House of the Celestials: Crown of Stars Rewrite

Downtown, Chicago

Terra, Gaea Solar system

Neutral Free Zone

January 14th 2019

The pain woke her.

Emily's left ear rang with a piercing whine—a sure sign her eardrum had burst. It would take time to heal. Dust swirled around the room, veiling her view of the containment pods that surrounded her. She tried to move, but a sharp, searing pain ripped through her body, freezing her in place. Her gaze dropped to her stomach. A sword forged from blue Mana had pierced clean through her. Worse still, parts of the ceiling had collapsed, crushing her lower body beneath the rubble. She reached for the blade, but the agony was unbearable, and the weapon's will pushed back against her attempt. A dark pool of blood spread beneath her, creeping outward across the floor. She was losing too much—far too much. Her strength ebbed with every passing second, and her arms were limp and useless, still numb from the electric attack that had paralyzed her. Yet she knew the truth: if she didn't pull the blade out, her body wouldn't heal. And if her body didn't heal, she would die.

Not immediately. But soon enough. She clenched her teeth, frustration, and panic warring within her. She'd been a fool not to trust her instincts, the instincts that had screamed at her to kill her attacker without hesitation. No questions, no mercy—just take her out. But no, she had wanted answers. For Leon. Dammit, Leon. Now death was creeping closer, her vision dimming as her body weakened. She needed to remove the blade. Needed to do something. Anything. Her lips curled into a snarl. Where the hell was Leon when she needed him? Had her attacker been a member of the Fallen Star? If only—

Her thoughts fractured as a fit of coughing overtook her. Blood spewed from her mouth, and the sharp, unfamiliar pain tore through her chest. It felt wrong. Alien. It had been years since she had last felt pain. Her wards—those intricate barriers woven into her consciousness to block out pain—had shattered. Somehow, she'd lost control of them. And now she was drowning in sensations she hadn't felt in ages. The pain flared again, and her thoughts turned to Leon. If she could just reach him—if she could just get him here before she bled out...

Emily wasn't afraid to die. Paladins were trained to face death without fear. But for her, it was more than training. She believed in it. She believed in Irkalla. Yet she wasn't ready. Not yet. Her gaze fell to the pendant around her neck, its soft glow flickering as if it, too, was struggling to hold on. Death was near. She could feel its cold breath brushing against her, its touch just out of reach. Still, even in the face of it all, Emily Legens clung to her facade of calmness and indifference. But inside, curses spilled from her soul.

"Fuck... Leon. Leon, help me," she whispered, her voice trembling as the world around her blurred.

****

When Leon was younger, his mother often took him to visit Planet Terra. She had been born there, a Terran and a human, and she wanted him to experience the world that had shaped her. They usually traveled during the summer, when the blazing sun made the weather pleasant and inviting. She would bring him to her hometown, eager for him to see what human society on Terra was like compared to the other human civilizations in the Neutral Zone. There was a stark difference. On other planets within the Federation and Neutral Free Zone, humanity was deeply intertwined with the Odyllic—the supernatural essence of the universe. Humans there embraced it, understood it, and wielded it in their everyday lives. Leon had grown up immersed in that awareness. But on Terra, humanity was entirely cut off from the Odyllic. It was a strange and disorienting contrast for his young mind, almost like stepping into another world.

Still, Leon had fond memories of those trips. His mother would take him downtown, where they explored Broadway theaters and wandered through art museums. After their adventures, they'd head to the park to relax and indulge in a dessert called ice cream. Leon cherished those moments, not just because of the places they visited but because it was time spent with his mother. In the park, they'd sit among other families, watching as parents laughed with their children, taking pictures and recording videos. As a kid, Leon often found himself staring at these families, a strange, hot feeling twisting in the pit of his stomach. At the time, he didn't understand what it was. As he grew older, he realized it was a mix of anger and envy. He envied the easy joy those families shared and felt angry because he didn't have that. Only the thought of his mother could calm him in those moments. When he glanced at her, she would smile, and his feelings would vanish like mist under the sun. But even then, he noticed the sadness in her eyes—a pain she tried to hide from him.

Leon hated seeing that sadness, hated knowing his mother was in pain and that there was nothing he could do to fix it. But back then, he was just a kid—a brat with no way to help. Even so, the weight of her hidden sorrow stayed with him, gnawing at the edges of his happiness. After he was accepted into the Ascendant Academy, their trips to Terra stopped. Leon poured himself into his training and studies, determined to rise above all others. He was going to be the best of the best among the Paladins. And he did it. He excelled. He surpassed expectations. Now, years later, he was back on Terra. Emily's mental call had reached him—a faint yet unmistakable imprint of her location burned into his mind. She needed his help. Without hesitation, Leon unfolded his Zodiak, the advanced device guiding him to where she was.

The coordinates pointed to a masonry field house. He'd hacked into the local Terran network to gather information about the building, but it came up blank. The structure was unregistered, shrouded in mystery. As he approached the location, Leon stretched out his senses, searching for Emily's Mana signature. He found it—but it was faint. Fading. Her energy was growing weaker with every passing moment. That could only mean one thing.

Time was running out.

"Emily," Leon muttered, a curse escaping his lips. He rushed into the building without hesitation, driven by the dimming presence he could feel. Something was wrong—very wrong. The air reeked of death, heavy with a rotting stench that clawed at his senses. Blood spattered the walls and floors, dried and darkened, yet there were no bodies. No signs of life. He should have focused on this oddity, piecing together what had happened. But he couldn't. The only thought consuming him was reaching Emily before it was too late.

The trail led him to a room where the smell of blood was overwhelming, thick enough to make breathing a struggle. His gaze snapped to the ceiling, blown apart as if someone—or something—had crashed through. A faint electric current buzzed in the air, sending tiny jolts through his skin. Ash swirled through the room, settling on the strange pods scattered amidst the destruction. But none of it held his attention for long. In the center of the carnage lay Emily. Her lower body was pinned beneath heavy debris, but it was the Mana blade jutting through her abdomen that made Leon's blood run cold. The bluish currents of energy coursing through the weapon surged into her body, sending violent shocks through her.

He froze, staring as the blood that had pooled beneath her began to reverse, flowing back into her body in slow, halting streams. Not enough. Most of it remained on the floor, and he knew why. Blood manipulation—Bloodwerk—was an unforgiving art. Even at full strength, it demanded extreme focus and precision. And Emily...

"Emily, what in Irkalla's name is going on here?" he growled, forcing himself to move.nHe dropped to her side. Her lips parted as if to speak, but only blood spilled from her mouth.

"Don't talk," he said firmly, scanning her with his eyes and senses. Leon grabbed the Mana blade, his grip tightening around its hilt. The weapon fought him, its will resisting his intrusion, while jolts of electricity surged into his hand. He gritted his teeth, ignoring the shocks. Emily squirmed, her face twisting in pain, but her glare stopped him. He knew that look. She wanted him to pull it out. No hesitation. No matter the agony.

"Damn it, Emily..." Leon muttered under his breath.

He steadied himself, gripped the blade, and with a single, decisive surge of strength, yanked it free. Emily's body arched, her scream muffled by the blood in her throat. The Mana blade dissolved as Leon dismissed it, its energy signature stored in his memory for later analysis. More blood gushed from her wound, pouring out faster now that the blade was gone. Without wasting a moment, Leon pressed his hand firmly over the wound, applying as much pressure as he could.

"Stay with me, Emily," he said, his voice steady despite the chaos in his mind. She couldn't die. Not here. Not now.

"How did you find me…" Emily grunted, her voice strained as she tried to stop the bleeding.

"You called for me, remember?" Leon replied.

He summoned a wave of golden light into the hand pressing against her wound. The heat cauterized it, sealing the gash with an agonizing hiss. Emily bit her lip hard, suppressing any sound, but Leon could tell she was in pain. Her body trembled slightly, the only sign betraying her otherwise unreadable expression. When the process was complete, Emily exhaled shakily and let herself sink back against the floor. Leon wasted no time clearing away most of the debris that had pinned her down. Her wound had stopped bleeding and had already begun to heal, though slowly. She'd lost too much blood, and her Mana force was barely a flicker of what it should have been. At this rate, it would take weeks for her to recover unless he took her to the medic bay at the Academy on Luna. She'd heal far faster there. As if reading his thoughts, Emily opened her eyes, fixing him with a tired but sharp gaze.

"I never called for you," she said flatly. "I don't even have my Zodiak."

"The call didn't come from your Zodiak," Leon said. "It came from your mind."

Emily's brows furrowed in confusion. She didn't seem aware of how she'd reached out to him telepathically. Leon's jaw tightened as realization struck—she must have unconsciously used her abilities out of sheer desperation. Had she been that close to death? What the hell had happened here? And what had she been doing in this place alone?

"So," Leon said, his voice low, "I take it this is the intel you got from the Erlking after sifting through the memories you collected?" He glanced around the wrecked room before turning his attention back to Emily. She struggled to push herself upright, so he stepped forward, grabbing her arms and helping her to her feet.

"Yes," she said simply. There was no apology, no excuse for coming here alone.

"I thought it would be better to check it out first before—"

"Before I got involved," Leon finished, cutting her off. His mind wandered to the mission that had exiled them in the first place. It was his fault she was here instead of safe back in Agartha. Emily had always had his back, and she still did, even after everything. He couldn't blame her for being cautious. Still, he hated this recklessness.

"Vuelo's information was right, then," he muttered bitterly, cursing the old hag under his breath.

"What happened to you? To this building? What the hell is going on?" Emily recounted how the Erlking's intel had led her here and everything that had transpired since her arrival.

"Necromancy magic," Leon said, the words like acid on his tongue. It was one thing for the Dark Sidhes of the Hidden World to fall prey to Infernal Energy. It was something else entirely to find necromancy being used in a facility belonging to the Divine Federation. Necromancy. A forbidden art, outlawed by the Federation's constitution. And then there was the Federation's presence on Terra.

Leon's eyes narrowed. "Did you see anything related to Vishan Priyham?"

"No... I still don't get the connection between this place and the Erlking," Emily said, her tone laced with frustration. "The problem is how they're connected... and why a Beastman from the Hidden World has ties to the Federation." She frowned, her thoughts swirling. What did her assailant have to do with this place? Was there a connection between this facility and the Pocket Space? After regaining enough strength, Emily led Leon to the basement, explaining the events leading up to her injuries. However, when they descended the stairs, they found nothing but a room filled with broken and rusted lab equipment, along with what appeared to be a waste containment pod.

"Pocket Spaces aren't always fixed points," Leon remarked, examining the scattered lab equipment and shelves crammed with miscellaneous items. "This one might have been portable. Whoever owns it probably moved it."

"Sure," Emily muttered, though skepticism lingered in her voice. She guided Leon back upstairs to the room with the containment pods. Pointing to a console on a nearby desk, she said, "I had Ginny hack into the mainframe and download as much data as she could. Right now, she's working on cracking the encryption. If there's anything about what the Federation is doing—or why the Erlking is involved—it should be in there." Emily pulled an orb from her belt pouch and handed it to Leon. He took it, feeling the icy chill radiating from the stone.

"Cold as Irkalla, right?" she said.

"Yeah," Leon replied, frowning as he handed it back. Who would give me the answers I need about Vishan Priyham's identity? he wondered. Vuelo or Ginny?

"Shit!" Emily hissed suddenly, cutting through Leon's thoughts. He turned sharply, noticing her gaze fixed not on the monitors, but on the floor between the pods and the console.

"What is it?" Leon followed her line of sight. Embedded in a crack in the floor was a shard of white crystal, its core pulsating with a strange light that seemed to draw Od from the atmosphere toward it.

"We need to get out of here. Now." Emily's voice was urgent, almost panicked. Leon's eyes darted back to the crystal. Inscribed on its surface were celestial runes, glowing faintly as they counted down to zero.

Emily's expression tightened. "There are more crystals on the other floors—I can feel them."

Time seemed to slow. Leon's body tensed as a terrible realization dawned on him. Without hesitation, he grabbed Emily and activated his Flash Warp. A burst of golden light enveloped them as they shot out of the building like a cannonball. The moment they broke through the structure's walls, the building erupted in a deafening explosion. Flames surged out like a raging river, consuming everything in their path. But Leon was faster—faster than sound itself. He held Emily tightly, shielding her as they landed on the grass far from the inferno. They tumbled to the ground, rolling until they came to a stop, their bodies tangled together.

"That was way too close," Leon said between breaths, a wry smile creeping onto his face as he looked at Emily. "I think I just broke my top speed."

"You don't say." Emily groaned, shoving him off her as she tried to stand. Her legs wobbled, her body still numb from blood loss, but she forced herself upright.

"You think they were cleaning up the mess or trying to kill us?" Leon asked, watching the fire rage behind them. Emily didn't answer. She was staring at the ground, her expression darkening. The rumbling began subtly at first but quickly grew into a violent quake. The ground split open as cracks snaked outward, swallowing the burning building whole. Leon and Emily stared in shock as the earth seemed to collapse inward. Then, the Odyllic energy around them contracted and expanded violently, rippling like waves in a storm.

"Leon..." Emily's voice was barely a whisper, her gaze shifting upward. Leon followed her eyes. A black hole had formed in the night sky, its edges rippling with unearthly light as it loomed above them