The room was furnished with everything red and gold. Paintings, lights, even the walls and floors were covered in those two colors. Of course, there were other shades of them, but for the most part, it was bland when it came to color. Grandeur, on the other hand, was a whole different story. Huge golden statues of Aphos and what must have been his wife were spaced evenly about the room. A spacious wardrobe made of hand-carved stone sat calmly on their right, and to the left, one large bed with intricately cut posts and framing. Elegant glass-like chandeliers hung proud from the ceiling, and a bright red fire crackled merrily in the corner.

Hazel at first was excited at the size of the bed, but after realizing that there was only one, some of that excitement was lost. She didn't want to share a bed with someone that, even though there was a friendship, she had barely just met. Still, Hazel was mentally exhausted from that long day, and happily curled up underneath the heavenly blankets and surrounded herself with as many fluffy pillows she could get her hands on. She wanted to visit her father and stepmother, but it was much too early already. After all, it had only been about three hours since they left Zhera. Nevertheless, she thought of pulling TJ and her mother into her dream, or maybe one of her friends from Earth. She didn't want them to worry too much about her.

It took some time to get her worries about Aphos to leave her mind, but as soon as she did, she was ripped straight into the realm of dreams. She focused on her best friends, Rae Goodman and Aaron Markswell, and seeing them in front of her. However, she couldn't do it, no matter how hard she tried. Hazel got an idea. Perhaps if the person she was trying to bring to her had forgotten about her or didn't know about her existence, it would be impossible to get them to join her.

She thought of her crush from school, who she knew, but he had no idea who she was. She did the same thing as she had always done, but to no avail. Hazel's heart sank. Her so-called "best friends" had already forgotten about her, either accidentally or purposely. Either way, it hurt her more than she could have ever thought. Not only the mental pain, but because of the emergence of her third eye, she experienced physical pain as well. Hazel wanted to fall to the ground and just have a peaceful and dreamless sleep for once, but she was trapped in the room of emptiness. She ran towards what she thought was a wall, but it never came. It was infinite in every direction. All she could try to do was sleep again.

"Hazel Ununquadius, Anatoly Ivonikov, your presence is required in the Parliament of Vasion," Aphos said, waking the two of them suddenly and uncomfortably.

"Is there anything we should do or know, sir?" Anatoly asked, rubbing his eyes sleepily.

"Speak in a way that is most precise. Make a good impression on those around you. Otherwise, they may sentence you to death for disrespecting holy figures, which are myself and my wife," he answered as eerily nonchalantly as one could.

Hazel stared her friend down, grimacing discreetly.

We need to get out of here as soon as possible, she mouthed.

Anatoly nodded in agreement and stretched. Aphos grinned the strangest grin either of them had ever seen before walking out of the room. They heard him slide down against one of the walls and sit, yawning loudly. Hazel ran over to the dresser to at least make an attempt at looking as put together as she could. After seeing Anatoly do absolutely nothing, she gawked at him furiously.

"And you expect to make a good first impression how, exactly?"

He shrugged, falling back onto the bed. Hazel groaned and threw him a red and black suit that matched the dress she picked out from the wardrobe, which he reluctantly put on. She fumbled around in it a bit more before feeling some sharp metal objects. They felt hot to the touch, which surprised Hazel greatly. She stepped back to process what happened, and as she did so, some glowing aquamarine brushes, combs, and scissors flew out to follow her. They hovered in front of her, waiting for a mental command. Smirking, she sent them to fix up the mess that was Anatoly. He panicked at their touch, but after seeing Hazel bursting out in fits of giggles, he understood.

Feeling relatively okay about how they looked, they pushed open the door slowly to get Aphos' opinion.

"Oh no, that won't do. You have a good start, but, Hazel, you need a train for your gown and a crown of flowers. Anatoly, just replace your shirt with one whose neck hugs your jawline and add a cape," Aphos said disapprovingly.

They both thought that they would need to find a way to fix their clothing from what they could find in the wardrobe, but Aphos grabbed them and pulled them closer to him, placing one on each of his palms, where titanic eyes glared up at them. Hazel screamed in shock, not expecting something like that, even after witnessing some disturbing things. That topped her "scarring" list.

Aphos closed all of his eyes except for the ones that Hazel and Anatoly stood next to, and they felt a warm energy swirl around them. It almost felt like an electric current combined with a gust of wind, bringing a calm moment. As the energy faded, the two of them falling to the ground with a sharp thud, their clothing altered exactly the way that Aphos had described it. Hazel was at a loss for words. She wanted to say something, but all that she could let out was a quiet "thanks" before her voice cracked and dropped.

"Ah, much better. Now, come with me. You do not need to hide, now. Everyone is in the courtroom and knows of your arrival by now," he said regally.

While walking awkwardly behind the god-like emperor of the multiverse, Hazel and Anatoly were able to take a closer look at what they were wearing and how to be able to walk and move more accurately and gracefully in it. Hazel was in an exquisite and intricate scarlet lace gown covered in black holographic glitters and streaks. The train looked to be pure silk, cinched every few feet to create an elegant appearance. Anatoly wore a suit with matching colors, the jawline of the sweater dipping down in the center of his neck, his cape stitched in a similar style to Hazel's train.

Hazel reached up to move a loose strand of hair behind her ear and noticed long diamond shaped earrings of some kind of white exotic stone from somewhere far away in the multiverse. She felt her mouth turn upwards into a smile as she realized that she would be making the best first impression she had ever made, and that was just based on looks alone.

A grand set of double doors with delicate engravings stood proudly in front of them, a commotion coming from behind it. Conversations, glasses clinking, and laughing slipped through what should have been locked. Aphos glared at the two, another storm of energy sweeping over them and fixing their clothing. He put a finger on his lips to tell them to be quiet as he gracefully opened the doors, silencing the crowd inside of the courtroom.

"It is an honor to be seeing you all once again," Aphos said, lifting all six of his arms to a position that radiated nothing but pure and uncut power.

He stepped into the room, his arms high to his sides, looking around at the crowd around him. As he moved towards his throne, he let his arms down to his sides to prepare for the entry of Hazel and Anatoly.

"I now present to you all two Ex-Pians, who have given me a terrible message," he said, motioning for them to come forward, "and you shall treat them with respect."

Anatoly linked arms with Hazel, walking in sync to the center of the room. Being near one extremely tall Vasioner was one thing, but having many of them in one room on all sides was overwhelming. Hazel's breath shook with nervousness, and her friend brought her slightly closer to him as a source of comfort. Almost instantly, her confidence rose dramatically. She felt a courage she hadn't seen in herself in a long time, knowing that she was there for a reason. She was there to protect the multiverse from certain doom.

"You may now speak," Aphos said, staring unblinkingly down at them.

Anatoly took a deep breath before taking his turn to make the first impression.

"Your majesty, the Seventh Universe has been collapsing for a long time before we have relayed this message to you," he said, trying his hardest not to allow his voice to waver, "and we hope to make an attempt to protect the rest of the multiverse from its raging storm of gravity."

Aphos nodded in approval and turned his head slightly to face Hazel.

"Our worlds are in danger. Our worlds, not just your beautiful multiverse, are in danger of destruction. As it consumes more, it will only grow in power and force," Hazel continued, "nobody is safe if nothing is done about the Seventh Universe, and I am afraid we may have to call it the Angel of Death, a beautiful storm of fatal energy and force."

"All what they have said is true," Aphos said, turning to the full courtroom, looking for someone who may have an idea to help his creations continue to live and grow.

The silence from within the court stopped and chatter built up once again. Fear of Aphos' rage reigned in the now tense room. After a few minutes of talking, silence fell over the courtroom. A woman stood up with a notebook, clearing her throat.

"Excuse me, your honorable majesty, my group has come up with a proposal," she said, shuffling through the notes, "to remove the universe altogether. We can pull it through as we pass over it and send it out into the Great Void, where it will eventually be far enough away that we will not need to worry about it."

Aphos nodded pensively, motioning for her to take a seat. From the other side of the room, a man took a stand.

"Aphos, your majesty, perhaps we can find a way to harvest and make use of all of that matter. It is dense enough that it could be used for artificial gravity," he said nervously.

"I will not allow that. Matter from neutron stars, maybe, but not from a black hole. That is simply too dangerous and would end up hurting us all," Aphos said angrily, his skin flushing a dark navy.

"I am deeply sorry, I am mistaken. I just thought that we could use it for som-"

"Come here, now."

Hazel and Anatoly knew exactly what was about to happen. Nobody could anger Aphos without experiencing the consequences. They inched closer together, wanting to feel some comfort in the scarring experience that would ensue.

"Your neck," he said, fingering his key menacingly, "I will not allow a dim-witted man like you to hold any power in such a tense situation!"

The man bent over, exposing the keyhole. Aphos jabbed his necklace into it, sending intense electric shocks throughout the victim's body. Anatoly cringed at the sight, Hazel unable to take her eyes off of it. She didn't want to see the light leave his eyes, but something kept her from averting her eyes and mind.

"This court session is over. I know what I will do," Aphos said hoarsely, breathing heavily.

As the Vasioners filed out of the room, the two Exans attempted to escape with them, but were stopped by one of Aphos' tails again.

"No, not now. You cannot leave. You will not leave. I know who you are, now. Hazel Ununquadius, you impure mutt, how dare you enter my palace with your dirty First Origin blood?" he said, on his hands and knees, eyes filled with a flaming rage.

"You have done what you have needed to do for me. I see no use for your half-blooded self to live much longer. I cannot risk the Exan bloodline from becoming much more corrupted!"

Any pigment that was left on Hazel's already pale skin had completely disappeared at that point. She felt panic take over her brain, her only goal to survive.

"Why didn't you just kill me as a child? It wouldn't be that hard," Hazel said, trying to divert the conversation slowly over time.

"It is against our culture to leave Vasion. We are only safe here, we are much more vulnerable than we appear. No, no. I'll need to take you to Rephana. She will dispose of you in a much more satisfying way than I ever could," he said, now almost sounding completely delusional.