Chapter 236: First And Only Death

"Being a self-progenitor is akin to being a god," Jacob said casually, looking up at Uga. The being looked at him in the way that a mother would look at a lost child. "All Meereens are gods, then."

"We cannot call ourselves gods. Gods are not built to serve like we do. Gods do not have a purpose like we do. We are merely servants, and we will remain as servants," Uga said lightly. Jacob could have sworn that he could hear a hint of annoyance in the being’s voice.

"I have only one question for you."

"You do not need permission to ask your questions, Jacob. I am here to guide you," Uga reminded him, the imperceptible smile flashing across its face for the umpteenth time.

"Has a Meereen ever died before?"

Uga remained silent for a moment, but the silence was louder than anything in the room at that moment. And within that silence, Jacob had gotten his answer, but he was just waiting for Uga to explain what had actually happened. The creature just took a step and seemingly let out a sigh, but no air came out, as it did not possess human parts like lungs.

"It happened light years ago. Till now, we are unable to tell if it was corruption or greed..." Uga paused as if to catch its breath, but there was no breath to catch since the Meereens did not require such frivolous things as air to survive. "But one of us... or should I say, a former Meereen, personally tried to physically assist a mentee to clear the tower.

"It was on the 100th floor. Zamien Dayhilder had finally reached the final floor after an arduous trial that had left him bloody and sorely injured. I take it that Zamien had somehow managed to convince Pixix that he was more deserving of the tower benefits than the next person. Zamien’s opponent had come into the battle arena looking healthier, and Pixix decided to interfere when Zamien was getting absolutely destroyed.

"Now, while this might seem like an affectionate response that any human would have, this goes against everything that the Meereens were created for and live by. A serious stir occurred between the Grand Regent and Pixix, which angered the Ruling Power... It happened in a flash. Pixix was struck down by a flare of black lightning, and in that moment, it ceased to stand on two feet. That was the first and last time that a Meereen died throughout our existence in the cosmos." Uga finished its story and straightened its back, as it had been looking down towards Jacob the entire time.

The being was correct. Meereens, under any circumstance, were forbidden from interfering in tower battles. And in the event that their mentee were killed or beaten, they would just be assigned to another one.

On the outside, it looked as though these Meereens were powerful beings who were able to live forever, watch fights every day, and meet new people. In reality, they were just slaves, devoted to a singular cause from the moment of their creation. Jacob never wanted to live in that way.

"How did the rest of the Meereens take it? Does your race possess some sort of communal affection, emotions? Or are you all like robots who just keep moving after one of theirs has bitten the dust?" Jacob asked another question. He would not admit that he was certainly finding Uga’s and the Meereens’ backstories a little entertaining.

"Of course we show affection and emotions, just not the way that humans, or any race in general, do."

"If you all are manifested into this world by the will of the Ruling Power, then that means that you don’t have families," Jacob questioned indirectly. Throughout his life, he had never seen or heard of something and had to ask an external party about it, because anything he saw or heard was already in his memory.

But the Tower of Sun, Meereens! They were all mysteries to Jacob, and he would do whatever it took to learn of these mysteries. At 18, his curiosity, even when coupled with his omniscience, was insatiable.

"We are all one family. Every single one of us. That is how we see it. And that is how it will continue to be, until the day that eternity ends." That was Uga’s way of saying that the Meereens were an unchanging race, and that they would stay so forever.

The more Jacob spoke to the being, the more he realized that the Meereens were nothing like humans in philosophy. Jacob had the ability to do exactly what the Ruling Power did. Manifest his own world, create a race, and govern over them.

The Meereens were basically humans with an impossible level of order, no gender, and free will completely stripped away from them.

There was an organized, unchanging hierarchy within them.

The Ruling Power » The Grand Regent » The Guardians.

The hierarchy was established, and it was a race so nearly perfect that in light years of existence, only one Meereen had gone against their true nature. It was wonderful to even think of.

Jacob knew that even if he said that he had only one question to ask, in truth, he had a plethora. He would keep trying to find out everything he knew about the Meereens, but slowly, as Uga was not only there to speak to him, but to guide him through battles.

Jacob thought that he had waited for long enough and decided to go into the arena for the second time. This time around, he was carrying everything with him, even Luck.

There was no way he could lose.

He still checked on his family, on the clone he left back at the school, whom he saw had gotten into an unforeseen dynamic with Allicent and Violet already and was handling it rather poorly. It bothered him a little, even though he had known it would occur. He would deal with things of that nature when he returned. As of right now, he had important matters to attend to.

"I’m ready..." he said, and suddenly, the black portal door manifested before him and Uga for the umpteenth time.