As Dimm, Minxx, and Khobba delved deeper into the forest, following the southern cardinal movent, with Dimm in the middle, Minxx began to narrate what she knew about Korr'Tai.
'My tool of knowledge,' Dimm thought.
***
Every crisis had begun with a bug in the ga, from the outside world, stirred into motion by a mistake, and was proposed to co to an end by an unusual.
'A bug? A mistake? And an unusual? Hmm...all representing uncertainty,' Dimm thought as he downloaded what Minxx continued narrating into his mory.
The way the bug entered the system was not recorded, so no knowledge of it is known. But history has it that this bug introduced more gods to the ga.
The record had it that Korr'Tai was the god of power and judgnt. But he wasn't just what they claid him to be; he was the creator and the only God of Ellipse at the ti, even before these five other gods surfaced.
When Ellipse was birthed, it was never ant to be a prison-like ga or a playground of tornt. It was a new realm of choice, where the Players sought to define their purpose and discover new things, which is the reason the only ans of entry then, had been through reincarnation.
"Not the type of reincarnation in this current day, in fact, the instruction terd it reincarnation but the process is transmigration," Minxx emphasized.
"So, Khobba transmigrated?" Dimm asked, turning his gaze to Khobba.
"That's what it seems like," Minxx replied.
"Alright, then what happened?" Dimm asked, to stir up the discussion.
"The other gods, the unknown gods that had appeared to rule the ga changed. Greed, pride, and control twisted them. They turned this realm into a cycle of death, and even enforced that every teenager on earth, the real world must be involved."
"It was at this ti that the instructions for participation were changed," Minxx explained and paused due to interruption.
"Wait, wait," Dimm interrupted. "I'm not sure it was enforced... because so of us wouldn't have participated if we didn't—"
"Don't even ntion—" Khobba interrupted. "You know I was trying to offer help."
"Of course, I won't deny the fact, but, you still didn't inform before I ate the chocolate," Dimm argued.
"I would have. Your hunger didn't allow you to—" Khobba was interrupted.
"It's okay," Minxx interrupted calmly. "The gods of the ga had enforced it with the help of the governnt."
A bill was passed, and an industry was introduced. This industry beca in charge of inventing the ga card, which is now the new ans of entry, and a fluid attached to it.
This ga card together with the fluid was distributed to all industries in charge of products commonly used by teenagers. To ensure effectiveness, this fluid was injected into these products, and their different directions of use inscribed on the ga card.
Dimm now reasoned and understood why it had to be in the chocolate Khobba gave him. It cannot only be found in the chocolate, but also in every products for children's use. But, he still had doubts that this story told by Minxx was false.
"How did you know all these when you beca a victim of this evil practice after all their plots were through?" Dimm asked.
"A letter," Minxx replied.
Dimm's brow furrowed. "A letter?"
"Yes. Korr'Tai left a letter, along with the scroll which you revealed its content. Unfortunately, this letter is nowhere to be found," Minxx complained. "And it is said that this letter contained another vital information which is yet to be decrypted."
"Hmm. This is getting more complicated than I thought," Dimm comnted. "Let's not talk about the unseen, continue with your narration."
The fake gods of Ellipse, having succeeded with their plan, saw Players as beings who no longer have souls seeking redemption or a second chance. They saw us as entertainnt, fuel, and—
"Wait," Dimm interrupted. "The governnt, what could be their possible reason for accepting such an offer?"
"Well, a maximum amount of the ga's revenue was promised to the governnt. This revenue was initially allocated to the Players themselves upon success, but each of these shares was transferred to the governnt," Minxx explained.
"Are you trying to say that the governnt also had a hand in this?" Khobba asked.
"Yes. The officials tried their best to make sure none of their children beca a candidate. Hence, on their own, they stopped their children from getting in touch with other teenagers, and consuming things originally ant for teenagers."
"But, my parents are officials," Khobba wanted to argue, but Dimm interrupted.
"Maybe there weren't real officials, maybe they were just civil servants or—"
"They were governnt officials. I'm very sure of that," Khobba stood firm with her claim. "I'm sorry to say, but that is how I ca to know that one of the main source of revenue for the country ca from the Ellipse.
It was also said that all the participants also beca rich after succeeding in the ga, and that is why many of us trained well before becoming candidates to ensure our success."
"I'm sure you've seen and found out the irony of all that you heard," Minxx told Khobba.
"How am I sure you are telling the truth," Khobba begins to doubt.
"Well, I did keep my comnt," Minxx said, "but I will remind you of this day when the ti is due."
"Alright," Dimm turned to Minxx, bringing back attention to their discussion. "And Korr'Tai?
"He resisted all the practices," Minxx said, her voice breaking.
Korr'Tai built the Seven Clans with the motive of bringing balance, with each clan serving as a guardian of an ideal. He coded free will into this realm's very system, and here cos his mistake.
The Queen mother of the elves, as at the ti when the creator was alive, confird having fought beside him. According to her, Korr'Tai was always cloaked in starlight.
But before this fight ensued, Korr'Tai was believed to stand before the Council of his fellow Divines. He accused them all of exploitation, cruelty, and of breaking the code which they swore to uphold. The code he developed.
"For him to stand before all of them as the creator, the gods should have feared him," Dimm said, tilting his head as if he wasn't sure.
"They did," Khobba chipped in. "I an, if they didn't, why should they kill him?"
Minxx looked at Khobba with shock. "And how did you know the gods were behind the death?"
"I read books that contained the history of this ga. One of them had ntioned that the gods are giving in their best to uphold the legacy the main creator had tried to uphold since he was dead," Khobba cited. "Now, don't you think they have a hand in this death when it occurred not long after the confrontation?"
"I see. Well, Korr'Tai eventually died. And yes, you were right, he died in their hands," Minxx confird.
The silence between them grew heavy, save the sound of hooves and rustling leaves.
"They bound him with the Chains of Null—a forbidden program that strips a divine of their power and mory. They erased him line by line until only a single fla of his consciousness remained—hidden deep in the ruins of what used to be his stronghold. And when he vanished... balance shattered."
Dimm blinked. "So, that was the Fall of Korr'Tai?"
"No," Minxx said softly. "The Fall happened when his last command—a final protocol—was triggered."
She turned to face him, her eyes now shining with sothing deeper.
"It was a prophecy: A Chosen will rise. He will not be bound by old rules, nor broken by corrupted gods. He will unite the Clans, reclaim the lost code, and finish what I started."
"And before he vanished, he left a system he was secretly working on. A system that will go against most rules of this ga."
"Korr'Tai thought the system would choose soone who could rember what it felt like to be powerless, yet still dream of power," Minxx then turned to Dimm. "You speak like a Leader, Dimm... but only ti will tell if you'll lead us to salvation—or to another Fall."
"And here is one hint you should know," Minxx said. "History only recorded the Fall of Korr'Tai, but never did it record his death. Now, what so of us believed is that he died, but he's not dead."
Dimm acted like he paid less attention to these last words, but within him, in his mind he thought deeply. From all Minxx told of, she made two contrasting point he was sure of.
'Korr'Tai was erased with the Chain of Null, but it didn't record as his fall. The second been that this fall was only recorded when the hidden system he created was triggered. Then, who triggered this system? And who, really, recorded this fall?'
Dimm decided it was best to let the thought off, other than to allow it linger in his mind. He was going to find an answer to his questions, but not in the anti.
Coming to a halt, he bent down to observe a mark on the ground.
"Whose are these footprints?"
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