It was cold… this power.
I'd felt death before… Embraced it once. But the sensation coursing through my blood, my meridians, was different. Be it my sense of smell, touch, hearing, taste, or sight, I felt my senses shut down one after the other. My perception as a whole died. Whether it was from my physique or from my soul, it vanished, plunging me into darkness or perhaps oblivion.
Locked in a state where I didn't know if I was alive or dead, fear did not sink in as I'd thought. That shook me to my core. I was quite used to darkness… but what lay before me merely gave the appearance of darkness. The darkness was noble. It was silent, regal, ethereal, bearing the weight of all things.
'PING'
Drawn away from the depths of this false illusion by the sounds of a soft 'key,' a vibrant flash sprang over my vision, and before I knew it… I stood in a classy lounge that seemed right out of a film. The echoes of the piano playing to the notes of my soul. Each note was gentle, carrying a soft melody that reminded me of… Mother.
Of her gentle smile, of her smell as she sang me lullabies.
"Altair?" An effeminate voice reached me as I turned. My heart shook at the sight of a woman I'd never seen before. Her eyes were an enchanting blue similar to an azure star, stunning as they were enthralling. She smiled, treading her slender fingers through her hair, which seemed to be have spun from gold. "No… You are not her. We felt her soul leave her body long ago. Yet you carry her scent. How'd you get here?"
I gulped, unsure what was happening. "Who—"
"Ah~ I know you. Your Master Abyss's chosen!" She smiled, performing a curtsy. Her movements were graceful and well practiced, as if she'd performed it a million times. "Rhea of the Abyss, it's an honor to finally meet you. Arsene Snow, child of Altair."
"You… You know my Mother?"
Rhea frowned. "Cuff your palms, or is it you find my presence discourteous? "
My brow shot up for but a moment as I smoothly smiled. "Not at all. Etiquette has never been my strong suit.' I told her, cuffing my palms.
"This Realm…" Rhea began, stopping as she accepted my greeting with a nod. "This Realm demands respect, Arsene. It's a realm of beings that not even… the likes of Hellmaster can act freely." She sighed, finding a smile. "You're nothing like your Mother. She was far colder."
"The sweetness is strong in me. What can I say."
With a giggle, Rhea backed away, her enthralling blue eyes narrowing. "But you two are just as prideful. Welcome Arsene Snow to the Realm of the Exultant, the Red Queen."
"The Red Queen?" I looked around at the various decor that shone a color of red. "Did Abyss come up with that name?"
"She did," Rhea said. "Yahweh is here. He's the one playing." she pointed out, nudging her head for me to follow after her. She twirled her fiery red dress, weaving through the air. I followed after her, noticing I, too, had been dressed in a black six-piece suit. "We've actually gone through quite a few names. The Velvet Room, Court of End, Omnis, and so forth. This is but a new incarnation."
"It's a classic. I like it." I told her. And I quite meant it. It was calming, bearing a weight that calmed the soul. So much so… I felt like I didn't quite belong, yet the more I followed after Rhea, the more I wanted to stay: it was quite a paradoxical sensation.
Following the sound of music, I saw more than one private room, numbered from one to twelve in Roman numerals.
"You'll be able to enter them one day," Rhea told me. "You seem to be stepping into a realm none of us thought possible for the likes of your kind. First Paragon, now Archaeon. I wonder what'll be next. You Snows are really something. And the cause of it was all because of your Mother."
"You keep mentioning Mother. Why?"
She turned to me, her blue eyes slowly becoming stained red. "Because it was Altair that caused this chained reaction. It was she who first came to this realm." She laughed, a peculiar glow that burned in her eyes, causing my feet to pause. "Your Mothers' level of comprehension was unmatched, even to this day. It was something that even surpassed our weakest member. But she was no Progenitor or Primodial. She was a mere forsaken. A child of all things. One from a broken world."
"I don't… I don't understand."I confessed. "What does that have to do with anything?"
The mist of red in Rhea's eyes dissipated. "Your Mother… was a monster. One so talented for the first time since the beginning, we felt… fear."
"Yet she died," I said, frowning.
"She was bound to die anyway. " Rhea gently explained as she approached a set of double doors. "Her comprehension was too great for her body and soul. Especially since it was so badly damaged when she entered this realm. The moment she entered the Red Queen. Death was her only path. However… Zariel then came along, piercing a hole through the veil to Paragon. And now you."
"What is this place." I couldn't help ask. "Who are you? No, what are you?"
She grinned, pushing open the door as the vibrant chimes of classical echoed through my body and mind, drowning out random thoughts I didn't know I had.
I stood in an empty bar. My eyes landed on Yahweh playing without care, his technique without flaw. But that wasn't a surprise. He was the highest peak of all power.
"I told you they'd be another," Yahweh said as his fingers danced over the keys.
You're all-knowing, even to the likes of us."
"Before you is but a clone. That ability belongs to my real body." Yahweh said, pausing, and turned to me, smiling. "You play piano, right? Or at least you did."
"That was a long, long time ago," I told him, cupping my palms. Rhea followed in suit, performing a deep curtsy.
"Such a shame you are wasting your talent." Yahweh stood up, offering me a glance. "You miss my sister just now. I'm sure she'd have loved to meet you. Although, you'd have exploded into a fine mist the moment you opened those doors. Abyss lacks control. She always has." He stepped towards the bar. "Well? What would you like to drink."
"Oh!" Rhea yelped with surprise. "A Red Vesper Martini."
"... Surprise me."
Observing nearly losing my damn mind finding it difficult to process the Father of All things making me a drink. I found a seat on a nearby stool and waited silently. I couldn't help but wonder if this was reality.
Was I knocked out by Tamiel or Enoch, or was I this out of touch?
"Lord Yahweh… Why am I here?"
"Lord?" he laughed. " Please just call me Yahweh. And you're here… well because you are being reborn as we speak."
"Huh?"
He procured a glass for Rhea and me. " Yep. In a few more seconds on the outside, a new manner of beast will birth itself into the world. The Archaeon will appear, and with it: Chaos." Scarlet liquid streamed with the laminar flow, appearing not as moving water despite our glasses filling. "Of course… whether you succeed or not… is up to you. So, while you still can. I request a song. Play me something, Arsene Snow."