“Why are you in my house.” Mizar said flatly.

Denneb leaned back on the sofa, giving a loud yawn. He was a bookish, intelligent, but also big and muscular, far more so than Mizar. With all of Mizar’s roommates currently out, the Voidian was feeling slightly nervous, but he tried not to show it.

“You wanted to talk to an Official, yeah?”

“Yes.” Mizar replied with a sigh. “I meant that I would come up to the palace. I want to speak to Alcor.”

“Great, I’ll come with you.”

“…Right.” Mizar said. “Let’s just get on with it, then.”

They left together, Mizar putting on his grumpiest face to show Denneb how much he was feeling inconvenienced by the whole affair, and Denneb grinning like an idiot.

Walking through Void with an Official was a unique experience. Ordinarily, Voidians minded their own business, but in a relaxed way; with Denneb in tow, people gave them a wide berth as they walked. Mizar let his eyeline drop to the floor as he traipsed alongside the bigger Voidian.

“So…”

“Let’s not, this once.” Mizar said. “I really just want to get this over with.”

“Actually, it’s about this plan. Got a message from Vasa about it yesterday.”

The stars glittered dimly in the sky – flecks of light from the pillars of Void. Like Zion, the pillars absorbed all light, but they had short, brief bursts that left starry patterns on the sky, which the Voidians laughably called ‘daytime’. They were bright enough to abate the darkness, but they faded over the course of several hours, and currently they were on the verge of winking out of existence altogether. After that, there was fourteen straight hours of almost pitch-black darkness before the next burst.

“Oh. I presume Vasa told you about Raz’s plan?”

“The basics, yes. I’ve yet to decode the majority of Seeds and Shadows – it’s a hard read – but I can see what he’s going for. Clearly, though, this is going to be hard to pass.” Denneb said. There was a light in his eyes – the light of excitement.

“You can pass it by the Officials, right? This isn’t just some random treason, Den. This could be literally universe-changing… or the end of everything.”

“We’re stood on the precipice of history, Miz. The question is, which side of it do you want to be on?” Denneb replied.

Mizar shrugged. “I just want to help, and I trust Raziel.”

“I think that’s good. Raziel knows what he’s doing, and he doesn’t act that stupidly. But let’s get it all officially recognised, shall we?”

“Yeah, alright.” Mizar said. “Come on.”

They hastened towards the palace of Voidian King Eidolon.

Some Officials were waiting for them at the palace gates when they arrived: Caroli and Situla.

“Well hello! I am the greatest Official swordsman you’ve ever met, and I’m amazing in basically every way – welcome!” Caroli announced. She was in a playful mood, and Mizar could tell she was aping Alcor’s personality for laughs. Situla, stood behind her friend, just nodded. “Hey, guys.”

“Alcor’s waiting for you. Come on! Let’s get to the conference room!” Caroli said excitedly. Denneb gave a grin when he saw Mizar’s grumpy face descend even further into apathy. “Let’s go.”

The four headed off together, Mizar and Denneb in front, with Caroli and Situla following them into the ornate palace of the Voidian King. Caroli was the more excitable of the two girls, with brown hair that she always put up into strange shapes. Today it was a beehive, Mizar noted. Situla, meanwhile, was more withdrawn, but often just as playful and enigmatic as Caroli when she wanted to be. Her hair was jet-black, but currently it was only visible from the bottom of her helmet. She took her role as an Official seriously, and considered her job to be keeping Caroli in line. Caroli wasn’t even wearing her helmet, but her armour was buffed and shiny – most likely Situla’s doing.

They were talking quietly and Mizar could guess what about.

Situla was shipping.

“Just imagine if these two finally shift past their awkward stage.”

“It’ll be so amazing!”

“Denneb announces his love for Mizar, who is taken aback, but he reciprocates. Gently, their hands touch, but only for a moment. The air is hot, and they touch again, for longer. Growing used to each other’s touch, they move in for a warm embrace.”

“Mm. I’m liking it.” Caroli whispered.

“Slowly, their embrace turns into a full-on makeout session. Denneb, tracing a finger along Mizar’s black locks, leans forward with his lips slightly parted in that really sexy way, and Mizar learns forward too and they kiss, right then and there. Gently sucking on each other, getting a taste and feeling their darting tongues clashing for dominance. Feeling their bodies connect in an illicit, yet gentle way.”

“Yes… yes… I can see it now.”

“Mizar gives Denneb the bedroom eyes and whispers take me now, and Denneb gets out his massive-”

“WE CAN HEAR YOU.” Denneb said, bright red. Mizar had his palm over his face. Caroli and Situla giggled and they walked in silence the rest of the way to the conference room.

Alcor was waiting for them when they arrived: a big, heroic-looking figure with a shock of blond hair, pristine armour, a sword hanging loosely in his hands and a lazy grin plastering his face.

“Well, hello! So glad you could make it, Mizar, I believe we have much to discuss. Shall we enter the conference room?”

“Let’s go for it.” Mizar sighed. Alcor grinned, and the five Voidians walked inside and seated themselves around the table. It was a huge room, with rows and rows of seats and tables extending upwards like a lecture hall. There were 300 seats, enough for every Voidian Official, but only five of them were in there now. At the bottom of the hall, where the entrance was, a small table lay with four chairs behind it, facing the imposing rows and rows of seats.

“I think we can all agree that this is a special case; as such, we’ve decided not to alert King Eidolon about this just yet.” Caroli said as she sat down.

The Voidian Officials sat on the first row of seats facing Mizar, who seated himself at the small table. Once all the chairs were taken, Alcor – self-professed leader of the Voidian Officials, but in reality just the Head of Crime – fumbled with a screen on the wall and it fizzled to life, revealing Raziel’s concerned face.

“So… Mizar, can you explain what you and your Zionid allies have been planning?”

Mizar nodded.

“So, um… uh, Raziel’s friend Vasa found something out about this Antumbra issue. Right, Raziel?”

“Yes. Vasa discovered that in the event of the universe being threatened, there is a place that we can access to fight back. Essentially, inside the sub-dimension known as the incubator, we believe there is a source of infinite energy, the energy that controls the universe, and infuse it with some kind of weapon, to have the power of a creator. At the very least for a short time.” Raziel replied. The Voidians looked on with pronounced interest.

“However, he also found that to open the incubator, we, uh… we may need to… well, we… kind of have to…” Mizar said, fumbling around his words. The Officials made him nervous, and talking about treason in front of them could end horribly if they disagreed with the plan.

“Defeat the Kings.” Situla said. The Voidians looked quite concerned, including Alcor.

“So, um. Yes. That was our plan.” Mizar said, his voice petering out as he spoke.

“What do you rule?” asked Raziel, hoping that they would at least agree with the plan to some extent. The Voidians had some hissed discussions which Mizar and Raziel could not quite hear, and after a few minutes, they emerged from the discussion with a satisfied look. Alcor turned to face the screen.

“OK, Raziel. We know that Antumbra is more of a threat than we’ve told the citizens. But this is a tall order, and it could go horrendously wrong, so we’re going to need to discuss this properly, if you want us to come to a decision.” Alcor said. “So, yes – we’re going to call a full conference.”

“Oh, what? You’re going to bring the Zionid Officials and everything into this, too? I tried to speak to them and they’re having none of it.”

“You know the rules, Raziel. Or at least you should.” Caroli said with a wink. “Go to them and get them to arrange a conference, would you?”

“Damn, alright then.” Raziel replied, shrugging. “When? In an hour, say?”

“That would do fine. Inform us when everything’s ready over on Zion.” Alcor said.Raziel nodded and seconds later, the screen cut out. Alcor and Denneb were now discussing something quietly, and Denneb began to show his friend something on his wrist phone, expressing considerable excitement. Caroli took it upon herself to leave the palace, heading to the Official Outpost to gather all of the Voidian Officials. Mizar looked up nervously at the Officials, giving him the occasional look of disgust for the treason he had suggested, and sighed inwardly.

“Can I excuse myself?” he asked. Caroli nodded, and he left the room, re-entering one of the numerous palace corridors. Situla followed him.

“You alright?” she asked.

“Yeah. I knew this was not going to be an easy thing to sort out, but the entire universe is in danger. It’s no small thing, you know?”

“I get you.” Situla replied. “But aren’t you excited to be a part of it? I know I am.”

“Uh… I guess?” Mizar replied awkwardly. Situla confused him. “I don’t know how it’s going to end though, which worries me.”

“Nah, don’t worry about it! Nobody too important will die, I’m sure.”

Mizar fixed Situla with a glance that told her he was sick of her nonsense. “Be serious. Anyway, I’d like to be alone for a bit… and I should probably invite the others to the proper conference. They’re a part of it.”

“Alright, Mizar. Don’t get murdered on your way back.”

“Wasn’t planning on it.” he muttered as he walked away.