friends screaming.
The Thrall.
And then… darkness. Cold, pulsing darkness that had dragged him through despair. A rift that had devoured him and spat him out, here.
Wherever here was.
And he could feel it in the air, that it wasn't a normal one.
His instincts told him as much.
The air was dense, rich with Aether. Completely overflowing.
Suddenly, the door opened with a soft hiss. Adrien jumped, raising his hands instinctively, Aether coalescing around his fingertips like silver flame.
The sheet fell. He didn't care.
A young woman stood there, blinking in surprise but not flinching. She wore a long lavender robe with gold patterns lining the hem, her white hair tied into an intricate braid over her shoulder.
Her eyes were an iridescent shade of lilac, and her aura screamed power, controlled, refined, sheathed.
She tilted her head and smiled faintly.
"Adequately equipped I see, " she stared at his lower waist section, a bit too long for comfort. Adrien blushed and picked up the sheets, covering himself once again. "And you're awake. That's… unexpected," she said, stepping in with no hint of embarrassment despite his lack of clothing. "The Elders thought you'd be unconscious for at least a year."
Adrien narrowed his eyes. "Where am I? Who are you?"
She stepped closer, her hands raised in a calming gesture. "You're safe. You're in the Lotus Sanctum, within the capital city of Lunaris. I'm called Selyra. Healer, Scholar, and Core Disciple of the Moonlight sect."
Though his instincts still buzzed with tension. "You… healed me?"
"In part," she replied, stopping just short of the bed. "You were nearly torn apart by Spatial energy. Your body healed itself mostly. I have never seen anything like that before, basically, you were a corpse when we found you, but your body was visibly healing. Somehow… you survived the transfer intact. Not many could. It is intriguing."
Adrien blinked. "So, I was… transported here through a dimensional rift?"
Selyra nodded. "You were found at the edge of Lunaris, barely breathing. A patrol sensed the spatial fluctuations, found you in the area, and retrieved you. There was… debate, on whether to let you live. It's not often people wander around here, with no identification on them either. That is very suspicious."
"That's comforting," Adrien muttered, tightening the sheet around himself.
Selyra chuckled softly. "Forgive me. Our world has strict borders. Interdimensional travellers are rare, and usually dangerous. But you didn't have any corruption in your Aether channels, and also you are extremely weak, so the Court decided to let you recover. Then question you."
Adrien exhaled, his mind racing.
He had been transported to another world, richer in Aether, more advanced in magic, and likely more dangerous. 'It looks like I have.'
And his family, and Ria, Han…
'Are they okay? Did they survive? Do they think I'm dead?'
Grief lanced through him, but he pushed it aside. Right now, he needed to gather information and figure out what the hell to do next.
"I need clothes," he said.
Selyra smiled wider this time and snapped her fingers. A wardrobe on the far wall opened with a quiet hiss, revealing a row of neatly folded garments, robes, tunics, boots, and Armor-like clothing.
All finely made, woven with enchantment threads visible even to Adrien's still-developing perception.
"Courtesy of the Moonlight Sect," she said. "Consider them a welcome gift. Once you're dressed, the Elders would like to speak with you. There's… interest in someone who can survive the Spatial Rift. Even more so a weakling like you. You look like you have just started on your ascension. And what is this, you are not even practising any dream art. What sort of backwater place did you spawn from?"
Adrien frowned at her statements but chose to keep his thoughts to himself. The air around Selyra was just unfathomable, like she was one with the aether around her.
It behaved strangely around her.
Like it was drawn to her.
It embraced her whole being, just as a mother would a baby. It was fascinating.
Adrien gave her a long look. "These Elders? And if I don't want to speak to them?"
Selyra's smile didn't waver. "You will want to."
She turned and walked toward the door. "I'll be waiting outside."
When the door closed behind her, Adrien allowed himself a moment to sit on the edge of the bed, head in his hands.
"So I'm not dead," he whispered. "But I'm not home either."
He looked around the room again, feeling the Aether in the air, like a river he could drink from. It flowed into his pores, into his bones, welcoming him.
Power was easier to sense here. His abilities… they were responding, growing stronger without effort.
Exponentially. Every second. Each time he breathed.
He could feel his strength increasing.
This world was a cradle for evolution.
Maybe this was a blessing in disguise.
But also, a crucible.
Adrien stood and approached the wardrobe. As he slipped into a fitted black tunic and matching pants, reinforced with runes that shimmered softly in the light, he felt more grounded.
The boots adjusted perfectly to his feet, and a dark, high-collared cloak settled on his shoulders like it belonged there.
He caught his reflection in a polished obsidian mirror.
He almost didn't recognize himself.
...
The vast marble corridors of the palace were bathed in a soft silver glow, lit not by torches or artificial lights, but by floating crystalline orbs that shimmered like moonlight.
Adrien followed behind Selyra, his mind still racing, half in awe, half in cautious defence.
Every footstep echoed with elegance, his own, still unsteady, he was feeling a bit lightheaded, it was like he was getting drunk from the Aether overdose.
His uneven pace contrasted sharply against the Selyra's graceful glide.
She moved like a spirit born of light, silent and swift.
As they passed a large windowpane made of what looked like carved crystal, Adrien caught a glimpse of the outside world.
It wasn't Earth. 'Confirmed'
The building he was in was on a very high mountain. Walls covered most of the area around him. And barriers made of some force prevented him from peering further than he should be able to.
But further down the mountain he could see.
'Wait, has my vision always been this good. I shouldn't be able to see that far down the mountain.'
To put it simply, there was at least five kilometres between the structure up the mountain and the buildings on the foot of the mountain.
A sprawling city stretched out beneath the mountain, crafted into the mountainside and rising in gleaming tiers. Up until a large wall separated the city from the structures further up the mountain, where he was.
"That below is Lunaris. You are inside the sect right now, what you see down the mountain is the city."
The scene adorning the mountain area was just mesmerising and intoxicating. The continue walking inside the building he had confirmed was built with the layout of a castle. What that meant, he did not know.
Everything pulsed with raw, unfiltered energy, Aether itself. Trees with glowing leaves, towers that defied gravity, floating stone paths, and beings of various races walked the cobbled.
The sky was a deep purple and blue hue, streaked with silver clouds. Two moons hung overhead.
Twilight Lotus was beautiful...and terrifyingly foreign.
"This is not earth. Where exactly am I?" Adrien finally asked, breaking the silence.
"Wait?" Selyra stopped in her tracks, "Did you say earth?" The surprise evident in her voice.
"Yes, I did, where I'm from, this doesn't look like it."
"You are from earth?" She spoke, more of a statement than a question, her eyes wide.
"What of it, do you know anything about it?"
"Somewhat, let's go. You will find out soon enough, I guess. The elders are waiting. I have already notified them of your waking. Though only a few of them are attending. They have duties to perform. Those attending are just a tad bit more curious you see. But don't overestimate your importance, and don't disrespect any of them. Or, they will have your head. "
"Anyway, you're in the Moonlight sect, Lunaris in specific, capital of The Twilight Lotus World, a fifth-tier world." Selyra answered, not looking back. "One of the three major cities on this world, and the seat of the Moonlight Court.
You are within the palace of the Moonlight sect."
"And the elders?" he asked.
"The Moonlight Sect governs this world, or rather... stewards it. A blend of ascenders and scholars, tradition and strength.
Only the strongest live here, Adrien Cortez. You have found yourself in the heart of one of the highest societies within the Fifth Tier. That you even survived the transfer is a miracle."
"I keep hearing that. Fifth Tier? What does that mean?"
Selyra slowed, turning to look at him. "The multiverse is layered, Adrien. Worlds are ranked in tiers, with First Tier worlds being the weakest, no Aether whatsoever, simple, primitive civilizations. Your Earth is a fourth-tier world. Twilight Lotus is Tier Five. Here, Aether is not just abundant, it's woven into the very fabric of reality. You should already be aware of this, unless..."She went silent. her gaze wandering, as if in thought, and then shook her head after a long silence, 'No I should wait before coming to a conclusion. I wonder though.' She looked at Adrien's side profile.
"To be frank..." She paused, then added with emphasis, "Humans of such poor ascension base don't survive rifts. You shouldn't be standing here."
Adrien frowned. "But I am?" He spoke, more of a question than a statement.
"Yes," Selyra said, eyes narrowing slightly, "You are. And the Elders will want to know why."
They entered a circular chamber with tall, arched ceilings. Six massive thrones made of living moonstone sat arranged in a half-circle, overlooking a raised platform in the centre.
Around them stood guards clad in shimmering Armor, each one radiating strength on par with the mutated beasts Adrien once struggled against.
There were no walls, only flowing curtains of starlight that fluttered like silk in the wind. The entire room seemed suspended in the heavens.
A gong rang softly, and figures appeared on the thrones one by one.
The Elders.
Selyra motioned for Adrien to step forward, and he did, standing on the platform like a lone flame in a field of giants.
An older elf with glowing tattoos across his face was the first to speak. "You are Adrien Cortez. You come from a low-tier world. You fell into a rift and landed here, in the Palace of Lunaris. Speak, what power guided your survival?"
Adrien hesitated. "I don't know. I was fighting something, a creature that had taken over a forest. It was ancient, powerful. I tried to destroy it, but it dragged me into the rift. I thought I was dead."
The Elders whispered among themselves. Another one, a woman with white hair and six eyes, leaned forward. "You bear a resonance, something foreign, yet old. We felt it the moment you entered this world."
"I don't know what that is," Adrien replied, uneasily.
The elven woman studied him with penetrating focus. "There is a mark upon you. Dormant, perhaps, but powerful. An inheritance? A pact? Or... a fragment?"
"Again," Adrien said, "I have no idea what any of that means."
A towering man with horns curling back from his forehead like a dragon's crown, spoke then.
"We will not harm you, Adrien Cortez. You are under our protection. But you are not free. Not yet. Until we understand what you are and how you came here, you are to remain in Lunaris."
Adrien clenched his fists but nodded.
The horned Elder raised a hand. "You will be trained. Watched. And tested. An ancient power lies dormant within you... to that end, we would like to draw it out, you have a debt to pay after all, we save you, and your life is within our hands, and you are currently far too week to pay back that debt. This way, maybe if you grow useful enough you can pay it back in full. Whether you wish it or not, this world will draw out that hidden strength of yours."
With a gesture, the meeting was concluded.
Selyra gave him a sidelong glance as she guided him out of the chamber. "That went better than I expected."
Adrien let out a long breath. "I've had worse, I guess. and I'd like to think I've been in far more perilous situations, but none of them started with dimensional classification or mystical scans."
"You're not on Earth anymore," she replied.