Fundamentals of Creation  

Theo's forty-eight hours of meditation had passed. In addition to those two days, another five hours went by. As soon as he woke up, Theo asked a nurse for a pen and began scribbling symbols on the walls of his room. 

Even if all those memories of Liam were just recollections, Theo managed to feel the sensations. He found it strange that Liam had emotions, but what puzzled him even more were two energies: weltna and negative energy, which belonged to demons. 

Only by feeling weltna could Theo compare it to mana. When he ingested mana into his own core, the sensation was akin to a strong, pure, complex, and natural atmosphere. In Liam's memories, he could perceive that the two energies held the same value, the same power. 

As for negative energy, it was literally the same energy present in every corner of Tartarus. Comparing this and with the doubt about the realm mentioned by Liam lingering in his mind, he came to a conclusion. 

There exists a mythological and conceptual realm. He had been there, standing before a true primordial deity. Therefore, for him, myths became part of reality. He also considered other mythologies beyond that of his empire. "Fundamentals of Creation." 

A theoretical document, it attempts, in some way, to bring all proven beliefs, as well as science, into a single theory. It is constantly updated, which is why it is not an absolute fact. 

After all, with every evolutionary step of humanity, more doubts arise, more answers and questions for each of them. 

Seeking to fit all proven beliefs, the "Fundamentals of Creation" begins: 

Before there was anything, there was nothing. A dark, hot, and chaotic universe, where iron was gold, gold was diamond, and diamond was wind. Everything occupied a single place in the cosmos; a singularity. It was then that the great explosion occurred. 

From this explosion, the creator created itself: Yahweh. The absolute everything, as opposed to Chaos, the absolute nothing. After millions of years, in the war of "End and Beginning," where Yahweh commanded the angels and kings of the pantheons against Chaos, who ruled the titans. All beings coexisted in the same world. Angels and gods with humans, giants, fairies, elves, except for the demons condemned to hell. 

Yahweh then separated everything. He gave a world to the giants. For the elves and fairies to share a single realm. The gods divided themselves into human regions but soon ascended to the heavens, called Asgard. Among all these races, humans were granted the grace of mortality. Since, thanks to the cycle of birth, destiny, and death, humans, among all races, would have the most extensive rate of technological advancement. 

However, this race was divided into two. The realm of Midgard was left for ordinary humans. Those who did not possess magic or any supernatural gift. Unlike the humans of Alvheim, who were blessed, cursed, and forgotten. 

At some point, Yahweh would have created a metaphysical structure that surrounds all of his creation. An immeasurable tree that cannot be seen even by angels or gods: the World Tree, Yggdrasil. Its branches were named Bifrost, that which connects all ten realms. 

We know it exists because, at some point in history, the humans of Alvheim gained access to Bifrost and traveled to Midgard, where they were called demons for teaching common magic to primitive humans. 

With this in mind, Theo theorizes that he did not reincarnate in another universe or some reality, as some fantasy books from the Great Empire suggest. But rather in the same world in a different dimension, since in the creation myth, Midgard and Alvheim are in the same place in space, but Alvheim exists in a higher dimension. 

However, at the same time, this doesn't make sense. Midgard does not possess large-scale magic, yet Liam Mason had complete control over this concept. His current world couldn't be Midgard either. Even if they manipulate science instead of magic, the descriptions don't match. Thinking about this only gave him more headaches. 

But now he had a goal in mind: to truly discover which world he belongs to. 

Now, with a crisis of reality and existence in mind, Theo sat on the floor and fell silent, simply observing what he had drawn. 

"Trash," he thought. "You're trash." He referred to Liam. "Stupid idiot who's always right! You're right, okay? I admit it! I'm a genius because I'm you. So why do I keep playing with danger? Fear of imbalance? Fear of losing something? Fear of being myself? What exactly am I afraid of?!" 

Theo rubbed his face, wiping away traces of tears that tried to form. 

"Will it be useful for you to find out where you came from? No. Or maybe yes? Discovering the existence of another dimension will change something in my life? Why am I interested in returning home? This world is perfect. I'm happy here." He lay on the floor, arms spread out. "I don't know anything else." 

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. A few seconds later, the door to the room opened. Luanne entered and froze, staring at all the symbols her affiliate had drawn. 

"Theo?..." she called, eyes wide and taking slow steps. 

"Godmother... Have you ever felt an emptiness in your chest for not recognizing yourself?" 

"What do you mean?" 

"I don't know. I can't understand myself. Sometimes I think I'm not me. Like, why is my name Theo? That doesn't make sense. Why does a simple word define who I am?" 

"Could it be adolescence?" she thought, perplexed, analyzing the drawing of a large tree that extended to the ceiling. "It's common to go through this..." 

"Sometimes I think I'm a reincarnation." 

He didn't think or believe—he knew. He only used those words to test Luanne's reaction to the subject. 

"But we all are," she replied. "Reincarnation is the act of a soul going into a body. Not necessarily after death, it can happen while still alive if you have control over your own soul. Our soul is born before the body; what we do is choose a receptacle that matches our specifications. In other words, you could say that being born is the act of reincarnation." 

"I'm talking about having memories that aren't mine..." 

"Can he remember?!" Luanne managed the feat of choking on her own saliva. 

"It's also common. Sometimes the mind tricks itself and creates fictional characters to fill the lack of something. Maybe it's that?" she said uncomfortably. "Was that a convincing excuse? If he remembers everything..." she shuddered. 

Theo sat cross-legged on the floor. Looking down, he thought, "Did I create Liam Mason in my head? No. It's unlikely. I lived that life. But thinking about it... An invincible man couldn't exist, could he? He would fill my lack of strength... Damn it, Luanne! You only made it worse!" 

He slapped his own face. 

"Distractions. I need to distract myself from this topic." Shifting his gaze to the wall in front of him, Theo remembered symbols about mana. "Godmother. What do you know about magic?" 

Luanne sat on the bed. 

"Magic? Or are you talking about science?" she inquired. "If it's science, I know a lot. What exactly do you want to know?" 

"The difference between the two concepts." 

"Hm... Science is something within our physics. We respect the law of equivalent exchange. Basically, we sacrifice the energy of our core in exchange for the ability to manipulate the molecules of the environment. As for magic... It ignores all of that. It doesn't respect anything, which is why we don't use it. It's more about ethics and human sense, but magic also has a cost. We sacrifice our lives to perform a spell..." 

"I see. So they're the same concepts as in Egon..." Theo swallowed hard. "But doesn't science pose the same risk? Both lead to death in the end." 

"Of course they do, there's no immortality. Not the eternal kind... For example, Sir Lincoln, who is currently the leader of the titans. He managed to perfectly manipulate energy through martial arts, and with that, he extended his life. Nowadays, he must be around two hundred and thirty years old. However, he's human." 

"Is that true?" 

"Yes. It doesn't depend on which energy you manipulate, it depends on how you manipulate it. We, the deviants, are like stars. When the combustion process ends, we die. What's left for us is to know exactly how we'll use our limits. That's why your godmother here decided to become a scientist. I've been studying the subject for over thirty years." 

"Thirty times six..." Theo murmured. 

"Huh?" 

"My father told me you're over two hundred years old. I thought it was an exaggeration, but after you said it yourself that it's not impossible..." 

"Hey, kid!" she scolded. "It's rude to talk about the age of a young lady like me," she said, pointing her finger upward with her eyes closed. 

"Sure, mummy." 

"Couldn't you leave that in your mind?" 

"You'd read it anyway, wouldn't you?" 

"Keeping it to yourself would hurt less... Anyway! You're interested in the magic system, aren't you? I can take you to my lab. There are thousands of books on the subject there; you can study there before returning to Vagus. I can even ask Director Wispells for a permit so you can spend some time studying here." 

"You can do that?" 

"Kid, look who you're talking to. Be thankful you're a golden child..." 

"Or did you spend so much playing 'Theo Lawrence, the golden child' that you forgot your true self?" he remembered Liam's words. 

"...your family provides you with all the best opportunities. Come on. I came here because you're going to spend a day with me at my job," Luanne said, lifting Theo from the floor. "Get ready. You have ten minutes." 

Theo stared at the palm of his left hand as Luanne left. Then, he remembered the last words Liam had spoken to him: "Close the door if you wish to believe in this current thought, open it and walk through if you wish to move forward." 

"I'll open the door," he said to himself. 

The intense ray of light illuminated the room through the window. A bird flew into the sky. 

☽✪☾ 

Luanne and Theo walked along the sidewalk of the C.P.M.F—Center for Myrddin and Fulmenbour Research. A massive academy that belongs to the two scientific orders. Since both orders seek the same end: the social evolution of humanity, within the territory of both lies a research center where scientists from both fields, alchemists and researchers, can share success and failure. 

Originally, Luanne is a scientist from Myrddin, but she is in Fulmenbour solely for the help of the alchemists in creating the artifact that is keeping Theo's core stable. 

"It's busy, huh..." Theo commented, uncomfortable. 

"Don't worry," Luanne reassured him. "You'll feel at home. There are lots of nerds here." 

They reached the main gate. Rectangular, nearly fifteen meters tall. A wall accompanies it, surrounding the entire perimeter of the campus. Inside, it's so vast that Theo could only describe it as "a city within a city." 

"Stay close to me," she ordered. 

Theo followed his godmother. They walked along a paved road surrounded by a garden where students chatted. It was then that the boy realized that this enormous campus was, in fact, the first entrance to the academic complex. 

The true entrance to the academy lies above a small staircase. A smaller gate, only five meters tall, with iron bars on the sides. However, it doesn't escape another wall. Unlike the first entrance, which didn't have much security, here there are five guards and a receptionist checking everyone entering and leaving. 

Walking along the road to the true gate, Theo's eyes widened and shone like the sun as he saw a familiar person. Her hair is a slightly reddish-brown, long and wavy, cascading down her back. Covered in a white lab coat and climbing the stairs, Theo's shout echoed through the crowd: "Agnes!"