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He was already well over a hundred years old, and yet he still felt like a child in many ways. Sheltered within the confines of his own mind.

He wasn’t a child, though. He had to remember that. It was just more of Ettol’s subtle manipulations. Poking at his subconscious. Trying to prevent him from growing wise to the truth of things.

Jonah had been paying attention. He’d been learning. At first, Ettol had been able to hide all its secrets from him, but there was a clear trade-off that was being made as Ettol gained influence over this body. Awful as it was to accept, Jonah had to take his victories wherever he could get them.

Sharing a body meant sharing a conduit for Ettol’s powers. It meant sharing knowledge. It meant sharing plans.

Those were the things that Ettol was trying its hardest to hide from him. It wanted to keep him in the dark for as long as possible about that.

But Jonah would discover everything, eventually. It was just a matter of time.

The real problem was figuring out what to do with that knowledge once he found it? With Ettol having such control now, what could possibly be done? How could he get any of this knowledge out there?

Ah. Heh.

Kehe.

Why was he asking himself that?

They were playing again, weren’t they? Him and Ettol. Looking for his plans, eh? Well, he didn’t have any.

Kehe.

Worried, was it? Why? What was there to be concerned about? He was powerless, after all. Just a dormant part of the psyche, now.

Relax, Ettol. Stop worrying so much. You won.

Look at Koh over there. Even he had been brought to heel. A truly remarkable feat, that. Jonah understood. He’d seen the memories. The knowledge of antiquity--when countless other “gods” were getting absolutely stomped by the Great Pale Wolf.

It was impressive that they’d managed to subdue him for as long as they did. Smothering him and throwing him into that prison realm.

How hard they’d worked. Schemed for years and years. Organized and collaborated. Forsaken their pride and hatred for one another. All to lay low their most feared enemy.

And yet in the end, he was still here, wasn’t he? Enthralled, sure, but for how much longer, Ettol? How long, hmm?

Compared to that ticking clock, Jonah was nothing at all to be worried about, surely.