Forging a star was not a trivial task.
A true sun required staggering amounts of stable energy.
That was why Rowan had repurposed the Silmarils.
Each gem contained the distilled radiance of the Two Trees, a power source comparable to stellar fire. Rather than compressing all of that energy into a single massive star, Rowan distributed it.
Three smaller suns now orbited beyond his newborn Earth.
It was more efficient.
More stable.
And faster.
Rowan considered the choice a success.
For him, completing his inner universe mattered more than advancing his personal strength.
A being who possessed a fully realized world was fundamentally different from one who did not.
Two individuals might stand at similar heights.
But the one with a universe behind them would always crush the one without.
Raw power could be accumulated over time.
A universe could not.
Back inside the Eternal Hall, Rowan summoned a clay jug of wine and filled two cups.
He passed one to Ilúvatar.
"I have something I want to ask."
Ilúvatar drank casually.
"Ask."
"When my world finishes stabilizing, I plan to enter the chaos," Rowan said. "I want to search for my original world. I also want to explore other realities and learn from them."
He paused.
"But I know the chaos is dangerous. And most creators won't be as… tolerant as you."
Rowan had been thinking about this for some time.
Did the creators of his other incarnations' worlds already know he existed?
If they did, why hadn't they acted?
Did they not care?
Or were they wary of whoever had placed Rowan into their worlds?
And most importantly…
If Rowan created new incarnations in the future, was there a way to prevent immediate detection?
Ilúvatar wasn't surprised.
He had already realized Rowan would never be satisfied staying in one place.
"I'll tell you what I know."
He leaned back slightly.
"First, not every world still has a living creator."
Rowan blinked.
"They can die?"
"Yes."
Ilúvatar raised a finger.
"Some leave their worlds anchored in place and wander the chaos alone. If they encounter a stronger predator, they die."
"Never travel without your world unless you're confident you're untouchable."
"Second, a few have been killed by beings born within their own creations. Rare, but it happens."
"Third, some creators sacrifice themselves and merge into their worlds to stabilize them permanently."
Rowan thought of the strange books Ilúvatar had shown him earlier.
"Like the creator named Hongjun mentioned… the one who said a being called Pangu became part of his world."
Ilúvatar nodded.
"Exactly."
Rowan absorbed this quietly.
Ilúvatar continued.
"Second point. Not all creators monitor their worlds like I do."
"Some meditate for ages without checking even once."
"Others never establish predetermined destinies. Their worlds evolve freely."
He paused.
"There are also creators whose minds fractured. Multiple personalities inhabiting one existence, fighting each other inside their own world."
Rowan slowly exhaled.
It made sense.
Worlds whose creators were dead, absent, or broken were safest.
Creators focused solely on their own cultivation… growth… were unlikely to notice him.
The truly dangerous ones were like Ilúvatar.
Observers.
Architects.
Those who enjoyed shaping destiny.
Ilúvatar smiled faintly.
"If you encounter someone like me, it's still possible to avoid drawing attention."
Rowan looked up.
"How?"
"Never use power systems that don't belong to that world," Ilúvatar said. "The first time you used light-based magic here, I felt it immediately."
"If you rely only on physical strength at first, detection becomes much harder."
"And if you learn and use only that world's native magic, even if I notice you, I'll assume you're merely an anomaly."
"Destiny isn't rigid. Small deviations happen all the time."
"As long as you don't threaten the overall structure, most creators won't interfere."
Rowan thought of Loki.
The God of Stories.
A living anomaly constantly pruned by cosmic bureaucrats for deviating from a script.
"So what if I run into something I can't handle with physical strength alone?" Rowan asked.
Ilúvatar's gaze sharpened.
"Right now, you'd have no choice. Using foreign power would expose you."
"But once your universe is complete, things change."
"You can pull enemies into your own world."
"Anything that happens inside your universe is invisible to other creators."
"Just don't do it while they're actively watching you."
Ilúvatar set his cup down.
"Most creators don't stare at individual beings all the time."
"Don't give them a reason to look closely."
Rowan nodded.
For the first time, the chaos felt less like a wall.
And more like a battlefield with rules.
...
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