Next page on the 4th

Thanks for reading, everyone. And Happy New Year, by the way.

Page 4016

Hmph. Never forgotten, had you? Perhaps if Arnel had become a vessel, you would have. After all, how was he any different from Hada? Eating people alive. Taking pleasure in the suffering of others. Why did Hada get a pass from you but not Arnel?

Hada did not “get a pass,” Jonah. But there was only so much that could be done to him as a form of retribution or punishment.

Bullshit. You’ve always been too soft on him. Even moreso than the others.

Jonah. Hada might very well be the most powerful among us. Sure, we could trick him in any number of ways, imprison and annoy him, but in the end, what more could be done? If you know of some way in which we could kill him, then speak it now.

Work with the emperors instead of against them. Together, you might see it done.

You make it sound so simple...

And you make everything sound complicated.

Ettol couldn’t stop a sigh from passing his lips. The illusory tower on fire dissipated into nothing, taking the imagined nighttime along with it and allowing daylight to return.

He wanted to keep arguing, but he could already feel Jonah’s will falling into the recesses of their mind again. And it was a conversation they’d already had, of course. No doubt, that was why Jonah was receding into the background: because he knew they’d arrived at their typical impasse.

How did Jonah become so stubborn? He used to be so gentle and kind. So understanding. Even towards Ettol.

It was the Supreme Will, wasn’t it? As much as he wanted for it not to be true, Ettol was finding it increasingly difficult to remain in denial. At some point, Jonah must have developed it.

But when? Ettol searched his memories. It had only been about forty years since Bellvine, so if he compared Jonah now to then... and reexamined everything that had transpired since...

What could have prompted the Supreme Will to be born in him?

That was yet another of their ancient opponents. But of course, the Supreme Will was also a special case, wasn’t it? Because in many ways, it served as an ally to his kin. They typically needed it for their vessels. It fortified the vessels’ souls and minds, allowing them to withstand the unreal fires of rebirth, which otherwise could only occur within the infinite realms of non-existence.

But it was a double-edged blade, the Will. Because it also resisted their efforts. Emboldened their enemies. And whispered to them, constantly, that they were not gods.

That the reason they were so endlessly attracted to this mortal realm was because, ultimately, they too belonged here.

Page 4015

When he finally reached his destination, there was still plenty of time remaining. He decided to do a sweep around the small fort, more out of boredom than necessity. There was no reason to think that this location was in any way compromised--which was why he liked it so much--but it never hurt to be thorough.

Plus, it made for a nice trip down memory lane.

This was where that insufferable nest of parasites had once ruled, after all. Out of every nest to have been established over the Ages, that one had to have been his most hated.

And Ettol was only too pleased to have played a part in its destruction.

Sure, Rakko ended up with all the credit--or the blame, as the man had chosen to play it off--but Ettol had been living here for decades, sowing the seeds of its eventual demise.

It was a shame that the whole city had to go along with it, but that was probably for the best, too. Those parasites were crafty. If he and Rakko had been any less thorough, then the nest likely would have survived and recovered.

And the revenge would have been absolutely horrific. The parasites did not suffer attacks against them lightly. Not in those days, anyway. They always took disproportionate retribution against their enemies.

Even a few of his own incarnations had been ended by them. Which was to say nothing of the collateral damage done around him.

Ah. That spot over there. The Grand Tower of Karnith had once stood there, yes?

Ettol smiled to himself as he summoned an illusory vision of it into reality. A tall, pale thing, covered in protruding balconies and hanging banners. And his smile only widened as he summoned the image of it on fire and crumbling under the moonlight.

Beautiful.

The long-standing dungeon of Arnel the Terror. How many heads of state visited that place without ever realizing the monstrous acts being committed within it?

And how many did realize?

Arnel was sick beyond words. The man had taken immense pleasure in his secrets--but even more in surprising people with them. The inner circle that he fostered for himself was unlike any other that Ettol had witnessed before.

But in retrospect, perhaps it had been a good experience for him in those relatively early days. It gave him his first real glimpse at the depths to which these mortals could sink when they were granted too much power.

It was certainly a lesson he’d never forgotten.