There was nothing in the realm of Gods, only a strange contrast, a peaceful tension, like the universe before the big bang.
Then, a note strung through the void, and code flooded the empty infinity of divinity.
With a crackle, reality came into being.
The first was the earth, soft yet firm, cradled by the void around it. From its earthen core came trees and plants, swaying gently with the murmured breeze.
The trunks were deep shades of brown and white, with deep slices of darkness cutting down them in wild yet systematic patterns. They parted around a large clearing, where the air shivered.
Charice felt his mind freeze as he fell unconscious in the real world. Then a feeling, akin to a pair of hands tenderly tracing his skull and spine, prompted his mind into existence once more.
Then, as if trying to flood his fragile consciousness, his gut tightened like a knot, prompting his heart to flinch awake.
The world rejoiced as Charice took his first breath, his heartbeat powering a stream of thought and desire in his mind.
He opened his eyes.
His hair was splayed out on this vast, grassy field. The sky above was a deep, pristine hue of black, while the trees looming over this large clearing felt as ancient as the beings that made it.
'I'm alive. I'm… I'm okay.'
The pain of the ritual, the horror of watching Michael drug his helpless body, all of it crashed into him like a wave of sensations. Goosebumps traced his skin as his stomach dropped, his head feeling light and dizzy in turn.
His eyes glowed bright pink, projecting light into the night air.
Charice reached for the earth, feeling his fingers brush along the grass as he breathed deeply.
The grass was soft and tender, with a hint of morning dew upon it. It tickled Charice on the back of the head, neck, and wrapped softly around his fingers, as if cradling him. His clothes were the same humble outfit he wore during his prayer upon the mountains.
Charice didn't move, his heart lurched as stress washed over him.
This place was not familiar. His thoughts spun in circles of worry.
'I don't know what to do! I-I was in such a hurry to earn Michael's loyalty and for what? I didn't even think things through!'
He had no idea what came over him, to so recklessly decide to simply press ahead. It was brave and courageous without a doubt, and Charice did feel some pride in himself – but that wasn't the concern.
'T-This has to be the realm of the Gods, but… Nothing seems to be happening.'
For Charice, that was both relieving and worrying. He had time, but silence implied he was expected to act, and there was no way to know how patient they would be.
Then, the pristine darkness above him faded, as if being peeled away. It revealed stars, flickering into being in groups, pairs, or as individual gems. They glowed brighter than any star ever could on Earth.
A sea of reds and blues, shades mixing together to create a pristine nebula, a gradient, a glowing image of cosmic beauty untainted by life and death, untouched by the imperfection of reality.
Then a voice could be heard.
"Awakened, are we?" It's tone was soft and blunt, devoid of most emotion one would expect from a child's pitch, excluding an undertone of sarcasm and wit.
It was the voice of ------, his younger self, yet the beings behind it couldn't be more different.
Charice's head spiked up, and only then did he feel the weight of his hair, looking down, he saw his hair stretching on and on, well past his light, dangling over the trees and branches behind him, yet no matter what, his hair was spotless.
It was then he realized how dark it was. He could see nothing, only the dim glow of his eyes cast a light bright enough to see the world ahead of him.
And as he looked forward to the voice's origin, he froze at the familiar sight.
'Is that… Me?'
It felt true, yet the child in front of Charice looked far more detailed and correct than even in his own memories. It was a replica so perfect that it was superior to the original.
It smiled down at him, the tiara resting upon its head. Its outfit was the same Charice had created today, the grand clothes worthy of a true Consort. They were far too large on the child's form.
It would have been endearing, if only Charice didn't feel the uncanny valley so intimately.
"Y-Yes. I think so…" Charice said hesitantly, looking at the being's face only briefly in shock, before he dropped his gaze to the floor.
'Okay. Breathe. Don't cry. Just please don't cry and keep it together.'
Charice affirmed to himself in silence, he swallowed his saliva, yet his shaking body prompted him to choke, forcing him to let out a stifled cough.
It was embarrassing. His cheeks flushed read as he played with his hair.
'Oh no, I should pray! S-Show respect somehow, after all, this-'
"This must be a God?" The being finished for him while gesturing to its form, and Charice froze up like a deer in headlights.
Its gaze was the same, cold detachment Charice had in his eyes at that age, and it made him shiver in recognition. It would feel nostalgic, if only the uncanny valley didn't grow larger.
"No."
With a twitch of its jaw, it bit down on its tongue and opened its mouth, revealing bloody teeth.
"Real Gods don't bleed."
Its mouth closed silently, Charice's face growing pale.
If escape was an option, he would have ran long ago.
Its eyes were digging into him, and it smiled softly, as softly as Charice's past body possibly could – what might have been a sincere smile came out only as a smirk. But knowing his past self, the Consort could tell what the intent was.
"No need to worry… There is no safer place in all the worlds than the one you are in. We made sure of that."
It waved its hand and the wind tickled Charice's skin, as if holding him gently. It soothed his nerves in all the right ways, as if the being before him knew exactly what he needed to feel.
'Its trying to… Comfort me? Those Gods?'
Charice opened his mouth as the being remained silent, almost as if it knew he had a question in his mind, but was merely too shocked to ask.
"Are you…?"
"I am no God. Come now, didn't I tell?" It took a single step forward, the darkness around Charice softly shaking. Then, Charice felt a hand on his shoulder, and he turned his head to see what was in the night.
It was ------, looking down at him with those lifeless eyes. Charice didn't dare to look away, even if he was confused about how a being could be in two places at once.
It sighed.
"We don't understand Fear… Well, maybe it should be felt in a situation like this." It patted him on the head, making Charice blink in a mixture of confusion and worry.
"If you aren't a... God… Then what are you?" He asked, bringing his hands to his chest defensively, as if trying to protect it from the being's gaze.
"...Haa…" The being sighed, and Chariced gulped as it shook its head in disapproval. "You already know but...
Tears gathered in the corners of his eyes, which the being smoothly wiped away.
"Every human is a liar, and his first victim is himself."
It ran its hand through his hair, letting its small palm rest on his forehead, lingering for just a second too long.
"Why don't you blink for me? You should be able to see more."
The being then stepped into the night, and Charice blinked as if it was the last thing he would ever do.
The darkness was banished, replaced by the glow of uncountable strings. They stretched and swayed lazily with the wind, running along the atmosphere of this world before curving down.
They dug into the flesh and bones of ------, its nose and ears, back and spine, and the back of its head in particular, were attached.
Charice slowly traced the lines up ,watching the stars shimmer, and the shimmer then travel down the strings.
The being in front of it was no God, but the stars were.
"Why… Why me?" Charice asked, wrapping his arms around his shoulders.
Why was he so favored? Why did they choose his younger self as their… Embodiment or medium of sorts?
It took such effort, so many mental hurdles and stumbles to get here, only for him to be met with such… Charice didn't even know what emotions they were trying to convey, if any.
The strings pulsed silently, a small flicker of light traveling down their length into the being so quickly, it seemed to be instantaneous.
On cue, as these lights moved into its body, the being spoke and moved.
"We thought seeing something… Familiar would help you adjust." It sighed a stream of red and blue mist, its eyes glowing subtly with both colors.
"Besides, aren't you happy with our gift?" It gestured to his body, eyes glistening with pride. "We made it just the way you wished."
'Wished? When did I wish for any of this?'
Confusion flooded Charice, until he remembered how much he hated Earth, and how eagerly he fled from its cruel nature every day.
"Ah…" He shuddered, realizing his past had caught up with him. "I-I suppose it is nice… But…"
He never wanted to leave his mother behind. If others were trapped here with him, they were out there in environments that could lead to their death, especially the newbies. He got lucky.
"You should do something to save them, then." The being commented, manifesting a hairbrush to correct a flaw with Charice's hair that was so tiny, no being other than them could sense it. "They really will die otherwise."
The words struck like a hammer.
"P-Please… Could you help them?" Charice begged, his voice breaking.
A quiet gust of wind blew over the clearing, another pulse of light traveling down the swaying tethers.
"No."
Charice's shoulders slumped in defeat.
It sighed, as if troubled by his apparent worry.
"Don't fear for them. It's bad for you." The tone was consoling, yet the words were anything but.
It raised its middle finger, pointing at Charice's chest, from which a beautiful pink string slowly rolled out onto the grass, as if scared. With a twitch of its finger, the string raised into the air and attached to its hand.
Charice felt worried, but then he could feel it, the string pulsing in time with his heartbeat, as warm as his mother's hand, and as fiery as his love for Maximus.
Its desperation to persevere was similar to that love too. Charice sighed as he felt it. The being akin to a mirror of his own heart.
"You have the power to act and the freedom to choose. You don't need our help."
Charice reluctantly nodded, not entirely sure in himself. Still, he managed to get this far, and a flicker of confidence pulsed in the string attached to his core.
"You should go. Michael grows worried."
The mention of Michael made Charice's gut contort. He was scared, after all, the dream he had, along with this new drugging… It felt far too extreme to ignore any longer.
But confronting him directly was reckless, Michael was effectively his right hand man-
'The constitution! I forgot I need them to legitimize it, oh no!'
"A-Ah I'm sorry but I forgot about-"
The thick stack of paper suddenly appeared before the being, and it smirked at Charice's gobsmacked face.
It brought a finger into its mouth and allowed saliva to flow down it, a liquid that looked akin to the gradient nebula above them, every shade of blue and red flowing down its other middle finger.
It silently raised its hand above the paper and waited.
The stars above shimmered, some dimming as others brightened, but eventually, the countless gems all sent a pulse down their strings.
The liquid, previously glued to the finger, now dripped down as gravity would command, an orderly stain of all blue colors next to a chaotic smear of red hues that savagely fought for space.
Both didn't stain the text, instead flowing and zigzagging around it respectively.
"It seems you are truly blessed, oh dear Consort. Everyone agreed that your nation deserves to exist." It appeared in front of him, the text in hand, smoothly handing it to Charice. "You have our blessings and your prayers."
As Charice gripped the texts and was about to thank them sincerely, they released the string of his heart, and his ribcage crackled.
The engine of sentience stuttered as his gut boiled. Each second melting into one continuous moment before his very eyes.
His mind grew heavy as his thoughts slowed, his heartbeat weakening and skull slowly dusting.
"I-I'm sorry but… I think…"
"Go."
And with that, Charice fell onto the grass and vanished.