#ending is a little rushed cuz i just wanted to get this outta my draaafts. its been sitting for so long.

[sunluzhen]

They remember, vaguely, the day they were born. Created. Molded from clay that was embedded with the shattered pieces of Monkey King's stone egg. A woman's face. How small they felt, cupped in her hands. The sound of something sliding against the ground -- scales. Slithering.

They had forgotten her, after the storm. She left them behind. Whether on purpose or not, they don't know. Might never know, now, in this strange place so disconnected from the reality they once knew. But they still feel this sense of urgency, in finding out. Yet, it's been put on the back burner. This place was convenient, at least, when it came to being provided with distractions.

They've been having strange dreams again. Snippets of conversations; visions of unfamiliar scenes that invoked a sense of déjà vu; a torrent of mixed emotions. Horror and dread and awe and anger and desperation. The sky falling apart. Them falling apart with it.

Maybe they should actually search for the answers to at least one of their many existential problems: who is she? They don't know how to find their answer, is the thing. Wukong certainly knew lots of people between all the realms, but... could they go to him? For something so personal?

They still haven't talked about what MK is. They don't think Wukong even knows, either, so maybe he wouldn't have any of the answers to begin with.

Macaque probably wouldn't know. Sun and Nezha were from a different universe-- providing the description of a specific god from MK's world would be pretty useless, probably. What are the odds of them also knowing a giant goddess with the body of a serpent? She wouldn't be MK's creator, even if they did know something.

It's when they're laying on their bed, staring frustratedly up at the ceiling, that they finally have an epiphany. They could go to Spirale's infamous library! It holds knowledge such a repertoire of magical knowledge after all, doesn't it? Maybe, just maybe, it'll have information from across the multiverse too. They've only been once, accompanying little Liu'er one day. It turned out the little monkey was quite the book worm. They still remember the way.

They jolt upright with renewed energy as they prepare themselves for a hike deep into the enchanted forest. It takes a couple of hours on foot, which is fine by them. They don't exactly have any other mode of transportation. They could take the bus most of the way, surely, but...

Today they felt the need to have some space, in order to keep their thoughts somewhat organized, at least on their way to the library. It gives them the time they need to focus on their memory of her. Her face, the style of her make-up; blurry. Her style of headdress, the gem at the center; green. Her flowy hanfu; green. The scales adorning her serpentine body; green.

The other animals carved out of clay. Was there anything else she made?

The library probably won't have all the answers. But maybe they could at least finally attach a name to her face. They're not looking for much more than that. They stand outside the library's grand entrance for a moment, silent, before taking a deep breath. They're not sure what they're bracing themselves for, even. Then they head inside.

They remember how the librarian intimidated Liu'er, when they visited this place together. MK understood why. But she kinda just reminded MK of Mei's relatives, which made her not quite as scary in their mind's eye. So, they walk right up to her desk, standing on their tippy-toes in order to peek above the counter properly.

"Hi, ma'am! Uhm— my name's Xiaotian. I was wondering... These books come from all sorts of different worlds, right? Could you help me find some texts from mine?"

"Hm? Oh, yes, I remember you. That shouldn't be too difficult, your world is rather... Distinct, even from the similar ones. What are you looking for?"

"Uhm— texts about the gods from my world. The celestial realm and stuff."

It was as simple as that. Pretty quickly, he was being pointed in the right direction with a list of titles to look for. He feels a bit silly, now, for taking so long to do this. But there's that small part of him still desperately clinging to the desire for some sense of normalcy again. Like-- if he confirms his creator's identity, somehow, that'll ruin any chance of the status quo.

He sighs. He's not even fooling himself anymore, really. The moment he woke up in this strange city with the glamor of a human form completely stripped away... that itself was the nail in the coffin, honestly.

"Just open the damn book already, MK." He hisses at himself, shaking his head as he grabs one of the titles off the shelf, and promptly sits down with it. There's no use in stalling. He flips it open to the first page.

He didn't even have to dig through the book. There she was, one of the oldest recorded gods-- right there.

Nüwa.