TALES

[ Tales of the Divine and Demonic ]

[ Merlinus Ambrosius ( Merlin The Mad Wizard ) ]

"Merlin? Camelot Merlin?", Athos said in surprise. The library actually had books from different Pantheons and cultures? It shouldn't be all that surprising as it was probably similar to when he found the Oni Mask in Anteas' treasure. Shiva did say that Pantheons couldn't interfere with one another unless invited but he still couldn't understand the second part of the so called Ancient Law.

If the World really acted out of Self-Preservation, then banning interactions between the Divine equivalent of nuclear bombs was the right choice, yet why sneak in the last part? Why allow the possibility of inter-Pantheon war by allowing Pantheons to invite each other over? Or was the invite part of the Law something that the Pantheons figured out on their own?

'Well, there's no other way this ended up in Circe's Library. As far as I know, Merlin was never remotely related to Greek mythology.', he thought, gingerly opening the book.

Unlike the book's outer appearance, the pages were pristine - as though dust was simply unable to pierce through the cover. The words on the pages were written in the very same elegant cursive but glimmered reddish-purple instead of the cover's bright gold.

He wasted no time and immediately began reading, his dark blue eyes briefly lighting up with suppressed excitement.

[ As I write this, my heart bleeds as the Blade of the Blessed decreed so. The World repulses my very being as the Voice of the Blessed decreed so. I could seek shelter and recuperate, plotting my revenge, but I don't think I will.

I've run enough.

I shall die on my own terms.

My skin shall be my paper, and my blood my ink.

This book shall entail what I've learned after digging into the Divine and the Demonic looking for answers. Answers that I wished I never knew.

Do with it what you will. ]

"Well, that's one way to start a book", Athos murmured as he traced the pale white pages. It was indeed a little thicker than most paper but otherwise, it felt no different.

'This is human skin? And the ink is his blood? No - Merlin was never human to begin with', Athos thought, slightly disturbed. What level of will would one have to willingly peel your skin multiple times? With the number of pages, Merlin sure did have a healing factor which implied that he had peeled his skin off and waited for it to regenerate before doing it all over again. He was a truly driven individual.

Athos pushed the fact that he was holding skin to the back of his mind and continued with the book. He would go mull over it later - once he finished it.

[ Why?

Why must I be cursed with such torment? Why do they hate me so? Why do they deem me a monster - hunt me? Turn the eyes of the ones I love into ones of hate?

Such questions first surfaced when Niniane, my once beloved student, trapped me in eternal torment after spitting on my name. I treated her better than I treated myself, yet I was betrayed. The torture wasn't pain, I'd have preferred it so. It was much worse.

My sense of self was slowly corroded and my consciousness was slowly corrupted as I sank into that murky darkness. It felt alien. The innate powers that got me to where I am failed to activate as I bumbled about, screaming, running, and pleading till I could do it no more. What would the people of Camelot think? The mighty wizard Merlin grovelling on the dirty ground.

If it had gone on for longer, I would have gone past the point of no return, thus, when I saw a chance to escape I took it.

It came in the form of a clawed hand - covered with smooth. deep, dark reptilian scales.

It was a decision that many would regret, but I don't for it was the beginning of a journey that I treasure to the bottom of my now-damaged heart. Sure, taking that hand all but increased the efforts of the Blessed, but it set me on a journey where I realised the truth.

It was an Ironic one I have to say.

One that I hope you realise as you read this book. ]

[ On my journey, I travelled through many lands in the hopes that I would shake off my tormentors but the Blessed truly were unrelenting. I saw many things. Things that were more fascinating and awe-inducing than whatever my lacking imagination could possibly conjure. Sometimes, I thought to myself if this was how any other citizen of Camelot saw my pitiful tricks.

Every land has a story, you see. A story crafted by its residents and such stories come to life in the most wonderful and frightening of ways. I saw the clash of Immortals, the abodes of Gods, and myths turning into reality. I saw kingdoms and towns split in two and the sky flip upside down. Yet, in the middle of all that chaos, was some semblance of order.

There were certain rules to be followed. Rules set by the very World itself and ones not even the Primordials dare break. Rules that only Faith can deny.

And who are the Primordials you may ask? To answer that question, I must first introduce the concept of the Immortal Races.

While the Higher Immortals that can rend the heavens and dry oceans seem incomprehensible, they truly aren't. All of them can be segregated into certain races or species if you will. Mind you, these do not include the lesser Immortals, who lack Divinity, that require far more explaining to do.

I have journeyed through many lands but my knowledge of most races is severely lacking, after all, they are indeed hard to contact. But after decades - no, centuries of research, I have managed to deeply study and understand merely one race and its counterpart, but I digress.

All the Races have one thing in common. Be it the Theonites, the Titans, the Itur, the Angels or the Demons, they all use a particularly powerful energy termed Divinity. Terms can differ depending on the race, but fundamentally, the energy is the same. Of course, how said Divinity is used also differs from race to race. Sometimes the methods greatly vary or sometimes the differences can almost be negligible.

A good example would be the Theonites, who have one of, if not the most versatile and useful ways of using Divinity. Imagination is their only shackle and if given sufficient Divinity, can completely ignore the limits set by their property - which I shall get to in later chapters. At the same time, they don't have any innate abilities to speak of.

On the other hand, their sworn rivals, the Titans, are shackled by the more common method of using Divinity. The limitation set by their property greatly affects them, cementing their inferiority. They do have a few innate abilities, the most powerful one being releasing a blast of pure energy that is greatly helpful in combat and consumes absolutely no Divinity but can be a tiny bit straining.

This fundamental difference allowed the Theonites to dominate their turf, almost wiping out any other semblance of opposition, although there do seem to be omens that hint at the return of the Titans.

I've used these two examples to highlight how different two races can be, even though one race is the ancestor of the other. If such differences can occur in an Immortal family tree, then how different would two races be if they originated from different Pantheons?

I could go on for far more pages if I need to answer that question, but a better question would be - does that even matter? And the answer to this question is much, much simpler.

No.

Every race strives to get stronger. To gain more Divinity and to elevate their existence, but the most peculiar thing about Higher Immortals is that all roads to power lead to the very same peak. Every power system in every Pantheon for every Immortal Race leads to one thing.

The Immortal becoming a Primordial.

To become a concept.

The very idea of such a thing occurring escapes my imagination and frankly escapes almost every Immortal to ever exist.

After all, other than the ones who have been born one, there has only been one being to ever achieve the feat of ascending to a Primordial. He was a being with one of the most powerful properties to ever exist.

An Angel who once shined brighter than the stars to a Dragon that even the abyss fears.

Lucifer Morningstar.

The Prince of Darkness. ]

***

Support me on p atreon.com/Marine0IQ if you'd like. ( Psssst.....it's got extra chapters!!!)

Don't forget to remove the extra space!

( Pls gimme more powerstones too!!! I love em! They taste like candy! )