Ivy was in her digital domain, where cosmic debris, shattered galaxies and black holes drifted lazily through the expanse. Since interfering with what was supposed to be Aric's death, she had to lay low.
After all, she broke the number one rule for any deity, system, or god:
Never interfere with death.
She kept thinking about how did this even happened. She recalled what she saw and happened when she teleported into Narxuia to rescue Aric.
She had waited until everyone started evacuating from Ashwick to make sure no one saw her as she dragged him out of the rubble.
While in Ashwick, she noticed the black flames and felt uneasy.
"How the fuck does black flames exist in present-day Narxuia?"
"There's no way that magic should exist… Lysandra sealed heraway for good. How the hell is it even here?"
"I don't have access to it anymore since I gave that responsibility to Being… Lysandra is far too loving to cause this much chaos. And there aren't any other chaos gods left—I dealt with them all. The vision Aric was given didn't even include any of that as well..."
"So who the fuck would send the first demon queen into this world? Everyone knows sending someone like that could very well end it…"
Then the thought of her ex crossed her mind.
"No. There's no fucking way that cheater sent her. No fucking way."
"He's sane enough to know that sending Lilith into this world would destroy it. At her peak, Lilith was so powerful that Lysandra had to seal her away. There's no fucking way Nathaniel betrayed us by doing something this reckless."
But the thought wouldn't leave her mind.
"No. That bastard cheated on me for a moon goddess. It's entirely possible…"
She clenched her fists. "Nathaniel, I swear, if you fucking sen—"
Before she could finish her sentence, a familiar presence materialized behind her.
"Still throwing tantrums, I see." came the voice of her friend. The woman wore her usual white robe and held a teacup.
Ivy spun around quickly, startled. "Don't do that! You scared me half to death!"
"Oh?" the Being said, smirking. "And here I thought you thrived on chaos. Isn't that why you retired from your cushy divine position and took this job?"
Ivy glared at her. "Ha-ha-ha, very funny. What do you want now? Here to lecture me again?"
Instead of responding immediately, the Being circled her slowly.
"Actually," she began, sipping her tea, "I'm here because you meddled… again."
"Yeah? You gonna rat me out, friend?"
The Being shook her head, setting the teacup aside. "No. Consider it a favour repaid for giving me this job when you decided to retire for him."
She pointed at the screen monitoring Aric.
"However, I do have to ask. This is the second time you've interfered for him."
"I don't get it, you know? He might be an anomaly even by my standards, but surely it doesn't warrant the Great Observer meddling for him so many times."
Ivy shrugged dismissively, "As if I'm the only one who's ever meddled for a human. You meddled with Kylien just recently to let him ascend to heaven."
"Hmm, but that wasn't me meddling. It was merely honouring the favour for Lily."
"Yeah, yeah. You say that but it's basically the same thing. Anyway, since you're here, I'll just tell you my reason."
Ivy stood up and faced her. "Aric isn't supposed to die. You saw the vision, I saw the vision, and everyone else did too. Everyone else could die except him and Seraphina."
"But somehow, Aric has suddenly become susceptible to death. That doesn't just happen, by the way."
The Being crossed her arms. "You're suggesting someone is meddling with this to the point you need to intervene?"
"Yeah."
She raised a brow. "So, who do you think it might be?
Ivy's eyes darkened. "It's that fucking ex of mine. I know he's behind this."
"Nathaniel?" the Being asked, "Surely he's not stupid enough to piss you off."
Ivy gave her such a venomous glare that the Being shifted uncomfortably.
"…Well, okay. He did cheat on you. So I suppose…you want me to tell you what he's up to?"
"Mhm."
The Being looked innocent, "Well, I definitely can't tell you he's at home right now, watching TV. That would break my sacred code."
"I also certainly can't tell you he's drinking wine at the momen—"
Ivy vanished in a flash.
The Being sighed, picking up her teacup again.
"…And she's gone. Well then. Good luck."
**************************************************************************
The door to Nathaniel's sanctum was no mere slab of divine architecture—it was a metaphysical wall, forged from collapsed stardust and anchored with the gravitational pull of a stellar black hole.
Woven with layers of ancient enchantments. It could repel the will of gods, deities and systems alike.
Yet none of that mattered when Ivy decided she'd had enough.
BOOM. BOOM. BOOM. BOOM.
Each knock sent ripples across space,
"OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR, YOU FUCK!" Ivy said angrily.
Inside the sanctum, Nathaniel sat in his high-backed chair, fingers loosely wrapped around his glass of wine. He was watching the chaos happening in Ashwick on the TV.
Beside him stood Luna, the Moon Goddess and his first wife. Silver-haired and silver-eyed, she was a beauty but she was feeling uneasy hearing Ivy's tantrum,
"Nathaniel…Why is she here?"
Nathaniel tilted his head slightly, "I imagine she's here to scream. Let—"
BOOOOM.
The door exploded inward, reduced to dust before it touched the floor. Ivy stormed inside with her eyes burning with anger,
"You are crossing lines even we don't cross, you cocksucker!"
She vanished and reappeared in front of him, seizing him by the collar,
"Giving Aric your stupid fucking vision was one thing." she hissed,
"But meddling to the point of wanting him dead—just because your favourite girl can't awaken is where I draw the line."
Nathaniel blinked slowly as he was surprised by the sheer audacity.
"Tsk. How predictable. You accuse me of meddling while conveniently forgetting the times you twisted fate for your o—"
Her fist collided with his cheek and the impact rippled across the cosmos.
"You want to talk about hypocrisy? I've never endangered the whole fucking realm. You, on the other hand—"
"I've merely… accelerated entropy." he said calmly while dabbing the blood from his lip with a white handkerchief.
"Which, I believe, is inevitable. Or must I remind you of my authority?"
"But either way, it's not like you can prove that I did anything."
With a furious glare, Ivy raised her hand.
"Oh really now? Let's check that shall we?"
Nathaniel eyes dilated, "Wait!"
Her palm shimmered with golden energy as she activated her authority, diving into the threads of his consciousness to uncover the truth.
She skimmed through thousands of memories in a fraction of a second before finding one that made her blood boil.
Deep within the abyssal layers of Hell, Nathaniel descended into darkness so profound that even light itself seemed afraid to follow. Obsidian chains coiled tightly around a massive cage, their surface etched with runes glowing faintly in crimson hues.
In the cage was Lilith, First Demon Queen. Her crimson eyes opened slowly, gleaming beneath ragged strands of red-purple hair.
Nathaniel approached the cage with deliberate steps, his smile was cold.
"Hello there, Lili." he said smoothly, "Would you like to be free?"
Lilith looked up at him, "Do not toy with me, Nathaniel. I am no fool. What do you want?"
He chuckled softly, circling the cage like a predator sizing up its prey.
"Ah, always so direct. Very well. Allow me to offer you a deal: I will grant you freedom—one fragment of your soul at a time in exchange for a small favour."
Her eyes narrowed suspiciously, "A favour? Speak plainly or fuck off."
Nathaniel leaned closer, resting one hand against the bars of the cage.
"Simple. I will slowly transfer fragments of your soul into someone else. Someone… useful."
"You may call it a symbiotic arrangement. They gain strength, you inch closer to true freedom and I get a little something."
For a moment, Lilith said nothing. Then, she laughed bitterly,
"Hahaha. You think I should trust you? You're the same as those fucking women. Free me entirely or not at all."
"Then you shall remain here forever, forgotten and alone. But if you cooperate, you might be free again, should you succeed with that favour."
Lilith's jaw tightened, "So, what do you want?"
Nathaniel had a disturbing smile, "It's simple. All you need to do is possess someone. The vessel is weak spiritually and mentally so you will regain control over time."
"After that, all you got to do is just well, kill people. It's what you do best."
"The body of that person will tell you who he hates, who he wants dead and just do it. If you succeed, well consider that body yours."
Lilith raised an eyebrow, "That simple?"
"Of course not. I can only transfer a fragment of your soul one at a time. Should you agree, a quarter of your soul will be released one at a time. And if you ask how will your powers be, you will be just fine."
"You won't be able to operate at your prime but even just half is more than enough to wipe those people. Once you have finished, I can keep transferring fragments without hinderance and voila, you're free."
Nathaniel offered his hand, "So? Do you want the deal?"
Lilith smirked faintly, "Well. Not like anyone can match me."
A quarter of Lilith's soul detached from her being, glowing faintly as it floated into his grasp.
*******************************************************************************
Ivy's face twisted in fury as the memory unfolded before her. She clenched her fist, ready to rip the memory out of Nathaniel's mind—
But a hand caught her wrist.
Luna held her wrist tight, "That's enough. Not here. Not like this."
Ivy's voice trembled with rage, "He gave Sebastian a piece of Lilith. Surely you know yourself that is unforgiveable."
Luna didn't let go. "I know. But please, Ivy. Not like this. We can discuss this like proper adults."
At that moment, a new presence descended into the room—The Being. She looked at the shattered entrance, then at Ivy's glowing hand.
"Great." the Being said with a sigh. "I leave for five minutes and someone commits cosmic treason. Again."
She facepalmed herself, "Daphne, Eos and Luna. Out, please."
All three of the wives glanced at the Being, then at Nathaniel and finally at Ivy. No one dared argue with the Being, whose authority was absolute.
Luna released Ivy's wrist reluctantly. "We...will be in the garden."
The Being gave a faint smile. "Mhm. Good."
Nathaniel remained silent as all three of his wives left the realm. The room was now left with Being, Ivy and himself.
He cleared his throat, "You accuse me of meddling first when you gave your administrator upgrades beyond comprehension. Did you really think such interference wouldn't have consequences?"
Ivy yanked him forward until their faces were mere inches apart,
"Listen to me, you arrogant bastard. Your schemes to make Aric suffer, make Callista awakened or whatever you want is fine. But you're literally threatening the stability of this world with these powers."
"Do you hear me? You're risking chaos again, just like 300 years ago. Haven't you learned your lesson yet?! All of this just because you didn't get it your way?"
"You claim inevitability ensures balance but all you've done is sow destruction for god knows how long. If the world falls into ruin because of your petty vendettas, I will fuck you like a pig."
The Being raised one finger and both of them were instantly flung apart by an invisible force.
"Now now. Let's not destroy another galaxy okay? The last time you two had a fight, I needed to convince my husband to not lecture your asses."
She glared at the both of them, "You wouldn't want me to call him would you?"
Ivy glared at Nathaniel for a moment longer before standing back up while Nathaniel calmly brushed dust off his coat and adjusted his cuffs.
The Being clasped her hands together,
"Good. Now let's just do this. Ivy here will not meddle anymore, will not be allowed to guide Aric until she completes her punishment with me and my husband."
Ivy opened her mouth but the Being cut her off with a look.
Then she turned to Nathaniel, "And you—you're going to fix this. Whether that means retrieving the soul, reversing the merge, killing off Lilith or rerouting your damn prophecy—I don't care."
"I will deal with you later but you will stabilize this timeline without risking Armageddon immediately."
"Are we clear?"
Nathaniel met her gaze with defiance but the Being was not having it.
She merely tilted her head and repeated herself calmly but with enough force behind each word to make time itself tense,
"I said. Are. We. Clear?"
Nathaniel's gaze faltered and then gave the faintest nod,
"Crystal."