Another fine day, and another chapter for you…
I know it's a day early, but got some work to do on the weekend.
Anyway, please enjoy ^^
Chapter E2N17: Eternity.
"…!" (Touma)
"Oh my." (Anna)
"Wow…" (Elaine)
"…" (Nika)
We beheld a paradise stained golden with ichor, the lifeblood of the beings that resided here.
The realm was filled with archetypes as far as the eye could see, all impaled on stakes while burning alive.
They writhed in agony like insects; and they would most likely continue to do so for all eternity.
Echoes of unbridled joy and religious ecstasy mingled in the flames, the tormented and the impaled all experiencing waves upon waves of euphoria as they reveled in their own suffering with unparalleled bliss.
"…I think I'm gonna puk—! Ughghu…" (Elaine)
Elaine's comment felt all too appropriate.
"This is the Source World…?" (Nika)
Nika started walking forward, her gaze pure ice.
"Nika, where you off to?" (Anna)
"I have to look for the remaining volume of the Record of Akasha." (Nika)
"Any idea where it could be?" (Touma)
"The nexus of this realm— the Chamber of Akasha. I… I… feel like it should be there." (Nika)
"How so?" (Touma)
"I just do. I feel like I've been here once before." (Nika)
"You feel like you were here before? Hmm, that's indeed odd. But, Nika, does this mean that your memories have returned?" (Touma)
"Not completely... I vaguely remember standing here, just like this, but nothing else. It feels like slowly recollecting an old fever-dream." (Nika)
"Nika, you should probably—" (Touma)
She didn't even wait for my words to finish as she continued onwards, her steps no steadier than before. I quickened my pace to catch up to her as Elaine and Anna trailed closely behind.
"I remember! I remember this place! How strange! This should be my first time setting foot in here, but...! Anyway, I need to return there… I fled out of that place in fear, but now I have to go back— to that place." (Nika)
It seemed like there was a reason why the other half of the Record of Akasha ended up here in the Source World.
From the look of things, Nika herself had left it here. She had been to the Source physically before, which was very strange considering that she ascended the Ladder with us.
Not to mention that the book was forsaken here when she discarded her memories.
"Very well. Let's go." (Touma)
I sighed.
In the end, I decided to give up. Whatever her past might be, it didn't matter. All that did was that I had decided to stand by her side till the very end.
But that being said, the first order of business was still reclaiming her discarded memories.
The whole of the primordial world had turned into a field of carnage, yet not once were we set upon and attacked.
The beings seemed to be distracted by something. Something that resembled a small hole in the realm.
It seemed to be a rift.
While I was curious as to where it led to, in the end, I decided to leave the archetypes to their own machinations. We had matters of even greater importance to attend to.
Offering a silent prayer to whatever unfortunate world was on the other side of the portal, we proceeded to advance further.
Color had completely drained from Elaine's cheeks as she threw up several times, but that was due to disgust and not madness: the whispers of mental contamination had all but died down.
All that remained here was a world bereft of life, thoroughly abandoned.
Living corpses littered the fields all around us, discarded and forgotten like scraps of garbage.
Despite being the abode to these transcendent beings, the place felt completely empty, devoid of everything that made it feel real: a mere shadow of its former self.
The very air seemed to freeze as I pushed the chamber's door open, the heavy stench of blood a clear indication that something major had transpired here.
"A-Ah…!" (Nika)
Nika beelined into the room in a straight line, with the rest of us scrambling into the room behind her.
"The Chamber of Akasha…! I was here! I was definitely here! It was definitely here! What could I have said? How did I even get here? I need to know!" (Nika)
She single-mindedly jumped into the chamber as if driven by some zealous fervor. We followed her in and instantly realized where the heavy scent of blood was coming from.
We came across a great number of archetypes, all with their expressions twisted, contorted in terror— all dead.
The reason why they had not disappeared to be reborn elsewhere was probably due to Akasha's power.
Did they perish in battle, or chose death to escape despair? Whatever the case may have been, their death seemed to be the extremity of madness.
Nika did not even dare to look at them, instead hugging the book she found on the central altar.
It was the other, highly compressed volume of her sacred tome, the one she had spent millennia searching for: the Record of Akasha's Codex Futures.
After immediately combining it with Codex Mortales, Nika embraced the tome: the complete Record of Akasha, holding it tight in her arms.
Yet her expression was colored not by joy, but a hue of melancholy.
"I remember everything. The [Truth] of what I did." (Nika)
"…" (Touma)
"…" (Anna)
"…" (Elaine)
"I revealed a certain concept to them. Something everyone knew of, but dared not to understand." (Nika)
"Nika." (Anna)
"H-Hey, Nika. Something has come up. Mind if I just stepped outside for a bit." (Anna)
Anna's uncharacteristically flustered voice, immediately silenced Nika— the witch suddenly looking paler than even Elaine.
Nika gave her an apologetic glance, before nodding.
"Thanks, everyone. I'm just outside if anyone needs me. Just outside." (Anna)
I wanted to ask her what's wrong but stopped at the last moment.
It seemed like whatever she wanted to do, she did not want any company.
As Anna quickly strode out of the room, leaving the three of us alone in the room, Elaine cast a curious look at her receding form.
"What's up with her?" (Elaine)
"Something seems to have just happened. It's best to give her some space." (Nika)
Although I did not understand what Nika meant by "something," both me and Elaine decided to let go of the issue.
"So Nika, you were saying…" (Touma)
Being urged by me, Nika, after taking in a lungful of air, went on.
"Yes. I realized what it was that I had done. Like I was saying: I forced comprehension of a concept upon the denizens of this world." (Nika)
"A concept?" (Touma)
A concept was the source of this cosmic catastrophe?
Everything was corrupted by a concept? Just what kind of frightening concept could do something like that?
"The concept I taught the archetypes— was "eternity." That ended up being the cause of this whole calamity." (Nika)
Elaine and I remained silent for a few moments— not necessarily out of shock, but rather confusion.
"Um… Nika. I don't get it. How's the word "eternity" dangerous?" (Elaine)
Nika shook her head.
"You don't understand. It's not the meaning of the word "eternity" that poses a threat. I mean, everyone understands what that means. What the beings here attempted to avoid… was comprehending what it really entailed." (Nika)
The Archetypes.
They were born at the time of Genesis, their existence eternal.
"To put it in simple terms— it's the perception of the passing of time. To the preternatural archetypes, the concept of time was meaningless. So, for them, there was not much of a difference between a minute and an aeon. The archetypes were in a sense conveniently beyond the comprehension of time." (Nika)
What Nika spoke was true.
Existing in a state of complete transcendence and bliss, the eternal residents of Adam Kadmon had no use for the concept of time.
"They are, at their very core, bare masses of crystallized Ein Sof. So, even if, by some miracle, one of them ended up perishing, they would simply return to Ein Sof, slowly reforming over time. They are fundamentally removed from the very concept of death." (Nika)
"..." (Touma)
"..." (Elaine)
"Yet I inadvertently discovered something. I'm sure that Elaine and you would understand what I mean— the crippling madness eternal life can bring." (Nika)
"Eh… um… well!" (Elaine)
I would not speak for Elaine, but I knew the feeling. All too well.
Humanity from my original world could not handle existing more than a few hundred years.
Eternal Life.
The true meaning of that concept was too vast for us to even begin comprehending.
Yet I felt like I could relate to these godlike beings in some sense. The reason why their minds would collapse to madness.
Seeing Elaine's helpless gaze dart towards me, pleading for assistance, I couldn't help but sigh.
"Elaine. The eternity you're thinking of is probably the one the archetypes originally possessed. What Nika's talking about is eternal torment akin to Hell." (Touma)
Entire cosmologies would rise and fall, yet their lives would exactly be the same a second and a thousand aeons from now.
Their duties and results of the Archetypes would not change one bit.
Their only reprieve was their choice to ignore the flow of time.
However, Akasha forced them to comprehend "eternity," forcibly making them perceptive to time and its flow— something they had known beforehand but had always chosen to ignore.
The result was obvious.
Their minds could not take it.
A dreadful shiver rushed across Elaine's body as understanding dawned upon her.
Death was a terrifying thing, and often the source of great pain and anguish.
Yet at times, death's embrace could be seen as a relief.
A person suffering from terminal cancer or extensive third-degree burns might view every moment of their life as another second of hellish torment— and they would wish to escape it. To them, euthanasia would bring salvation.
Yet death was a mortal's luxury.
Even if these immortal existences could die a hundred, a thousand, a million times… as long as Ein Sof or Adam Kadmon itself existed, they were incapable of truly dying.
This was probably the main reason why the deranged archetypes discarded their incorporeal appearances and took upon forms of mortal beings, twisting the landscape of the origin realm to resemble a human world.
They could only maddeningly yearn for death and release from afar.
Such was the truth of their existence: the curse of its eternity.
Humans sought eternal life and youth throughout history, yet all they truly desired was an extended lifespan and an unaging appearance.
No one really wished to outlive Creation while possessing a mortal's microscopic perspective of time.
The concept of eternity had been wiped clean from the archetypes' minds as part of their own survival mechanism: a means to protect their sanity.
As long as they remained ignorant of the concept, a day or a billion aeons would make no difference whatsoever. At best, they might feel some nostalgia at ages long gone by.
They would simply continue existing ignorant of the scale of their own existence.
This safeguard was what Nika Kurylenko as the Oracle of Akasha had smashed to pieces.
For the archetypes, eternity was terror incarnate. A fate worse than death.
Having awakened to that knowledge, it was small wonder that they instantly succumbed to insanity.
"Gotcha. It's a bit of a weird analogy, but it's kinda like forcibly having to sit through a really boring lecture that just never ends." (Elaine)
"That's actually surprisingly close to the mark." (Touma)
In fact, it was perfectly accurate. Even with their newfound understanding of eternity, the archetypes would be denied death. They would not be allowed to sleep or leave the boring class, according to Elaine's analogy, forever.
No matter how soul-crushingly boring a class might be, they had to endure it.
Their eyes had been opened to the future— a cruel tomorrow bereft of any change that chained them all to the past.
A future that held no hope. There would be no end to their lives. Ever.
"For some reason, I felt the urge to share this forbidden knowledge with others. And so, in this very Chamber of Akasha—" (Nika)
She brushed her hands against her own body, as if caressing a lover.
"—I used this book to thoroughly explain the concept of eternity to them." (Nika)
"And that sent their minds spiraling into madness?" (Touma)
Nika looked at us with a hollow expression, shaking her head in a way that gave no specific answer.
"I don't know. But soon after the chorus and the massacre started. And by the time I realized, I was back on Earth. Later, when I was scouted in Russia by Kaori to St. Maurice, I had forgotten everything that transpired here—even the book that I had once reclaimed. The temples appeared and the world flipped on its head in the blink of an eye." (Nika)
Nika crouched down, never once letting go of her book.
"This is all my fault. The Magic Calamity, everything that has happened… it's all my responsibility." (Nika)
I walked up to Nika and wrapped my arms around her shoulders as her body began to shake by a series of silent sobs.
"…" (Elaine)
Elaine looked at us with an expression that ached to ask a question or two.
I, too, had my own doubts.
"Nika…" (Touma)
"Y-Yes…?" (Nika)
"You need to calm down." (Touma)
The words came out more of a command. Either way, I held Nika tight in my embrace— we wouldn't be getting anywhere unless she calmed down.
"Whoa, you sure don't mess around, Kamijou-san." (Elaine)
"I-I'm fine!" (Nika)
"You're anything but. And your story's full of holes." (Touma)
"What…?" (Nika)
"Ah, right. That thought crossed my mind, too, actually." (Elaine)
Nika's eyes darted between me and Elaine.
She seemed to be in utter disbelief that her words would be questioned.
"Firstly, if you did teach the archetypes the concept of eternity, then who did you learn it from?" (Touma)
"Huh? I… I mean, from Akasha. There is nothing Akasha doesn't know." (Nika)
"But that is forbidden knowledge for an Oracle to possess, is it not?" (Touma)
"That is…" (Nika)
"So even if that knowledge was false, you wouldn't know it?" (Touma)
"But that assumption's not quite right. The very nature of Akasha is to be a vessel containing "the divine secrets of God"— its very existence guarantees but the absolute truth." (Nika)
"Very well. Let us leave it that. As for my other question: I know you said you didn't know, but… why would you feel the urge to convey this knowledge to other denizens in this realm?" (Touma)
"Well, um… because I felt it was really important." (Nika)
"Important? How?" (Touma)
"Archetypes are supposed to represent the absolute zenith of the God's creation. For them not to be able to understand something that weighs so heavy on the minds of mortals…" (Nika)
"And do you think that's truly the right thing to do?" (Touma)
"What?" (Nika)
Nika blinked at me in complete surprise.
"I found it odd. I mean, your words certainly ring true. But if that's the case, there's one part that just doesn't add up." (Touma)
"And what is that?" (Nika)
"You're correct in saying that eternity brings men suffering. But humans are not eternal beings. To us, the very word "eternity" is a lie, a falsity." (Touma)
"Ah…" (Nika)
Was it not strange?
People do sometimes experience suffering that's akin to an eternity. But not eternity itself. Whatever they experienced, it would all eventually come to an end.
Even Magic Gods that are supposed to be the pinnacle of un-ascended Creation, had their lifespans finite. They would indeed outlive many a phase, but eventually, they too would die.
The main underlying catch is that mortals, no matter how powerful they get, are more than capable of indulging in their own self-destructive impulses.
"As such, wanting to understand eternity as mortals know it… is absurd. Completely pointless, even." (Touma)
There is simply no mortal who knows real eternity. The very word mortal itself meant that life, no matter how long, has a definite end.
To mortals, "eternity" merely meant "like an eternity."
Nika glanced back at me, mouth agape, expression clouded by dread.
"But then… why did I…?" (Nika)
"I know. And that's the final key to this mystery. Nika. Since we've established that Akasha wouldn't feed you with forbidden knowledge, much less false information, who was it that told you this oddly-warped version of eternity?" (Touma)
Touma's words rocked my mind like an explosion.
Memories began resurfacing once again— memories that I had subconsciously kept repressed even after reclaiming the Records of Akasha.
I stood in front of a mighty throne: the throne of the Creator Himself.
Naturally, the throne itself was empty, surrounded at all angles by an otherworldly veil, almost like a thick curtain.
Not even archetypes could completely comprehend God's true existence, let alone mortals like the me back then.
Even His voice felt like an echo transmitted directly into my mind from some distant alien super-dimension.
Mortals could never hope to reach this realm without traversing the Ladder of Genesis.
However, I had been here before.
No, I was brought here, summoned. Right after my venture to Da'ath to recover my book from its demon.
And the reason for my presence— was right in front of me.
On that day, the Creator not only brought me, a mortal, here forcibly but also spoke unto me…
…asking me to define eternity.
And so I answered.
"Eternity is…" (Nika)
God received my answer, then replied.
"Nay." [God]
God's negation took me by shock. Was there more to the meaning of eternity that what the word itself carried?
"It is a concept. We have to live for an eternity. As my child, you must comprehend what that truly means." [God]
"…Yes." (Nika)
"And live in fear of it." [God]
"Yes…" (Nika)
I felt a horrible sensation crawl its way up my spine.
"comprehend" and "all of."
"anguish" "I" "terror" "solitude."
Solitude.
Solitude. Solitude. Solitude. Solitude. Solitude. Solitude. Solitude. Solitude.
Solitude. Solitude. Solitude. Solitude. Solitude. Solitude. Solitude. Solitude.
Solitude. Solitude. Solitude. Solitude. Solitude. Solitude. Solitude. Solitude.
Akasha, having been coerced by God, surrendered its forbidden knowledge trove unto me— its truth warped by the Creator in a way that it was no longer true.
"Ah…!" (Nika)
Agony washed over me in waves, hatred and despair surging violently to the surface, causing me to vomit.
The pain— akin to having my very brain deep fried— sent me to my knees.
The concept was too much even for me— someone who merely possessed a form of pseudo-immortality as opposed to true eternal existence.
I recalled His next words clearly.
"Go now, and convey this to all my children." [God]
Obeying God's command, I left the confines of the curtain, all while cradling my book in one hand.
I would make to the nexus of this realm— the Chamber of Akasha, my real home, now no doubt bustling with archetypes.
I had to convey God's divine word to them… I needed to share what God had told me.
With the madness God had imparted me with, I soared towards the Chamber at full speed. I must have been smiling, knowing that I had no choice but to convey this terrible revelation to them.
Eternity! Ah, cruel, wretched eternity! That concept of utter terror and despair!
Beginning from the archetypes of Adam Kadmon, I had to announce it to all of Creation!
And the result was a great massacre.
Did God predict this outcome?
Did the Lord desire for this to happen?
No.
No, no, no. That couldn't be.
There was something, something far more fundamental.
I reached a conclusion that I, as the Oracle of Akasha, should never ever have.
"Has the Lord gone mad…?"
Has God's mind been claimed by madness? Was that truly the case?
"Kuku… Kukuku~" (Nika)
Without even the time to consider that terrible revelation, I realized that I, too, had begun to go mad, much like the other beings here.
Unlike them, however, I was able to endure the mental contamination for a very long time.
It was then that I most likely jotted down that twisted concept into the pages of my book, irrevocably damning the fate of the archetypes.
And by doing so, I gained some level of resistance against the concept.
After realizing that I needed to fragment my memories, I promptly carried it out.
I lingered aimlessly atop the blood-stained field of the origin world, having cast aside both my memories and the Records of Akasha, when suddenly—
"What are you doing over there?! Come! I am sealing this place! Wait, you seem to be a sane mortal?! I won't ask how you got inside, but you don't want to get trapped here, do you?"
A girl with beautiful blue hair and a youthful appearance, an ancient goddess, helped me to escape.
I knew her name.
She was the one that disconnected the rest of the Creation from the corrupted Source World.
There was no other way to contain the poisonous archetypes from rampaging and laying waste to everything.
But it wasn't that easy.
Just like how an unborn baby was dependent upon its mother for nourishment, simply sealing the gate of Adam Kadmon, the birth-canal, or in this case, the umbilical cord, would have doomed the rest of Creation.
There was an urgent need for something else than the source to sustain the rest of everything.
And as such, she had to raise the temples to act as beams supporting it.
The temples the mortals were trying so hard to destroy— was in fact their world's cornerstone, its umbilical cord, a feeble hope that an ancient goddess had to sacrifice her life for.
I was shunted off to my lower world. Since I had never ascended, returning there was not much of a problem.
And that brought us to the present.
"But, but, but… but that can never be! It's the ultimate taboo that dwarfs in gravity even the very destruction of everything! To think that the Lord Himself would go mad… It's…It's unthinkable!" (Nika)
The hollow echo of Nika's cries reverberated across the Chamber of Akasha.
God was the ultimate being— the sole master of everything.
As such her words carried the highest form of taboo against such a being: the revelation that the very Creator had gone mad.
And who could blame her for barely being able to believe it? If God had truly gone mad, what was anyone else to do?
They could no longer pray to God for help, for no one would listen. And if the target of their prayers had His mind consumed by insanity… what were lesser beings to do?
"Wait a sec, though. Aren't we missing something?" (Elaine)
Elaine made her comment in a very casual way.
"You may be right…" (Touma)
"Not just "may." I am, Kamijou-san! I mean, I get that it's a shock because this is God we're talking about. But who says God cannot go insane?" (Elaine)
"…" (Nika)
The devout Nika nearly flew into rage, but immediately held herself back, her expression shifting from anger to one of shame.
"Think about it, Nika. I just said something sort of mean, and you got really mad, right?" (Elaine)
"Yes, you did. What of it?" (Nika)
Hints of anger laced Nika's tone, but Elaine ignored it completely.
"Look, I'm not exactly a religious expert, but God can be angered, no?" (Elaine)
There were even things like Uriel— the manifestation of Christian God's divine wrath existing.
"By that logic, if God can feel anger, He can also feel joy. If He can lament, then He can also succumb to madness." (Elaine)
"That's…" (Nika)
"Nika. You know she's got a solid point there." (Touma)
I recalled exactly how I myself used to be.
"Touma?" (Nika)
"There's clearly one thing that not even God Himself can defy." (Touma)
"That logic… is insane." (Nika)
"It's not. His very own self. God can never be liberated from the curse of being God." (Touma)
As such, God, too, could go insane.
As God had declared Himself omnipotent and all-powerful, He could very well succumb to madness as well. The potential was there.
For God knew the whole of cosmos.
He knew anger, sorrow, grief, and bliss. He could feel the chill of despair, the warmth of hope. He knew everything.
But in His omniscience, even the Creator Himself had sealed away His comprehension of one, single thing.
The concept of eternity, much like all the other beings in this realm.
And in the Lord's case, the torment of eternity might have run even deeper.
An omnipotent God was a being far removed from death, even more so than His archetypes; even if the very source world was to crumble to oblivion die to some impossibility, He would still continue to exist.
"God, driven by His divinity…" (Nika)
"…laid waste to His own mind." (Touma)
Nika, after a few brief moments of hesitation, hurled aside the book she had been cradling— the Records of Akasha she had searched for all this time.
"Nika…?" (Touma)
"Property Appension— Level 9— Carpe Diem!" (Nika)
She was planning to annihilate the book she devoted all her life to… to mere ashes.
"STOP!" (Touma)
I managed to act in time to stop her. Seeing me shield her book with my own body, Nika forcibly cut off her flow of Ein Sof, extinguishing the flames.
"You okay?" (Elaine)
"…Yeah." (Touma)
"Step aside, Touma! I need to burn that book! All of this… it all started with this book! I should have never penned it down!" (Nika)
"I've already told you to stop. Nika, think about it— burning the Record of Akasha would simply negate your magic name." (Touma)
Nika's reason for existence was to "record."
Abandoning that duty would leave her without a greater purpose.
A complete denial of her entire life up to this point.
It might be incredibly selfish of me to think like this, but I did not want her to become another lost soul like Kanzaki Kaori.
"The act of recording isn't inherently evil, nor is it a fiendish weapon to be despised. It's merely the act of accurately chronicling the [Truth] of what happened. Which is precisely why it is so important." (Touma)
"I've… I've never once thought about it like that." (Nika)
"But I'm sure you have. Nika, you've chronicled the history of mortals and gods. Regardless of what you think, it is undeniable that your pen has continued to immortalize this world and all who lived in it." (Touma)
"…But… But…" (Nika)
"No buts. Can't you see its beauty, Nika? …Humanity's descendants will look upon your writings and learn not to repeat their forefather's mistakes, but instead follow in their successes." (Touma)
Men set their very souls to writing.
They would record and leave traces of themselves behind for future generations.
Even if, at times, the message contained within would be distorted… that was nonetheless the duty of Man, a race celebrating its finite lifespans.
So that their children would follow the right path once they were gone.
That was mankind's legacy.
"Errors in a record have to be corrected. But the record itself must never be erased for good." (Touma)
Nika's shoulder slumped over powerlessly as I bent over to pick up the book, handing it over to her.
"You and your previous incarnations have devoted a tremendous amount of time writing this book— it's a crystallization of yours and theirs hard-work, a fruit of your blood and tears. A volume you've put your entire life into." (Touma)
The sheer enormity of her efforts, however, would never be known to the reader.
Those who study records might find themselves moved by what they read, but not by the chronicler herself.
Especially if the chronicler is an Oracle.
Her actions might simply be taken for granted, the true weight of her efforts lost on everyone.
She would never be praised for her work.
Her presence would never be felt between the lines.
Yet Nika and her past incarnations still kept on writing, recording.
Even after the book itself was lost, they still kept doing it in their own way.
"Wasn't that because you wished to help someone else? You wanted others to draw courage from your writings so they could stand strong even in the darkest of times?" (Touma)
Nika cast a sheepish glance at the book she had been holding.
"I merely wanted to leave records... without ever truly caring about those who read it. And yet… I felt not even a hint of regret as I handed the book over to Azura." (Nika)
She kept on writing and writing, hoping her book would grant mankind hope. That it would aid them in their time of need.
Every word she wrote had been set to paper with that conviction in her heart.
The entire reason she searched for her book was so that it could fall back into the hands of the right people.
"But this book…" (Nika)
Her book was most certainly a part of the reason why Creation descended into madness upon learning the true meaning of eternity.
"You merely need to correct it. That's how records work. You make corrections, setting it on the right path." (Touma)
"So you're saying… what I did was not a mistake?" (Nika)
"No, I wouldn't say that. But even if it was, your achievements are still undeniable. If it weren't for you, mankind would have forever wandered this earth blind and without guidance." (Touma)
"…" (Nika)
"Take good care of your book and never let go of it— it's a crystallization of your hopes and dreams. If you feel mankind no longer needs the knowledge contained within… then make it your own personal treasure." (Touma)
I believed she had that right.
This was a tome she had spent her entire existence penning.
"I'll do just that." (Nika)
Nika lovingly hugged her book close to her chest.
"Welcome back, my beloved book. You did me proud. I'll correct your mistakes soon enough, but for now, I need you to be patient for a while longer." (Nika)
And with that, she tucked the book back into her pocket dimension, then turned back to face us with a bright, refreshed expression.
"The throne of God lies beyond this Chamber. Provided He's still present at all, I cannot think of any other place." (Nika)
"Good. Then let's all go as a group. I'm sure that Anna has finished whatever personal business she had by now." (Touma)
We didn't have all the pieces of the puzzle just yet, but at the moment, we needed nothing else.
So we would press on— to gain an audience with God. Not to pray to Him, or beg His help or forgiveness.
I merely wished to know the [Truth].
I wished to question God— to ask him: "O revered Lord, has your mind surrendered to the darkness of insanity."
A lone tree stood isolated on the grass-covered fields located a short walk from the chamber, its trunk frail enough that merely brushing one's fingers against the bark made it peel off with ease.
"To think I would find it here, of all places…" (Awan)
Awan placed her hand upon the tree— it had long since withered away and would be of no more use. A tree that once served as the catalyst of mankind's fall from graces, was now reduced to a crumbling shadow of its former self.
"Fate is a cruel mistress, truly…" (Awan)
The tree that Awan approached was the very same one that once stood at the center of Eden and bore the fruit of Knowledge, granting Adam and Eve, her birth parents, wisdom.
The Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. A Tree not very much unlike Sephiroth—the Tree of Life, or Qlippoth— the Tree of Death.
But there was no one left to taste its fruits, nor any guardian to tend to the tree itself, making it swiftly wither away.
But that was only to be expected.
Knowledge had long since succumbed in this realm, killed by the cruel blade of madness.
Awan felt a sense of melancholy when she touched its dead bark.
The moment her parents tasted the fruit of this tree, marked the beginning of a world built by mankind.
They were exiled from this realm, and learned how to work, how to fight… and how to live.
They went forth and multiplied.
As their passions and feelings began to course through the veins of the world, it grew in complexity, driven by a surging impulse only present in mankind.
Humanity was a wonder that needed not the touch of immortality: they lived in the now, struggled with the present, and allowed their descendants— the next of kin— to carry on their legacy.
Awan quickly spun around as she was about to lean against the trunk.
"…" (Awan)
Was it a blunder on her part that she failed to take notice of the girl leaning on a boulder on the other side of the tree?
Especially considering that it was this girl's very presence that made Awan hurry up to this place.
No, for as the other party was on the very verge of death, her presence could barely be felt.
Death would claim her in mere minutes, alone and hidden from the eyes of all.
"Big Sister. It's been far too long."
"Azura… how… how did you get all those wounds?" (Awan)
"Oh… you mean this?" (Azura)
Smiling, she partly lifted her top, revealing a body smeared completely in golden blood. Her right eye was closed, with droplets of blood trickling from it like tears.
"They gouged it out. I was saved from immediate death, but not before sustaining this wound." (Azura)
Awan's face contorted upon hearing Azura's gruesome description— a likely scenario in Hell, but this was the origin world, a place in solemn defiance of even the slightest hint of corruption.
Yet here they were now, seeing such atrocities being carried out like that was the natural order of things.
"I'm certain you've come to the same realization as I. That the one allowing such atrocities to happen here is none other than our very own Creator." (Azura)
"…" (Awan)
Awan's expression took on a particular hue— rather than surprise, it reflected a feeling of loss. As a child, she did not believe her mother's vain stories of this realm being a place of perpetual wonder and bliss.
However, despite all that… it was undeniable that this realm was meant to serve as a place of salvation for all mankind.
This place would bring salvation to all Creation: such was the ultimate, all-encompassing rule that governed it, standing far above all others.
Putting aside those who lived and died as righteous men, what of those who might have walked the path of good, but were engulfed by the malice of another?
"Our Creator had long since been claimed by madness. Perhaps He had always been that way." (Azura)
Azura giggled faintly, the gravity of what she was speaking standing a sharp contrast to her melancholic visage.
"Are you alright? No… Wait, you are dy...ing!" (Awan)
"It is alright. I have made my peace with it a long time ago. But, Big Sister, perhaps can you carry me to the foot of that tree. My own legs refuse to take me, you see." (Azura)
Azura responded in the tone of someone thoroughly unconcerned with her own predicament.
She was always like that— a fool unaware of her surroundings, Awan felt.
Yet she helped prop her up, then carrying the injured Azura over to the base of the tree, like she was asked. Azura rested her back against the trunk, serenity coloring her features.
Azura— her expression peaceful— exhaled a brief sigh before parting her lips to speak.
"Ah, how mystifying. This Tree always looked so different in my mind." (Azura)
"Fufu~ Yea. Me too, after hearing Mom's aggrandized stories..."
Both of them giggled softly. It was a small private joke understandable only by the two sisters.
A moment of silence followed before Awan began...
"So… what happened?" (Awan)
"Seth shielded me. Allowed me to escape." (Azura)
"Seth… you mean, that Seth?" (Awan)
"Yes, the one and the same. Do you not find it absurd? He was merely given a duty, yet he goes to such lengths to accomplish it, taking up arms against even our very Creator." (Azura)
A hint of irritation peppered her tone.
"Oh dear. You sure an ideal wife like you should talk so rudely of her husband?" (Awan)
"It was anything but ideal, you know. We did not choose to become man and wife; it was simply pre-ordained. He clearly feels nothing for me." (Azura)
Azura's one remaining eye shed a lone tear.
"A foolish man to the bitter end, truly. All I have done was deceive and use him, and yet… Ah, the world has seen no bigger fool than he." (Azura)
"I see." (Awan)
"My schemes have been many, dearest sister." (Azura)
Awan listened to the other's words with a stern, unchanging expression.
"I suppose that's true. I've no idea what exactly you had in mind as you made these plans… But you did something, didn't you?" (Awan)
Azura had been yet another piece in the puzzle of this whole Calamity.
"I know I must receive my punishment, much like Coronzon." (Azura)
"Y…eah." (Awan)
Awan's own voice was a mere whisper.
"My goal… was complete annihilation. I was tired of it all. I merely… wished to lay waste to everything." (Azura)
"I… see." (Awan)
"Yet here I am, dying so peacefully. One cannot help but smile at the sheer whimsy of fate…" (Azura)
"That's not how I see it." (Awan)
Azura seemed puzzled by Awan's words; the latter wiped her little sister's tears with a finger, then went on.
"It's clear you're crying. You feel overcome by sadness, by despair… and by regret. And soon, you'll simply cease to be." (Awan)
"…" (Azura)
"So, you see. I think you've more than redeemed yourself." (Awan)
Azura let another smile grace her lips as she directed her gaze at the red skies above.
"Ah… I see. Am I crying? Tormented by regret? Do I yearn so desperately for forgiveness?" (Azura)
She exhaled once again, closing her left eye in the process.
"Forgive me, Seth… I… I was not fit to be your wife. I'm sorry… I'm so, so sorry…" (Azura)
Awan maintained her silence while clutching Azura's bloody hand, wondering exactly which of the two Seths she was apologizing to.
"Sleep tight, Azura. You've earned your rest." (Awan)
"Ah, you're right… After all, a man as proud and arrogant as him will no doubt arrive later to wake me. Let us talk even more when that happens… All three of us together." (Azura)
Awan could not find it in herself to shatter that sweet illusion of her younger sister.
"Yea, let's do that. Sleep tight, אחד קטן." (Awan)
"It's been so long since... you called me th...at, Big Sis...te...r."
Azura passed on.
With her newfound constitution as an archetype, it was impossible for her to "really" die.
But it was still undeniable that the person named Azura had ceased to exist.
All that remained in this world— was a yet another deranged archetype possessing Azura's body and appearance.
"In the end, he remained oblivious to your plans till the very end. It must have given you comfort beyond words, right?" (Awan)
Awan's whisper melted into the wind as she gazed solemnly at the tree, a tree that, she felt, would never again bear fruit.
"Goodbye, אחד קטן [little one]"
A lone tear trickled down Awan's cheek.
We regrouped with Anna. I felt somewhat concerned by the look she had in her eyes, but she merely met my inquiry with a shake of her head.
"Never mind that. You guys figured out where to go next?" (Anna)
"I plan to head to the throne of God." (Nika)
"You mean… where God is?" (Anna)
"Exactly." (Touma)
"Wait a second! I hate to rain on this parade, but are you guys really really sure that is such a good idea?" (Elaine)
No one had a reply to that.
Was it truly a good idea?
Would we die?
Most probably, the answer to that was a solid "yes."
It is indeed true that I held the power to make the impossible possible, but even then... God was most perhaps a little bit out of my league.
I needed to focus on reality, consider our chances more statistically.
If God had truly gone mad, the chances of our survival were exceedingly slim.
That is unless… we slew Him.
"Relax, it'll all be fine." (Anna)
"Oh?" (Elaine)
"Cause, you see, if no one else would, I'd probably slay God myself." (Anna)
Anna might have been smiling, but her gaze was cold as a winter night.
"Well, I guess if we do die, that's gonna be that, so yeah." (Elaine)
Is she being overly carefree? Well, maybe not exactly.
Elaine's words were both endlessly optimistic and endlessly terrifying.
Anna had overcome her fear through hatred and anger.
Elaine, on the other hand, had never appeared to feel anything resembling fear, to begin with.
As for Nika…
"I have to ask God. I need to know why exactly He asked me to reveal the concept of eternity to all." (Nika)
"…I see." (Touma)
"If He has indeed gone mad, I may not receive an answer. In fact, He may very well view us as threats. But I'm prepared to face that, should it come to pass." (Nika)
"Prepared for… what, exactly?" (Touma)
"To completely erase Him from existence. In fact, I'd have to do it. Akasha is meant not only to contain all knowledge of Creation but also to act as its guide—I, as its Oracle, must never lose sight of that sacred duty." (Nika)
"…" (Touma)
Nika steeled herself through a sense of duty.
All three of them would stand against the very Creator, driven by their respective convictions.
I… however, was afraid.
My legs were on the verge of trembling. I felt something within me writhe, vomiting poison with each of its struggles. That poison permeated my body, giving me only pain.
I had encountered this feeling once before.
A cacophony of joy, glee, ovation, and happiness. Crowds chanting my name. People I had to guide and protect as their God.
Their faces seemed to melt into one, intimidating mass.
The same eerie feeling that welled in my chest that day.
Fear— not of death, but of having to face them.
A definite feeling that I was gazing into the eyes of the kind of terror not even a whole lifetime would be able to wash clean from my memories.
A powerful emotion embedded in my mind, intense enough to make me fear for my life.
Nonetheless…
I would grit my teeth and endure.
I would stand and fight— without clinging to God, knowing I was far removed from divinity myself.
"Let's go…" (Touma)
And so we made for our destination on foot, with none of us even considering making the journey through flight.
We weren't simply doing that out of concern for Elaine, either.
With our ascended bodies, very little difference remained between our individual capabilities.
The reason behind not flying, however, was something far more greater, far more primal.
We simply dreaded the red skies, not knowing where we might end ultimately end up should we soar amidst the clouds of this realm.
And so… we ended up walking for almost an eternity, without paying as much as a sidelong glance at the desolate landscape stretching out endlessly to our sides. Nor did we ever stop to rest, for that matter.
"It's gotten dark." (Elaine)
Despite it being detached from the rest of the Creation at a conceptual level, the world of Adam Kadmon took upon an appearance of a mortal realm.
Almost like a god disguising himself as a peasant.
And as such, despite being depicted in scriptures as a world eternally showered in light, the whole of the source world now seemed to have an ominous day and night cycle.
We soon entered the Chamber of Akasha, and then began making our way to highest and the innermost level.
"We are almost there at the throne." (Nika)
A violent surge of discomfort rushed across my body as we drew closer, akin to my stomach being turned inside-out.
Even if I was ready to die, be killed, and endure unimaginable torture…
…I was not yet prepared to face a truly terrifying foe, whose very presence instilled existential dread.
Even the usually carefree Elaine went pale as chalk, her pace getting slower and slower by the second.
"I… I have a really bad feeling about this." (Elaine)
Not a soul contested that.
Had we truly reached the vicinity of God's throne?
"There it is. Beyond that curtain lies the divine throne of God." (Nika)
"Eeep~!"
Elaine's scared-surprised reaction felt more than understandable. That wisp of glittering light brimming ever so faintly in the darkness appeared more akin to a massive aura than an actual curtain.
Other than the curtain, which encircled the whole of its vicinity, we saw nothing else— perhaps a faint shade beyond the curtain, but that was it.
"The Lord resides beyond this curtain." (Nika)
I felt no presence whatsoever, nor could I hear any voices or sounds.
The Lord could not be perceived with our senses at all.
However, beyond those curtains, something was there unmistakably— I was certain of it. Something unimaginably massive that simply refused to be defined into anything whatsoever.
"I'm doing it." (Nika)
Nika turned towards the three of us as a final act of confirmation.
This, here, was the point of no return.
The moment she pulled those curtains apart, the world itself would turn on its head.
She needed to confirm whether or not we were ready for that. Whether we had made peace with our upcoming fate.
The witch had hatred and bloodlust festering in her heart.
The everyday girl had morbid curiosity guiding her.
Finally, the saint felt a profound sense of duty.
And I… I wrestled with a completely different emotion.
We all steeled ourselves for what was to come once the curtains were pulled aside, and nodded.
"Here we go." (Nika)
Nika took a few steps forward and whispered to what lay beyond the towering curtains.
"O' Lord! Please bless us with thy wise counsel!" (Nika)
Whether or not it served as a password of sorts, I could not tell— either way, as soon as the words left Nika's lips, the curtains slowly folded up, making a way for us to pass.
We all took a deep breath and focused our attention on what lay beyond.
And in the end, we beheld…
Author Notes:
Mr. X: Thanks a ton for your review. It makes me really glad that you're still enjoying the story.
Now to answer the questions you asked this time:
I hope so too :D
1. Yea… Exactly what I had in mind. Btw that "there is a" is now fixed as well. It was an editing error jaja.
2. Yup. That's their default levels, with maybe Anna and Azura being a bit more powerful like the canon Anna Sprengel. Azura will be a reclusive powerhouse that basically wants nothing to do with magic. Basically, she'll be retired jaja.
3. Not in this book sadly jaja. The other ones, hell yes ^^
Thanks once again for reading this work of mine. I really appreciate the gesture, truly.
Onto the trivia section:
Not much research was needed for this chapter. Everything was already done in E1 ending routes. Just more antagonists popping up here and there. Another Tuesday in this fic at this point, I think ^^
One real fight incoming in the next chapter.
See you then… :D
~VG outto~