Dimensional Descent

Light steps were heard from the other side of the whirling portal before two legs stepped out. Beneath the gazes of Seith and the rest of the Luxnix, two young men appeared. Both didn’t seem to be any older than 21 or 22 years old, and yet their aura rolled out in waves, completely suppressing whatever momentum Seith and the others had had.

Despite sharing the same age, the two young men couldn’t have been more different in stature and looks.

The left young man had deep, dark skin and eyes that seemed to dance between black and brown depending on how the sun hit him. He was extraordinarily skinny, but was well dressed for his body type. His robes had several layers that would have reminded one of a formal, three piece suit, but there was a distinct martial arts touch to it that made it clear he wouldn’t have any issues fighting with it on.

The only real oddity about this young man was that he had a pair of golden balls strapped to his waist, but even as he moved they didn’t seemed sway or shift. It led to an odd cognitive dissonance that made one’s brow furrow and one’s head spin if you gazed at them for too long.

The young man on the right was as pale as a sheet of paper. Compared to his well groomed counterpart, his hair was an absolute mess and his robes, though clearly meant to be a uniform they both shared, looked nothing like it was supposed to.

His robes split to reveal his bony chest, one of his sleeves swinging in the wind completely empty as he rested the arm that was meant to be within it upon his cloth belt. His gaze was like a deep blackness as his irises seemed a size too large for a normal person. In fact, so were his pupils. It was hard to tell if he just had odd genes, or if the truth of the matter was that he had snorted some… less than savory substances before coming here.

Still, despite the completely unserious appearance of this young man, the massive wooden box attached to his back would make one withhold their judgements. That was especially so after you noticed the wrapped handle coming out of the top of it. It was doubtful that anyone would want to be on the other side of whatever weapon was hidden within.

Seeing these two young men, Seith smiled. He had already been well prepared to deal with the pressure these youths exuded. Without appropriate strength, surviving such long distance travel would get you killed. So, he didn’t feel like these youths were trying to show off. If they hadn’t released their strength, they would have ended up shredded to pieces.

But, the fact the two looked so relaxed made Seith take them with one to two points more seriousness. These were clearly not normal youths, but how could they be if they were from that place?

“Greeting. I am the current Patriarch of the Luxnix family. We welcome you to our humble estate.

The pale skinned youth looked around somewhat blankly before shaking his head.

“Damned bullshit wormhole. I can’t hear shit…”

The dark skinned youth looked over toward his partner and shook his head.

“Hello. You can call me Orinik. This is my partner for the time we’ll be here, Ganor.” Orinik pointed toward the pale skinned youth, seemingly used to his nonsense by now.

In truth, Orinik’s hearing wasn’t very good right now either, but with their translation treasures, the meaning of Seith was transmitted right to their minds. Clearly Ganor was making something out of nothing like he mostly always did. Probably trying to extort people for some money again.

While Seith and the non-Order elders exchanged pleasantries with the two youths and invited them in, the atmosphere around the five Star Order elders grew heavier.

“… Those robes. They’re not Domain Ranked students.”

“Domain Ranked? They aren’t even Galaxy Ranked. They sent Quadrant Ranked disciples here to us. Are they looking down on my Luxnix family?!”

Sparking Star Order gripped her bulbous wooden cane, the sturdy stone beneath her cracking.

“Remain calm. Quadrant Ranked disciples aren’t like our people. If you make too much of a commotion, we will be noticed.”

A calm voice came from another female Order elder, this one known as the Fluttering Star Order. She seemed to be the only one watching these proceedings without much of a reaction.

“Don’t speak to me like I’m a child, Fluttering Star Order. We’ve given them a Sector Ranked disciple and informed them ahead of time that we have yet another Sector Ranked disciple ready to be examined by them, yet they send two Quadrant Ranked trash?!”

Even those who had agreed with Sparking Star Order initially couldn’t accept her words right this moment. To call any student of that organization trash was liable to get your entire family destroyed. Sparking Star Order had allowed one generation of success to get to her head, they were nothing like those families who produced Domain Ranked disciples every generation.

On top of that, Orinik and Ganor was exceptionally young. Who was to say that they’d remain as Quadrant Ranked disciples?

This was like a lifelong peasant raising a single millionaire son, then pointing fingers at other self-made millionaires to call them trash. It was ridiculous.

“We produced a Sector Ranked disciple?” Fluttering Star Order asked lightly. “Why is it that I remember you all doing everything in your power to push her away? And now you want to claim her as your own? And isn’t that second Sector Ranked disciple something you tried to artificially create by stealing something that wasn’t yours? Does that flame on your forehead also help to thicken your skin?”

“You had better watch your mouth when you talk to me, Fluttering Star Order.”

Sparking Star Order immediately became frighteningly calm, but the fire on her forehead told a different tale.

Fluttering Star Order looked toward the elders around herself, seeing all of the stern warnings in their gazes. Shaking her head, she turned around and left.