Chapter 260: The First Blank Vote
The Archivist that had never made any choice at all stood like a monument to indecision, its form a disturbing absence that hurt to perceive directly. Unlike the fragments or the council members, this entity existed in a state of perfect neutrality—every possible action it could have taken suspended in eternal equilibrium.
"Running will solve nothing," it said, its voice carrying the weight of infinite postponed decisions. "The cascade has reached its inevitable conclusion. Reality itself has become unstable because too many editors seek to revise the same manuscript."
Behind them, the shattered remains of the Blank Council continued their chaotic debate as infinite versions of the Originless materialized from discarded possibilities. The air itself groaned under the pressure of competing realities, each one demanding recognition, each one insisting it held the correct interpretation of existence.
"Then what do you propose?" Shia demanded, her form blazing with desperate energy. "We let them tear reality apart fighting over who gets to perfect it?"
The Neutral Archivist’s empty features shifted into something that might have been a smile. "I propose we settle this the way all editorial disputes should be resolved. Through competition."
Lio felt a chill run down his spine. "What kind of competition?"
"Each faction will write their version of reality. One Chapter. One complete vision of how existence should unfold. Then..." The Neutral Archivist paused, savoring the moment like a predator before the strike. "Only one version will be allowed to exist. The others will be permanently discarded."
The chaos behind them gradually quieted as the warring Originless variants heard the proposal. Slowly, impossibly, they began to turn their attention toward the Neutral Archivist.
"A contest of creation," mused the mathematical Originless, its geometric form calculating probabilities. "Efficiency would suggest this approach has merit."
"But who would judge?" demanded the tear-crystallized variant. "Who has the authority to determine which vision deserves existence?"
The Neutral Archivist spread its arms wide, encompassing all of them. "Everyone. The fragments, the council, the discarded—all will vote. Democracy of the fictional."
The original Archivist laughed bitterly. "Democracy? You want to hold an election to decide which version of reality gets to exist?"