Ball of Nothing

Zero wasn't very bothered by the harsh hisses coming from the guardian. In fact, he showed understanding in his eyes. Ouroboros might have a terrible reputation but his love for the Tree of Knowledge was the real deal. His dedication to protecting it was undeniable even if Zero couldn't understand the reason for his motivation.

The iron gates were finally opened for Zero to enter and the teen released his spell over the guardian. Reluctantly, Ourobos allowed Zero to explore the withered Garden Eden. Apart from that miserable Tree of Knowledge, everything else was dried up and dead, a huge contrast to the plants on the outside. Then again, Zero doubted it. This might be the true image of how Garden Eden looked like. Ouroboros was good with illusions. That path that they walked on earlier could be part of the snake's illusions too.

Garden Eden was a sorry sight with nothing but brown and black. The pond had long dried up into a disgusting chalky substance both greenish and yellowish at the same time. The soil was hard and cracked while the stone statues around looked like they've seen better days. The iron gates swung closed the moment Zero stepped foot into the garden and the fat snake gradually shrunk into the size of Zero's forearm, coiling around the teen's neck.

The young doctor gaped. There was barely anything alive in what was meant to be the most beautiful garden in Heaven. Did Gaia know about it? When did the garden fall into ruin? The young doctor didn't understand why Ouroboros didn't request for help. His suspicions might just be correct. Garden Eden and the Tree of Knowledge might be the plane's guardian. The sorry state it was currently in must be a reflection of how close Heaven was to falling apart. Those threads he saw at Titan Cliff must be the roots of this dying tree.

Zero walked up to the poor tree and placed a hand on it, trying to understand its condition better. Ouroboros also left Zero's neck, slithering all the way up to one of the sturdier branches on the Tree of Knowledge, watching Zero pulse healing magic through the wood with a frown on his face.

\"What happened?\" Zero asked in a soft voice.

The snake guardian yawned. \"It's a long story. You wouldn't be able to return by dinner if I told you everything.\"

Zero didn't respond as the snake took a nap, feeling sleepy from the nutrition he just received from Zero through the tree. The young doctor couldn't help but spare a few more minutes worth of healing magic for the severely undernourished snake and tree. He took a good look at Garden Eden's true form and captured the image with his communicator. This was a job for professionals and Zero didn't have the greenest thumbs in existence.

While feeding the tree and snake, the young doctor retreated into his mindscape to hold a discussion with his assistants. Mii and Wii were better informed about Garden Eden and the Tree of Knowledge to tell Zero about the history. According to the fairies, the Tree of Knowledge was what gave intellect to the creatures who ate it. Mythical creatures, humans, deities and more were born from this great tree after they ate a fallen fruit. The fruit can come in many different forms found anywhere. That dried up pond was one of the places that connected with river Styx. The fruits that fell were transported via the river. However, according to the records, the fruits stopped appearing a few thousand years ago.

It was about the time a serpent who had attained immortality appeared and declared himself as the guardian of Garden Eden. Because of his merciless nature and habits of poaching people to turn into tree fertiliser, Gaia sealed the area away. Unlike what Ouroboros wanted Zero to believe, Garden Eden was not created by Gaia or under her control. Garden Eden and the Tree of Knowledge were actually under the control of the three Divine Sisters who resided in Heaven. Gaia merely managed it on their behalf.

When the three sisters suddenly lost contact with the Great Gods and could not be awakened after the plane broke, Gaia took it upon herself to seal the Tree of Knowledge away from those who wished to harm it. Ouroboros' origin was unknown as nobody had heard of its existence before it declared itself the guardian of the Tree of Knowledge. However, Mii made a logical guess that Zero found very convincing and possible.

\"If Nel was behind the introduction of Ouroboros, does it mean that she was buying time for Heaven and Hell's destruction? Nel is on my side, right? Or do you think this is part of Solo's scheme.\"

Mii shook her head in defeat. Her intelligence only went that far. Wii frowned. \"Something doesn't add up. Why wouldn't Nel stop the destruction of the original plane if that was the case?\"

Zero hummed. back then, everything was chaotic. Gods were falling and angels fought each other. It sounded like a very good time for Solo to slip under everyone's radar to create havoc and encourage the plane to break. If Solo's aim was to destroy the world, he would definitely stir the pot to make the extinction of Hell and Heaven happen. Without Gods to maintain the life cycle of the material plane, souls would be constantly devoured by the void and the world will destroy itself from the lack of management.

\"Nel cannot stop Solo. She's fighting too many things alone and there is a possibility that she has to hide from Solo to do the things she does. Shittomi's letter told us that Nel's traces were always at the site of destruction, there's no doubt that Nel had been here before but she couldn't prevent it from happening,\" Zero answered the eggplant fairy.

Mii sighed. \"It doesn't really matter. Nel did everything she could and bought us time. What can we do now? The Tree of Knowledge is almost dead, this plane cannot last for much longer. You still have not created your grimoire to seal Titan Cliff. If we harvested the Tree of Knowledge to create that grimoire, Heaven would be no more and maybe Hell as well.\"

Zero nodded. \"Actually, I have an idea but I don't know the chances of success. After all, nobody had attempted it.\"

The young doctor told his assistants about his intentions to save both Heaven and Hell by cutting the connection away.

\"If Merlin and Buddha are able to create artificial planes, I think I can create something similar for the abyss to stick onto Heaven's original plane after sealing the crack.\"

Mii listened and nodded with unamused eyes. \"You really are crazy.\"

Zero didn't take that as an insult and blushed shyly. Wii didn't know what to say. For some reason, Zero's crazy idea made her believe that it might be possible to save both Heaven and Hell.

\"How will you stabilise Hell? Currently, the roots of the dying Tree of Knowledge are holding it up. Without it, that portion of the plane should have returned to the void a long time ago. If you want to cut that connection away, we should first find a way to attach Hell to Heaven's crumbling plane.\"

Zero nodded. \"About that, I have an idea but I'm not sure if it would work. Remember the Spring of Vitality? It's said to not belong to Heaven or Hell simply because it also flows through the Purgatory and more. The location of that Spring is the most ideal if we wanted to create a new plane guardian.\"

Mii caught on quickly. \"So the reason why you want to plant the Tree of Life there is to create a new plane guardian?\"

Zero beamed. As expected of Mii, his strawcherry assistant was very smart.

\"Exactly! However, I need to first find out how plane guardians are created. For that very reason, I'm in the Garden Eden. On the surface, it looks like a luxurious garden with very intricate architecture and detailed arrangements. However, I assure you that there is more to just good landscaping involved. Somewhere in here must be an ancient array that Solo made when he first designed the plane.\"

Wii offered to start looking up books about arrays and Mii started scanning the garden in greater detail so that Zero could study it back in Arabesque. They had very little time left before Zero had to leave. Who knew what kind of drama Merlin would cause if Zero wasn't back by dinner.

The young doctor reluctantly left the garden but not before creating a portal inscription on one of the huge rocks by the pond. He had grand plans to renovate the ruined garden but first, he needed Gaia's permission to invite the experts for landscaping and reviving the garden. Zero also needed to hold a discussion with the Demon Lords and archangels to inform them about his intentions to introduce the Spring of Vitality in Garden Eden. Territory rights and use of spring water will definitely need to be discussed to prevent another war between the angels and demons. There were many things to be done and Zero sighed. Why did his goals always seem so far away?

The teen gave Ouroboros a good pat on the snake's head before he left. Travelling back should be a lot easier with the portal created. he set the coordinates of Arabesque's portal and hopped into it quickly, just a minute before dinner time.

Merlin was pacing anxiously in the dining room with Bib trailing behind the wizard, cleaning the mud on the floor. The magician had been so worried that he forgot to remove his dirty shoes by the entrance for cleaning and walked all over the tower with them on. The household golem was not pleased but there was little it could do in front of its master except to clean.

The moment a portal in Arabesque had been activated, Merlin ran upstairs. Zero was back!

\"How did it go?\" the wizard asked as he barged into the library that Zero was using.

The teen had barely touched the ground when Merlin's shout scared him. Zero intended to do a little reading and give his assistants some instructions so that they could work on them while he ate with Merlin but the magician didn't give him the chance to do any of it before demanding answers.

With no choice, Zero told his teacher everything that happened in detail. He also told Merlin about his intentions to revive the Tree of Knowledge and his methods.

\"Of course, it would be great if you could help me study the hidden array in Garden Eden, it would make things a lot easier for me but I understand if you're busy and can't.\"

Merlin didn't take to Zero's assumptions kindly. As the best magician, who could be better at studying ancient arrays? All his other projects could wait. With his help, Zero wouldn't need a few weeks to replicate the same thing for the tree of life. Besides, the faster Zero completed the quests, the better. He wanted to help Zero create the best grimoire in the world and watch the birth of recreation magic alongside his student.

\"I will be there. First, we need to talk to Gaia. Then you need to host a meeting with the Demon Lords and Archangels to draft out the new territorial agreement before we can proceed. While you do that, I will study the hidden array in Garden Eden and test it out for you before you plant the Tree of Life in the Spring of Vitality. This shouldn't take more than a month.\"

Zero agreed. \"I will be sending out the letters. Let's see Gaia tomorrow, first thing in the morning. Also, the snake guardian has a name. He is a deity called Ouroboros but in actual fact, he has already fused himself with the Tree of Knowledge. I guess we can treat him as the Tree of Knowledge's personification.\"

Merlin was surprised at the revelation. the Ouroboros he knew before this was a serpent who liked to consume other weaker beings to grow stronger. He represented the cycle of life much like the phoenix but remained an immortal that never had to die. He didn't have any significant powers but shared the same unending appetite like Zero. Ouroboros was definitely more than fifty metres long since the last time Merlin saw him. How could he only be less than fifty centimetres long now? It was very hard to believe.

\"Didn't he grow fat eating all the fruits on that tree?\"

Zero smiled. \"You'll understand when you see it tomorrow. The whole time Garden Eden was sealed away, the plane has been counting down to the end of its days.\"

Merlin didn't understand it but chose to believe in his student for now. Zero's stomach growled and the magician laughed, ushering them both down for the long-overdue meal of the day.