Abyssal Awakening

With a crease in his brow, Yngvar slowly raised the teacup to his lips only to realise that he had ran out of tea.

He tried to go for a refill yet the pot was also empty.

"Do you get it? Get what I mean? Argh, it’s such a pain in the ass. I swear, these people are so selfish, they have no care about the kind of trouble they bring to the world. Like, what would you do if you were in my situation?" Alice grumbled.

Yngvar was having regrets. He knew that he told her to speak her mind but... This was a little exaggerated wasn’t it?

Without holding back, Alice ranted about everything that had annoyed her on the journey. The way the Sun Church acts, the annoying things with the Eclipse and so on.

Every annoyance was ranted about in full detail to the point the Old Lord was even considering if he should’ve pretended to be dormant.

But it was too late to regret now.

Right as he was about to speak, Alice opened her mouth once more to rant.

"And that f*cking parchment of all things. Thinks he’s hot sh*t just because he can grab crap from other places beyond our reach. Who does he think he is? I can practically feel it you know? That gloating look of his as he sees me struggling on constructing this inner world.

"In the first place, on a fundamental level, our worlds are completely different.

"Spirits? The Spirit Realm? Mana? The f*ck is that??? The only think I know about are Abyssal energy and the other sh*t in our world not this Mana or whatever it’s called. How the f*ck am I supposed to turn Cayla into a spirit? She’s an artifact of the Abyss with a will of her own gods dammit.

"I can’t just change her fundamental nature for the sole purpose of cramming her into a ’mana reservoir’ now can I? If I make her an island, what kind of island would it even be?" Alice reached a boiling point as her urge to toss this tea table as far as possible surged through her body.

Barely managing to hold herself back, Alice let out a deep frustrated sigh before looking at Yngvar who was clearly bored.

Shaking her head, she gestured her chin towards him.

"So what about you? As a sealed Lord, seeing you care for those who live above you is rather... uncommon. Wouldn’t most thrash and complain about being used in such a manner? Heck, they mine you for materials daily. Even I had to take a chunk of you with me when I was here." Alice asked as this was the question on her mind the entire time.

By this point, Alice’s grace that she showed earlier had all but disappeared with a puff of smoke.

The way she spoke, her posture, barbaric is every way possible.

If Alice could read minds, she would’ve heard the sheer volume of his complaints towards her nature and how it was unsuitable for a future goddess to act in such a manner.

And yet Yngvar never vocalised it.

"What use is it for me to thrash and complain? To cause more Earthquakes? To kill thousands? Please, at my age you feel the uselessness of such actions."

Reaching for his tea cup, he paused remembering that it was empty, but Alice quickly refilled it and the tea pot with a simple flick of her finger.

Taking as a sign to keep talking, Yngvar took a sip.

"To me, the life above me is akin to that of saplings. Each one hold infinite potential. Some may never reach it but others might reach out to achieve something greater. That’s what they are to me and after all these years, I’ve come to enjoy seeing their tenacity in the face of danger." He smiled like a grandfather speaking proud stories of his grandchildren.

"I am simply the land they flourish on. Why should I take away their opportunities? The reality of the situation is that the Old Lords lost. Nothing more, nothing less. I see no reason to cling onto past glory when it simply ends in destruction." He shrugged as Alice listened.

"All things will fall into place eventually. Even if I rebel, the world will imprison me once more. One must learn to accept their role when the time comes. As did I with my role as prisoner. As will you with your role as the Goddess." He smiled towards Alice.

"That still doesn’t explain much though." She pursed her lips.

Rolling his eyes at her impatience, Yngvar took another sip.

He was rather fond of this tea.

"Long ago, I had met a rather... strange man. Someone I suppose I could call a friend. Our relationship was brief in nature, but he showed me the potential of humans. He is someone I would call a ’great tree’." Yngvar had a nostalgic look on his face as he recalled the past.

"Rather than being a sprout with infinite potential, he was someone who had already reached the end of his life.

"But even so, he was tenacious like no other. He was willing to put his life on the line to protect the future. Someone who wouldn’t hesitate to throw himself into a mountain of blades or a river of fire if it meant a safer world.

"He was the giant tree shielding the saplings from the harsh world. To cover them from the storm. And when he fell, he gave way to their future. His body became the foundation of their life, his ideals, his actions inspired countless. Such a life, though brief, was ever so spectacular." Yngvar chuckled.

"If you look at him alone, his life was nothing but short and full of suffering. But if you look at everything he inspired... how radiant. Tell me, successor, why do you think people find sparks interesting?" He asked as Alice fell into a silent contemplation.

"Because it’s bright?"

"Partially. It is my interpretation to believe that sparks are beautiful because they are ephemeral. Their glimmer of light enraptures the eyes as they burn their life away in a brilliant display of flames. Only when it is lost do you fully understand the beauty that was once there.

"Only when my friend passed away did I realise the kind of influence that man had on me. A fleeting existence that inspired the prisoner trapped here till the day I die." Yngvar let out a hearty laugh.

But Alice didn’t get it.

She somewhat understood what he was alluding to. But at the same time...

"Wouldn’t you want him more in your life? When he’s gone, you’ll yearn for him more." She asked but Yngvar shook his head.

"That moment had already passed. From your words, it seems like you dislike suffering. But I think it’s only natural." He smiled. "Without suffering, how can one understand the joys of life? Without suffering, how can you know you’re living in bliss? Of course, I’m not suggesting for people to go out and cause destruction. Far from it. But it is the natural tribulations of this life that inspires action.

"Without danger, without stimulation, how can my friend become the man he was? How can sparks happen without fire? It is his suffering that changed him and inspired others.

"To live is to suffer. To suffer is to be tempered. And when you pass that trial, all of that suffering will become the foundation of your joy."

Seeing the confused look on Alice’s face, Yngvar simply smiled and shook his head.

This sapling was still far too young to understand. But in time, she’ll realise the truth behind his words.

It was a conversation that should only be reserved for when Alice wasn’t sleep deprived late at night.

Instead, she had a different idea.

"Let’s forget all of that for now. Let me ask you this. How would you create an ideal inner world?" Alice asked as hours had already passed. Any longer and she might get the scolding of her life when Allura wakes up.

"How would I know? I am simply a prisoner. Nothing more, nothing less. I can see your impatience showing. I suggest you go and deal with what’s been bothering you before we speak more. You know where to find me for I won’t move from this place." Yngvar placed the tea cup down and stood up.

With his hands behind his back, he walked towards his true form.

Giving her a formal bow, his humanoid form disappeared as the giant body moved back to its previous location and fell dormant once more.

Pursing her lips, Alice let out a sigh of frustration and packed away her table.

Walking out of the prison, his words echoed repeatedly in her mind.

His outlook of life... the necessity of suffering for people to enjoy what’s to offer.

"Must that truly be the case?" Cayla spoke, surprising Alice.

"It’s written all over your face." She chuckled as Alice shrugged.

"I don’t know. I wouldn’t want mum to suffer. If anything, I want her to be happy." Alice kicked a stray rock nearby.

"I’m aware. But is that not built from the understanding of her history of suffering? To deny suffering is to deny everything they’ve gone through. The effort she put into surpassing everything. Like Yngvar’s friend who was the great tree shielding the younger generation, Allura is something similar for you." Cayla walked ahead while Alice followed.

"While suffering is bad, you cannot deny its existence nor can you deny the effort of those that have surpassed this trial."

Walking in silence, Alice found herself unable to say anything on the way back.

Though...

Waiting at the door was a certain furious tall woman with a forced smile.

A slipper held in her hand.

Thus began Alice’s suffering.