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Chapter 144 - The Final Secret
🕑 Added 2020-04-07 11:41:08 +0000 UTC
We're sitting in a meeting on the terrace of Arkaim palace, for the first time using it for any purpose other than sunbathing and taking off into the sky. Several winged messengers are with us, listening to our conversation to bring the news to the various clan leaders.
During our battle with Chaos-Juzual and Mataku, Arkaim was cleansed of all devils. Kamii and Hestia came out unscathed, but many demons died, and many more are wounded. And near the end of it all, the shockwave from Tokomaha growing gigantic to stop the moon reached this city and blew across it as a massive storm.
Even with the shield array erected by the maids, the earthquake that followed caused a lot of damage to the city. The destruction is even worse than it was after the surprise siege half a year ago right when I returned. Many other cities were most likely devastated much more heavily, and the entirety of the Ogely mountains have been flattened under the God of Growth's feet.
I'd call it good riddance if the only beings that had lived there were the self-mutilating kobold cults. But in reality, many farmers and small towns near the mountains were directly affected. By now, the shockwave must have traveled across most of Ceogath and reached the oceans surrounding the continent. The whole world will get to feel the impact of Chaos-Juzual's actions eventually.
It was a success, but at a significant cost nonetheless. I'm sure that Tokomaha was visible even from the Empire of Terminus. The humans still clinging to their false gods must have had their eyes opened to the fact that the one who came to their help was somebody standing on the side of the demons. I'll have the bards spin an epic about this.
"At this rate, the moon will escape Earth's gravitational field and fly off to never return." Senka, as always, rains on my parade with the hard facts. "By my estimate, it will leave the point of no return in eleven days."
"Did I really push it that hard?" Tokomaha asks sheepishly. She has been glancing at me ever since we returned here as if waiting for me to make good on my earlier promise. Now she's worried that we will have to postpone things because of this new crisis.
"We can take care of the moon later. The bigger issue is the solar storm heading here." The doll girl waves off the problem of Earth's moon drifting away as if it were only a minor inconvenience compared to this one. She points at the sun above, which looks as bright as ever. "It's going to reach us in about four days, although we'll be on the dark side at the time."
In other words, Armeria is the projected place of impact once again. But at least we have a bit more time compared to the previous crisis. I'll have Flann teleport Aurelia, Korenga, Exla, and me to the Rhodos station tomorrow after everybody has rested up. None of the others can survive in space, so I'd rather they don't risk their lives on a space station close to the surface of the sun.
"We need to find Asoko and my children." I glance at Flann, suggesting that this time she has to make sure it's the right person. Who knows how many of those artificial Crawling Chaos creatures Mataku has created, but they will either be in a large group or single individuals meant for scouting. Therefore, finding my twin children should be easier than locating Asoko among all the single ones out there. Aside from the fact that I know where they most likely are either way.
"I believe that Mataku has now done away with the fakes he created." The blonde girl suddenly replies. Her expression doesn't tell me how confident she is in her own statement, but I'm skeptical about the source of her knowledge.
"Did Mithra tell you that?" I remember the father and daughter duo sharing eye contact for a bit before separating. He must have talked to her in a way I couldn't hear, or maybe they even held a long conversation at that moment. I have no idea how the minds and bodies of these servants of the Galactic Crawling Chaos - as I call the owner of the eyes in the sky now - work.
"Mataku's only concern in creating those was to test how to defeat another of his kind." Flann continues to explain, which gets my attention. Before Sea Witch Rapania succeeded in those experiments for him, he never knew the limits of his own species. Even I still discover new things about me from time to time, such as having the ability to talk in space.
"So, you think he would waste the potential army that could consume the world for him?" I don't trust whatever Mithra might have told his daughter at that moment.
"I do not know his plans. That is merely what my father told me." Neither nodding nor shrugging, the blonde girl leaves me to judge the situation. "But if it is the truth, I will be able to locate Asoko without fail this time."
"Make sure you do." I may sound abrasive talking to Flann like this, but we can't afford to make mistakes that will cost us precious time at this point. "Everybody should take this night to rest. We will take care of everything tomorrow."
I look at Tokomaha to let her know that she's included with that everybody. She may have ingenious control over the Imagination Engine, but she's visibly tired after her titanic feat. We still have plenty of opportunities to do it through the night once everything is settled. The same goes for Svanhild, whose charms I discovered once again today.
"That's it for this meeting. Bring the news to the clan leaders as quickly as you can." Standing up from my seat, I gesture at the messengers. They bow to me silently before taking off into the sky.
Walking away from my position at the table, I signal that the meeting is adjourned. The attending court officials begin to leave the terrace and walk toward the door where Rewera lowers her head to see them off.
I turn to Flann with a neutral expression to avoid tipping off anybody else that I have business with her later. She doesn't show any indication that she understood, but I won't say anything more. Then I round the table and walk over to Senka before lifting her off her feet. Hugging her to my chest, I begin to head toward the door myself.
"What's wrong?" She asks, having the presence of mind to do so through telepathy. Under other circumstances, she would have complained about being pressed into my breasts, but she understands that I'm troubled right now.
I notice Kamii watching me from the corner of my eyes, but pretend not to see her. She must know that something is on my mind; for being a kuudere, she is well-attuned to the emotions of those around her. The same appears to be true for Rolan, but he doesn't think that he has the right to counsel me.
"We're in the endgame now." I reply to the doll girl's question while heading for the door, but cry out in surprise when she pinches my side. "W-what are you doing?!"
"That's forbidden!" She speaks out loud, causing everybody to stare at us in surprise. I don't know what she's talking about, but it's been a while since she got angry over something I said. Must have something to do with her idea that we're in a world of fiction rather than reality. As I explained to her before, this is my reality, so nothing changes whether Senka's worldview is real or a figment of her paranoid imagination.
Excusing myself from everybody, I go toward the door that the court officials have already left through. As I walk past Rewera, I give her the look when I want her to splurge on the meal for both my girls and the Maid Corps. They have earned it after their work today.
The maid leader looks surprised when my exit tells her that I won't be joining them. But she bows in compliance nonetheless and gestures for the maid standing in one of the corners of the terrace to deliver my order. Then she motions to follow me, but I raise a hand to let her know that I won't be needing her services after this. She bows to show that she understood once again.
I walk through the corridors of the castle and make my way to the astrology tower. Even though I was ready to talk to Senka earlier, I've decided to wait until we reach our destination. Once there, I'll have Flann join us as well.
"So, what's the problem?" Senka asks the moment the door to the astrology lab is closed behind us. The room is filled with shelves laden heavily with books and scrolls, and at the center stands a table with maps and measuring devices.
Placing the doll girl down without answering, I head over to the brass telescope and look inside. It's trained on the moon, the surface of which is still painted with the massive grinning face. When I insert another lens, I can see a large section of its surface, at the center of which is the golden lake left behind by Aurelia. So they were watching our battle from down here, huh?
"As I said, I feel that we're moving toward the end of something." Without turning around, I keep looking through the telescope while moving the dials and knobs to test different settings and angles.
"Why do you say that?" The living doll's voice sounds neutral, genuinely asking for an explanation.
"Today, Oinos, Alverost, and Juzual died." Finally, I stop messing with the instruments and leave the view through the lens in a hopelessly out of focus state. Looking at Senka, I smile wryly. "Of the Old Humans standing against peace, only Shelnir and Areteniha remain."
Something tells me that once they're out of the picture, Mataku will put his plan into motion to devour this world. I have no idea how to defeat him when mass doesn't make a difference for him anymore. The only thing I can think of is to teleport him into the sun, but just as I have Flann to teleport me, so does he have Mithra.
"So you're scared of the future." Senka states with a deadpan expression. I feel defensiveness rise in my chest, but only let out a sigh.
"Yes." Slumping down on the chair at the end of the table, I admit to both the doll girl and myself. Then I glance at Flann waiting by the door. She teleported in rather than follow us on foot, sensing that I want her presence. "Come here."
Gesturing for the blonde girl to come over, I pat my thigh. She follows my request as if it's an order, and wordlessly sits down in my lap. Senka's brow furrows at the sight, but she suppresses the urge to make a snarky comment. I already know what she wanted to say; I denied Tokomaha and skipped Svanhild to fool around with this girl because she can't say no to me.
"Tell me the truth. About everything." I look into Flann's green eyes from which I can glean the otherworldly reality that my kind hails from. "Let's start with my progenitor."
Keeping her eyes fixed on mine, the little gatekeeper stays silent for a moment. She stands apart from the system in which she has to obey the most massive Crawling Chaos in the universe, unlike her father. When I think about it, the fact that Mithra still follows Mataku means that he has more mass than I do even after I consumed about half of it. I'm somehow glad that he left on his own after all.
"Mataku may have mentioned it before. The fate of a Crawling Chaos." Flann begins, maintaining a level voice and emotionless gaze. But even if neither her expression nor words betray it, she does seem to feel strongly about what she's about to tell me. "He must have an unyielding will. After having lived so many millennia, his cosmic hunger must be driving him insane."
"What is that cosmic hunger? I feel quite content with regular-sized meals." At these words, Senka snorts sarcastically.
"Those portions fulfill the regular calorie intake for five girls your age and build." She remarks with a frown. I don't know what she means; I've always eaten a lot even before reincarnating into this body.
"Cosmic hunger is the Outer One's leash with which they control their offspring." Flann continues, ignoring the doll girl's interjection. "So that you shall one day consume this planet that you have been seeded to and return to their womb."
I stare at her, unable to comprehend what she just said. Then I let the lines run through my head once again before putting it into simpler terms. This Outer One uses this cosmic hunger to make us fatten ourselves and then return to their belly. We're nothing more than an automatic food delivery service for a cosmic god.
"Why?" That's all I can ask. If this Outer One is truly a cosmic god, why do they need such a roundabout way to eat planets? Why can't they just come here themselves and swallow it all in one go? Instead, they use such an unreliable method to gain nourishment. What if all the offspring gets eradicated by whatever lives on the planets they're seeded to? Will the Outer One starve?
"Because it exists in a realm beyond time and cannot enter this dimension. The tears created in it by the Imagination Engine are too unstable for it to come here." Understanding the underlying question behind that one word, the blonde girl explains.
My mouth drops at this revelation. The Old Humans accidentally granted access to the Outer One through the creation of the Imagination Engine?
"Then what about the eyes in the sky?" I ask, frantically looking for an explanation.
"They are merely projections of the Outer One's will. They are not physical." Flann replies with such conviction that I can only believe her. "My father was created to stabilize those temporary tears in space just enough for their offspring to leave and eventually return to their realm. Through those, he guided the first Crawling Chaos to this planet."
So even a gatekeeper who can teleport anywhere instantly is unable to help the Outer One come through. Its existence must be beyond the limits of this dimension if only its fragments can cross one at a time.
"And you?" Looking her up and down, I compare Flann to Mithra. She looks plenty human, even if she's always emotionless, but I imagine it's nothing more than a mask. Behind it must lie something similar to me.
"I am an unforeseen factor in the Outer One's eternal feasting." The blonde girl bats her eyelids and looks down. Then she returns her gaze to meet mine, and I'm startled to see emotions in her eyes. She shows hints of uncertainty and fear. "My father has decided to betray the Outer One, and I am one of the tools to achieve that."
"You're not just a tool." Bringing a hand up to caress her cheek, I assuage her worries. But my own thoughts are in turmoil, and it seems that she can sense it. Why would Mithra betray a cosmic god? Is this work so bad?
"I cannot reveal to you the full extent of my father's plans, as I do not know it." Not reacting to my touch, she speaks in her usual tone. "But understand that he is not your enemy."
It sounds like a plea to me, but she shows no such notion in either her expression or inflection. All I can say is that she gives me that impression, so I'll act on that basis.
"What about Mataku then?" After hearing Flann's explanation regarding my origins and Mithra's goals, something tells me Mataku is aware of those. He did say that he wanted to end it all in a massive feast when I confronted him in Adanak. The fact that he didn't do anything afterward tells me that his plans may have changed.
"I do not know." Shaking her head, the blonde girl tries her best to look and sound apologetic. She fails at both, but the thought counts.
"So, for the time being, I'll count him as an enemy." Making up my mind, I state in a matter of fact tone. It won't hurt to think that way as long as I don't know his real goal. After all, he could be loyal to the Outer One and control Mithra in a way that undoes his plans. "But tell me, how long has your father been planning this?"
"He never told me." Flann replies while looking past me out the window. This is the first time I see her like this, deep in thought as if trying to search unreliable memories for the answer. "But it was from before my birth."
Now I'm interested to learn how she was born. And, more importantly, who her mother is or was. Neither Maou-mama nor Mithra ever mentioned her, and Flann didn't talk about her either.
"Queen Pelomyx provided the vessel, and my father placed a consciousness into it." As if having read my mind, the blonde girl states while shifting her gaze back to meet my eyes. Unblinking, she awaits my reaction, but all I can do is stare at her.
Maou-mama is also Flann's mother?
"Wait..." I blink a few times, then glance at Senka as if asking for help. But the doll girl only shrugs, acting as if this isn't a big revelation. Looking at Flann's unchanging face, I wait for her to elaborate. But when she doesn't, I can't stop myself from asking. "You're my half-sister?"
"I am nothing more than a mud doll given a temporary soul to fulfill a purpose." Her voice is neutral as always, but the content of her words are nothing but self-deprecating. "I will cease to exist once that purpose has been fulfilled."
"You're my sister." I declare and hug her tightly. Judging by her description of her birth, she wasn't conceived through a union between Maou-mama and Mithra but artificially created in some alien manner. Even then, she's a physical offspring of my mother, and the former court magician gave her life.
At this point, nothing can truly shake me anymore. That Maou-mama and Mithra had a child together in one way or another comes at the end of a long string of shocking revelations. I take it as it happens and accept Flann into the family without a problem. And I'll make sure that she won't be cast aside when Mithra's plan comes to fruition.
"So, are your worries about the future alleviated now?" Senka barges in on our heartfelt moment, and I glare at her with a frown.
"Somewhat." The thought that Mithra is rebelling against a being that could be considered an omnipotent god in another dimension is only making me more anxious. But now I somewhat know my role in all this and understand what must be done.
And learning that Flann is my half-sister is a glimpse of light in this darkness that lies before me. I have Asoko and my two children, but discovering more family is always welcome - as long as they're nice people.
"Sorry for being so unfriendly toward you." I separate from Flann and look her in the eyes apologetically. Since she's the daughter of Mithra, somebody I considered a traitor that let my mother die, I didn't treat her too well. At best, I spoke to her as if she were a servant, but that will change.
"It matters not." The blonde girl on my lap replies, seemingly indifferent to how people treat her. I remember when I grasped her in my tentacles and wanted to squeeze the truth out of her right after she returned with Asoko. Back then, she didn't show any distress at being handled roughly either.
"It matters to me." With a serious expression on my face, I deny her nihilistic attitude. Grabbing her face with both my hands, I force her to acknowledge my feelings. "You will be my court magician. We'll do an official ceremony once we have taken care of the solar winds situation."
"Now, kiss." Senka suddenly appears right next to us and says, causing me to flinch in surprise.
"Do you always have to ruin the glorious moment?" Sighing, I frown at her.
"Why did you even bring me along when all you needed was to talk to her?" Shooting back with a question of her own, she stuns me into silence. Then I remember what I brought her with me for in the first place.
"I want to talk to you about the Imagination Engine... once again." I gesture for Flann to get up and stand up myself. Pacing through the room, I think about how to broach the subject best.
"You think it would be better to destroy it so that people like the Old Humans can never come into existence again." The doll girl correctly guesses my intentions. "And now that you know the Outer One is using the tears it creates in space to send its offspring here, even more so."
"I don't even know how we can stop the solar winds. There's no way we can force Areteniha to call them back unless we threaten the destruction of the Imagination Engine." Even then, I'm not sure it would be enough to coerce her. She lost her son and is willing to destroy all life on Earth at this point. Would she care about keeping her powers afterward?
The problem of the Outer One is something I'll have to worry about for another day. It doesn't seem to have a human understanding of space, sending in Mataku however many millennia ago and only a little over twenty years ago sending the next. It may take an interest in Earth again in another thousand or more years.
"And here I thought you were already so detached that you don't feel the gravity of this situation." Grinning at me, Senka jabs at the fact that I kept my cool during the meeting and talked as if stopping this calamity was a foregone conclusion.
"What did you just say?" But something else in her statement piques my interest.
"Is it time for this cliché now?" The doll girl sighs and rolls her eyes. "I said gravity. I'm sure that's the word you're looking for."
"How could I forget?" Slapping my forehead audibly, I ask myself this rhetorical question.
"Because you're-" Senka begins, but I interrupt her.
"Don't say it." I point at her and narrow my eyes. Then I turn to Flann with a new plan blossoming in my mind - one that could give me an edge over every enemy in the future. Excluding the Outer One, that is. "There's a certain nostalgic place we have to visit."
