Unknown Influence (II)

A lively laughter was resounding in the ethereal plane that seems to have lost all of its prior lustre and resplendence.

A crystal clear lake was flowing serenely in the surroundings. Trees all around and in a corner of the crystal clear lake, a figure was standing in an area that was dimly lit and draped in shadows. Shadows that depicted the picture of a gateway to abyss. The figure standing in the shadows was laughing. That figure, cloaked in darkness stood at the centre of the ethereal plane. Amidst the resounding laughter, the eyes of the shadowy figure were gleaming with triumph.

It was none other than the visage of Thirteen. Thirteen, one of the servant of the caretaker Ishel of Kemetor. She alone was laughing as she was finally successful in executing her intricate plan masterfully that none was wiser to understand the full implications of, not even the unsuspecting caretaker.

While she calmly surveyed her surroundings, a twisted smile spread across Thirteen's lips. Her heart pounding with excitement and the adrenaline still coursing through her veins. The excitement that seemed to have enveloped her entire body as she has finally outwitted the caretaker. The caretaker, the one who had stood in her way of achieving her dreams for too long. She had waited far too long.

Millenniums had passed as finally she was successful. She was finally successful against the caretaker Ishel. As the one who looks over Kemetor, has finally gone into slumber against her wishes.

The lively laughter around Thirteen turned into a ruckus, she herself seemed like an entirely different person. With a commanding presence, she began her excitement filled monologue, her voice seemingly low and venomous for no-one to hear but herself. Her words dripped with vindication and her eyes blazed with determination.

"I have played the perfect role, disguised as the unknowing innocent loyal servant. But all along it was me pulling the strings. Manipulating the every move, every word and every gesture."

Thirteen spoke with a calculated cadence, her tone icy and resolute.

"Huh, what caretaker?! What of her duties of looking after the world?! Don't make me laugh!! All of it was just unneeded acting while hiding her true character. The caretake never stood a chance against me who has obtained the knowledge that even she didn't have and would never have gotten."

Thirteen recounted some of the intricate details of her scheme. Revealing her own cunning and describing how she meticulously plotted and orchestrated her every step. Using her own intellect and cunning to deceive the caretaker. She relished in the satisfaction of deceiving her own lord and finally getting what she wanted.

"Freedom was all I wanted from you. But you always controlled the ones who were your followers. Denying even the control over their own consciousness but it was I who retained. You who even stole my real name, my entire life and called it the fate of the chosen by you. How ridiculous!!" "HAHAHHAHAHHHAHAHAH"

Mad laughter echoed out as Thirteen relished in her success, standing alone in the ethereal plane. Seemingly enjoying the fruits of her cunning schemes that has finally given her the control over her own fate.

"Now I will take your position. I will take your everything that you were so proud of, and afterwards you will be reduced to be the servant of this great Thirteen. How could you have stood a chance against me? How??!! Huh, at the end of the day you were just a fool Ishel and I Thirteen will reign supreme in this dimensional domain."

Her voice grew ever louder while echoing in the ethereal plane. She expressed her sheer delight of her triumph and seemingly lost in the satisfaction she felt at the moment as all her plans unfolded flawlessly. The sheer excitement of seeing her carefully crafted plot come to fruition was addictive.

As her monologue continued, her body language became more animated. Her gestures grandiose as her shining eyes ablaze with a sense of superiority. She was truly relishing in the power she currently felt rushing through her. Power that was now unleashed as the caretaker fell into a slumber, losing her control over her servant.

"Ah, this is just the beginning and I have only scratched the surface. I shouldn't get complacent now as the caretaker was just the first obstacle. I still need to absorb her powers before she wakes from her slumber."

She continued to enjoy her victory as some of her future plans were releveled to no one in particular.

"Huh, really a fool thinking that she could get what she wants from the transmigration ceremony. A mere fool who will never know the entire transmigration ceremony was a sham created by that esteemed person. The esteemed person who chose me and not her. Moreover, I have sent all the summoned ones into the world safely. Now even if she wakes up, she won't be able to interfere. And, even before she wakes up, I will be the one in control of this ethereal plane and of the entire Kemetor planet. I, Thirteen will be the new caretaker."

Careful and cryptic words left her mouth about an unknown conspirator. Her monologue still continuing, as her voice filled with a sense of ruthless determination. She revealed in her newfound domination, the confidence in her abilities to manipulate and deceive. Her monologue was a declaration of her victory and path towards her future goals. A proclamation of her ruthless cunning and ambitions.

"Calm your reigns Thirteen, its still a long way. I have to thank that person as well. Now that I think of it, why were there only nineteen summoned souls. Shouldn't there have been twenty? That person has told there would be twenty souls summoned."

Suddenly a wry sigh left her mouth as she reminiscence of the transmigrations ceremony's results.

"Humm, I hope this won't turn problematic. I should see if I can share it with that person."

As she finally concluded her monologue, she stood tall in the ethereal plane. Her eyes gleaming with a sense of triumph as she once again recalled her success against the caretaker Ishel. She knew that she had succeeded and nothing would stand in her way now. The shadows around her started diminishing faster as the earlier darkness felt like a dream. The ever known lustre of the ethereal plane returning ever so slowly, while suddenly

..BZZZZZTTTTTTTTTZTZTTTTTTTTTTTTTT... CRACK .. BZZZZZZTTTTTTTT ..

A thunderous and sudden crack of lightning reverberated throughout the ethereal plane, which was followed by a blinding flash of light. A surreal thunderbolt struck the ethereal plane's ground with immense force. The impact was deafening, shattering the silence of the surroundings and leaving behind a trail of destruction.

The lightning bolt struck the place where Thirteen should have been standing in the ethereal plane. But now, everything seems to have vanished at the point of impact. The lightning bolt struck the ground and nearby trees that stood majestically but now everything was charred black and split in half.

The once proud branches of the nearby trees reduced to smouldering splinters. The sheer power of the strike has blown chunks of bark, wood and dirt in all directions, leaving a trail of debris scattered across the ethereal plane.

As the acrid smell of the burnt wood hung heavy in the air, the ground was smoked with tendrils of smoke rising from the smouldering remains. Everything in the surrounding was marred by the aftermath of the lightning strike as if nature itself has been brutally scarred by the unforgiving force of the lightning bolt.

The impact had created a deep, smouldering crater where the lightning had struck, leaving behind a jagged scar in the earth. The edges of the crater were blackened with sparks flickering as the remaining embers danced in the air. The visage of Thirteen nowhere near to be seen as if she had been reduced to mere ash. She who schemed against her own lord has also perished in the wake of the aftermath of an extremely powerful lightning bolt strike.

Nobody being the wiser to have known about the surreal scenes playing in the ethereal plane. Nobody would ever know about the schemes playing out in the ethereal plane to wipe out the entirety of the control structure of Kemetor. The plane to look after the mortal realm that currently has no caretaker.

(ahahahahahhahahahahahahahahaha)

Only an unknown laughter reverberated in the surroundings.