Staring up at the night sky, Kinsoriel simply couldn't get himself to sleep. He had hoped that today would be one worth remembering. In more ways than one, he had gotten what he asked for.

First was the beating he endured. Sure his physical wounds were gone now, but the mental ones wouldn't fade so easily. A shameful part of him would rather have been killed by those deathbounds days before. At least then he wouldn't have to live with falling to scum like Harax. Eagerness to take back what was his had cost him. Never before had he been so overpowered, to the point of needing to be saved as well.

That disgrace was just the beginning. He had to deal with Benjamin's brother right after. That arrogant man got under his scales, and there was nothing he could do about it. To think that he tried to manipulate him of all dragons. Nothing about what he did made sense, even after Ben explained.

That was actually the last thing that continued to rattle around in his head. Kinsoriel really tried to be open to what his pupil had said, to get something of use out of his words. He didn't know what could be worse; if it was all insane babble, or if it was completely true. The former would mean that he still had no idea what that man Stromwell was capable of, and that was frightening with what he had seen. The latter meant that there were beings above even the gods gallivanting around that could do anything and everything on a whim.

After some reflection, it was the latter. How could it not be? Ben said he was one of them. What if this was all just a game? What if Kinsoriel had struck him? Would reality cease to exist if he angered him? Supposedly an Author's book is what gave them their power, but what if that wasn't true? What if he had been forced into believing that?

Gah, what a travesty! There were so many holes in it. It just couldn't be the real explanation, so why did it keep his mind abuzz? Perhaps it was all the implications that would create. Something like a thinking game, coming up with all the ways it could work if it were real. He couldn't just hear such an absurd hypothetical and not dissect it from every angle. Yes, that must be it.

Well, the best time to tackle these thinking games was while asleep, so that's what he should be doing. He closed his eyes and tried to keep them shut. If there was nothing to see, there was nothing to think about. If there was nothing to think about, there was no reason to be awake. This line of thinking didn’t help. Despite his best efforts, he found himself looking back up at the darkness of the sky.

Looking over to the side, he saw Ben and Moira both already fast asleep. She had shrunk herself down into that abominable form between a deathbound and a dragon to make sure Ben had enough space. Would such a powerful being even need sleep? No, but then why was the angel doing it as well? Was it all a ruse?

He caught himself doing it yet again. Groaning, he returned to looking straight up. How could he feel so tired and yet be so wide awake?

A shooting star caught his attention, pulling his eyes along its path. It was hard for him to recall the last time he had gazed up at the sky like this. There was a unique tranquility to it.

The star's trail eventually crossed the moon, and it was there that he shifted his focus. He squinted slightly. Was the moon always so luminous? There was definitely something different about it. It was full tonight, and it carried with it an allure he wasn't expecting. Whatever was different about it invited his full gaze, and gaze he did.

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Soon he found himself opening his maw to let out a heavy yawn. It had come from seemingly nowhere, but he didn't mind. Anything to quiet his mind for tonight. His eyelids felt suddenly heavy, so sudden that it caused the dragon to tense up. Something wasn't right here. He tried to keep his eyes open with rapid blinking, but it was too late. The dragon's body relaxed against his wishes and his sight blurred. In the final moment he could see, Kinsoriel thought he saw the moon become even brighter.

His eyes pried themselves back open and he sat up with a jolt. He didn't know how, but he had prevailed over that unnatural sleepiness. Or so he had initially thought. Looking back at the sky, it wasn't the moon that was above him; it was Gairemeer.

Any doubts contrary fell when he recognized the shape of the continents. The dragon's mighty heart dropped at the impossible sight. How could he see the world like this? Such an angle would require the viewer to be standing from the heavens. Looking down to his feet, Kinsoriel only now noticed the rugged canvas of white rock that stretched out before him. There was a faint shimmer across the landscape that became more apparent as he continued looking.

He bent over to pick up one of the rocks. Strong as he was, the dragon still wasn’t expecting it to be as easy as it was. It was a decently-sized boulder, but it weighed like nothing! It then felt much heavier in his hands, nearly causing him to drop it in surprise. He crooked his brow. Inanimate objects don’t suddenly change mass. Even something like a sponge needs to soak up water first. As soon as this thought crossed his mind, his hands pushed into the rock, feeling it deform and release what seemed to be water. What was going on here?

"Do you like it?" came a masculine voice from every angle. Whirling around to see who had said this, Kinsoriel found nothing and no one.

"Where are you?" he called out, unsure of who could also be there with him.

“In my realm, the mind is given complete power over reality. A taste of what should be one day.”

Squeezing into wet rock, Kinsoriel hurled the impossible boulder with a roar. It flew much farther than it should have any right to before escaping his sight. This aggravated him even more.

“Stop toying with me and show yourself!” As he said this, he could feel all the mana in his body stop circulating. The sudden halting forced the breath from his lungs in a gasp. It didn't hurt, but it felt unnatural and wrong.

"I am always above you when you are awake. Here though," the voice thrummed, "I am all around you. Look up and I shall reveal myself."

Unable to resist, he angled his head up to the sky once again. The stars that blanketed the sky began to converge. Combining and absorbing one another, the mass of lights took a familiar shape: The Moon. From the middle of it, three eyes began to form in a triangle. The one on the right looked to be that of a deathbound and the left of a dragon. Above both of those was an eye of total dark, black as the sky behind it.

"W-who are you?" asked the awestruck dragon.

"You already know who I am Kinsoriel. Who is it that you devote yourself to?"

One word bubbled up and out of his throat. "Wex."

“I am,” said Wex without use of a mouth.

Kinsoriel dropped his head immediately in reverence and fear of the deity. “Forgive my attitude, great sculptor of the mind. I did not know it was you.”

A pillar of the white rocks emerged underneath his chin. It morphed into the shape of a hand, raising his head back up. Kinsoriel closed his eyes to avoid looking at the god.

“You needn’t be,” the all-encompassing voice said, getting Kinsoriel to open his eyes back up. “I come before you, the oldest and wisest of my followers, to name you my champion.”

The dragon’s slitted pupils widened. “C-champion?! I don’t know what to say, my lord.”

“Do you accept, my child?”

“Yes, yes I shall!” The pillar fell away from him. “What would you have me do, oh divine one?” All the scenery surrounding him fizzled away before revealing a bluish-green forest.

“I shall show you.”