Albedo found herself in a great library, the shelves she saw were stacked so high they rose out of sight. However she noticed it was not books that were placed on the shelves but semi transparent cubes filled with glowing light floating above pedestals. From each cube she could sense memories, emotions and essences of the different supreme beings. The cubes were innumerable shining light stars in the night sky. On each pedestal was carved in gold a label...American Civil War realm 21...The Great War realm 21...World War 2 realm 21…The Last War Realm 21…
"These are all wars...records perhaps?" Albedo thought to herself
On the lower shelf she saw more of these cubes but they were different, these were labeled with names...Martin Luther King realm 21 this cube was glowing white...Albedo sensed the essence of Touch Me sama. Mother Theresa realm 21...pink the essence of Bukubuku Chagama sama...Otto von Bismark realm 21 the green glow of Punitto Moe sama…
Albedo turned to another bookcase and she saw on cube glowing in many different hues, the essences were almost battling for control...Naofumi Iwatani the Shield Hero realm 245 within she saw the blood red of Lucifer sama struggling against the pink and white of Bukubuku chagama sama and Touch Me sama. On another case Albedo was drawn to this one cube...it seemed to hum with power, she could see it shaking on the pedestal, such was the force of the essence within. The Birth of Slaanesh realm 40999...the roaring purple of Peroroncino...Albedo reached out to touch the cube…
I wouldn't do that if I were you
Albedo spun around and saw the form of her creator Tabula Smaragdina. The eldritch horror that was her creator standing before her in all his majesty. Albedo felt the gaze of her lord gaze over her form, inspecting her. She felt his gaze peer into her soul and she thought back to her outburst at the grand plaza. Albedo felt the crawling feeling of shame and guilt rise up from within her. She looked away unable to gaze upon her creator, she had wanted to see him again so very much across the years as she stood alone in the throne room. The first thing she did once she saw the masters again was to lose her temper...disgraceful…
"You are troubled little one." Tabula stated
"Yes my lord...I am ashamed… ashamed of my outburst earlier, ashamed of my failure to realise the traitor that was in our midst. I have failed as Guardian Overseer of Nazarick...I do not deserve the title." Albedo said as tears welled up in her eyes
"Indeed mistakes were made, they will not be the last mistake you will ever make but such is the nature of mortals. Try as we might we cannot make you as we are...but as Punito Moe says"
Failure is the mother of success
"So do not wallow in your defeat little one, grow from it and become stronger. Do this and you will always honor the 41." Tabula said gently as he took her hand and clasped it within his own
Hearing this and feeling the warm gesture Albedo wiped her tears and felt new strength well within her. Her creator was right, to expect to be as flawless as the 41 was hubris. All this time she felt she had to be perfect, she was guardian overseer of nazarick, she guarded the throne of kings itself. However she was still mortal...a lesser being than the 41. What was important was that she did not make the same mistake again…
"Now that's more like it. As the Guardian Overseer of Nazarick should be." Tabula said with a smile.
Albedo blushed at this words, marveling once again at how easily her creator could read her thoughts. As she looked up at the milky black eyes of her liege wrinkle slightly in a smile she couldn't help but let out a small smile of her own.
"Feeling better little one?" Tabula asked with just a little mirth in his voice
"Yes. Thank you Tabula Smaragdina sama" Albedo said with a bow
"Good good, now come I am sure you have many questions." Tabula said as he gestured to a central area with an ornate wooden table surrounded by chairs.
As Tabula Smaragdina sat down he noticed Albedo remained standing.
"What's wrong little one? Have a seat." Tabula said with a gesture to the chair next to him.
"Forgive me my lord but how can I seat myself as if I am your equal?" Albedo said with the deepest respect.
"I appreciate your loyalty Albedo but it is poor courtesy to deny a lords offer." Tabula said with a slight twinkle in his eyes. Although the words rang with a rebuke the tone however betrayed the fact that there was none.
Albedo smiled as she sat down. "Thank you for your infinite generosity my lord" Abledo replied.
"Now ask away little one, I am the god of magic, knowledge and fear after all" Tabula said
"Yes my lord, I would first like to ask what would we be doing exactly on our mission and why send us? I am sure Nazarick was under some suspicion after the great betrayal so why send us to the heart of that temptation? Is it perhaps a test?" Albedo asked
"Sharp as always little one. To be frank it is a test partly for your loyalty, partly for... something else" Tabula replied cryptically
"Something else my lord?" Albedo inquired
"Did you know Jaldaboath was the first of our creations ever to rebel?" Tabula said
"I...did not." Albedo replied softly realizing that Nazarick was a pioneer in the most heretical of ways.
"It's not a rebuke little one. In fact, I view this as an opportunity. You see myself, Momonga san and Punitto Moe san always wondered when our creations would finally start rebelling. For you see among us primordials rebelling and infighting has no purpose but for mortals there is much to be gained." Tabula said
"You expected this?" Albedo asked
"Indeed, it is fortunate the one to rebel is small fry like Jaldaboath. He is weak, infinitesimally weak as compared to me and my peers. So the damage is small and contained, in fact the world he stole was one of the far flung worlds. The world was created as a testing area for religion of the 41." Tabula replied
"I see, but why choose such an isolated world?" Albedo replied
"Hahaha...You see little one, Jaldaboath was doing his own research prior to his rebellion. He asked me himself in fact about the nature of worlds when I visited Nazarick previously, such was the schemer that Ulbert created. The Realms that we create have mana capacities, this dictates how much mana energy can enter the realm before it is destroyed. You see the relic he stole teleported that world a great distance away from the world tree effectively greatly reducing the mana capacity of the realm. This prevents any of us primordials from entering lest we destroy the realm. However we have found the world and attached a tether to it gradually bringing it closer to the world tree. He won't notice you see because the amount is so little. So little in fact it will be just close enough in about a week for the realm to sustain the entirety of nazarick and a greatly depowered herald." Tabula explained
"The entirety of Nazarick is considered little?" Albedo asked bewildered
"Why yes little one. Fundamentally you are few so the burden is not high. On some worlds beings of level 100 are common place. They number in the millions in some realms." Tabula calmly explained
"What do you mean by the herald being depowered? So she will become weaker due to constraints of the realm?" Albedo asked
"Well yes she would be constrained to a 100 levels and tier magic." Tabula said
"Constrained to tier magic? Are there other forms of magic?" Albedo asked shock evident on her face
"Yes there is, she can use the magic we do. I created the tier system to allow mortals to better control magic lest the power goes awry and they end up destroying themselves. We use a form of Magi Script to channel our mana in different ways. It varies from primordial to primordial on how we do it." Tabula replied calmly
"What is this Magi Script?" asked Albedo befuddled
Well you see little one it works like this…
- In the domain of Ulbert Alain Odle -
"Astounding…" Demiurge whispered as he gazed at his creator create miniature star in the palm of his hands. Demiurge knew this was not something tier magic could do seeing as his creator could seemingly change the color and size at will.
"And that's how it works." Ulbert said simply
"Remember never attempt to do this Demiurge. This power is beyond you." Ulbert said sternly
"Yes of course my lord…" Demiurge replied still having not fully recovered from the revelation
"Then Ulbert sama do you have any insight into what is to come?" Demiurge asked
"Hmphh, that question would be better served towards Momonga and Punitto Moe. Don't worry Demiurge further instructions will be given to you by the time you set off. Calm yourself I see that look in your eyes, just do what you do best when the time comes." Ulbert said
"Thank you my lord…" Demiurge replied gratefully
"Also my lord do you know if...do you know why Jaldabaoth did what he did?" Demiurge asked hesitantly
Demiurge often asked himself this as he stood guard at his post. He always felt he had failed as a brother, the older brother no less. Was Jaldabaoth dissatisfied in some way, did he neglect his brother when he needed him the most? Could he have prevented what came to pass…
"Having second thoughts Demiurge?" Ulbert asked
"NO!...Never my lord...I know what must be done. His transgressions cannot be forgiven…" Demiurge said
"Yet you doubt, why is that?" Ulbert said he leaned forward locking Demiurge in his gaze
Do I sense weakness?
- In the domain of Momonga -
Momonga sat upon a simple throne made from the same black stone his pillar was constructed of. Before him stood Pandora's Actor and Maeve. Both stood at rapt attention before their lord, feet slightly apart, hands behind their backs and backs ramrod straight.
"Hahaha...Grand! I see the two of you are getting along!" said the jovial voice of Momonga.
"Yes we are Father" replied Maeve
"Yes we are Momonga sama" replied Pandora's Actor
Pandora's Actor looked to his side quizzically at the small blonde girl at her addressal of his liege as Father. Surely such familiarity would be inappropriate before the most supreme? Momonga quick to notice lets out another laugh.
"Fret not child, I have permitted your little sister to call me father in more private settings. You may as well Pandora's Actor, if you so choose." Momonga replied jovially
"Momonga sama I would not dare, it is plainly obvious to one even as ignorant as I that dear sister holds a higher station than one such as me." Pandora's Actor
At those words Pandora's Actor saw Momonga let out a tired sigh. He saw his shoulders visibly sag as if a great weight was pressing down on the indomitable lich. He could sense his liege's fatigue as if the weight of creation itself was burdening his lord.
"Father?" Maeve said breaking her rigid posture and approaching arms reaching forward in concern.
"It's fine child…" Momonga said with his hand raised, shoulder still hunched with some unseen burden.
"My lord if I have offended you…" Pandora's Actor stammered, aghast at his lords reaction to his words.
"No no...it's nothing…" Momonga said with a wave of his hand.
"If I am to be completely honest… I grow tired of these titles and formalities…" Momonga said wearily.
"You see I am not like my other comrades...I do not have many creations...I only have the two of you." Momonga said as he looked up at his creations
Momonga reached forward and clasped Maeve's hand with his right and took Pandora's hand with his left. He brought the two hands together and clasped them with his hands above and below his creation's.
"We are family the three of us...my essence runs through your veins my precious children." Momonga said as he gazed at his two creations.
Pandora's actor for the first time in his life felt himself at a loss for words as he gazed at his hand clasped firmly with the grip of his liege he suddenly felt he understood his lord perhaps just a little bit more.
"Thank you...father." Pandora's actor said
"*sigh* I am sorry you two had to see such a disgraceful side of myself...Please forgive me." Momonga said wearily as he bowed his head
"No no Father. Thank you for your words, your child is grateful." Maeve said as she knelt before Momonga so she could look him in the eyes.
Although Momonga's visage was an expressionless skull that betrayed no emotion. In that moment Pandora's actor felt a shadow of a smile passed over his lord's face.
"Oh yes also I have gifts for you two…" Momonga said as he reached into a hole in reality and pulled out 2 boxes.
"My lord we cannot accept it, your grace and kindness this day is gift enough." Maeve said
"Deny me once you have seen it child." Momonga said smugly.
Pandora's Actor looked to his left and saw Maeve reverently open the box and saw within a pair curved short swords made of the same black stone that his lord's great pillar was made of.
"Abyss obsidian…but untempered...how?" Maeve whispered as she gazed in awe at the two blades before her
"A small project between myself and Amanomahitotsu san. A fitting weapon for the Herald of the Abyss don't you think?" Momonga said with a smile in his voice
"Still want to deny the gift child?" Momonga asked rhetorically
"I...thank you father…" Maeve said as she closed box and leaned in to give her lord a warm embrace.
Now your turn Pandora. Open it...