Graiouys was just chatting with its youngling of a boy about the nature of they own culture. Graiouys repeated to him the lessons about their races biology which he often wished to forget. Unlike his uncle Zreiouys, he had a sense of alienation from his race, he was the only one who possessed human emotions. Of course no one cared about his differences, not even his uncle who was a proper Old God. But he felt alone because of his difference.
Zreiouys looked at his uncle with a mixture of curiosity and boredom. He had heard this lecture many times before, but he still hoped to find some meaning in it.
"Graiouys, why do we exist?" he asked, interrupting the old god's monologue.
Graiouys blinked its single eye and tilted its head. "Exist? We do not exist, Zreiouys. We are. We always were and always will be. Existence implies a beginning and an end, and we have neither."
Zreiouys frowned. He knew that his uncle was right, but he still felt unsatisfied. He wanted to know more about their origins, their purpose, their destiny. He wanted to know why they were different from the other beings in the higher dimensions, and why they were so indifferent to them.
"But Graiouys, don't you ever wonder about the other races? The ones who live and die, who love and hate, who create and destroy? Don't you ever feel curious about them?"
Graiouys shook its head. "No, Zreiouys. I do not. They are irrelevant to us. They are like dust in the wind, fleeting and insignificant. We are the old gods, Zreiouys. We are beyond them. We have no need for curiosity, or any other emotion for that matter."
Zreiouys felt a pang of sadness in his chest. He did not understand how his uncle could be so cold and detached. He did not understand how his race could be so isolated and aloof. He did not understand himself.
He looked at his plate, where a strange assortment of food was arranged. He had no appetite for any of it. He only ate because his uncle insisted that it was good for him.
"Graiouys, can I ask you something?" he said softly.
"Of course, Zreiouys. You can ask me anything."
Graiouys smiled kindly at its nephew. It was fond of him, in its own way. It saw him as a potential successor, a worthy heir to its power and knowledge. It wanted to teach him everything it knew, and make him a true old god.
"Graiouys, do you ever dream?"
Graiouys blinked again. It was surprised by the question.
"Dream? No, Zreiouys. I do not dream. Why do you ask?"
Zreiouys looked into his uncle's eye. He saw nothing but emptiness.
"Because I do, Graiouys. I dream every night. And sometimes, I have nightmares."
Graiouys felt a flicker of interest in its mind.
"Really? What do you dream about?"
Zreiouys hesitated. He was not sure if he should tell his uncle the truth.
He dreamed about the other races. He dreamed about their lives, their struggles, their joys and sorrows. He dreamed about their worlds, their cultures, their histories and futures.
He dreamed about being one of them.
He also had nightmares about them. He had nightmares about their wars, their plagues, their disasters and deaths. He had nightmares about their suffering, their fear, their despair and rage.
He had nightmares about being one of them.
He decided to lie to his uncle.
"I dream about... nothing important."
Graiouys nodded sagely.
"I see. Well then, Zreiouys, let me tell you something important."
Graiouys leaned closer to its nephew and spoke in a solemn tone.
"Dreams are illusions, Zreiouys. They are products of your imagination, nothing more. They have no bearing on reality. They are distractions from your true nature."
Graiouys touched its nephew's forehead with its tentacle.
"You are an old god, Zreiouys. You have powers beyond comprehension. You can bend time and enter dreams at will. You can shape reality to your liking."
Graiouys smiled warmly at its nephew.
"You have a great potential, Zreiouys. You can be anything you want to be."
Zreiouys felt a surge of energy in his mind.
He also felt a surge of doubt in his heart.
Zreiouys nodded politely at his uncle. He did not want to argue with him. He knew that Graiouys meant well, and that he was only trying to help him.
But he also knew that he was lying to himself.
He did not want to be anything he wanted to be. He wanted to be something he was not.
He wanted to be human.
He had always felt a strange attraction to the human race. He had watched them from afar, through their dreams and nightmares. He had seen their beauty and their ugliness, their strength and their weakness, their wisdom and their folly.
He had seen them live and die.
He had felt something for them. Something that his race did not have.
He had felt empathy.
He had felt compassion.
He had felt love.
He did not understand these feelings. He did not know where they came from, or what they meant. He only knew that they made him feel alive.
They also made him feel guilty.
He knew that he was betraying his race. He knew that he was violating their laws. He knew that he was risking their wrath.
He knew that he was playing with fire.
But he could not help himself.
He wanted to know more about the humans. He wanted to talk to them, to touch them, to be with them.
He wanted to be one of them.
He had a plan.
He had been working on it for a long time. He had been studying the human world, learning their languages, their customs, their history. He had been preparing his disguise, his identity, his cover story.
He had been waiting for the right moment.
And now, it was here.
"Graiouys, I have something to tell you." he said suddenly.
Graiouys looked at him with curiosity.
"What is it, Zreiouys?"
Zreiouys took a deep breath. He was about to tell the biggest lie of his life.
"Graiouys, I want to go on a journey."
Graiouys raised its eyebrow. It was surprised by the request.
"A journey? Where do you want to go?"
Zreiouys smiled nervously. He hoped that his uncle would not see through his deception.
"I want to go... to the lower dimensions."
Graiouys frowned. It was puzzled by the choice.
"The lower dimensions? Why would you want to go there? There is nothing of interest there. Only chaos and confusion."
Zreiouys shrugged. He tried to sound casual.
"I don't know, Graiouys. I just feel... curious. I want to see what's out there. I want to explore the unknown."
Graiouys shook its head. It did not understand its nephew's motivation.
"But Zreiouys, you already know everything there is to know. You are omniscient, remember? You can see everything that has ever happened or will ever happen in any dimension. What more do you need?"
Zreiouys looked into his uncle's eye. He saw nothing but certainty.
"Graiouys, there is a difference between knowing and experiencing. I want to experience things for myself. I want to feel things for myself."
Graiouys sighed. It did not agree with its nephew's logic, but it did not want to argue with him either.
It decided to humor him.
"Very well, Zreiouys. If you really want to go on a journey, I will not stop you. But you must be careful. The lower dimensions are dangerous places. They are full of traps and pitfalls. They are full of beings who are hostile and unpredictable."
Graiouys smiled reassuringly at its nephew.
"But you have nothing to fear, Zreiouys. You are an old god, after all. You have powers beyond comprehension. You can bend time and enter dreams at will. You can shape reality to your liking."
Graiouys touched its nephew's forehead with its tentacle again.
"You have a great potential, Zreiouys. You can be anything you want to be."
Zreiouys felt another surge of energy in his mind.
He also felt another surge of doubt in his heart.
Zreiouys thanked his uncle for his permission and his blessing. He hugged him and said goodbye. He told him that he would be back soon, and that he would tell him everything he saw and did.
He lied.
He had no intention of coming back. He had no intention of telling him anything.
He had a secret.
He had a destination.
He had a name.
He was going to Earth.
He was going to meet her.
Her name was Alice.
She was a human.
She was his dream.
He had seen her in her dreams many times. He had fallen in love with her at first sight. He had watched her grow up, from a child to a woman. He had seen her joys and sorrows, her hopes and fears, her successes and failures.
He had seen her live.
He wanted to be with her.
He wanted to make her happy.
He wanted to make her his.
He had a plan.
He had created a human body for himself, identical to hers. He had implanted false memories in his mind, matching hers. He had forged documents and records for himself, matching hers.
He had become her twin brother.
He had found out where she lived, where she worked, where she hung out. He had arranged to meet her at a coffee shop, pretending to be a long-lost sibling who had been separated from her at birth.
He had rehearsed his lines, his gestures, his expressions.
He was ready.
He opened a portal to Earth. He stepped through it. He closed it behind him.
He was gone.
Graiouys watched him go with a smile on its face. It was proud of its nephew. It was happy for him. It wished him well.
It lied.
It knew what he was doing. It knew where he was going. It knew who he was meeting.
It knew his secret.
It knew his destination.
It knew his name.
It knew Alice.
It knew her better than he did.
It knew her dreams and nightmares. It knew her past and future. It knew her thoughts and feelings. It knew her secrets and lies.
It knew her fate.
It had seen it in its mind. It had seen it in the lower dimensions. It had seen it in the human world.
It had seen it in time.
It had seen him die.