I ditated for over a thousand years. One thousand and fifty seven, to be exact, and the mont I returned to full awareness the Shadow’s forces fled. A haunting, echoing call rang out through the Four Realms, and the dark angels and dark spirits that had been harassing the Realms dropped whatever they were doing and fled. Not all of them escaped into the rifts in space the Shadow created, quite a few were caught by various other beings and spirits. Most caught were sealed away, cultivators and spiritual beings alike using talismans or other such things to keep them restrained – a relatively new creation, I noted, that certainly hadn’t existed before the Shadow began to move.
Not that this was even close to the full conflict. It was mostly minor skirmishes that had occurred; none of the gods or other greater spiritual beings had gotten involved in the battles – only angels and the like, and even those battles were rare. Though, to my slight disappointnt, few beings had risen to the status of angel or, in the case of mortals, karmic immortals while I was sleeping.
Fu Hao and Stilicho had managed to raise three other spirits up to the status of angels, making five, while the number of karmic immortals only reached two. Fang Xu, and a woman on the opposite side of Pangaea. Speaking of Fang Xu, the work he had done with Dei was quite exciting and about as fantastical as I could think of, so I was very excited to check out what they had done personally. First, however, I needed to check up on my kids, see what they had learned.
My eyes opened, and I was treated to a sight that I, while I had been expecting it, still found highly amusing. Kei was held by the scruff of the neck by Randus, a lump of coal in hand and a sheepish look on the nine-tailed fox’s face. She had grown quite a bit in the past millennium, now looking to be a girl in her late teens. That just made the picture of Randus holding Kei up like a misbehaving puppy, her black hair in disarray and orange tails drooping sadly, quite comical.
Which, now that I thought about it, wasn’t too inaccurate of a comparison.
“What do you say?” Randus chided, giving her a little shake. Kei pouted at him and shrugged, tails flaring out behind her.
“Sorry for trying to draw on your face while you were asleep, Grandpa,” Kei said, sounding not at all sorry. Randus glared at her, twirling his moustache with his free hand, and she pouted harder. I resisted the urge to laugh. “And for trying to paint the walls of your house. Pink. And with glitter.”
Randus nodded as if satisfied and let the girl go, dropping to her feet and straightening her robes, then promptly made a little bow in my direction. “My apologies, Ma’am. She has been trying to get to you for the past century, and despite the little ga you are playing I thought it prudent to not allow her to just do as she pleases.” I nodded sagely.
“A wise choice, Randus. If she can’t even get past you, what hope does she have of getting to ?” I mused, scratching my chin. It wasn’t like she would have even been able to enter my ditation chambers either way; they were locked down tight while I ditated, and I wasn’t as unaware as she assud, either. It was still a fun little challenge for her though. Kei’s mouth dropped open in mock outrage.
“Cheater!” she whined, pointing an accusing finger at . “You’re not allowed to let Randus in on our ga!”
“What makes you think I wouldn’t cheat?” I asked, cocking my head to the side in confusion. She gaped at and I laughed. “Cheating is the na of the ga, sweetheart! Now, as much as I want to catch up, I do have so things to take care of now that I’m awake. Care to show the way to Elvira’s palace?”
Kei huffed and crossed her arms over her chest, tails puffing up in agitation. Randus watching in amusent as she shook her head, pouting even harder than she had before.
“No. I’m going to go play in the Physical Realm.” She said. I frowned at her.
“Be careful, Kei. Just because I’m awake doesn’t an the Shadow has stopped what it’s doing.” I warned, and she gave an odd look.
“Haven’t you been watching?” she asked. “Playing tag with dark angels is a favorite pasti of mine. Now I’m going to go play in the physical realm. Go be la by yourself!” And with that she poked her tongue out at and promptly teleported away.
“She is notoriously difficult to catch.” Randus said, but a quick glance from told him all he needed to know about what I thought of that. He bowed slightly. “I will ensure her safety, do not worry.” And he, too, vanished, turning around and stepped into the land of dreams, leaving alone in my ditation chambers once more. I sat there for a mont longer, staring at the grey-stone walls. The stone slab beneath was changing; lines of blue and white crystal marred the once-pristine surface, the raw power I exuded warping the dense stone into sothing else entirely.
Even now I could feel energy leaking from , the power I was storing for the creation of the Lunar Star not completely contained any more. I kept it suppressed in a little core next to my heart as best I could, constantly feeding a little bit of the power I naturally generated into it. With a groan I stood, feeling stiff and sore all over from keeping that power contained – the ti would co, perhaps in the next few thousand years, where my true body would be unlikely to leave my ditation chambers for all the power I had built up.
But not yet. I had to give my kids the tools to succeed against the Shadow first.
I took a single step forward and the world shifted, distance aningless as I appeared over the dod roof of Keilan’s Karmic Palace. The black-and-gold building stood proudly at the end of the karmic valley, lines of souls shuffling in through the large main doors and flying out through the rear, heading to their new lives scrubbed clean of their mories. Multiple karmic beings of great power resided within this building, and the mont he sensed , Keilan ca shooting out of the window of his office, wings flapping.
“Mother,” he greeted with a warm smile. “Congratulations on your enlightennt. I sense you have grown in many ways.”
“I have.” I agreed, not saying exactly how I had grown. My divine domain had expanded slightly, my own understanding of balance and what it ant to be the Origin Deity of a universe deepening significantly. “I am more impressed with your own growth. Is that…fate, I sense?” I asked, peering at my son’s soul. His divine domain, which used to be solely the powers of karma and yin, had taken on a new tint. It wasn’t enough to call it a new addition to his domain, but rather tying sothing else onto it. Fate and karma were very closely intertwined, so it wasn’t that much of a stretch.
“As usual, it seems I cannot hide anything from you. Yes. Your angel, Stilicho, helped quite a bit in that regard. Speaking of, there is soone I wish for you to et,” Keilan pulsed his aura once and a figure ca shooting out of the palace, the aura of an angel flaring brightly as it ca to stand beside Keilan.
She did not have the shape of a human, as the angels I had created did. The six-foot long snake bowed at , tongue flicking out and wings of light folding in around its scaly form – I recognized it. Wasn’t this the soul of the snake spirit beast that had been with last ti I t Dei? Interesting. So not all mortal souls turned into buddhas, then? I knew spirit beasts were different, their souls were different than both that of spirits and the Fae, after all, so what would this make them?
“This one’s na is Manasa,” the snake greeted, voice lodic and peaceful as she curled upon herself, keeping her head low in a formal bow.
“She is my first angel,” Keilan said proudly, puffing up his chest. “She pledged herself to the Karmic Palace, and has been a great help in organizing the lines of souls. Quite a few more are on the cusp of this evolution; I even have a few Karae I expect to beco Karmic Immortals soon.” I blinked at him, then focused closer upon the being, realization dawning in my mind. As she was the sa kind of being as a buddha or angel I could still sense her connection to , however, it was dulled. And I had unconsciously categorized her as an angel despite being…different.
“I see,” I mused, circling around the being. “You are still karmically and spiritually ascended, but pledged your allegiance to Keilan. Unlike Fu Hao and Stilicho, who are bound to .” I said, nodding appreciatively. Did that an that all the gods could have their own angels or other such powerful spiritual beings? Fang Xu was loosely tied to with his ascension, but none of the others were tied to myself as Fu Hao and Stilicho were.
Ding!
Ascension!
Multiple beings in the Four Realms have ascended into a higher plain of existence, following the paths of Karma and Spirituality; this is a common thod of ascension among all the universes. This is one of the first steps on the road to what is commonly known as godhood, though few will ever complete the journey.
Congratulations!
Types of Ascended Beings:
1. Angels; spirits given great power through allying themselves with a divine entity and empowering themselves through karma. This can be done in a positive or negative manner, though the negative typically can be referred to as demons, or dark angels.
2. Karmic Immortals; these are mortal souls who have achieved enlightennt, thus ascending to a plain of greater spiritual understanding. Their physical and spiritual bodies beco one, capable of existing within both the physical and spiritual realms. They are also known as Buddhas, Arhats, certain kinds of Saints…there are many titles, but for the Four Realms, karmic immortals fits best.
3. Holy Beasts; animal or plant souls and spirits that have achieved the sa immortality through enlightennt and karma as mortal souls. As the nature of their existence is different, however, they ascend into a technically different being.
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Numbers:
Angels: 4
Karmic Immortals/Buddhas: 2
Holy Beasts: 1
You know, I kind of prefer buddhas over karmic immortals, but it’s not like I can change it now. People will call it what they will. Wait – now’s not the ti for this, Boxes! Shut up!
“You should go see what Elvira has been doing,” Keilan said, smiling and thankfully not noticing my montary distraction. “Since you are awake I will co with you; I am sure you want to be filled in on many things.”
“I do,” I agreed. “Manasa, it was good to et you.”
“You as well, Lady Statera. May the Realms always favor you,” Manasa said just before Keilan and I teleported away, this ti appearing above Elvira’s palace. Imdiately beings began clamoring, looking up and shouting, pointing at while I frowned. Dozens of spirit kings close to ascending manned the palace halls, the other two angels who were not aligned with myself hovering near Elvira, who was in the very center of the palace. Other gods waved at , so shielding their eyes as they looked up.
“How is everyone noticing right away?” I asked rhetorically.
“It is hard not to,” Keilan admitted, adjusting his robes as he floated down to the palace below. “Your aura is quite strong, and far more pronounced than before.” I huffed and suppressed my power further, the discomfort it caused increasing as I, too, descended into the palace, phasing through the dod roof.
White marble and gold fixtures greeted , the sa beautiful mosaic floor as ever staring up at from below. Elvira stood before her throne, looking up at with a beaming smile, while other gods huddled together, watching from afar. I nodded to each of them, smiling warmly, as I descended to give my daughter a hug. She wrapped her arms and wings around in return before pulling away and looking up and down.
“Don’t you say I changed too,” I complained. “I ca here to talk, we can discuss other such things later. Please. While my thoughts are still fresh.”
“As you wish.” Elvira said. “Keilan, go tell Alexander and Reika Father is awake, please?”
“What am I, your manservant? Get Gilles or Sol to do it, they’re always tripping over themselves to serve you,” Keilan complained, rolling his eyes even as he turned and teleported away in a flash of black. I patted Elvira’s shoulder and observed the changes to her palace.
It was clear she was gearing up for war. A training grounds had been constructed, and the two angels I had sensed, both of whom were aligned with Elvira herself, were instructing other spirits in a very…martial manner, distracted though they were by my presence. The gods themselves had a tenseness about them, and Elvira had a dusting of scars along her knuckles that ca from training her body. The building itself had changed, as well, with the appearance of the thrones.
I’d seen them before, but this would be the first ti I really looked at them. Specifically the throne that was intended for , raised up behind the four chairs for my first children, and made of a swirling marble of black, white, and a dozen other colors. For a long mont I stared at it, then turned away, pretending not to notice the quiet sigh of relief that ca from my daughter. I wasn’t really the ruler of the Realms at the mont, more of a guiding hand. Now wasn’t the ti to be the ruler, and I’d be lying if I didn’t admit I hoped that day never ca. I much preferred being the parent of these foolish children.
A single parent, doing all the work of a god.
That thought lingered until the other two arrived, Reika and Alexander appearing alongside Keilan. We exchanged pleasantries for a brief mont; then I changed the mood entirely by firming my expression, folding my hands into the sleeves of my robes, and pressing for a report.
“Tell everything you’ve learned.” I said, wanting to cross-reference it with what I was able to glean during my ditations. The visions I’d had…
Elvira and Keilan both straightened their backs, squaring their shoulders as they looked in my eyes.
“We think the Shadow is hiding in so kind of sub-space, separated from the Four Realms. Gilles has taken to calling it a pocket dinsion, or hidden realm.” Elvira started. “He’s better at explaining it, but we believe that it is sohow using the Void to keep itself hidden – as the Void is nothing, it is technically invisible.”
“Though we are able to sense whenever the Shadow opens a gate into the Four Realms, we cannot tell when that will happen beforehand. Where, however, is another matter entirely; with the help of various elental gods and spirit kings, I’ve been able to narrow down areas where the Shadow’s forces erge from. Each ti a gate into these pocket dinsions opens, that area shrinks.” Alexander continued with a rumble. “The more it makes its movents visible, the more we are able to track where they are coming from.”
“Speaking of the Shadow’s forces,” Keilan continued. “The dark angels and dark spirits are annoyingly resistant to redemption. They seem to mistakenly believe that the Shadow is the scarier of the options. A few have even spouted so such nonsense as “they’ve co too far” or “dedicated too much” or sothing to the Shadow’s cause – though none seem clear on what, exactly, that is.”
“Mm. The sunk cost fallacy. It’s an annoying thing to deal with, but not insurmountable.” I noted, running a hand through my hair.
“The question has co up of what do to with them, however.” Reika said with a shake of her head. “It hasn’t beco an issue yet – we’ve only sealed away a total of three dark angels, but the question remains on what to do with them, especially if they continue to refuse to seek forgiveness and redemption. On this, I do request your advice.” Reika bowed formally. I nodded my assent, rubbing my chin in thought. It was a conundrum, but not as much as my children believed it to be. They just thought I was against the idea of a jail.
The issue was not with the dark angels themselves. Just like dark spirits, they were a natural part of the Four Realms – within reason. Too many, and it beca a problem. However, the real issue stemd almost entirely from the Shadow, who tainted their purpose even further – I would daresay even twisted their purpose to be my anathema. Chaos exists within the Balance that is ; what the Shadow represents is not re chaos. It’s more like…it’s more…
“We’ll have to seal away the dark angels, until either they choose to redeem themselves, or there cos a ti a more drastic asure must be taken.” I said, instead of finishing that thought. Mostly because I didn’t have the word.
“What kind of drastic asure?” Reika asked, narrowing her eyes. “You don’t an…total destruction, do you?”
“What? No! Who gave you that idea?” I said, aghast. “The total destruction of a soul is one of the greatest taboos. It is one of the few things I absolutely condemn.”
“It was brought up during one of our etings.” Elvira said bluntly. “And was summarily rejected. Sealing them away is our best option right now, in any case. I have cleared out a space beneath the Holy Mountain for them, and Reika intends to seal a few beneath the Life-Giving Tree as well. What did you have in mind though, Father, as a drastic asure?”
“A reset,” I said bluntly. “Completely and utterly. Stripping away everything there is to a soul and letting the energy it has built up over its lifeti rejoin the rest of the Realm, while the Truesoul will be thrown back into the Realms to start over.”
“How is that any different from destruction? That’s destroying everything a soul is.” Sol objected from behind. Elvira scowled montarily at his interjection but quickly wiped the expression from her face, the feathers on her wings ruffling slightly. If this was supposed to be a private conversation, I would have held it privately. I thought, giving Elvira a look before turning to smile at Sol. The mighty god of the sun had bedecked himself in armor of gold, a sword hanging at his hip and a feather-adorned helt stuffed beneath the crook of one arm. Beside him stood his brother Gilles, the shadow god looking sheepish as he laid one pale hand on his brother’s arm.
“Excellent question.” I said, much to Sol’s surprise. “But it is also wrong. It is not destroying everything. This is a truesoul.” I said, holding up my hand and willing a truesoul into existence. It appeared as a tiny mote of light, gently floating between my index finger and thumb. “It is nothing, yet everything. Every being has one – be they spirit, god, or mortal, this is the core of existence. It is the very fundantal of who you are, the very last inch of a being. Do you truly believe it coincidence that for a Karmic Immortal, the last trial is for every inch but one to die? No. This is everything that is important in a soul, the most important thing. And within it lies a being’s connection to . To the Dao.” I explained, letting the freshly-born soul go. It drifted gently in the wind; it was Elvira who caught it, staring at the soul with a complex expression.
“To erase everything but that would be to erase all personality, all ego, all experiences; every inch but that which is most important to it, then to let it go back into the stream and build itself anew. So may even ask for this kind of a reset; such is the weight of living, at tis. The weight can be too much to bear.” I said softly, sadly. In those cases, such an act as this could even be considered rciful, loathe as I was to admit it. Such a soul had to be severely depressed, or just tired, to agree to such a thing, however. I had nearly taken that option in my old universe, once.
Once.
“But I don’t see most of these dark angels opting for this. They haven’t cut themselves off from , yet.” I continued, shaking off my sudden bout of lancholy. “I give it a few millennia, maybe, before they accept the offer of redemption. Theirs will be a hard path, and their karma will undoubtedly be hard to deal with, but the end will be worth it. To exist in such a state as they is to exist in constant misery. Joy is almost painful for them; but it is all they know, and as such, the Light scares them. And like I said; the reset is a last resort option. A truly drastic asure, not to be taken lightly, and reserved for very specific things.”
“I see.” Sol answered, though I could tell he did not. I smiled softly at him.
“Thank you for answering.” Gilles added. “And pardon our intrusion.”
“Nonsense. Stay, stay! You are more than welco. I believe we have almost finished, however,” I replied, glancing at my children to make sure that was correct. They nodded in unison, Alexander flicking his head to the side distractedly.
“There is not much else to say.” He muttered.
“I see. Then I regret to inform you that I will not be much help in this coming storm.” I admitted softly. They all snapped their attention to , almost expecting what I was to say next. “This is a battle between my children, yes, but the truth is sothing besides that. The battle with the Shadow will be a deciding factor for the future of the Four Realms, and I must push forward with stabilizing them. The basic foundation is there, but I must do more. The Lunar Star has to be made. The Pillars must be nurtured. And others, as well. I fear collapse if not.” I reasoned, only being ninety percent truthful. I would absolutely step in to this battle. The cost of doing so, however, would be high...though it would be higher if I continued to wait and let the Shadow grow stronger.
“As you will it. Leave the care of the Four Realms to us, Father, while you complete your works,” Elvira said with a slight bow.
“…yes.” Reika said, giving her sister a condescending glance at her formality. She shot a glare back in response, one that said ‘I’m putting on a show for the present gods,’ much to my amusent. “That. Don’t work yourself too hard, Mother. I worry for you.” I chuckled as Reika walked up and wrapped in a hug, returning the gesture fondly.
“It is my pleasure to work as hard as I must for you.” I whispered back. She squeezed harder in response before pulling away.
“I must go now. So things require my attention. I love you, Mother,” she said.
“And I love you,” I replied as she vanished. Keilan and Alexander both muttered their own “loves” and “farewells,” Alexander leaning forward for a hug while Keilan just vanished, touch-averse as he was, leaving with Elvira, Gilles, and Sol. Plus the other assembled gods, who had yet to interject.
There were other things I had to be doing, visions to ditate on, power to amass, and people to visit. Kei and Dei were foremost on my mind at the mont, but Elvira was shifting her feet awkwardly, smiling at like she had sothing to ask but knew I needed to go, so had decided her question was less important than my ti. A, quite frankly, stupid idea. But I loved her for it.
But I didn’t have the patience for her hesitation, either.
“Well? Are you going to ask your question, or not?” I pressed. She smiled thinly, chuckling to herself.
“Sorry, sorry. I wanted your permission for sothing. But…it’s sothing you had best see, lest I explain it poorly.” She said. I humd in the back of my throat, now well and truly curious.
“Show .”
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