Chapter 4888: Adversity! II No one who had been a mere Fundamental Depth entity minutes ago should be able to afflict him with a curse that his own authority couldn’t counter! And yet here he was, on his knees, feeling his existence being slowly dismantled! Brought to his knees, Elemental did everything to focus. He gathered his authority, drew upon the weight of his foundations, and uttered another Embodiment with desperate determination. "I am beyond the reach of curses and afflictions! My existence rejects all that seeks to harm it!" BOOM! The Embodiment erupted outward. It did nothing. The burning continued. The deterioration continued. The pain continued without the slightest reduction in intensity. Emotive’s eyes widened with awe and...fucking excitement at this predicament? Elemental roared out another Embodiment, louder this time, more forceful, pouring everything he had into the declaration. "I am THE Living Elemental! The fundamental forces of existence are mine to command! I declare that this affliction holds no power over me!" BOOM! The Embodiment shook the mountain itself with its force. It still did nothing. The curse had been written with precision that his Embodiments couldn’t address. No matter how loudly he declared his immunity, no matter how forcefully he rejected the affliction, the underlying truth remained unchanged: his foundation did not exceed the foundation of the one who had written the Inscription. Until that truth changed, nothing would stop the curse from running its course. Elemental was shocked and horrified at this realization. And he could feel his Civilization starting to deteriorate, could feel the structure of his existence being slowly but surely compromised by an attack he had no defense against. At such a time, the surrounding reality shifted. The two of them had been climbing the mountain toward the temple at its peak, but now they found themselves much closer than they had realized. The temple that had seemed so distant moments ago was now visible just ahead, its multicolored stone architecture gleaming in the twilight. And at the doorway of the temple, a figure appeared. THE Creature. His form was shrouded in multicolored flames of Existence that burned with every color simultaneously, his face barely visible behind the fires that comprised his being. Eyes of immense calm looked out from within those flames, observing the scene before him with ancient patience that had witnessed the turning of ages. THE Living Emotive’s eyes pulsed with a light of fanaticism and fascination as she looked toward THE Creature. Her entire existence seemed to lean toward him, drawn by whatever relationship or obsession connected her to this being among THE Four. She opened her mouth to speak, to offer greeting or reverence or whatever words rose naturally to her lips. But before she could say anything, Elemental spoke first. "Sir." His voice was strained with pain, each word an effort that cost him dearly. "If you could lend a hand." ...! He could barely raise his head to look at THE Creature as he said this, his existence trembling with agony that continued without pause. The proud Absolute who had laid curses upon others was now kneeling before one of THE Four, begging for assistance against a curse that had been laid upon him. THE Creature surrounded by multicolored flames looked toward Elemental with eyes that held no judgment and no mercy in equal measure. His voice was calm, almost gentle, when he spoke. "What you have been afflicted with connects to your foundation. An Apophasis was laid out with a condition tied to the comparative weight of your Depths. No matter what others do, it will be useless unless you change your foundation." Elemental’s face grew more ashen as he processed these words. "And for others to do it for you..." THE Creature shook his head. "That is not possible. The curse targets you specifically. It measures your foundation specifically. Nothing I could do would alter the truth upon which the Apophasis operates." Elemental looked toward THE Creature with a pleading expression that sat wrong on his proud features. "I will give you my Everything." His voice cracked with desperation. "All of it. Everything I possess, everything I am, if you would only lend your aid in this matter. Please." THE Creature looked calmly at Elemental for a long moment, the multicolored flames around him burning steadily without fluctuation. Then he shook his head again. Because sometimes, an Everything held worth...and other times, even the Everythings of an Absolute...held absolutely no worth. "This is a type of adversity and hardship for you unlike any other you have faced." His voice held no cruelty, only observation. "If you actually overcome it through your own efforts, you will likely be distinguished amongst Absolutes. Your foundation would grow in ways that comfortable existence never permits. The Vakochev Scales favor those who have weathered genuine hardship." He paused. "Another path you can take is to seek forgiveness from the one you wronged. They may let you off." BOOM! The words landed with weight that pressed against Elemental’s already deteriorating existence. Seek forgiveness. From THE Youngest. From the being he had cursed and dismissed and looked down upon just days ago. ...! Fuck that! Elemental became ashen as he realized he would receive no help from THE Creature. His one hope of protection from THE Four had just been denied, and the other options available to him were either impossible or unthinkable. The pain and Civilizational degradation he felt became even more intense as he processed this reality. He heaved, his body convulsing with agony that his Embodiments couldn’t touch. His Civilizational authority did nothing against it. His declarations of immunity did nothing against it. Everything he tried failed against an Inscription that had been written with precision he couldn’t counter. He looked above, toward the sky where the page had descended from, and his eyes burned with hatred. If THE Creature did not want to help him, he would have another body of his ask Paradox. THE Living Paradox held a Claim as well, held power that might be able to assist where THE Creature had refused. And if Paradox did not want to help him... ...! A grand Absolute kneeled down in pain as he looked at his options. They were few. They were unpleasant. And they were narrowing with every moment that passed, with every increment of foundation that deteriorated under the relentless assault of an Apophasis that he had never anticipated and couldn’t counter. When a man was driven to desperation, who knows just who or what they might turn toward for help when all other avenues fail? Many thoughts hadn’t consciously formed in Elemental’s mind yet. But desperation had a way of making previously unthinkable options seem reasonable. And Elemental was growing more desperate by the moment!