Chapter 271: The first line of defense

"Brace yourselves," my Grandfather suddenly said, his voice echoing in the surroundings. He turned to me and continued, "It is not a very pleasant process,"

Sidus hesitated and glanced at me with apprehension in his eyes. Breta on the other hand did not seem to mind, and looked stoic, as always. I wasn't too concerned, however, since this was a teleportation gate and I already had previous experience with teleportation, I doubted it would be bad.

But, as it turned out, I was wrong—

My grandfather reached out to his mana and guided it to the shimmering gate, causing all of our surroundings to brighten, and the elements to freeze. The whole world seemed to stand still as cosmic elements surged from the gate and surrounded us.

My heart froze in my chest, as I felt the cosmic mana emitting from the gate. It suddenly surrounded us, and before I could make sense of what was happening, a link was formed using to our intended destination.

That's when It happened, the somewhat familiar scene as the world stretched and lost its colors. I realized that I— no, we, were being pulled through the void. The only difference, however, was that this time, I had no control, whatsoever over our destination.

I was simply a bystander as I felt my body get whisked away from my place. The feeling was nauseating, to say the least. It was akin to riding the world's most uncomfortable ride, all the while someone was simultaneously banging on your head.

This feeling confused me since it wasn't this bad, even when I had lost control over my teleportation destination before and ended up in the astral plane.

Thankfully, though, the sensation did not last for long as our surroundings quickly changed. It took me a few seconds to adjust my mental state, but when I did, my mouth hung open in shock at the sight that stretched before me.

Sidus, had it worst collapsing on the ground, but he forced himself to stand up as we raised our heads to the dark space above. Breta was no better, her expressionless mask had fallen, and she like the rest of us was staring in shock and disbelief at the battlefield that extended before us.

The shimmering gate was right behind us, as we stood on what looked like a massive floating platform in the middle of space, with a glowing shield protecting it. My eyes frantically scanned my surroundings in shock and disbelief.

Behind us was what looked like a massive glowing shield, taking over the entirety of my field of vision. I was unable to see what the shield was protecting, but judging from its circular shape, I had a rough guess.

"Is that, our plane?" I mumbled.

"Aye, that is what we are fighting for," Grandfather suddenly said.

I turned my attention back to the battle before me. Far above us, constant bright flashes of light blinked in and out of existence. I could easily make out the shapes of the massive figures fighting each other. Dragons of all shapes and colors continuously clashed against disgusting dark creatures.

Their colors would have made it hard to spot them in the vast expanse of space, but their aura made them shine as bright as the sun in my eyes. I was sure it was the same for all the other dragons.

I subconsciously turned my gaze to Breta, only to find the goddess' body shivering as a deep frown made its way across her face.

"Disgusting," she muttered.

The fight was a mess, to say the least. It did not seem coordinated, instead, it was a simple brute clash of thousands upon thousands of dragons holding off what could only be described as a horde of shades.

The dragons were vastly outnumbered, but they firmly held the line, not allowing a single shade to get past them. I could see a few glowing platforms similar to the one we were standing on.

Every few minutes or so, a dragon would retreat there for a while before he, or she would jump off again and fly off to join the battlefield.

"What are they doing?" I couldn't help but ask.

Grandfather looked at me and spoke, "They are restoring their lost mana. That is what the platforms are for. They are directly connected to the mana stream from the plane."

As I opened my mouth to ask more questions, Grandfather's deep voice cut me off, "What you see before you, little one, is but a mere fragment of the battlefield. The true danger lies beyond, where the elder dragons hold back the greatest threats. For if their clash were to reach this far, it would bring about the annihilation of the entire plane."

My eyes widened as I gazed upon the chaotic scene before me, trying to imagine the magnitude of the full-scale battle that raged on beyond my sight. The clash of the elements created an aura that was as dazzling as it was ominous.

If this wasn't where the true danger lay, I shivered to think of what the real battlefield looked like.

"It is a never-ending battle, but it is one that we cannot afford to lose," Grandfather added.

I took a deep breath, my mind reeling from the weight of the knowledge that Grandfather had imparted to me.

"The scale of the battles here surpasses you, It is not your place to concern yourselves with them, not yet. You will be riding on my back, and I shall carry you closer to your destination. But heed my words, for once we exit the protective shield, communication will be impossible in the vacuum of space," Grandfather declared in a commanding tone.

We all hesitantly nodded as Grandfather motioned for us to come closer. His massive back was large enough to carry all three of us. I gazed in awe as Grandfather summoned his mana, creating an invisible shield that enveloped us before he propelled off the platform with a thunderous boom.

As soon as we left the platform's safety, a shiver ran down my spine, and I gripped onto Grandfather's scales tightly. He soared through the empty space with unparalleled grace, leaving the battlefield behind us. The distant battles were muted, with only deafening explosions and flashes of light visible from the opposing forces engaged in fierce combat.

Grandfather's protective shield enveloped us in a shimmering bubble, shielding us from the endless void of space. Despite the safety it provided, an unsettling sense of fear crept over me as we soared through the starry expanse. My eyes widened with wonder as I gazed at the glittering galaxies and sparkling nebulae that stretched out before us, a stunning sight that I could hardly believe was real.