Emily POV:

I love watching the fire dancing around in the hearth, slowly consuming everything inside of it...

"Mother, are you here?"

Unfortunately, they always cut my time short.

Sighing, I slowly stood up out of the chair and checked how much time has past since I sat down by connecting to the world.

Three weeks.

It's even shorter than normal.

Normally, whenever I start to look into the fire I sit still for at least three months.

Most of the time, though, I sit down and watch the fire burn for years on end, sometimes even lasting for decades whenever I was feeling especially down.

But lately, ever since nine years ago, I feel like I haven't done this often enough.

Sometimes, life can be so tiresome...

I turned away from the fire and looked behind me towards the entrance.

I had already guessed from her voice, but Anna stood there, Damien as close to her as always.

Ever since I made them, they always kept close to each other.

Even when I needed to treat them when the Energy was devouring their souls faster than it could regenerate, they never left the other's side, as if sharing the pain they felt.

They've always been quite mysterious, even when they were just born.

But... something was wrong...

They both looked rather nervous.

Although that's understandable, since Acedia was still in the house after all, but recently, they had more or less calmed down, seeing as he never left the room since.

Maybe...

"Has he decided to come out?" I said grimly.

I'm definitely not looking forward to it.

After what I've witnessed, I just don't know how to treat him anymore.

By all rights, I think I should hate him.

He did kill my father after all.

But, after seeing that... I don't know if I can.

I always thought I was pretty unfortunate, but seeing him...

I feel sick just thinking about what he went through to give him such heavy trauma.

And now, perhaps I'm included with them.

Those things he called 'nightmares'.

But, to my surprise, that wasn't it.

"No, he's still sleeping, but..."

"But?" What could it be.

"There are visitors outside the city gate."

My jaw nearly dropped after that statement.

How long has it been since I ever saw intelligent life?

Not counting those I created, of course.

It has been more than 10 million years ever since.

And now, they are at our doorsteps?

It shouldn't be possible.

I check outside every so often, to see if species are slowly evolving towards intelligence, but as far as I know, there are still millions of years left before anything actually happens.

"What do you mean 'visitors'?" I asked suspiciously.

I would have accepted it if she said 'people are outside the gate', thinking I must have missed something and a bunch of primitives or descendants of survivors had escaped my notice and reached the gates.

But she said 'visitors'.

I could've easily written it off as a misstatement, but both of them are smart enough not to make such mistakes.

And she clearly put emphasis on the 'visitor' part.

"There are people outside requesting audience."

Requesting, huh?

Now that's a surprise.

There is no way anyone from here is smart enough to ask politely for an audience.

From here, being the key words in this sentence.

"Gather the remaining Gold-masks and have them assemble there. I'll be there shortly." He never killed them all, there were still a mere thousand remaining.

Both of them nodded, their doubts fading away as they received orders, and carried out my orders diligently.

There is an easy way to figure things out without meeting them immediately.

Obviously, it's the one person here I can safely consider much, much smarter than me.

The only person older than me.

Much, much older.

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Acedia POV:

For the past weeks, I've been lying inside my room simply passing time in a half-conscious state, careful to not fall asleep.

I'm not one to particularly care about comfort - I usually don't consider it at all - but this must be one of the most comfortable places I've ever slept.

The bed was large enough to lie anyway you want, soft enough to feel as if you're being warmly embraced, but firm enough to not actually drown and sweat in its embrace.

This might be the most comfortable bed I've ever laid in.

Of course, there's something that could make it feel better, but I won't find it ever again.

I won't try to find it again, returning to a time from long ago, when I decided to simply sit and wait for the world to end.

Just let me lay here for eternity and not be bothered until everything collapses.

It has too collapse eventually, right?

if not...

I might even lose the comfort of apathy I have now.

But of course, whenever I try to do this, there's bound to be something that bothers me.

First, it were the People of Sloth, imitating me and sticking annoyingly close to me, though they eventually began to even stop caring about me.

The second time was, of course, my wife, which turned into a good thing.

And then a bad thing.

A very, very bad thing..

The third time was Lillian trying to bite of my shoulder, which I let happen after noticing her state of mind.

Which also was a good thing, until it turned very, very bad.

Why does everything turn bad for me in the end?

This time, though, I'm not going to get bothered.

"...Leave." I said the same time she opened the door.

She entered with a complicated expression, but she was quickly resolved to face her fears.

She walked up to me until she stood at the foot of the bed, which was in a straight line from the door.

"I have questions about..." she began.

Her look wasn't precisely angry or scowling, but she seemed determined to stay until her questions were answered.

I didn't care.

"....Leave." I said, looking at her with cold, empty eyes.

I don't want to be bothered.

"Not until..."

This time, I didn't say anything.

I connected into the Energy and formed thousands of thin, invisible spear and fired them at her.

These spears won't even leave a wound on the body, only on the soul.

She quickly summoned a barrier,

But now that I'm fully in control of myself, such things were trivial.

As if time slowed down, I could see the Energy collecting around her like a mist, until forming layer after layer of barriers.

It was the strongest, sturdiest barrier I've ever seen, but she still had much to learn.

She, just like Magicians do, controlled the Energy, though she with Energy itself and the Magicians by forcing Magic to 'grab' it and take hold of it.

But I... I own Energy.

That is the deciding difference between me and her.

I haven't even discovered it that long ago, just a couple Era's before the People of Sloth arrived, but it was a realization that made my powers seem shabby before.

It was the absolute understanding of Energy, the end of a long, hard road.

While she controlled the Energy around her, having a firm grip on it, I simply ordered it to scatter.

And it did, transforming back into the free Energy it once was.

No matter what she does, no matter what she throws at me, with a simple thought I can easily order it however I want, as if it was a part of my body.

The only drawback - although I think 'insurance' is a better word for it - is that I need to be absolutely calm to use it.

No anger, no fear, no sorrow, no regret, no happiness...

Nothing but a cold and calm mind can make me do this.

It's not hard to force myself into this state, but when I lose control, I am, of course, unable to do so.

For a fraction of a second, there was surprise on her face as she saw the barrier depart from her, as if she never had a grip on it in the first place.

A fraction of a second later, her soul was thoroughly maimed underneath the barrage of spears.

A small payback from all the arrows, though much more fierce.

Her body shook as her soul was attacked and she looked at me in fear without even the slightest trace of the sorrow, uneasiness or determination I have seen of her during these past weeks.

There was only undiluted fear.

Yes, this is how it should be.

Being feared.

This is what I'm used to, although normally they have anger in their eyes to.

At least, until I decide to do the same thing as I did to her.

"....Leave." I said for the third time.

I ordered the Energy and fiercely shoved her out of the room, breaking a couple of ribs in the process.

I closed the door behind her and resumed my peace.