In the image, the Celestials gathered before a ruined ancient site. A dull Spacetime Fragment rested on its stone platform.
"The Void Aberration failed to force him to use his full strength," one Celestial said in a low voice. "Initiate the fourth plan. Awaken the Ancient Spacetime Phantoms within the ruins.
"They can traverse every tributary of time and attack three points at once: past, present, and future. By striking Earth in different eras, they will leave him unable to defend them all."
"The Temporal Arbiter excels at controlling time. But if countless Temporal Phantoms infiltrate multiple timelines at once, even his Temporal Origin will struggle to seal off every front. That will give us a chance to gauge the limits of his power."
The image abruptly vanished.
On the terrace, the mood turned cold.
Loren's expression darkened. "They can cross tributaries of time and attack Earth's past, present, and future at once. If they infiltrate multiple timelines simultaneously, Earth's chronology will fall into widespread chaos, with countless chains of cause and effect coming into conflict."
Wanda frowned. "The enemy has begun attacking through time itself. That's precisely the hardest part of our defenses to protect."
Everyone rose and looked toward the distant, dark sea of stars—and the myriad intersecting tributaries of time invisible to the naked eye.
A new struggle was about to unfold across the river of time.
Inside the ancient ruins hidden by the Celestials, an old, cold ritual slowly began.
The cracked Spacetime Fragment at the center of the stone platform trembled without cease. Gray-white mist poured from its fissures, carrying countless shattered images.
The instant a civilization died out. The lingering image of a collapsing star. The wails of countless lives before they vanished.
These were the Temporal Phantoms, uncanny spirits born in the gaps