Master of the System

Chapter 23

Karta hopped off the couch, causing Vremya to give her a look. The stinky dog rarely left the couch; other than being stinky, it was very good at being lazy too. Karta waved at Vremya with her front paw. My trains here, old man, she said. Ill be back eventually.

Where are you going? Vremya asked, raising an eyebrow at the dog sauntering out of the house.

I have money, and I got to put it to good use! The door slammed shut behind the dog, and Vremya couldnt help but scratch his head. He didnt particularly feel anything at the Labrador retriever leaving. In fact, he was a bit relieved. Finally, hed have the whole place to himself, at least, for a while. There was something hed been wanting to do but was a bit too embarrassed to do whilst the dog was around. It was time for him to investigate why he couldnt travel back in time. He was the god of time, for heavens sake! Going back in time shouldve been as easy as letting out a fart, yet he had embarrassed himself in front of a fur-covered creature.

For now, Vremya didnt have to worry about his users. Smith Jr. still had a mission to sell ten thousand bowls of egg fried rice, and Vremya had given Paul a mission to earn two heaven-grade spirit stones through the bodyguard business. Both of those missions wouldnt be completed in over a year, so Vremya could leave them alone without worry. Figuring out why his power had been taken away, however, that was much more important. His brow furrowed, and he opened up his display. First, he had to figure out if this was an isolated case; were there any other gods that had lost their powers? Luckily, he had his trusty Poiskle search.

Sudden case of lost powers, Vremya muttered while typing the words out on his display. A dozen search results popped up, the first of which was an advertisement. Vremya ignored it and scrolled down until he found a relevant result. There was an incident where the god of water lost control of her ability to control water at low temperatures. The reason that happened was the god of ice grew stronger and exerted his control into her domain. Vremya frowned. Could another god with similar abilities to time have cropped up while he was sleeping?

Vremya went back a page and continued viewing the search results. He found another incidence of lost power, but it wasnt sudden. The god of food was slain during by a titan that had randomly appeared out of nowherewhich for some reason, Vremya felt guilty for. It mustve been due to the idea Karta had planted in his mind. Vremya shook his head. What was done was done. He took in a deep breath and continued reading the article. After the god of food was slain, hundreds of dozens of other gods cropped up: the lunch gods, the breakfast gods, the dinner gods, the dessert gods, the snack gods, the 3 AM meal godsthe list went on and on. After a while, the god of food was reborn, but her domain was limited, and she was reduced to the god of rice. Seeing as he hadnt been slain, Vremya was pretty sure there wasnt an offshoot of his ability floating around, so the likely culprit was a god had begun encroaching on his territory.

Vremya continued scrolling through the search results. Some gods lost powers by trading them away. The god of moons once made a deal with the god of suns, and as a result, the god of suns lost some of his abilities to the god of moons. Vremya knew for sure he hadnt given away any of his abilities. Even when he had separated from Kosmos after their fusion, he made sure all his power was intact. He was about to look at the second page of search results, but a message appeared at the top of his screen. It was from Kosmos. A sigh escaped from Vremyas mouth, and as he moved to block the new contact, his hand froze. The content of the message was disturbing. It was just one question. Are you curious about your lost ability?

Vremya opened up the messenger app with a frown and activated the video chat feature. Some mightve called him old-fashioned for wanting to speak to people face to face; typing just wasnt the same to him. How do you know about that? he asked with a poker face. Was it Kosmos doing? Did she somehow take some of his abilities while he was asleep?

I know everything youve been doing, Kosmos said. You cant travel back in time anymore, and youre trying to figure out why. I know the answer to that.

Vremya leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest. Show some sincerity first, he said. Why dont you explain how youve been keeping an eye on me?

Kosmos smiled, and she brushed her hair back with her hand. I paid your dog to install a keylogger onto your personal computer. I can see every action you take on your computer.

That stinky dog. Vremyas eye twitched. When the stinky dog got back, hed definitely have to find a way to get back at her. Maybe hed put pepper along the rim of her bowl, so shed burn her tongue when she ate. Vremya shifted his attention back onto Kosmos. Surprisingly, the god of space was calm and not screaming her head off. What do you want?

Kosmos beamed. Lets start with what you want, she said. Her eyes narrowed, and Vremya couldnt help but feel as if she were stabbing him with her gaze. The one whos preventing you from traveling back in time is Istoriya.

Istoriya? Vremya furrowed his brow. That named sounded awfully familiar.

The god of history, Kosmos said. He was born at the same time as us. He wanted to follow us, but you rejected him, remember?

Vremya blinked. The little crybaby? The one who couldnt even look me in the eyes? Hes still alive?

Alive and well, Kosmos said. He grows stronger every time a historical incident occurs. You cant travel back in time because those events will be undone if you do, and theres no way hed allow that to occur.

Vremya rubbed his chin. Although their abilities werent the same, technically, Istoriya was encroaching on his domain. Well, thanks for letting me know.

Of course, Kosmos said, flashing Vremya a coy smile. I also have a solution to your problem. Fuse with me, and well be able to ignore the rules set in place. We can crush every god and take over their domains. Their power will be ours, and well become the strongest being in existence!

Vremyas expression darkened. Have you forgotten why we separated in the first place?

Thats inconsequential in the grand scheme of things! Kosmos said, her eyes reddening. Even if our consciousnesses disappear, it doesnt mean were dead. It means weve sublimed into a greater entity!

Thats where we disagree, Vremya said and shook his head. When a chicken eats a worm, just because the worm is now a part of the chicken, it doesnt mean the worm lives on in the chicken.

Kosmos sneered. So, youd rather be a worm?

Id rather be a worm than be digested.

Kosmos snorted. If thats your choice, she said. Im not going to try to convince you anymore. Obviously, this is something youll have to see for yourself. When the council of primordial gods slowly strangles your growth, encroaches on your domain, and forces you down a path of death, youll see that you need me. When you inevitably come crawling into my arms, I wont reject you like youve rejected me; unlike you, Im a magnanimous person.

Vremya snorted in reply. That day wont come.

Well see, Kosmos said and shook her head. Think of everything weve been through. Whos the one whos always made the right decisions?

Instead of responding, Vremya raised his finger and pressed on his display, ending the call. He stared at the blank screen for a bit before sighing. It seemed like hed have to take things a little bit more serious now. Vremya cracked his knuckles. Istoriya, was it? How dare that brat try to encroach on his domain.

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