Dimensional Descent

"I've got it." Leonel suddenly spoke. 

There was no point in watching Emna run around like a headless chicken; He didn't believe that she would find much of anything else even if she dug to the center of the asteroid; 

Emna looked up with surprise; It had only been a few seconds, why did Leonel make it sound so final? Also… why was he holding that contraption…? 

"This is a communication device; I haven't analyzed it yet, but it should be embedded into a network of other similar communication devices; So long as we analyze it properly, it won't be very difficult to find the locations of the other stations; I believe that this is all there is to find;"

Emna's brows raised. She could somewhat tell that although Leonel was being a bit reserved with his words, he was absolutely certain about his assessment. 

"You want to do the analysis personally?" Emna asked; 

Leonel nodded; "Deconstructing this will take someone at least nearing the extremities of the Silver Grade, and it would be even better if they had a working knowledge of the Gold Grade; The Force Arts used are highly complex and a single mistake could cause the entire network to collapse; I feel the most comfortable if I do it;"

"Okay;" Emna agreed readily; but she was inwardly surprised; Leonel seemed to be implying that he was at such a standard; which was shocking for someone so young; Just making it into the Sixth Dimension shouldn't guarantee being a Silver Grade Crafter; 

Regardless; their organization truly didn't have anyone near that standard; They only had a few Silver Grade Crafters; but they were nowhere near the extremities of the Grade; 

"In that case will you return now?"

"I can't," Leonel shook his head; "There are about three big issues I have to deal with as quickly as possible before they spin out of control; I need to return to Earth to gather up my brothers first and deal with them as quickly as possible; I will come and touch base with you in…"

Leonel's voice trailed off; 

His senses were far too sharp; The instant he mentioned his brothers; Emna's gaze flickered with an unreadable light; almost as though she had thought of something; but couldn't quite confirm it; However; after a few moments; her expression suddenly became a hint solemn; a hint regretful; and then a hint… hesitant; 

Seeing that Leonel suddenly fall silent; Emna's heart skipped a beat; There was nothing but silence; and in the depths of space; this shouldn't be too shocking; But for some reason everything seemed to have come to a stop; 

Leonel didn't ask any questions; but his expressionless gaze seemed to put all the ownness on her; 

"I…"

Emna didn't know where to start; For some reason; she felt herself shivering; This was already the second time she had lost her composure in front of Leonel; She; an assassin known for her nerves of steel; couldn't even quite make herself look this man in the eye; His presence seemed sturdier than the earth and broader than the skies; It was absolutely suffocating; 

Emna exhaled a shaky breath. 

"During Earth's Metamorphosis into the Sixth Dimension… Four families suddenly appeared outside of the usual noble families. They felt far stronger than the most powerful three of Earth. the Fawkes family. the Dove family and the Scarlet family… They were the Adurna family. the Crudus family. the Laevis family and the Brazinger family…

"Earth fell into a situation of great internal strife which made it difficult to stop outside influences from also encroaching onto their territory and war broke out on Earth's surface for the second time since Terrain's assault. 

"We… I don't know… The situation was too odd. It didn't feel like those four families were trying very hard. They didn't press where they had to and they gave up a lot of opportunities seemingly without cause or reason. but regardless. the end result was devastating and many lost their lives. 

"During that time, many of the young talents of Earth who had managed to make it into the Void Palace returned. Back then, the situation of the Void Palace hadn't been stabilized as all of the Void Elders and Void Senators had yet to return, as such the rules were far easier to break…

"When they returned, however, the nonchalance of the four families seemed to vanish as though this was exactly what they had been looking for. 

"In one fell swoop, they sent out their own geniuses and the geniuses of Earth that had rocked and shocked the Human Domain were devastated. They died in droves. Almost an entire generation of Earth's greatest talents died one after another. 

"It was only after Princess Alienor returned from the Cataclysm that the tides managed to turn. But even so, it went from a slaughter fest to a stalemate, and once again, the four families went back to their oddly passive behavior until they suddenly sent out another wave. 

"Beneath this wave, even the likes of Princess Alienor found herself terribly suppressed… Until she finally managed to break into the Seventh Dimension. Only then did the situation truly stabilize and the four families took a step back. 

"Even in doing so, however, they carved out large amounts of Earth's territory for themselves, taking over several planets and even the Moon itself. 

"In that war… In that war, several of your brothers died. Drake… Milan… Gil… Franco… and Raj… They… They didn't make it."

Leonel didn't say anything from start to finish. Even when Emna was done, he stood in silence, simply closing his eyes. He didn't seem to breathe, as though he had become a standing corpse. His heart didn't beat, the world seemed to lose the ability to interact with him as though he had stepped into a world completely separate from them. 

Without a word, Leonel turned and walked away. Emna opened her mouth to say something, but couldn't bring herself to say anything in the end. She had been there when Leonel went against the Milky Way Guild all alone just to not risk implicating his brothers. She knew well how deep their relationship ran. 

Even though Leonel hadn't said a single word, she knew he was furious. Endlessly furious.