Chapter 4847: Apophasis! I
Chapter 4847: Apophasis! I
Apophasis.
Noah knew of this ancient expression of power for Absolutes.
It operated differently from Declarations or Embodiments, existing in a space of negation rather than assertion!
But he had never seen it demonstrated by someone who truly understood it.
So for now, he shook his head lightly, wanting to see how THE Primordial Paradox expressed Apophasis!
THE Primordial Paradox set down his obsidian glass and regarded Noah with a measured gaze.
THE Primordial Paradox then leaned back on his throne, his obsidian crown spinning slowly above his head.
"Most expressions of power operate through positive declaration. One states what they are, what they can do, what authority they hold. This is effective, certainly. But it is also limiting."
His fingers traced patterns in the air that left trails of paradoxical light.
"To declare ’I am immortal’ binds you to a concept of immortality. You have defined yourself, and in defining yourself, you have created parameters. Parameters can be exploited. Countered. Overcome."
He paused, letting those words settle.
"Apophasis operates through the opposite principle. Negation. One defines what something is by declaring what it is not."
His obsidian eyes held weight that pressed against reality.
"Consider the difference. ’I am immortal’ creates a definition that can be attacked. But ’I am not subject to death’ eliminates the concept entirely. You have not declared yourself anything. You have simply removed the constraint."
Noah’s eyes shone with understanding as he absorbed this.
"Each negation removes a fundamental limitation until the entity exists outside normal parameters entirely. They have not declared themselves free. They have simply removed the chains."
THE Primordial Paradox smiled.
"At its highest expression, Apophasis renders an entity nearly unassailable. There is nothing to attack because nothing has been declared. The only counter is to negate the negation itself, but this...oh, this creates paradoxes that can destabilize local Existence. And I love paradoxes, and I....thrive on paradoxes."
His smile widened!
Noah’s eyes shone with calm light as he listened while continuing to eat. It was a grand expression of power, one that aligned perfectly with the nature of the being explaining it. Who better to wield negation than someone whose very Claim was built upon contradiction?
He wouldn’t mind seeing it in action!
As if Existence itself had heard that thought, the skies above them rumbled.
The auras of two Absolutes descended.
And they were grand!
What Noah saw were oddities of nature, beings that defied easy categorization even among the already impossible classification of Absolute. They had clearly existed since the early stages of THE Infinite Unfurling, their forms shaped by an era when reality was still deciding what shapes power could take.
The first was a creature of shadow and wing.
Its form was that of a massive bat-like entity, but wrong in ways that made the eyes struggle to process. A single enormous eye dominated its face where two should have been, burning with crimson light that seemed to see through multiple layers of reality simultaneously.
Its wings stretched wide enough to cast shadows across Naglfar’s deck, membranes of darkness that absorbed light rather than reflecting it. Its body was muscular and twisted, limbs that bent at angles that shouldn’t have supported movement but clearly did.
|Entity Analysis|
|Designation: Popobawa, THE Singular Eye|
|Classification: Absolute|
|Civilization: The Paradox of Perception|
|Way of Perception: That which is seen from one angle does not exist from another|
|Foundation: Built upon the contradiction between observation and reality|
|Historical context: One of the failed claimants to Paradox before THE Infinite Unfurling established its current parameters|
|Threat assessment: Significant, but currently maybe outclassed by present company?|
The second was a bird of lightning and hunger.
Its form was avian but terrible, feathers that crackled with contained storms, eyes that held the hollow emptiness of something that fed on life itself. Electricity arced between its wings with each movement, and its beak was curved and cruel, designed for tearing rather than pecking. Its talons gripped nothing but air, yet somehow it perched upon that emptiness as if it were solid ground.
|Entity Analysis|
|Designation: Impundulu, THE Storm That Hungers|
|Classification: Absolute|
|Civilization: The Paradox of Consumption|
|Way of Consumption: That which feeds grows stronger, yet that which grows stronger must feed more|
|Foundation: Built upon the contradiction between sustenance and starvation|
|Historical context: Another failed claimant to Paradox, allied with Popobawa in their continued attempts|
|Threat assessment: Significant, currently radiating hostile intent|
|Note: Both of these entities have been pursuing THE Primordial Paradox’s Claim since before you were born, Master|
|They have failed every time|
...!
Their bodies radiated an air of archaic might, power that had been accumulated across eons of existence in an era when such accumulation was simpler than it had become. They descended toward Naglfar with the confidence of predators who had finally cornered their prey.
The moment they arrived, Impundulu opened its crackling beak.
"Paradox! For too long you have-"
"Shh."
THE Primordial Paradox did not rise from his throne.
He did not even shift his posture.
He simply raised one finger, and an instant later, the mouth of the talking Impundulu closed. The Absolute’s beak snapped shut with a sound like thunder being strangled, and its eyes widened with shock as it discovered something impossible.
It could not speak.
It could not express itself.
The words it had prepared, the threats it had crafted, the Embodiments it had intended to make...
All of it was gone.
"You are not capable of expression."
THE Primordial Paradox’s voice was calm, almost bored.
"Your words are not heard. Your intent is not communicated. Your voice is not present in this space."
BOOM!
The Apophasis settled over Impundulu like chains made of absence, each negation removing something fundamental from its existence. It hadn’t been silenced. Silence implied the potential for sound. It had simply been removed from the category of beings capable of making themselves understood!
THE Primordial Paradox looked at Noah as if an older brother was explaining something unique to the youngest member of the family.
"Sometimes, when you permit others to live because they provide you with fond memories, they mistake it for weakness."
His obsidian eyes held ancient amusement.
"So an example has to be made to remind them why they lost in the first place."
...!