THIS IS HOW I DIE

Stork’s angry gaze aimed toward Ruela slowly mellowed over time as tears began falling down his bloodied face. Anger was quickly replaced with disappointment and sadness as he looked away. The more she talked, the more he felt his heart break, piece by piece, causing him to eventually turn silent, his face hidden underneath a shadow cast.

On the other side of the cage, sitting on a chair, Lynne’s brows creased further and further the longer Ruela talked. Eyes filled with bitter realization, he lowered his head at one point, his posture that of defeat. She talked for nearly two hours without a stop, letting all graces go in her ultimate confession. By the time she was done, Lynne’s face had gone expressionless, his eyes appearing vacant.

“… t-that’s all,” she finally finished. “T-that’s all I know…”

“…” Lynne remained silent, deep in thought.

“N-now, you t-tell me… what you promised…” Ruela said, her lips shivering, her eyes reddened like blood itself.

“… what I promised, huh,” Lynne chuckled bitterly as he washed his face with his hands, sighing and getting up. “It’s far… far worse than I thought.”

“T-tell me!!” Ruela shouted faintly as she suddenly toppled over onto the floor from her sitting position.

“… looks like I was wrong myself with what they were planning,” Lynne said, smiling. “But, if it’s any help, you should know your High Fathers are False Gods. Know that all you’ve lived through, all you’ve seen, was built on a web of lies. Managed to fool us all, huh.”

“F-false Gods?!” Stork, as though reanimated, suddenly exclaimed. “That’s impossible!! All our High Fathers are Divine Mages!”

“… you call him Lord Divine, right? The highest of the High Fathers… however little sense that makes.” Lynne said. “Looks like he’s far from the highest of anything, really. Except a fool perhaps. You’re finally back, huh?” the monkey suddenly appeared from thin air and leapt onto Lynne’s shoulder.

“Well, you did send me into fucking hellholes you rotten brat. I needed time.” the monkey scoffed as he glanced toward Stork and Ruela. “Who are these two? Your new playthings?”

“Ignore them,” Lynne said. “What’d you find?”

“Nothing pleasant,” the monkey said. “Most of the Divine Realms are in chaos at the moment, however much they’re trying to mask it. Each Clan worse for the wear than the last.”

“… let me guess: more infighting than, well, warring.”

“Your intuition is as creepy as ever.”

“Intuition? I wish,” Lynne said, glancing at the two at the floor. “Did you find any remotely safe place for us to go?”

“… best option is probably Tyl’aal Realm,” the monkey said after a brief thought. “As ridiculous as that sounds.”

“… isn’t that realm the mainstay for Han Clan?” Lynne asked, frowning for a moment.

“Yeah, but most other Clans are relatively small,” the monkey said. “And they’ve banded against Hans for the most part. Right now, it’s mostly just small, political scuffles, as though they’re waiting for the other side to strike first.”

“… we don’t have time to play along with the political charades,” Lynne said. “It’s much worse than what I initially thought, and I have a bone to pick with someone. Wanna come with?”

“… sure. Who are we pissing off this time around?” the monkey asked as Lynne turned toward the doors.

“Apparently… the strongest human in the entire World.”

The two walked at the very top of the tower, overseeing the entire Skyfire Paradise. Lynne sat down at the edge and took out a bottle of Heavenly Ale as he waited, staring deeply into the nightly sky. Stars lit up like lanterns, burning away in their glory, while crescent moon blossomed like a flower over the arc of sky. As the faint, glimmering light suddenly beckoned down, Lynne glanced sideways and, in its place, saw a translucent image of an older, short man wearing a straw hat. He sat cross-legged, calmly gazing back.

“… good of you to show.” Lynne said.

“One of my children called,” the old man replied, smiling. “Of course I’d come.”

“Oh, so we’re pissing off your Patriarch,” the monkey chimed in, rolling his eyes. “How wonderful.”

“… ah, Divine War Ape,” the old man commented. “Shame what happened to your ancestors. I haven’t seen a more heroic creature than Ancestor Ga… even as the flames of his life burned away, he threw himself into the heart of his enemies and took down nearly a thousand with him. Truly a shame…”

“I didn’t call you down here to reminiscence, old man,” Lynne said, his eyes cold. “I called you because I need answers.”

“Answers?”

“Did you know all along?” Lynne asked, taking a gulp.

“… know what?” the old man’s eyes narrowed as his gaze pierced sharply through Lynne.

“First… I was told that they were after the Time and Creation, two Primordial Gods that cannot be touched,” Lynne said, chuckling. “But, then that fell apart. I then thought it was just a simple power play, some Clans banding together to overthrow the others. Then, low and behold, I learn that the other side is full of Gods reining over a whole heap of morons. Then, and get this, I learn that their leader actually has a thing for Y’se, and he’s doing all this for her. It’s truly fascinating just how many layers this story has. Color me impressed.”

“… who told you?” the old man asked.

“Told me? Told me what?!!” Lynne suddenly shouted angrily as he threw the bottle at the translucent imagine. It flew right through, disappearing into the sky. “Nobody’s told me a goddamn fucking thing!! Ancient Clans… Primal Beasts… True Dragons… Gods… well-bred separation of inbred cunts. That poor sod actually believes he’s opening the dimension to Primordial Gods in order to be with Y’se… ha ha, I can’t even laugh properly at it. So tell me, why are you, and hell knows how many others, playing this game?! Why don’t you open the god-fucking portal yourselves?!”

“You’re angry.” the old man said.

“Oh? Really? What was your first fucking clue?!”

“… how much do you know about Primordial Era, Lynne?” Eloy asked, his face calm and expressionless.

“Why don’t you just educate me as though we’re in school, huh?”

“… the concept of Gods – these Divine Beings which defy everything we thought we knew – it was birthed long, long… long time ago. No matter which realm you go to – Divine or otherwise – there are legends about them, stories about their divinity befalling the soil from which a mankind was born. Yet, as the same mankind kept climbing the ladder of world, we began encountering the very same Gods we once sacrificed our children to. Then, after some time of fear and reverence, we learned that we, the supposed accidental creation, could kill those very same Gods. Primordial Era wasn’t riddled with wars between Gods, but with the very first Great War… for survival. Do you know why Divine Realms are called Divine?”

“… do I look like I know?” Lynne said, listening attentively.

“Because… they’re exactly that,” the old man said, chuckling. “It’s funny, you know? People seek the proof of this ‘Divine’, concept that surpasses even Magic, yet… it’s right there, staring at them. During Primordial Era, there only used to be two Realms, Lynne. One was the singular Divine Realm, Realm where Gods and their Chosen lived. And the other… the other was this very Realm that you and I are in.” Lynne’s eyes widened slowly as words poured in. “Realm for castaways… for the abandoned and, most importantly, the birthing place of all of mankind. Primordial Era ended not when the Gods finally decided to stop warring… but when it all truly broke.” the old man took a deep breath before continuing.

“The passage between two Realms collapsed, and with it the Divine Realm itself, as well as this Realm, were broken. Thus, Seven Divine Realms were born, and thousands of Mortal Realms with it. After it came the so-called Desolate Era. Do you know why it’s called Desolate? Because Magic ceased to exist. With the connection with the Divine Realm cut, humans were no longer able to use Magic. Back then, it was called the Time of Mortality. Truly a dark hour for mankind, if I may say so myself.”

“… then…” Lynne mumbled as though he suddenly realized something. “The start of the Magus Era… was marked by reestablishing the connection?”

“Something like that,” Eloy said after a short silence, chuckling. “At first, it was very faint, almost unnoticeable. That’s why there were very few Mages back then. But, bit by bit, more and more Magic began pouring in and the connection with the Source was established – not the Divine Realm – but the Source itself. The Heart of Everything. It was a truly prosperous era at the start. New discoveries were made every day, and the knowledge about Magic only kept growing, bit by bit. That was also when the so-called Ancient Clans were first formed. A union of supreme Mages who dedicated their lives to figuring out exactly where the Magic is coming from.”

“But, if you ask me, mankind should have never rediscovered Magic, Lynne,” the old man said, sighing. “We thought it a blessing… but it was a curse. While Desolate Era was truly a cruel, cruel place to live in… everyone had the same chance of surviving, of making it till the death came naturally. However, Magic broke that balance. Natural aptitudes decided by birth, the amount of resources one has… it all eventually spawned a rift. Strong rose to the top, and weak fell even further down. So, once Seven Divine Realms were discovered, a plan had been hatched; Seven Ancient Clans – or, at that time, seven most powerful Clans – were to each take control of one Divine Realm and rule it, while also ruling a set number of Mortal Realms at the same time. Inevitably, battles broke out. New Clans arose. So-called Evil Mages kept rising in numbers. Yet, all the while we were destroying one another, trying to prove some artificial strength, we stopped doing what we did when we first rediscovered Magic – learning not of new Spells and ways to kill the others, but trying to understand the Magic itself – its origin, its nature, its ways. We had forgotten and then, one day, we were punished for it. Punished when, from the clear skies, a hole tore open… and Gods poured in like rain.”

“It marked the start of the first Great War,” Eloy said, looking up the sky with sorrowful expression. “We were defeated completely, nearly gone extinct. It took a long, long time to recover. Do you know the legend of how it was Dragons who granted humans Magic? Well, rather than Magic, they granted us Laws – in a way. They showed us how to properly utilize the Magic and how to channel it. Suddenly, Mages began ascending to realms previously thought impossible. Strength grand enough to level entire cities to ground. This time, we promised, we’d fight back and win. And, since then, sometimes we’d win… and sometimes we’d lose.”

“…” Lynne remained silent as he slowly processed the knowledge he just obtained, putting the pieces of the puzzle together slowly.

“Truth is, Lynne, there is a limited amount of Mana in the World – limited amount which the Source provides. But, unlike us, humans, Gods need that very same Mana to even survive. Hence, the Great Wars.”

“… fuck me.” Lynne mumbled, suddenly taking out two bottles of Heavenly Ale, giving one to the stunned monkey who immediately began downing it. “No wonder you’d be coy with everything. Shitting hell.”

“… aren’t you wondering why I’m telling you this?”

“I have a feeling I shouldn’t.” Lynne said, smiling.

“There’ll be a war between humans and False Gods, no doubt,” Eloy said. “And many, many will die in it. But, truth be told Lynne, whether everyone dies or no one dies, won’t make a damn difference. The reason why I instigated Ryon so much is exactly that.”

“… uh, Ryon?”

“The man – well, God – Y’se loves.” Eloy explained.

“Ah.”

“In the end, False Gods are still, in a way, direct relatives from the Gods, Lynne,” Eloy said. “However far removed from the whole ordeal they may be. The less of them freely roam this World of ours… the better. You really think we hadn’t noticed that a whole heap of insignificant Clans suddenly arose in power?”

“… I don’t know what to think anymore.” Lynne said, chuckling bitterly. “I just know that I probably shouldn’t have asked too many questions. Became content with being the King of a small Kingdom in the middle of the desert. Married the woman I love, had a family, and eventually died of old age.”

“There are many rifts between the two dimensions in this World,” Eloy explained. “I believe you once visited the other side yourself.”

“That I have.” Lynne said. “Quite an unpleasant place, if I may say so myself.”

“Those rifts – in and of themselves – work only one way: from our place to theirs,” Eloy explained. “However, what Ryon is opening is the Gateway. Once he succeeds, all rifts will expand, and Gods will pour in once again. In total, there are eight. Seven in Seven Divine Realms, and one…”

“… here, in this one. The one I went through.” Lynne mumbled.

“Exactly.” Eloy said. “And I’m certain you’ve figured out why I told you all of this, by now.”

“… yup. I think I got the hang of it.”

“To this day, all seven Divine Realms are ruled by one of the Ancient Clans, however it may seem on the surface,” Eloy said. “And every Clan dedicates all of itself to groom a singular Magus for the singular purpose, while contributing equally to grooming the eight. Truth be told,” he said, chuckling. “We were grooming young Ella for it.”

“… oh for fucks’ sake.” Lynne grunted, frowning.

“Ha ha, quite the reaction,” the old man chuckled, stroking his beard. “However, on the very day I received the news that Y’se has found someone else with awakened Bloodline, I had already informed others about the change of plans. The reason Ella turned sides is exactly that. She’s been planting minions here and there with the singular purpose of disrupting our plans, while also converting our other supporters on her side. She’s been quite successful, which you know, from the looks of it.”

“…” Lynne suddenly sighed, smiling as he covered his eyes.

“She’s not aware of it, if it helps.” Eloy said, a hint of sadness in his voice.

“What a twist of fate, huh?” Lynne said, getting up and glancing over the Kingdom.

“… I’ll give you time,” Eloy said, his figure growing fainter. “In two days’ time, come to Tyl’aal Realm. There’ll be someone waiting for you. You’ll be told everything else then.”

The figure disappeared completely a mere moment later, leaving behind the silent monkey and Lynne who kept drinking slowly. His shoulders appeared downcast, as though they had been burdened by heavenly skies themselves. His eyes gazed with strange sense of longing, loss and helplessness, hair fluttering backward in the wind. Atop the Tower, beyond the eyes of everyone, he stood like a solitary totem, isolated from the rest of the world by an invisible wall surrounding him. Nobody spoke to him; not the monkey, not the shimmering-blue which suddenly landed on his free shoulder, not the God residing within him nor the Spirit. Not even the two Dragons standing behind him, gazing painfully at the bent back of his.

“… so, this is how I die…” he muttered weakly, smiling at the starlit sky.