Trapped in Another World With No Magic

~Greetings Dear Readers! This is a bonus chapter that might do more harm than good to the overall mystique and power scale of Chaos and Order, so if you have thoughts on this chapter after reading it, please let me know.~

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Ryukana can’t stop thinking about the conversation she had with Chaos and Order outside of existence; a place that she couldn’t even comprehend. While Ryukana theoretically has the power to shape a world, including to destroy it, it truly made her feel the gap between herself and her creators, who can effortlessly create and destroy the entire universe.

The goddess meditates on the information she got the first time, and how she can help Amalaskae, her summon, Daniel, and Rikuto keep Zenkon in one piece.

That said, she can’t stop thinking about the story Chaos mentioned about a man that was able to apparently exceed their power.

I wonder if I’m allowed to ask more about it. Or even, why did they need to create us…

“If you’re that curious, you only have to ask. After all, we allow blasphemy in much more open terms, do we not?”

Just as Ryukana is recognizing Chaos’s voice, she finds herself in the same strange warped dimension that Chaos and Order reside in normally, and which no one, not even anomalies capable of doing so in the Divine Realm can intrude upon or observe the conversation.

The violet-haired lesser goddess immediately bows. “My glorious creators, Lady Chaos, Lady Order.”

“Ryukana,” replies Order with her usual stoic expression and tone.

“I thought you might still be stewing on what you heard,” teases Chaos as she grins at Ryukana deviously. The resident of the Divine Realm knows her role is to serve, but also to protect a whole world. She has never thought of herself as a mere puppet on strings, but this time, it seems she danced to Chaos’s machinations in time with the tune.

For her part, Chaos doesn’t rub it in nor does she mock Ryukana for being an apparent plaything. She simply playfully remarks on the goal of the conversation. “Were you wondering which side of the line you fall on; creator or creation?”

“I know that I am a sort of middle-ground between the two,” replies the subordinate goddess politely. “I am to handle tasks beneath your interest.”

“You say that as though we are not capable of being interested in the smallest of details,” counters the more youthful seeming of the two Primordial Goddesses. “I’ll have you know, I know what Daniel ate for breakfast this morning. I also know what mistake Bob made in accounting, the exact time Carol plans on arriving for her date, the shoe-size of Reignleif, the years of Jim’s three SUV’s that he has owned, and the precise fluctuations confirming or denying the concept of climate change on Earth.”

At face value, all of that information is completely useless, but it proves Chaos’s point. She is cognizant of virtually anything and everything. If anything, it reminds Ryukaka of how imperfect she is as a middle-management goddess. She is powerful, but she made a glaring and obvious mistake.

“I’m not sure how to word it exactly, then,” starts the violet-haired world manager. “Only that you are the superior authority of all of existence, and I am your humble servant.”

“You have existed for a great deal of time,” starts Order, continuing with a gentle and stoic tone. “As with most of the others, you rarely choose to wonder about your own existence. You should know that curiosity itself is not a punishable action.”

“Actually, do you even know of anyone who has been erased?” asks Chaos bluntly.

Ryukana hesitates. Once more, she has been asked a question she has no answer for. In all of her existence, she has never heard of anyone that was erased for any crime. There were always the rumors and warnings the senior gods and goddesses give to their juniors, but even the list of names Ryukana has heard is abundantly short, with Kaeralegier being the only name she can think of.

The truth is the only answer she needs to give, though. “I know of no one, personally, my Lady.”

“Mm-hmm. Of course, we could rewrite everyone’s memories if we wanted to.” The entropic goddess shrugs deviously, while her counterpart cracks a small smile.

Order then challenges Ryukana further. “What do you think we are, truly?”

“I…” The violet-haired subordinate goddess studies both Primordial goddesses for a moment. Chaos has been shifting shapes without any sort of warning or seeming change, yet her appearance will suddenly be different, especially when Ryukana looks away from her for a moment. Right now, she appears to be some sort of reptilian bipedal race. “As you’ve mentioned, your true form is beyond my comprehension, but I suppose…” She trails off, unsure of how to answer. She doesn’t want to insult them by belittling their being in some way, nor over-simplifying.

“What about our creator?” asks Chaos deviously, implying with her tone that the answer could truly go either way; they transcend time, so they don’t have a creator, or the Primordial Goddesses are more powerful versions of their creations in that sense. “You can guess, Ryukana,” teases the mischievous all-powerful being. “We won’t be angry. Just take a stab in the dark. What came before my dear sister and I?” She grins cheekily, waiting for any answer to explain how it is wrong.”

Still, Ryukana is afraid to take any guesses. Not wanting to simply refuse to answer, though, the subordinate goddess does finally offer, “The simplest answer would be the simplest state; the nothingness of the Void, my Lady.”

Order answers with a simple and direct tone, “A safe answer, but wrong. There have always been two. No more, no less. There has always been the perfect state of order; the Void, as well as the ever-changing state of chaos; Existence. What you see before you are simply manifestations of ourselves into a friendly form for ease of communication.”

During the conversation, Chaos continues to take on many forms, including an old woman, an aquatic alien, a fairy, a spider, smoke, and various others.

Order adds, “Even we cannot define a ‘before’, in the way that you cannot personally picture what you were before you came into being. But, this is also because time exists because of us, not the other way around, as is the case for all of the things that exist. Creation takes time. Destruction takes time. Time must exist for them to be able to occur. We do not occur. We simply are, and from our perspective, have always been.”

“I like to believe our mother, or maybe our father, was a lonely spark of power,” starts Chaos. She even creates a visualization of her story. “That lonely spark finally decided to become two, giving birth to Order and Chaos; nothingness and existence.”

“I-... Is that… possible?” asks Ryukana gently.

“As I said,” reiterates Order. “A square existing only in two dimensions cannot fathom being a cube of three. If there is an entity that gave us being, it is unknowable to us.”

“As far as you’re concerned,” chimes in Chaos. “You exist because we created you. The difference between creating a fully sentient being and leaving the ingredients to mix themselves into one, as is the case with most other life.”

“But, why the need for us? If you can reset the worlds or control them as you like.”

“All other beings see morals, needs, desires, justice, injustice, fear, happiness, and all sorts of other wonderful things,” replies Chaos. “But, the essence of Chaos is embodied in free will and self-determination. Even if the free will and self-determination of one will cause problems for the other.”

“Living things grow stronger in hardship,” adds Order. “We forge the souls that are to be, but allow their existence to bring them back to us in death. For life to continue, they must overcome hardships of all kinds, many of which are simply the mechanisms of existence running their course. We could ‘fix’ everything in the way you and the mortals envision, but that would defeat the entire purpose for life.”

“We do not, contrary to popular belief, draw a sadistic pleasure from watching suffering and hardship any more than a doting euphoria of witnessing benevolence and altruism. It is the whole of life that we created and take joy in the outcome.”

“We do not experience boredom,” adds Order, clarifying Chaos’s point further. “We do not need to be entertained. However, it would be a lie to say we feel nothing when we witness the triumphs of our creations, especially in overcoming the hardships that the entropy that is existence creates.”

Chaos gives a more direct explanation. “We started creating life in the way that a mother chooses to have children, or I suppose for Divine Realm gods like yourself, the pride of seeing your chosen champions completing their tasks. You are personally involved in the outcome, and part of existence is the desire to experience victory.” The youthful-seeming Primordial Goddess grins brightly.

“So… your reason for creating existence… was to experience parenthood?” asks Ryukana, a little surprised at the simplicity of the motivation of the creators of everything.

“Yes and no,” replies Order. “It is an oversimplification to put it that way. It’s not instinctual for us the way it is for many living beings, nor is it out of loneliness.”

“That’s where it might seem like we just create and destroy simply for entertainment. We did it because we could, and because it makes us happy. But, it would be meaningless if everything was stagnant.” Chaos continues to illustrate their explanation with slow and casual flutters of her hand.

Order takes over the explanation for a moment, “When Chaos and I joined hands the first time, existence was created, but it was empty. So, we filled it with worlds. I placed them where I felt they looked the best.”

“But, they didn’t move. They were empty and unchanging, and I didn’t like it. My sister’s perfect creations were imperfect,” replies Chaos, not entirely making sense. But she continues, “So, I moved them when she wasn’t looking. I made them turn. I made them circle each other. I made them race away from their gathered center. I gave them sparks and made them age. I made the ingredients she used dance so that they would never be the same.”

“And, in turn,” starts Order. “My Sister’s imperfect destructions were not yet perfect. I made the worlds follow paths, so that they would cycle in a defined manner. The sparks were beautiful, but remained simply sparks and ingredients, so I added formulas that they would follow. These basic laws combined with my sister’s ever-changing entropy and took shape.”

“And thus, life was born,” declares Chaos proudly, like a small child. “For every time I tried to break something, Order fixed it. And for every time Order fixed something, I would break it. The more elaborate it became, the more it moved on its own, using both my sister’s structured laws and my beautiful pandemonium, we created something we could watch over and take pride in as it grew.” The illusion generated by Chaos is filled with color, expanding and changing before Ryukana’s eyes.

“In addition, we take the bad with the good,” explains Order. “Just as something that is broken is something to be sad for, death is both a loss of life and a return to purified order. As creators, life functions best without interference. In the face of utopia, life goes extinct because there is no reason to pursue anything. In the face of death, the living appreciate life more.”

Chaos begins in a fairly serious tone as her sister trails off. “But, every now and then, an anomaly occurs. It is not a mere spark of chaos, nor a simple cascade of discord. It is something that threatens the balance of life and death on a world, and could disrupt the cycle entirely. That’s where you and your champions come in. The Divine Realm is the immune system of existence, meant to defend against these anomalies so we don’t have to start over completely.” This time, Chaos turns into a male form with steel-grey eyes, and on his left and right forearms are golden bracers, each bearing 3 rings that orbit slowly. He also stands with a cane with a dragon forming the shape of the handle. Her voice is gentle, but masculine for the moment. “Recall the story of the man who accidentally stole a piece of our power. A story that no longer exists from your perspective, but very much does from ours. Do you know why we did not erase him upon learning of the power he was in the midst of attaining?”

Ryukana has been listening in wonder to the back and forth tale being told to her, explaining far more about her own creators than she thought she’d ever be privy to. She shakes her head. “I… I can only truly guess that the answer has nothing to do with inability. Or,... You mentioned once he had adapted to the power…” The subordinate goddess thinks a little longer, pondering the notion. If she had to guess, the image Chaos is presenting of the man is the person in question, but he looks like a fairly normal human. His eyes are a little strange, but it’s only a rare color, not an unnatural one.

“You didn’t consider him an anomaly…” murmurs Ryukana, and the image of the man grins brightly. Even Order smiles with a motherly, proud smile.

“I… don’t understand, then. How was a man capable of challenging you not considered an anomaly if something like Zenkon’s Devourer was?”

Order takes over the explanation. “Because, at the very moment that he saw us, he realized what he had done, what he was further capable of, and what the stakes were. He never intended to nor was driven to eliminate all life, nor were his intentions rooted in tyranny or stagnation, even if they were unrepentantly evil in scope. He sacrificed himself in order to produce a champion capable of restoring the balance.”

For once, Order changes form this time, and she takes on the appearance of the young black haired girl Chaos once appeared as, with glowing sapphire blue eyes and a gladius that she apparently treasures. “She restored the pieces that were stolen and became something akin to what you are now, in spite of not being a goddess herself. Though, she will live for a very long time.”

“Wait, I thought you said his mistake was reset,” repiles Ryukana, a little confused now.

“It was. At least, the damage to existence and the Divine Realm were, making it as if it never happened. We’re telling you because it’s important to know that not everything is simply about need or desire, but sometimes it is.” Order takes her normal form again, approaching Ryukana. There are times that the Primordial Goddesses appear larger than anyone else, gazing down upon their creations, but this time, she stands no more than an inch or so taller than her subordinate creation. “Anomalies are not always cut and dry. After all, there are black holes and giant asteroids that, to us, are nothing more than objects we placed to serve as a part of the universe. Though infinitesimally small in chance, it would not be an anomaly if one were to cross paths with a world and annihilate it whole.”

“That is the entropy of chance,” replies Chaos, taking over for the next part as she turns into a female scientist look. “But, if, say, a person found a way to summon black holes and could and would destroy the world, that person would be an anomaly because he or she is threatening to exceed the bounds of expectation and could shatter the whole universe if allowed to go too far.”

“That said, if there is another equal in position to counter, we would hold back and observe.”

“In the case of the man, our machinations to try to impede him with ‘champions’ only spurned him to move faster, and his accumulated factors that made him who he was made him much further outside of our expectations that we initially estimated.”

Ryukana ponders for a moment, and she murmurs, “I… always see you, my creators, as infallible. I would not think you could make such mistakes.”

“Mistakes?” asks Order. She places her hand on Ryukana’s cheek, and the gesture is a little unnerving for the subordinate goddess. As always, Order or Chaos could snap her out of existence for any reason, but the Primordial Goddess’s hand has a strange warmth to it, as if Ryukana can actually feel the certainty that everything will be okay, as if it is already written.

“There are no mistakes in imperfection and disorder. We specifically created the ability for our creations to exceed our expectations. We only act if it will cause us to need to restart from scratch. As long as there is measured resistance, or, in even more special cases, an anomaly self-aware enough to curb himself, the universe will survive. Otherwise,...”

“I would have erased him instantly,” replies Chaos coldly. Ryukana can feel the certainty in that declaration as well.

“Fo-forgive me for saying ‘mistake’, my Creators. You have graciously catered to my curiosities, though I’m not entirely sure why.”

Chaos grins. “Call it a… Bonus Chapter.” She winks, though Ryukana is fairly certain the wink isn’t meant for her or Order. “A big thank you for supporting our existence beyond expectations.”

Before Ryukana can make sense of that last sentence, Order takes her hand away, adding gently, “A fundamental duality is a stable dance, no matter what happens. And, another anomaly -a true anomaly- will be returning to Zenkon soon. You and Amalaskae will possibly have your hands full.”

“Can you tell me anything about the anomaly?” asks Ryukana, the urgency apparent in her voice.

Both Chaos and Order smile sympathetically, and the ever-changing goddess, now in the appearance of a fox-like woman with a folding fan, is the one to answer. “We can tell you everything, but you must understand, your direct actions to intervene will empower her. She likely already exceeds the power of anyone in the Divine Realm, with the possible exception of the world’s managing goddess.”

“A-Amalaskae!?” asks Ryukana, surprised. However, she just as quickly connects the dots. The middle-seniority goddess of the Divine Realm cannot deny that Amalaskae is brimming with magic power exceeding her ability to restrain it, which Ryukana has admittedly never heard of in anyone else’s case. Upon awakening, the managers of the Divine Realm already know and understand their power. And, the violet-haired goddess has pondered it ever since she saw the destroyed rock fountain.

She’s not sure she could break parts of the Divine Realm so easily.

Yet, small movements of Amalaskae’s can shatter the most solid parts of the Divine Realm. She is destruction incarnate with the personality of a gentle and timid young girl.

“I… Will she be allowed direct intervention?” asks Ryukana, feeling like she’s on the right track, but still not understanding.

If Amalaskae were to intentionally use her powers… would anything remain?

Chaos grins, likely reading Ryukana’s thoughts once more.

“She will be the last line of defense against that being taking control of the Divine Realm. If the champions of Zenkon can’t stop her, Amalaskae will be the only one who stands a chance.”

“C-Can we just stop her now?” asks Ryukana a little desperately. “Why wait for her to return?”

“You will have a child with a human that will go on to start a war on Zenkon,” states Chaos a little bluntly and somewhat coldly. “Should we erase you to prevent that future?”

“I… But… That’s…” Ryukana’s mind is swimming, since she can think of only one human she might entertain that notion with, but nothing of that regard has even started to form. She’s not sure if Chaos and Order can truly see the future as if it were written, or they wouldn’t need the managers of the Divine Realm to handle small-scale issues. If they can see the future, it seems rather inefficient to simply let life struggle anyways, if they already know the outcome.

Order explains to answer the younger goddess’s thoughts, “Time is a construct, or rather… a dimension of existence. Like the rest of it, though, entropy, disorder, and unpredictability are baked into the fabric intentionally. We see futures that are predictable because we have seen the past so many times. She will arrive as a contract demon and will have a singular choice that determines the route that must be taken.”

“She’ll almost certainly choose the wrong route,” adds Chaos a little dryly. “But, if she doesn’t she won’t need to be destroyed, just like the man we keep mentioning. She is dangerous, but no more so than Amalaskae or even that little Hekate. When the time comes, she will choose, and a battle will occur.”

“But… if we can prevent it…”

“Your job is not to prevent death,” retorts Order coldly. “Your job is to prevent the imminent destruction of existence, starting with a single world.”

Ryukana freezes and looks down. She cannot defy her creators.

“Or can you?” asks Chaos, strangely countering something that Ryukana didn’t specifically think. The sovereign goddess of disorder adds with a grin, “If you can find her before her return and destroy her, will we stop you? Will we condemn you? Or, if you destroy her enemies for her, quenching her thirst before the world is destroyed, you can stave off the worst of it that way. We have given you no direct orders in this case, though, you know the rules from long ago. If you fear repercussions for defying the almighty, immortal goddesses who even know that this is Chapter 146.1, then you already know what to do, yes? You have no need for questions from us.” She smirks wickedly, selling her point further.

Ryukana thinks desperately, trying to make sense of the obvious lesson here. Chaos is teasing her, but also making an important point.

Am… I allowed to act of my own free will? Even if that means I am against… THEIR decisions?

She glances at Chaos and Order, reminding herself once again that they can read her mind with ease. Order shows no expression, while Chaos has a cheeky smirk that hasn’t changed.

I… perhaps… the very fact that I can even think this… But then, why was I scolded all those times…? My heroes were in more danger the less power I gave them, but I had to follow the rules, didn’t I?

It’s almost imperceptible, but Ryukana was looking for it. The smirk Chaos is wearing shifted just the tiniest bit.

I see… It wasn’t about my violation. It was a lesson that they have known for eternity… A lesson I know now… Too much power can cause problems, but I could still have decided based on my own courage. Or, lack there-of… Ryukana smiles after thinking this.

I truly am a coward. When Daniel was first transferred, I worried more about finding him than informing anyone else who might be able to help because I was afraid of the consequences. I wasn’t worried about his life. I was worried about my mistake coming out.

She looks seriously at Chaos who cocks her head. “Something to say, Ryukana?”

The violet haired former world manager doesn’t respond right away. I truly was complacent, wasn’t I? I pushed the boundaries repeatedly because I knew I would likely only be scolded, but I never truly had the courage to openly do what I felt was right, even if I was wrong. I wasn’t being scolded to stop me, necessarily, so much as to warn me of my consequences.

“I will observe the nature of my enemy, and I will help my new friends defend against it, even if it puts my existence at peril,” declares Ryukana proudly. “And, if my child tries to become an anomaly, I will do everything I can to discipline him or her back onto the right path. I will not simply allow the individuals to whom I’ve grown attached to simply be killed. If need be, Amalaskae and I will stop this anomaly. Please send me back. There are preparations I need to make.”

“Are you sure?” asks Chaos, knowing something that Ryukana doesn’t.

“Yes,” replies the subordinate Divine Being without a thought.

The goddess of entropy shrugs, and without even a flash of light or strange distortion, Ryukana is simply back in the Citadel, as if she blinked, but without having done so at that moment.

Almost immediately afterwards, she realizes…

Oh… I didn’t ask for any more information on the Anomaly woman.

She can hear Chaos’s voice snicker at her, as if knowing all along.

And, possibly as a reward for realizing it, Chaos whispers directly into Ryukana’s mind, “Daniel should be able to describe her to you soon enough. Good luuuuck~.”

Ryukana trusts that Daniel, Hekate, and the others will hear her out and trust her word. If Daniel himself has some piece of the puzzle, then Ryukana just needs to figure out how to ask him so he knows what she’s talking about.

If they prepare for everything, they might just stand a chance, no matter what their enemy is.

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