High Priest Induchemara stood on his balcony and looked out over the great forest sprawling in all directions away from his mansion. A smile spread across his face as the quiet night was suddenly pierced by the ominous shrieks and howls emanating from deep within the mist shrouded boscage below him. The jungle was inhabited by all manner of sinister and ghastly creatures. They were there to protect him from the ever present threat of the enemy who was always hot on his heels. These eldritch monstrosities were some of his earliest, and proudest, creations. Together he and his cohort of scientists, doctors, and magicians had conjured up these egesome wraiths from the depths of their brilliant minds. Combining molecular genealogy, black magic, and scientific research from the farthest reaches of the cosmos, these creatures' existence was nothing short of miraculous. A testament to his sheer power and ingenuity. This was Induchemara’s favorite mansion. He never came here to work. It was strictly for pleasure. He really needed some rest and relaxation too. Lately his army had suffered too many frustrating setbacks and defeats. He was used to wreaking havoc on his enemies, to have the tables suddenly shifted irked him tremendously. All this was about to change though, after he had some fun tonight of course. With the woods infested with his progeny of fearsome creations - he could get some much needed rest and a frolic with his harem which attended to him and his generals as they traveled throughout the cosmos.Despite these drastic security measures he was hardly ever more than a step or two ahead of the enemy. As such he could not stay in one place for more than a night. There had been too many close calls whenever he had been tempted to stay in one place too long.  He sauntered over to his favorite chair and flopped into it with a long sigh. Taking a long sip of his fermented beverage he let out a long sigh, then rested his head against the chair’s soft cushion. Gazing up at the moon he let his mind carry him back to this very balcony an eon ago. Much like tonight he had been enjoying the cool evening in relative safety when a light rap at his door signaled a profound and unexpected shift in his strategy. One which had set him profoundly behind schedule… The knock at the door surprised the High Priest. Annoyed he turned and looked at the clock over the mantel. It was too early for his harem. He had requested they arrive half an hour after dinner. Who could it be? He fumed to himself before bellowing “Enter!” Too long after giving his command the door handle jiggled and in walked one of his newest generals. The delay they had exercised in executing his simple command only served to infuriate him further than he already was at having his peace disturbed. “What is it?” Induchemara barked. “Begging your pardon my liege but there has been a development.” the intruder said as she snapped a hardy salute. It was Induchemara’s newest general. The respect and honor she had afforded him with her smart salute put him slightly at ease. However, what she said next plunged him back into fury. “The enemy agent which had infiltrated your order on planet Nu…” she stammered. Then catching a brief bout of courage she continued on her voice more level this time. “We disposed of them as you ordered. However, Brahamin sent them back!” “What do you mean back!?” shrieked Induchemara. “They never send anyone back after they’ve been eliminated.” “You’re correct. However, we are just now discovering this baseline-organic-being was not be the first to have been sent back. Others have chosen to go back and Brahamin sends them. How we are not quite certain…” the general’s voice trailed off as Induchemara spun around and stormed out onto the balcony. Right under my very nose the enemy infiltrated the 13th realm. I thought it was a ruse, a mere game of smoke and mirrors meant to distract me so I played along. Induchemara muttered to himself under his breath. Instead this “secret agent” was the plan and now they had exposed the lattice of lies he had deftly created there. The measures I put in place to mask the perfect order of enslavement that afforded me nearly unlimited resources and power. My proudest achievement and now it is all under threat! It was truly the most audacious scheme he had ever pulled off. What his enemy had done though, he never saw coming. Being caught off balance like this was totally unacceptable. Someone would pay dearly for this. He could not risk losing the source from which he gained the lion share of his power. The power came from harnessing the hate, anger, and greed of the ‘baseline-organic-beings’ of that puny world. Yet somehow the enemy agent had infiltrated his realm and under the disguise of the dogma no less!  I have to act - and fast. Induchemara thought to himself as he paced back and forth on his balcony. The fact he was backed into a corner made him furious. His enemy had set in motion the unraveling of his perfect creation. They had begun something that would inevitably turn them against him. “Have the spies from our network uncovered anything?” Induchemara asked the rigid general in his foyer. “Reports are flooding in that the exposure of the foundation of your impeccably perfect deception is fully known by the enemy… At this moment they are celebrating.” Induchemara slammed his fist down on the balcony railing “What do you mean celebrating!?” “Reports suggest it is the largest party the cosmos has ever bore witness to.” the general replied evenly as sweat began dripping down her face. Delivering bad news to the High Priest hardly ever ended well for the messenger. Still though it was always worse than not delivering the information. “Even larger than the one at the beginning?” Induchemara asked quietly, referring to the bacchanalia where the cosmos’s most exclusive guests had made merry when he had unleashed a self-replicating, evolving slave race. This brilliant achievement had assured him a nearly unending supply of life to power his macabre rites of maleficium. Recalling to mind the celebration at the birth of a new age; one which had ushered in the promise to propel him to the heights of grandeur and power brought a smile to his face. He was afterall one of the most influential beings in the cosmos. This turn of events was just a mere speed bump on his upward trajectory to supreme greatness. ![[multiverse-ii4.jpg]] He had grown sick of living under the heel of such a pathetic ruler obsessed with love, feelings, compassion, and altruism. Fuck all that crap! That rage is what had driven him to craft this brilliant counterpoint to his enemies weak and flawed system.  Living in that order was an age he had found to be absolutely deplorable. But that was neither here nor there. That order had been destroyed and he had seen to it personally. The process of reordering had been messy but it had set the stage for his devious and dark plan to overthrow The Great Queen Mother and assume her throne. “Who’s at the party?” Induchemara asked the general, not because he cared but because he wanted to know who had turned against him. “Eridanus and Cassiopeia are at the party, and Kapteyn is there too…” “Kapteyn is there?! They traveled quite far to be there...” Induchemara seethed.  They refused my earlier invitation citing the distance. I knew it was a lie, this only serves to confirm my suspicion. The High Priest thought to themself as they reached for their half drunk beverage and finished it in one long swig.  “Kapteyn must have even dared cross the supremely dangerous Virgo barrier!” “Yes my liege. There is even a rumor the Great Thunderbird is in attendance. I am working to confirm this intel as we speak…” the general said as she shifted her weight nervously from foot to foot. Induchemara whistled to himself in surprise. If it were true it had to be some party, and its sole purpose was to celebrate **he** the mightiest and greatest legerdemain the cosmos had ever known, and would ever know had been tricked! The rage he was feeling would have been intolerable except for the fact he knew they were about to suffer horribly at its hand. Why? Because at that very moment Induchemara was already plotting his revenge. The one being honored had defeated his greatest creation, a force which had threatened to consume the delicate balance of life the High King and The Great Queen Mother had so foolishly nurtured into existence. Induchemara’s kingdom on the other hand was truly a masterpiece. Built upon desire, power, and anger  - tangible traits were so much more resilient than the pathetic and frail balance they had created. But now his masterpiece was on the verge of being destroyed. In an instant he knew what he needed to do - in a desperate act of survival, he would send messengers to the farthest realms of his dominion to gather his armies. Let them celebrate now, but already his mind was racing with how he could capitalize on this defeat and turn the tides of the war back in his favor. He would funnel his anger into action. He would watch and wait in the darkness, for the perfect opportunity to unleash the maelstrom of revenge was already beginning to form in his mind. His troops would begin amassing soon enough and the best part was the enemy had no idea he had already pivoted. Rather brilliantly he mused with a snicker. While they were drinking, laughing, and happy - his devious plot was unfolding. The thought of the shock, dismay, and fear they would experience as they watched their kingdom crumble before their very eyes brought a touch of happiness to his otherwise glowering persona. It was just enough happiness in fact he decided to spare the life of this general standing before him. She was new and held great promise. He could use her shame in this defeat as leverage to push her farther than he had originally intended… --- A howl from deep inside the jungle snapped Induchemara out of his reverie about which had transported him to the unfortunate evening an eon ago. A chill ran down his spine and secretly he hoped it wasn’t a premonition of what was to be. He shifted in his seat and took the last sip from his mug. He hadn’t thought about that day in a long time. _I wonder what dredged up that old memory?_ The High Priest thought to himself. Oh well; now - finally, the magicians and amorphous shamans whose sorcery had been carried out in total secrecy, was finished. Under his cunning leadership and acumen they had developed a new generation of unfathomably powerful weapons.The battle between him and his diametrically opposed foe had reached a fevered pitch. The battle had begun an eon ago when the spy, a mere baseline organic being, had been planted by The Great Queen Mother right under his nose. He had been mistaken about how powerful a baseline organic being could be. It was a mistake he was intent on not making again. Over the last eon his strategy to supplant the supreme rule of the universe had proceeded wonderfully. Disguising greed, anger, and hate as love was sheer brilliance. With this clever camouflage Nu was a hell-scape of insanity disguised as beauty and love. It was a truly exquisite masquerade to watch unfold. Induchemara was beside himself with glee with what he had accomplished and what would soon become the tale of his final ascent to greatness.  Then there was a hesitant barely perceptible knock at the door and for just the tiniest moment Induchemara’s heart sank. There was something about the knock told him it was someone bearing bad news. They always pounded on the door with gusto when there was some great victory to announce. He took a deep breath and bellowed: “Who dares disturb me? Enter if you dare!” A moment later a minion entered, for the life of him Induchemara could never remember their name. “What is it!?” he roared in contempt. “My Lord, General Visimo is here to see you,” the forgotten minion announced weakly. “Very well, send him in,” Induchemara replied as he walked towards the planning table strewn with maps and personnel rosters. “How is our strategy faring today?” he asked as the General stumbled in. In that instant he knew there was a problem. General Visimo was sweating, and he never sweated unless he had bad news to deliver. “My Lord, phase two is nearly complete…” “WHAT?! What do you mean "nearly complete?” Induchemara screeched. “Well, my Lord, there was a surprise attack. The mother of your secret weapons….” General Visimo stuttered. “Spit it out already!” Induchemara sputtered in a seething rage… “She was flung into space following a massive explosion. We have been unable to find her… She may have been lost to M8.” General Visimo suggested. “A surprise attack?” Induchemara questioned calmly. “Yes, my liege. We aren’t sure how the enemy slipped past our sentries. Initial reports state it may have been a baseline-organic-being. The enemy knew exactly where to look and what to hit us with. I have never seen anything like it!” _It would appear he had been conjuring up his own secret weapon using old strategy. The Great Queen Mother was so blasé, never coming up with anything new. Always the same boring, bland, old shit.._ Induchemara fumed to himself as he turned and stared at the wall. The general may have never seen anything like this but he had. “How could this be happening again?” Induchemara said out loud without realizing. “Excuse me, your highness?” General Visimo stammered his voice dripping with fear. He really did not relish being in the High Priest's presence and wanted to leave as quickly as possible. “Nothing. Never mind.” Induchemara snapped. “I just needed a moment to think…” his voice trailed off as he began pacing back and forth lost in thought. ### Next Chapter: [[13 - Two + Two = Four 🧮]] ### Previous Chapter: [[11 - Visitation 🌉]]