“Glad that's taken care of,” Aiden said, looking down at the small earthy refuge. “I wonder how mad they'll be when they figure out I lied about coming back.”

Turning his back, he heeded the call of Earth’s Authority and began trudging past one territory after another, navigating monsters and humanoids alike with practiced skill.

He didn't want to be bothered. Talking to Aunt Rachel and Olivia left him feeling drained and irritable after having to sit for so long and deny Earth's Authority his presence.

But now that he moved, his chest buzzed with anticipation for getting everything situated and heading back to Midrath where he could be with Leyla and Blizzy again.

As he journeyed, the curiousness that was Earth's Authority stole his focus. He could sense the depth of its power. Comparing Earth and Midrath was akin to a candle competing with the sun.

So tiny and fragile.

It made Aiden wonder. With all the other races coming to Midrath and Earth, just now many Authorities existed? How many would he have to collect to truly lock the gods and Immortals away for good?

Was it even possible?

He didn't know, but there were several reliable brings with far more experience he could ask. But first, he had business to attend to.

When he crossed from one territory into the Authority of Earth's domain, he felt a metaphysical force try to block him out, resistance lasting but a fraction of a second before Midrath’s Authority allowed him freedom of movement.

The world shifted around him. What once looked like any other territory he'd past through now exuded a vibrant emerald light across all things. A healthy vibrance of life washed over him, making all his aches and pains he'd been ignoring disappear.

“Wow,” he breathed, letting out a sigh of relief as he stretched. “That sure is something.”

It wasn’t just him who felt invigorated and energized, all around him spread a wild landscape that changed from forest to mountain to plain to desert all in the space of a minute’s running distance. It would have seemed completely chaotic if it had been anywhere else, but here it fit completely naturally.

Creatures of every type scampered, pranced, raced, flew, in a mad cacophony of life and freedom. He saw a wolf and a deer running side by side, each trying to outpace the other and bumping playfully into one another as they raced across a grassy plain. Above, a dozen birds drew multicolored spirals in the sky as though they were choreographed dancers. A whale jumped from lake to lake, splashing everyone in the vicinity. Everywhere he looked there was another scene playing out, all bizarre, but each seeming oddly right.

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In the center of the shifting landscapes stood a single tree, the arch of its roots alone big enough to fit whole city blocks beneath, trunk illuminated with glowing green veins of light perpetually racing up and down, branches spreading out above so far in every direction that he couldn’t be sure there even was a sky beyond.

Before the tree's roots sat a single massive cat, pure white with a long silky mane, the only creature in the whole place to remain perfectly in place. As Aiden approached, it rose to its feet.

“Only the worthy may pass,” it growled. Its crystalline eyes of the purest blue blinked twice. Before Aiden could prepare for a fight, or whatever other test it may come up with, it bowed its head and knelt on the ground. “The way is open, great one.”

“Uh, okay.” Unsure, he hesitantly passed by the large cat creature, looking over his shoulder with a hand wrapped around Silver. When he'd made decent progress, he relaxed his grip and turned his attention to the clear dirt path leading toward where he felt the Authority's presence.

Instead of rushing down the path, his steps were slow. The world around him was the embodiment of all that he desired to protect, in all its forms. The lands upon Earth that were home to so many creatures, a natural beauty that nearly left him in dumbfounded awe, the lands every person needed.

“I won't stop until I've ensured Earth is safe,” he vowed to himself, heart heavy with the weight of responsibility. But it was one he'd chosen for himself.

The hilly woodlands slanted upward, and the memory of leaving the school to find the mountain now home to Zion came to mind. The time he'd spent with Olivia, Isaac, and… Anna.

Breathing a deep sigh, he resolved himself to talk to her at least once before heading into Halla. It was the right thing to do.

He trudged up the hillside, the terrain shifting into mountainous slopes. Here, he put his attributes to use to scale the mountain in a way that put pre-apocalypse rock climbers to shame.

Once he cleared the top, he saw his destination—Earth's Seat of Authority. He took it in, reveling in its natural beauty, then took his place, sitting with his hands on the soft armrests.

An Important Announcement!

Congratulations!

Aiden Pearce has claimed the Earth's Seat, and received Earth’s Gate Authority!

The first thing he did with the newfound power was limit the amount of invading portals crossing over to the lowest he could, a quarter of what was currently crossing interdimensional space.

“Now that's done, time to go home.” He held up his hand, and another blue portal formed. Unceremoniously, he past through, returning to where he'd left.

He opened the portal behind him. The arrival location automatically set to what it was before, concluding his adventure to Earth.