Chapter 17: The Mother of Deception Attempts to Ravish Aha

Crimson moonlight engulfed Aha. Wherever the light touched, bizarre, fleshy plants sprouted from the soil, waving limbs of flesh and blood as they grew rapidly, budding into human faces and appendages. Rocks swelled as if pregnant, and creature-like stone beings were "birthed" from within them. Upon birth, they grew instantly, only for their bellies to bloat and burst, allowing even more monsters to crawl out.

"Hahaha." The laughter did not cease. The crimson moonlight boiled in response to the sound, and masks drifted within the light like small boats upon the water.

Of course, the moonlight possessed no buoyancy, but that did not stop Aha from improvising a performance to match his counterpart.

The moonlight receded like a tide, coalescing into a distinct, elegant, and intricate crimson gown. Regrettably, what resided within the gown was no beauty, but a twisted monster of flesh and blood.

Yet, one could not deny that even as a distorted mass of flesh, She remained "beautiful." To judge Her by human aesthetic standards was meaningless, for She was the unique Red Moon, the symbol of life and beauty, the mother of all spiritual power.

"Beauty" was, in itself, a component of what She symbolized.

Beyond that, She was also the Mother of Deceit. The origin of evil, the Undying, the foul brood-nest. Holiness and corruption, beauty and filth—these contradictory concepts existed within Her without conflict.

Aha’s laughter gradually tapered off, slowly transforming into sobbing. His voice was filled with pity and sorrow: "How pitiful. Such ugly beauty, like a flower sculpted from excrement. You know, as a devout Mourning Actor, I simply cannot bear to see such things."

His voice turned light and joyful once again: "Perhaps you could try piling flowers into the shape of excrement; that would satisfy your aesthetics without being quite so nauseating."

As He spoke, His form shifted. The masks gathered into a heap, imitating the Mother of Deceit’s gown. A rubber ball popped out from the top to serve as a head, and a clown mask with a red nose was placed upon it.

At the very peak of the ball sat a small box. With a click, the box sprang open, revealing a grayish-brown flower. A sorrowful face was painted on the stamen.

Using leaves of the same grayish-brown hue, the flower pinched the nose on its stamen and made a face at the Mother of Deceit.

"Hahahahaha."

Vines formed from the hybridization of flesh and flora bound the masks tight.

"Oh, are we playing a bondage game? My dear, you are so rough." Aha feigned coyness, the little flower on His head twisting and turning while covering its face.

The space around Aha seemed to come alive, wrapping tightly around Him like a coffin. He sank abruptly, the ground turning into a swamp to swallow Him whole.

The Mother of Deceit intended to swallow the box containing a fragment of IX as well, but Her spirit screamed a frantic warning.

"Do not touch! Absolutely do not touch!"

She carefully avoided that portion, while elsewhere on the lunar surface, eyes began to sprout.

The pupils within those eyes suddenly distended, and fleshy tentacles—a hybrid of plant and meat—pierced through the eyeballs to emerge. Crimson gushed out, and the tentacles began to change shape, transforming into infants with grotesque, mask-like faces.

Wriggling nodules grew on the infants' bodies; the blood within these nodules coagulated and morphed into worms, devouring the life force of the little Ahas from within.

The worms burst forth, their mouthparts opening to emit waves of hypnotic, decadent sound.

The Mother of Deceit was using the moon as a "womb," intending to split Aha into tens of millions of pieces and birth them all.

"The logic is sound, but isn't this technically forced impregnation?" A voice filled with laughter rang out simultaneously from the mouths of all the infants. The next moment, the tone shifted into a sobbing whine. "Waaah, Aha is no longer pure. Aha won't be able to get married now. Akivili, I have failed you!"

"Waaah waaaah waaaah."

The Mother of Deceit ignored the weeping Aha. With a backhanded gesture, a blood-red robe descended from the sky, and a man whose form could not be clearly discerned appeared nearby. The man let out a pained, hoarse roar, and the phantom books in his eyes flipped rapidly, causing the scene on the moon to shift violently.

Vast oceans, scorching suns, and towers brimming with knowledge.

One by one, scenes once [recorded] were [reproduced] upon the lunar surface.

Above their heads, higher than the sun, appeared a second crimson moon—a [reproduced] crimson moon.

The sound of rushing water rang out, and the crimson moonlight grew denser. Under the authority of [Creation], the scenes reproduced by Mr. Door changed rapidly.

Above the ocean, lightning surged, coalescing into a majestic middle-aged man clad in black armor, treading upon the waves, wreathed in storms, draped in lightning, and wielding a trident.

The sun transformed into a handsome, radiant, and spirited man in pure white robes with short golden hair. In his hands, he held a Book of Covenant and a golden sphere like a sun.

The tower transformed into an old man in a hood, revealing only his mouth, wrinkles, and white beard. He held an open book, above which hovered an eye symbolizing omniscience.

The Lord of Storms, the Eternal Blazing Sun, the God of Wisdom.

Amidst pained roars, the Mother of Deceit forced Mr. Door to complete the reproduction of the scene where "Three Gods Divide and Consume the Ancient Sun God."

The projections of the three gods turned into countless flesh-monsters, feeding upon the little Ahas.

Amidst Aha’s laughter-filled sobbing, the infants all shed tears. The flesh-monsters, after consuming the little Ahas, shed tears as well.

As the tears hit the ground, they quickly turned into orange-red smiling faces. The tears remaining on their faces also transformed into masks.

"Hahahahaha."

The masks grinned broadly. There were the little Ahas not yet consumed, the masks sprouted from the ground, and the flesh-monsters wearing masks.

"Hahahahaha."

The laughter rang out again. This time, it was not just Aha laughing. The stones were laughing, the soil was laughing, and the fleshy tentacles and eyes were all laughing.

Mr. Door no longer let out pained roars. The Mother of Deceit could not help but laugh as well, with countless smiling faces sprouting upon Her body.

They were all laughing heartily.

The only pure land was the area surrounding the box.

The moon was stained orange-red and began to wriggle, taking on the appearance of a smiling face.

A vacuum cannot transmit sound, yet the people on Earth nearby seemed to hear the laughter. Their moods, too, became joyful.

The Mother of Deceit began to feel fear, but soon Her fear was drowned out by the emotion of joy. However, She knew She had to leave—to leave this place that brought Her such joy.

She felt reluctant; perhaps staying here would not be a bad ending. She wanted to drown in this pleasure. Her consciousness gradually sank, and Her face slowly turned into a mask—the mask of a graceful, noble lady with upturned corners of the mouth.

She suddenly wrenched Herself free from the joy and tried to leave, but She discovered that at some point, She had been planted into the soil, fused with the entire moon.

All that remained exposed was Her face, now a mask. But even the mask gradually sank into the earth. She wanted to reach out and try to save Herself, to crawl toward the box. She had already realized that it was safe there. But She no longer had hands. Slowly, She was swallowed up.

The moon began to wriggle again, returning to its original state. Aha detached from the moon and, laughing loudly, fell toward Earth with IX and the unknown small orb.

Not long after Aha departed, the Mother of Deceit opened Her eyes again, and countless tiny eyes opened on the lunar surface. She discovered that She seemed to have fused completely with the moon.

The moon split open once more, though this time there was only a single crack. Utilizing the authorities of Creation and Procreation, She "birthed" Her own spirituality anew.

According to unofficial records, in July of 1349, the Mother of Deceit gave birth to a daughter for the Aeon of Elation, Aha, on the moon.

I am an Memokeeper from the Garden of Recollection. Follow me for more cosmic trivia.

…………

Aha detached from the moon and fell toward Earth.

However, before reaching the planet, He was blocked by a barrier. He pressed against the barrier, watching the Earth below; the half of the Earth facing the moon had been shrouded by a curtain of night at some unknown moment.

Aha’s gaze pierced through the night, seeing the interior of the Earth. He recalled the memories He had obtained from Cierris, which naturally included *Lord of the Mysteries*.

Hmm, He suddenly had a good idea.

Action followed thought. With transcendent efficiency, Aha casually tossed His good brother IX, letting Him return to nature.

He was truly a benevolent soul, perfectly qualified to be the president of a "Wildlife Protection Association." Who else had ever released a wild Aeon? Certainly no one.

Next, He looked at the unknown small orb, smeared something on it, and threw it into the barrier. He did not know what identification mechanism the barrier used, but while it refused Him entry, the small orb passed through without issue.

The night within the barrier suddenly transformed into a pair of hands, attempting to snatch the orb. But the orb suddenly turned faint, became transparent, and vanished.

The hands made of night grabbed at nothing, paused for a moment, and dissipated right in front of Aha.

"It is mystery. I added mystery." One mask made a "Plan Accomplished" expression, drawing cheers from the other masks.

This was simply marvelous.