Dimensional Hotel

(.)

Invaders.

Yu Sheng’s thoughts had already been thrown into chaos even before he heard those three unsettling words. The moment he learned that a Dark Angel could appear in the real world, and then heard Song Cheng mention “another planet,” he began to sense that these so-called “angels” were far stranger and more powerful than he had ever imagined. But he never would have guessed that they might actually be invaders from somewhere outside this world.

Until recently, he had thought these beings were somewhat like the entities in the Otherworld—unusual presences that belonged to this realm, albeit a more perilous type of “super entity.”

“No wonder Little Red Riding Hood advised me to stay away from the Dark Angels,” Yu Sheng murmured under his breath.

Song Cheng, who heard Yu Sheng’s remark, did not comment. Instead, he placed a new stack of files on the coffee table. “I brought some additional dossiers on the Dark Angels, though it’s not a complete collection. Certain Dark Angels have a peculiar trait where just knowing their name can result in a ‘leak’—so they can only be discussed and studied in the Bureau’s safe houses. Others are classified as forbidden for different reasons, and even I don’t have the clearance to see them. But the ones here are safe to read. They won’t harm you just by looking.”

This time, Yu Sheng didn’t immediately grab the files. Instead, a thought struck him, and he asked, “Why are you going to all this trouble for me? I’ll bet you don’t usually hand out high-level documents like these to other Spirit Realm detectives, even if they’ve come across a Dark Angel.”

Song Cheng paused, weighing the question before answering. “Because we suspect you might have the power to drive away ‘angels.’”

Deep down, Yu Sheng felt this was part of the reason, but he also sensed there was more to it than that. He decided not to press further. “That big eye in Night Valley wasn’t driven off by me,” he said seriously. “It left on its own.”

“But it left after it caught sight of you,” Song Cheng insisted. “Yes, there were others there too, but you were the one who stood out. I realize this might not be the strongest explanation—but with the Dark Angels, we’re practically grasping at straws.

“No one has figured out any of their weaknesses or the rules they live by. No one can communicate with them. Up until now, both in this world and beyond the Borderland, there have been incredibly few confirmed cases of someone actually repelling an ‘angel.’ In almost all those cases, the being simply acted like it got bored and chose to leave. So we can only guess. Perhaps that ‘eye’ leaving had nothing to do with you—or maybe it did.”

He paused, then continued, “This is also the judgment made by Director Bai Li Qing. Without her approval, I wouldn’t have been allowed to show you these files.”

“Bai Li Qing, huh?” Yu Sheng repeated thoughtfully. At last, he turned his attention to the latest files. He didn’t read every word but skimmed the contents quickly.

“These really are… bizarre,” he muttered, eyeing the strange, almost abstract illustrations, along with the notes beneath them. “A shadow, a ball of fire, a giant silent cube floating in the night sky… hang on, is that just a sphere?”

“Its diameter is about four thousand kilometers,” Song Cheng answered.

Yu Sheng went completely still. “…What?”

“You heard correctly,” Song Cheng said. “‘Heka Star,’ named after the first person who discovered it—and became its first victim—has a diameter of roughly four thousand kilometers. So far, it’s the largest confirmed Dark Angel we know of in terms of physical size. Its surface is covered in endless hexagonal lattice structures, and inside, there’s a powerful life force. It intrudes into star systems that harbor life, sending out strange radio signals from a safe distance. We don’t have direct proof, but we believe these broadcasts slowly drive intelligent life to madness. Several horrific wars and coups might be tied to the arrival of Heka Star.”

Yu Sheng set the file down, gaping at Song Cheng. “So you want me to fight that thing? Is that a joke?”

“No, no,” Song Cheng said with a quick wave of his hands. “A being on that scale is not something anyone can just ‘fight.’ We merely hope… you can learn more about the Dark Angels, so you’ll be prepared if you ever run into one again.”

Yu Sheng rolled his eyes. Switching the subject, he asked, “All right, then. What else do you know about these ‘angels’?”

Song Cheng’s voice turned serious. “Let’s talk about their influence. Although the Dark Angels are all rather peculiar and display different traits, most of them share one defining feature: they’re connected to the Otherworld, and they deeply affect it.

“As I mentioned, even though the Dark Angels can manifest in the real world, it’s more common for them to ‘descend’ into the Otherworld. Whenever they do, the place where they appear becomes ‘activated.’ The entities that live there become more violent, and even the fundamental rules of the region shift—sometimes the overall depth of the Otherworld itself changes. Remember what happened in Night Valley?”

Yu Sheng sighed and spread his hands. “Oh, I remember it vividly. That Hunger Entity, which should have only appeared once, ended up covering the entire valley. By the end, the whole valley itself turned into a single giant entity. We got very lucky to make it out.”

“In most situations, people who get stuck in the Otherworld don’t share your luck. Very few survive an encounter with a Dark Angel. Even if the Dark Angel doesn’t attack directly, people get trapped in the environment that’s transformed by its presence—whether by murderous entities or twisted Otherworld rules,” Song Cheng explained. “We’ve been trying to study the Dark Angels for a long time, hoping to learn why they show up in the Otherworld far more often than in the real world. Some scholars think the Otherworld contains something that draws them in, or…”

“Or what?” Yu Sheng prompted.

“Or the Otherworld itself is some kind of ‘weak point’ in the fabric of space-time within our world,” Song Cheng went on. “In the Otherworld, the power of order is feeble, and that might allow these ‘angels’ to slip through. Since the Dark Angels are invaders from beyond our world, they’re like holes torn open in our reality. And the Otherworld might just be a… natural hole.”

Before Yu Sheng could reply, Irene, who had been quietly listening all this time, spoke up. “What about those ‘Angel Cultists’? Who in their right mind would follow these terrifying ‘angels’? They don’t answer prayers, and they don’t seem able to communicate.”

Song Cheng nodded gravely. “We’ve captured a number of Angel Cultists, and you might be amazed by how many people join them. They don’t just appear in the Borderland. You can find them almost anywhere a Dark Angel has manifested. Some fall under their influence because they crave power or forbidden knowledge, but the core members—the fanatical believers—insist they’ve received what they call ‘guidance.’”

“Guidance?” Yu Sheng repeated, pointing to the files. “From these weird, abstract ‘angels’? You said they can’t communicate.”

“They can’t, at least not that we understand. But the cultists claim they truly hear the voices of the Dark Angels. According to them, it’s not just random, meaningless babble, but actual ‘direction’ and ‘teaching.’ I’ve interrogated some of the die-hard cultists, and they usually describe the ‘voice’ the same way:

“It’s gentle, compassionate, brimming with love and understanding. They say the voices show them the universe’s ultimate fate and then encourage them, explaining how to find a way out—how to seek salvation through working alongside the ‘angels.’”

Song Cheng paused for a moment, gathering his thoughts. “By studying the cultists’ mental states and using hypnosis, we’ve managed to reconstruct, at least partially, how the Dark Angels influence them. The ‘guidance’ they receive is a kind of immersive experience. Intense, unending hallucinations draw them into a vision that’s completely inhuman. Ordinary minds can’t endure it. By the time the process finishes, the person’s spirit is wholly transformed—they might still look human, but their minds are changed into something else.

“This is the puzzle that has confounded scholars. The Dark Angels differ wildly in appearance and ability. They don’t even seem to belong to the same species. Yet the cultists, no matter which Dark Angel they follow, describe remarkably similar ‘guidance.’ It always involves a ‘dark apocalypse’ and some ‘path to salvation,’ and the specifics are strangely consistent. This forces us to consider the possibility that the Dark Angels might have a common awareness—or at least share a single purpose.”

Yu Sheng frowned. “It must be dangerous to research them.”

“Extremely,” Song Cheng confirmed. “The biggest challenge is that if you only skim the surface, you’ll never uncover their secrets. But if you learn too much, you risk succumbing to their influence. Even dealing with cultists can make you accidentally ‘see’ some of the guidance that’s imprinted on their minds. Several scholars who originally tried to fight against the angels have gradually become Angel Cultists themselves.”

He fell silent, letting the weight of his words hang in the air. Yu Sheng and Irene exchanged uneasy glances, both deeply aware of how little they truly understood about these nameless invaders—and how dangerous that ignorance could be.

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