The BEING was almighty, its scope incomprehensible by those below. Just by interacting with the worlds, its invasive power contaminated them, creating beings of extraordinary ability.
As all power came from the BEING, all would return to it in the end.
Wielding the power of the BEING, Princess stared at her index finger, which absolved the world-razing supernovas with ease. It gradually turned transparent as Fons and Divinity dissolved into particles and rose towards the Originator.
At the Library of Knowledge, Princess used her Memory Domain to replicate the Originator and force the God of Light back. As she came into contact with it, she became a part of the BEING, slowly assimilating into the perfect wholeness. She had forfeited her life since that moment, and there was no escaping her Fate.
Though to her, it was a great bargain. She lifted her gaze to the God of Light and walked towards him. The sound of her footstep progressively lessened as her body lightly bounced against the ground. Her dress fluttered in the windless world like a ghostly silhouette of a revenant.
The God of Light pointed at her. His power shot forwards and faded into nothingness like before. He swung his blade at her. The strike passed through her and shattered into particles of light. The scene enacted itself into his impression, forcing him backwards.
"Peritia, why is it that you wish to oppose us?"
"It is time for you to pay the price."
"It seems that I've lost. It is my miscalculation that you'll give up your life and fuse with the Originator. Is it love or guilt?"
"It doesn't matter anymore."
"It is peculiar that you lack anger and frustration. Your demeanour suits the status of a Goddess."
"You don't deserve to see my emotions, God of Light."
"You and Fate, as well as your mother, are really alike." The God of Light raised his head skywards, his eyes looking at the Originator. "The defining trait of Lady Fate is unwavering determination and indifference. They describe you perfectly."
"To what are you alluding?"
"You and your mother have suffered a chain of unfortunate events, building you into an impeccable pawn. Despite countless trials, you manage to survive all with minimal loss," the God of Light said. "You, and your mother, exhaust everything to overthrow me. What will happen then, after your death?"
Princess halted her movement. Her fluffy dress spread its feathers across the Holyground, covering the sky. A ray of golden light escaped the concealment and shone onto Princess, highlighting her silhouette.
"Fate is but a suggestion of the future. My will is mine. My happiness is mine. My suffering is mine."
"Your life belongs to the Originator now, Peritia. You and your mother will perish after you exhaust your worth. She is the personification of Determinism."
"Then it is also Fate that leads me to Angelica and allows me to avenge myself. It is you who harms her, and now, it is me who will repay you."
The God of Light produced a drop of transparent liquid and pushed it towards Princess. "I'll gift you this Drop of Eternity. With it, you can stop the assimilation with the Originator, heal your mother, or save that android of yours."
Princess reached out towards the Drop of Eternity and clasped her palm. The impact crushed it into an ocean of Divinity, which rapidly dwindled into nothingness.
"I refuse your offer, and I know Mother will too," Princess said. "Both of us have already died long ago. The gift of life is meaningless for the dead."
"What about your android? I'll assume the Drop of Eternity is ineffective because her soul doesn't exist in the first place. Isn't it convenient?"
"The one who will answer my questions will be her, not you."
"A bond that transcends lust, an attachment that transcends compassion, you have formed a connection which exceeds self-perseverance, all in a span of a month." The God of Light pointed at the Originator. "A path of no return, a willing victim, isn't it just perfect?"
"She succeeds because of my will, not because of the path laid before me. I dictate my choices. She takes advantages of me while I shape history with my actions."
Princess reached out to the God of Light. Her delicate hand submerged into space and time, breaking through the concept of distance. The shadow of her gesture covered the God of Light and caught him in her palm.
The Goddess of Death and the Goddess of Nature held the other's hand and closed their eyes. Their remaining hands slid into their eye sockets and pulled out their eyeballs. Their hollow eyesockets radiated the power of Death Domain and Nature Domain, overflowing the Holyground with Divinity.
They tossed their eyes skywards. They disintegrated into pure Divinity and merged into a phantom of a gigantic eyeball. It towered over the Holyground, its sight traversed through the world, unobstructed by physical and magical means.
Its invisible gaze landed on Princess. The surrounding land withered and crumbled with the slightest gesture of the wind. The flow of time locally accelerated and decelerated, creating a distorted perspective of time and breaking the atomic bonds from all angles.
Princess raised her head and met the phantom eyeball. She moved her hand and positioned it between her view and the eyeball. She clasped her hand. The eyeball vanished. The two Goddesses trembled and collapsed to the ground, coughing blood as Divinity seeped through their ruptured skins.
Princess didn't spare a second glance at them. She moved her hand down and covered the God of Light's silhouette. Light Domain manifested and generated intense glares which penetrated her carapace and skin, revealing the God of Light through her hand.
He coughed but took a step forwards.
"Half of all Faith disappear by one gesture . . . the Originator indeed is the source of all power. It has been hundreds of Cycles since I reign over the world, and not one could I succeed in preventing the end," the God of Light said. "It is surprising that not one of you pawns of Fate accept my condition, no matter what I promised them."
"What madness are you implying?"
"Fate is sly, but she is too stubborn. Though her plan has always been perfect, it wasn't enough to overcome us. We know more about her than herself. You too are like her, which is why you succeed, and also why you fail."
The God of Light turned to the Goddess of Nature and the Goddess of Death. They looked at the other and sighed. The open wounds on their bodies shone and gave way to a swarm of Divinity, which flooded the Holyground and floated towards the Originator.
Their Nature Domain and Death Domain faded into nothingness as they came into a willful end. They crumbled into dust particles and dirtied the feather-filled atmosphere with a shade of grey.
"Fate has a perfect plan that I cannot hope to circumvent," the God of Light said. "Peritia, come with us, and we'll help you with everything. If you become the Goddess of Memory, you can easily ensure the prosperity of your friends, for all eternities."
Princess motioned her fingers to form a circle with the God of Light at the centre. She closed her eyes and recalled the emptiness where the BEING resided. The space enclosed by her fingers collapsed and plunged into the void, returning to the purest essence of all things.
"It is too late to lament. I don't intend to become a part of the group which took Angelica from me. If you can't win against Fate, then what gives you the confidence that you can bring her back?"
Nature Domain and Death Domain flooded the void and pushed it back. The rift slowly disappeared into the fabric of reality. The God of Light emerged from the darkness and knelt against the ground. His eyes turned unfocused. The radiance surrounding his body dimmed.
"Sometimes, I ask myself if it is worth it to suffer this futility, just to remain here. Fortunately, the faces of my friends keep pushing me forwards, so I'll gladly sacrifice them and resurrect them just to begin anew," he said.
"The motivation for your action matters not."
"I know, which is why it is unfortunate, though I am grateful that you still listen to my rambling."
Princess closed her eyes and vanished from her spot. Her silhouette merged into the fabric of reality, dispersing along with all dimensional axes. Her essence overflowed the world while separating from it, permeating yet existing outside of it.
Her consciousness swirled along with the tide of the void, moving at the edge of the emptiness. Outside of it, the BEING manifested in her view, shifting in shapes and colours, ever so big and ever so small, existing yet perishing.
In an instant, Princess caught a glimpse of the Originator, and the figure chained to it. Lady Fate smiled at her and blew a wisp of imaginary wind, scattering her dispersing consciousness back into the bubble.
She fell from the void and broke through space. The feathers and dust rose from the ground and concentrated into her silhouette, merging with her soul to form her body once more.
She stood in front of the God of Light. Her hand reached out towards him. The heat from Light Domain warmed her carapace and reflected rays of colourful sparks to the atmosphere.
"In the end, they're all going to die again," the God of Light said.
The Originator paused its descension as the God of Light grabbed Princess's hand. He closed his eyes and sighed. His Light Domain slowly disintegrated into Divinity while his body faded to nothingness.
The world deafened as the God of Darkness and the God of Winter closed their eyes. Their bodies and souls rapidly burnt into crisps, turning from physical matters into pure Divinity. Death, Nature, Winter, Spring, and Darkness Domain merged into a speck of the purest essence of the void.
It danced around the God of Light, morphing the perspectives around it into an all-consuming dot, turning the world inside-out. Its presence eroded the fabric of reality with the invasion of the endless void.
"Peritia, you aren't the first person to force my hand, and you also won't be the last," the God of Light said. "The Originator doesn't bring balance to the world. Its purpose is to observe."
The God of Light drove the essence at Princess. Its all-inspiring power rushed into her body and overflowed her soul with the nature of the power from beyond.
The connection between her and the Originator strengthened as the BEING flowed into her. She witnessed the birth of the world, its end, and everything in between. She felt the assimilation of the great dark beyond. The sparkling dots of colours emerged from the void, attracting her attention. Her mind gradually adapted to the transcendent layer of existence. Her mortal self drowned under the ocean of meaninglessness.
As confusion reigned, PRINCESS fell into a slumber, which would last for all eternities.
