"Truths Revealed"
Finn and Fionna hastily ascended one of the stone spires that made up the outer ring of the 'Sanctuary,' expecting to find their target but not knowing what else to expect beyond that. The climb was a little difficult for Finn with one of his arms injured and bound, but Fionna was plenty help in getting him up high enough to where he could easily jump down to the interior. But before that they paused at the top of the spire, each taking the chance to survey the field below.
They were much closer to what they considered the 'back' end, between the last row of benches and the massive statute of the nondescript figure. And far away they could see the strange and shadowy figure, once again leaning over the altar in front of the bench rows. From what they could tell, there was a single, small dark sphere hovering just above the altar, but unlike the ones that had been demolishing the Ooos. This was noticeably different, brighter almost, more concentrated. Unfortunately the Humans couldn't be sure if this was how all the black holes started or if there was something special about this one. Either way they immediately knew they had to interfere, so without any hesitation the heroes catapulted themselves to the dusty gravel below.
Even though the spellcaster did not immediately turn to them, neither Hero was really expecting to keep the element of surprise at this point. So they moved towards the center of the Sanctuary, coming just to the split between the least rows of benches. Sure enough, before they could move any farther a small black hole tore open the air just a few rows in front of them, blocking their view of the altar and forcing them to stop in their tracks. Although the hole did not give off any force both Humans still took a few cautious steps back. It didn't take more than a second after that for the mysterious figure to step out of the hole, which quickly dissipated after their emergence.
Once the voidcaster had emerged fully before them the heroic duo immediately unsheathed their golden blades. It didn't escape Finn's notice that the wizard (from his perspective) formed a mild grimace at the sight of the swords. However, despite their clear readiness to battle the mage still refused to make any sort of threatening move towards them, and only stood looking very displeased.
"I can see I clearly did not give you two enough credit for your tenacity. No, I can admit I made the rather foolish mistake of hoping you would both just stumble and die in that wretched palace. For that you have my sincere apology." The binary being spat at them with anything but sincerity.
"Unfortunately, you've still caused me a serious grievance. You see, I was just in the midst of calling on another piece of your world to return here, and now thanks to your intrusion I had to completely call it off. I'm sure you wouldn't realize, but that is a severe annoyance to me." The more the spellcaster spoke the more venom became evident in their voice, but neither Finn nor Fionna felt any particular regret for their inconvenience.
"Tough luck! You're hardly the first lunatic with some idiotic, world-ending plan we've ruined!" Fionna shot back to the ever clearly agitated witch.
"That's right, and at least most of them had the guts to fight us face to face!" Finn piped up in addition, watching himself as the wizard's pale lips curled back ever farther in a nasty scowl.
Surprisingly enough, it almost seemed like their words gave the villain some slight pause, as they merely stood silent a moment. Almost, but not fully. However, even as the mage refused to move or speak, both humans could sense something begin to radiate off of them, like a growing frustration so strong it was practically tangible. The shadowy wisps that had been slowly drifting about their body began to agitate, move quicker and become more noticeable.
The energy surrounding the being was growing more malevolent, enough to even force the Humans to take a cautionary glance at one another. When they started to speak again their voice was much more vile, dripping with indignation and anger.
"'World-ending' you say? You children know absolutely nothing about the very lands from whence you come. You don't even realize how unfathomably fortunate, how spoiled you lot are. That world you each call your own, Ooo, is far more unique than either of you realize. It's teeming, utterly saturated with life and energy in a way few other dimensions are. You both live in a veritable paradise, and yet… you squander it all."
"And it's not just you two. Every living thing in your worlds, every plant that absorbs light from your sun and every animal that preys upon other lives. Every peasant that scratches their existence out of the dirt and every King that feasts on their labors. Every scientist that toils to rationalize the phenomena of your world and every wizard that draws energy to exploit the arcane. None of them even come close to realizing or tapping the incomprehensible ocean of energy your world is built upon."
"And the most insulting part, each one of your worlds only makes up a fraction of the wealth of power that should really exist. The 'two Ooos' you perceive a farce, a sad shadow of their former selves. Broken pieces leftover from a single world, one so dazzlingly rich with life you couldn't possibly imagine." Though neither human thought it possible, the mage's tone turned even darker from this point. Before they'd sounded insulted, injured by the world, but now it was starting to feel that they were directing all of their anger specifically at Finn and Fionna.
"So no, I'm not ending a world, I'm restoring the world that was stolen from me. MY world, which was shattered into two better halves while leaving me stuck here in this hollow shell in between!" In the midst of the madwoman's ravings, something started to click in Fionna's mind. Choice words the witch had used, 'broken pieces' and 'leftover,' resonated with her, stirring something in her memory.
As far as the Girl could tell, Finn seemed more focused on her menace than the undercurrents of her words, but as she herself continued to wonder she soon realized why these themes sounded familiar. Her thoughts went back to the old witch that had helped her connect with Finn, and the way she'd described things. The mirror, the sword, even the Gray World itself, she'd called them 'leftovers'.
"Your worlds never should've existed in the first place, so piece by piece I'm dragging them back to where they belong. I will bring them back together as they should be, and I will not suffer the insult of being stopped by a pair of spoiled brats like you!" Finally, whatever restraint the entity had managed to keep so far burst. Both Heroes could sense this and immediately struck a defensive pose with their swords.
The spellcaster was hardly hindered by their display of courage. Fury practically swirling around their form, they raised a hand to either side of themselves while the air loudly snapped with magical energy. Two pulsing dark spheres appeared over either hand, crackling with purple lightning. This wasn't the same void magic they'd been exposed to before, this was malevolent destructive force, and both Humans could sense this. Wearing a mad, twisted expression, the personality-split villain viciously cast the two black missiles at the young adventurers.
With little else they could do, Finn and Fionna huddled together, shoulder to shoulder, and raised their blades to the oncoming spheres, just hoping that whatever enchantment lay dormant within would be enough to protect them. To everyone's surprise, they wouldn't be finding out at that particular moment.
Just as the evil rays started to speed through the air a massive sound like a bell chiming rang throughout the stagnant air. Barely a millisecond afterwards both Humans felt an odd force at their back, intensely powerful but at the same time feeling as though it posed them no threat. As they felt that pressure they saw the air in front of them shake, like a shockwave echoing out from an explosion. The wave of pressure rushed out in front of the duo, meeting the dark spheres before they could harm their victims and snuffing them out as easily as candle flames.
Things became eerily still after that moment, the Heroes barely glancing over to one another to confirm that yes, something very weird had just happened and neither knew why. Both still kept their attention firmly locked on the enemy, however, who themselves appeared to be just as baffled.
Before either Human could decide whether or not to act the situation became even more uncertain. Something was happening to the very land before their eyes, the pale gray stones were becoming lighter, their own shadows grew long in front of them and the air itself seemed to become somewhat hazy, shimmering even. It took a moment for either Human to realize why these things were happening; a strong light was emanating from behind them.
Now knowing they had to see what was going on, Finn and Fionna took a step away from one another and angled their bodies to face each other, in this way able to look back without turning on the dark mage. What they saw was even stranger than they might've initially guessed. There was indeed a brilliant light shining out over the dreary sanctuary. What was most remarkable is that this light was unlike anything they'd known should belong in the Gray World. This wasn't some false, unnerving source of luminance like the gray sun above them. This was a genuine, warm light, something that put their hearts at ease. And this strange, vibrant light seemed to be coming off of the huge, semi-humanoid statue.
Out of caution, the Humans quickly looked back to the voidcaster, but their attention seemed completely off of the Heroes now. Instead they stared hard and singularly at the bright statue, still wearing a look of disbelief but now infused with an intense anger, far more than either Hero had seen directed at them.
The light continued to grow more and more brilliant, once again drawing the Humans' attention, but oddly enough no matter how bright it got they were able to look on it without having to shield their eyes. That detail might've slipped their thought, but what didn't escape their notice was a new sensation rising with the light, one they immediately recognize as a pulling sensation like what happened when a black hole opened up, but they also soon recognized this was wildly different than those circumstances.
The pull they felt wasn't on their bodies, and indeed it didn't appear to be affecting the spellcaster or anything else around them. In fact, neither had even noticed until their respective medals had slipped from their shirts and were being tugged towards the statue. Both were completely aglow in a similar light, far more so than the calm wisps they'd seen before.
The two shared an uneasy look with one another before noticing another pull. This time it was their half-blades edging towards the luminous statue. They too started to shimmer with an incredibly brilliant light, pulling their Humans' arms towards the statute, but not so strong that they couldn't keep them from flying off. And once that thought entered the Heroes' heads they realized the biggest difference between what was happening now and what happened when a dark hole opened. When they'd been sucked into a dark hole that had been terrifying, they'd been utterly overpowered, forced against their will into this messed-up world devoid of life. But this light, while it pulled on their possessions it did not feel as though it were seeking to tear them away, take them by force. Perhaps it was something about the light, an unstated sense of calm, like it was asking permission to have the objects, not demanding they surrender them.
Once more thinking the same thing, Fionna and Finn turned and silently assured each other before loosening their medals from their necks and setting both them and the swords free. Immediately the ancient artifacts were drawn back towards the light, and the Heroes quickly lost track of them. As soon as the item were completely lost behind the veil, the intensity of the light began to fade quickly, and in only a few moments the light was gone completely and the statue back to it's usual, blank state. Despite that, not everything was exactly as it had been before. In fact, the biggest surprise yet now stood facing the heroes and villain.
With the light having died away Finn was absolutely stunned to see a lone figure had been left in its wake, standing at the base of the statue. And for perhaps just the briefest moment, the Boy's thoughts might have been on the rational side, wondering just how in the world a fourth person could've managed to get into this realm when he'd known for the longest time that only he, Fionna, and the wizard had been able to survive here. But rationality was quickly out of his scope.
The being was still at a distance that Finn couldn't make out every detail, but there was plenty that immediately stood out. It was definitely a humanoid figure, wearing a brilliant robe of white and gold. He could tell a massive mane of flowing, golden hair swept back from their head, but he couldn't quite tell if it was a man or woman that it belonged to. Finn could also see that it held the golden sword he'd just given up. But perhaps more telling than anything else at this point, the being was positively radiant, practically aglow, but not quite in the sense that the statue had been. It wasn't so much a physical brightness, just a certain sense of presence, something truly amazing that he could just tell filled the air around it.
Soon it began to approach the three people that had preceded its' arrival. The being was definitely present, but Finn couldn't' help but feel it moved like a spirit, its' movement was too free, as though untaxed by worldly matters. With every step it took Finn could make out a few more miniscule details. He thought he could make out their face, far too plain for it to be one of the more outlandish humanoids, and frankly very similar to his own or Fionna's. Their skin was blindingly white, more like marble than flesh. Even so, with everything he noticed Finn still didn't feel like he wasn't clearly seeing anything at all, like some vague veil kept their finer details too ambiguous for him to make a real distinction.
Few things could've ripped Finn's attention away from the magnificent and mysterious figure, but intervention by the dark wizard was definitely at the top of that list. "YOU!..." The Boy's neck twisted back towards the voidcaster as he cried out indignantly. "YOU ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE HERE! I DID AWAY WITH YOU ONCE, AND YOU WILL NOT INTEREFERE AGAIN!" The wizard screamed in pure, blinding hatred, more like a raving monster than a wizened sage. Far quicker than Finn had thought possible, the voidcaster conjured another black hole and hurled it straight down at the new arrival.
The Boy's head swiveled to follow that black ball as it sought out the figure in white. He was almost afraid the figure wasn't going to react at all and simply allow the all-consuming mass to engulf him. However, almost faster than Finn's eye could follow, the strange person threw out the golden blade to intercept and cut through the black sphere, dissipating it as easily as if they were popping a balloon.
"Now now, that's enough of that." For the first time Finn heard the figure speak, and just hearing his voice felt like he was being filled with a wealth of awe and confidence. It was just faintly masculine, he thought at least, but it was still oddly hard to tell. Far more important, there was just some unquantifiable characteristic that carried along with the tone, and it reminded Finn of when he was younger, when he'd had real heroes to look up to and guide him. He could hear Billy's voice in the undercurrents of the stranger's, he could hear his father, he could even hear Jake in there too. Something in the timbre brought to life the collective wisdom that the great men of his life had passed down to him. This wasn't a hero's voice, this was the hero's voice.
But while Finn remained silent in awe of the figure, he himself kept his focus solely on the voidcaster. Just as it looked like the evil wizard was about to prepare another attack, the light entity struck out first. He moved with a grace that Finn didn't' think capable of mortals, flourishing the golden blade in a brilliant display. At the end of his show, a bolt of energy channeled from the guard of the blade up to the point, and was released as a great ball of white energy, like the complete antithesis of the black holes.
The white ball rocketed forth faster than the voidcaster could follow, slamming into and engulfing the dark-robed figure. Finn almost couldn't believe his eyes, and for too long a moment allowed himself to childishly believe that everything was over, the bad guy had been defeated and this great hero would soon have them home. Unfortunately and as is too often the case, things are rarely that easy. Finn started to bed down his hoped when he realized that the white sphere was not disappearing, and was instead simply floating where the spellcaster had once been. Finn wasn't able to take his eyes off the sphere until he heard the figure behind him start to walk again.
Fionna had been mystified by this stranger before, but after that display of force she was awestruck. Whatever the entity had done, even if she hadn't destroyed the voidcaster, they were definitely at least neutralized for the time being. And once Fionna realized that, she noticed that the mysterious woman's attention was now squarely on herself and Finn as she continued to approach them.
Finally she had come close enough that Fionna was able to make out the last deciding details. First, she was much taller than she'd originally thought, easily two heads above herself and Finn. Now that she was close enough, Fionna was actually a little surprised to find the woman was truly gorgeous, in a classical sense; the Girl actually couldn't believe it'd been so hard to tell from afar. She carried herself with an otherworldly air of regality that no other royal she'd seen could hope to compare to.
The last things Fionna noticed only as the woman slowed her approach. First was the sword, which Fionna had noticed earlier. What she hadn't noticed was that she was not carrying a half blade, but the completed sword, just the way she'd first seen it in the depths of that dungeon. Second was the medal draped over her neck atop the luxurious robes. Unquestionably it was the one she'd been in possession of these last several weeks, but so too was it the similar one Finn had come across. There was no doubt that it was both of the medals combined in a single whole. Her half, silver, alongside his gold half, and the small half-filled heart charm linking the two in the center.
The magnificent woman finally came to a stop a few feet away, still straight along the path between Finn and Fionna. She cast her gaze back and forth between the two before settling on meeting Fionna's eyes, and settled on a brilliantly warm smile, one that filled the Girl's heart with sense of elation, almost like she were a little girl again with her mother looking cherishingly down at her.
"So, you two must be the heroes then." She practically sang in her otherworldly voice, addressing them both though she kept her gaze on the Girl. "I can't express how happy I am to finally be able to meet a pair like you."
Fionna had been awestruck enough just watching the woman rise from the light like some celestial deity, and now that she were speaking directly to her she could hardly find the sense to remember her own name. She couldn't even feel her own tongue, and judging by his lack of silence Finn was in a similar state. Similar, but not completely equal, as somehow he did manage to eke out some speech.
"Y-You… th-the wizard… did you…?" The Boy stammered horribly, clearly still overwhelmed and mystified by all that had transpired in such a short time. Still, his meaning was not lost on Fionna, nor the entity it seemed, as she merely chuckled warmly, as though she were watching a toddler try to walk for the first time.
"Destroy him? How I wish that were the case, but sadly it isn't. And how I wish I had more time to interact with you two, but unfortunately I've only managed to bind our foes in place. Rest assured there's no chance for him to escape from there, however it is only a temporary measure, and they will be free again soon, but not before we've had our say." She went on to explain, curiously still just looking at Fionna even though it was Finn she answered.
Finn's perspective, however, revealed a slightly different angle. He wasn't sure why the man had chosen to exclusively focus on him instead of Fionna, and the attention was certainly not making things any easier for him. He felt scrutinized and incredibly anxious, but at the same time more than a little giddy, honored even to have the magnificent figure's full attention. Just being able to half-ask that simple question took a tremendous effort on Finn's part. Luckily the man would continue to elaborate without needing another prompt.
"Like my… opposition over there, I've also been watching you two for some time now, though with a far more benevolent intent. I must admit, when you first caught my attention I truly did not know what to think of either of you, but as I've watched you overcome the trials that were set so long ago, well… you inspired a great deal of confidence in me."
Finn wasn't entirely sure what to make of the deity's words, and felt like there really was several questions he should be asking that he just couldn't get past the tip of tongue. Fortunately it seemed Fionna was thinking a little more clearly, perhaps because she wasn't the one whom the man seemed so interested in.
"So, you were watching us too? Does that mean you're like her… the witch?" To Finn it sounded like her question dangerously straddled the border between curiosity and fearful accusation, however the luminous figure didn't appear to take any offense.
"In several ways, yes, we are very similar, especially when looking from your perspective. We're both a remnant from the worlds as they once were, a unified whole, and we're also now both a representative of the duality in which they currently exist. But I do hope you'll believe me when I say that our wish is not to see your two worlds thrown to ruin, but to see them restored to their harmonious balance." The deity's tone was certainly not defensive nor resentful towards Fionna, and was perhaps even somewhat pleading in his sincerity. Strangely, he still didn't ever look towards Fionna as he answered her. Finn himself didn't feel completely polite looking away, but he did steal a glance at his partner, who now appeared very slightly ashamed.
"I'm sorry, I… I didn't mean to… to try and say you're evil too. It's just…" Before she could try to plead her case any further the brilliant figure just smiled, shook his head and raised his hand up as though to cut her off. Fionna immediately silenced herself, which left Finn more than a little confused as the deity had still made these gestures at him, as though he were the one just speaking. He said nothing about this, but Fionna seemed completely undisturbed by this, which only served to make him even less certain.
"You're simply curious as to why we share similar powers. And of course, by extension is the obvious question of why we're both connected to this land." The man easily followed through to ask Fionna's question for her. She nodded anxiously, confirming he'd hit the mark. "Y-Yeah, just… who or… or what exactly are you?" Finally she managed to ask the real question she wanted answered. At that he smiled almost sadly, closed his eyes and bent his head down, looking very thoughtful for a few moments. "I've long been thinking on how to answer that, and I suppose the best thing to do now is explain my whole story, that is, if you'd care enough to listen."
Finn and Fionna both nodded vigorously in response, each desperately wanting the chance to finally understand the real mysteries surrounding the Gray World and everything else connected to it. The deity looked at the two children waiting so patiently for their tale, and chuckled softly to themselves. "This story… rather, our story goes back a very, very long time. Longer than either of you could possibly comprehend."
"Your two worlds, you know them both by the same name, Ooo. Perhaps once or twice in your lives you may have heard the name Earth as well, a more appropriate term for the era prior to your own. Before that as well, your world was known by other names, countless names used by countless civilizations throughout the millennia. But no matter the time and no matter the name, both of your worlds had always been known by the same name. Do you know why that is?" The deity paused after asking that question, inviting one of their young audience to chime in.
Once again demonstrating the better memory of the two, and perhaps the more quickly developing comfort around the figure, Fionna was the one to answer. "The dark witch… mentioned something about how our worlds used to be just one?" The Girl's hesitant tone made it clear that while she remembered the words she hadn't come close to fully understanding them. Nevertheless, the deity nodded approvingly.
"That's right. While you two have lived in worlds that had remained separate from each other for eons, at their inception both were joined as a single plane, one Ooo, as you would know it. That was the world where we lived. And in that world, we were heroes, much the same way as I've come to understand you two are. We would travel the land, slaying monsters, battling evil forces and protecting the innocent. And we were quite good at it too, I don't mind saying, so for a time we managed to keep things relatively peaceful." The deity paused briefly there, and for the first time Finn and Fionna saw their expression fall just slightly. "But one day this new upstart appeared out of the blue, wielding an immense amount power that we'd never thought possible before. That would turn out to be the same dark entity that's been terrorizing you two."
As the figure needed to take another pause, a certain gear was turning in Finn's head this time, urging him to recall something else the wizard had said. "The wizard… when he was talking to us earlier he mentioned that Ooo was… special, I guess? Something about it having a lot of power?" His comment seemed to help the deity decide on something, probably the next tangent they'd explain.
"That's correct. Tell me, you're both aware that there exists a multitude of dimensions besides your own, yes?" The figure stopped again just long enough for both of the Humans to nod slightly in confirmation. "Well, Ooo is hardly unique in that there exists life in it. After all, many if not most of the other universes and worlds sustain some manner of life. However, Ooo is somewhat unique in the sheer amount of life it holds. Few other worlds can compare to the diversity and sheer magnitude of life that seems so familiar to us."
Now Fionna couldn't help but interrupt, one fact having bothered her since hearing it during the voidcaster's ranting. "Sorry, but there's something I don't really get. What does life have to do with power? I figured that witch would be interested in getting a lot of magical power, but what does she need life for. Everything living we've seen come here besides us has… died."
"You think of power as a simple source of energy, distinct from yourself and other living things. But the world, every world, is composed of a complex mesh of life and energy. All forms of energy, whether the sort channeled by mages like myself to induce magic, or the sort that can easily be contained in a battery, are all just examples of one common force that encompasses and supports a world."
"Energy can be utilized in its' raw form, or it can be channeled back through the world to create life. And life is not only an embodiment of that energy, but it's unique in that it can spread and multiply, and eventually releases back to that nebulous cloud of energy. In that way each world is sustained by a cycle, energy allows life to flourish, and life subsequently releases energy. And the more life there is, the more energy is available, and so on in an unending cycle."
"That energy is what the dark entity is after. Whatever life exists now is inconsequential because they know that even if everything dies in the transfer the vast energy they collect will eventually restart the cycle. Why Ooo is so unique in the amount of life it holds is a question I don't have the answer to, but that's ultimately of no importance."
Finn absorbed everything he heard with rapt attention, and he couldn't help coming to a disturbing question. "So… what exactly did he want, er, does he want with all that power?" At that the deity released a rather humorless, sarcastic laugh, another first. "You know, it has been so long I don't believe I can recall what it was actually planning. Come to think of it, I'm not sure we every truly learned that in the first place. But then again, what does any malicious entity want with power? Control? Destruction? Chaos? Death? In the end we knew it didn't matter, what mattered was that we put an end to it before the power could be harnessed to do evil."
As the humans listened they understood more and more, not only about the voidcaster and their intent, but about this brilliant figure as well. And the more they understood, the more comfortable they became with the deity. That wasn't to say they lost their awe or reverence for the figure, just that it was becoming much easier for them to communicate on equal footings.
As that occurred, Finn finally began to take note of the odd phrasing the deity had been using on occasion, and now felt comfortable enough to ask about that. "Sorry to interrupt again but if you don't mind me asking there's been something bugging me." Though still a bit antsy, he seemed to be mostly past his totally nervous stuttering, sounding more like he would broaching an uncomfortable subject with any of his normal companions. The deity looked curious for a second, but nodded her approval for the Boy to ask. Fionna too looked curiously at her counterpart.
"This whole time, whenever you've talked about yourself you've used words like 'we' and 'us.' To be honest, at first I kind've thought you were talking about you and the dark wizard, but now it doesn't really seem that way. So, I was just wondering, was there someone else there during… whatever happened with you?" Finn asked, sounding far more curious than nervous now. To both Human's surprise the deity once again smiled in response, however this was not quite the same regal, almost divine look they'd had before. There was something tangibly sad there, like they were thinking back on a bittersweet memory.
But Finn's question also got Fionna thinking. She'd noticed the strange plural-phrasing as well, but hadn't dwelt on it until he brought it up. That got her thinking on the other strange behavior she'd seen the deity, seen the woman display, especially the way she always kept her gaze on Fionna, regardless of whether she was addressing her, Finn, or the both of them. No matter how she cut it that really didn't make sense, until she started considering another example.
The woman had only focused on her, that much Fionna was certain of, but she soon realized that was only what she had seen. Her thoughts jumped back to the voidcaster, when she and Finn had first interacted with them in the ruined Candy Castle. Despite the fact that she'd perceived the spellcaster to be a woman, Finn seemed adamant that it was actually a man, and the two of them had determined that the most probable case was they were both right, and for some reason perceived different things. And if that were true in that case, it could stand to reason that the same was happening now. Fionna perceived that the deity, the woman, was really only speaking to her, but what if she wasn't getting the whole picture. Finally, the last piece snapped into place for the Girl.
"No, it's not just that there was someone else, there is someone else." Fionna commented, quiet enough that Finn couldn't be sure whether that was towards him, the deity, or just to herself. Either way, the Girl suddenly seemed very animated, now clearly focusing on the figure. "There's two of you here right now, isn't there?"
Finn stared at the Girl bizarrely, not at all understanding what she meant or how she came to that conclusion. He looked back to the deity, expecting to find a similar confusion, but once again they were smiling, somewhat somberly, but as though they were indeed confirming her guess. "You really are a brilliantly perceptive one." They praised her attentiveness, which only left Finn to lag farther behind in understanding.
"Wait what? What does that mean? How are there two of you right now?" The Boy had no choice but to admit his ignorance, desperately looking to either the deity or his partner to help him. Fi was the one that turned to assist. "Don't you get it? It's just like with the other witch! I see her as a woman, but you see a man, and somehow they both exist at the same time." As she could see the light of understanding start to glow in Finn's eye she continued on, gesturing toward the brilliant figure. "And it's the same with her too! We might both only see one person, but I'll bet you anything we're not seeing the same person! Not exactly, at least."
Finn merely blinked for a few moments as full realization washed over him. After that he looked hard to the deity, still himself seeing only a man but now able to wonder (if not actually visualize) what it was he wasn't seeing about the figure. He just looked for a minute, but just as it seemed he was about to come to a full conclusion a sour look crossed his face, like he was still somehow dissatisfied.
"Ok, so I get that we see two different people. But what does that mean? And not just for you, but the other wizard too? Are you actually two people, or some kind of thought creature, or… or something else I can't even think of? Just what are you?" Finn, taking Fionna's line of reasoning one step farther, finally brought them back to the initial question. The deity didn't show any sign of frustration, but did take a deeper breath, if nothing else suggesting a more confusing explanation was about to occur.
"As you noticed, in my story I referred to the fact that we were heroes, and yes, we as in the two of us you collectively see before you. We are, or at least used to be two distinct individuals. Now you might say we… blur the line between being two and being a single entity. You each see one of us, more or less the way we were. I would have to assume which one we appear as would simply fall to which one you yourselves would hold a closer affinity to. Ergo, a man or a woman."
Fionna listened attentively, just utterly fascinated as she continued to uncover more and more mysteries about the deity. Finn seemed slightly less mystified, still just expending all his effort to keep up from this point. "So if you really used to be two completely different people, how did you… get like this?" The Girl asked, making the next logical jump. The deity made a real sigh this time, not exactly in reluctance but it was clear they were about to delve into some painful memories.
"Like I said, the two of us were great heroes in our own time. We went on countless adventures, righted countless wrongs, and all in all lead a very charmed life. But the thing that truly made our lives so great was the simple fact that we went through it all together. The two of us shared a very… unique bond, an incomparable, unbreakable bond." They stopped a moment, looking away from either Human, both of whom could just barely see a slight shimmer in their eyes, but they soon enough shook themselves free of distraction and continued.
"Having watched you two throughout your journey, I'd like to think you might understand at least a little about how great a connection can be made between two people." Now Finn and Fionna had to look away slightly, catching each other's expression they smiled sheepishly at the thought.
"So as you can imagine when the dark entity made its' threat against our world we were the two that challenged it, being the heroes that we were. And as I've said, though we'd faced numerous and powerful foes there was simply no way we could been prepared for this one. We still don't know how it managed to discover a way to harness all the energy of the world, but as we engaged it in a tremendous battle we eventually learned that we simply would not be able to defeat it so long as it controlled all that power. Realizing that, our only option was to somehow restrict his access to the world's energy, and ideally limit the total energy once and for all."
"So, we did something we would've never before thought possible. We split the world in two." The Humans practically let their jaws drop as they heard that. The deity(s), understanding the weight of that claim, allowed the young ones a few moments to absorb that and ask any questions. "Th-That's literally insane!" Finn was the first to offer comment. "It- It does seem a little… how is that even possible?" Fionna, though just as incredulous, held herself back a bit better. The dual entity nodded in understanding at their lack of understanding.
"I know. Believe us when we say we were just as skeptical when we learned that was possible. But when you come to understand the basic principles of the multiverse you can see the logic." Making that claim, the figure saw the Human's expression change, either begging or daring them to try and explain. "Let's see if I can make this simple… As I've already explain, any given world or universe is tied to a fundamental force, which can be expressed as life. Well, just as this energy and life can divide and multiply, the same is also true for the worlds that they encompass. Of course, to split a world as you would its' energy requires a tremendous effort, and a cost."
"I'll spare you the details of how exactly we came to learn this or how we managed to achieve it. Suffice to say, it was the only way to strip the dark entity of its' power source." Again they found a somewhat appropriate point to stop, and both Finn and fionna couldn't help but think they looked like they were struggling with something, even just slightly. Although, after some thought neither could really blame them. Whatever exactly they had to do was clearly no simple task, and they wouldn't be surprised to discover that it caused some major trauma. Still, even though they were willing to avoid pushing that point specifically, they both came to realize one glaring issue with their story so far.
"Wait, something still doesn't make sense. If you had to divide the world into two, then how did the two of you end up becoming… one?" Finn was the one to grasp and ask this question first. As the dual entity looked back towards him they weren't immediately able to recover their peaceful expression, and for a brief moment both Finn and Fionna could sense just a portion of how troubled they were over this.
"I suppose it was a few different reasons that led to that. As I said, splitting an entire world comes at a tremendous risks, and extolls a cost. In that sense, you might say the cost was our bond. It wasn't broken, mind you, in fact you might argue it became stronger than ever. But truth be told, to me it simply feels as though it severed our connection. Even with the knowledge that we'd always be together we'd never again be able to interact, to truly cherish one another. Irony, as it turns out, is a great fuel for magic."
"Add to that, the fact that neither of us were mages by trade, exactly, but by necessity. Simply put, we were using forces far beyond what should've been within our ability to control. Magic is a very finicky thing, every action you take has the possibility to create a counter-action, in this case our urge to split the world created a recoil that ended up combining us. At least, that's what I believe…"
"…And there you have it. We surrendered our individual identities in order to split the world, creating the two parallel Ooos you know today. And for the millennia they've existed they've been in harmonious synchrony, whether or not either world was every truly aware of the other's existence. Separate, but indefinitely linked, as you both can no doubt tell just by looking at yourselves."
That was a lot for the two younger Heroes to take in, and all parties were silent as they reflected, either on what they'd learned or what they'd had to dredge up. For Finn and Fionna, the revelation that their world's had once been one was massive, and certainly answered many questions they'd had since the start of their collinear journey. Since they'd seen the first glimpse of one another, the biggest mystery had always been how their worlds had been so similar, and now they knew; they should've been the same world after all. Knowing this now Finn couldn't help but wonder; had their worlds always been one in the same, would he have met Fionna much sooner, always been a part of her life, or would the two of them simply not have existed as they knew each other now?
Even though they may have gotten the most important answer yet, there were still a few outlying questions, and as Finn pondered the frightful 'what-ifs' of their split world, Fionna set her mind on the last few answers she wanted. "…Hey, if you two used to be separate, does that mean the same for the witc… er, the other one?"
Briefly the deity appeared conflicted, at first not totally certain how to respond. "No, the circumstances surrounding our… split personalities are entirely different. They were not originally two beings, like we were. Truth be told, I couldn't tell you which form or the other was the original, or even whether either of them were. We'd only known that thing as a malicious entity, frankly with much less personality then than it seems to have now. But like with our current state, I can only guess as to why it turned out that way. If I had to say, then I'd assume it's merely a reflection of the splitting, another representation of the duality we were forced to create. Perhaps it was even just a simple mirroring of our own fate caused by the spell."
Fionna nodded slowly, really only partially understanding but knowing that topic wasn't of the utmost importance. "And this place, the uhh… the Gray World?" She was nearly through with her questions now, but she was determined not to have any remaining before this was all over. Apparently finding some humor in that, the luminous entity actually had a slight smile return. "Ahhh, the Gray World. I really do like that moniker you chose for this place, it is very appropriate." Fionna couldn't help but blush slightly at that, never having been one-hundred percent comfortable using that rather childish name with others.
"To be frank, the dark entity did sum it up rather well in the midst of their rantings. This place is really just a holdover from the original world, the last bits and pieces of existence that didn't quite make into either of the two new ones. This place, the altar down and the stones surrounding us, this is where the dark one originally attempted to siphon the world's energy, as well as where we stopped him. We split the world right on this very spot, and only a small amount of the immediate surroundings were left behind here. Almost all of the important things made it into one of the new worlds. If this place served of any importance, it did keep the two Ooos close, temporally speaking. Like a bridge, an ancient, rickety, dilapidated bridge to be sure, but nevertheless the main link between your worlds."
And again, the words she heard brought to Fionna's mind the things she'd learned from the kindly old witch. She'd explained much the same thing, about the Gray World being the space joining hers and Finn's worlds, but until now she hadn't had the full story to really appreciate what she meant.
"Now, to return to your question of what I… what we are…" The deity suddenly interrupted her train of thought, continuing their own explanation but almost hastily. Regardless, they now had Fionna's and Finn's rapt attention once more. "...I suppose by now I could say I am a great number of things, but to you two specifically I suppose the most appropriate term I could use would be a… predecessor." That comment definitely came as a surprise to the two Humans, each exchanging a strange look with the other, uncertain of how exactly to interpret that.
"Do you mean like… as in, our ancestor?" Finn was the first to ask the slightly awkward question, to which the deity laughed warmly. "Oh, dear, no, not that way. You see, it's not our blood that you carry, but our purpose." From the tilt of their heads, the deity correctly guessed they didn't fully comprehend.
"We were supposed to be the heroes in our time, but it took a great sacrifice on our part just to bring that monster to heel. Even so, until very recently we thought it had been worth it, and that we had succeeded in destroying it once and for all. But as we've found, like ourselves, the evil was only put to sleep for a very long time, and unlike ourselves it seems to have found its' full power, while we struggle to even remain here as we speak." They stopped, suddenly seeming even more forlorn than at their worst point so far, and both Finn and Fionna were on the brink of saying something. But before they could issue a peep the deity was beaming again, and they could swear the brilliant light was radiating out again even brighter than before.
"But you two are here now, having fought hard to prove yourselves heroes in your own right. We did all we could to save Ooo, and perhaps we gave just enough to give the worlds a second chance. Now you can be the heroes we just couldn't, you can put a final end to this menace and save both of your worlds! We've watched you so long now, we know you're both more than capable."
With that comment neither Finn nor Fionna knew what they could possibly say. They'd just been entrusted with the fate of two worlds, to guard against an enemy that had a knowledge and skill that far surpassed any other being they'd met, with a nearly limitless supply of energy to fuel their cruel intentions. But even so, this being, these two beings, ancient heroes that'd been so powerful as to cleave a universe in two, now gave the young ones their encouragement, their belief that the new generation could triumph where the old had ultimately failed.
Despite their being overwhelmed, both knew they had to reply somehow, but before one or the other could manage to make a gesture a loud 'snap' filled the air. Immediately all three sets of eyes went back to the white bubble where the voidcaster had been momentarily imprisoned. A thin, but far too noticeable crack had appeared along the outer surface from which an ominous dark haze began to seep out.
"Our time has grown short. We can neither maintain that prison or our own presence for much longer." The deity's voice turned serious as they realized the dark entity would soon escape. Whatever last words or preparations they had to give to the young ones they would need to address now.
The brilliant entity took a couple of loud steps forward, regaining the attention of the two Humans. "Would you two please step closer?" They gently asked of the young pair, and though uncertain they each tentatively moved closer until all three were within arm's reach of one another. The figure dug their golden sword into the gray earth where it could stand on its own, all the while continuing to beam down at the two. Then something odd happened that neither Human had noticed yet before; for the next time the deity spoke, each Human swore that they heard two voices in synchrony.
"You remind me so much of him."
"You remind me so much of her."
As they spoke, the deity placed a hand on each heroes' shoulder, hoping to further convey their belief. Finn and Fionna were receptive enough at first, but grew rather alarmed when the figure suddenly began to illuminate, truly become encompassed in a blinding light, much the same as when they'd first emerged from the statue. And from what they could tell before the deity's face was completely covered in light, they seemed just as surprised if not more so. The light eventually became so intense that Finn and Fionna had to step back and shield their eyes, losing the touch of the deity. It would be a few more seconds before the light died down enough that they could look back up.
Just the same as when they first emerged out of the statue, the Heroes were utterly baffled by the sight that now confronted them. Two entities now stood before, this time decidedly a man and a woman. It didn't take long for either Human to guess that they were now seeing both of the ancient heroes, instead of just one each. Why this was now the case, however, neither could even begin to guess.
And as the two deity's started to shake off their own daze, they also took notice of one another. From their body language it was obvious they were infinitely more surprised than either of the Humans. For almost too long a time, they merely stood still, a few feet apart from one another, staring at each other in complete disbelief. Both Finn and Fionna wondered if they might've needed to say something, but each figured that would be grossly inappropriate, and it would be far better to wait and let them react naturally on their own (however natural they could be in this situation).
"I never thought…"
"I didn't imagine…"
They each started at the same time, both quiet, still in pure shock. Then finally the dam burst, and the two lunged towards one another, tears streaming down their faces. The ancient figures embraced desperately, clinging tightly to one another, sobbing openly yet somehow smiling. It was a far less graceful affair than the Human's had come to expect of the elegant deity's, but far from making them think less of the them, the display only served to solidify the young ones belief in their utter sincerity. The deity's were overjoyed, completely consumed in an emotional display that the Human's hadn't thought them possible of. And while those two just held tightly to one another, exhumingg all the pain they'd known and expressing their new bliss, Finn and Fionna just kept back and shared a quiet, knowing smile with one another, understanding at least a little bit of what it meant to finally reconnect with one's most important loved one after so long apart.
After several long moments they slowly pulled away, their hands delicately trickling down each other before finally coming apart. With all of their joy and sorrow, tears and smiles still clear on their face, they nodded one last time to one another before turning their attention back to the Humans. Without breaking their gaze, each deity put a hand on the golden blade still stuck in the ground, and as they each pulled back both came out holding a half-blade yet again.
Each deity then went right up to their respective Humans, the man to Finn and the woman to Fionna. They stopped just before the two, each smiling radiantly down at their named successor before leaning their swords towards them. "Here, giving these back is the least we can do to thank you both." The man spoke up for the both of them as they urged the handles forward until Finn and Fionna accepted the blades. "These belonged to me in our time, and should retain enough of our power to help you in your final battle. It was… a very precious gift."
"And you should keep these too." The woman chimed in before either Human could respond. Once more nodding to each other, the two deity's each removed a medal from their neck before reverently draping them over the shoulder of the younger Heroes. "This was also a very special gift." Finn and Fionna accepted the gift in respectful silence, both realizing what a tremendous show of generosity this was, and each feeling more than a little apprehensive about accepting.
"These items were our most treasured possessions in the past, each one a symbol of the bond we'd nurtured together, powerful enough to allow us to channel the spell that split the world. But unlike us they stayed behind, like this Gray World, a few small reminders of the worlds' shared origin, a lasting bond no matter how far apart the worlds seemed. Now we only hope they'll serve as some protection. And if not than at least let them be a small reminder that you both belong to something much greater than yourselves."
As the Humans accepted the last of their gifts, each deity then took their ward by both shoulders, directing them to look up at them. Finn and Fionna were met with the warm, golden eyes of their predecessors, and a smile that could've filled the most timid soul with heroic confidence. "We could never hope to truly express our full gratitude." The man spoke down to Finn, but loud enough for them both. "For finding the courage to face this monster, and even more so for giving us the chance to stand side by side one more time." The woman added in.
To the Human's continued surprise, each deity then leaned forward to capture the young ones in an encouraging hug. Though finding it slightly odd, they nevertheless readily accepted this grateful gesture. Fionna let her arms lightly reciprocate and clutch at the woman's sides, and Finn did what he could with his one good hand that was currently holding on to the blade.
Eventually the two deity's relented, releasing their protégés and stepping away, far back in fact, until they were roughly the same distance as they had been earlier. They joined their hands and turned back to face Finn and Fionna one last time.
"We wish you luck, although we're confident you won't need it." The man called back to them.
"With the battle, and with your futures as well." The woman added, finalizing their goodbye.
Finally the two figures turned away, gazing at one another and joining both hands. Having found worthy successors to pass on their duty, the last traces of worry and tire fell from their faces. Left in perfect happiness, each brought themselves fully within the arms of the other, their peaceful faces meeting in perfectly loving kiss, something they'd each longed to do for a very long time.
The two remained locked in their lover's embrace even as their bodies began to shimmer once again with a demi-divine light. Slowly each of their bodies began to fade away, lost as little flecks of light that drifted up before ultimately fading out. Like a cloud of fireflies, eventually the two beings were lost amidst the countless twinkling lights that rose up a short way and finally passed on, leaving behind this cold, lifeless world for good.
Even after the strange beings were completely gone, Finn and Fionna continued to stare towards the empty space where they had just stood. Eventually it was Finn that made the first sound, a rather lengthy release of air that draw Fionna's attention towards him. "Wow… that was… a lot of stuff." He commented, rather absent mindedly but just needing to say something. "No kidding." The Girl replied, equally as unsure how to react.
Accepting that the deities wouldn't be returning, Fionna moved to approach her partner and figure out how exactly they should proceed. As Finn turned as well her eyes were caught by the medal that the male deity had returned to the young man, noticing a slight oddity from the way she remembered it. "Finn, your medal." She pointed out as she stepped up to him.
"Hmm?" He looked confused for a brief moment before turning his attention downwards. Having to dig his sword into the gravel again, he used his good hand to clasp the medal around his neck and bring it up so he could better observe it. Immediately he noticed the discrepancy and his eyes widened slightly in mild surprise.
Though he still wore the solid gold medal, no longer was it just a broken half, but a completed circle. Of further note, the empty slot in the center was now filled by the silver disc with the half-shaded heart etched within. Quickly he looked back up to Fionna, who seemed to be doing a similar check with her own medal. Hers too was now a complete circle, but a solid silver as opposed to his gold. Strangely enough, hers still retained an identical charm in the middle, a second disk with the half-shaded heart.
"Why do you think this happened?" Finn wondered aloud as he continued to examine his medal. Fionna, though, just smiled slightly as she let hers fall back across her chest. "Like those two said, these medals are just representations of their bond. Hopefully this goes to show that we've mended that bond the way these medals were fixed."
Finn looked up then, smirking in very mild surprise at her analysis. "Wow Fi. I have to admit, I didn't know that you had such a way with words." That slight jab was enough to turn the Girl's face a light red, and she suddenly appeared a little defensive. "I don't, well, not really… My sister just likes to read me these stupid, flowery books and junk. Some of it just sticks in my head, I guess…"
Seeing that slight embarrassment, Finn couldn't help himself and decided to prod further as he laughed wholesomely at her expense. "Oh come on, I actually think it fits you perfectly! In fact I'd love for you to recite some more poems!" He definitely got through to her as her face turned even brighter. "Quit it!" She cried in growing frustration. Still though, he foolishly continued to press his luck. "Ooh, I know! Did your sister ever sing you any lullabies? Because I bet that would seriously lighten the mood…"
"Mmmhhh!" With an angry huff, Fionna quickly cut him off with a slug to the shoulder of his bad arm. "Agghh! Ow ow ow ow Ooooookay shutting up now." In an instant Finn's joviality was replaced with pain, while Fionna just smirked triumphantly as her embarrassment subsided. She wasn't worried about his arm, she'd hit him well above the actual injury, but it was just close enough to send a few extra pain signals along his nerves.
"Good. Then considering what you got away with so far, I'm willing to call us even." She gloated as he rubbed at his bruised shoulder. "Really? You think a little teasing is an equal trade-off for violence?" Finn whined, but cautiously, more testing the water than lodging a real complaint, hopeful that his counterpart could tell the difference. Fortunately(?) Fionna never wiped that smirk off of her face. "Hey, I'm willing to bet there's been plenty of times in your life where you would've traded emotional pain for physical."
Finn opened his mouth for a quick response but held back, now thinking hard on that matter. "Yeah… okay fair enough." His relent only caused Fionna's smile to grow brighter, and despite her still smug demeanor Finn allowed his better nature to mirror hers and was soon smiling right alongside her. The mood had normalized so quickly between the two now they almost forgot where exactly they were at the moment. Unfortunately, they were soon to get a very rude reminder.
Another massive 'crack' shook their eardrums, and immediately the Heroes' pleasant demeanor was cast aside and they turned deathly serious as they looked back towards the light sphere, now with a massive spider-web of cracks running across the surface, constantly seeping dark fog.
Each human steadied their swords before them as the breakage spread farther and farther, and the sphere as a whole slowly turned from brilliant white to malevolent darkness. With the deities gone the bubble's resistance couldn't last any longer, and finally the whole thing shattered as cloud of dark aura erupted from its' innards.