15.5: The sea and the trees

The death of a god is a taxing situation. Not to bring it about specifically, just in general.

What is a god? After you have defined 'god', 'deity', etc, is the thing you just killed truly one? of the deities that is.

And if they were, how can I confirm they are dead?

What? I can't possibly know any of this! Why? What a stupid question. I have seen no such gods.

Before any 'attempts' on anyone's life, I should clear up something, shouldn't I? I don't want to, but I should.

The confusing instance in which Gardolf killed someone tied to an altar. It brings me no joy to recall such a thing but, a narrator must be clear in all they do, yes?

If you wished to kill the world, as an aforementioned 'god', what would you do?

Well, one solution, from the many many that exist, is such: Create a world of babies. No comprehensible 'adult' in sight. They can think and move, they just can't understand anything around them. Next, make sure that for each baby a specific move makes the world explode. They thrash and bash, perhaps even fight with another baby and accidentally blow up the world, less creative than one hopes but still, a solution nonetheless.

'people' in Queko- though I'd rather refer to them as 'traits'- were all born without the ability to understand one another. If this 'god' really wished for a peaceful end, why would they make it practically impossible to speak to one another, and be whole intellectually? This deity- though closer to a hobo with too much free time on his hands, that came down wishing for the people to 'fight' seems more like someone wishing for a massacre and only that.

The story of the man on the alter is a special one for sure, but maybe I'll go into it another time.

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What?

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Oh fine! I couldn't possibly say no to you! Haha...

In the land of the babies, something proclaiming itself an adult spoke to all and somehow, they understood them! Oh, joy! This scary world has some coherency! The one thing that lulls these babies to a sense of peace, for no reason at all!

Anyway, the babies were in awe, to say the least- some cried, some grew more terrified and most were determined to carry out their task... among other things they felt.

2 babies witnessed such a thing near one another. In their naked form, unable to hide themselves to whoever may be listening, they spoke their mind aloud.

"Goo," one baby said.

In response, the other baby said "Ga."

For the first time in their lives of ambiguous length, they understood one another! What a happy time it was for them all!

They talked of all and nothing- "buu."

They talked of things even beyond that- "baa."

In their endless back and forth, they found something common in one another:

Baby one: "but that thing in the sky was quite... beautiful, wasn't it? I can barely remember the word!"

Baby two: "Yeah, you'd be the one to forget such a thing, wouldn't you," the baby says with a chuckle.

Baby one: "It's the truth, though! Anything caring enough to guide the lost- to create such a wondeful world where I can talk with you, is as beautiful as can be," the first baby said- with a glaring assumption in the middle.

Baby two: "awww, how cheesy! hehe... But you are right in saying it's beautiful. I feel so much more relieved now, you know?" the second baby said, no ability to hide their feelings at all.

The babies had a love for the deity, so they called it such. walking around, more discoveries were made! A third baby!

Baby one: "H-hello?" baby one spoke in a tone- a scared one must I say.

Baby three: "Whoa!! I understand you?!" The third baby held back their tears. It must have been hard, baby three.

Baby one: "Hey! Me too!"

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Baby two did not speak. They looked shocked- or should I say confused? To be honest, I don't know the difference between the words myself. Neither did this baby, I am sure.

Baby two: "huh? You too what?"

baby one: "What? I understand him too."

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Baby three did not speak. They looked confused- or should I say shocked? What a weird language we speak!

To cut things short, babies two and three could not understand one another. How weird... Or not really so. With the natural progression of things, you'd guess the first baby's extension was to understand and to be understood. How would this trigger the end of the world? Why would it not?

Baby one, two and three spoke to each other using baby one as a medium. They spoke to all kinds of babies, and slowly, they amassed a large group of devotees to this 'deity'.

It is beautiful, so it must want us to 'fight' against the barrier between us. It is all-knowing so it must want us to be like it- through shared efforts.

The assumptions piled on, and the first meaning of "fighting" was born. Even then, Baby one and two had a special attraction to one another. Wanting to know one another even amongst the sea of babies, they named one another:

Baby one: "From now on, I'd like you to go by the name 'Fische'."

Fische: "Huh? What brought this up all of a sudden? That's the 'animal' you learned about recently, isn't it?" Fische spoke their words in a casual tone, but on the inside, they were as happy as could be. A happiness brighter than I'm used to. You have grown, Fische.

Baby one: "Yeah well I-"

Fische: "I know what you mean. You don't have to say another word, Leef"

Leef- apparently: "Oh come on! The plant? I don't want to be a plant!" Leef lied. No matter the meaning of the name, they would hold it dear simply because it was given to them by Fische. How sweet you are, Leef.

Fische: "Too bad! You gave me one so I'll give you one too. It's only fair," giving a hearty smile- quite a hard task seeing as they have no definite face features.

And so the custom of name-giving was born, and it spread like wildfire. Never again would they mistake one baby for the other, for they have numbered themselves. They built the first-ever colony, something unheard of at the time. One that would eventually fall, but not now.

The bond between Fische and Leef was ever so strong. Whenever someone new joined the colony, they would talk all night about the nee things they would learn.

When something new happened, they would always seek comfort in the views of one another- in the voice they grew to need so dearly.

It became harder and harder for such a large body of people to communicate through one person- and having to bare that position slowly ate Leef up inside.

Leef's time was gone. Their plentiful nights decreased in length by the day, until it was gone entirely.

Leef's mind- eventually, was gone. It did not matter what was said or what would be said, for in Leef's mind, conversation lost meaning.

Worst of all, there was talk of Leef's Fische being gone.

Oh, how they cried, how they howled. It broke them out of their unoccupied state. Mentally, that is. They would not dare say it, but their beloved was gone.

Yet, the next day Fische came up and knocked on Leef's door.

Unable to hold back, Leef spoke the sinful words, of a sinful feeling they had seen before.

"I love you."

After the happiest moment of their life, Fische killed Leef. They cried themselves to sleep that night. They killed their love, they heard such sweet words and yet, they took their happiness away. Or should I say, the world did.

One must not fall in love with themselves. One must not be attracted to oneself. To lust for yourself is to birth the ego. Kill your love before they as you know them are gone. More horrendously, before you're gone.

Fische's extension was that of eternal life. If they die- and they so pleased- they could come back to life.

The colony built over a love for a deity unanimously agreed to a deal with a colony made by one man. I think they went by "Aide," though the details are unclear. Fische was to be strapped to an alter for eternity.

Using Aide's seemingly god-like power, they made it so that the one who held the extension of 'the choice for eternal life' would only give away Leef's ability. After a few tests, it resulted in a peculiar instance where- though only the extension of communication was handed down- the bearer of eternal life would still revive with the same ability. A copy of an extension! How vile.

The bearer of eternal life would be strapped down, killed then made to come back to life. For all eternity, for the prosperity of peace and communication, they would suffer. But it is not Fische to this day that suffers, for they gave up the first time they were killed. Thus forcing Fische's ability to the last person that killed them- passing the crown of pain onto them.

You are not allowed to disappear, after all.

Hears to the one that was stretched in death, hears to the one forced to kill their love.

I spit on the cult that made it this way.