Chapter 814 – Resident Expert On Insanity

From Forever, Until Now.

From Now, For Forever.

Arda Stands.

- Text inscribed onto the standing ICDT towers that were during Operation Sky’s Return.

Mary tapped her fingers along the table, they had all felt the call of another meeting to the window room, so everyone was beginning to turn up here. It wasn’t the usual alarm, that occurred when someone was leaving without authorization. This was Noah’s call, Arda’s Keeper. From down in the depths, the last of their kind to remain on that planet. A sacrificial position, honoured mightily of course, but still sacrificial. Arda needed to have someone always watching over her, after all.

“Mary.” Noah bowed his head and Mary returned the bow.

“Noah.” She replied. “It has been a long time.” The last time Noah came to visit, it was when he had dragged Saranael up here some several hundred years ago.

“It has indeed.” Noah said. “Pretty as always, you are.”

“Spare me.” Mary said, she simply hated the perturbing sight of him. There was nothing for her eyes to focus on, or catch. Every someone as simple as his nose was smooth as one point, then as curved as a hawk’s beak, and then withered and aged. “I am the first, as always.” If she knew this had been Noah’s call. Then everything would have gone differently from the start. “What are you here for?”

“Arascus of Pride is in the waiting room.” Noah said. “I have brought him here to sign the King’s Pact.”

---

Anassa snapped her fingers and more crimson snowflakes poured from the walls. Sometimes, killing was for show. It generally was when the Imperial Army was about and she wanted to inspire them with her own Divinity. But sometimes, rare that it was, killing was done for the sake of killing and nothing else. Anassa stared at the beasts ahead of her. Malam had taken some damage, cuts here and there, she had killed precisely none of these creatures.

But now Anassa was here. Divinity, true Divinity, had come to put a stop to this madness. Crimson rings formed on her fingers, they turned to chains that Anassa wrapped her fingers around. And then, she tugged downwards. Instantly, chains formed along those snowflakes, connecting to the same that Anassa held. Vivid, almost opaque drawings over reality, with hard lines for edges and yet see-through in the middle.

Of Sorcery watched every monstrous denizen in that tunnel be torn apart as her chains ripped through them, and then morphed into sharp blades. She put more power into it, from those blades, Ardan beasts sprang out. Proper animals, lions and snakes and eagles, and they tore through, the edge of their bodies as sharp as the edges of their teeth. They flooded downwards, smashing through the inhuman, monsters.

A moment passed before the crimson energies finally dulled their shine. Anassa turned her head, one ear facing the tunnel and listened. No movement. She had turned at least a mile of the inhuman creatures into nothing but a thin black paste scarred the ground, walls and ceiling. Malam breathed with relief and shook her head. She was going to have something annoying to say, no doubt, that was Malam through and through. “I’m so glad we didn’t bring you to be copied.”

“What are you talking about?”

Malam was silenced, just as Anassa was. They both heard Fer’s scream. Malam stared at Anassa, and then at the empty tunnel. There was no need to say anything, Fer did not scream like that. Never. Malam made the call that Anassa wanted to make, even though it was directly against her father’s word: “Go.”

---

Joshua leaned back in his chair, resting one elbow on the wooden table as if he was claiming it and stared at Noah. “Arascus has already signed the King’s Pact.” Joshua said and Noah narrowed his eyes.

“Why did I not know about that?” He asked.

“The man has left Arda, heading into another soul-realm, some three years ago.” Mary said. “And that is the truth.” She waved her hand to dismiss the argument that was no doubt going to brew. “It is not an issue, we can merely amend what is written already. What did you do with him?”

Noah, at the very least, was not going to argue with her. Maybe with the others, but not with her. “I showed him the end of Arda, as had been before, and as it will be.” The standard operating procedure to bring about a deity like that to madness. Eventually, someone would have to put an end to this menace on Arda. All the Divines that left the world, Allasaria included, were a walking, living, containment risk.

“Finally.” Samson said. “Someone did it.”

“Has he been an issue before?” Noah asked and the room turned towards the ever shifting man. They looked at each other, then they looked to him. Mary didn’t even know what to say on this. How could one even explain the Arascus issue? A united Arda? Under their own Divine? It was exactly what they had done in the previous epoch, except now, the script had been flipped. “I take that silence as a yes.”

Samson explained the whole problem. “As things are going, the Ardan surface will have to be purged once again. Another cycle comes to an end, they are moving onwards to destroy the Second Arc, if they manage it, then they manage it. If they do not, then we are free of this job, finally.”

“Truth.” Mary said unconsciously. Her instinct simply kicked in and forced her to speak. Discussing the destruction of a world, any world, was always an unpleasant topic.

But Noah just stared at them. “Second Arc?” He asked.

“A part of Tartarus.” Samson said.

“Truth.” Mary said. Noah stared at them.

“Will it destroy Arda wholly?” He asked. Mary wished she had not come for this meeting. She held her tongue.

“That was the risk you took when you volunteered to be our man on Arda.” Samson replied. “Yes, if they hit, Arda will be destroyed. We will call for you a day before impact.”

---

Anassa appeared by Fer’s side. Fortia and Maisara were already. “I’ve already secured Malam, what is going on? Fer? I heard you scream.” The tunnel ahead had a solid wall of lightlessness, a void you could practically walk into. A void Irinika walked out of.

“There was some creature that touched him and they both disappeared Ana.” Irinika said quickly. “I do not know what, who, why. I know it was there, I know it was some few minutes ago, and I know it was instant.” Irinika tallied everything off quickly as she pointed to a location in the stone. She stared at Anassa, then up at the ceiling, then took a deep breath. “I do not care if it falls on me at this point.” Anassa knew what the Goddess of Darkness would be referencing, the blade that would appear when. Neneria crossed her arms curiously at her sister.

“A watcher.” Anassa said. The Empire had changed to using Allasaria’ term for those creatures.

“A watcher.” Irinika said. “I know which one, but I cannot say its name, that much is certain.” She took a deep breath, spread out her arms and legs, thrust her chest forward and looked up at the ceiling as if she was preparing to receive damnation. “It is not the one in the wooden room, but I know that when it stole me, I also ended up there.” She stared up, breath held. Fortia released her breath first.

“It didn’t fall.”

“Knowledge experienced firsthand is not knowledge given.” Neneria said dryly. “That proves it.”

“Then…” Irinika said. “Ana, we all know what a sorcerous awakening is…” She trailed off and restarted. “The wooden room, it’s the one piece of advice you give them.” Anassa flexed her fingers and stepped towards the place where Irinika had been pointing. She could not feel Arascus’ presence anywhere here. “Do you understand?”

“Madness.” Fortia muttered, her spear appearing in her hand. “Madness of the largest sort. How? Why? On what evidence Irinika? On what evidence whatsoever?” Irinika shook her head and turned to the null void behind her. She waved her hand and it pulsed, shifted an inch to the side, and then Irinika was looking back to Anassa.

“I’m for it.” Fer said.

“Anassa can force others to enter soul realms.” Irinika raised her voice. “And that is enough for me. Unless you want to stand around here and wait for what exactly? For that creature to return with my father’s corpse maybe?!” The last word was practically a shout. Irinika’s darkness bulged behind her, and then slid further away from them.

“What do you want me to do?” Anassa asked. Irinika was one of the greatest Divines on the planet. It was the Goddess that she had long since looked up, greater even than Elassa. Not a teacher, but just a mountain to reach. The reason she wore sorcery was because Irinika wore darkness. The reason she could cross gaps was because Irinika could. Irinika had proved it possible, even if Irinika herself did not know what sort of shining star she was exactly.

“I want you to send me, or yourself, to Arascus and bring him back. Wherever he is in the universe.” Irinika said.

“That is insane!” Fortia shouted. “One Divine is not enough?”

Irinika flatly ignored Fortia. “If you will not do it, then send me. If that creature could do it, I know you can too.”

“Did you not see that thing cancel our abilities!?” Fortia shouted.

“Then you will kill it when you’re there.” Irinika said. “Because Arascus is there, and he will kill for you even if he has no powers.”

“HOW!?” Fortia shouted and Maisara pushed off the wall to come closer.

“Fortia raises a good question.” Maisara said. “How exactly will you kill a thing like that?”

Of Darkness snapped her fingers and shadows rose from the ground. Black tendrils that sharpened into spears and pointed directly at Fortia and Maisara. “How? I don’t know how. He will do it because he is my father and because I did not submit to a God that can be defeated by some…” She shook her head. “Some… Something like that!!”

“It’s madness!” Fortia shouted back, ignoring the weapons pointed at her. Allasaria descended from the tunnel that Neneria had taken to get here, Iniri close behind her.

“What happened?” Allasaria said.

“Now’s not the time.” Fer growled. Iniri was about to say something, but she closed her mouth quickly enough at the admonishing tone.

“What happened actually?” Allasaria said. “Where is Arascus?”

“Gone!” Irinika screamed at the Goddess of Light. “GONE! NOW IF YOU THINK I’LL PLAY AROUND WITH YOU AGAIN, THEN NOW’S NOT THE TIME! SHUT UP ALLASARIA!” Allasaria golden eyes grew wide, but she closed her mouth and said nothing else.

“You would need what exactly?” Fortia said. “A fragment of him at the very least, would you not?”

“It’s madness because can you even move a Divine like that?” Fortia asked. “You only send souls, you don’t send bodies, do you?” Anassa stared down at her fingers. What was the fundamental difference between sending a soul and a body? An annoying, stupid little voice in her head immediately raised a counterargument and started listed them off:

This had never been attempted before. She had no clue what she was doing. Her own ascension had been a borderline accident she couldn’t even formulate. Every single time she sent a sorcerer to dig within their own soul, she was simply repeating a motion she had discovered accidentally on herself. Was she really going to risk her own life on this? Was she really going to risk her family’s lives on it? Arascus would be able to return himself. There was nothing that Arascus could not do. They just had to wait everything out.

“What is going on here?” Elassa’s voice echoed around them as the Goddess of Magic floated through the hole. “I’ve secured the dig site, it should hold for a few hours.” She was glowing bright blue. Allasaria shot Elassa a dirty look. “What?”

“And if it collapses?” Elassa looked dryly around the room, then pointed to Anassa, to Irinika, to Iniri, to Allasaria and her finger settled on herself.

“I count five people here capable of digging us out.”

“Elassa, now’s not the time.” Irinika shut the conversation down again. “Arascus has disappeared, we’re trying to find him. If you can help, then help, if not, then be quiet.” Of Magic pursed her lips and the jewellery on her fingers and her blue dress settled down. The blue light faded and she extended an arm out to Anassa.

“Ana is the resident expert on inter-realm travel.” Elassa said.

“I have never done this before.” Anassa said dryly. “I’ve not even thought of doing it.” Her tone was steady though, she just stared at the gap in the stone. What was she even supposed to do? Chase to her father? She knew how to make distances ethereal and worthless, but that was just a matter of perspective. A comparison between herself and other Divines. If they could do it, so could she.

Fer knew exactly the spot to prod. “Has that ever stopped you before?” No. A firm, definite no. Anassa knew what that word meant in the dictionary, and she knew how to use it in a sentence, but that word simply did not apply to her. She had not been stopped once since she ascended to Divinity.

“Fer.” Anassa croaked as she looked up at the ceiling. A sky would be better, maybe then, she would be feel something. But what did a sky matter? A Divine should be able to navigate with or without a sky. Anassa realised she was looking slightly north, and then turned to be looking directly away from Arda’s core.

“Is he there?” Fer asked, looking up in the same direction where Anassa was.

“I don’t know.” Anassa said.

“But you can find him.” Fer said.

Allasaria intervened, as she always did. “Fer, are you even hel-“

Maisara’s axe appeared, the Goddess of Order swung and held the blade an inch from Allasaria’s neck. Allasaria stopped, the words dying in her throat as her hair and white dress shifted from the force wind that Of Order had just made. “Arascus is not here to enforce some protection order on you right now.” Maisara said coldly. “Shut your mouth.”

“Do as she says.” Irinika said.

And Fer did not even stop at the interruption. “If you were dropped anywhere in this world, you would be able to find him because you’re a Divine Ana, true and holy and undoubted, because Divinity does not doubt. Divinity does.” Anassa turned as she looked over the ceiling.

Insanity. They were asking her to pick a spot in the universe and believe it would be the one. It was madness. It was random chance of such statistical improbability that… That one would have to be insane to truly believe it. Anassa’s face twisted. Why was she even looking up at the ceiling right now? She should be searching for souls, not for materials.

And it was a soul she knew very well. She would be able to recognise him in a crowd of people without even seeing him. If everyone in the world was put into a room, she was confident that she could point at Arascus. Not from the certainty of her own power but from the sheer certainty of her own love.

What was moving through the soul space anyway? These monsters could do it. Why could Divinity not? Was there some universal rule? How much was that universal rule worth if even humans could be sent there to survive? Anassa closed her eyes and tried to search for her father.

Another interruption. Not from Allasaria, nor Fortia, but Neneria this time. “Ana.” She was holding the black fragment of not-quite stone they had found, it was glowing in her hands.

“What is that?” Irinika asked.

“I have no clue.” Neneria said. “But it glowed with Elassa’s soul some…” She trailed off, Of Magic narrowed her eyebrows and squinted at the rock. “Some time ago.”

“One month, eight days.” Maisara interjected. “And some sixteen hours.”

Neneria pointed to Maisara. “That long ago.”

“With mine?” Elassa asked. “Why?”

“We were expecting you to know.” Fortia said dryly. “What happened a month, eight days and sixteen hours ago?” Anassa’s eyes grew wide, that was when she had found Elassa in her own bed, staring up at the ceiling, almost unable to move. And when Anassa asked about the sword, all Elassa could do was nod.

“That’s when…” Anassa began, Elassa’s blue eyes suddenly grew wide with understanding, her mouth fell open into a circle and she had to blink several times to awaken herself.

“That’s when I was taken.” Elassa said. “To the watcher’s room.” Everyone turned to the stone in Neneria’s palm. Of Death passed it Of Sorcery. The latter tapped into it and felt the heat she knew by instinct at this point.

Arascus’ soul.

They had their lead.