The Guardian Of The Multiverse: A Hero's Burden

The Forgotten Exclamation Mark

(Marvel, DC, images, manhuas, and every anime that will be mentioned and used in this story are not mine. They all belong to their respective owners. The main character "Karito Josue Valdez" and the story are mine)

I feel so... strange. Voices echo through my head. The ground feels rusted, as if this place hasn't been visited for years. Slowly, I open my eyes. The light makes me squint, my pupils dilating. Rising to my knees, I survey my surroundings. There isn't much to see, but right in front of me is a door with a strange question mark marked on it.

As I lay eyes on it, a piercing headache invades my mind. I recognize this sensation; it's information pertaining to the dimension I'm in. It appears that this door leads to level "Run For Your Life!"—the one seemingly penned by a 9-year-old. Well, there doesn't seem to be much else to do, considering this is the exit for this level.

The Spider-God did throw me into The Backrooms, huh? How annoying. It also seems that the second Guardian is facing Godzilla in another dimension after accidentally distorting Space and Time. He's not going to have an easy time against an opponent much higher in the Tiering System. But I hope he will eventually be able to make some headway. Perhaps I should impart some information about his new powers and the enemy, at least to a degree where he won't lose his mind. For that information, I'm going to have to explain it to him personally.

Anyway, I have my own problems to deal with now. The Darks have made sure to imprison me inside dimensional barriers, each containing uncountable infinities atop each other. Inaccessible and Mahlo cardinals... Well, I'm severely fucked, aren't I?

How in the hell am I supposed to break through those two-dimensional barriers? First, the inaccessible cardinal is so immense that you can't reach it by simply incrementing smaller numbers, as one usually would. It's like a milestone that remains elusive, no matter how many steps you take. Below this large number, the sizes of sets stabilize, lending orderliness and coherence to the mathematical universe. Regardless of how many attempts are made to ascend the ladder of numbers using ordinal exponentiation, one always falls short of reaching the inaccessible cardinal. It's as if there's an insurmountable barrier preventing progress beyond a certain point. Think of inaccessible cardinals as rare, super-strong pillars in the world of numbers, upholding the structure of mathematics and imposing limits on how far we can ascend in certain directions.

And the Mahlo cardinal? Sitting atop that? While an inaccessible cardinal poses a formidable barrier in the realm of set theory, a Mahlo cardinal goes a step further by ensuring that the set of smaller inaccessible cardinals isn't scattered sporadically, but densely packed and uninterrupted beneath it. It's akin to a towering peak in the mathematical landscape, surrounded by a dense forest of smaller peaks, each representing another inaccessible cardinal. Mahlo cardinals contribute an extra layer of structural integrity to the mathematical universe. By guaranteeing the presence of numerous inaccessible cardinals beneath them, they establish a robust foundation upon which the hierarchy of ordinals can stand. This dense network of cardinals provides stability and coherence to the intricate framework of set theory. In the hierarchy of large cardinals, Mahlo cardinals reign supreme. While inaccessible cardinals form the first line of defense against the infinite, Mahlo cardinals stand as the commanders, orchestrating the arrangement of smaller inaccessible cardinals below them with precision and finesse.

So, in short, I'm extremely and utterly SCREWED!

(Toxin) "Look, overthinking how to escape this reality isn't going to take us anywhere," he interrupted.

(Karito) "Oh yeah? Then what the hell do you suggest?" he asked sarcastically.

(Toxin) "Well, complaining is doing so much right now, ain't it?" He scoffs.