The starlight library stretched on indefinitely, its shelves carved from frozen starlight. Elara, Goddess of Wisdom, trailed a finger over a book bound in human souls. "War's brute force falters. Time for more subtle threads," she whispered, drawing a silver thread from the air. It pulsed with Ravi's laughter. "Let's see him dance when the board shifts."
She blew upon the string, shaping it into a puppet—a human form of emptiness with eyes of shattered mirror. "Go, Echo. Unravel his lies… and bring me the Shard."
The Echo bowed, disintegrating into stardust.
Astra Academy's courtyard smoldered, the Titan's tutu-clad sanctuary leaving craters and bewildered scholars. Students stared at the molten footprints, while professors argued divine pranks.
Ravi shoved his way through the crowd, bandages peeking out from beneath his collar (thanks to over-nurturing Mira). Klaus pinned him against the wall, lion mask still askew. "Heard you 'tripped' attacking. How heroic."
"Yessss! Crashed face-first into a wall," Ravi smiled, pushing his glasses up. "Got a neat scar, too. Want to see?"
Liora pulled him back, her wolf mask shattered. "Stop teasing him. And stop getting hurt."
"Aww, concerned about me?"
"Worried you'll get us all expelled," she muttered, though her grip lingered.
Lysandra emerged, demon mask glinting. "So much concern! But our bunny thrives on chaos, don't you, dear?" Her fingers stroked his bandages. "As if he prefers the agony."
Mira pulled up, lugging a basket of charred cookies. "I tried a new recipe! For, um, toughness!"
Ravi munched on a cookie. Burnt hope. Better than truth serum still.
Seraphina's research was saturated with incense and desperation. The Soulrend Shard hovered over her work area, its crimson light casting shadows like the scratches of claws.
"Why react to him?" she hissed, replaying surveillance crystals—Ravi's dorm, the festival, the Titan's humiliation. Every "accident" aligned with The Universe's interventions.
Her daydreaming was interrupted by a knock. Professor Alden entered, bearing reports. "Headmistress, the Shard's energy spiked during the attack. It's. calling something."
"Or someone," she muttered, pocketing the Shard. "Prepare my carriage. We visit the Black Archives tonight."
Alden turned white. "The Archives are forbidden! The knowledge there—"
"——is the sole way of uncovering our cosmic jester."
Under Luminara's cathedral, the Black Archives unfolded like a labyrinth of cursed books and fettered relics. Seraphina's lantern blazed as she stood before an altar etched with dead gods.
"Reveal the truth of the Shard," she instructed, placing it on the altar.
The walls hemorrhaged. Words coalesced:
"Soulrend Shard: Shattering of the First Cosmos, keystone of the Creator's Throne. Whoever possesses it can defy the Universe… or become it."
Seraphina's breath stopped.
"So it's not a weapon. It's a test."
The Shard throbbed, humming with Ravi's words: "Fools. They dance in my cosmos yet see only shadows."
The Echo appeared in Luminara's slums, its shape changing—a beggar, a merchant, a child. It spoke to a drunkard: "The Universe walks among you. Find him.".
The inebriate's eyes went glassy. "The… Universe?"
"A boy with stars in his shadow."
The drunkard stumbled into the night, spreading rumors like disease.
Magic History class just dragged on and on, Professor Elm discussing the God of War's tantrums. Ravi doodled the Goddess of Wisdom in his notebook, giving her a party hat.
"Mr. Sharma!" Elm barked. "Name one consequence of the Divine Schism."
"Umm… cheap divine products?"
Laughter followed.
"The Schism gave rise to the mortal world, you fool!" Klaus sneered.
"Right, right! And. uh, free will? Or was that a glitch?"
The class went rigid. Even Elm stared.
Lysandra's eyes grew narrow. "Surprisingly poetic for a fool."
Ravi massaged his head. Oops. Too on-the-nose.
That night, Liora dragged Ravi to the training areas. "Spar with me. Now."
"But I have a weak constitution!"
She attacked. He "stumbled," avoiding her sword by millimeters.
"Stop pretending!" she hissed, pinning him. "You move like a novice, but your luck's unnatural. Who are you?"
Ravi closed his eyes. "A napping enthusiast?"
Lysandra watched from the shadows, captivated. Liar. And yet what a great lie.
Mira came with tea, stumbling on a pebble. Ravi steadied her, the teapot breaking.
"S-sorry! I'm useless!" Mira shook.
"Nah, you're awesome at… existing!" Ravi grinned. Harem trope: comfort the shy one. Check.
The Echo pinned Ravi against the library, coalescing into a reflection of himself—smile twisted, eyes hollow.
"The Goddess seeks the Shard, Creator," it hissed. "Surrender it, or I'll unravel your little play."
Ravi yawned. "Mirror clones? How derivative."
The Echo lunged, reality fracturing. Ravi snapped his fingers—it froze mid-strike, now a harmless snow globe.
"Inform Elara I enjoy checkers."
Seraphina burst in, Shard in hand. "Enough games! What are you?!"
Ravi pushed his spectacles up his nose. "A snow globe enthusiast sort of?"
The God of War scowled at Elara's hologram.
"Your puppet failed."
"Patience," she smiled. "The Shard's power grows. Soon, the mortal will choose his role—destroyer or deity. And we'll be waiting." In the dorms, Ravi shook the snow globe, grinning. Bring it on.