Ashton's laughter echoed across the twisting nothingness around...
If looks could kill, Ashton would've been long dead. The Celestial God fumed in anger, clenching his fists in vexation as he dealt with the fact that he was, once again, got played by Ashton.
"Ah, you're the best." Ashton dried the tears pooling at the corner of his eyes due to too much laughter. He then fixed his posture and said: "I've done this so many times by now, I thought that it won't work anymore yet you still fall for it like a bonafide idiot."
Ashton burst into a fit of giggles before saying: "So much for being a God, really."
As much as the Celestial God wants to just do something to shut Ashton up, deep down he was frozen in indecision.
How much of this was real? How much of it was a lie? Had he been imprisoned in a Dream all this while? Was his escape just another fabrication of Ashton that he fell for? The Celestial God truly doesn't know what to think anymore.
The explosion of the Abyss which triggered the disappearance of the Primeval Battlefield, generated a pulse that was strong enough to break him out of prison.
Initially, the Celestial God guessed that Ashton's connection with his doppelganger was the cause of his unexpected freedom. He thought that since West Two was severely injured by the Abyss, some of those were relayed to Ashton through their shared link, causing Ashton to wake up from dreaming and freeing the Celestial God from the restraints of the dream.
He was ecstatic at first. How can he not? He had been tortured immensely by Ashton in the dream. The fact that he could only watch as his pieces fell one by one, vexed him to no end.
The helplessness he felt knowing that he couldn't use any means to breakthrough out of the prison he was trapped in, was replaced with euphoria and gloating the moment his consciousness returned to his body.
Despite the Abyss' rampage, the Celestial God still thinks that he could still salvage the situation. Everything is not lost yet, he could still come back from this loss once he had dealt with Humans,
He took control of the Abyss, absorbing it to his core and letting it strengthen him. The Celestial God felt immense power like he never felt before. It gave him confidence and it fueled his ambitions. He thought that once he gained the Abyss for himself, his power would be unparalleled.
And yet...even with the power of the Abyss, Ashton still managed to confuse him as to what's real and what's not.
"...I really want to play with you more," Ashton uttered softly, sounding fond even as he regarded the fuming Celestial God. "Amongst all toys I've encountered, you're the one who gave me the most colorful reactions."
"If it were me, I would never stop playing with you. Seriously, it's just way too fund to do so." Ashton then sighed and said: "Unfortunately, everything has to end. And so is this playtime as well. Which is a bummer but hey! At least we had fun, right?"
"Fuck you!" The Celestial God cursed hatefully.
"See!? Ahahaha!" Ashton went into another fit of laughter again.
"To be honest though, I really can't blame you for being hesitant right now." Ashton stated, "If I were in your shoes, trust me, I would be too."
"Alas, bending reality to my whims is just way too fun." Ashton wore a sick smile which caused tension to know on the Celestial God's stomach. "But like I said, everything has to end eventually."
"It's been fun, but this has gone for far too long already. My people are already exhausted from everything. Of course, me being the good leader that I am, have to let them go eventually. After all, they graciously played their assigned roles without any complaints. It'll be bad for my image if I didn't at least give them some rest, right?" Ashton continued, pacing around the Celestial God without any care in the world.
"I know what you want to ask: 'How much of it was fake? How much was real?' And, well...to answer your question. Well, I'd say fifty-fifty."
The space around them warped, revealing what remains of the Primeval Battlefield.
Only a chunk of it was left after the explosion of the Abyss. All history of that place went away with its disappearance as well. Ashton finds this somewhat of a shame since he would've liked to personally study the detailed history of this place yet he couldn't anymore since Abyss practically swallowed everything.
As for the Abyss though...to the Celestial God's shock, it was perfectly restrained. Suppressed by a coating of rainbow-colored light, sealed with mystical runes which formed an air-tight seal around it.
The god watched as the Abyss tried its hardest to break free of its prison, giving him some sort of a deja vu, yet it couldn't. The Abyss flinched again and again as it made contact with the prison it was being singed every time it does so.
"My doppelganger failed to contain this thing but...well, I'm not him. Technically, if I may add." Ashton shrugged. "West Two's just a little bit weaker than I am. His strength wasn't enough, sure. But he still managed to contain it by himself for a period of time."
"I use the same method he applied. But since I am stronger than him, mine's more effective than his. So there, perfectly sealed Abyss as it should be." Ashton jovially informed.
He then faced the Celestial God and said: "You breaking out of my Dreams were real, but not in the way you thought."
'Right, I forgot that he can read my thoughts easily so long as I'm in his dreams.' The Celestial God thought to himself.
"I've told you, didn't I? So long as I wanted you in my dreams, no amount of effort from you or anyone would free you. The only way for you to break free from that is if I decided to let you go. Even my death won't stop it."
The Celestial God's expression hardened upon hearing that and realizing what Ashton implied.
"Correct." Ashton grinned at him. "You got freed not because West Two got severely injured and the feedback woke me up. You got freed because I allowed you to get away. It's as simple as that."
"And just as I expected. The moment you've regained your freedom was also the same moment you will try to get even with me." Ashton said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You were so exhilarated about your freedom that your hubris once again reared its nasty head."
"You wasted no time and immediately dove into the Abyss, siphoning more power from it as if it was your lifeline. Thinking that if you're way stronger than you already are, then you wouldn't be pulled into my Dreams anymore."
"Additionally, you also began targetting my friends. You wanted to break my spirit by hurting them as much as you possibly could because you know that that's the only way you can hurt me. Unfortunately, you're way too slow." Ashton sighed in disappointment.
The Celestial God balled his fist in sheer anger at Ashton's words. No matter how many times he thought about it, there was just nobody that could top Ashton when it comes to angering him. He has never felt so vexed and helpless in his entire life until he met him.
"Don't get confused though." Ashton raised a finger at him. "When I said that you're too slow, I wasn't referring to your speed."
"I'm talking about your intellect..."
Again, if looks could kill...oh, if only it could. Still, the Celestial God couldn't possibly expect what Ashton's next words were going to be.
"You're so full of yourself, still underestimating me, us, that you failed to realize that from the very beginning of this war, all of this was planned by me. Hell, I already told you that myself, yet you just don't get it unless it's spelled out in front of you."
The Celestial God's pupils dilated when he heard that. His thoughts began churning and the implication of it all sent him into a spiraling descent to madness.
"Correct once again. Now you're learning." The hateful tone of Ashton's voice centered him to reality once more. "Yes, indeed. From the very moment my people stepped foot into your universe, everything they did; the plans, the operations, activities, even the number of casualties we accumulated against your minions...hell, even the existence of the Abyss itself!"
"...all of them were within my calculations," Ashton admitted in a sickly tone, but only to the ears of the Celestial God, who's questioning everything up to this point.
"Simply put, you were dancing on top of my palms this entire time." Ashton stepped closer to him, basking upon the horrified expression of the Celestial God. "It was very entertaining, thank you very much."
"Oh and uh...you're actually not in a dream right now." Ashton bashfully said while scratching his cheeks. "I lied when I said that it's fifty-fifty."
"Everything was real. I just merely switched positions with my doppelganger, that's how I arrived here fast. As for the surroundings warping earlier? Well, that's me sealing the Abyss. I didn't want you to interfere so I took advantage of your trauma with my dreams to distract you."
The Celestial God coughed violently and spat blood due to sheer anger...
"It's just a prank, Bro. Hehe..."
"FUCK YOU, ASHTON!!!!"
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!"
