It took four days of near constant study to memorize and re-memorize the entire letter. He rarely left his room, burning coppers and candles on cold meals and long hours.

Styak found the process exhausting and exhilarating. Several paragraphs dealt with the Hells, and with the boy "translating" his code into recognizable names and places, it felt almost like eavesdropping on prophecy.

"A war between two of the demon lords? Truly?" Styak looked astounded.

"If you can call it that. The fight seems personal, not so much armies clashing as assassins dodging assassins and individual duels sprung from feuds. Lots of power flying around, though: almost an entire Hell bursts into flames."

"The Second Hell is supposed to be on fire, it's always been on fire."

"Notice what I actually wrote: the bit I put in about Pepsi is a reversal. The Fourth Hell burns down, not the Second."

"The Hell of Darkness?"

"Mmm hmm."

"How exactly...?"

"We'll find out in twenty years. Or not, maybe it won't happen this time around."

Surely, the demon thought, it was the height of folly to build plans on such uncertain foundations. And yet it was hard not to pick up on the boy's enthusiasm as he sifted "near certainties" out of the code, discarding some information while gleaning hidden truths. By the end, Parry looked almost confident.

"I'd say almost two thirds of this information is reliable, or close enough. Gotta to stay flexible. Exact dates and times will drift, locations too. If the future is like a concert, then I know most of the songs the band might play and have a good idea of the set list before they even hit the stage. They might swap the order, maybe drop or add a song, but I know the melodies even if I can't be sure precisely how they'll play. If they toss in a solo or add an encore, I'll be ready to sing along."

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

Styak nodded, because there was sensible response to that absurdity.

"So now what? We go n--"

"Hold it! Hop inside. New rule: we don't talk about our plans where anyone could hear. The only safe place to discuss the future we want is in my mind."

Rolling its eyes very much unlike any real cat would, the demon returned to the boy's memory-scape. "Better?"

"Yes. Styak, thank you. I mean it. In all my lives, I've never had an 'internal consistency checker' like you, let alone someone who can dig through and recover misplaced or lost memories. I've decided to trust you, risky as that is. The potential rewards are just that high."

The demon's eyes flashed. "Then prove your trust. Dissolve the Binding of the Open Eye and erase the Seal of Waters."

"Ah...no, I..."

Styak laughed. "Oh please, I wouldn't let go of those either, were I you. I respect how much you think like a demon."

Parry's internal voice sounded sour. "That's not the most reassuring compliment. Fine, I'll let actions speak. To answer your question, no, we're not going north."

"But your own instructions to yourself...?"

"Oh no question there are several things I need from the Icy Lands, items and spells that will give me a heck of a boost. But the iteration of myself that wrote the letter isn't authoritative. 'Geomancer Parry' lived his life but could never imagine how I'm living mine. That makes his letter a useful guide, but it's no script we have to follow."

Styak thought about that. "You're not a geomancer, you're not even a mage. And that version of you was neither tamer nor priest."

Parry agreed. "But there's a bigger difference. This time, I'm not attempting to face the Creator alone. I've decided to work with allies, incredibly powerful ones. You're the first and possibly most important of them, Styak. Time to get you stronger too."