"So, I take it you're all me?"
Abel glanced around. So many—so many 'hims'. The thought was admittedly upsetting to him. He always liked the idea of being his own chaotic, unique self. Though, if as much was to be assumed, the others also didn't like this gathering. Nonetheless, they have been called. The reason by which had remained to be revealed.
"Bzzzzzz. Yes, we are all you. Bzzzzzz," the machine buzzed.
"Hmmmm, yes, we are all different aspects, versions, and variants of the concept of Madness. Though, the pronouns used by the robotic me-self would be contradictory, no?" the cat purred.
"How do you mean, Chesire?" the woman asked with a smug grin.
"The use of we and you, for 'we' implies multiplicity, and while that certainly can be seen, ultimately there is only Madness present. Ergo, the use of a singular pronoun 'you'. Quite fascinating, is it not?" The cat began licking its paw, a gesture of sophisticated intelligence.
"Hrm. Many. One," the corpse grumbled.
"Well, rather than arguing about pronounssss, ssssshould we not try and figure out why we are here?" the snake hissed as it coiled around itself.
"I was not arguing, merely making a point," the cat riposted.
"While I would agree with both of you, I would be agreeing with myself. Speaking of speaking, why are we talking aloud? There is no true dialogue here, only a monologue. A monologue by which can easily be perceived in silence as we all think the same, no?"
"Because, we never really could shut our mouths now, could we?" the cat quipped.
"Bzzzzzz. Data insufficient. By definition, monologue implies one voice. Many voices are present, speaking. Bzzzzzz."
"Mono. Many."
"pArDoNThEInTeRrUpTiOn, BuTCaNWe jUsTSeTAsIdEThEsETiRiNg tHoUgHtSAnDDiScUsSWhYWe aRe hErE? i dOn't hAvE ThEEnErGy tOBe pHiLoSoPhIcAl nOr uNiVeRsAlLy cOrReCt."
"Yes, I missed my morning cup of coffee. Such a shame."
"Mmm. Coffee. Good."
".sey ,ecin eb dluow eeffoC"
Abel pinched the bridge of his nose. It had only been a few minutes, but he was already beginning to grow weary.
"Am I always like this?" Abel sighed.
"Like what?"
The cat flaunted its tail as it gingerly pranced around the others, making its way to Abel.
"Irritating, selfish, self-absorbed." With each passing adjective, Abel's eye moved from one version to the other. The cat, the woman, the snake. "Never willing to relinquish the spotlight to any other person."
"Hmmm, we were not always, but for the most part, and more importantly, now, then yes."
What a headache—to be unique and part of a collective identity.
"Well, guess I ought to apologize to Seth after this. I should probably just give him an extra present for his birthday."
They all chuckled at this. Mythics having birthdays. What a silly thought.
Abel began to make his way through the crowd of selves. He didn't bother to try to do a headcount of the many Madnesses that stood on the star. A finite infinite number of perspectives stretching beyond the horizon—practically impossible to count. He remembered he had imagined something such as this would occur, but it was only in passing thoughts of curiosity and theory. They were all experiencing a practical phenomenon of what was once believed to be hypothetical.
He knew what had caused this, what had made them all be summoned. The change that occurred within his mind had manifested as he stared out into the vista of the starscape. Somewhere, in the far expanses of the universe, he had died.
Why? Who killed him? Who would dare?
"I take it that we all understand why we are all here, no?"
"Yessssss, we have died…"
Abel's jaw tightened as a brief sense of anger flared from within him. But just as it abruptly erupted from his heart, it passed. His temper would not solve anything.
"I suppose then we were called here to fill in the void left by ourselves. To pool our collective minds together, and move forward." The woman had seemingly manifested a file in-between her delicate fingers. She began to rub it against her nails.
"Even still, that does not quite explain who has killed us, and why."
Her words had a slick poisonous fury beneath them.
"Bzzzzzz. Yes, the data is inconclusive. Bzzzzzz."
Abel placed his hand beneath his chin in thought.
"I don't suppose that any of us have any ideas on why this has occurred."
He looked around. Everyone shrugged and averted his gaze. So fickle. Eventually, one of them would speak out.
"We do." Sure enough, a voice abruptly called out from within the crowd. "We are simply too afraid to say anything that could disprove our theories. Too much pride to embarrass myselves in front of myselves."
The figure the voice belonged to was covered in a thick brown cloak. A hood covered over its supposed face which bore a gaping scarlet eye, unblinking and shivering. It cast a gaze that alone could rapture the mind into utter neurosis. In its hands, it held a thick book, bound in the hide of a fallen and forgotten animal. Wrapped around its cover was the tip of a tentacle, poking out from beneath the cloak, Aegean and Eldrich.
"And you would be?"
The cloaked figure stopped a few paces from the rest of the crowd.
"I am us, obviously."
Abel squinted as he stared at the figure. After a short moment, he let out a hum of a laugh as he waved to the figure.
"Ah, yes, I remember you. It has been so long since I was you."
"Yes, I was Madness when the universe was first created by our doing."
For what else would give the universe the idea to smash itself and condense its particles into an infinitesimal singularity? The great birthing of heat and density, soon to expand and encompass everything that ever was and is. So long ago, nearly fourteen billion years.
"You all have your questions. Natural, as I am the origin—the first. Speak now that we may pass on ourknowledge and move forward."
The questions erupted one after the other, seemingly merging into a singular contextual dialogue, a monologue of many voices.
"Who killed us?"
"Why were we called here?"
"Why at a time such as this?"
"Killed. Me. Who?"
The questions could have continued endlessly as a stream of consciousness—a series of thoughts and ideas loosely connected as a form of colloquy. However, the origin stopped them before they could continue.
"All of your questions, of course, have but one answer. The universe has remembered, and now wishes to smite itself to scorn another."
Abel clutched his head as strange emotions began to fill him. He felt oddly nauseous, dizzy even. He knew what they were, but they felt so strange. It had been so long since he felt such anxiety and sadness.
"You are ssssssspeaking in riddlessssss," the snake hissed, unimpressed.
"I speak in laws," the origin retorted. "Laws that we were so intent on avoiding."
Abel's eye sharpened as a smile began to curl itself upon his face. That is so like him; that is very much them—to skitter around ordinance and edicts.
"We are old, and so too is this universe," the origin continued. "Perhaps we have forgotten just how old both truly are."
The origin began to walk away from them, isolating itself. It no longer wished to intermingle with the rest of itselves.
"But as the universe is beginning to remember, so have we forgotten what lies in the darkness—in the abyss between oblivions. There it is, undoubtedly, reawakening in the darkness. While we may have tried to stifle it, we have only prolonged the inevitableeeeeeeee—"
Suddenly it began to vapourize into streams of mist. Abel looked around him. The others were also beginning to dissipate.
"What's going on?"
"Hmm," the woman hummed. "I presume that we are beginning to merge once again." She gently blew on her newly filed and smooth nails. "We have indeed passed our knowledge, and what we are witnessing is our own perceptions of one another amalgamating into a singular identity, leaving ourselves alone here."
Abel looked around himself once again. Gone was the snake, the corpse, the robot, the statue, and so many others. The expanse of starscape grew evermore vast and vacant as its inhabitants vanished into mist.
"Yes. I guess that would make sense."
Subconsciously, Abel's fingers gently grasped at the strands of gauze that covered over his right eye.
"Well, before we part ways with me-self, I assume we all know what must be done?"
"Yes. We must seek one of authority. We must seek a Prophet."
With that, Abel peeled back the bandage, letting light into his eye. As soon as light touched its gaze, it was consumed into a void of scarlet. Soon after, everything in sight was swallowed whole, including Abel.