Will of chaos

I asked Ronan to deliver my reply to Ayden; it was a very polite letter exemplifying all the positions in which he could hide his sword in his back door and asking how he could be single after millennia.

I just wanted to annoy him. I know it was childish and that he wouldn’t care about something like that, but I was annoyed and wanted to take it out on someone being childish, so the best course of action was to direct it against an enemy.

After seeing Ronan leave, I sat down to think on the ground. This world, which seemed to be reborn, had a pure, relaxing atmosphere for clear-headed thinking.

Urd didn’t even say anything; she seemed thoughtful as she left. I was left alone with my thoughts. I needed to carefully choose who would participate in this contest.

After two hours of thinking, someone finally came to bother me. It was Akatosh. He sat down in front of me silently, a few meters away from us, and simply threw me a barrel containing Blood of the Fallen, an alcoholic beverage based on Divine-level blood.

He drank silently, possessing a barrel with another alcoholic beverage, and we spent another 3 hours in silence like that. Having someone nearby was comforting while enjoying a drink; I hadn’t realized how much I needed this.

Sigh

“Thank you…” (me)

“Those are truly determined eyes.” (Akatosh)

“Now I know what to do.” (me)

“So what are you waiting for?” (Akatosh)

I spread my wings and leave. In my mind, the list of those who will participate in the battles. My goal was to win all the battles, but I think it will be difficult. I have no idea of ​​Ayden’s strength.

———————

I went straight inside Tarzor, near where Freya usually stays, but my business wasn’t with her. I went straight to the Twins to ask what they thought of my plans and found them just sitting eating cake.

“They both seem very relaxed.” (Me)

“Besides your training, there isn’t much else to be done, not until you take possession of this universe.” (Cortana)

“I imagine you came because of the challenge against War, right?” (Lena)

“Did Urd tell you?” (Me)

“She came straight to us, she wanted our opinion on this and I imagine you want the same.” (Lena)

“I thought about it, but no.” (Me)

“The decision must be mine, I can’t plan well against him, so I have to play with what I know.” (Me)

“Unpredictability, that’s exactly what we talked about with Urd, but even so he came to us, I suppose it’s because of our Avatars.” (Cortana)

“Yes, the power of you two and their combat experience will be indispensable, with these two I can guarantee at least a level playing field against Ayden.” (Me)

“You chose well, but that doesn’t guarantee victory, remember, on a level playing field War will always be favored.” (Lena)

“Are you going to get Luci too?” (Cortana)

“No, she’s not suitable.” (me)

“She’s someone who doesn’t like combat, and her willingness to engage in such situations would be a burden. Even though she has combat experience and is strong, a fighter without the necessary resilience would be a burden.” (me)

“A good ability analysis, congratulations.” (Lena)

“I told you he wouldn’t choose her, it seems I won.” (Cortana)

“I didn’t think someone so young would realize that on their own.” (Lena)

“I’ll leave you two talking, I’ll just ask you to bring your Avatars back.” (me)

“Do you know the date of the fight?” (Cortana)

“He let me choose the date, so I chose 10 days from now.” (me)

“Why so little time?” (Lena)

“You could have asked for that time 3 or 4 times and he would have accepted. That period of time is insignificant for someone who has lived so long, and with the combat formally accepted, there’s no need to worry about anything else.” (Lena)

“I don’t want to prolong this any longer, I want to finish everything as quickly as possible. 10 days is enough for my preparation.” (me)

“Now I have to go see the other participants.” (me)

“(The only one I’m worried about is the last one…)” (me)

I wave goodbye to the Twins and when I return to one of my Temples on a planet with fewer people, this was an Eclipse Temple still under construction with the worship hall recently completed, but the surrounding area was empty, because that worshipper here wasn’t so well regarded.

I went to the statue in the middle of the hall that had strange eyes on each column, not carved into the wall as if someone were trapped inside trying to escape. The statue had an expressionless face and looked like an innocent young woman, but anyone who looked at her would feel the lie in that appearance; it was Hinata’s statue.

I touched the statue and left a message for her. I could feel that she was focused on something else, and that’s why I didn’t want to force our connection. Therefore, I left a message in one of her temples, so she would know as soon as she was available and would come to me.

“(She’s a gamble, honestly, I have no idea if she can match or win against any of the forces in the War.)” (me)

“With that, we have 3, 2 left…” (me)

Sigh

——————–

I left the Temple of the Eclipse where Hinata was worshipped and went straight to the fortress city of Urd where the next participant I thought of was.

As soon as I arrived, Urd was waiting for me. She looked at me as if trying to guess my thoughts, but I’m sure she doesn’t know who I chose.

“I won’t hand over Nira or 89.” (Urd)

“They aren’t my choices. 89 has no combat experience, and Nira still lacks power; she’ll need years to develop.” (me)

“You couldn’t have chosen me, could you?” (Urd)

“No, even being strong, you also lack combat experience and are still learning to use your power.” (me)

“Even disregarding all that, I don’t think they would allow an Entity other than me or Guerra to participate personally. I can use the Avatars and borrow their power, but I can’t use you or the Twins directly.” (me)

“…” (Urd)

I could see her lost eyes trying to guess who I might be choosing among those here, then came her surprised eyes considering a possibility.

“It’s not Davoth, is it…?” (Urd)

“I considered him, but I ruled him out. Ayden has already seen what he’s capable of.” (me)

With my words, Urd’s eyes turned cold, probably trying to guess who I chose. I knew she would react like this.

“You can’t use her!” (Urd)

“Even without considering that she just woke up!” (Urd)

“Her power hasn’t been tested yet. She doesn’t know how to use her power and is still talking to 89 for the first time!” (Urd)

“I know, the issue of her new powers is a problem. Her Will has proven too strong to ignore. In combat, I’m sure she’ll fight beyond her limits, and she also has extensive combat experience.” (me)

“Zenos, listen to me, she’s not in a condition to…” (Urd)

“Among all the participants I chose, she’s the only one who will have no choice but to participate.” (me)

“Why!?” (Urd)

“Because her penance begins now, living or dying, she needs to fight for this universe both for being one of its creators, and also for the responsibility for everything she has done until today.” (me)

“Regardless of whether she has changed or not, nothing erases what she has done, the Ascended who were on Davoth’s side will still see her as an enemy and I wouldn’t find it strange if one of them tried to kill her.” (me)

“Regardless of the risks, Urak will participate.” (Me)

“I don’t like this, 89 will be sad…” (Urd)

She talks about her Avatar being sad, but anyone can see the worry in her eyes. She’s always shown a strange affection for Urak, and her own name seems to have been inspired by hers. I don’t know what connects the two so much, and it doesn’t matter.

Urak has done too much evil. What I’m doing can’t even be considered a form of atonement. This is just a step to show her worth. If we succeed and she manages to at least demonstrate her usefulness, whether in individual combat or group battle, then the Ascended might decide to tolerate her presence—emphasis on tolerate.

“At least give them some time to be alone.” (Urd)

“I’ll wait a few hours, but that’s all.” (Me)

“Like you said, she needs to train her power and adapt to combat, so I can’t waste another second.” (Me)

“I understand.” (Urd)

I turn around and go back to my room. I’m still a little tired from the training, but that’s not why I came to my room. This is about the last participant besides me, who I’ll only be able to participate in the final duel.

“I hope it works…” (me)

I close my eyes to meditate. This time it wasn’t to think about that Soul in the coffin, nor was it to think about Ayden or other worries. It was just to internalize everything I learned in this training, to recover the feeling I felt at a specific moment.

Soon I can feel it; my Aura moves by pure instinct, taking my Will to a deep corner, not within my Soul, but deeper than that, within my Existential Spark, which seemed like an endless universe in flames.

The Dragon didn’t stop until it penetrated the ethereal flames of existence, and that’s when I encountered what lay beneath. It was the same vision I had experienced before: a floor that seemed like a mirror reflecting unknown stars and planets in the sky, with the only difference being a silhouette slowly rotating among these planets in a fetal position—a feminine silhouette emanating a strange presence.

“(Why are you here, Zenos…)” (Paradox)