He raised his hands to see the fair hands of three won, slender fingers that had woven the fates of countless beings across eons of existence. All of them wore obsidian-gold robes that flowed like liquid night, waves of golden hair cascading past their shoulders in styles that were similar but not identical.
Three bodies.
One mory that he was now experiencing from the inside.
The region around them slowly ca into focus.
They stood on the stair steps of a massive obsidian temple, a structure so vast that its upper reaches disappeared into darkness that seed to exist beyond normal space. The stairs were wide enough for armies to march upon, each step carved from stone that held the weight of ages.
Pillars of twisted obsidian rose on either side, their surfaces inscribed with symbols that hurt to look at directly.
And at the very center of this temple, at the apex of those endless stairs, a single aura waited.
THE Weavers walked toward this entity.
With each step, Noah felt the veneration that pulsed through their shared existence. The respect. The devotion. The absolute certainty that they approached sothing heavy.
The entity ca into Noah’s vision.
And he felt like he was looking at the eye of a paradoxical storm.
Because he was.
This was...THE Primordial Paradox.
Yes, the mory was clearly telling him that this was THE Primordial Paradox. Not THE Living Paradox. The original holder of that Claim, the being who had stood among THE Four since before The Infinite Unfurling.
THE Primordial Paradox looked like a massive obsidian entity, his form towering above THE Weavers with presence that made reality itself seem uncertain. He was muscular in ways that spoke of power beyond physical strength, yet he also carried the bearing of a scholar.
His eyes held the weight of contradictions resolved and unresolved, of truths that could be simultaneously real and unreal.
He was everything THE Living Paradox pretended to be.
And he was sothing more.
In the mory, THE Weavers felt a sense of veneration as they bowed toward this being. Their three bodies moved in perfect synchrony, heads lowering, golden hair falling forward like curtains of loyalty.
THE Primordial Paradox waved his hands dismissively.
The gesture was casual, almost paternal. The wave of a master who had long since ceased to require formal acknowledgnt from those who served him.
In the next mont, the aura of sothing heavy and Absolute emanated from him.
THE Primordial Paradox produced a black cube that floated toward their master, its surface perfectly smooth, its edges perfectly defined. It held weight that seed to press against the fabric of mory itself.
Absolute!
THE Primordial Paradox was already an Absolute. His authority saturated everything around him, his Claim on Paradox itself woven into the very structure of Observable Existence.
So how did THE Living Paradox ever manage to consu both this entity and the Claim they laid on one of the oldest aspects of Existence?
The question burned through Noah’s consciousness even as the mory continued to unfold.
THE Primordial Paradox spoke, and his voice was grand and imposing and authoritative!
"My daughters."
The words settled over THE Weavers like a blessing.
"Sothing has anchored itself onto my Absolute authority and Claim. It is slowly eating away at , and I cannot stop it for now."
...!
Noah felt the shock that rippled through THE Weavers at these words. Their master, admitting vulnerability.
"This is a critical part of that is unaffected, which I am giving to you."
The black cube floated toward THE Weavers, and they received it with hands that trembled slightly despite their best efforts at composure.
"Take it and keep it safe. You will know when to open it in the future."
THE Primordial Paradox paused, his contradictory eyes growing distant.
"The enemy is a terrifying one. I have to approach them differently compared to all others. I wish I could go to THE Creature and get his help on this, as he was always more knowledgeable than I am. But I must contain this myself at this mont."
His gaze refocused on THE Weavers.
"You will take this part, and you will-"
The sound of steps echoed through the temple.
Soone else was entering.
THE Weavers turned, and Noah turned with them, seeing through their eyes as another entity appeared at the entrance of the obsidian temple.
The newcor moved with confidence that spoke of deep familiarity with this place. Their aura burned at THE Fundantal Depth of Absolute Sovereignty, power that was imnse but not yet Absolute.
And when Noah sensed them, when he truly perceived who had just arrived...
He knew instantly.
THE Living Paradox.
Before he beca what he was now. Before he devoured his master. Before he took the Claim that had never been ant for him.
He was younger in this mory, his features less defined, his presence less overwhelming. But the core of who he would beco was already visible in the way he carried himself, in the ambition that lurked behind eyes that had not yet learned to fully mask their hunger.
THE Primordial Paradox looked at THE Living Paradox with an expression that held no suspicion. Only trust. Only the fondness of a master for a disciple who had served faithfully across eons.
"Erwin."
THE Living Paradox of course had a na. A real na. Not a title, not a classification, but a na that spoke of origins far humbler than his current status.
"You have been with since you were nothing but a peasant. I give you another part of to keep safe and put away in the location that I have sent to your mories."
Another obsidian black cube floated toward THE Living Paradox, toward Erwin, who received it with solemnity that seed genuine. His hands cradled the cube as if he would guard it with his life, his expression one of devoted loyalty that showed no hint of the betrayal that would eventually co.
THE Primordial Paradox looked at THE Weavers and THE Living Paradox with a gaze that held regret. Sothing he wished he could change but could not. Sothing he hoped would not co to pass but feared might.
"Do not worry."
His voice remained grand and authoritative, but beneath it, Noah could hear the strain of soone fighting a battle on multiple fronts.
"Your master will get past this. What I have given to you are just contingencies."
He straightened, his form seeming to grow even larger as he reasserted his dominance over the mont.
"After I figure out what exactly has been invading my Weavings without even knowing, I will extinguish it. I will show it how it cannot overco that which is Paradoxical."
His eyes swept over his disciples one final ti.
"Now go. Fulfill my orders. Fulfill your duty."
BOOM!
The mory shattered.
Reality fractured like glass struck by a hamr, fragnts of the past scattering into the void as Noah’s consciousness was violently expelled from the experience.
He found himself back in the hallway of the Absolute Existential Palace, his mind buzzing with knowledge and possibilities.
THE Primordial Paradox had been infected by sothing.
Sothing that anchored itself onto his authority without him knowing. Sothing that ate away at him slowly, that he couldn’t stop, that he had to approach differently than any other enemy.
It sounded pretty fucking similar to...THE Entity.
It had to be THE Entity, or sothing connected to it! An...older form of it?
The thodology was identical. The invisible invasion. The consumption from within. The replacent that occurred before the victim even realized they were under attack.
And THE Living Paradox...
Erwin!
He was the one to do this as he eventually ate THE Primordial Paradox!
But he wasn’t part of THE Entity at this mont as THE Entity wanted to consu him too, yes?
"..."
Also...
Where were those black cubes now?
THE Weavers had been given one. They were dead, their Palace now in Noah’s possession. Was it here sowhere? Was it still waiting to be opened at the right mont?
And the one given to Erwin...
Did THE Living Paradox still have it?
Or had he already used whatever power it contained?
Noah’s eyes blazed with blue-gold light as understanding and uncertainty warred within his foundations.
He had co seeking knowledge.
And knowledge, as always, had given him more questions than answers.
But now he knew sothing that perhaps no one else or very few in Observable Existence understood.
THE Entity...may not be entirely new!
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