Will of chaos

A sensation washed over me, a strange sensation. It was comfortable, powerful, warm, cool, and soft, like being covered in soap bubbles. This sensation was strange, and it was all I felt. There was no sound, smell, or taste of anything.

I was simply existing in that place, these sensations being all I felt. There was nothing else: no thoughts, no emotions, no consciousness, no desires, and only a Will that made this sensation circulate around me, sometimes circulating within me and sometimes circulating around me, a constant flow repeating itself tirelessly.

The sense of time was gone, the ego of the being was gone, and only the unshakable Will commanded events. The sensation constantly clashed against the Will, trying sometimes to impact, sometimes to break, sometimes to corrode, sometimes to submerge, sometimes to freeze, and sometimes to burn the Will at the center of me to free itself, all to no avail.

Like an eternal mountain, the will remained unmoved by the furious winds, withstood the erosion of millions of years of torrential rain, stood firm in the face of incomparable heat, and withstood the impact of countless meteors crashing against it.

A Will that cannot be affected, a Will that cannot be destroyed, a Will that bows to nothing, and a Will that embodies a being.

This will continued to circulate that feeling within and without tirelessly, tempered and refined on the outside while being infinitely molded within.

The Will had taken on the role of an incomparable blacksmith creating his most glorious work, never resting, never eating, without regard for weakness or time, a resolve for a result that would be the only acceptable one: success.

I didn't understand and couldn't understand what was happening. I simply existed in the midst of it all. There was no way to avoid it, and there was no reason to avoid it. This continued and continued until at some point, a shift occurred, as if something had clicked into place.

The comfortable sensation no longer alternated between inside and outside as before. It expanded, becoming both inside and outside simultaneously in a single flow. It was also no longer being refined by Will, for the Will merged with the flow, embodying what it once controlled.

Now a single flow, now a single embodied Will, now a single me.

Suddenly, emotions flooded the stillness where I had existed like a storm. Soon, endless thoughts fell with a crumbling, rebuilding my mind. Soon, my ego and consciousness awoke from a slumber that seemed to last for countless eons, bringing all my senses with it.

When all this happened at once, I opened my eyes, feeling complete as never before. I was just me, yet at the same time, there seemed to be more than just me.

Ding!

<[ The System congratulates you on reaching the state of Half-Transcendence, thus completing your [ Concept of Chaos (Dormant) ] ]>

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<[ The System notices 3 Concept branches connecting to yours ]>

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<[ Your Concept has strengthened ]>

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<[ The System informs you that your Transcendental Authority has increased, and the Trinity of the Natural Circle looks at you ]>

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<[ [ Reincarnatio n] smiles at you, happy for your progress ]>

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<[ [ Death ] warns you to be careful with your decisions ]>

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<[ [ Life ] grants you a gift to congratulate you on your achievement with a new life ]>

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<[ You have received the single-use Origin Artifact [ Seed of Life (Transcendental) ] ]>

"..." (me)

I open my eyes and the first thing I see are several System windows, some of them purely informative and others the System itself speaks to me.

But there were some strange things there.

I put that aside for just a moment when I remember that the damned Infernal Event had ended shortly before I closed my eyes, but there were still enemies nearby.

"Where am I?" (me)

Around me was a strange room, and there were no walls. There were eight columns of markers with cracks that seemed to draw patterns on the columns.

The floor was covered in a light brown fur rug. There was only my bed in the center of the room, a bed too big for me; it could easily fit seven people.

Before I could think about it any further, suddenly someone entered from one side of the room. Since there were no walls, there was no need for doors either, as they entered from any side before walking to the edge of the bed where they knelt.

"You are in the Temple of Urd, master." (Samara)

"Samara..." (me)

"Tell me what happened?" (me)

"Right after you called me and used your technique with Tarzor..." (Samara)

Samara starts telling me many things from the beginning. I still remember calling her and asking her to stay hidden. I knew she could be useful, but during the battle against the Fallen Lord of Chaos, I didn't remember to use her in the confrontation.

I was confused and in pain. The battle had been incomparably difficult for me. My mind was in no condition to think. Even if Samara couldn't hurt that damned thing like I could, she still might have been able to contain it enough for me to devour it completely without needing to use Universal Incarnation to 50%.

My condition was too compromised. Now I see the opportunities I missed during that battle, as well as how I overdid everything I did, but seeing what I did wrong before has little value now.

I listen to Samara's story again. She talks about her conversation with the Avatar of the Curse and how he was the one who won the Infernal Event. It seems the true Target has always been among the weakest and most numerous enemies. I thought this was a real possibility, so I also tried to use that Propagation Curse to hunt them all down, unfortunately, I failed.

Samara talks about how War didn't do anything during or after my fight; he simply retreated, as did those on Hatred's side.

I also heard how Igor and Ronan followed the others back, and I'm still present in another room discussing Hatred's recent actions with Cortana, Lena, Davoth, and Urd.

This was a surprise to me. They both blend in too closely with my people; that in itself was highly suspicious. It reminded me that they both tried to propose alliances with me. Since I hadn't met either of them before, it must have been their Entities who decided to propose these alliances.

But it didn't stop there. Samara continued talking first about Hatred, about how he took the Universal Cores, and also about the mobilization he's undertaking to search for us throughout the universe with one of his Anomalous creatures.

Greed, however, seemed to have disappeared, and according to Samara, he's most likely watching, waiting for an opportunity to gain something amidst the chaos.

After hearing all this, I began to understand the current situation in parts, but I also knew that Samara hadn't told me everything. Her mind couldn't hide anything from me. She might be my Saint, but she was also an unreliable and extremely selfish slave. Her loyalty to me stems from simply knowing I wouldn't harm her without reason. She uses my morals to live in near-total freedom, remaining loyal to me out of pure self-interest.

"I don't want to force myself on your mind, so tell me how your discussion with Callidora went and why you went looking for her." (Me)

"The master must have seen the situation; it was very strange, but you didn't see everything because you don't know Callidora's methods." (Samara)

"The Infernal Event was clearly designed for you. Almost everyone was targeting you, and the addition of that Phoenix was almost against the rules. It made no sense for that group of Creatures to be there." (Samara)

"I won't even mention the Fallen Lord of Chaos..." (Samara)

"But what you may not know is that the whole event was very lighthearted for Callidora's standards of entertainment. There were no deaths, and the way the attacks unfolded was very measured, not to mention the risk Callidora put on what should have been her greatest asset, Miss Niryna." (Samara)

"How do you know that?" (me)

"Your emotions started to flow to me, along with some thoughts due to your out-of-control state, but as you can see now, it's back to normal." (Samara)

"..." (me)

"What did you discover when you confronted her?" (me)

"She didn't tell me anything and wouldn't, but having known her for so long, I realized something..." (Samara)

"Your observations about me are so simple they're laughable~..." (Callidora)

Suddenly, Niryna enters alone with only a small Callidora on her shoulder, this time wearing simple clothes.

Niryna looked depressed, and her anger was evident in her eyes. Knowing her as I do, I can imagine what this whole situation must be like for her.

Samara is surprised that Niryna and Callidora are here, and I suddenly feel her thoughts flow to me, a fear-filled thought that Callidora was acting hastily under pressure from something or someone.

That thought made even my heart tremble, but I didn't show it. I looked at Niryna and Callidora while trying to contain my own anger.

"I just woke up and I don't want to talk to you right now." (Me)

"I don't care, I don't like to put things off, better to settle this situation while the flames are still burning~." (Callidora)

"I have an irresistible reward for leaving everything behind~~..." (Callidora)