A fire that burned not flesh... but Corruption.
A fire that cleansed, Depravity’s direct counterpart.
For the first time in... who knows how long... Malik’s eyes widened.
"...My Unique Ability..."
"So... can... can I... save people with it...?"
His fingers trembled, just slightly, just enough for a human to notice.
In response, the True Sultan grinned wider.
And then started laughing again.
"Sorry. Sorry for giving you the wrong idea."
’He’ waved ’His’ hand down in apology.
"Nah, still fire. It still burns the body. Oh yeah, yeah, absolutely torches them alive. Poof. Gone."
’He’ leaned in, hands together like a salesman about to close a deal.
"—their soul? Safe. Untouched. Purified. No more Corruption, whether in the past or the future."
He didn’t blink or breathe.
He did nothing, absolutely frozen.
Until finally... he asked:
"If the fire ends Corruption in all of time... does that mean that they are dead in all of time?"
’He’ nodded, unsurprised that Malik had caught on to this Flaw so quickly.
And yet, even with his hopes shut down, he seemed unaffected, and it wasn’t because of his insanity but because he seemed to have found a Path, an impossible one that needed confirmation.
"If this fire is Corruption’s counterpart, does that mean it works on the same principles?"
’He’ nodded once more, ’His’ grin turning into a happy, happy smile.
"Then... if the fire kills, can losing it save?"
The True Sultan stared for a long, long time, then spoke:
"Ooooh... you devilish man... saying this without even knowing the whole truth."
’His’ smile never wavered; rather, it had only grown larger.
"I can’t wait to see how THAT plays out... Your Silent Requiem."
"I’ve seen many go against IT... others of your people. I’ve seen their bodies break under the sheer weight of their hubris. I just hope... I hope that your trepidation doesn’t prevail, and that the world doesn’t reject you."
Malik, ignoring all the cryptic drivel, took all of that as a simple "yes."
"There’s no lever to stop the trolley, but one could still kill the person who tied others to the track... even if his purpose was to save them."
The True Sultan tapped ’His’ chin, as if remembering something.
"Oh. Right. Before you go... almost forgot."
’He’ snapped his fingers.
"That other Blessing. From ’Her.’"
The realm around them pulsed.
Malik didn’t react, and the True Sultan chuckled.
"Yeah... ’She’ doesn’t give things lightly, huh?"
’He’ twirled his finger in the air, tracing Old Tongue that Malik couldn’t read but felt...
Felt deep in his bones.
"Remember... You Must Die..."
Its meaning was literal... prophetic, almost.
"Or as you like to call it, Return By Death."
’He’ gave a smirk and a wink.
With that, the ’fog’ finally dissipated.
And as it did, reality began to collapse.
Dunes crumbled beneath his feet, turning dark...
The Divine Kingdom was leaving him, leaving quick...
The last thing Malik heard was what he always uttered...
It was what was called upon for one’s Divine Kingdom.
A word that brought all the Paths together.
{In A Realm Between Realms}
Malik stood in a void.
Facing him was another Malik.
This time, they looked nearly the same.
It wasn’t a repeat of the ’grey’ and the Corrupted.
Only difference was that one of them had red flicks in his hair and the other didn’t.
They were one... but still different.
They were one... but not entirely the same.
Malik, the new Malik, held a few secrets.
Mainly the Embodiment System...
Or, as he just realized, his Divine Kingdom.
Indeed, the system, the projection, the voice—that was all his Divine Kingdom.
The Lady of Time’s Blessing was only his Return By Death...
Remember You Must Die.
So that meant he was somehow a Malāk already.
After all, only a Malāk or higher could even begin to conceptualize a Divine Kingdom.
Malik’s Divine Kingdom was way beyond incomplete, but there was no doubting its existence.
That meant that technically, his soul wasn’t gaining strength but unlocking it.
Each volume gained him more authority... more Divine Sparks, Lost Grace... Godhood, and in turn, unlocked more of his strength, explaining the changes to his soul.
Knowing that didn’t change things, as his goal remained the same, but at least it told him one thing, a truth he never expected... the truth of how this all happened.
’They’ had kept him alive in the first timeline, Roya’s one, where he had likely gone insane, unable to handle {HELL}, the two Blessings, and Corruption. Where ’They’ then used the boost he gained after his Corruption, his momentary ascension to the Malāk Divine Rank, and weaved into him this Divine Kingdom.
It sounded convoluted and all, but it made complete sense.
Especially when considering what he learned about time.
The past, present, and future existed at the same time.
There was no distinction between past, present, and future.
Such a thing was nothing but an illusion for those of mortal minds.
Time would not simply move forward like the frames of a movie on a projection.
Instead, it’d act like a static block where all three ’times’ coexisted simultaneously.
Did this mean that the future was already written? Was everything fated? Set in stone? Free will... was that an illusion? Was Malik wrong in not believing in Fate?
Or maybe what he knew was completely wrong, and the universe wasn’t a frozen block but a growing one where the future was entirely undetermined.
After all, Anomalies existed, and they were innately random, not even allowing the True Sultan a way to know the date of their deaths or births.
Malik couldn’t know for sure; his mind, even at Mithqal, couldn’t begin to glimpse the truth of this concept. One must at least be a Malāk to fathom even its simpler truths.
There was a reason why there was no Magi alive that could handle the time element alongside space, even though they were so integral to each other.
...Or maybe, in the end, it was both set in stone and completely free?
Either way, with those ideas of time, one could understand those events, as they never strayed from this world’s logic.
Now, the new Malik couldn’t reveal this truth.
It would break everything.
After all, as the True Sultan made obvious, the past Malik still believed that he was killing himself. That he would fulfill his self-sacrificing goal, his Silent Requiem, stopping IT from taking over what IT most wanted, and, of course, finally catch his "break."
Even though he knew of the two souls and knew of all his memories, this was the one thing he wasn’t allowed access to.
So while they were one soul...
While they shared the weight of the crown...
The burden of insanity, Corruption, and the pillar of faith...
They had yet to synchronize completely.
Neither attempted to do so.
Both were way more than smart enough to understand that it was for the best.
And so, they stared at each other for a while, organizing their thoughts.
Many minutes went by until the past Malik walked to the other.
New Malik hugged him back.
His hair began to grow a few red flicks...
’Remember, You Must Die.’
And their world ceased.