"Are you okay?" Keira asked her grandson. While she didn't understand why Mane was so shaken by the news, she could feel that something was wrong. However, that feeling didn't last for long; for the discomfort of the boy disappeared soon enough, and he flashed her a gentle smile.
"I am fine Grandmother," the title of the lady before him rolled so naturally off his tongue that Mane was actually a bit surprised by it. He didn't think it would be so easy to accept the woman before him as his own. Yet it was. There was just something about her kindness filled aura that drew him in and kept him confined to her heart.
"Good kid," Keira chuckled gleefully. She gently tousled Mane's hair like he was a child and not a man much bigger than her. Her wide grin was infectious, for Mane found himself bearing a mark much similar to it before he knew what was going on.
"And what of me?" Komfo Anokye tried to crush the party with his comments. Mane took one look at his sly smile and mercilessly crushed his spirit.
"And you are?"
"Pff" Keira giggled uncontrollably as Komfo Anokye's eyelids twitched so many times that one would have assumed that they weren't natural.
"Man, you really are cold," Hildegarde laughed lightly. To be honest, her laugh was a bit forced; for she hadn't forgotten that she had been no use to her Tested right now. She wasn't physically strong enough to be a threat and help out in life threatening battles. And now she wasn't good enough to pull his injured heart out of despair. She had no idea how Mane picked himself up, but it wasn't through her help. And that unsettled her a bit. SO she tried to push those thoughts away and replace them with new memories.
"I need to understand something," Mane stated when the laughter died down.
"What is it kid?" Komfo Anokye asked. The boy was fond of asking difficult questions and to be honest, Komfo Anokye wasn't too excited to hear him say that there was something else he sought. But he had already boarded the train of information giving, so he might as well go the whole way.
"You know about the Dreamscape and how I got here," Mane started. His granduncle revealed that he knew about Mane's test the moment they met. And this revelation he made with his earlier comments and with his revelation of his knowledge of Hildegarde. Mane hadn't forgotten about that. Now he sought to use that knowledge in his favor.
"So you should understand this better than I do," Mane took a deep breath and expanded his Status Window. He removed the "Seen Only By Me" option and made his status visible to his family members; his hand was pointed to one place and one place alone.
Of course Komfo Anokye took his sweet time to browse through the information before getting to the only one he was actually given the permission to view. And before he said anything, he tried to rile up his grandnephew.
"Great Stats. You are very strong for your age. Truly a genius at the Universe Level."
Mane wished he could pummel the old man into the ground. He was meant to look at just the part the young Supreme was pointing at, but obviously Komfo Anokye wasn't going to do just that. He wanted to see everything, and he did.
"That's not what I want you to see," Mane stated and Komfo Anokye's face was filled with surprise. The older man held on to his chest dramatically and said, "It's not?"
Mane looked at Keira with a tired expression on his face. His eyes said it all for through his blue eyes Keira could see the question concealed within. Those eyes simply asked, "Is he really your brother? Is he not adopted?"
Keira sighed exasperatedly and lightly shoved her brother. Komfo Anokye's antics only ceased once he was prompted by the only one here that could control him somewhat. With a resigned shrugs he returned to his business-like demeanor.
"Fine, I will tell you what I suspect." Mane's eyes sparkled slightly when he heard his granduncle's words. The number at the bottom of his screen worried him deeply. And this wasn't simply because when it was filled, he would have to leave those he loved. No; strangely enough, that wasn't Mane's worry. Initially the young boy was worried that the Progress Bar will be filled too quickly, yet when it displayed the number it was displaying now, Mane's worry towered above all else. Ironic, wasn't it? He worried when the number was too low, contemplating how much strength he would require to leave everything behind. And now when the number was high enough to make his earlier worry a headache, Mane's worry changed to something else.
"You are worried that it will never be filled up, aren't you?" Komfo Anokye asked while pointing at the number boldly displayed on the Status Window Screen.
"That isn't what disturbs me. I need to know what I must do to complete my mission." Mane explained.
"So that you can decide when exactly you get to leave," Komfo Anokye realized Mane's intent swiftly. The young boy wanted to be in control of everything. He wanted to know what else he had to do to finish his mission so that he would be the one to decide if he gets to leave or not. Mane doubted that defeating Pazuzu was necessary now. Maybe, before Shiva came it would have been imperative to defeat Pazuzu in order for Chaos to be born. Now however, Shiva had changed those requirements.
"You truly are a Supreme," Komfo Anokye sighed underneath his breath while his eyes remained fixed on the number that was causing Mane such a headache.
Progress Bar: 99%
Yes, Mane's Progress Bar had travelled all the way to the 99thpercentile!
This wasn't unusual, neither was it a great surprise. For Mane's battle with Shiva had birthed Chaos in this budding world, and that was the young Supreme's ultimate mission.
End Game: Birth Chaos
But here lied the issue of worry. If the main mission was to introduce Chaos into this world and Mane had done that, why then did his Progress Bar suggest that he wasn't finished? After all, the mission had nothing to do with how much Chaos would be birthed. Besides, eventually the Chaos that Mane birthed would grow large and potent enough to fill the entire world, and not just the sky outside Amalgamation. In a sense, his mission was complete. So why didn't his Status Window acknowledge this. The End Game still read as incomplete. Mane needed to know if he interpreted the mission wrong, or if there was something else he needed to do.
"Well, there are a few layers to this," Komfo Anokye parted his lips and began to explain what he thought was the problem. Mane listened attentively. He needed to know. Silver realized that something important was being discussed so he stopped playing with Mane's hair and settled down. And Hildegarde's curious eyes sparkled in anticipation.
"The first is that Shiva coming here distorted the balance of this Universe somewhat, and shifted the scales. If I had to venture a guess, defeating Pazuzu may have been the End Goal. But Shiva shifted the dial away from the Demon God a=to himself and helped you unlock the powers of Chaos here."
Mane nodded his head in agreement. The only reason Mane had been able to harness Harch's power was because of Shiva's appearance. If Shiva didn't appear, Mane wouldn't have accessed the Void. And if Mane didn't access the Void, he wouldn't have been able to use the Pure Chaotic power of Harch. For it would have remained dormant.
"That is the best bet to why your purpose remains unclear even after you have achieved your goal. As for you interpreting the mission wrong, I doubt it. I believe that the mission is exactly as it you thought it was. Your fight with Shiva brought much turmoil to the world, and the rich Chaotic Energy I feel here is enough proof that you were able to bring in Chaos to this young world."
"And this means that it can only be the less likely option."
"What option is that?" Mane asked impatiently. He was itching to know what his granduncle thought. He didn't know why he expected so much of the man, but Mane just felt that Komfo Anokye knew everything!
"I am getting to that," Komfo Anokye waved his hand annoyed. Mane hurriedly lifted his hands in apology and surrender. It was only when he had done such a thing that Komfo Anokye said what he ought to have said.
"The second option is simple really. I don't know why you haven't thought of it." Basileus shaded his grandnephew slightly. Mane just smiled bitterly, but Keira was having none of it. She elbowed Komfo Anokye so hard that the air he had breathed in decades ago almost forced its way out of him.
"Okay I will say," Komfo Anokye hurriedly surrendered when he saw his sister's elbow making a comeback. That last blow was given mercilessly, and he definitely didn't want to receive another one. His eyes gleamed in seriousness as the air around him changed. With some amount of hesitation and worry he stated the point he would rather Mane didn't gain from him. And he said,
"The last option is this: The World the fairies are referring to isn't just this one. They want you to introduce Chaos on a Universe Level."
"They want you to conquer the entire Dreamscape!"