Elara's Room
Nova floated a short distance above the floor, facing Elara and Eris. Elara and Eris sat on the bed while the silence between them grew heavier.
Nova finally broke it.
"So you're telling me that the Ruler is responsible for Kaelvyr's annihilation?"
Elara nodded.
Nova's expression hardened.
"But it doesn't change anything. Why shouldn't I kill Eris? She took part in the plan that led to Kaelvyr's death."
Eris lowered her gaze for a moment before speaking.
"I know you're angry about what happened," she said, "but the Ruler is the real villain here. He gave the order, manipulated the situation, and allowed everyone else to carry out his plan."
Nova did not respond immediately. She kept staring at Eris, her expression impossible to read.
Then she spoke.
"Alright. I'll kill him instead."
"No!" Elara shouted.
Nova turned toward her and waited.
Elara stood from the bed.
"You can't do that," she said. "The Ruler may be a coward, and he may hide his insecurities behind other people, but he is far stronger than you."
Nova smiled faintly.
"How do you know that?"
Eris looked toward Elara, waiting for her answer.
"Because my mother told me about him," Elara replied.
She walked toward the door and rested her back against it. Nova and Eris followed her with their eyes.
"My mother was not an ordinary demon," Elara continued. "She lived for more than five hundred billion years. She was already alive when the First War began."
Nova's eyes widened slightly. Even Eris looked surprised.
Elara noticed their reactions and gave a small, humorless smile.
"Yes. She witnessed things that existed before the current order of Orynx. She saw the Creators. They were still alive during the First War, and the beings from that generation were far stronger than the beings living now."
She paused, choosing her next words carefully.
"My mother once fought the First Ruler during the First War, after he tried to use my father for his own purposes. She told me that, among all the powerful beings she had ever faced, he was the most unstable, complicated, and dangerous."
Nova's expression changed.
"Who had your mother fought?"
Elara looked at her.
"Demons powerful enough to kill an Origin. She fought beside the Creators against the First Ruler. She had witnessed the strength of the first generation herself."
Elara's fingers tightened against the edge of the door.
"My mother told me that the first Ruler of the First War possessed a reality-shattering ability. He could manipulate reality on a level far beyond anything we have seen. But that was not even the most dangerous part."
Nova and Eris remained silent.
"The first Ruler existed outside reality," Elara said. "That meant ordinary attacks could not reach him in the usual way. The Creators had to combine their power to kill him."
The room became quiet.
Eris was the first to speak.
"Then let me guess. That power was passed down through his lineage, and the current Ruler inherited the same ability?"
Elara nodded.
"That is what my mother believed. The Ruler's power may not be identical to the first Ruler's, but the ability belongs to the same lineage. That is why I'm telling you not to attack him blindly."
She looked directly at Nova.
"My mother weakened the First Ruler during that ancient war while the creators did the final blow, but she understood how dangerous his power was. That victory does not mean the current Ruler is harmless. If he inherited even part of that ability, and has had countless years to develop it and hide his true strength, then attacking him blindly would be foolish."
Nova's expression became more serious.
"And what about the Origins?" she asked. "Were they already alive during the First War?"
"No," Elara replied. "There were no Origins at that time."
Nova and Eris stared at her.
"After the First War," Elara continued, "the Creators chose a demon and an angel and filled them with their energy. Those two beings became Origins. They also created a Spiritual Origin."
Nova's eyes narrowed.
"But why?"
Elara shook her head.
"I don't know. My mother didn't know either. Whatever reason the Creators had, they never explained it to her."
Nova turned toward the window. The blue energy around her moved quietly as she thought.
"But I have the Celestial Eyes."
Elara's expression softened, but her voice remained firm.
"That doesn't mean you're ready to face him. You could keep dying and reviving, but you still haven't mastered the full power of the Celestial Eyes."
Nova looked back at her.
"Every time I die, I become stronger. If I keep returning, his abilities will eventually stop working against me."
"That may be true," Elara replied. "But do you really want to depend on dying until you discover whether you can defeat him? You need to master the Celestial Eyes completely. Intentionally dying is reckless, Nova."
Nova's expression changed.
"What if you don't come back next time?"
Nova stopped speaking.
Her mind returned to the universes she had destroyed. The Celestial Eyes had reversed the damage in some places, but the universes she had erased had not returned.
She's right, Nova thought. Every death may make me stronger, but strength is useless if I lose control before I understand what I am becoming.
Nova turned away from the window and looked at Eris.
"Fine. I won't kill you."
Eris raised her eyes.
"But I haven't forgiven you," Nova added.
Eris nodded slowly.
"I know."
Nova's gaze moved to Eris's sword.
"Be careful with that."
Eris glanced at the weapon, then back at Nova.
Elara smiled faintly as the tension in the room eased, though none of them forgot what had just been discussed.
Ryvex's Domain
Xyne eventually found Ryvex in his domain.
He was sitting in a chair when she entered. He looked up as she approached, and a faint smile crossed his face.
Xyne looked around the room before facing him.
"I've been thinking about something."
Ryvex raised an eyebrow.
"I hope it isn't anything insane."
"It isn't," Xyne said. She paused, then continued. "The First, Second, Third, and Fourth Harbingers are dead. Why don't we take their places?"
Ryvex's smile widened.
"I like that idea. We're both much stronger than we were before. I'm sure there are very few beings left who could rival us."
For several seconds, neither of them spoke.
Then Ryvex's expression became more serious.
"By the way, where is your father?"
Xyne looked away.
"I think he died in the explosion."
She sat beside Ryvex.
"I'm angry at Nova. She destroyed everything we had."
Ryvex leaned back in his chair.
"Orynx had countless relics, ancient structures, and resources. It was our home. Life there was easier."
Xyne stood again.
"Then let's promise each other that we'll rebuild our strength, become stronger, and find a way to survive without depending on Spiritual Energy."
Ryvex gave her a doubtful look.
"That may not be possible."
"Maybe not," Xyne replied. "But that doesn't mean we stop trying."
She turned toward him, her expression becoming harder.
"The beast species has always been treated as the lowest species. They used us for transportation, hunted us, and killed us whenever it suited them."
Her hands curled into fists.
"I kept trying to be good. I kept believing that if I behaved differently, they would eventually stop treating us as weak."
She looked toward the ceiling.
"But there's no reason for me to keep pretending anymore. Elarion is gone. Rhyzok is gone. My father is gone. My mother is gone."
Her voice lowered.
"Only Xyke and Skye are left."
Xyne's eyes hardened.
"If anyone kills them, I will kill whoever did it."
The Ruler's Domain
The Ruler sat on his throne, speaking with his right-hand assistant, when the throne chamber suddenly changed.
The throne opened.
A figure emerged from within it.
The Ruler rose at once, anger crossing his face.
"So you came back," he said. "And you still couldn't complete one simple task?"
The figure lowered their head.
"I'm sorry. The being I fought was stronger than I expected. I thought the encounter would last only a moment."
The Ruler's expression darkened.
"You are an Origin, and you couldn't kill a—"
"A creature that doesn't belong in Orynx," the figure finished.
The Ruler stared at them in silence.
To be continued…