Alarms screamed through every level of the allied Controllers' foundation simultaneously.
Bradley Proctor jerked upright from his rest cycle, his consciousness snapping to full alertness as emergency protocols flooded his awareness. Breach. Multiple contacts. Hostile signatures registering at maximum threat level. Not a drill. Not a false alarm. Actual attack on the foundation itself.
He manifested in the command center three seconds later, joining the other Controllers who were arriving in rapid succession. Commander Sarah was already there, coordinating defensive responses, her expression carved from stone as she processed incoming data. The holographic displays showed what everyone had feared but hoped would never happen: all thirteen Dissolution Compact operatives converging on their location.
Not scattered across multiple operations. Not divided into smaller teams. All thirteen. Together. Attacking the allied Controllers' primary operational base with coordinated assault that was tearing through defensive barriers like they weren't there.
"Status!" Sarah's voice cut through the chaos of Controllers trying to establish defensive positions.
"Outer barriers breached," Ramuel reported from tactical station. "They're using combined reality-fracture techniques. Our standard defenses aren't holding. Inner barriers will fail in approximately ninety seconds."
Ninety seconds. Brad felt something cold settle in his chest. The foundation housed thirty-two omnipotent beings and had defensive systems designed to withstand sustained assault from multiple hostile forces. The fact that thirteen enemies could breach those defenses in under two minutes suggested coordination and power that exceeded intelligence estimates.
"Evacuation protocols," Sarah ordered. "Priority one: preserve personnel. Priority two: secure critical intelligence. We abandon the facility if necessary and regroup at secondary location."
Controllers moved immediately, years of training overriding panic. Evacuation routes activated. Critical data began transferring to secured backup locations. The foundation's automated defense systems engaged fully, buying time for personnel to withdraw.
But Brad could see the mathematics clearly. Evacuation would take at least five minutes. Inner barriers would fail in ninety seconds. That left three and a half minutes where the thirty-two would be vulnerable, caught between defensive collapse and incomplete evacuation. Three and a half minutes where the Dissolution Compact could eliminate them.
The inner barriers shattered.
Not collapsed. Not breached. Shattered. Reality itself fragmenting as thirteen omnipotent beings forced their way through defenses that should have held against anything short of cosmic-level assault. They manifested in the foundation's central chamber, surrounding the Controllers who'd been organizing evacuation, and Brad saw Terminus at the front of the enemy formation.
"Allied Controllers," Terminus announced, their voice resonating across multiple dimensions. "Your interference ends today. The Dissolution Compact has tolerated your meddling long enough. Humanity will be allowed to collapse naturally, without your misguided protection."
Sarah stepped forward, buying time for evacuation to continue. "You're making a mistake. Attacking us directly escalates this conflict beyond—"
"There is no conflict," another Dissolution Compact member interrupted. Brad didn't recognize them—intelligence files hadn't identified all thirteen yet. "There is only natural order being restored. You chose to oppose that order. Now you face consequences."
The thirteen began charging their capabilities. Reality warped around them as they prepared coordinated assault. Brad calculated engagement probabilities and found nothing favorable. Thirty-two versus thirteen should have been advantageous numbers, but power levels weren't equal. The Dissolution Compact had sent their absolute strongest operatives. The allied Controllers had combat-capable members, but also support specialists, intelligence operatives, coordinators. Not everyone present was optimized for direct combat.
They were going to lose. Were going to be eliminated. The foundation would fall and with it, the organizational structure that maintained human civilization's protection across dozens of facilities.
"I'll handle this."
Haroon's voice cut through the tension like reality itself had spoken. He manifested in the command center, still wearing his cyan suit, apparently unconcerned that thirteen hostile omnipotent beings were preparing to eliminate everyone present. He walked toward the central chamber with the same unhurried pace he used for maintenance inspections.
"Haroon, wait—" Sarah's command voice carried urgency that Brad had never heard from her before. "We don't have intelligence on all their capabilities. Power levels are unknown. You could be facing—"
"I'm aware of the risks, Commander." Haroon didn't slow down. "Evacuation protocols continue. I'll address the hostile intrusion."
He entered the central chamber before Sarah could issue further orders. The thirty-two Controllers watched through command center displays as Haroon walked directly toward thirteen beings who'd just shattered their defensive barriers. Brad felt his probability calculations going haywire trying to assess this engagement. Unknown enemy capabilities versus Haroon's demonstrated power. Too many variables. Too much uncertainty.
But one certainty cut through the chaos: if anyone could face all thirteen Dissolution Compact operatives simultaneously, it was Haroon.
The thirteen noticed him immediately. Their attack preparation shifted, targeting the single Controller who'd just volunteered to fight them alone. Brad saw Terminus's expression change from confidence to something else. Recognition. They'd encountered Haroon before. Knew what he was capable of.
"The above-omnipotent," Terminus said. "We wondered when you'd reveal yourself. The Dissolution Compact has been tracking your operations. Station Theta-7's maintenance worker. Commander Sarah's most effective operative. The being who erased one of our forward scouts with a glance."
Haroon stopped approximately ten meters from the enemy formation. He didn't activate defensive fields. Didn't charge offensive capabilities. Just stood there in his cyan suit, hands at his sides, facing thirteen hostile omnipotent beings with the same neutral expression he showed everything.
"Leave," Haroon said simply. "This facility is under allied protection. Your presence here is unauthorized. Withdraw immediately."
"Or what?" Another Dissolution Compact member—manifesting as a being of pure energy—laughed. "You'll fight all thirteen of us? We've calculated the engagement mathematics. Even you can't overcome these numbers."
"Your calculations are incomplete." Haroon's tone didn't change. "Final warning. Withdraw or be removed."
The thirteen attacked.
Everything they had. Everything they could manifest. Reality fractured across the entire chamber as thirteen omnipotent beings unleashed coordinated assault designed to overwhelm any defense through sheer volumetric force. Temporal displacement trying to age Haroon millions of years. Existence compression attempting to reduce him to quantum scale. Probability collapse forcing him into losing timelines. Reality shredding that would tear apart space-time itself.
The command center displays showed the assault as cascading waves of destructive force that should have been impossible to survive. Brad felt himself holding breath he didn't need to breathe, watching power levels that exceeded anything he'd witnessed in training or combat.
Haroon dodged.
Effortlessly.
Not with any dramatic movement or complex reality manipulation. He simply wasn't where the attacks landed. Moved through the assault pattern like he was walking through light rain, each step placing him between convergence points with precision that suggested he could see every attack before it formed.
Temporal displacement aged empty space. Existence compression found no target. Probability collapse forced timelines that Haroon had already stepped out of. Reality shredding tore through locations he'd vacated microseconds before impact.
"He's not even trying," Brad heard someone whisper in the command center. "Thirteen omnipotent beings and he's just... walking through their attacks."
The Dissolution Compact intensified their assault. More power. More coordination. Attack patterns that should have been impossible to evade through conventional movement. They were forcing Haroon to reveal his defensive capabilities, trying to understand what made him different from standard Controllers.
Haroon continued dodging. Still effortless. Still casual. His hands remained at his sides. No defensive fields activated. No counterattacks launched. Just movement through chaos that would have eliminated any other Controller instantly.
Brad saw the enemy formation beginning to show strain. Sustained omnipotent-level assault required enormous energy expenditure. They couldn't maintain this intensity indefinitely. And Haroon wasn't even breathing hard. Wasn't showing any indication that avoiding their attacks required effort.
"Scan him," Terminus ordered. "Full capability assessment. I want his power levels quantified."
The thirteen shifted tactics. Instead of pure assault, they deployed scanning protocols. Reality-analysis that would measure Haroon's capabilities, identify his power source, calculate his operational limits. Standard intelligence gathering when facing unknown opposition.
The scanners activated. Energy fields swept across Haroon's position, probing for information about what made him different. What allowed him to operate beyond normal omnipotent parameters.
The scanners failed.
Not blocked. Not resisted. Failed. Returned no data. Brad watched the Dissolution Compact operatives exchanging confused looks as their scanning protocols encountered something they couldn't measure. It was like trying to calculate infinity. The numbers just kept increasing without limit, never reaching definable value.
"That's impossible," the energy-being said. "Our scanners can quantify any Controller's capabilities. There's no such thing as unmeasurable power."
"Apparently there is," Terminus's voice carried unease that suggested they were realizing this engagement had been a mistake. "Cease scanning. All forces, prepare to—"
Haroon raised his right hand toward them.
Single motion. Palm forward. Fingers slightly spread. Nothing dramatic. Nothing that suggested what was about to happen.
The Dissolution Compact operatives stopped moving. Their attack preparations froze mid-formation. And Brad felt it then—power starting to flow. Not from Haroon. From the thirteen. Toward Haroon. Their capabilities being pulled out of them like water draining from containers.
Absorption.
Haroon was absorbing their power.
The thirteen screamed.
Not metaphorically. Actual screams that resonated across multiple frequency ranges as they felt their capabilities being drained away. They tried to resist, tried to sever the connection, tried to stop the flow of power leaving their manifestations. Nothing worked. Haroon's raised hand pulled steadily, inexorably, drawing their omnipotent capabilities out of them and into himself.
"Stop!" One of the Dissolution Compact members—manifesting as a crystalline entity—struggled against the absorption. "You can't—this isn't—"
The screaming intensified. The thirteen were being drained. Not completely—Haroon wasn't eliminating them—but significantly. Brad could see their manifestations destabilizing as power levels dropped. They were being reduced from omnipotent to merely powerful. From reality-manipulators to enhanced beings. Still dangerous by human standards but nowhere near their previous capability.
The absorption continued. Thirty seconds. Sixty. Ninety. The thirteen kept screaming, kept struggling, kept failing to resist as Haroon methodically drained power they'd spent millennia accumulating. And through it all, Haroon's expression never changed. Still neutral. Still calm. Just standing there with one hand raised, absorbing omnipotent-level capabilities like it was routine maintenance work.
In the command center, the thirty-two Controllers watched in absolute silence. Brad saw shock on every face. Saw Sarah's expression of disbelief. Saw Ramuel's tactical displays showing power transfer rates that shouldn't have been possible.
"Can you sense it?" someone asked quietly. "The power he's absorbing? Can anyone detect—"
"No." Sarah's voice was strained. "He's suppressing it. Hiding the increase. We can see the thirteen being drained but we can't measure what Haroon's gaining from it."
Brad tried anyway. Tried to sense the power flowing into Haroon, tried to quantify the absorption that was reducing thirteen omnipotent beings to shadows of their former capability. His perception found nothing. Haroon was concealing the power increase so completely that even Controllers watching directly couldn't detect it.
Which meant the actual increase was probably catastrophic. Beyond measurement. Beyond comprehension. The kind of power that would destabilize reality if released without control.
Two minutes of absorption. The thirteen's screaming had weakened. Their struggles had stopped. They hung there in Haroon's gravitational pull, manifestations barely coherent, power levels depleted to fractions of their previous capability.
Then Haroon lowered his hand.
The absorption ceased. The thirteen collapsed, their manifestations destabilizing, barely maintaining coherent existence. They'd been comprehensively drained. Reduced from threats capable of breaching the foundation's defenses to beings who would struggle against single Controller in standard combat.
Terminus managed to pull themselves upright. Their manifestation was flickering, unstable, showing the strain of power depletion. They looked at Haroon with expression that combined fear and disbelief.
"What... what are you?" Terminus's voice was weak. "What kind of being can drain omnipotent capabilities like that?"
Haroon didn't answer. Didn't need to. The demonstration had been sufficient.
The thirteen retreated.
Immediately. No threats. No final warnings. No promises of future revenge. Just pure terror-driven flight as they activated emergency transit protocols and fled the foundation, leaving behind the facility they'd breached and the allied Controllers they'd intended to eliminate.
They were gone in seconds. Thirteen beings who'd coordinated assault on the foundation's defenses, who'd shattered barriers designed to withstand cosmic-level force, fleeing like prey escaping predator.
Silence filled the command center. Thirty-two Controllers processing what they'd witnessed. The Dissolution Compact's full force, deployed together for the first time, comprehensively defeated by one being who'd absorbed their power and let them flee with their lives.
Haroon stood in the central chamber, still wearing his cyan suit. To external observation, nothing had changed. Same color. Same appearance. Same maintenance worker who performed routine station operations.
But Brad knew better. Could feel something different even if he couldn't quantify it. Haroon had just absorbed power from thirteen omnipotent beings. Had pulled their capabilities into himself, into that cyan suit, into whatever he actually was beneath the performance of normalcy.
And Haroon was looking at his right hand.
Not with shock. Not with concern. With something that might have been wonder. Might have been realization. He was staring at his hand like he was seeing it for the first time, feeling something new flowing through his manifestation.
Power. Absolute power. The kind that transcended omnipotence and moved into categories that didn't have names. Author-level capability. Creator-tier reality manipulation. The ability to not just edit existence but write it from scratch.
Brad saw Haroon's fingers flex slightly. Saw reality ripple around that simple movement. Saw space-time itself acknowledging that something fundamental had changed in the being who maintained Station Theta-7 and protected human civilization.
The Absolute Void. That power Haroon had mentioned once, the capability to erase things from existence. It had just gained catastrophic enhancement. Had absorbed the combined might of thirteen omnipotent beings and integrated it into whatever Haroon actually was beneath the cyan suit and maintenance worker persona.
He'd been above omnipotent before this. Now? Now he was something else entirely. Something that made "above omnipotent" seem inadequate. He'd moved into a category that existed beyond normal Controller classification.
Commander Sarah was the first to speak. "Haroon. Status report. Are you... are you all right?"
Haroon lowered his hand slowly. Turned to face the command center displays where thirty-two Controllers watched him with expressions ranging from awe to fear to complete bewilderment.
"I'm functional, Commander." His voice was the same monotone he always used. Like nothing extraordinary had occurred. Like he hadn't just absorbed power from thirteen hostile omnipotent beings and elevated himself to levels that defied measurement. "Hostile intrusion has been addressed. The Dissolution Compact has withdrawn. Foundation security is restored."
"You absorbed their power." Sarah stated this as fact rather than question. "Drained thirteen omnipotent beings and integrated their capabilities into yourself."
"Correct. The absorption was necessary to neutralize the threat without permanent termination. They retain sufficient capability to maintain manifestation and return to their operations. But their offensive capacity has been significantly reduced." Haroon delivered this assessment like he was reporting routine maintenance completion. "Recommend increased defensive protocols in case they attempt future intrusion, though probability calculations suggest they'll avoid direct confrontation after this engagement."
Brad watched Sarah processing this information. Saw her trying to maintain command composure despite witnessing something that exceeded anything in her operational experience. Haroon had just demonstrated capability that made the training assessment in Chapter Nine look like preliminary testing. Had shown that his power could grow. Could absorb. Could expand beyond whatever baseline he'd been operating at before.
"The power you absorbed," Sarah said carefully. "Can you quantify the increase? We need to update our capability assessments if you've undergone significant enhancement."
Haroon looked at his right hand again. That same expression that suggested he was feeling something vast flowing through his manifestation. Something that exceeded his previous operational parameters.
"Quantification is difficult," he said slowly. "The absorption increased my baseline capabilities by... significant margin. The Absolute Void has been enhanced beyond previous limitations. I can now... " He paused, seeming to search for words. "I can perceive layers of reality I couldn't access before. Can manipulate causality at levels that were previously theoretical. Can edit existence with precision that approaches authorial control."
Authorial control. Brad felt those words settle into his consciousness with weight that suggested fundamental truth. Haroon had moved beyond reality manipulation into reality authorship. Could write existence itself rather than just editing what was already there.
"That's..." Sarah started, then seemed to lose words for what that was.
"Concerning," Ramuel finished from tactical station. "No offense intended, Haroon, but that level of capability in single individual represents significant concentration of power."
"Agreed." Haroon's response was immediate and definitive. "I'll maintain careful restraint with enhanced capabilities. Will not deploy them unless situations require authorial intervention. Standard operations will continue using baseline parameters."
He turned to leave the central chamber, apparently considering the incident resolved. But Sarah stopped him with a gesture.
"Haroon. Thank you. You saved us. All of us. We were about to be eliminated and you stopped it." Her voice carried genuine gratitude that transcended command structure. "We owe you our continued existence."
Haroon paused, considering her words. Then: "You don't owe me anything, Commander. This is my function. Protecting allied operations. Maintaining stability. Addressing threats that exceed normal operational parameters. Today's incident was severe but still within my purpose."
He departed through dimensional transit, leaving the thirty-two Controllers in shocked silence.
Brad found himself breathing hard despite not needing to breathe. Around him, other Controllers were showing similar stress responses. They'd just witnessed something unprecedented. The Dissolution Compact's full force defeated. Haroon absorbing power from thirteen omnipotent beings. Capabilities elevated to levels that approached divine.
"Meeting," Sarah's voice cut through the shocked processing. "All personnel. Thirty minutes. We need to discuss what just happened and adjust our strategic planning accordingly."
Controllers dispersed gradually, moving toward their assigned stations, still processing. Brad remained in the command center, reviewing the recorded engagement data, trying to understand what he'd witnessed.
Haroon had stood there. Had raised one hand. Had absorbed power from thirteen beings. Had elevated himself to categories beyond measurement. And then had just... left. Returned to his station like this was routine. Like achieving near-godlike capability was equivalent to completing maintenance inspection.
"He hid it from us," Ramuel said quietly, appearing next to Brad. "The power increase. We watched it happen but couldn't measure it. Couldn't sense how much he actually gained from that absorption."
"Because if we could sense it, we'd probably lose structural coherence from exposure to that much concentrated capability," Brad suggested. "He hid it to protect us from collateral effects."
"Probably." Ramuel pulled up tactical displays showing the thirteen's retreat patterns. "They're scattered. Fleeing in different directions. Power levels reduced by estimated seventy to eighty percent. They're not combat-effective anymore. Won't be for months, possibly years, while they rebuild their capabilities."
"If they can rebuild." Brad wasn't certain power that had been absorbed could be regenerated. "Haroon didn't just drain them temporarily. He took their capabilities and integrated them into himself. That might be permanent reduction."
The implications were staggering. The Dissolution Compact's primary threat had been neutralized in approximately three minutes of engagement. Their full force, deployed together, comprehensively defeated by single Controller who'd absorbed their power and elevated himself to levels that transcended conventional measurement.
And Haroon had let them live. Had drained them but not eliminated them. Given them opportunity to flee despite having power to erase all thirteen from existence if he'd chosen to.
Restraint. Even with enhanced capabilities that approached authorial control, Haroon had chosen restraint over elimination. Had addressed the threat through minimum necessary force rather than overwhelming application of his elevated power.
That restraint was probably the only reason the foundation still existed. If Haroon had deployed his full enhanced capabilities without control, the collateral effects would have destabilized the entire facility. He'd absorbed enough power to make him effectively limitless, but he'd maintained precise control throughout. Had contained the enhancement. Had protected the allies watching him demonstrate capability that exceeded anything they'd thought possible.
The meeting convened thirty minutes later. All thirty-two Controllers assembled, still processing what they'd witnessed. Sarah stood before them with expression that suggested she'd been doing significant strategic recalculation during the interim.
"Today we learned several things," she began without preamble. "First: the Dissolution Compact was willing to deploy their full force against us. Second: their full force is insufficient to breach our defenses when Haroon is present. Third: Haroon's capabilities are not fixed but can grow through absorption of hostile power."
She pulled up displays showing engagement analysis. "The thirteen have been reduced to approximately twenty to thirty percent of their previous capability. They're no longer primary threats. They'll need extensive recovery time before they can resume major operations. This gives us strategic advantage."
"But it also creates dependency," the geometric-pattern Controller pointed out. "We're relying on Haroon to defend against threats we can't handle ourselves. That's concerning from organizational stability perspective."
"Agreed," Sarah said. "Which is why we're accelerating combat capability development programs. We need to reach levels where we can contribute meaningfully to major engagements rather than requiring rescue every time the Dissolution Compact deploys significant force."
Brad listened to the strategic discussion, the tactical planning, the organizational adjustments. All necessary. All important. But his attention kept returning to recorded footage of Haroon raising one hand and absorbing power from thirteen omnipotent beings. That moment when everything had changed. When the being they'd allied with had demonstrated he could grow beyond even his previous extraordinary baseline.
The meeting concluded with revised operational protocols and enhanced training schedules. Controllers departed to implement new directives. Brad found himself returning to his quarters, still processing everything he'd witnessed.
His console showed message from Haroon, sent approximately ten minutes ago: "Returning to Station Theta-7. Maintenance operations resume normal schedule. Foundation security appears adequate. No further intervention anticipated."
Normal schedule. Brad laughed weakly. Haroon had just absorbed power from thirteen omnipotent beings, elevated himself to near-divine capability, and his response was to return to checking coolant lines and atmospheric processors.
But that was Haroon. That was who he was beneath the impossible power and reality-warping capability. Someone who viewed maintenance work as his primary function and treated everything else—combat, power absorption, defending allied Controllers from elimination—as incidental to that core purpose.
Brad composed response: "Thank you for saving us. We'd be erased from existence if you hadn't intervened."
Haroon's reply came immediately: "You're welcome. No intervention necessary for next scheduled maintenance cycle. Your assigned sectors appear adequately maintained."
Brad smiled despite everything. Even after achieving power that approached authorial control over reality, Haroon's primary concern was whether maintenance schedules were being properly executed.
That consistency was somehow comforting. The universe might be chaotic and threatening and full of hostile forces trying to eliminate human civilization. But as long as someone was checking the coolant lines and making sure atmospheric processors functioned properly, things would probably be okay.
Probably.
Brad initiated rest protocols, letting his consciousness drift toward recovery state. Tomorrow would bring new challenges. New operations. New situations requiring the allied Controllers to demonstrate they could handle threats independently.
But today they'd been saved. Rescued by someone who'd absorbed enough power to make him effectively limitless, who'd chosen restraint over elimination, who'd returned to maintenance work like achieving near-godlike capability was just another day at the office.
The universe continued existing. Controllers continued operating. And in his cyan suit, Haroon checked coolant lines, knowing he could now write reality itself but preferring to maintain it instead.
Sufficient.
Optimal.
Exactly as it should be.