Warden Abandinus led Death Bunny past numerous gated checkpoints, each joined by over-bright halls.
"Chitter ..."
"No, I cannot 'dim the lights.'"
"Squeak chitter?"
"Because they aren't lights to begin with." Abandinus caressed the luminous canvas in passing. "This is the singularity's holy blessing—the genesis of my devotion. It is unfit to describe; you must witness. Go ahead, release your spiritual energy."
Death Bunny cocked its head.
----------------------------------------
Owner [Friend Bunny] sent you a note: [Try sneezing with your soul].
----------------------------------------
Ahh-choo!
A cloud of black-and-white energy sprayed from its nostrils, disappearing nigh-instantly.
"Squeak?"
"Not bad," praised the warden. "Most Earthly Monarchs can't manage visible spiritual energy in the fourth layer."
Rubbing its nose, Death Bunny hopped along, its chin permanently lofted.
**
In the Death Bunny realm, Karma boredly observed a monolithic cocoon.
So slow ...
On a whim, he ignited a plume of Nirvanic flame and shunted it into the dormant husk.
"What the f—" cried Anlîthëma, devolving into harrowed screams. Amid its torment, the carapace quickly gained a web of cracks.
A vicious crackle rent the air, ushering a swell of gloopy shards.
"Congratulations!" whooped Karma, throwing a spare robe into the fray.
Exiting the clot of detritus, Anlîthëma's pale, pupil-less countenance sang of murder. She combed her locks of mercurial silver, morphing them into a spiral-horned battle helm.
"Ooo," drawled Karma, "you hatched as an Earthly Monarch! Wait, let me guess: You've chosen a Dao that lets you mooch off my feats. Is it ... the Dao of Derivation?"
"You knew?" asked Anlîthëma, siphoning the ambient death energy into a pair of scimitars.
"Nope! Frankly, I don't really care. Wanna fight?"
Anlîthëma wordlessly continued her approach, halting a wain's width from Karma. Raising her swords, she hollered, "Absolutely-fucking-not!"
She dropped to a knee. "I beseech you, heir to the Dao eternal, take me as your disciple!"
"Hmm, how about, no?"
"Eh?—Are you going to kill me then?"
"Nope."
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"Enslave?"
"Gross."
"... Maybe a hint?"
"Sure; what rhymes with jubilee and starts with an 'E'?"
Anlîthëma stumbled. "I'm an employee?"
"Not just any employee," smilingly said Karma, applauding. "Everyone, say hello to your new vice president!"
"Hello," sounded Lance, swatting at the Ouroboros vacuum before him.
"Welcome to the club," consoled Lorenzö.
**
Leading Death Bunny to an oblong trestle table, Abandinus stated, "You're in luck: the previous librarian slipped into the singularity just yesterday. Henceforth, the library is yours to rule. Between these walls, you shall serve the remainder of your sentence.
"Squeak?"
"Your request is denied. I was informed of the feast in which you partook preceding your arrival—you've eaten enough to feed a solar system for decades."
Its ears drooped.
Ignoring the bunny, Abandinus stared into vacant space. "Old Man Lugh, I've fulfilled my end of the bargain. No more favors."
In a blink, he vanished.
**
"So, to ascend to the Heavenly Mandate realm, I need to create three unique Mechanics?" parroted Karma.
"Correct. The Earthly Monarch realm represents the final impetus in the first stratum of cultivation. You and—by proxy—your Dao define your universal fiefdom.
"By incepting Mechanics, your territory expands its reach. Remember, a monarch of nothing can mandate nothing, let alone Heaven."
"Cool." Tapping his chin, Karma muttered, "If I want to overthrow ... I'll need ... Oh, but I'll also need ... Okay, I've solved it."
"You've planned out all three Mechanics?" blustered Anlîthëma.
"Nope."
"Mm, you had me worried—"
"Only two of them. I did, however, complete my latest and greatest master plan! Would you like to—"
"No."
"Are you sure? It's really spicyyy."
"Spicier than the last one?"
"By orders of magnitude!"
"Then no. I fear the Orthenian Courts will name me as an accomplice to your iniquities."
Sigh—"Where's your adventurous spirit? Didn't you grandly proclaim your dream of solving all of the universe's mysteries?" His voice dropped to a murmur. "Besides, if I succeed, being an accomplice wouldn't technically be a bad thing."
"Yes, mysteries. Not taboos. I'm not a masochist."
**
Pop!
A Karma remnant materialized in the library, hurriedly performing a series of pokes, swipes, and acrobatics.
"Karma#2, do you copy?" asked Karma#1.
"I copy. Status report: all non-golden-thread techniques are summarily disabled. Over," replied Karma#2.
"Avatar and Domain? Over."
"Both are limited to internal usage. Over."
"Roger. The coast is clear; initiate return to surface. Over."
"Copy that. Over and out."
Karma#2 retraced Death Bunny's ingress, doling Ouroboric slices with impunity. Gates receded, sentinels neglected, and arrays lay dormant to his passage.
Finally, when he reached the barge's deck—still pocked by newcomers—he shouted, "Dagda and His band of mongrels are punk bitches!"
Hadley, his guards, and the prisoners reeled, looking at Karma#2 in wide-eyed wonder.
"What? Is there someone behind—"
Reality lurched forward. Karma#2 glimpsed Abandinus's squalid visage just as a pulling force ripped him to shreds.
**
An incense stick's time later, Karma#3 ambled onto the deck. "Singularity, I eat plums like you for breakfast, lunch, and din—"
Shwoomp!
**
Karma#4 snuck behind Hadley during a guard briefing and tapped his opposite shoulder.
"Yes?" asked Hadley, turning to empty air.
"Cock shot!"
Thud!
Karma#4 entered the black hole in pieces.
**
"Black holes ... mass ... energy. I'm close; I can feel it!"
Anlîthëma eyed him suspiciously. "This was your plan? Suicide until you grasp the Mechanics of singularities?"
"Shh, Karma#5 is starting."
**
"Celtic Tao? More like Septic Cow!"
Shwoomp!
To siphon is to take. A singularity is the ultimate thief. But what does it steal? And how?
**
"Dagda is my dagdaddy and I'm his mamommy!"
Shwoomp!
Spiritual energy is the logical conclusion, but my clones' deaths feel ... strange. It's something else—I know it is!
**
Karma#365's hot breath tickled Hadley's nape. "Hey baby, how about a swim?"
"WHAT ARE THESE THINGS?" he shrieked, punting Karma#365 into the hole.
Shwoomp!
It's not stealing at all! The fabric of the universe is being pressed down like a weight on a hammock. By consuming, the mass of the 'weight' increases, as does the depression.
Karma paced about the Death Bunny realm, gaunt yet effervescent.
What if I mix Spatial Solidification with my Domain? Could I bring about ... Spatial Collapse?