"Stop!" A simple pulse of vibrating air infused with a panicked command, a forceful declaration. The room turns silent, breaths hesitant, four steady heartbeats the only ambience left to fill the air. Before her, the being of black and white holds static, perhaps stunned, perhaps compliant, or perhaps simply observant. But the silence doesn't linger, the figure warping into itself, black melding with white in equal measures to create a distinct, almost regal form. A gentle flutter beats the air as a dark cloak wraps the floor with its loose edges, spiralling its radius in an indiscernible direction without casting a shadow. Streaks of bright wind upward, uneven patterns steadily forming rigid structures reaching the tip, where an even split of shade defines a simple face without contour. Only two opposing dots which indicate observation, black shifting but fixed in an unyielding, calm gaze while white holds rigid with a free expression of elation.

  The figure lowers its head, an untouchable Aura filling the room with a uniform will of excitement and respect. "We greet the revered one. That we momentarily forgot the dangers held within one's true name is a tremendous failing on us. And our broken introduction was discourteous." "I'm pretty sure I've forgiven you for worse, Nila." A mix of shock and confusion washes over the five individuals shifting gaze between the god of the labyrinth, and the strange dragon they bow to. Some open their mouths to speak words they can't yet parse into sound, others stare in rapt silence, and one long, white figure in particular seems to perform some kind of confused wobble.

  "You recall our name. How much do you remember?" How much... "Of course I remember, I knew you seemed familiar! I used to love this world. I came here all the time with... Who did I come with?" "Is it safe to recall? Facets of identity are fickle things. To avoid them is a difficult task. Your presence here changes a great many things." "Maybe not... I-" "Hold it!" A small voice commands, heavier and sharper than usual. "Objection!" The same voice declares, the waver of emotion seeping into her jest. "How do you know each other! Who exactly are you! And you!" The spider shouts, not quite questions, not intended to be answered, only heard. "Young Lyla... Sweet child. Perhaps it was rude of us to address the revered one first. You have been seeking us for longer than anyone."

  Lyly strikes the figure as it reappears before her, unleashing an unrelenting barrage of tiny slaps, each sending small ripples across the smooth surface. Black and white coalesce into a vortex, reshaping back into a mirror of Lyly who continues her agitated strikes unfettered. "All of you have reached this place. None are to be prioritised over the others. Speak your minds freely." "You think I care?!" "You have many reasons to express your rage. If you tell us, we will listen." "Fuck you! I don't care! I'm finally here! I can finally be considered the real thing! But why?!" Her attacks grow infuriated, Mana pouring from the blows in an unfocused hostility. "I didn't come all this way to find out the one called a god, called all powerful by everyone I've ever looked up to is some weakling who bows and apologises to someone they've just met! You were supposed to be perfect!"

  "Lyla... We will not patronise you. You are smart enough to know the reality. To know we could never have been what you seem to have expected. The term divine beast is not one of our own making. To us, you are all simply family. No more. No less." "I hate you!" "You are not the first." "I hate everything..." "You should not lie so readily." "What would you know?" "Too little. Care to tell us?" Nothing spoken, a silent response. "Perhaps another time then. We however, have much to say. More so with the return of the revered one. Or perhaps less, given the fragility of information."

  The figure sinks to the floor, camouflaged against the pristine white tiles before reforming by an indented wall. "This is something of an unorthodox turn of events. The following applies to all of you. A nonstandard offer, brought forth by unusual circumstances. You each have a choice to make. Whether this is done as a group or as individuals is of no consequence. But you must be resolute in your decision. Ordinarily we would accept all those who make it here as kin, divine beasts as they are called above. Remain here and you will be acknowledged as such. Follow us to the crown and we will not be able to grant you those same rights, but you will be asked to take on a mission bearing a greater magnitude than any preceding it. It is unlikely the current status quo would remain either way." Aura vanishes from the room, a sudden emptiness devoid of influence, as if the figure in plain view was not even there. "Make your decision. We will answer questions to the best of our capabilities."

  "I don't think my choice has any meaning here. The answers I need can only be obtained this way. I won't influence or judge your decisions. You all have your own reasons for being here." Aleph steps to the figure's side and sits, patiently awaiting further response. Didi quickly skips by without a word, turning to see the narrowed squints of here companions. "What? Aleph is my primary contractor, where she goes I am obligated to go." "Is that okay?" Aleph asks the figure, no movement to be seen as they respond. "A demon reaching here from above is a first for us. By nature of a demonic contract they can be considered an extension of yourself. We see no reason to refuse their presence."

  Everyone else turns inward, their conversation narrowed but unsuppressed. "Honestly, I forgot why I was even sent down here. Given how... esoteric my master is though, I wouldn't put it past them to have predicted this. I will be going to this crown." Fluffy starts, his words without uncertainty. "Seriously? You're just abandoning the rights of a divine beast. You're missing out on some real prestige here. Something people have killed for!" "I've never sought fame or prestige." "Well I have! I'm going to make myself famous! And popular! Everyone will know the name Lyla, the greatest, most powerful divine beast of all time!" "Then stay. It's not like we'll never meet again or anything, so you don't have to worry about missing us." "Who says I'll miss your ugly face?!" "Then it's fine."

  Lyly glares holes into the elf, his passive dismissal only stoking the flames more. "Monkey!" "Hoh!" "What about you?" "Hoh?" "What are you going to do?" "Hoh... I am undecided. I have no use or desire for prestige, yet I am uncertain of taking responsibility for the quest of a god." "Seriously? You're either too apathetic or too chicken to make a decision?" "Yes." "..." "I am the weakest of us. Alone I would have never made it past a fraction of the hardships we have encountered." "Don't sell yourself short, Muscles. You've carried your own weight. Don't forget, you dealt the finishing blow to Mekrotok." "A fluke I am yet to replicate." Fluffy glares holes into the monkey, seeming to take offence at his self-derision.

  "This discussion fails to proceed. Sosa." "That is what they call us." Goldy meets the gaze of his mirror, now appeared before him. "What decision would Denkha have made?" "Denkha? From what Kixhah has told us you know little of him. The poor thing... You overestimate his mind. He would have simply failed to understand the request. Of this we have no doubt." With a dumbfounded expression, he stares at the calm grin of his reflection. "Huhuhu... Haahahahaa! What a fine ancestor I have! Ha!" "Yes, always quite the character. It is no wonder he gets along with Esfa." "I have made my decision. Ho'mah, from you I have learned much. New language, new forms of strength, and... diversity of character. Whichever choice you make is one I respect, and one I will follow." "No pressure, huh..."

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  Quiet returns once more, the figure having returned between blinks to their former position. "Progenitor." "That is also what they call us." Lyly's mirror responds, sixteen eyes meeting on equal grounds. "If I say no, can you unseal me?" "We cannot directly help with that matter in either case. Kavlaxhar does not listen to us, so our request would mean nothing. We could send help through another of your kin. However, our ability to do so at current is impeded due to Lamla's absence. If freedom is all you seek then you could follow the revered one. A seal of Mana is of little consequence to an Aether bearer of her skill. But that isn't all you seek."

  Footsteps fill the room, Fluffy taking his place beside Aleph. "If a decision is made, then we shall proceed. Follow us through the chamber and we will reach the crown." The groove in the wall deepens, extruding inward to create a small volume just large enough for the entire group to comfortably fit. Everyone filters in, populating the space as a faint skitter grows in volume alongside lumbering footsteps shortly behind. Soft taps trace Aleph's spine, and a gentle flashlight nestles on her head. "Don't say a word." I wasn't going to? "Wait, what about Leeta?" "Ah, yes... We should leave them a note for when they awaken." "What? But they're..." The group stare dumbstruck at the unmoving smudge of light, stood tall yet with their head slightly cocked as if not quite all there.

  "What should the note say? Something simple, we will not be long. We should at least leave something nice. What would suffice? Hearts are a recent fad, yes? A strange one. Indeed..." The figure momentarily vanishes from its place, a sheet of white paper, lovingly folded into an origami of Leeta, planted directly before them. "That should do. Let us proceed." Returned to their place in the centre of the opened space, the figure produces two limbs like arms, seemingly without purpose as they simply fold behind their body. I guess this is another ele- "We are here. That felt delayed. We are simply not used to transporting this many."

  Did we just... Aether spreads from the dragon, sinking across the room and into the walls to grasp at the shape of their new space. It's completely different! The building is smaller, and I'm pretty sure everything around us is just magma! Seriously dense magma too... I didn't even feel a thing. Black and white stands to the back of the dimly saturated room, lit only by the soft, undulating glow emanating from behind the glass shield of a wide door. Desks and shelves filled with neatly organised vials, compact pouches, and esoteric devices collated in an almost fractal structure around the room. To the side, sits a large glass container spanning to the ceiling, a somewhat familiar sight.

  "Welcome to the crown. This is the only place we can guarantee our words go unheard by our observers. A space too distant for their ears. Too well protected for their tricks. It is an unorthodox location for a discussion, normally only reserved for our more intense experiments and soul infusions. But what we discuss here must never leave this room, never be heard by others, be they celestials or angels. Gather and listen. We have much to say." The group comply, filtering in one after the other and gathering around between the corridors of desks. Soft cushions slide in from seemingly nowhere beneath each of them, even Aleph's spacial awareness unable to discern quite where they came from.

  "I am Ni. I am La. We are Nila." They begin, the room filled with a gentle yet oppressive Aura, like a blanket draped over to smother any interruptions. "Our first secret we impart to you is our name. A token of trust, as a sign of our sincerity. Names hold power. Power to kill a god. A power we bear a lacking understanding of. But one we respect nonetheless." It's so hard to tell which of them is talking. Is there even a distinction at this point?

  "We will start from the beginning. When the revered one first visited our world. We were weak. Small. Ignorant." Nila shrinks, their form split and unruly as white clashes with black for dominance. Three figures of grey diverge and surround them, standing tall. "She and two others found us. Taught us. Made us more." Their body grows still, small, yet stable as the two shades share equal ground. "The revered one. The ancient one. The young one. We wish to say more of them. However memories are a fickle thing. And your identity must remain in shade. Lest the memory of your name brings the eyes of our enemy."

  Three more figures sprout forth, taking the form of a spider, a serpent, and a cloak, each bearing unique patterns across their bodies. "We learned, and created the first of our children. For a time, it was this that marked our world's epoch. Each new child, created centuries or millennia apart, spawned with them a new age. A new people. A new mark in history." More appear, each different to the last. A dragon, a snail, a leviathan, a crab, one after the other depicted in acute detail as if true microcosms of the real things. "One-hundred-and-thirteen. Some became legend. Some remained small. Some rebelled. Some died. Some still remain. All are precious to us. And more relevant to us now, all were powerful."

  "Yet then, the gods disappeared." The three large figures melt, sloshing into nothing and returning to Nila's small body, dozens of the smaller figures washing away under the deluge. "In the wake of the calamity, only nineteen of our children remained. Our planet stood. Yet our world had been shattered. It is unknown to most, but in the advent of the calamity there was a war. An attempt by self-proclaimed gods from other worlds to take where they observed a vacuum of power." Innumerable figures of light pop in from nowhere, a shimmering starscape which is immediately skewered by equal numbers of harsh spikes protruding from Nila. "They were weak."

  Five black spheres form themselves within the space, followed by a flood of lights blinding the room. "But they were numerous. And the angels had taken interest. They are not weak." The lights fade out, the gentle flicker of a select few stars remaining. "We struck a deal with the intruders. And formed our first treaty with the angels. Then, not a year later... The young one returned." A familiar grey figure reforms itself before Nila, now diminutive compared to its former stature. "They were weaker than before. Missing a piece of themself. Yet their nature had not changed. They spoke to us. Told us of a future. Of our part in what was to come. Of your inevitable return. Their words were strange. Speaking of the nature of existence. Yet we heard what was needed."

  The young one's figure shifts out of sight, a strange sense of its lingering presence as if resting within the corner of vision. "And so we prepared. Our kin are strong. So we created more. Our techniques improved so we became more bold. The angels took notice. And so began the first great war. In its aftermath a more refined deal was struck. We could not so readily influence our world. Yet in return we were allowed a degree of autonomy without interference. Restricted autonomy, but enough for what we need." Bright lights fade, figures melt and return to their common point, the room returning to its gentle ambience as Nila retakes form.

  "We shall skip the remainder. It is merely a repetition of cycles. The addition of restrictions. The progress to our goal. And in its wake, we stand here. Our desire is the return of our former peace. The banishment of invaders who threaten our world. The revival of our god." Four limbs sprout from Nila's body, each gesturing towards the individuals surrounding Aleph. "Our request is for you who have accompanied her... Who have bonded with her... And who bear none of the restrictions held by our kin... To help restore her to her former stature. To help her ascend to where she once stood." Four hands coalesce into one, now pointing at Aleph. "And for you, revered one... We simply ask for your return."

  "We have spoken. And you have listened. You may now ask. And we shall answer."

  "Ah! I'm okay! Oh... Everyone's gone. Where did they- Ooh, is that me?! So pretty! Something is written on it... But it's so neatly folded, I don't want to ruin it! But it could be important... Maybe if I'm careful I can just... Yes! This works! Lets see... 'Gone to crown. You don't have to stay, go enjoy yourself! Tell Mikika to find us if you see her. Send her my hugs! Regards. With love.' And there's a very well drawn heart at the bottom... What species is this from? Human? I did hear of a fad like this... Ah! I still haven't watered my moss this eightday! I need to go!"