Chapter 3183: Gift of War |
White Abyss seemed rattled.
Despite War's casual tone, she could not help but grow tense. A myriad of thoughts seemed to flash in her eyes.
Having experienced countless lives, myriad desires, she knew a lot... she knew too much. So much, in fact, that her own life and desire were lost in the vast sea of human passions she had endured.
But all of those lives belonged to people who would live in the distant future, in a world much different from this one. So, she was aware of what all of them knew. Eventually, she spoke:
"So... you are not dead?"
War simply shook her head, the same faint smile illuminating her weathered face.
"We are."
Then, she shrugged.
“The real War is dead. It is only this phantom that lingers."
“You are aware, then. You knew all along.”
War raised an eyebrow, her expression betraying a lack of understanding.
“Knew what?"
She seemed sincere enough, even if a god lacking understanding was not something that could exist.
White Abyss leaned forward slightly.
“The war. The daemons. Weaver... you knew all along how you would die, and what would happen next."
A hint of sudden realization appeared on her face.
“But you did nothing to prevent it. Why?"
Then, she leaned back, the shine of her radiant eyes shimmering restlessly.
“Was it because you feared the Forgotten God? Because that was the best of all possible outcomes?"
Now, it was War's turn to look surprised. She studied the gorgeous nephilim in confusion, remaining silent.
Eventually, she asked:
"Why would we fear the Forgotten God?"
White Abyss scowled.
"Because he is the God of Corruption. Because once he awakens, the world you created will be consumed by the Void. And you will be swallowed with it."
War tilted her head a little, confused. Her voice sounded incredulous:
“So what?"
She chuckled quietly.
“Why should we fear the Void? We are of the Void, after all. For us, what you call Corruption is merely change. We have never been afraid to change; we are constantly changing."
She paused, and then added with a hint of amusement.
"I thought you, of all creatures, would understand."
War shook her head slowly.
"Death is also a form of change. Even if our consciousness is destroyed and our spirit dissipates, we will remain — just in a different form. Our flesh is the fabric of existence, after all. One would have to destroy all of existence to erase us, and the Void... the Void doesn't destroy. It merely changes — forever."
She gave White Abyss a wry smile.
"...Of course, change can also bring ruin."
Then, laughing quietly at the lack of reaction, she looked at the fire with a wistful expression.
"Do not mistake reluctance for fear, child. Do not confuse desire with unwillingness. It is not that we fear our lost sibling or are unwilling to see him awaken. It is just that this world we've created... we are fond of it. We care about all the things that inhabit it, too. So, we protect it. Not because we are afraid of destruction..."
She smiled.
“But simply because we want to."
Her voice echoed in the silence of the desert night, carried away by the wind. White Abyss remained motionless, as if paralyzed by what she had heard. A strange, distant light gleamed in her eyes for a moment.
But then, it was gone.
War sighed.
“But it seems that you have mistaken my meaning. Yes, our relationship with time is different from that of most things, but we are not omniscient. We are not omnipotent, either — we have never been, and now that we have shared our Flame and become diminished, even less so."
She scrutinized White Abyss for a moment.
“It would be difficult for you to understand, I guess. There is time... but there is also fate. And even we are not above fate. Imagine standing at a crossroads where a thousand roads intersect — you can look ahead and explore all of them, but in the end, you'll still have to choose one. As gods, we are afforded the choice. But we still have to walk a path to its end."
She leaned back a little, her eyes glistening in the orange glow of the fire.
“Some paths are obscured by fog. Everything that has to do with Weaver is especially difficult to see... so while we knew a lot, we did not know all of it. We chose a path and followed it earnestly. Even if we knew that, one day, we must end... we did not surrender without a struggle. We were still fighting fiercely when we reached the end of the path — because like all living things, we too are children of the Flame. We too burn with the desire to be alive."
War chuckled quietly.
“Even if death is nothing more than change.”
Then, she looked at the dark sky and laughed.
“Ah, death... how I despise that cowardly shadow!"
White Abyss regarded her in silence, the fire casting harsh shadows on her face. Then, she leaned forward slightly:
“Then why didn't you win?"
Her voice sounded stark and severe.
"If you were so mighty, so knowledgeable, so earnest in your desire to live... then why didn't you win the war, War? Why didn't you wipe out the daemons, or at least prevent them from opening the Void Gate? Why have you allowed this world you are so fond of to become a nightmare?"
War looked at her silently, a hint of a wistful, distant emotion in her eyes.
Eventually, she said:
"Because the daemons were too strong to be suppressed, and we couldn't kill them."
White Abyss frowned.
"Why? Because once destroyed, they would return to their source? Because that would make the Forgotten One stronger? But you are not afraid of his return, as you've said. So why did Sun God imprison Hope instead of destroying her? Why did Shadow God lose to Repose? Why had you allowed the daemons to exist, to begin with?"
War remained silent for a few moments. After a while, she sighed and moved closer to the fire, as if wanting to chase away the chill of the night.
“It seems you don't understand us as well as you think. Well... that is only fair. After all, even the daemons, our closest kin, did not understand us."
Suddenly, the old avatar of War looked even older. She seemed ancient. And yet, unexpectedly, a hint of warmth found its way onto her face.
She smiled.
“Returning to their source? Sure, that was a reason. But that wasn't the real reason. In truth, we could never kill them."
War looked at White Abyss.
After a few moments of silence, she said:
"...Because we love them."
Her expression softened slightly.
“They are all that remains of our dearest sibling, after all."
White Abyss stared at her in stunned silence.
Then, her indifferent expression cracked, and she suddenly laughed while raising her face to the sky.
“Because you love them? So, all this terror... all this destruction, all this loss, all this torment... all of it happened because of something as stupid and simple as love?"
War seemed a little offended by her remark, but in the end, she simply shrugged.
“Maybe. Ah, but you really seem to have lost your way, child. I hope that you find it before we meet again.”
With that, she picked up her spear and used it to support herself as she stood. A quiet grunt escaped from her lips.
“This body of mine... has weathered too much, it seems. I feel that my change is drawing close."
She lingered for a moment, then said with a hint of curiosity.
“That sword of yours... the Blessing. May I take a look?"
White Abyss frowned, then raised a hand and summoned a torrent of brilliant flame, which then coalesced into a blade forged of pure light. Reaching for it, War grasped light in her calloused hand and raised it to her eyes. She looked into its depths keenly, then gently brushed her hand along the incinerating radiance.
“Such fine craftsmanship."
Her voice sounded pleased.
Returning the brilliant sword to its owner, she hesitated for a moment, and then placed her spear on the ground near White Abyss.
"A gift of gratitude, for satisfying my curiosity."
The beautiful nephilim looked at the flint spear in confusion.
In the end, she asked in a flat tone:
“Aren't you wary of gifting spears to mortals, by now?"
War laughed.
“What a fine question... I have to admit, I do feel a little trepidation. Still, I hope that you will use it better. When the time comes, I hope you'll use it well."
Looking down at the seated nephilim, she smiled.
"Do you know what the saving grace of existence is, child? For us gods."
Not receiving an answer, she sighed.
"It's oblivion."
With that, War turned away from the fire and headed into the desert. As she walked, she threw over her shoulder:
"The next time we meet, I will be different. I might not remember this conversation, either. That will be the day when I kill you... so I hope that you'll remember it well."
Moments later, she was gone.
White Abyss was left alone in front of the fire.
Her soldiers and priests still stood in the distance, too afraid to move.
She remained motionless for a long while, then reached forward and picked up the spear.
A grim and chilling emotion shone in her radiant eyes.
White Abyss hesitated for a moment, then looked down and sighed.
“Then let us never meet again, War."
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