Josh wanted to move, but couldn’t. His chest felt heavy, and he could barely breathe as the door opened. He didn’t need to see it to know:

The Ark wasn’t a thing that should exist.

Josh put one foot in front of the other, each step heavier than the next as if he was walking into a pool of concrete. Motes of mana flew through the air, but they felt different. The mana felt alive and sinister. Josh felt as if he was walking into a haunted mansion infested by evil spirits.

Susan helped Josh walk into the chamber. Blue light lit their path, but there were no mana lamps or light fixtures. The light cast an eerie glow around the chambers, causing shadows to appear as if they were moving. Susan looked up, and massive chains as thick as her body hung high in the air. The air was vibrating, and a hum persisted in her ears. She craned her neck, eyes moving from the chains to what they were holding.

Then, she saw it.

Her knees gave out, and she gasped. "What...?"

Josh looked up as well, and his eyes widened. He had seen super carriers up close, and what he saw was easily twice the size of the largest one he had seen.

The ship hung in the air, motes of mana blowing from the reactor under it. The air around the Ark seemed to scream as if the weight of the ship was an insult to gravity. Its ramparts were black, and blue mana circles were embedded into the hull. At the front of the ship, A woman with wings and a spear in her hand was carved into the front. She wore a dress that hung to her knees, and Josh’s eyes widened. "It’s written in English. What the fuck?"

Above the woman, a message was written next to the tip of her spear:

"Favor the delight of those who are wicked,

and listen to lies written with truth,

Give my soul its greed,

for this light writes death."

Josh turned to Susan, who was holding onto him for support. She shook her head, not able to speak as she pressed her body against his.

Josh turned back to the ship.

He then noticed the weapons.

Each turret had a diameter matching that of the thickest Earth weapon systems. There were ten of them up front, with six on the underbelly of the Ark.

On top of the ship, what looked like a castle was built. Sprawling spires reached hundreds of feet high, and more turrets stood at the top.

Josh noticed the blue lines of writing on each turret and shook his head.

"Every weapon they have can’t touch this... this..."

He gave up on trying to find the words.

"Front lines will be useless, cannon fire won’t matter. Air defense will be like tickling it. It might even be able to tank a nuke." He said, his eyes glowing with mana as he saw the barrier surrounding the ship. He then shook his head. "Nah, that would be impossible. I’m just going crazy."

Mithrael smiled and walked over to Josh. He noticed Susan cowering behind Josh and shook his head. "The Consortium Ark is the spear of the Empire," Mithrael said as he raised his arms. "Tell me, Hero. Can it be used to finally make the otherworlders bow?"

Josh turned to Mithrael. "Yes, your majesty. I think this will break their will. If we use it on their base, they will be unable to fight back."

Mithrael shook his head. "Hero, we will not be using the Ark on their base."

Josh felt Susan stiffen, and his eyes narrowed. "I am not quite sure what you mean, my lord?"

Mithrael smirked. "As was the case with the Dragons, these otherworlders have defied me too many times. They will pay for their sins. Because of their acts, I will show them what their defiance costs them. We will be destroying one of their cities. I think the best use is the city that recently appeared near Esponia."

For the first time since coming to Cartharic, Josh felt his body grow heavy with fear and anger. "My lord, surely you do not-"

Mithrael’s eyes narrowed. "You dare defy me?"

Josh shook his head. "No, your majesty. Forgive my tone. What I meant was, would that not be a waste of the Ark’s resources?"

Mithrael smiled and walked closer to one of the chains holding the Ark. "I am okay with utilizing resources on non-military targets, young hero. I value your knowledge of otherworld tactics and doctrine, but it seems you still have much to learn about controlling through submission. Very well, I will be sure to correct your lack of knowledge. You will see. When they watch one of their cities burning, they will bow."

Mithrael noticed that Josh was following slowly and shook his head. "Mortals." He muttered. "Such a weak race. Do you see why they need our guidance, Dreha?" He said, looking at a space above the Ark.

Dreha looked at the hero and sighed. He then saw the woman behind Josh, and his eyes narrowed. "Mithrael, we warned you last time that if you released this beast upon this world again, you would be punished. You broke a barrier between worlds and have learned nothing from it. Here you stand, willing to deepen your sins?"

Mithrael crossed his arms. "I have done no crimes, Cardinal. These worlds were originally one entity. You overseers overstepped your bounds by separating them. Why do you think the Gods of Earth abandoned it when it was cut off from this dimension?"

Dreha growled at Mithrael, his eyes glowing with Mithrael. "The worlds were severed for a reason, child. The ’gods’ you speak of in that world never existed. You walk towards your own end, fool. Your death will not be painless, Mithrael. I will be there to relish it. If you use that ’thing’, I will make sure you pay personally."

Mithrael laughed. "You can’t do anything to me, cursed bird. Now, begone. I have work to do."