I Can Assimilate Everything-Chapter 653: Something Unnatural! IV
<THE Prisoner, THE Oldest Sovereign of Binding Flames, Lamashtu>
None of them understood what they held in their hands.
The Oldest Sovereign of Binding Flames had watched countless beings across spans of time that would reduce these natives to madness if they tried to comprehend them. He had seen realities flourish and stagnate and collapse under their own weight. He had observed the rise and fall of Civilizations that made the grandest achievements of this place seem like children playing with stones.
And yet in all his travels, in all his conquests, he had never encountered a place quite like this one.
Stunted. That was what they called it. As if the word could capture the magnitude of what had occurred here. Chaos had been trapped before differentiation completed, and because of this absence, the natural order of emergence was disrupted entirely. Primordial Architects, those magnificent children born from the union of Differentiation and Undifferentiation within an Observable Existence, never came into being here. Not a single one across all the eons since this reality learned to count time.
In other realities, those who laid Claims to aspects of the Oldest Paradox were almost always Primordial Architects or beings who emerged from deeply paradoxical weavings or chaotic currents during the moments of formation. They were born with affinity for what they eventually claimed, their very existence shaped by the aspects they would one day embody. None of that happened here. No unique lifeforms rose from the primordial waters of this reality. No beings emerged with natural connection to Chaos or Paradox or Existence or The First Tongue.
And yet somehow, impossibly, two of them had managed to lay Claims anyway.
Without being Primordial Architects. Without emerging from relevant weavings. Without any of the advantages that should be required.
They did not even understand how remarkable this made them. How valuable.
They also did not understand what an Observable Existence truly was. They lived within it without comprehending its nature, like fish unaware of the water surrounding them. An Observable Existence was not merely a container for reality. It was something so unfathomably stable and indestructible that even someone at THE Second Scale of Existence could never manage to harm it in any meaningful way. He had watched beings of terrible power rage against Observable Existence and accomplish nothing. He had seen attacks that could shatter Primordial Realms like glass wash over the fabric of Observable Existence without leaving so much as a ripple.
But...you could alter it.
If you were grand enough, if you possessed the proper Keys and the proper methods, you could alter Observable Existence to have exactly the ingredients required to proceed higher in your Civilization. You could reshape the very nature of reality to produce resources that would otherwise take eons to accumulate naturally. You could accelerate advancement in ways that made conventional cultivation seem like crawling through mud.
And the easiest and grandest ways to alter Observable Existence were through the Keys of Civilization.
The Civilizational Convergence Engine floating before him now was one of the reasons he had been imprisoned in the first place. His captors understood what it could do, understood the threat it represented to the carefully maintained order they had established across their domain. They could not destroy it because nothing they possessed could scratch its surface, so they imprisoned him alongside it, hoping that the space between Observable Existences would eventually collapse both the Engine and its master.
They failed.
The Engine acted as a conduit, like an enzyme catalyzing reactions that would otherwise be impossible. Through it, he could channel the authority of the Keys of Civilization to alter Observable Existence itself, reshaping reality to produce resources conducive to the growth of Civilizations at rates that defied natural law. The only caveat was how this process slightly harmed Observable Existence during the alteration.
But Observable Existence was so grand, so nearly immune to damage, that a little harm did nothing meaningful. Like drawing a single drop of blood from a creature the size of galaxies. The wound healed before it could even be noticed.
These natives feared him, and they should. But they did not understand that he was offering them genuine opportunity. Under his guidance, they would advance faster than any beings in their stunted history. Their Civilizations would flourish. Their Depths would increase.
And in return, they would feed his own advancement through the connections they had sworn.
A fair exchange.
They simply did not realize that what they considered slavery, he considered partnership.
The strong... always defined the terms.
---
The Oldest Sovereign of Binding Flames, Lamashtu, gestured toward the Civilizational Convergence Engine with motion that combined invitation and command.
"Come. Sit."
He indicated specific positions around the massive obsidian-gold Dyson Sphere, points that would form a triangle with himself at the apex. The Engine continued spinning with terrifying light that pulsed from its core, patterns shifting across its surface in configurations that seemed almost eager for what was about to occur.
His Absolutes floated nearby, watching things calmly from their obsidian lotuses. Multiple of them appeared around Achilles and THE Resplendent Paradox with positioning that made clear they were both guards and observers. Their burning eyes held no hostility, only patient attention.
Lamashtu settled into his position at the apex of the triangle, his massive form somehow appearing comfortable despite the burning authority that radiated from every inch of his being. His chained hands rested upon his knees as he looked at the two natives who would serve as his Keys.
"Please, be at ease."
His voice carried warmth that seemed almost genuine beneath the weight of his authority.
"I will introduce myself first. I am Lamashtu, and I have dabbled in Existence for longer than most realities have existed. I have seen the rise and fall of Civilizations beyond counting. I have walked paths that beings at your level cannot even perceive."
His burning eyes held something approaching cordiality.
"You two are?"
THE Resplendent Paradox spoke first, her contradictory features settling into expression of guarded neutrality.
"I am THE Resplendent Paradox. Claimer of Paradox."
Her voice held dignity that refused to bend despite the circumstances that had brought her here.
Achilles followed with tone that matched her measured calm.
"I am Achilles Adrastia. THE Adrastia Emperor King."
Lamashtu smiled with satisfaction that made his burning features shift into something almost pleasant.
"Good. Good names. Names with weight."
He gestured toward the Civilizational Convergence Engine that spun between them with light that seemed to intensify at his attention.
"Before us is, let us say, an Enzyme. A catalyst. A tool that transforms potential into reality at rates that natural processes could never achieve."
His chained fingers drummed against his knees with rhythm that held anticipation.
"We are the driving force. The Keys that unlock what this Enzyme can accomplish. And this thing will only help us to achieve what I want."
His burning gaze fixed upon them with intensity that demanded compliance.
"All I need you to do is to stretch out your hand and touch it."
...!
Lamashtu watched calmly as Achilles and THE Resplendent Paradox looked at each other with gazes that communicated volumes without words. Whatever passed between them in that moment, whatever calculations or resignations or determinations, they reached the same conclusion.
They stretched out their hands.
They touched the Civilizational Convergence Engine.
And Lamashtu did the same.
BOOM!
The moment three hands made contact with the obsidian-gold surface, something fundamental shifted in the fabric of Observable Existence itself.
A pillar of light erupted around Achilles, obsidian radiance that represented Chaos blazing upward with force that made the surrounding Absolutes lean back slightly despite their overwhelming power.
Another pillar bloomed around THE Resplendent Paradox, golden contradictory light that represented Paradox twisting through configurations that should have been impossible.
And a third pillar surrounded Lamashtu himself, burning authority that represented his connection to Existence through his Civilization of Unbound Existence.
Three Keys. Three pillars. Three aspects of the Oldest Paradox channeled through the Civilizational Convergence Engine simultaneously.
Lamashtu watched what happened next with excitement that he did not bother to conceal.
The Engine began to transform.
From its spinning surface, solidified rivers of purple crystal began to shoot outward. They grew like tumors, expanding and extending with speed that defied conventional measurement. The crystalline structures stretched for light years in moments, purple brilliance that would span across Observable Existence itself.
They were beautiful in their wrongness.
They were terrible in their purpose.
These crystalline growths would spread across every corner of this reality, drawing resources from Observable Existence itself to fuel the advancement of Civilizations. They would extract the very lifeblood of this place and transform it into something useful.
Something he could consume.
These were the wonders that he, Lamashtu, planned to utilize to get where he needed to be. A product born from the lifeblood of Observable Existence. A harvest that would elevate him to THE Second Scale of Existence entirely.
And these natives, these Keys who did not understand what they were participating in, would help him achieve it.
Whether they realized it or not!
