Tiamat had never met someone like this strange boy. 

She knew she was old, even though she didn’t feel like it. She had just been born.

Tiamat knew she was a part of something eternal. She was the chaos of the sea, and would forever be reborn as Tiamat into the world. She could not exist in the world continuously like that overbearing brother of hers. 

She was simply too powerful, and nothing could contain her. So whenever her power reached a level too vast, she would start a cycle of rebirth. It was one of the better notions from her stupid brother. 

There had been many attempts to contain the power of Tiamat. Legendary heroes, powerful sorcerers, kings with their armies and research laboratories. But none could contain her.

She was lonely, and had always been. Sometimes a powerful sage or a warrior would discover her and be able to control her for a time. Usually Spiritcasters of great renown. But she always outgrew them.

Even now, in the very beginning of her rebirth cycle, she was too strong. That Trola pirate lord coveted her as much as he feared her. He had never even been a contender for Tiamat’s companionship.

She truly lamented her situation. She enjoyed adventure as much as any girl! But she outgrew all the boys and it was so frustrating!

And now, since her rebirth had started too early because someone had awakened Causality in that temple, her mind had been unstable.

She was still herself beneath all of the chaos and madness. She wanted to talk to the spirits and play with them. She loved silly games, as any girl did.

But they could not withstand her power, and they went mad around her. Tiamat loved to get close with people. She wanted to snuggle into someone’s mind and get to know them. She never intended to make the other spirits hurt. But they went mad. And they kept getting sucked into the gravity well of her growing spiritual power.

And since she had been reborn prematurely, she didn’t have the skill to untangle herself from the spirits. So they kept converging on her. It was painful and awful, and she hated it. Why did they go so mad?

And when there were too many of them, and their pulses of intent and emotion intermingled, she started to get influenced by them. A chorus of madness and hurt that slowly whittled down her mind.

Then it became a vicious cycle of her becoming mad and the spirits tangled with her becoming  even madder. The only solution was to erect a spiritual domain and hibernate. That was the only way she could retain the core of who she was. The inner layer of her spirit was as unchanging as the sea, and she would protect it and shut it off from the world.

But that only made her more lonely. And it meant that the spirits would drive the Leviathan, not her.

She needed to protect the most important part of her. The life-giving beauty and bountifulness of the sea. But that meant she had to let the chaos, cruelty and destructiveness of her aspect run rampant, and thus the Leviathan was born.

That was unintended and problematic. She was supposed to be taught by her brother, but her premature reincarnation had prevented that.

Now the Leviathan would grow and likely transmigrate to the higher tier seas and cause a calamity.

Or so she had thought.

Hello? Is Tiamat there?

Someone had come for her?

She had instantly felt the presence of the boy, and her spirit had filled with joy. The boy was a clumsy Spiritcaster at best, and way too young, but… there had been something about him.

With great effort, Tiamat had struggled to gain lucidity of her mind, and for a brief moment, she had taken control of the Leviathan. This had allowed her to swallow the boy and invite him to her spiritual domain.

And he had come!

Oh, and the battle. For a brief moment, she had been able to take control of the bone dragon that the spirits had created to battle against the boy. 

It had been wonderful!

The rush of being able to unleash some of her chaos had filled her with thrill. And to her amazement, the boy could handle her!

He was only a child, but so fierce and skilled! How could such a boy exist?

In the inner sanctum of her spirit, she had grinned like a mischievous girl. It had felt soooo good to let loose.

And this boy had been able to contain her. Was the Leviathan really still in the Silver Sea between tier one and zero?

The boy had defeated her and the spirits. The spirits had gone berserk, and she had been scared. They had all been scared and angry. Tiamat herself had been indignant at the loss. Who is this boy and how dare he treat me like that?

Oh, please, keep treating me like this. I need someone strong enough to contain me!

The boy had patiently started releasing the spirits. For all his power with magic, he was a clumsy Spiritcaster. But he had exhausted the spirits, so that even the greater ones were too spent to resist.

One by one, with a firm and patient hand, he released them and thanked them all.

This boy… He was as strong as gentle. 

Tiamat wanted him— ney, needed him to take control of her. Oh, how she yearned for another hero to contain her. Could this boy be the one?

Then finally, the boy had touched her spirit.

“Hey,” the boy had said gently. “I came to save you.”

Oh…

Hi.

She let that out in a squeak. 

SHIIIIII!

It was so embarrassing! Why couldn’t she be cool?

I am Tiamat, The Primordial Chaos of The Sea! All men shall tremble at my feet!

Oh, please make another connection with me. Don’t be shy. I’ve been so lonely.

Then the boy did. He made a connection using some skill that let him connect with her directly. In a flash of insight, she understood this boy.

Wait a minute! ZAMADI! You sent this boy to me, you overbearing brother! Stop interfering with my life!

Oh, but the boy… Who was this strange person? He was not a child. He had… reincarnated? Just like she had. But the boy had forgotten who he was before. Now he was this… pure entity. He had cleaned his mind with some kind of meditation practice. And he had learned to be… aligned with the world and its magic. He had learned to love truly and full-heartedly. What an exquisite person. Tiamat in all her reincarnations had never seen anyone of his like.

She shared her emotions with him. The boy was surprised, but smiled.

“There now,” he said as he uncurled her trembling spirit. “You must have been scared.”

I was! But I’m okay now!

This boy was strange, but she worried he would still not be enough. No one was. She was the primordial sea after all. But maybe they could travel together, just a little while…?

She probed deeper into the boy’s spirit because he had fully opened it to her. He held nothing in the shadows, but was fully open to her and the world. What a wonderfully light feeling of acceptance! 

Tiamat’s attention drifted to the boy’s arm.

And what was this?!

What was this cultivation art? It practically throbbed with the power of absolutely pure mana. Just taking a smidge of this would be heady. Was this what he had used to untangle her mind?

Oh and this Perk!? Damn it Zamadi! He got this from a boon didn’t he? You meddling older brother!

His body would turn into pure magic some day? And it was a conduit for spirits…?

Tiamat’s spirit trembled with delicate joy. It was mixed with fear. Fear of her hope shattering.

Could this boy really become strong enough to contain her?

The boy untangled her soul from the remains of the other spirits. He sent Tiamat a pulse of reassurance.

“You’re free now. Go forth or something. Don’t become the Leviathan again, okay?”

Then the boy just rose up and started looking around. Tiamat reached into his spirit to understand. He wanted to leave!? He was looking for the exit?

He didn’t want her?

Wasn’t he here to claim her?

But…

She pinged him a tentative little pulse.

Please don’t go.

“Huh?” the boy asked. “But you’re okay now. You’re free. Do you want to talk?”

No! Well, yes! I want to snuggle up into this boy’s spirit and never let go.

She would wrap around this wonderful creature and have him contain her vastness forever and ever!

“I can stay for a while,” the boy said. “But my family will worry. I have to get back soon.”

Oh… What a dense boy. Well, he was young.

Take me! You dummy! I want to come with you!

“Huh?” the boy said. “Sure? You want to hop into my cultivation? The other spirits wouldn’t.”

There were others?! Hmph! Well it’s a good thing you didn’t mingle with them.

Oh no! Did she ping that aloud! She didn’t mean to! Now he would think she was overbearing! 

Tiamat didn’t this boy mingling with other spirits, but she well understood why they couldn’t bond with him. Even though his cultivation was at the initial stages, the mana was so pure it made her spirit tingle so much that it made her giddy just being next to the boy. She wanted to dive into that hand that glittered like a warm sun on the ocean surface. That hand… it felt like home.

I… want to come with you. For good.

Tiamat sent a complicated pulse. She put all her hopes and expectations into that pulse. In that pulse she tried to be as earnest as this boy. She put in her fears and her loneliness, and her worry that he will be destroyed by her.

The boy understood. For all his seeming denseness, he went still and solemn.

That worried Tiamat. Would he accept her? No! Why was she thinking like this? She was the sea. Endless and powerful! Men of renown had thrown themselves at her feet just to share a glimpse of her power.

And this boy just… was going to let her go? Didn’t he understand? He could have subjugated her in this nascent state she was in.

No… the boy did understand! And he was exceedingly greedy. In fact, Tiamat had never felt such a thirst for knowledge and power. It… made her tremble. This force of will that the boy had was incomprehensible!

Yes. He was the one. She wanted him! He would be able to contain her and take her on all the fun adventures!

“Come,” the boy simply said. Such a simple word. But it made her spirit quiver.

It was said in the high voice of a young boy, but he said it with such profound confidence. He knew what she was and how powerful she would become. The boy knew that if he did not manage to contain her, they would both cause great havoc on the world and ultimately be destroyed.

And yet, the boy just shrugged and thought he could handle it. 

Oh.

She sent another pulse. A little bolder this time. The boy was so relaxed. She wanted to be at such ease as well. She would learn this with him.

Oh… I think we will have such a great time!