The Infinite Lore

Ringing, endless ringing. Their vision was blurry, their back ached and to top it off there was an unexpected hand in their face. They grabbed at it to try and move it away but found themselves being violently ripped from the floor. They stood with their dazed comrades on one side and a sea of light on the other. Despite having another planet impact on its surface, the size of the central universe meant that proportionately, it was similar to the Empire state building being gently dropped back into its original place by a higher power. The surroundings were barely bothered by the spherical station’s new location.
It was almost there. It could have been there much earlier but if it hadn’t taken their time, it wouldn’t have noticed the second major disturbance in the star’s luminosity. It wasn’t the best start to their investigation. The second red flag came from a quick observation of the megaverses’ exterior shell; two holes at either pole, each blocked open by a crystalline ring of frozen dark matter. Peering through, everything seemed unexpectedly normal. Perhaps a few more renegade universes than expected but harmonious nonetheless. With a blink of its ancient eyes, Du’Walles found itself within the megaverse. Apprehensively, it journeyed towards the central universe and its band of orbiting universes.
“I doubt we have long.” Lore shouted to the Reapers. “Du’Walles will be here soon. We must come together to face it.”
“We get that but…” One began.
“What the hell is a Du’Walles?” The field erupted in confused harmony.
“Du’Walles is the being beyond our megaverse. A being of unknown strength and abilities. Only together as one can we hope to avoid bloodshed.” Lore paused and predicted their next question. “We don’t know why it’s coming but it is so we have to be ready.” That was apparently enough for the other Reapers. One by one they linked hands. Those who had come before and helped to bring them were coming around and preparing themselves for a second round. They too joined themselves. With Char to their left and Piper to their right, they were ready. The connection was made and the merge began. Brighter and brighter and brighter still, the new Reaper continued to shine. Lore tried to keep a mental note of how many Reapers they had merged with but after the first hundred and fifty, they began to struggle; all they knew is the more they added, the greater they felt, the stronger they felt. It scared them at first but they trusted themselves not to be stupid. By Reaper three hundred, the planet beneath their feet began to distort and retreat from their presence; fifty Reapers later and it had certainly picked up the pace. Reality around them was warping as if trying to be polite, trying to make enough space. Their light dimmed as they reached Reaper four hundred. With every Reaper after that it became more and more noticeable until there was merely an aura of gold surrounding them. Even that aura began to fade. Reality was still warped but without the glow, Lore felt almost naked. It returned suddenly. They knew not what Reaper was responsible for returning their light but it was back. The purple-black glow replaced the gold and as if in reverse of its golden counterpart, it grew in strength with each absorbed Reaper.
The walls of the central universe had obviously only recently been damaged. They were healing but a line of cracks spanned its circumference. Above and below it, two holes which fed into the ones in the megaverses’ outer shell. What intrigued it most was the ring of universes that it didn’t know about. A golden thread held them together in orbit which also stumped Du’Walles. With one if its numerous tendrils, it span the L-Verse. As it did, time sped up and the universes began to decay once more. By the time it realised what it had done, thirty cycles had passed. Using the same tendril, it returned the universes to their natural speed and quickly checked the area to ensure no-one saw what they had done.
“They just keep coming.” Lore spoke to Char. “I’ve genuinely lost count at this point.” As if hearing their demands, they realised they were at the end of their queue. All of the Reapers had been absorbed, all of the Cornerstones and all of the clones. Even the Realities joined with them. Their purple-black aura blazed around them. They knelt down and readied themselves. The Infinite Lore. They took flight but not really. Lore had wanted to fly their way to the hole they had created with the Heimdall station but their jump had become so powerful that it carried them there without the need to fly. The hole opened slightly wider to allow them to exit then returned to its normal diameter after they passed through. Their first glimpse at Du’Walles. It was looking around the megaverse awkwardly as if checking to see if anything had noticed something it had done. The creature ahead of them was nothing short of terrifying. A mess of tentacles and tendrils, slime and spit. It looked as though someone had made a wig out of the legs of squids and octopuses then gave it eyes and a brain before telling it to guard all of reality. The Infinite Lore looked its way and began to slowly glide over to it. Slowly was a relative term as what they thought of as slow, their new abilities must have thought of as a crippled snail’s pace. They eventually slowed themselves but not before it saw them.
“Now there’s something you don’t see every day.” Its voice boomed in their mind. “That would explain it though.”
The Infinite Lore dipped into a deep bow as they attempted to address Du’Walles. “Your lordship…” They stopped before they tripped further.
“Congratulations.” It had certainly stopped Lore in their tracks. “It isn’t everyday I’m impressed but you’ve made the list for this century.” It’s gruff tone was ill suited for praise. “Most simply use what they have to hand but few ascend as you have from favouritism to godhood.” It wasn’t letting Lore get a word in edgewise. ”To have conquered Reality itself as well… Free thinking with a near limitless imagination but with the ability wield it with precision such as yourself…” It paused. “Sorry, it is rather rare that I get to do this. Welcome to the family.”
“I’m sorry what?”
“It’s offering you a place at the table.” Reality separated from them. “You’re on our level now.”
Lore stood there, hovering in the void, utterly speechless. “No.”
“No?” Du’Walles echoed. It was the first time it had heard that word. We are family.