Part 5

Hello everyone Auren again. I've been running from some rather strange-looking men and women wearing all-black suits. I kept seeing them out of the corner of my eye when I would walk to a store to get food. Strangely enough, they seem to stay just out of sight where I can see them but as soon as I try to focus on them they disappear. I don't like being followed in all my adventures I have had something following me never came to be good. While I am safe I have another place to tell you about. This one was directly after meeting with Alex.

After a quick flash of light, I was transported to a new dimension. Oddly enough while I was traveling I was able to see the space in-between the dimensions. It looked to be a blank empty page, a white canvas ripe for painting. In the distance, I can see scribbles appearing on the page like words were being written on the page. I couldn't make it out as it was so far but as soon as I was about to read the first line I was flashed into a new universe.

The song of birds was filling the air. The gentle call of the wind and the trees rustling their leaves dancing to the music of the wind. It was the most beautiful place I have ever seen. Serenity was the definition of this place it was as if this place was the concept of peace. It was just a moment of bliss in my otherwise hopeless future. The smell of sweet flowers and the songs of birds filled the air. I was in a daze of bliss when a woman walked up to me. Naturally, I was very defensive and stood up in shock. "Whoa easy there, I just thought I saw lightning strike my field here but it was just you. Are you ok stranger?" The mysterious woman approached me with a smile with soft expression. I looked in confusion as she was dressed head to toe in leaves and vines. "I... uh. Yes, I'm fine. Just where am I?"

The mysterious woman answered, "Uh let's start with the name my name is Tikvah what's your stranger?" I looked puzzled it's not every day I see someone of such immaculate beauty and pose. "Uh sorry! My name is Auren... Auren Da'at" She looked at me and smiled before she said "Well Auren. Nice to meet cha! Why are you here? Do you need help?" I smiled back awkwardly. I never knew someone can pull at my heart with just a smile. I felt like an ice cube and she was the sun. Warming me and making me melt at the same time. "Yes... I need to talk to you and whomever else I can" She waved at me and pointed at what was her home "Well let's sit down and talk I would like to know why are you wearing such a strange get-up." I was a little confused about her dialect and slang but SUIT was able to explain it to me "I uh... Built this suit. It's made of very advanced technology I can't explain in detail right now" She scratched her head "Techwhat? Never mind let's get inside and warm up some tea. We can talk then"

We looked at each other and she held her hand out so I grabbed it assuming that's what she wanted and we walked hand to hand together. Was this what love felt like? Did I meet someone who I am compatible with? We got to the house, as I walked in the front of the home was made of all wood. It looked like it was one large tree that was shaped into a home. The more I looked the more I was certain. The wood was all one piece and wasn't a single carving mark at all. Down to the table and chairs. "Is this..... How is this made?" She looked at me puzzled again. I learn to love that face. Such innocence and wonder. "What do you mean? The world tree provides us a home silly. You know that!" I looked back into her green eyes. They looked like I was staring into a forest during dusk or dawn. As if the light was shining through bright green leaves.

"Whatcha starin' at Auren? Are you ok?" She responded I shook my head to snap out of my trance. I was swooning into this woman... for the first time In my life, I felt hope. "I was lost in your eyes my apologies. I need to speak about an issue but I need to run some tests... wait.. your home is from a tree? So this is one tree?" She laughed and blushed a little "Well Auren, You sound new somehow you don't know what the world tree is? We are just on a branch high in the sky. Here I'll show you!" She gestured me to a window. I can feel the gentle breeze. As she pointed to the outside she said "Look that..... that is the world tree." I rubbed my eyes... I had never seen anything as beautiful. I giant tree stretching hundreds of miles up. We were so high that clouds were covering the ground and the roots looked like small sticks. I see thousands of settlements scattered across the branches. Large cities and homes. People were walking about in the distance around a town hall.

I closed my jaw as Tikvah said "You ain't from around here huh? Where are you from Auren" I snapped out of my trance? "Yes, that. I come from a very advanced race in a different dimension. I must warn you to have is a possible threat to the universe. It's called the...." She cut me off "The void yes? Yea it was a threat long ago but it seemed to skip us and gave us the greatest hope and gift. The world tree. Without it, this planet was barren and we were all struggling to survive. The void gave us hope and life." I... didn't know what to say. This was the first time I felt true peace. I started to cry uncontrollably. "you....you... You don't understand all the pain I've been through. Lifes I saw die whole universes and dimensions completely wasted when this was the answer. Thank you." She hugged me as I collapsed "It's ok you are safe now. Hey tell you what, why don't you stay here and help me around the farm? I could use a helping hand."

Months passed and we ended up falling in love. We had a great life even when I did a scan with SUIT it always came back as negative. But things seemed too perfect as my now fiancée woke up one morning and was sick. She kept vomiting and having massive cramps. We decided to go to a shaman after a week of this. We headed to the main town which was across three branches. The center of the town was immaculate. Oddly enough this is the first time I have been here. The wood roads were soft and lush. Full of life and creativity. Down to the very flowers. The memories of this place warm my heart to this day.

As we entered the hospital it seems like it was empty. Some doctors were there waiting for patients I assumed. "Where is everyone?" I whispered to Tik. "Well, no one is sick here. The world tree keeps us in perfect health. There is no death or illness only life and prosperity" Tik said to me in a cheerful tone. "Interesting I will need to run some tests later," I thought to myself. After a few minutes of waiting, we were seen by a doctor who ran a few tests but the manor was entirely holistic. There were no tools, diagrams, or machines. To describe how intriguing this was the doctor rubbed some powder on his hands and they started to glow. After he hovered his hands over her body and they started to glow different colors. He got to her stomach and it was bright pink.

The doctor proceeded to get a bowl and wash his hands off. He came back with the news "Ma'am you are with child and it's a girl." It was the happiest moment of our life. We jumped in joy and something beautiful happened. The room was growing pink flowers that smelt of honeydew. I don't know what it was doing but it felt like the tree was celebrating with us. Shortly after We went home and laid down to sleep.

That night was .... rough. It started in my dream. I was on a boat with my wife and daughter. We were looking out into the massive expanse of the tree from below by the roots. It was majestic and beautiful. Lights filled the sky as bioluminescent lights filled the branches. It was a sudden shock when the lights started to dim and the tree looked as if it was wilting and rapidly dying. I can hear the pained screams of the people as the leaves turn black and began to fall. All those people fell to their doom. With a sickening splat and splatter, they slammed into the base of the tree near us.

The blood of the people filled the ocean painting our boat a dark crimson. The smell of iron filled the air along with the sound of screams. It wasn't until now I notice. A large mouth approached the tree. as it opened the tree started to splinter and uproot itself all the lives that were on the tree still were sucked into the massive maw of the creature. A black hole was formed in his mouth as I can see the tree spaghettified and bending light as it entered the event horizon. The boat was slowly rising to the creature's maw as my daughter was rocketed. My wife tried catching her but she was only able to secure her arm the gravitational pull was too great and her arm was torn from her socket and her body flew into the beast's mouth.

I couldn't breathe or think I was in a daze the pain was too much for me. My wife jumped into my arms and all I can feel was pain. We held each other one last time and shared a kiss as we flew into the black hole together. Before I could touch the event horizon time seemed to pause. I heard a voice "This is a warning, keep moving I need more stories I need to feed" I was able to move when I saw the same creature earlier. Pale-skinned, with no eyes or nose sharp teeth, and thin lips. He slowly floated toward me and smiled "It's time to wake up Auren... And you (reader's name) Don't forget I can still hear your heartbeat. I can smell your fear. I am coming."

Just as quick did the nightmare come on was just as quickly as it faded away. I awoke screaming in terror. I was covered in a sheen of cold sweat, my body felt as if it was being torn apart from the inside out. Tik woke in worry as my pain was so massive all I could do was rock back and forth. It took hours to subside. Tik asked "What happened? Are you ok?" I looked at her worried "Tik... I need to build you a SUIT that the void is coming back. "I need to show you something" Tik waved me to a secret part of the house. I had never been here before but it seemed to be in the branch itself. "look, love, This is why we don't worry about the void."

she moved a curtain hiding a giant mural of the void. The exact creature I saw being slain.. the person who stood over his body .... was.... it was me... I don't know how but it is. "Tik what does this mean? How do I kill this thing?" In the background was the world tree. IT filled me with hope and then Tik responded. "We must all follow our path, yours seemed to follow greatness. Deifying all odds and possibilities to overcome the void. The ultimate evil, the great dying." Tik smiled at me. This smile was always comforting filling me with hope. "If I'm destined to defeat this being how or where do I start? Is there anything on my process of doing so?" Tik looked and continued to smile. "No silly, it is just a prophecy told by my people and written by the tree. The void has left us alone for a reason. It helped us thrive for a reason even."

With a moment of clarity, I realized this void isn't destroying this place because this place is his story... He must be tied to his narrative. There is no other reason why he would just bring life to a place and then just leave while leaving countless other dimensions in complete ruin all the be swallowed by his massive maw. If I can somehow remove his link from this dimension I can beat him and end his story. With my new theory, I set in motion a series of tests. Many years pass by with nothing conclusive it wasn't until the few days I was there did I Find something concrete to use.

In my testing, I found the world tree itself contained a massive core. This core had the same general wavelength as the one the void emits when he speaks to me. This is it... The link between the two. I found a way to end the void... The only issue Is if I do this then my daughter Kirin and Tik will either have to come with me or die on the tree. I must destroy this tree. So I sat my wife down.

"Tik I have found a way to end the void once and for all" Her face lit up in excitement as she contained her screams. "Auren!! Really? What is it?" She asked excitedly. I looked at her in her beautiful eyes "It's the tree. The soul or origin of the void is within the tree. If I destroy the origin I will effectively destroy the void. However, everyone on the tree will die. I can't live without you or Kirin. I need you to come with me to a different place after we destroy the tree... we will be safe." Her smile drained from her face but she had a look of determination and acceptance. "I will get our daughter and we will meet you by the boat." I smiled and gave her a large hug. I then pulled a device out of our closet. It was a spatial disrupter designed to take any wavelength and reverse the polarity effectively destroying anything I set it to. "I need to plant this in the tree where the voids soul resides and once I do I will get on the boat and we will get a safe distance away from the tree." She shook her head and stood up

We got to the base of the tree I gave my daughter a hug and my wife a kiss. "Daddy please be careful!" I smiled and waved with an act of confidence however I was terrified. I started drilling into the tree and got a layer into the bark when I notice... It was hollow. I shined my light in the tree but the light seemed to be consumed by the ever-expansive darkness in the tree. I had to go by my reading luckily SUIT kept the exact quadrants of the wavelength so it was a rather easy climb. On my way down the trunk deep into the roots, I can hear a rhythmic thumping vibrating in the tree. I was only but a mile from the spot now. It sounded like a heartbeat.

As I descended downward and the dark expanse I kept hearing its voice "turn back now child, you will regret this action." I just yelled into the dark "This ends today void!!" I kept descending roughly a hundred feet from the spot. When I am bombarded with images of horror. People's arm muscles are being ripped out tendon by tendon. I was seeing creatures eating someone's teeth like candy crushing them into a fine powder. I saw a man see his friend being bifurcated in front of him by an ungodly creature. All these images flooding my mind sent chills down my spine.

It was then I saw it... The bleeding, beating heart of the monster. It was large and every single beat of this thing was so massive it sent shockwaves throughout the tree. I was so close to it that I can smell the disgusting stench of rotting corpses emanating from it. I repelled further down where I was hovering just above it when I dropped the signal disrupter on its fucking heart. The void Yelled and cried as I activated the device. "I will kill you and your family Auren. How does a mere story dare try to harm me!!" Its words shook me to my core as I winched upwards as fast as possible. Reaching the exit of the tree I can still hear it cry and curse at me. I got on the boat and my family and I speed off.

Within no time at all the tree slowly caught on fire. It was a black flame covering every possible inch of the tree. The cries and screams of the people were horrible. Some jumped off the tree and splattered in the water nearby. The lake below became thicker as more blood and viscera poured into it. The smell of iron and burning bodies filled the air. The very community my wife helped make was crying out to her as they died. I can see her cry silently and cover her mouth as she tried her best to cope.

I held her and my daughter firmly to support them. I have been through this before but they were pure and innocent and I don't want them to deal with or feel the pain I feel daily. After an hour of screams and the splashing of dead bodies hitting the water, it went silent. The tree was just a smoldering pile of ashes. The black fire was still slightly burning in the background. Finally, it was over. The light of the sun was rising in behind the trees. Birds were chirping in the air and I felt hope. "I beat him Tik ... I Won... We and countless others will be safe from here on out..."

When I looked Tik smiled a large smile and it was as if hope was spilling out from her every smile. For the first time in thousands of years, I have felt peace... Then time seemed to stop. All sound was deafened, the birds frozen in the air and the warmth suddenly grew into a deep cold. A cold is so chilling I could feel my very soul being frozen solid. Somehow I was able to move in this frozen time.

It was then I heard it speak "Ah hahaha silly child! You tried to end me there, didn't you? You found my home and decided to burn it down. You destroyed my heart... I do not need mortal instruments anymore. All things will become the void.... except.... you... I have much larger plans for you still... but your family will only hold you back... don't try to speak it won't work. Now watch as I consume them too." The void appeared in the sky above consuming the sun and filling the whole planet with pitch-black darkness. I grabbed for my family and held on as tight as I could... But it separated us. Its power was too much for me still.

The void opened its mouth and I could see each layer of my family's skin being peeled off inch by inch. Then the muscle and blood followed. They were being flayed in zero time I couldn't even cry as I saw my daughter Kirin die first... She was only six years old... Tik was killed slower as she was stripped starting from the feet up. His bones turn to ash as the void made sure her smile was the last thing I saw before stripping it all from me...

My hope was stripped from me... all That I love was destroyed .... again... I...I couldn't even mourn before SUIT decided to remove me from the dimension... In a blinding flash of light once again I moved up the stack. And once again my life was made trivial being but a story...

I ask you reader... whatever your name is... Do you believe in hope? Do you feel like life always finds a way? After that event..... for me... hope is dead... I need to rest my....my heart hurts, I don't want to remember this anymore... I'm sorry. Until next time

-Auren Da'at-