There was no mirror in this strange space; everything was white and bright, with no other color sharing in their radiance. Mane didn't have anything he could use to check his reflection. There was no way he'd be able to see what they saw. Besides, the changes in his eyes had disappeared; they were back to normal now.
"Have you ever heard the myth of the True Eyes?" Ananse asked. After Mane's eyes returned to their normal color, Indra was finally able to pull himself out of his dazed state. He stood on the side and allowed Ananse to have her chat with Mane.
"No, I haven't. Do you care to enlighten me" Mane politely requested. "Since I asked you about it, I would naturally be willing to tell you about it." Ananse nodded. She waved her hand, a movement that led to the appearance of three spotlessly white chairs in the already plain space. It was an action that had Mane thinking that this dimension created by Indra only had white stuff. And although he was surprised at Ananse's ability to manipulate this dimension, he didn't make any enquiries. Right now, he was more interested in the thing Ananse referred to as True Eyes. The fact that Ananse saw it fit to summon a few chairs, meant that the story was likely going to be a long one. After they were all seated- a task that took next to no time- Ananse parted her luscious lips and started her story.
"The universe we live in is as fascinating as it is broad. And just like every other object of intrigue, it has several mysteries that envelope it. From the seven great mysteries of the cosmos, to the fable of the lost gods, the universe has much to offer the curious mind. It only requires that we be brave enough to pursue its wonder. One of these wonders is the True Eyes. I do not mean to look down on all the other things that boggle the mind; it is not my intention to vilify them, but the True Eyes hold more weight to the universe than most. During the primitive times, long before the reign of the gods and the division of the universe into the 7 heavens, the origin divine artefacts watched over this land. This was before the Great War of Order and Chaos; it was long before order abnegated its seat and went into a deep slumber."
Mane listened silently to Ananse's words, though he was aware of most of what she was saying. He learned about the Great War of Chaos and Order from his masters. Apparently, this war had shaped the budding universe and paved the way for the gods to rule. He didn't necessarily need to be informed about it again, but he knew it was only her introduction. She was just building up to the main topic, so all he could do was wait silently for her to get there. And looking at Indra's serene expression, Mane knew that the god was no different from him. It came as no surprise. After all, Indra was a god. It was highly unlikely that he wouldn't know about the events that led to the beginning of the era.
"Just like all other creatures that have sentience, origin divine artefacts had a leader- a king." Ananse paused to allow her words to sink in. Her decision was the right one, for Indra had his brows raised in surprise, and Mane was looking at her doubtfully. He had been told the story of the times before the God Era- the Primitive Era. What he knew was that the Chaotic Flames and the Book of Order had been after each other's throats since their creation. It was after their hatred for each other had grown so large that the two origin divine artefacts waged their war. But it was his first time hearing about a king.
"It is unbelievable, isn't it?" Ananse smiled. Mane nodded his head in response, yet Indra did no such thing. "I have known you for a while now. I know that you know what most people don't. So far, you have never been wrong. I believe your words." He insisted.
Ananse didn't show any change in expression at his words. But to be fair, it wasn't like Indra would be able to see it if she did show a reaction. Only Mane could see Ananse right now. It was almost as if Indra's opinions mattered little to her. But that wasn't the reason why she didn't show any reaction to his words. She expected that he would believe her. After all, she had fed him with a lot of information in the past years, and she had never been wrong. No matter how ridiculous her information seemed, she was seldom wrong. It would be more surprising if Indra didn't believe her words.
"Well, although it sounds strange, these sentient artefacts had a king. Just like all other sentient artefacts, he was known by his function, he didn't truly have a name. He was called the All- Seeing Eyes. And as you may have guessed, he was an artefact that could see through everything. But this is where things get strange. Although he was referred to as the All- Seeing Eyes, he wasn't just a pair of eyes floating around. He was the only origin divine artefact to possess a human body from his creation. That was the only form he knew. The only difference between the All- Seeing Eyes, who was mostly referred to as the Origin King, and humans was the fact that he possessed two pairs of eyes- not one. There was an extra pair of eyes located on his forehead"
Indra was stunned by the revelation. Mane didn't know much about origin divine artefacts but Indra wasn't as ignorant. He was a god, and had come across a few origin divine artefacts several millions of years ago. All these artefacts could take on the human form, but that wasn't their inherent nature. The Eternal Throne was a prime example. This artefact was inherently a chair. And it was more comfortable being a chair, than it was taking on the form of a human. That was how all origin divine artefacts were. For him to be told that there was an artefact that was made in the shape of a human being, he was right to be startled.
Looking at Indra's exaggerated expression, and leaning over to 'kindly' close the mouth of the disoriented god, Mane asked, "Is it that shocking for an origin divine artefact to possess the form of a human. I heard that they can do that anyway."
"It is different. They can take on the human form, but they aren't comfortable in that state. They would rather prefer to be in their natural states. Besides, the human form takes quite the toll on them if they use it for too long. So they mostly revert to their true nature and rarely transform into humans. For an origin divine artefact to be made in the form of a human is shocking. It proves that the minority faction of the gods is right" Indra stepped up to explain the reason for his surprise, trying to hide his embarrassment from having a child help him to close his mouth.
"Minority faction of the Gods?" Mane looked at Indra perplexedly. "Yes, the minority faction. Gods aren't as united as you think. Even under the same heaven, gods are divided. The god society is very complex. There is a small group of the god society that believe that there is an absolute ruler of the universe. They believe that this ruler made the origin divine artefacts and created the Universe Will. The Ruler then created the gods and then disappeared. I am one of these people. And I'm sure you've guessed that your father is one as well" Ananse explained.
Mane nodded at her words. Once she mentioned the beliefs of this small group of gods, Mane guessed that his father was one of such gods. After all, the faith of the Brute King was no secret.
"Until now I believed that you people were crazy. After all, if there was an absolute ruler, why would he leave? But if your words are true, which I'm inclined to believe they are, then I have judged too quickly." Indra admitted. He was part of the gods that had rubbished this idea of the absolute ruler. To him, those who believed in such a tale were just gods who had nothing to live for. He didn't know that his secret informant was one of them. If he had known, he may have had a different impression of them, but it still wouldn't have swayed his beliefs.
It was different now. If Ananse's words were true, then it was almost certain that there was an absolute ruler out there. After all, even if he went by the theory that origin divine artefacts were tools that came to be all on their own, it was hard to accept that one who was like a human, also came to be all on its own.