When the [Chosen Round] came to an end, the tension didn’t ease, it worsened.
Within the realm of [Universal Descent], where gods and mortals collided in brutal combat, silence now echoed across the lands.
But beyond that world, into the real one, into Earth and the shattered remnants of the other 24 destroyed worlds, that silence turned into collective anxiety.
Panic didn’t just simmer, it erupted.
“What happens if one of the wrong pairs wins?”
“Are we just supposed to sit here and watch?”
“There’s nothing we can do, it’s out of our hands now.”
From crowded shelters on the other worlds to the bustling cities of Earth, beings of all races watched the aftermath of the [Chosen Round] with the same feeling weighing in their chest, dread.
The strongest beings across existence had just fought one another like monsters in a pit, each battle more devastating than the last.
Aura levels that could wipe out continents were thrown like pebbles.
Powers not meant for mortal eyes lit up the skies in a show of destruction.
And now, after only two rounds, only five pairs remained.
Fifteen had already been eliminated, crushed, erased, humiliated, in less than two hours since the [Chosen Games] began.
The world held its breath, knowing the [Main Round] was next.
And if the first two rounds were any indication, this next phase would be worse.
Much worse.
But despite the looming threat and the knowledge that annihilation sat just a few steps away, many couldn’t look away.
As terrifying as it all was, it was also captivating.
The spectacle, the madness, the clash of gods, it was addictive.
For some, it was the greatest distraction they’d ever known.
For others, it was a slow, dreadful countdown toward the end.
Still, not a single soul truly understood why any of this was happening.
Not even those who had been inside Universal Descent from the start.
And for Earth especially, the uncertainty was thicker than fog.
The other 24 worlds had suffered firsthand at the hands of these gods, their homes reduced to rubble, their leaders obliterated, but Earth had yet to experience that same level of horror.
And yet, everyone could feel it.
A quiet voice inside, a whisper born from instinct, warned them that doom was coming.
Fast.
Above every major city, in every world still standing, the same countdown loomed on the screen,
[Time until Main Round: 30:02]
Seconds slipped by with painful slowness.
[Time until Main Round: 30:01]
They had gone from twenty pairs to ten, and now to five.
Only two rounds had passed. So what could possibly be next?
What kind of trial would follow this? One thing was certain, the lower the number of participants, the more terrifying they became.
The ones still standing weren’t just lucky survivors.
They were the apex, the monsters that climbed over the corpses of others to stand on top.
And that made whatever came next far more dangerous.
[Time until Main Round: 30:00]
Right as the clock ticked down to the half-hour mark, the screens surrounding the realms flickered and shifted.
Darkness fell across every panel.
Then, slowly, the familiar image of the [Creators] returned, silent figures shrouded in shadow, their glowing eyes piercing through the void.
[I believe that after these two rounds, we should offer a bit more… clarity.]
[After all, with only 30 minutes until the “Main Round,” now seems the time to introduce “them.”]
“‘Them’?” someone on Earth muttered aloud, “Are they talking about the participants?”
[Indeed. Let’s begin.]
The [Creators] raised their hands in perfect sync and clapped once, loud, sharp, and resonating.
The shockwave rippled through space and time itself, felt not just inside Universal Descent, but all across the surviving worlds and even on Earth.
Glass cracked. Buildings trembled. People grabbed onto anything nearby.
And then, the screens turned pitch black.
From that void, twenty squares appeared.
Each square contained a still image, a pair composed of one god and one chosen one, the same as had been shown at the very beginning of the games.
But this time, something had changed.
Slash! Slash! Slash!
One by one, red Xs slashed across almost every square, removing them from the screen.
Fifteen gone. Only five remained.
The final contanders.
And this time, everyone could see them clearly.
Each square now showed a more detailed image of the remaining pairs.
The chosen ones’ appearances were no longer obscured.
Their faces, their postures, their presence, everything was now laid bare for the world to see.
Inside one of the chambers, Alex narrowly avoided a punch from Kaelios during a light sparring match.
The tension hadn’t left him, not even in rest.
But the sudden shift on the panels caught his attention.
“You saw them too, right?” he asked, backing away, wiping a bit of sweat from his brow.
“How do they feel? I couldn’t see them clearly. Something blocked me…”
He didn’t want to talk about the “Hatred” just yet.
Trying to explain that some primal force inside him could hijack his thoughts didn’t exactly make for a comforting conversation.
“They feel… strong,” Kaelios muttered, his tone heavier than usual.
“Definitely stronger than we are, but that doesn’t mean we back down.”
Alex nodded, clenching his fists.
“And appearance-wise?”
“I couldn’t describe it even if I tried,” Kaelios replied, “You’ll see for yourself soon enough.”
Alex frowned and looked back at the panels.
“I can only see the chosen ones on each square. The gods’ images are blacked out for me.”
“Same here,” Kaelios said, “Though I did get a glimpse of them in the arena earlier, which makes it even weirder.”
It was probably the [Creators] intentionally keeping things hidden to keep the participants guessing.
But outside the games, on Earth and beyond, there was no such restriction.
[Only five pairs remain.]
[And you, the viewers, have seen them fight. You’ve seen their skills. You’ve witnessed who they are, far more than they have seen of one another.]
[But only one pair will be left standing.]
[Why, you ask? Simple…]
The words halted suddenly.
A pause. A silence that seemed to freeze even time itself.
Then the truth dropped like a meteor.
[Because the last remaining pair will govern the 25 worlds, and Universal Descent itself.]
The response was chaos.
“What the hell does that mean?”
“Govern? As in… rule everything?”
“What if they don’t want peace?”
[We won’t lie.]
[Many of the pairs left alive don’t want peace. Some seek to destroy all life. Others want absolute domination, obedience, or death.]
[Information on each pair is now available to the public.]
And just like that, the [Creators] vanished from the screens, leaving the five squares behind, each clickable.
On Earth and the other surviving worlds, people rushed to examine them.
Each square displayed the god’s name, their chosen one, their powers, and a brief description.
But inside the contestants’ chambers, it was different.
When Alex and Kaelios tried clicking the squares, a message flashed,
[You are not allowed to do this.]
Only their own square opened.
[Name: Kaelios, God of Destiny]
[Chosen One: FateBreaker / Alex Rogue]
[Powers: Destiny]
[Info: A duo that seemingly seeks justice for the massacres caused by other gods. They appear rightful and compassionate. However, they are both mass murderers who prioritize their own goals. Do not trust them. They will betray everyone. Possibly the worst of the remaining pairs.]
Alex blinked.
“That’s…”
“…Pretty accurate,” Kaelios finished, glancing at him with a half-smile.
Alex hesitated. He wanted to argue. To claim that all he’d done, everything, was to protect humanity.
To stop all this madness. But for some reason, the words didn’t come.
“Yeah,” he eventually said, nodding faintly, “Sure.”
He didn’t know why the [Creators] had labeled them the worst, but it unsettled him more than he let on.
Time ticked away.
[Time until Main Round: 0:03]
Alex and Kaelios stood side by side, eyes fixed on the countdown.
[Time until Main Round: 0:02]
No more strategies. No more preparation. What was done, was done.
[Time until Main Round: 0:01]
Only two pairs would remain after this.
And Alex would make sure he was one of them.
No matter what.
[Time until Main Round: 0:00]
Ding! Ding! Ding!