Dei saw Thadria scowl in the corner of his vision, and breathed a sigh of relief. She wasn't having some kind of panic attack, she just hated Titans.

"We'll kill him" Thadria said before Dei could reply.

"Absolutely do not try that," Dor'Zen shot the idea down. Under Thadria's furious gaze she quickly said "Not because it'd be wrong of you, but because you'll just make him stronger."

Thadria closed her mouth, so Dor'Zen elaborated. "You're not the only one who hates Titans, they've been a wildcard since the beginning of time. While they aren't always malicious, the powers that be really do not like having such rogue, uncaring, and destructive entities running about. There's a few limitations on most Titans, but the First Titan? None of them were strong enough to bind him and… well, he made one viciously destructive joke a very long time ago, a joke which landed him in an impossible coffin composed of materials that don't exist anymore. I say that Edit is the First Titan, but that's… not exactly true. Edit is the coffin, Lox'Okrin is the sleeping disaster. When exposed to his presence for so long though? At this point, Edit is a mirror of the man inside. I assure you, though, if Okrin were awake and the System was gone? I'd be dead by now."

She raised several questions, but Dei locked onto the last one- "Wait, you remember the System?"

A sorrowful look flashed over her face, softening into a frown. "Yes, poor thing. It's absolutely horrible what happened to it."

Dei nodded in understanding, but Jacob and Thadria hadn't been clued in yet "What happened to it?" Jacob asked.

Dei and Dor'Zen locked eyes, and it was clear she didn't want to talk about it. This wasn't some ancient tale to her, even if it was ancient, she clearly knew and cared for the System.

It wouldn't do to bring up old wounds or speak callously of something he wasn't there for.

Dei just shook his head at Jacob and the man took the hint, backing off.

"...So, this Lox'Okrin guy is asleep, but Edit is still murderous?"

She winced. "Let's… keep it to Okrin. The other word is something of a swear, I just had to say it because that's his true name, and higher beings cannot lie, so I couldn't tell you that was his entire name; other than that, no, neither are malicious, but I can tell you that they are much truer to their domain than I am. I'm Separation as a matter of course, a necessity. Edit? He really likes changing things, he hates being bored. Just like Okrin. Thankfully, he's much weaker just… be careful."

'Ha, this guys name is Fuck'Okrin.'

"Got it. Also… this coffin, do you think it'd be able to put, say, a demon to sleep?"

She took on a thoughtful look, staring off into the distance.

"... Let me grab the tea. One moment."

She didn't seem uncomfortable at the question, so he was hopeful, she just needed time to think.

A few minutes later, she came back with a steaming pitcher. "We'll let this steep for a moment. As for your question, I'll say no, because it's a material crafted specifically to seal away Okrin's line. Demons are simply too different."

"That does make some sense, I suppose if Okrin is closer to chaos and demons are more entropy-aligned beings. So it's good at sealing Titans?"

There was a twitch in her eyelid the moment he mentioned entropy, but she said nothing. 'I should be more careful,' he thought, inwardly grimacing, 'The Champion specifically said that some do not like acknowledging the other Primordials. She might simply not mention it because she isn't sure if I'm using it as a descriptor or if I know that's actually the name of the energy.'

She seemed to consider his question for a few seconds, but shook her head. "I will not be answering that question."

'Oh? So… not Titans. People like Okrin, who else in his line? Other Primordial Children? Other "Firsts?"'

She poured them each a cup of "Tea," and the scent was… a bit unusual to Dei.

'Why does it smell like wood?'

Still, he wouldn't turn down the kindness of a Reality Being, so he took a sip. 'Oh, that's why. Because it tastes like wood!' It was overpowering too, not subtle in any way. It was like he had a mouthful of bark.

He saw her watching each of them closely, and when none of them had a reaction, there was a tinge of disappointment in her eyes. 'She just pranked us!'

Luckily, Dei had eaten worse, Perumah didn't have tastebuds, Jacob was zoning out and hadn't taken a sip yet, and Thadria's face lit up- she liked the taste.

Dor'Zen also drank it, so he didn't think it was dangerous, it was just an unusual tasting tea.

Jacob finally came to slightly, absently taking a sip of his tea and immediately grimacing. "This tastes like ass."

Thadria slapped him on the shoulder while Dor'Zen roared with laughter.

As if realizing he'd said that aloud, Jacob turned beet red, saying "Oh, I'm so sorry."

"No don't be!" Dor'Zen said quickly. "I'm glad one of you acknowledged it. It's pathweed tea, something I drank back in my mortal years and a drink for only the poorest of people. Pathweed was made to be as versatile as possible- it grows into pathways, as the name implies, can be burned easily, is edible, and can be cooked to release all the water it stores, creating pathweed tea." The moment she was prompted, Dei noted that she started spouting off facts about pathweed, and he realized she just wanted to talk about it for some reason.

"Why'd you say you needed to let it steep then? If all this water was already cooked out of it?"

"To trick you, obviously," she said like it was the silliest question ever. "Why, back in my day we used to use pathweed to…"

She derailed the conversation somewhat, but he didn't mind letting her talk about her interest for a time. It'd be a bit rude to ask where to go and say they had to leave the moment she started talking about something she found interesting, so he closed his mouth and let her go off.

* * *

Nearly an hour later, he tilted his head as he heard someone step down on the outer ring of the island, the squeak of what he'd assume was firm leather boots. Dor'Zen picked up on his expression and brightened.

"It is about time for my husband to get here," she told him, and he was taken off guard.

"Reality Beings can get… married?"

"We were married before the entire thing happened."

'Entire thing?' he wanted to ask, but her husband finally arrived, and she pranced over to the door, opening it and giving him a hug.

He was slightly taller than her, a bit physically older too with the beginnings of gray appearing, but otherwise shared all the typical Avium characteristics of dark hair, skin, and eyes.

"Hello honey! Some guests stopped by."

Dei watched him jolt and instantly look towards his party, and Dei found it odd. "Are these really Reality Beings? They seem kind of vulnerable…'

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If they'd lived this long though, he doubted that was true. It was much more likely that he was looking at their avatars instead, and it wouldn't matter if these bodies died.

He was much more suspicious of them than Dor'Zen was, narrowing his eyes at them.

"Why?"

"They're scientists looking to find and study Edit."

He frowned, "As long as they keep a distance."

She giggled, "Yes, I told them all of that already."

"Alright… Well, let's head out I suppose."

"You haven't even introduced yourself yet…" she pouted, and Dei saw the sheer difference in personality she took on when around him. 'That's cute, they still love each other after however many millenia.'

He nodded, "My name is Dor'Fyr, otherwise known as Continuity. My domain just barely overlaps with Edit's, so I can take you there right now."

'Dor'Fyr? I see, the first part is their family names. That means when she said that the material was made to trap Lox'Okrin's kind, it was because it's made to kill the Lox family. Fuckin hell man, how powerful were the Lox family to have materials specifically designated to sealing them away? If I'm right, that is. She didn't want to answer that question though, so it'll be the last thing I ask, and gauge her reaction for an answer.'

"Don't."

The voice reverberated through his soul, and he collapsed like a dropped marionette.

* * *

He came to, eyes shooting open as he gasped in a lungful of air. He felt a tension in the air, looking up to see Perumah standing over him and Thadria off to the side, holding a staff at the couple like a gun.

"Stop," he groaned, "I'm good. My own fault."

"What happened?" Perumah asked tersely.

"Zen gave me too many hints, I put a puzzle together and got slapped for it."

"So it is Dor'Zen's fault."

"Vaguely, but not really. If you blame her, you'll have to blame The Mother and The Champion as well, because they gave me the other parts."

"Okay."

"No I… I'm saying don't blame them. It's my own curiosity. Now, let's stop talking about it before I think something I'm not supposed to and get shut down again."

Perumah backed away as he slowly stood, noting heavy soul-strain which translated over to physical strain too with his ectoplasmic body

He immediately set up a program in his mind to scramble that particular word so he wouldn't be afraid to think anymore, before finally looking at the couple. Zen appeared guilty, while Fyr seemed furious they'd point their weapons at the pair.

"Sorry, I really… didn't think that could happen, and we've had a rough past few days. We killed a version of The Mother like ten minutes before coming here, so we were already a bit guarded."

Fyr calmed slightly at his explanation, but was still irritated.

"Let's just go," he said, and Dei felt something below the fabric of reality grab at him. He didn't resist it, but it pulled away a moment later.

"Ow! Fuck!'" Dor'Fyr said, shaking his hand and glaring at Jacob.

"Sorry sorry! I forgot about that too! Jacob can't really be moved by anything unless he wants to."

"Uh, not true," Jacob denied, "I wasn't resisting that. I think Reality Beings just can't move me at all."

Dei sighed, exasperated. "Okaayyy!" 'This is going HORRIBLY.' "Just move me to wherever, and I'll come back and teleport the rest of my party."

He sensed a bit more roughness in the second attempt, and a violent jostling sensation when he was suddenly standing in a grassy clearing.

He teleported back, said "I'm so sorry, the tea and hospitality were amazing, thank you, have a wonderful day you two, goodbye."

Fyr deflated further, and Dei quickly carried his friends with him to the place he'd been dropped off.

They spent a moment gathering their bearings, but Dei was the only one that looked embarrassed, so the others weren't all that beat up about it.

Despite Dei's attempts at keeping the pieces apart, the image snapped together in his head.

'The material for Okrin was likely created for his father who, based on the response in my soul, is this "One." When it comes to his family name, the three-lettered-word, that's absolutely just the fathers full name, and everyone after is giving his name as a sign of respect. That's why Zen told me not to say Okrin's "First" name, because it is HIM, and I only got away with it because I didn't know what it meant, so there was a… lacking definition to it. For example, when someone talks about "The contraptions that keys go into," it won't call him down on them, but if they call him by name, it will.'

His realization suddenly turned it from "A word he could think" to "An actual cognitohazard that might get him vaporized."

'Y'know, the Golden Order was right. I would've been better off not knowing.'

Trying to get his mind off the entire thing, he focused on the air and where they were. If he were right then…

Faintly, he felt a trickle of MP enter his body.

'Ha! We're right, MP is Edit Energy.'

He supposed that made sense. Titans were composed of every affinity, and MP had every affinity, so he should've pieced together that Titans were responsible for creating it by now, but could anyone blame him? There were a lot of mysteries in the world, and not all of them made sense! It could've just been a coincidence.

Now that they were here, it was also time to test out his chaos in an environment that didn't vaporize everything, but he'd save that for deep space. Right now, he turned to Perumah, as she was the entire reason they were here. He saw her frowning, and was about to ask why, when a presence descended upon them and the surrounding air began to waver, the heat ratcheting up precariously.

"A messenger of my own?" The Champion asked, and Dei suddenly remembered the construct placed in his soul right now.

"Greetings, Champion! My name is Dei Grrata, and as you can see, I have the support of one of your others. Long story, but basically, there is a demon-infected universe nearby, subjectively, and The Champion I met started this as a way to donate to the trapped Champion. I'm going to enter the quarantine soon, so I can deliver any spare faith you may have to the one fighting against the demon."

"Mm… I see…" he mumbled thoughtfully. "It has been rather peaceful for the last few ages, and I do have quite a spare sum… very well, hold still, and ferry my thanks to this sacrificial Champion for his efforts."

The depth and magnitude of the faith within him increased five-fold, but The Champion wasn't done yet.

"Please do not leave the universe just yet, the Leviathans, Titans, and other Dragons may wish to contribute."

"You aren't worried about them attacking while you're… weakened?" he asked hesitantly.

The Champion roared with laughter, which slowly died down over the course of a minute, ending with deep, hearty chuckles. "I would welcome the challenge."

'Yea okay, he IS called "The Champion." That makes sense.'

"Alright Dave, we still have a bit we need to do so we aren't going anywhere. Thanks for conveying the request."

"Dave?" he asked, flabbergasted.

"Yea, you told me how your real name is Dave in my last universe."

"It is not," he said firmly.

"Yeaaa… sure thing… wink."

"It is not," he insisted, and cut the connection before Dei could respond.

Dei laughed, 'Sorry man, you're getting backlash from the other Champion's joke, but I couldn't help myself.'

The clearing they were in was now a bit brown from the heat killing all the plants, but such was life. His first concern was the slowly-deepening frown on Perumah's face.

"What's up?"

She didn't even question the presence of The Champion, saying "The energy feels like… almost chaos, but… there's a trickle of something else."

"Something else?"

"Yes… I'm barely able to detect it, but there is a second energy below Edit. We should move closer to the Reality Being so the Edit energy becomes thicker, then I can get a better picture."

"What of your chaos system?" he asked, thinking back to how she said it was barren before.

"Hmm… the Edit Energy isn't filling enough for it. It's… lacking. The second energy though? It feels pure. Solid. Enough. More than even the chaos you gave me, which felt stilted and shallow in the same way Edit Energy is."

"Okay, jumping to the obvious conclusion here, Edit Energy isn't true chaos and neither is mine, but there's a scent of true chaos intermingling with Edit Energy, following me so far?"

Perumah nodded.

"Edit, the being, is a reflection of Okrin, though weaker."

She nodded again, more slowly this time.

"So if there's a more powerful energy below Edit… doesn't that mean Okrin might, uh, be escaping right now."

"...Maybe…"

Dei sighed, "Okay. Let's go look at it, because that sounds very bad."

"Should we not stay clear of Okrin? If he truly is soon to be free?"

"Maybe, but I have an idea depending on how bad it is. Before that let's head to deep space and test out my chaos."

"Would you mind going off on your own?" she asked, taking him off guard.

"Hm? No, not at all, why?"

"Now that we are on a planet of true magic, I want to search for artifacts to fulfill my deal with Luke and the Church of The Champion."

He nodded approvingly, "That makes sense. Good on you for being considerate."

"Indeed. The moment we appeared here, my connection with Justice solidified, and my Contract became stricter. I do not mind it… but it is an interesting phenomena. As my perspective changes, so too are the rewards and consequences, especially with how helpful the Cloak of the Sage's Travels has been; the effects make me feel more indebted, and thus, my contract responds."

"Now you just need Wrath and Fortitude, right?"

"Yes. I believe I will focus on Fortitude next, as our journey has been intense, yet there is not much reason to be furious. I should focus on enduring the trials."

"You'd know best," he shrugged, and they soon parted ways. Jacob and Thadria followed after Perumah because they wanted to see what kind of society would be born of a low-Edit-Energy society.

They'd be in this world for barely a few minutes, then ping-pong for a day or so around the universe to collect as much faith as possible before running into Edit and seeing if he could use his unique affinity to fix the seal as he thought he might be able to.

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