Chapter 261: Second Expansion

"Escape," Kirovar parroted in his surprisingly deep voice, eliciting a chuckle from Alistair as he made the wyrmling float and spin with his telekinesis, much to the delight of the small wyrmling which cooed and growled as it flailed excitedly.

Most of the wyrmlings had taken to Alistair as they could be as rough as they wanted with him like they were playing with their siblings, and his telekinesis was only the cherry on top for them as they often loved pretending to fly or tumbling through the air.

The hatchlings had only recently begun mimicking words, and it would supposedly take another year before they developed even rudimentary speech. Alistair watched as the wyrmling spun head over tail, chuffing and squealing with delight, debating whether he should call someone to retrieve the little menace.

He was just about to reach out to Rovari when he sensed several presences approaching—one of them unmistakably Melissa’s dog, Teddy, who had taken it upon himself to help herd the unruly brood.

His sister wasn’t far behind.

Alistair gave a small, knowing smile. Rovari understood it was difficult to manage her hatchlings, but that didn’t mean she appreciated them running off unsupervised. And yet, the clever little ne'er-do-wells had a talent for bypassing magical containment—whether through the dragons’ innate grasp of magic or sheer brute force.

It didn’t take long for Teddy to rush into the room, barking at the now pirouetting dragon whelp, his tail wagging excitedly. He trotted over to Alistair, bumping against his leg and receiving a few absentminded scratches in return.

“Oh goddammit—” Melissa’s voice rang out from the hallway. “How the hell do they even use the elevator?!”

“They’re magic tools, so it’s not that surprising,” Alistair replied as she finally reached the secondary cultivation room—an extension they had built into his and Riseth's quarters, capable of redirecting the essences gathered from their bedroom as well as drawing from other arrays spread throughout Lacustrine and Rathos.

Melissa let out a huff as she watched the wyrmling fly around the room in circles. "Please tell me you didn't call Rovari."

"I was this close," Alistair replied, indicating a very small distance with his index finger and thumb, "But good old Teddy here entered my senses first."

Alistair ruffled the berneses floppy ears before using his Telekinesis to guide Kirovar toward his sister.

"Oh, thank god," Melissa sighed, "I really don't need her to get any more high and mighty about her ability to wrangle them in."

Alistair chuckled, watching her pluck the dragon out of the air and hold it to her chest like an oversized, unruly dog overdue for a bath.

“I’m sorry for disturbing your cultivation,” Melissa muttered, shifting the squirming wyrmling in her arms.

Alistair waved her off. “I was already almost done. Riseth should be back soon from her solo trip in Nivareth anyway.”

He stepped up beside her, opening the door. Teddy trotted out first, glancing back as Melissa followed, still wrangling the energetic hatchling.

“I can carry or float him for you if you want,” Alistair offered.

“Thank you, but I got it,” Melissa replied, adjusting her grip with practiced ease.

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[ACUN] Urgent Emergency Notification

Title: The Bridges Are Expanding

From: Aegis Coalition Headquarters

The inter-universal bridges at the outer edge of our reality have expanded. Visual and sensor access has once again been granted to qualified parties of interest. At present, all three bridges remain quiet—but we expect a coordinated incursion by hostile factions at any time.

As with the last expansion, the following protocols remain in effect:

Do not jump to the bridges or approach without formal clearance from the Aegis Coalition. Unauthorized arrivals will be treated as hostiles and fired upon.

We urge all factions to exercise restraint—let’s avoid the casualties caused by overeager responses during the last cycle. If you wish to offer support, contact your faction representative or an available coalition administrator for vetting and coordination.

Significant resources have been deployed to contain any invading forces. Together, we will hold the line against whatever crosses through. Let us stand firm at the threshold once more—and prove, as always, that we do not break when tested. We emerge stronger for it.

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“You know what,” Melissa said, shifting the wyrmling in her arms, “I do want your help—please take this rascal, we gotta hurry.”

Alistair nodded, lifting Kirovar with telekinesis and floating him alongside them. He gave the hatchling a gentle pat on the head, noting how Kirovar’s playful energy dulled slightly as he picked up on their unease.

They moved quickly toward the elevator, managing to drop off the wyrmling with his siblings just in time. Rovari arrived moments later, the quiet flare of her aura enough to settle the entire clutch, giving Alistair and Melissa the chance to head straight for the command center.

Alistair tuned out most of the chaotic chatter flooding the Akashic Link, focusing instead on the trio of screens ahead. Each displayed one of the bridges—flaring and churning with far more intensity than usual. He couldn’t tell if it was a sign of something massive about to break through or just the normal turbulence of an expansion. The kaleidoscopic swirl of energy had taken on a sharper, more volatile rhythm, shifting faster than anything they’d recorded before.

If the situation hadn’t been so tense, Alistair might’ve called the phenomenon intensely beautiful.

When they reached the command center, one of Nessyra’s avatars was already there, eyes locked on the massive wall displays—each one showing the unstable churn of the bridges. She turned as they entered, wearing a complicated expression.

“I guess we’ve got a rough final timer for the third bridge expansion,” Nessyra said. “I was hoping we had another year before the second one hit.”

“The first opening was delayed,” Alistair replied, stepping aside as his mother, Simon, and Denodia filed in. “And we’ve got a decent handle on internal threats and the Blackmarket Syndicates now. I assume the system wants to push us—so it’s speeding up the expansions.”

Nessyra shook her head. “There’s only so much the system can accelerate. Though I do wonder… what happens if we hold off this wave too?”

"Let's wait for the others," Juliana interjected.

Nessyra’s avatar nodded. “I invited the Beshin as well, so we should at least wait for them,” she said, then turned to Alistair. “Does your resonance tell you whether Riseth is about to finish?”

“Yes,” Alistair replied. “She was nearly done just before the emergency notification came through. I can tell she’s rushing to wrap up now.”

As if on cue, a warm pulse spread across the back of his hand—the fourth petal blooming into view.

“Speak of the devil,” Alistair muttered, glancing down.

It took Riseth, the Beshin, and the rest of their clan leaders only twenty minutes to arrive. Nessyra’s real body had personally guided both Kujo and Nomura through the security layers—escorting them past the checkpoints and barriers that separated the command center from the rest of Rathos.

Despite their somewhat late arrival, the bridges had remained quiet. Alistair and Riseth had already taken control of several of the provided drones to scout the area—and what they saw left them speechless.

The towering defensive structures surrounding the bridges had been linked together, forming a continuous perimeter despite the vast distances between them. The entire region had been turned into a fortified network, bristling with weapon emplacements, jump disruptors, and layers of magical countermeasures. Every gap had been filled with combat ships—many of them clearly designed specifically for this task. Most were stationary, front-facing war platforms with reinforced plating and heavily shielded hulls.

Alistair couldn’t help but balk at the sheer industriousness of the Coalition. They had spared nothing in their effort to contain the next wave. And he couldn’t help but wonder—if this was what they’d managed in just a few short years, what would they build in the next five? When the bridges expanded again… would they finally construct something capable of stopping the invaders for good?

Or would they crumble beneath the sheer power disparity, just as Sotarr had predicted?

They sat down, eyes fixed on the screens as the minutes ticked by in tense silence.

“Do they think they can catch the defenses off guard by just… waiting?” Riseth asked, arms folded.

Alistair shrugged. “If we’re unlucky, maybe they’re using some kind of stealth to slip through.”

Nomura shook her head. “Doubtful. Their odds would be far better with a proper distraction. These magical countermeasures should overpower anything they can manage at grade 9—or even early grade 8.”

Alistair clicked his tongue. He hadn’t exactly hoped for an immediate invasion—but he had expected one. With the bridges expanding, it wasn’t unreasonable to assume they’d make their move right away. But in truth, they could wait days, months… even years before launching a push.

“What if they’re trying to make us feel like we wasted all this effort?” Kujo mused. “Build these incredible defenses just to let them sit unused.”

“I don’t know,” Alistair replied. “The system usually pressures invaders into action once they declare intent. But honestly? If the defenses are so overwhelming they won’t even try to push through—that’s a win in itself.”

"Agreed," Kujo rumbled, seeing the sense in Alistair's words.

"Since we're all here anyway, we might as well get our weekly meeting done while we wait for the invaders to grow some balls and actually push," James suggested.

But before anyone could respond, massive ships burst through the spatial anomaly, immediately opening fire. Their payload slammed into the Coalition shields, causing them to flare violently. Smaller ships caught in the blast didn't stand a chance, instantly vaporized by the devastating energy surge.

Three of these colossal vessels emerged from one of the bridges, each firing off a pre-charged strike before pulling back, bracing themselves against the furious retaliation from the Coalition fleet.

They watched with bated breath as a brutal back-and-forth erupted. A huge chunk of the station encircling the anomaly was torn apart when its shields collapsed. Still, before the enemy could take advantage, an entire swarm of combat ships surged forward, unleashing a punishing barrage against one of the three massive vessels. Just as the enemy ship’s defenses began to buckle, the station fired a piercing beam, punching straight through its weakened hull. Under the relentless assault—from ships, stations, and what appeared to be powerful mages unleashing spell after devastating spell—the massive vessel finally erupted into a cascading explosion.

The drone’s view was nearly useless, overwhelmed by blinding flashes from beams, explosions, and magical attacks.

"What the hell is going on over there?" James growled, frustration clear in his voice.

The only thing they could clearly see were shattered pieces of both invader and defender ships tumbling violently from the combat zone, broken up by brief flashes revealing the chaos within. Each glimpse showed more ships throwing themselves into the proverbial meatgrinder, desperately trying to choke it with sheer numbers.

Alistair couldn't help but wonder at the insane expense these ships must represent—even for a faction spanning multiple universes, the cost had to be astronomical.

But apparently, early access to their universe was priceless enough to justify gambling countless lives, materials, and resources in the attempt.

The defenses were still holding, but the massive gap torn from the station was a worrying crack in their armor. Alistair silently prayed it would stay just a crack as the ruthless exchange continued.

It was then that all hell broke loose on the other two bridges.

One was haunted by massive, drifting space fauna—grotesque, otherworldly creatures far larger than anything they’d encountered before. As the Coalition had feared, they began merging again, fusing into abominations far more dangerous than any single entity.

The second bridge flared to life as a tide of towering insectoids surged through, unleashing a locust-like swarm of fighters that flooded the void. Through the drone feeds, they watched as Coalition beam arrays carved through the enemy ranks—brilliant lances of light slicing across the battlefield, turning the front lines into fire and ruin.

Even through the filtered view of the drones, Alistair could make out the silhouette of a massive dragon joining the defense. It dove straight into the fray, golden plasma breath erupting from its jaws. The moment it touched one of the forming fauna, the creature was gone—wiped clean from existence in a flash of incandescent light.

The invaders had arrived in earnest, and they wouldn’t accept the status quo without a price paid in blood.

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