The Ancient One

When I open my eyes, I am in a white room. In the center is a bald woman sitting at a small table sipping tea. The table has intricate designs and two chairs, one at each end.

I walk up to her, giving a charming smile. "And why do I have a beautiful lady such as yourself in my head?"

She smiles back, "Flattery will get you nowhere, Mr Morningstar."

"Oh, you know my real name; what is your relation to me?" my smile diminishes a bit.

"No relation. I am called The Ancient One, protector of life and keeper of order, and I protect against people like you, rogue Gods looking to have a good time at the expense of innocents," she speaks calmly before taking a sip of tea.

I sit down across from her, "I am no rogue God. I am freshly reborn and have no memories of my past or being locked away in hell. Frankly, I don't care much about my past."

"Hm? Then let me help remind you," she reaches across the table and puts her thumb on my forehead, and my consciousness moves. I am reminded of fragments of my past life, not all of it but a good few thousand years' worth. I remember my years in heaven the best and my so-called 'Betrayal'. I remember some of the atrocities I committed after being thrown out of heaven, the pandemonium I caused.

After snapping back to myself, I look deep into her eyes, and she looks shocked as well. It appears as if she experienced my memories with me. "I can not help you regain your other memories. Those are already permanently lost to the God of Reincarnation." I give a solemn nod.

"I am not that THING anymore," I say calmly through grit teeth suppressing the self-hatred and anger I bear for my past self as well as that so-called 'One Above All'. The one who thinks he has the right to dictate the fate and the lives of all.

She gives a nod, "I can see that the anger is rolling off of you… You hate yourself?"

My body glows red as my crown flares to life, and I slam my hand on the table.

"I AM NOT HIM!"

The hit to the table fractures the white room causing cracks to web throughout.

The Ancient One still has a calm face sipping tea from the cup she had grabbed off the table before I broke it. I look into her eyes for a few seconds before gathering my calm again.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath. "Sorry for my outburst… It's a rough subject for me," I keep my eyes closed for a few seconds, and the room starts to repair itself along with the table.

Once it is rebuilt, The Ancient One puts down her cup on it.

"I must apologize as well; I provoked you on purpose to see if you could reign in your anger. I must be careful when dealing with Gods such as you," she says, meeting my eyes.

I give a snort, "I am no God, just a fallen with a small place I call home," a cup appears in my hand, and I start to pour myself some tea as well.

She laughs a bit at this, "There are many beings much weaker than you who call themselves God."

"Frauds, Divinity means nothing to true omnipotence," I say as I take a sip of tea, "great tea, by the way."

"Thank you, I use it often," she smiles, "I'm not sure if you remember, but there are classifications for beings like you."

"I am the only me."

"You are indeed, and the classifications are imperfect… you would be considered an Elder God. By strength, it usually goes: Gods, Dark Gods, Old/Elder Gods, Cosmic Deities, Celestials, and finally your father…" she speaks the last part slowly.

My eye twitches a bit at the mention of my father. "By Celestials, you mean those things my father made to start creation?" To which she gives a nod.

"Those things aren't much; why would they be above me? I once heard a story of some fraud with a sword who went around slaughtering them not too long after they were made." I finish my glass and start filling another.

"As I said, the rankings are imperfect. For example, you may be an Elder God, but with your strength, many Cosmic Deities would be hard-pressed to escape from you. I've even heard stories of you beating down Old Gods before you even got the power of your 7 Hells." she said with a shrug.

I give a slow nod, "And why is it that I feel the power of a God inside of you? No, not of a God… of a domain… who are you bound to?"

She looks taken aback by my question, "What do you mean?"

I scoff, "Don't lie to me; we are in my head. Why do I feel the power of a realm being pulled to you?"

"I am a Sorceress; we draw power from other realms to perform magic. It is natural," her calm persona returns as she tells another half-truth.

"Woman, don't continue to lie to me. One of my servants loves bedding your kind; I know you shouldn't have a realm's power attached to your lifeforce," I say with a sneer.

She sighs, "I am drawing power from the dark dimension to extend my life. There is no one to take over as Sorcerer Supreme. I am using the power to stay alive until a suitable replacement arrives."

My eyebrows raise, "The 'Dark Dimension'? Never heard of it… you know if you want immortality, there are many other ways to get it."

"Oh really? To a human, no matter how powerful, immortality is just an idea," she begins to refill my tea for me.

I smile, "Good thing I'm not human."

"Are you suggesting I get your aid for immortality?"

"Yes… I am," I put up my hand, and fire rolls off of it, revealing a long piece of parchment. I set it down in front of her and kept sipping on my tea.

As she reads what I handed her, her eyebrows raise higher and higher. After a little over a minute, she puts down the paper and stares into my eyes.

"The demands are a bit… high, for what you are giving," She still has a calm face, but her cheeks are tinged slightly pink.

I look deep into her eyes, "Tell me, what is it you desire."

"To truly guarantee the safety of this world," She still looks into my eyes even after realizing I manipulated her to speak.

I smile and wave my hand over the paper. The words on the parchment re-arrange themselves, and I sit back again, sipping my tea.

"How about that? It's not as if I am asking for your soul, and I'm sure you will be happy with the benefits," I give a small smile.

She looks down, her face still as calm as ever, but I can tell she is thinking hard. The benefits are truly generous, but her pride seems to be getting in her way… ironic. She sighs, finally breaking the calm expression she puts her head in her hands.

She finally meets my eyes again, "Will you give me time to consult?"

I smile at her with a toothy grin, "Take as long as you like; you can find me in my club or my home. I'm sure you know the way."

She nods, and my vision blackens.