The Tale of the Storyteller

—

He who seeks and never finds,

For there's nothing to be sought and found

—

Long, long ago, a young man ventured into the depths of a vast and endless forest. He encountered a black horse with golden hair. Suddenly, the horse transformed into a tall, glamorous man.

"I'm Luzior," he introduced himself to the petrified young man. "I'm the god of lust and pleasure. I can show you all the joys in this world if you let me. I promise there will be no consequences."

The young man agreed, lost in lust. He rejoiced happily, and eventually, he grew bored. Nothing could excite him anymore, so he bade farewell to Luzior and continued his journey.

As he passed the tall and thick trees, a red-eyed wolf leaped in his path. The wolf shifted into a young and pretty woman with sad eyes.

"I'm Yakh," she said grudgefully. "This world is so cruel. I can give you the power to avenge anyone who has wronged you. You shall see peace in blood. I promise you there will be no consequences."

The young boy nodded and took Yakh's hands. The power he possessed was immense, but it only made him hungrier. So he left her to seek more.

Under the night sky, a star shone and descended to the earth, landing at the young man's feet. It turned into an old man with a kindly smile.

"I'm Walath, child," he placed his hand on the young boy's shoulder. "I know you want to see more. What if I could show you eternity? You will be the first human to fathom the infinity. I promise you there will be no consequences."

The boy accepted his offer greedily but soon regretted it, his brain attacked by endless data. Walath, indifferent to the young boy's pain and horror, showed him infinity and left him.

The boy crawled on the ground, hopeless. He approached the thickest tree he had ever seen. In the center of the tree, there was a deep abyss. A shadow creeped out of it and stood before the boy.

"I'm Abythi," she whispered. "You can only be healed by the opposite of what you saw; non-existence. You will be the first human to understand what it feels like not to be. I promise you there will be no consequences."

The young boy accepted it desperately and glimpsed into the abyss. The words failed to describe the emptiness he felt. As Abythi promised, the young boy's agony faded, but hopelessness and terror filled his mind. She left him to his fate.

The young boy still persisted and discovered an enormous chalice in the center of the forest, filled with blood. A human-like creature rose out of the blood, unstained.

"I'm the Storyteller," it proclaimed. "Luzior, Yakh, Walath, and Abythi, my children, have deceived you. All of whom are demons, not gods, and there will be consequences for what you sought and found. I offer you the gift of storytelling. You will be in charge of the stories you want to be told. A world in your hand, creating everything you desire; your own rules of physics and matter. You can relive it as many times as you want, but I warn you: if you ever recreate the reality you're in now, I will take your life. And I promise you eventually, you will choose to relive this life of yours again, no matter how painful it was."

"Why do you want to bless me with such power?" the young boy asked skeptically.

"For it's entertaining!" it smirked.

So it bestowed its power upon him, and the young boy became the new Storyteller. He created so many worlds and lived the lives he wanted, some of which were full of adventure, and the others were as peaceful as the heavens. But again, he became bored, finding himself out of ideas. His last choice was to choose his very first life. He did so, and soon found the original Storyteller laughing at him.

"You're the one who sought and never found," it said to the poor boy, now filled with endless experiences. "You humans think there is a meaning in this universe and desperately want to find it out. You lived all your dreams, and yet you are not satisfied. Now I show you the only solution, death!"

The Storyteller poured all the boy's blood into its chalice and waited patiently for its next victim.