When my vision cleared again, I was back home. Richard informed me that he dropped my friends back at the beach and left them a message that I won't be able to continue this trip with them due to urgent matters. I suppose this would be the last time that I go out with them… Danger follows me wherever I go, so it is best not to implicate them any more than this.
"Why are we at my home and not in the Mansion?" I asked, noting the choice of teleportation.
"I do not wish for Tulip to know of what happened," he replies calmly as he sits on the sofa in the salon in my home.
"Why would a Death Phoenix be born to an Aquatic one?" I ask the question that has been lingering in my mind ever since I saw that nestling change its feather color.
"Members of the Grey Lotus tend to be Death-type species from birth. The Phoenix was the same," Richard explained. I honestly didn't expect him to reveal this; I thought he would just say that I don't need to know, as usual. But even though he did, I am not sure how to feel about his words.
"What will happen to the nestling?"
"I have already killed it and destroyed its soul," he replied. My expression was complicated at this moment. He noticed it and said, "Do not feel pity for something as vile as the creature that was born earlier. Had it grown up, it would be a completely different being that would not shy in committing the vilest of atrocities."
"And how do you know for certain that things will turn out that way?"
He sighs, "Because that is their nature. They all have the same nature. All of them. None has shown something different."
Despite everything he just said, I could sense that he wasn't as calm about what happened as he was presenting himself to be. At least he didn't just kill it without any thought to the matter. Still, it bothered me that a creature that was just born would be killed just for its potential danger, no matter how verified that danger might be. But even if Richard imprisoned it, waited for it to grow up, and then killed it, would the situation be any better?
"Richard…" I suddenly started, my expression as grim as what I am about to say.
"I am aware," he interrupted, "You have completely lost the connection with your true body."
…
Isle of Prisons. Moments before my clone passed out.
At first, I couldn't comprehend the information that Pangu told me about. I slept on a slope? But, that's impossible… The island has been a consistent flat surface from the moment I set foot on it.
However, I cannot deny that my eyes currently see a slope at the exact spot where I slept. It is there. Both my eyes and other senses can confirm its existence.
"That's what I was trying to tell you about before Bast suddenly came. I even tried to wake you up multiple times, but you were out cold," Pangu said. "Orion, look, I know places like this, and such an irregularity cannot mean anything good. Please be extremely careful."
"Pangu, my energy was replenished while I slept," I explained to him. This is potentially one of the most dangerous situations I have ever been in, so I decided to tell him in case he knew anything that could help. After all, he is the one who created this universe.
"That is impossible," he replied, and I could feel him frowning, even though he technically doesn't have brows to frown.
Just as he finished talking, wisps of fire appeared from the slope and converged into a humanoid fiery figure in front of me. If one looked closely at it, its features somehow mimic mine.
"What the-" I am startled by this sudden development. Pangu said it can't be anything good, but I didn't expect things to develop so quickly. I took a step back, unsheathed my sword, and became alert as I observed the figure closely.
Suddenly, the figure dissolved into wisps again and aimed for me this time. I took another few steps back to dodge it, but as my luck would have it, the gravity shifted immediately when I landed, causing me to get pressed to the ground without any further hope of dodging.
The wisps entered my body and went straight to my soul. My vision blurred before being covered by a red glow. Before I could fuse with Pangu to strengthen myself against this attack, I lost all consciousness.
…
Again, I wasn't surprised that Richard knew of this.
"You fainted because your true body lost consciousness at Isle of Prisons. Bast can confirm that you were fine moments before that," he explains.
"Bast? As in the goddess Bast?" I ask with a frown, "Why would Bast be there?"
"You will naturally know when your original body wakes up."
"I am still unconscious?" My expression turned from grim to grimmer.
"Yes. The only reason you, the clone, are awake right now is because I forced the connection down so that I can communicate with you."
"What are we going to do?"
"I am currently on my way to fetch your body and bring it back to the Tower," a deep and grumbly voice suddenly said from my side, startling me. From the urgency of the matter, I didn't look around in the room, and thus didn't notice Senior Brother Farbauti, who was sitting beside me.
"How are you going to cross that distance in time?" I asked, "I know you are more powerful than I, and from what I could tell from the faint connection with my clone, it took me around six months to reach my current position."
"I am unaffected by the situation on the Isle of Prisons."
"Care to explain?"
"Do you know what these markings on my body signify?"
I don't know. I never really looked properly at them and only thought of them as tattoos. But now that I take a closer look, I feel as if they are familiar. In fact, they are quite similar to the ones on my body. My eyebrows rise and my eyes widen in surprise, "You are a Lord as well?"
He nods his head and explains, "I am the Lord of Chaos, as in the Chaos element. The environment on the island is chaotic, just as the element that I study."
The people who had an affinity for the Chaos element throughout the history of the universe could be counted on one hand. Yes, it is that rare. Yet, the records that I have seen in the Mansion of Night's library never mentioned that Farbauti was one of those people. But then again, Richard and his disciples are not exactly what you would call normal.
Farbauti looked at me again and said, "I just found your body."
-------------------------
Updated on: 22/11/2025