Observation Log by Spark Draconisfilia.
Elemental Magic, Duskari Magic, and Therion-Void Magic - Entry 789
Earth-199999, ~6,024 BE (Before Emergence) = 4,000 BCE (Before Current Era)
Year 295,611 of the Fulgebunt Draconis Imperium (Earth-199999)
Magic, Sorcery, Mysticism, Ritualism, Enchantment, Inscription, and any metaphysical expression of will over reality—aside from those inherently innate to the life code or mind of the caster—are collectively classified as magic in the Imperium and Drachantheon Therion, though they are divided into different domains.
This report will focus on Elemental, Duskari, and Therion-Void Magic.
Elemental Magic
Elemental Magic can be summarized as the control and manipulation of matter and chemical energy—and in a small manner, entropy—primarily through spell matrices. These may take the form of magic circles, mandalas, spheres, verses, or other structures.
The Duskari refer to Elemental Magic as the magic of the primordial system, as it was the first system of magic taught to them by Yao, Goddess of Magic and Therions.
This field is divided into Earth, Wind, Water, Fire, and Light.
-> Earth, Water, and Wind involve the direct manipulation of pure matter in different states.
-> Fire is a combination of matter and chemical energy manipulation.
-> Light involves influencing light in its particle state to shape, enhance, and attenuate it.
Light Magic is the most difficult branch of Elemental Magic, followed by its subbranches: Lightning, Soundwave, Lava, Osmosis, and Plasma Magic.
While Elemental Magic grants near-total control over matter, it is limited by complexity and purity. Processed forms of air, earth, and water fall outside its purview. For example:
- Pure gases beyond the tenth element (Neon) cannot be directly affected by Wind Magic.
- Metals, crystals, isomers, highly pure elements, and compounds are immune to Earth Magic. It's mostly limited to ores, minerals, and other natural states found in the ground.
- Pure liquids are unaffected by Water Magic.
Duskari Magic
Duskari Magic refers to non-elemental magic developed by the Duskari, commonly called Deviant Magic due to its origins in the sacrifice of countless Deviants.
This magic system is more abstract than Elemental Magic, though some Elemental Spells were completed through the ritualistic exchanges that birthed Duskari Magic.
Examples of Duskari Magic:
-> Astrology-Stellar Spells: Used during the early era of space exploration to increase the likelihood of successful voyages by aligning spells with celestial objects along the plotted course.
-> Physical Artificial Self-Blessing: Grants limited permanent enhancements to a Duskari's physical attributes, including stamina, strength, defense, reflexes, vigor, lung capacity, eyesight, oxygen-CO2 transport efficiency, and heart vitality. This was one of the first subsystems of Duskari Magic, developed during the glacial era when physical resilience was paramount.
-> Residency/Home True North: Provides an intuitive sense of the shortest route back to one's residence. It was developed during the space exploration era when returning home without technology was challenging.
Liveability Detection and Prompting: A two-part subsystem designed to detect health hazards and alter inhospitable environments to make them habitable. In the early days of terraforming, millions of Duskari would gather to cast these spells on entire planets.
-> Emotional Support: A highly regulated subsystem due to its potential for emotional manipulation. It primarily consists of spells cast on oneself to mitigate extreme emotions such as panic, dread, rage, and depression. However, a subbranch exists for casting supportive spells on others.
The Duskari have known Elemental Magic for 294,222 years. It has been 67,326 years since Wanda, Goddess of Chaos and Hell, created the Ritualistic Exchange Spell, which gave birth to Duskari Magic. Over time, countless spells have been both registered and unregistered within its domain.
Therion-Void Magic
Therion-Void Magic is as old as the Imperium in Earth-199999, but it remains the least developed magic system in terms of the number of spells. For 228,185 years, progress in this field was minimal, with only a handful of spells recorded. However, the creation of the Ritualistic Exchange Spell marked a turning point.
This system derives its name from its connection to the Drachantheon Therion deities and its foundation in the Master Chief's void energy. It possesses near-absolute power in warping, manipulating, enhancing, and cursing reality—second only to the domain of Reality's Creator.
However, despite its overwhelming capabilities, Therion-Void Magic is bound by logical constraints.
Examples of Therion-Void Magic Spells:
- [Secare]: A cutting spell that utilizes the layers of the space-time mesh. However, it becomes ineffective in locations where space and time do not exist.
- [Inanis Sectio]: A conceptual cutting spell that targets anything the caster can identify. Its effectiveness is limited by the caster's ability to perceive the intended target. For example, Jean, who can see souls, can cut them—but she would be unable to cut the space-time mesh without first using Phoenix's authority to perceive it.
- [Lenis]: A spell that removes friction. It only works if the target relies on friction; otherwise, it has no effect, regardless of whether the target is a god, demon, or even an Abstract entity.
-> Limitations of Therion-Void Magic:
- Void Energy Reserves: The caster's available void energy core reserves determine the magnitude of a spell's effect (Bulk Output).
- Contracted Void Energy Flow: The caster's ability to channel void energy from the Master Chief (Sustained Output).
- Physical Tolerance: The caster's body's capability of withstanding void energy flow, both in bursts and sustained use.
- Power and Status Hierarchy: The gap in power and status between the caster and the target determines the amount of void energy required for a spell to take effect.
- Spell Logical Constraints: For example, a spell targetting the mind won't affect a target without one, a spell assisted by time won't reach a target beyond it, etc.
Currently, only the Master Chief has successfully cast spells on Abstracts, as demonstrated in tests performed on the Madame.
... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...
/ End of Entry 789/
_____________________________
Earth-199999, Ancient Mesopotamia.
"Phoenix, do you think she will learn how to wield destruction with just this?"- Aragorn asked the firebird perched on his horns. He was doubtful that the power level of the materialized fears was enough to push Jean into a corner.
"Isolation and separation will pose a problem for her, I believe, but Unknown—or you—will possibly give her the push she needs."- Phoenix said.
None of these manifested fears were stronger than Jean. She was the Phoenix Host, and these were partially of psionic origin. Jean was no longer the inexperienced girl she had been 295,614 years ago; she had been trained for almost just as long in the fire pits of hell. At this point, aside from Aragorn and Phoenix, she could confidently call herself the strongest psychic being in most realities.
So how could these barely continental threats be the challenge she needed to ignite her destructive power?
For one, no matter what, Jean was not a transcendent being rid of all worldly attachments and fears—these primordial fears could still reach her. But the real reason lay with her patrons.
"Isolation because she fears experiencing it again."- Aragorn remarked.
Due to her uncontrolled power outbursts and Xavier's intervention, Jean had initially been isolated in the X-Mansion, and this had marked her deeply.
"Separation because she is attached to you and your deities."- Phoenix added.
As she herself had once confessed to Aragorn, she feared that something would happen that would condemn her to separation from him and the rest.
"And 'me' because it's unknown how that fear will behave?"- Aragorn asked.
"And because she idolizes you and can't see herself surpassing you."- Phoenix explained.
"Mmm... interesting, they could also do something unexpected. So which ones should we empower first?"- Aragorn asked with a noxious grin.
"Predator is already strong enough to keep the Celestial's creations occupied. I only sense the girl with multiple minds and your fire rabbit servant on the planet. Since the magic fox will be helping the precursor of this mess, only three of your deities should be available to help her."- Phoenix analyzed.
"Please just use their names. You know them from Jean's and my memories."- Aragorn said, rolling his three eyes at her.
This was Phoenix's way of addressing those who were not Jean Greys or whom she acknowledged.
"... It's what I'm used to."- Phoenix justified herself before continuing. "Mindee, Irina, and James will be the only ones available to directly help her. Mindee will probably deal with Heights, Irina with Death, and James with Darkness and Loss of Autonomy. That leaves Jean with Isolation, Separation, and Unknown. I think we should empower Mindee, Irina, and James' opponents first."
"Okay, you can use my power, but don't go beyond continental. Jean is already limited by the amount of attacking power she can use before caving in the planet—there's no need to go overboard."- Aragorn said.
"Overprotective as always."- Phoenix grumbled. She was already about to create a galactic threat and leave the mess for Aragorn to handle.
"Overkiller as always."- Aragorn quipped. He felt that Phoenix was about to pull a Phoenix.
Phoenix dipped her fiery wing into the eternal flame of Aragorn, and a portion of it flew into the firebird she manifested through him. Phoenix's hot orange and yellow colors mixed with the bluish-white of his fire and then turned to the looming manifested primordial fears.
Outwardly, nothing changed, but Aragorn and Phoenix could see what had internally changed.
As Phoenix had pointed out, James, Mindee, and Irina manifested in front of their respective opponents, hovering above at the level of the Primordial Fears, ready for battle.
'I'll help cover for the humans moving to shelter at the Obelisks. I'll also make sure that whatever you do, the biosphere isn't compromised, but don't go planetary. This Self is underpowered because I'm still building Obelisks elsewhere.'- Aragorn spoke into their minds.
'Is this the time for that?'- James couldn't help but question.
'This is just a minor inconvenience—deal with it, my failed butler!'- Aragorn cheered.
'Young Master, can I really let go?'- Irina asked, yearning in her tone.
'Yeah, go crazy. Make sure Kitty gets jealous of your rampage when you retell the story. I'll make sure there are no repercussions as long as you keep the attack power under the limit I mentioned.'- Aragorn said with a chuckle to his pyromaniac maid.
'How long until Master (Yao) fixes this?'- Jean asked.
'I don't know. However long it takes.'- Aragorn replied noncommittally.
'I feel like you're enjoying this at my expense.'- Jean commented.
'Less yapping, more destruction, Firebird.'- Aragorn said.
As they were having this telepathic conversation, Aragorn was also speaking with Yao.
'You want Agamotto to fix it? Not me?'- Yao asked, wondering why Aragorn had chosen the less-than-ideal approach.
'Yeah, just make sure he doesn't do a shoddy job or escalate the situation. Take all the time you need.'- Aragorn said. There was some mirth in his voice because he said this while, coincidentally, Jean was asking him about how long until Yao fixed the problem.
'Is this a test for Jean?'- Yao asked. She had taught her fair share of disciples—even during the stressful centuries when she wasted over 70% of her days trying to stop the apocalypse—so she could glimpse beyond Aragorn's pranks.
'Sort of. Nothing happens if she fails, and the reward is the battle itself.'- Aragorn admitted easily.
'I understand. Then I will guide Agamotto. Even if this one is not the founder of my order, I'll consider it an honor. By the way, he said he wanted to talk with the head of my pantheon.'- Yao said.
'Okay, that's no problem. I was planning to drop by to study him and the Time Gem, so either way, I'll be dropping by after this.'- Aragorn said.
'I'll let him know.'- Yao cut the psionic conversation.
"We're ready."- Aragorn informed Phoenix.
"Good, it's about to start. May my Jean find the violence and commitment needed to wield my Destruction."- Phoenix said.
Thousands of meters (a few miles) above the ground, Irina flew straight toward the fearsome form of her Madame—a huge black dragon with a spectral flare to it. Its sprawling wings seeped wisps of wraiths, and with each flap, the howls of souls—children, women, men, the elderly, animals, and every living being capable of fearing death—mixed with the howling winds. Its claws seemed to leave traces of deadly smoke behind.
And despite its lethal appearance, Irina sported a massive, thirsty grin, enraptured by what she was about to unleash.
"Ah, I knew it."- Irina said with a deviant expression in a surly tone. "Staying close to the Young Master can only bring positives."
Irina and Mindee were the only deities currently on the planet because all the others were busy overseeing their star systems. Some millennia ago, Emma proposed that each deity should oversee a part of the Imperium's territory, believing this would provide the final push needed to gain their ninth tail.
At the moment, almost all of them had eight tails, and those who didn't weren't far behind. But overcoming the last wall to reach Elder Deity territory seemed insurmountable. They could feel it—so close yet so impossible.
Aragorn suggested that becoming dimensional lords could make the process easier, as was the case with the dimensional lords of the Drachantheon Therion, who also sensed the wall but did not find it insurmountable. However, not many agreed with that notion. While being dimensional lords carried its basket of benefits, it also came with detriments.
Emma believed that as long as each deity held a large enough congregation, the wall would collapse under the sheer pressure of faith. Thus, the Drachantheon Therion settled on overseeing star systems, each containing at least four habitable planets comparable in size to Earth—so-called Earthian Planets.
Mindee decided to wait, as she had not yet reached the eighth level and was still working on earning the forgiveness of her stubborn friend Alflyse. Irina, while already at eight tails, chose to remain on the planet with Aragorn, waiting for Yelena to complete her ascension and switch places with her. She reasoned that Aragorn would be left with no servants otherwise. Truly the Goddess of Assiduity.
As Irina flew closer to the death dragon, a trail of yellow fire with a blue-white core followed in her wake. Her body ignited in blue fire, making her bright enough to be mistaken for a comet escaping Earth. The extreme temperature ripped electrons from atoms, leaving a trail of ions behind, and in doing so, lightning followed.
The nascent star closed in on the death dragon and...
BOOM!
The atmosphere caught fire, and arcs of lightning escaped the conflagration, illuminating the sky.
Aragorn used his void barriers to prevent the heat from igniting the surface and the rest of the sky.
"I like her."- Phoenix commented.
"Just because she wields fire like a Dark Phoenix."- Aragorn quipped.
The ball of fire—basically plasma at this point—turned into a battle of ghostly smoke and star-hot fire competing for supremacy.
From the outside, the true nature of the fight was obscured, but with Aragorn's eyes and Phoenix's senses, they could see what was happening at the center of the star.
Irina's fists wielded long, broad blades of blue fire, while the death dragon attacked with claws of almost conceptual death.
Irina propelled forward faster than the dragon could react, sinking her plasma blades into the right side of its ribcage.
"[Uro]"- Irina said, the bright light escaping the incision points of her plasma blades illuminating her maniacal expression.
From plasma blades to plasma torches, her fire flooded the dragon's insides.
"+/%$#***`~=-+_%$@!!!!"- The death dragon howled. Whether it was in pain or expressing something else, given its nature, was unclear.
The dragon retaliated swiftly with a sweeping strike of its bladed tail, falling from above like a guillotine. Irina leaned back to avoid being bisected. Her plasma torches withdrew from the dragon, and the tongues of plasma bathed the outside of the wound. Regardless, she wasn't fast enough—the tail managed to cleave her arms off at the elbows.
Without flinching—given how little regard she and the rest of the Therions had for their bodies—she smiled.
"[Displodo]."- She said, and her severed arms shone brightly for a moment before...
BOOOOOM!
From the outside, Phoenix and Aragorn watched as the star expanded, then contracted to its previous size.
Inside the star, Irina's arms began regrowing as she observed the death dragon's remains.
Its head and hind legs remained intact; the rest had been pulverized by the explosion. Though far from fatal, the dragon was already regenerating. While it did so, Irina glanced down at her stubs and noticed something resembling death preventing her limbs from fully regrowing.
Narrowing her eyes at the wounds, she severed the afflicted stubs at the shoulders with two psionic slashes. A moment later, her new arms regrew.
"Attrition or sealing."- Irina analyzed.
Behind her, seven of her eight tuft-like tails ignited and separated from her. They burned brightly for a moment before transforming into clones supported by her divinity.
The seven clones moved to surround the death dragon, taking turns burning it while keeping it to a single head.
"Active sealing? It's not a bad idea."- Aragorn commented. Inwardly, Aragorn thought about how Irina chose this method to enjoy burning the dragon longer.
"It is not, but only because she has collaborators, and I only wish to keep her occupied."- Phoenix said.
Higher in the atmosphere, Mindee faced the fear of heights, though her confrontation was not as direct as Irina's.
The Obelisk had just one annoying ability—to make targets experience falling.
So while Mindee appeared to be hovering, in reality, she was flying upwards. And while her ray attacks seemed to be caging the Obelisk, they were actually flying upward, attempting to strike it.
"[Radiatio]"
A beam of iridescent light flew straight toward the Obelisk, only to stop midway. The beam was affected by its falling field, forcing Mindee to hold it in place.
"How can light fall?"- Mindee asked in frustration.
She understood how she could fall, so she wasn't surprised that she had to exert herself upward to fight the Obelisk's pulling force. But light? How could light fall? Sure, a singularity could pull light, but the Obelisk wasn't using gravity or space—she could confirm this by the fact that she could comfortably sway her tails up and down despite the pull.
She figured that while she worked out how to make her attacks reach it, she would build a cage of iridescent beams infused with her divinity to stop its advance.
"What about unseen energy?"- Mindee made a cutting motion with her tails, and seven long, narrow cuts appeared on the Obelisk's face.
Before celebrating, she narrowed her eyes and made another cutting motion—only for the psionic slashes to fall.
"It's not adaptation... Maybe recognition?"- She mused aloud.
She concentrated and made another cutting motion, and once again, seven cuts appeared. She tried repeating the feat, only for the wind blades to fall.
"Then... what about a field?"- She wondered.
She began flooding the surroundings with her psionic energy, but before she could attack, the field started to fall.
"Mmmm... An attack from above?"- She made a grasping motion, and a portal opened above the atmosphere, releasing a small ball of metal.
The ball soon caught fire but didn't lose momentum. No bigger than a basketball, it was denser than most metals. It hurtled toward its target at a perfect angle—one where making it fall would only increase its lethality. Yet, as it neared the Obelisk, it shifted to a different angle and missed.
"That's not falling anymore."- Mindee complained.
The metal ball followed its new trajectory and impacted near a coast. The force of the impact turned the ground into undulating patterns and churned the sea into a tsunami.
"What a careless fox."- Aragorn muttered, flicking his tail. More void barriers materialized, isolating the disasters caused by Mindee's experiments.
"Can't she use your void energy?"- Phoenix inquired.
"They all can, but if it's in its raw state and not through spells, it's a rudimentary and crude use. She would need to get closer to the Obelisk, but since it has that causality field, she knows she can't approach without making compromises."- Aragorn explained.
"I understand... Then James is the abnormal one?"- Phoenix asked.
James was fighting his Expy and the threaded monster, raw energy flowing wildly around him.
"One of his divine fields is shadows, but his shadows are more reminiscent of the primordial darkness—or the void. The void is in no way a match for my void, but they aren't that different."- Aragorn said.
"So he has some affinity for your void energy?"- Phoenix asked.
"Exactly. I would still say he wields my energy crudely, but compared to the others in my family, he is the best at it."- Aragorn explained.
When Aragorn used void energy, it manifested with a bluish-white hue, similar to the eternal flame. But when James wielded it, he mixed it with his divinity, turning it pitch black.
James couldn't quite command the unruly energy, so he gave it free rein in cyclic streams that flowed outward, around him, and then back inside. Some of these streams followed spherical paths, while others threaded together into long cords.
(Like solar flares, but contained around his body.)
Against the aggregation of dark fear mimicking his form, James had no choice but to engage in close-quarters combat. Though it mimicked him, it didn't fight like him. On the contrary, the way it wielded darkness was nothing like his own.
The fear of darkness was meant to be the collection of terror evoked by the night and poorly lit caves in the minds of the first sentient beings—these were its origins. Yet, the fear James was fighting didn't act like a shadow. It acted like a black hole.
That could be credited to the Duskari.
Like primitive humans, the Duskari once feared the darkness. But the Drachantheon Therion quickly changed that. By the time Aragorn's Obelisks began forming the Noosphere, the Duskari no longer feared the absence of light—they feared the inability of light to escape. In other words, black holes.
Thus, James was fighting an almost sentient black hole—one so destructive that Aragorn had sealed their battlefield to prevent the disappearance of the atmosphere.
Then there was the fear of loss of autonomy—a monster made of threads, wires, cords, and chains. This fear behaved like a jellyfish. It floated, pulsing through the air, its long tendrils idly dragging and spreading around it.
It didn't even attack. But it moved a lot.
It didn't take a twelfth-level intellect to guess what touching those threads would do.
So, James, while trying to flood the fear of darkness with his cyclic streams of void energy, had to be careful to avoid any thread that might have made it past his streams of void.
"It's like fighting with a probability field."- Aragorn commented.
"Not the smartest battle style, but it's clear he is taking this as a training opportunity."- Phoenix added.
What they meant was that James was not exactly throwing attacks—he was getting closer and trying to get his target caught in the cyclic streams of void. Granted, he still had to parry the attacks followed by the pulling force of the fear of darkness, but that was not his main priority.
"Jean, on the other hand, is losing."- Aragorn said.
"That is expected. I'm routing most of my support to those three constructs."- Phoenix said.
The fears of isolation, separation, and the unknown worked together like comrades who had shared countless battlefields before.
Unknown used its dragon body to siege Jean and keep her attention focused, while Separation hid in the blind spots Unknown created, and Isolation patiently waited.
"What are these things?!"- Jean exclaimed in frustration.
None of her psionic attacks were effective. They dealt damage, but the constructs regenerated far faster than they received it.
Frustrated with the futility of the fight, Jean created a tornado of psionic blades lit with her cosmic fire. She made herself the eye of the tempest and began spinning with it.
It spun faster and faster until it could barely be distinguished from a tornado of fire. She pointed her hands at Unknown and tried to pull it into the attack, but it resisted her.
"H-How is that possible?"- Jean asked, shocked.
Jean had fought enough to know that the amount of force she was exerting was enough to pull Mars into the Sun, yet the fear of the unknown was resisting her.
She narrowed her eyes in suspicion, and then she saw it—psionic energy flowing through it, more than she could currently output safely.
"PHOENIX!"- She exclaimed, clenching her jaw in anger.
Right then, she understood the culprit behind her peril, but this only made her focus more. She began pulling Unknown with even greater force, which was a mistake.
Unknown stopped resisting and instead combined her pulling force with its own pushing impulse. It was on Jean so fast that she barely caught a glimpse of its burning figure before it barreled into her.
Unknown sank its teeth into Jean and held her with all its might. Furious, Jean began expelling cosmic fire from her entire being, yet Unknown didn't let go. She tried to shift to her fireform, but she was afraid Unknown could interfere with her form like Aragorn could.
The two, bound together, fell toward the awaiting Separation, its sharp edge ready. Jean didn't see this but felt it through her psionic sense and decided to cut her own neck and send her head away—but she wasn't fast enough. When the cut was seven-eighths in, Separation's cleave struck them.
Unknown didn't survive and went into regeneration mode immediately after, the cosmic fire taking its toll. Separation wasn't lucky either—the crash of Jean and Unknown, both engulfed in cosmic fire, was enough to turn it into a mist of energy. But Jean couldn't celebrate.
One after another, she began to feel her connections to Aragorn and Phoenix's powers slipping away, until she could no longer sense them—leaving her with only her innate abilities.
As if that weren't enough, Isolation positioned itself in her falling path and swallowed her whole.
Jean found herself separated and isolated from everything and everyone.
"THAT FUCKING BITCH!"- Jean growled, shifting into her fire form to accelerate the healing of her injuries.
She gazed at her surroundings and found herself in a vast, empty cave. She moved toward one of the walls using her telekinesis, but no matter how long or fast she flew, she couldn't reach it.
Digging into her knowledge of magic, she tried to locate the core of the spatial distortion—yet, to her surprise, she discovered she was in a place without space or time. She tested this by trying to stretch her psychokinesis beyond her fire form but failed—there was no space for it to travel through.
Then she saw herself—another Jean—arriving at the location—with the same aghast expression she had moments ago.
Both Jeans stopped in their tracks and eyed each other suspiciously.
"YOU—" both said at the same time, but before they could finish the sentence, another Jean arrived—this one with half a broken mind.
"Ugh, not this again!"- The new Jean groaned. "How long has it been?—No, wait. That's a stupid question. How can it have been when there's no time? Am I right?"
The new Jean giggled madly.
"UGH!"- Another Jean arrived—this one enraged—and immediately attacked the others.
"What are you doing?!"- The attacked Jean exclaimed in pain.
"Excellent, a rageful Jean. Those are always a delight to be around."- HalfCrazyJean sarcastically muttered.
One of the first Jeans was killed by RagefulJean, prompting HalfCrazyJean and EarlyJean to team up to put an end to her.
"What the fuck is going on?"- EarlyJean said, unshed tears pooling in her eyes.
"A crybaby! HEHEHEHEHE!"- HalfCrazyJean exploded in a fit of laughter.
"Ah, fuck! Another group?"- Another Jean joined the fray.
"HEHEHE! Don't you get it, Crybaby? Without time, everything happens all at once! Without space, everything that happens, happens all in the same location—if it happens at all!"- HalfCrazyJean shared her enlightenment, and with her words, more Jeans arrived.
Some were somberly silent, some were frisky with each other—desperate for contact—some were grumpy, mad, sad, depressed, suicidal, half-crazy, total psycho—and soon everything was Jean, and the empty cave's walls could no longer be distinguished.
No matter where Jean looked, everything that was, was one of hers. It was madness. She looked down at her hands, trying to separate herself from the outside, only to discover that her hands were covered in tiny Jeans.
"No, no, no, no, this can't be!"- She shouted, waving her hands wildly.
Not long after, she realized that total isolation and separation meant that she was all there was, is, and will be. Jean was all, and All was Jean.
"N-NO! IT C-CAN'T BE!"- Jean shouted.
"HEHEHEHEHE! That's it, join me! This is better than going full BallisticJean!"- HalfCrazyJean—one of them—said in delight at gaining a sister.
"I don't know, I like the way the full BallisticJeans choke me when I flirt with them."- A horny FriskyJean commented.
"Come here, gorgeous. I'll choke you to orgasmic heaven!"- Another horny FriskyJean said.
"SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!"- Jean exclaimed.
"SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!"- Jean exclaimed.
"SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!"- Jean exclaimed.
"SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!"- Jean exclaimed.
"SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!"- Jean exclaimed.
"SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!"- Jean exclaimed.
"SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!"- Jean exclaimed.
"No u!"- HalfCrazyJean replied.
"No u!"- HalfCrazyJean replied.
"No u!"- HalfCrazyJean replied.
"No u!"- HalfCrazyJean replied.
"No u!"- HalfCrazyJean replied.
"No u!"- HalfCrazyJean replied.
"No u!"- HalfCrazyJean replied.
"No u!"- HalfCrazyJean replied.
"DIE!"- A Jean turned into a RagefulJean.
"DIE!"- A Jean turned into a RagefulJean.
"DIE!"- A Jean turned into a RagefulJean.
"DIE!"- A Jean turned into a RagefulJean.
"DIE!"- A Jean turned into a RagefulJean.
"DIE!"- A Jean turned into a RagefulJean.
"DIE!"- A Jean turned into a RagefulJean.
"DIE!"- A Jean turned into a RagefulJean.
"DIE!"- A Jean turned into a RagefulJean.
"DIE!"- A Jean turned into a RagefulJean.
"RUN!"- A CrazyJean ran, but into the RagefulJeans.
"RUN!"- A CrazyJean ran, but into the RagefulJeans.
"RUN!"- A CrazyJean ran, but into the RagefulJeans.
"RUN!"- A CrazyJean ran, but into the RagefulJeans.
"RUN!"- A CrazyJean ran, but into the RagefulJeans.
"RUN!"- A CrazyJean ran, but into the RagefulJeans.
"RUN!"- A CrazyJean ran, but into the RagefulJeans.
"RUN!"- A CrazyJean ran, but into the RagefulJeans.
"That's why you can only be half-crazy! HEHEHEHEHE!"- A HalfCrazyJean laughed.
"That's why you can only be half-crazy! HEHEHEHEHE!"- A HalfCrazyJean laughed.
"That's why you can only be half-crazy! HEHEHEHEHE!"- A HalfCrazyJean laughed.
"That's why you can only be half-crazy! HEHEHEHEHE!"- A HalfCrazyJean laughed.
HalfCrazy, FullCrazy, Frisky, Depressed, Rageful, Suicidal, Ballistic, Sane, and all other manner of Jeans—all existed in the same location at once. All of it was... pandemonium.
Outside Isolation, Unknown had finished reforming, but instead of continuing elsewhere with its rampage, it moved to Isolation and merged with it. Separation saw Unknown doing this and followed its example.
Inside Isolation, multiple caves were born, and in each cave, a newly isolated and separated Jean appeared. She then tried to reach the wall of the cave, only to fail and discover that there was no space or time. Another Jean appeared, and soon, a HalfCrazyJean arrived.
Over... and... over... again...
"Anytime now."- Aragorn said in a bated breath.
"You're exuding concern."- Phoenix pointed out.
"Ah, I didn't realize."- He said, pulling back inside his concern.
"How can you stress so much over her? You know she is safe."- Phoenix said.
"Mmmm... Do you want me to share my feelings and perspective?"- Aragorn offered.
After thinking about it for a while, Phoenix agreed. She failed to notice his smug grin. Next, Aragorn summoned the might of all his selves and avalanched Phoenix with his Thought Way and emotions.
Phoenix—this fragment manifesting through Aragorn—soon couldn't stop it and resonated with his feelings.
"Agh! Fool, stop this!"- Phoenix demanded.
"Eh? Really? But you asked for it?"- Aragorn feigned ignorance.
"Don't play stupid, Aragorn!"- Phoenix flapped her wings over his face, slapping and scalding him in the process.
After a few long seconds, Aragorn stopped flooding her with his perspective and emotions.
"... Did you have to do that?"- Phoenix pecked his head violently.
"Hey, you're all about learning about life through experience. That's the reason behind your hosts, right? I was helping you by letting you experience things from my POV."- Aragorn shamelessly said.
"You're not alive!"- Phoenix replied, followed by another violent peck.
"Oh, you're right. My mistake, Senior Sister. It won't happen again."- Aragorn brought Phoenix down from his horns and hugged her tightly to his chest.
"Don't treat me like an idiot."- Phoenix glared.
"I wouldn't dream of it."- Aragorn petted the firebird, and his hands and chest shed skin layers the longer he held contact, but he didn't care.
While Aragorn and Phoenix shared a peaceful atmosphere, Jean was drowning in madness, James was testing all the new moves he didn't normally get to use, Mindee was solving a puzzle, and Irina was arsoning to her heart's content. The Eternals, however, were not having a pleasant time.
"Druig! Make them go inside the Obelisks, they need to leave behind their stupid goats!"- Ikaris shouted with unusual upheaval.
"I can, but you'll need to step up and hold back these monsters!"- Druig's voice came out forced. He was interfering with the minds of the monsters to disrupt them and allow Thena, Gilgamesh, Makkari, Kingo, and Ikaris to block them.
Druig could interfere with the Fears' minds because Phoenix was not sponsoring these monsters.
"Leave it to me, I can hold them back for about three minutes!"- Sprite said through the comms.
Soon after, an illusion of the humans escaping split from the original humans and led the Fears away, while Sprite obfuscated the escaping humans.
"Phastos, how's it coming along?"- Ajak asked.
Phastos and Sersi were working together to fabricate a disruptor of psionic energy.
"AGH!"- Ikaris roared in pain.
"Come down here! Let me heal you!"- Ajak shouted.
"It's coming along, but it's complicated. These constructs are not simply psionic energy. I might do more damage to our side if I disrupt the psionic shell keeping the extradimensional energy restrained together."- Phastos explained.
"Sersi, I need cobalt."- He said.
"Coming."- Sersi replied.
"In that case, can you make something to push them away? We don't need to defeat them; stalling is an acceptable tactic."- Ajak suggested.
"Mmmm... It's possible. I would have to do some minimal adjustments, so it's viable."- Phastos said after a moment of thought.
"Get to it."- Ajak said.
Zzzzzmmm
Makkari appeared carrying a bleeding man. 'Healing needed,' she signed.
Ajak made short work of the wound, and soon the man was healthy enough for transport.
"Why?! Why is he not stopping this madness?"- Sersi cried out in frustration.
"Aragorn?"- Phastos asked, his hands in a blur constructing the needed artifact.
"Who else?"- Sersi asked.
"Sersi, look over there."- Ajak pointed at a group of humans running away from a large imp-like Fear monster.
When the imp's fiery trident was about to impale them, a previously invisible transparent barrier deflected the attack.
"If you look here, you can see how this entire place is veiled under his psionic energy signature."- Phastos made a display float to Sersi and pointed out.
"Sersi, you shouldn't see him as a benevolent, nigh-omnipotent being. He is far from either of them, but he is taking care of the ones outside our reach."- Ajak said.
"Most of them at least. There have indeed been some casualties, so I don't know what standard he is using to select those deserving of his protection."- Phastos added.
"But he can stop all of this."- Sersi countered.
"He can..."- Ajak agreed. "But so what?"
"So what?"- Sersi asked, incredulous at hearing those words from Ajak's mouth.
"Technically, Arishem could stop all suffering, right? Why are you not mad at him as well?!"- Druig shouted from a distance. "Ikaris! They're secured!"
"Got it!"- Ikaris's eyes shone bright, and he rediscovered the wonders of aerial bombardments—laser-cutting bombardment in his case.
"Sersi, I know you don't like him. Heck, a quarter of his interactions with me is trying to have me sit on his lap and treat me like a child!"- Sprite grumbled. "But you're expecting too much from a being that has never fed you expectations."
"I actually quite like him!"- Kingo shouted, his finger guns horizontally blasting monsters away. "Regardless, you have to view him as a force of neutral chaos. It's easier that way."
Zzzzzmmm- Makkari zoomed in. 'Predator Fear incoming,' she signed.
"It's ready. It repulses the constructs."- Phastos said and made a pair of inscribed golden floating rings hover to each of them.
The rings fit snugly around their wrists, and a cloak-like field covered their arms up to their elbows.
"Finally, I can get some effective punchin' in."- Gilgamesh said, testing the rings with a couple of fast jabs.
Zzzzzmmm- Makkari disappeared and reappeared next to the Predator that Ikaris had just downed.
She struck the downed Fear from multiple directions so fast that she left afterimages.
The Predator Fear's form wobbled after each hit, but it still held on. Suddenly, it exploded its sharp tendrils in every direction.
Zzzzzmmm- Makkari appeared next to Ajak, covered in bruises and bleeding.
'Too fast. Be careful.'- She signed.
Ajak immediately began healing her.
Thena and Gilgamesh attacked from opposite sides. Thena thrust the tip of her materialized spear forward, while Gilgamesh delivered a powerful punch from the other side. The Predator slid, carried by the momentum of the punch, straight into Thena's spear.
Squelch- The spear found its quarry, piercing with a wet sound. The monster bellowed in pain.
The spearhead morphed into a hooked shape, and while holding tightly the spear's shaft, Thena raised her hand. Ikaris flew down, clasped her hand, and dragged her along as the Deviant-shaped Fear was hauled toward Gilgamesh.
Gilgamesh tensed his muscles, loaded another heavy strike, and released the stored energy in a flash-forward punch. His fist connected with the Fear, sending it hurtling toward Kingo and Phastos.
Phastos assisted Kingo in charging a larger shot. A massive sphere of golden cosmic energy formed above Kingo's hands.
"These guys are weak, but so cinematic! That's a two-person Genki-dama."- Aragorn commented as the ball of energy flew and exploded against the falling Fear.
"Genki-dama?"- Phoenix asked.
Aragorn shared his memories with her.
"How long ago did you first enjoy this? Aren't you past the point of finding any entertainment enjoyable?"- Phoenix asked.
"In reality, I am. But I have certain directives in my personality that allow me to enjoy things like this."- Aragorn admitted.
"Why would you do that?"- Phoenix asked, genuinely curious.
"I can't stop existing. I can't be trapped. I can't be put in a situation I can't escape. And I remember everything I experience. Sooner or later, I would have done it all. Since that's the case, why bother doing something now when I could do it later?
"Why bother being bothered by anything when, in the end, it won't matter? I will outlive anyone and anything—so why should anyone or anything be important? Physiological needs are mere suggestions to me, so I carry no instinctual drive for anything, not even reproduction. These and many other thoughts arise when you experience life as I do.
"When you're truly free, you're purposeless.
"To avoid turning into an eternal drone with no personality, no drive, no ego, no id, no sense of self, I have countless directives programmed into me. I also split my sense of existence into CoreSelf, SurfaceSelf, LucianSelf, and Void-chan—but Void-chan is special. I modified aspects of 'Me' for this purpose.
"You get the necessary feedback for your personality from your hosts. Noona gets hers from her souls. And I get mine from my directives and compartmentalized selves. Otherwise, we would be like the rest of the cosmic beings."
"... You have one of the bleakest outlooks on life I've ever seen, and that's saying a lot when you count the number of my hosts who have given up on life."- Phoenix said.
"I can't deny that."- Aragorn agreed. "But I believe it's to be expected from someone who has achieved ultimate freedom. I took that freedom and chose to give myself purpose, goals, dreams, wants, dislikes, morals, and directives."
"It's... interesting. None of my hosts have ever shared such a perspective with me… Thank you."- Phoenix said after using Jean's link with Aragorn to experience what he described.
"You're welcome."- Aragorn replied nonchalantly.
As Phoenix and Aragorn's conversation ended, Jean's situation was escalating.
"HEHEHEHE! YoU ALl WaNt CrAZy? FiNE!"- Half-Crazy Jean cackled before shifting into Rageful Jean.
"If I can't end myself… I'll end you all!"- Suicidal Jean's clouded eyes turned violently fierce.
"Fuck you, bitches! I'll fuck all of you up before I fuck you!"- Frisky Jean's manic energy turned violently horny.
"RAAAAAAAAAGHHH!"- Rageful Jean went on a rampage.
Slowly, as despair took hold, many of the fragmented Jeans let their instincts guide them. Their hearts screamed in unison: Rage. This rage reignited something within Jean—something Aragorn had helped quell shortly after meeting her.
Her Destructive Flame.
And soon—though it felt like an eternity—all the Jeans became the Dark Phoenix.
"RAAAAAAAAAAGGGGHHHHH!"- They roared in wrath, hate, disgust, rage, anger, ire, outrage, fury, irritation—Destruction.
"Finally."- Phoenix said.
"You think she can come down from her high?"- Aragorn asked.
"I don't know. I don't care. You deal with it. My job here is done."
With those words, Phoenix dispersed.
"... This Senior Sister of mine… She didn't even return the wisps of my power I lent her."- Aragorn muttered, shocked by Phoenix's selfishness, it reminded him of himself.
He turned to Isolation. The monstrous Fear was beginning to resemble a cave moments before a volcanic eruption.
Irina, Mindee, James, and Druig felt something shift through their psionic senses. Phastos detected a psionic storm on his scans.
"Time to work, I guess."- Aragorn sighed. His words were perfunctory.
He jumped through space, appearing in front of Isolation. His tail swayed lazily, and with each slow motion, the battlefield cleared. He had begun absorbing the psionic and dimensional energies that granted false life to the Fears.
Mindee, Irina, and James joined him once their materialized Fears had been dealt with.
"Young Master, is Jean going on a rampage again?"- Irina asked. Though her words proclaimed upheaval, her tone was as relaxed as a stoner in a thermal bath receiving a shoulder massage. Irina couldn't deny how cathartic arson was.
"I believe so. Though, I think it's a controlled rampage—one she'll very likely aim at me."- Aragorn said with a wry grin.
"Do you need us to do anything, Aragorn?"- James asked.
"I'll take Jean away. Finish herding the humans into the Obelisks."- He instructed.
"Didn't you absorb the monsters, Grandfather?"- Mindee asked.
"Just the ones in the vicinity. Yao isn't finished guiding Agamotto into fixing his mistake."- Aragorn explained.
"Alright, Young Master. We'll coordinate with the Eternals."- Irina said.
Shortly after her words, Isolation couldn't bear it anymore—it was decimated, reduced to ashes, completely destroyed.
Jean emerged as a fiery, dark-red phoenix. Her presence instantly blanketed the Solar System, her bright, flaming eyes fixed on Aragorn.
"Oho!"- James let out in appreciation of the overwhelming power Jean was exuding.
"Good luck, Grandfather."- Mindee said before teleporting to the other hemisphere of the planet.
"Please don't harm her too badly, Young Master."- Irina added before vanishing. But not before casting an appreciative glance at the fire surrounding Jean.
"Aragorn!"- Jean snarled through gritted teeth.
"Aren't you forgetting Phoenix?"- Aragorn grinned mischievously.
"YOU!"- Jean primed to attack. She hated the way no matter how angry and violent she got, Aragorn would always smile and act as if it weren't a big deal.
Yet before she could strike, she and Aragorn suddenly found themselves in the White Hot Room.
"Senior Sister, I felt like this is a problem we should both take responsibility for."- Aragorn said, having spatially displaced them into the sacred realm.
'How are you here?'- Phoenix's psionic voice echoed from all around—and within—at the same time. She had traces of surprise in her voice but also of understanding, she had learned long ago not to expect normalcy from Aragorn.
"You didn't think you could escape the tantrum-throwing princess and leave with my energy without me following you, did you?"- Aragorn smirked. He had tracked the White Hot Room through the power Phoenix had borrowed—and failed to return.
"The two of you… you're the same!"- Jean exploded.
"Oh wow, she's siphoning my energy and mixing it with your concepts."- Aragorn mused, intrigued, as he studied the incoming wall of Void Destruction.
'Do something. Calm her down.'- Phoenix urged.
"Have you tried turning her off and on again?"- Aragorn quipped.
'Fool! You know she's using the White Hot Room to power herself.'
"But, Phoenix… aren't you the least bit curious about what would happen if Jean hits us with our combined power?"- Aragorn spread his arms open, mirroring Christ the Redeemer, a smile as wide as his wingspan graced his face.
'What are you talking about?'- Phoenix asked.
Aragorn didn't reply. Instead, he closed his arms in a hugging motion—and a shard of Phoenix appeared in his embrace. He glanced down at the fragment of her with a cheeky grin, just before the flaming wall of Void Destruction swallowed them whole.
————————————
Outside the Multiversal Barrier...
"Well, that was something!"- The Self of Aragorn lingering outside the Marvel Multiverse remarked as his destroyed self reformed within it, now carrying the shard of Phoenix.
'Fool.'- Phoenix's voice was curt.
"Oh, come on, Senior Sister. Isn't this something you've never experienced before?"- Aragorn said, his multitude of eyes locked onto the shining resplendence of the Multiverse.
'I have died before. Once, to the Goblin Force.'
Phoenix's shard emerged from within Aragorn's soul, perching herself atop his formless body. Slowly, she shifted from a phoenix into a Jean-like winged form, her mane and wings still wreathed in flame.
"But how many times have you died and been reborn inside the soul of a Void Beast like myself—only to be greeted by the sight of your home from the outside?"- Aragorn asked.
'…That's new.'- She admitted.
"It is. Now, if you look at that section of the Mystery, you can spot the White Hot Room."- Aragorn extended a slimy, eye-riddled tentacle, pointing toward the luminous structure.
'…Jean fell asleep.'- Phoenix observed as she gazed at the place she called home.
"As expected…"- Aragorn said.
"Want to visit another Multiverse?"- Aragorn suggested.
'I can?'- Phoenix asked, hesitant. She was a fundamental aspect of Marvel's existence—how could she move beyond its bounds? That would be akin to saying that your 2D waifu came out of the screen. That only happens with enough acid.
"As long as you're connected to my soul and I have a fragment of it anchored in this Multiverse."- Aragorn explained.
His soul was both one and many, a consequence of his Paradoxical Existence. As long as a part of him remained in Marvel, and Phoenix was tethered to it, she too remained within its framework.
'Didn't you say traveling between Multiverses takes a long time—even by our standards?'- She asked.
"Not anymore. This bad boy and Void-chan can assist us."- Aragorn said, tapping his third eye. "And the time flow correlation to time passage is spotty at best whilist in The Void, so we can spend as long as we want in Void-chan."
'…Alright.'- Phoenix agreed. Phoenix was a curious entity by nature.
Aragorn split two Selves from his main body—one returned to the White Hot Room, while the other bound Phoenix to his soul and dove into The Void.
————————————
White Hot Room...
Aragorn reappeared in the White Hot Room, standing beside Phoenix, who loomed over Jean's sleeping form.
"She did great, didn't she?"- Aragorn crouched next to Jean, gathering her into his arms. She instinctively nestled into the nook of his neck, her body relaxing.
'She did as she was supposed to do.'- Phoenix replied.
"Which was great."- Aragorn quipped.
'...Which was great.'- Phoenix relented, finally agreeing.
Aragorn's gaze drifted to the only other presence in the room aside from the three of them—a bluish-white flame, flickering with an eternal glow.
"What are you going to do with that?"- He asked, pointing at it with his tail.
'Study it. Do you mind?'- Phoenix asked.
"No, not really. As you can see, you're the one at a disadvantage here—I can reach you whenever I want. Do as you please, and if you find anything interesting, let me know… Just don't go impregnating yourself with it without consulting Noona."
'I have enough to deal with when it comes to Jean, as intriguing as the prospect appears, I'm not that curious.'- Phoenix replied.
"Figures."- Aragorn grinned.
With that, Aragorn and Jean disappeared as suddenly as they had arrived.
————————————
The Crystal...
They reappeared in Aragorn's chamber within The Crystal.
"...My love, is that Phoenix you reek of?"- A sleepy voice murmured.
Aragorn turned to see Death, still half-asleep, her dark eyes barely open.
"I don't think Phoenix has a scent, but I do have Jean here."- Aragorn replied, carefully laying Jean beside her.
"Oh, nice. Bring her closer."- Death mumbled, lazily motioning with her hands.
With a small smile, Aragorn shifted Jean between them, draping an arm over her and resting his hand on Death's waist. Death took a slow inhale of Jean's scent before wrinkling her nose.
"It's Jean who reeks of Phoenix."- She muttered, though she did nothing else except pull the redhead closer. Jean, in her sleep, instinctively responded, curling into Death's embrace.
"You can sleep for about three centuries, Noona, but I'll need to check on Yao and Agamotto soon and finish with an Obelisk."- Aragorn said.
"Agamotto? Is he the one behind this commotion?"- Even in her slumber, Death had sensed the chaos unfolding on the planet below.
"Yeah. It's nothing too aggravating—I'll be back soon."- Aragorn assured her.
"Alright, I'll keep this Phoenix-reeking plushie bird with me. Don't take too long."- Death murmured, her eyes already closing.
Aragorn's neck extended unnaturally, snaking over Jean before he pressed a kiss to Death's waiting lips.
"See you, Noona."
She didn't reply. She had already drifted back into sleep.
Death didn't need to sleep for long, nor did she need to sleep often—she just enjoyed it.
————————————
Earth...
Aragorn displaced space, reappearing on the battlefield.
For the following weeks, Mindee, Irina, and James worked to quell the metaphorical and literal fires caused by the lingering Fears and unrest. They oversaw the evacuation of humans, ensuring that even the stragglers or those too far from an Obelisk made it to safety.
The Eternals, in contrast, waged a brutal battle—one far less relaxed than the efforts of the others. Yet, nearly a month later, every human had been successfully evacuated and secured within the Obelisks.
"That was fun!"- Irina exclaimed, stretching her limbs with satisfaction.
"Did you burn to your heart's content?"- Aragorn teased, running his fingers through her bundle of tails, she shivered at that.
"She almost burned the planet's oceans."- James interjected from a distance.
"That's not true!"- Irina huffed in defense.
"Not for lack of trying."- Mindee added with a smirk.
"Mindee!"- Irina glared, her long bunny ears flopping down as she covered her eyes in embarrassment.
"What was it that she said?"- James mused. "Ah, right! 'Water! How dare you hide those monsters from my fire?!' Then she proceeded to try and evaporate the oceans—or boil the monsters hiding inside them."
Irina groaned, ears twitching in shame.
"Is that why the ocean temperatures are dangerously high?"- Phastos asked, projecting a holographic globe with a thermal filter. A large, yellow-hot patch glowed ominously on the map.
"PFFT! HAHAHAHAHA!"- Aragorn burst into laughter.
James and Mindee quickly joined in, their laughter echoing across the balcony in the Obelisk.
While laughing his ass off at Irina's expense, he flicked his tail, and the projection in Phastos' holograph showed the lowering temperatures of the previously warm patch of water.
"You people have no limits."- Druig commented, in a good mood. He had fought long battles, and it was hard, but he couldn't deny the sense of accomplishment and usefulness growing in him.
"It's interesting how this Divinity, while having a lower coefficient than Cosmic Energy, can accomplish such a vast array of feats."- Phastos commented.
"Can you also heal with it?"- Ajak asked.
"You can, but your proficiency depends on your divine field and medical skill."- James explained.
"So it's not as universal as Cosmic Energy."- Ajak concluded.
"You're right. With Cosmic Energy, healing is healing regardless of your proficiency. With Divinity, it depends on several factors."- James nodded.
"Cosmic Energy is pluripotent, while Divinity is not."- Aragorn added.
"About form?"- Phastos asked, confused.
"About nature and purpose."- Aragorn explained. "Irina, lend me some of your divine flame."
Irina complied, conjuring a fist-sized fireball of her divine flame and passing it to Aragorn.
"This is a divine flame of the domains of Fire and Assiduity—Irina's divinity. It can be shaped, transmuted, and altered in many ways, but its nature won't change. This flame will never do anything beyond the scope of its domains."
To demonstrate, Aragorn transformed the flame into a blob of water. He pulled a towel from his storage and attempted to dampen it, but instead of getting wet, the towel burned.
"But if this were a flame of Cosmic Energy..."- Aragorn created another flame, this time infused with Cosmic Energy. "You could change its nature."
The flame turned into water, and Aragorn used it to extinguish the burning towel.
"Wait, if that's the case, how do you heal with it if you're not a deity of something related to healing?"- Druig asked.
"You use it in its raw state!"- Phastos exclaimed in realization.
"Exactly, A+ Student."- James said with a smirk. "So long as Divinity hasn't been polluted by concepts, its raw state is quite versatile. But normally, it's not worth using that way."
"Why not? Isn't it better to wield raw Divinity?"- Gilgamesh questioned. In his mind, flexibility should be favored over rigidity.
"Divinity is a mellow form of energy."- Mindee explained. "Unless it's tainted by a concept, you need an enormous amount to accomplish anything. And if you don't understand the logical constraints of what you're trying to do, you won't succeed—because raw Divinity doesn't bend reality to your will the way conceptualized Divinity does."
"What does that mean?"- Gilgamesh asked.
"Concepts allow us to bypass logical steps. Irina's fire can burn things that normally wouldn't, simply because of her domain over Fire. Without concepts, Divinity is just energy with no inherent substance."- Mindee elaborated.
"She means that if you don't know how to heal someone without Divinity, then you won't be able to do it with Divinity—unless you're a deity of health."- Irina clarified upon seeing the Eternals' confused expressions.
"Ah! I get it now."- Gilgamesh nodded.
"Cosmic Energy is different."- Aragorn continued. "As long as you wield it skillfully enough, you can heal without needing any medical knowledge. Cosmic Energy isn't reality-warping—it's the creative energy of the Multiverse's Creator. In other words, you're not imposing your will over reality with Cosmic Energy. You're speaking its language, and reality responds accordingly."
"The Creator?"- Ajak asked, voicing the question on everyone's mind.
"The Creator of All but me—The Aniki. He even created your Celestials and granted them a portion of his authority. That same authority is what you inherited in the form of Cosmic Energy."
Aragorn crafted a small figurine from his faux Cosmic Energy—a golden humanoid shape seated at a drawing table. On the table were comic strips depicting the very conversation they were having. To the Eternals, the figure appeared as a being of golden light—just like Cosmic Energy itself—but to Aragorn, it was an old man with a mustache, wearing aviators and sporting a friendly expression.
"What?"- Druig asked, baffled.
"A Creator?"- Gilgamesh echoed, equally confused.
The Eternals erupted into a barrage of questions, but Aragorn's casual, matter-of-fact replies made them doubt the veracity of his claims. Eventually, the topic faded into silence.
"And with that energy you wield?"- Thena asked from Aragorn's side.
"By itself? It will eliminate almost anything. Through a spell? It's almost absolute. But, well, we don't have a healing spell for void energy, so at the moment, no healing."- Aragorn replied.
"How peculiar. Can you make weapon constructs like mine?"- Thena asked.
"I can."- Aragorn said, making a hatchet. "But they can't. They need a spell for it, and so far, there are no weaponry spells."
Thena made a golden hatchet and struck Aragorn's. Her hatchet was cut by his.
"That's astonishing."- Thena commented after dispersing her weapon.
"It's harder to wield, but the results are worth it if you can develop a spell."- Mindee added.
They were all enjoying the view from the topmost floor of the Obelisk. The embodied fears were crashing against the field protecting the structures, so safety was guaranteed while inside.
Well... not all of them. Ikaris was with Sersi on another face of the Obelisk.
"Have you calmed down?"- Ikaris asked, worriedly placing a hand on Sersi's shoulder.
"Ikaris..."- Sersi said without sparing a look. "So much death, and he acts as if he could not have prevented it."
Sersi was trying her best to cope with the reality that Aragorn imposed through his actions. She was the most softhearted and empathetic of her group. In just a few months, she had managed to establish a lasting connection with the humans, and this connection only strengthened as the centuries passed.
About a millennium later, Sersi couldn't help but mourn every death she witnessed, and this led her to cherish every life even more.
"Why don't you ask him?"- Ikaris suggested.
"So that he could profess again how little it matters?"- Sersi scoffed.
"But you saw him save some of them, there must be a reason... How about I ask him?"- Ikaris suggested.
Sersi crossed eyes with Ikaris and saw the sincerity in his suggestion.
"Alright... Thank you, Ikaris."- Sersi said and returned his previous gesture with a hand on his shoulder.
Ikaris and Sersi rejoined the chattering group, and they shared different alcoholic beverages Aragorn had brought down from the Halo—not Druig, who was still drinking hydromel.
The friendly chatter continued into the late hours of the night, and when most of the Eternals had retired to their rooms, Ikaris approached Aragorn.
"Aragorn."- He said with all the sobriety characteristic of him.
"Ask away, Ikaris. I don't love you, so I won't bite."- Aragorn said with all the impishness characteristic of him.
Irina was lying her head on his lap, and Aragorn was absentmindedly petting her while she slept. James was showing Mindee how he made a stream of void energy flow in his hand.
"How did you determine who was worthy of salvation?"- Ikaris asked, ignoring the strangeness in Aragorn's words.
"Are you talking about the humans I saved and the ones I let die?"- Aragorn asked, glancing behind Ikaris at Sersi. She was paying attention as if she had asked the question.
"Yes. We saw your barriers protecting some, but not all."- Ikaris expanded upon his question.
"Mmm... It's not about who was worthy of my protection, but who was better off dead for the greater good."- Aragorn said cryptically.
"I... I don't follow."- Ikaris confessed, Sersi equally confused.
"I parted from saving all, then I excluded those who would drag back humanity's progress in the future. Then I looked at those with unwanted genetic sequences that would weaken the species, followed by those carrying infectious diseases, and then the scum. Once I had removed all of those from the pool, I protected the remaining ones."- Aragorn explained.
"W-What?!"- Sersi exclaimed. Ikaris was equally surprised.
"You don't like it?"- Aragorn addressed Sersi.
"I... I don't know."- Sersi confessed.
Sersi was terribly empathetic to humanity, but she was not ignorant. On the contrary, due to how closely she had paid attention to them, she knew better than most of her group about the ugly side of humanity. So, even if it was a small part of herself, she could agree with Aragorn. She had also borne witness to how humans inbred and corrupted their life code, spawning countless adverse mutations in their genome.
"Well, it won't always be like this, but in this case, I don't think even you will find fault with my actions."- Aragorn's voice carried a knowing certainty.
"Why?"- she asked.
"Because although I let them die, I extricated their souls and sent them to The Ark for rebirth. I granted them a restart with almost no personal memories. That's more than some of them deserved or earned."- Aragorn explained.
"Their souls?"- Sersi asked.
"Yes. Creating life—with souls—it's complicated. Cloning is, genetically speaking, not desirable. After Kaguya—one of my goddesses—granted them chakra—a form of life-force energy—and extended their lifespan, the Duskari fertility rate lowered. So, as the territory expanded and more population was needed, they failed to keep up.
"The artificial birthing matrix (ABMax) was invented for this. They create human infant bodies from genetic samples I gather for the souls we collect. These infants are raised as Imperial citizens, and further along the line, they mate with the Duskari."- Aragorn explained.
Between a male human and a female Duskari, the result is always a Duskari. Between a female human and a male Duskari, the result is always a 'high-human.' These high-humans lived longer than humans, almost as long as the original lifespan of the Duskari, which was 300 years. This subspecies of human is considered a temporary tier since the Imperium promotes their pairing with Duskari. The further along the line, the closer the offspring resembles Duskari, until a pure Duskari is born to a high-human mother, and the subspecies bloodline ends.
"..."- Sersi, and even Ikaris, silently mulled over what Aragorn had explained.
"I... I'm sorry. I misjudged you."- Sersi apologized.
"Eh?"- Aragorn tilted his head in confusion.
"Hahaha."
"~Hehehe."
James and Mindee, who caught the conversation with their keen senses, laughed out loud.
"What? Did I say something funny?"- Sersi asked Ikaris, who was equally confused.
"No, it's not that. It's just that you didn't misjudge me. I really don't care for them. In this case—and possibly for the remaining 6,000 years or so of my stay—the situation fell in line with your morality and my needs."- Aragorn explained.
Defeated, and somewhat exhausted, Sersi gave up and plopped into one of the seats available next to Aragorn.
"It would have been better without the last clarification."- Sersi said while reaching for one of the available bottles.
"It would be better if you weren't such a softie."- Aragorn grinned annoyingly.
"You're the problem, not me."- She grumbled, displeased.
"How can I be the problem? There's no way I am to blame for what the sorcerer did."- Aragorn shamelessly replied.
"Ugh."- Sersi gave up on the argument. Aragorn was selfish, self-centered, a cronyist, racist, and had a double face—one for his inner circle and another for everyone else. Sersi realized there was no point in arguing over it with him.
"What is this?"- Sersi asked, flehming after a taste of the drink.
"It's going to be called Vodka in the future."- James said.
"It burns, it's awful."- Sersi reached for the grape juice to wash down the aftertaste.
"Gasp How dare you!"- Irina woke up.
"Terrible mistake, insulting Vodka in front of an ex-Widow. Don't you know Widows drank Vodka for water?"- James shook his head with a grin. Mindee mimicked him, and so did Aragorn.
"What? What did I say?"- Sersi asked, her gaze seeking help from Ikaris.
"I don't know."- Ikaris replied. "How does one become an ex-widow? Is it through marriage? I didn't know Irina was married."
Ikaris' question made the Therions and Aragorn laugh.
A few months passed, and humanity got used to living in the security of the Obelisks. Aragorn took it as his new hobby to single-handedly maintain the fields and domesticated animals of the humans in their absence with his telekinesis, he said he was playing 'Neolithic Farmville.' Mindee returned to the Isthmus, where her presence was needed, and James returned to the star system he was overseeing, leaving only Irina with Aragorn.
Between the two of them, they took care of the fields, animals, and human structures, and flew around the planet from time to time. Aragorn's psionic domain blanketed the entire world, ensuring that the embodied fears wouldn't cause a mass extinction event greater than the Great Dying.
When it seemed like humanity was going to evolve into an indoor species, Aragorn received a message from Yao.
'You can pull back your psionic field now.'- She said in his mind.
On the mundane plane, nothing happened, but to any psionically attuned being, the massive field of psionic energy blanketing the planet began to shrink and sink into the ground, with the SoulSelf recalling it.
Following that, the dimensional veil wobbled and pulsed for a moment, but rapidly returned to its pristine state.
"Is it done?"- Irina asked.
"Yes, it appears so."- Aragorn confirmed.
"At least this happened before cuneiform was created, so there won't be much in the way of records."- Irina added.
"I don't know. I'm pretty sure Agamotto has some form of written language, otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to leave behind his magical knowledge to his following of sorcerers."- Aragorn said.
"... You're right, Master Chief. And they'll probably make paintings or sculptures. Should we neuralyze humanity?"- Irina asked.
"Sigh No, I'll just put in a little more effort and manipulate the timeline from outside."- Aragorn said in resignation.
"If you say so, Young Master."- Irina shrugged.
"Don't mind it; it is what it is."- Aragorn said.
Afterward, Aragorn and Irina toured the planet to fix any necessary damage and double-check that there were no problems with the dimensional veil. After their inspection, they teleported to Yao to meet Agamotto.
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