Emperor Fenoras?!
For a few moments, Daneel only stared with extremely bewildered eyes at the old man who tried to first ignore him, and then stared back with an almost uncomfortable smile.
He looked exactly like some normal old man who had wandered into this situation that he could not make sense of, and was simply trying to do his best to blend in.
The more Daneel looked at him, the more he wondered whether his master was pulling a prank on the occasion of them talking after so long.
He knew exactly how Fenoras looked, both from the third seal, the memory he had with man, and even all the memories that he had obtained of his entire life.
Emperor Fenoras was a giant-sized man with features that were as sharp as a blade. They only ever softened during the times when he got rare smiles, but these situations weren't many, especially after he brought about the disaster that resulted in the Apocalypse.
In no way did he match this person, who had almost killed them all, and was now acting innocent.
At least, that was what Daneel thought of him, and seeing his disciple work through everything and then decide that it was definitely not possible, Master Jonah spoke.
"I was just as shocked as you, Daneel. But part of ascending in realms and finding out things is to be ready to handle the truth when it is presented in front of you. I expect that you have broken through the third seal, and experienced the memory where the Emperor spoke to you?"
Daneel nodded. Even though he had told himself before that he should probably be at least a little bit cautious and not expose his true power, his view was that it had already been completely shown, but it might have somehow escaped the notice of his master. If he had known, he would not have spoken in that way before, and he would also have detected that there was something other than natural power at play here. The sovereigns and the Domination Corps might not get that suspicion, but as someone who had been to the Mainland and must have obtained access to much more knowledge than could be imaginable on Angaria, Daneel expected that the man must be much more informed, and hence much more likely to understand that there was something else behind what he had shown.
The first thing that anyone would do on finding this out was ask about it, but his master had not done so. This presented two possibilities, either that he only knew the result and not the process of what had just happened, or that it was actually not that special when compared to what he had seen in the Mainland.
All of this analysis ran through Daneel's mind in the fraction of a second, and the conclusion was that he should be truthful, and only not speak explicitly about how he had just done that feat, even if he was asked. The same applied to his Champion Path, and until given a reason why he should not trust his master, he would do so in all other things. He had also asked the system multiple things, such as to match all the mannerisms he had seen in his master before the man had left, and according to it, there was a 98% chance that this really was that man.
Such quick thinking in such a little time made Daneel understand that the breakthrough that he had gone through which had been indicated by the system must be much more far-reaching than he had imagined. It was almost like the Basilisk's Breath was activated continuously even though he wasn't doing it consciously, but first, he put that aside as his master continued.
The shock still lingered in him regarding how this old man could be the Emperor who was supposed to have perished, and he was really interested in finding out the answer.
"Look at this."
Peculiarly, instead of giving a direct answer, his Master raised his palm, and a second ethereal figure appeared that was also a projection, just like his Master.
In this one… Was a man that Daneel was intimately familiar with.
It was the figure of the Emperor which he had seen multiple times- the first time had been when Drakos had shown him that vision where those who would become Empire Spirits had all assembled together, and since then, this man had been both inspiration and a driving force for Daneel.
"Yes, that's who I saw."
With a smile, Master Jonah simply pointed his finger… And a change began to appear in that figure.
First, the lavish robes were replaced by normal, grey ones akin to those worn by the old man who stood beside them. This man had started to stare at the figure, too, almost as if he recognized who it was but could not put his finger on it, but currently, he was ignored by Daneel who had his full attention on the transformations occurring in the image of the Emperor.
Next, the size was shrunk until he became more normal-sized, and after that, a short beard was added.
Following this, the glossy dark hair of the Emperor was turned white, and finally, a few very small modifications were made to his face.
His nose was made to droop, his eyes lost the natural luster which was actually a very striking quality about him, his mouth was elongated just a bit, and his entire face lost the ruddiness that was present in those who had managed to walk down the Path and achieved a long, long life.
Finally… What was presented to Daneel was the exact copy of the old man, and the real one who was present even looked at it and said, "Hey, that's me!"
Daneel didn't know what to think. Indeed, all of these changes had occurred in front of him, but it had resulted in someone who looked so entirely different that he still found it hard to believe that it was true.
But then… The system suddenly sent a message which made him freeze where he stood.
[Ingested memories of target known as Emperor Fenoras are being modified. In all the memories, face of Emperor his changed the match the other target in front of host. Looking for explanation for this phenomenon.]
Seeing the visible shock in his disciple's eyes, Master Jonah's eyes twinkled as he said, "Oh, I see you must have obtained the memories of this poor man at some point! Well, that makes it all the more easier for me to convince you. You see… You got it wrong. I did not change the real Emperor's face to this one - no, he changed his real face, which is what you see, to the one that is shown in your memories. You see, even if the owner is dead, memories of theirs that linger on have a peculiar quality of changing back if they see the true form of what has been changed inside them. Memories are supposed to be sacred, and anyone who messes with them runs this risk of them reverting back to what they originally were if the one who obtains them ever manages to find clues regarding the reality. Yes, you got it right, Daneel. The Emperor changed his face to make sure that even if his memories fell in the wrong hands, his real face, a few things that he wanted to hide, and his real fate would be hidden. This was basically the mother of all backup plans, and it looks like it has worked quite well till now. Now, do you believe me?"
Daneel nodded in a daze, as the system had also sent him a message.
[Explanation corroborates with what was found in records from the Empire. Tampering in memories results in them being vulnerable to this sort of 'rubber band' effect, where the memories will go back to their original state if affected in this manner.]
With a laugh that Daneel hadn't heard in a long, long time, Master Jonah continued, and finally started to reveal the layers of secrets.
"I won't keep you in the dark any longer, Daneel. Yes, this is Emperor Fenoras, but he is simply a shell of what he used to be. You see, most of what you know about the past is true. The only small change… Was that right before his death, the Emperor was approached by a very mysterious man who simply told him that there was a special role, almost like a prophecy, which stated that the continent would always be saved by someone who was indicated by golden lightning that struck out of the clear sky. Even this man did not know the origins, but all he knew was that he had once been someone who had deeply cared for the continent, too. He had not been as successful as Fenoras, and he had been about to die, but he had been approached by someone else who told him these same things. An individual was always supposed to be picked who would be alive in every age who would wait for the arrival of this person and lead them to a secret place deep underground. There are always two involved in this process - one whose role is actually passed down in this manner, and the other who guards that power zealously until the one marked by the golden lightning reaches him. He cannot leave that place. Each one cannot interfere with the other's duty, and that man also told the emperor that all of these things are all facilitated by the World, itself. Anyway, the fact is that the Emperor was asked to make modifications to his face so that who he really was would not be known by the things he left behind, and after that, someone would come to save him at the last moment for his death."
Listening to this fantastical tale which almost didn't make any sense, Daneel still felt shock coursing through him, but he slowly started to understand.
He had seen the image of the golden lightning outside before he entered this place, too, and he had wondered what it was.
There had been no indications about it even in the archives of the Empire, so it made sense that it was something that was beyond his source.
Yet… why with everything still so damn vague?
As if detecting his disciple's thoughts, Jonah said, "Yes, you're right. It sucks that I can't tell you more about this unless you are that person, but let me give you a short summary of everything else. First, one last thing regarding the Golden Lightning: it is supposed to strike down thrice, and it is only the third time when it will be visible. Now then, coming to how you are here, and how I know all this. Even though Fenoras does not remember his past, he has a few duties he carries out. One of those is that he selects those who might deserve what this place offers even though they might not have induced the Golden Lightning. They are people who are fiercely loyal to Angaria or who have sacrificed a lot for it. Those people, in turn, can invite others who they feel are worthy, too. There are two types of tests: one for power, one for the loyalty of one's followers, and one for the loyalty of oneself for Angaria. I failed the first two, and passed the third. I nominated you for all three tests, and you passed. That means…that you can get more from this place than I could ever have. And to give you a clue regarding what I mean by that…how about I call someone you might know?"
With that, Master Jonah pointed in the direction of the old man, and a miraculous change came upon him.
His back straightened, his eyes regained clarity, and a pleasant smile came on his face.
"Welcome back, Fenoras. Can you demonstrate to our friend here how deep your connections go?"
With a nod, the old man said, "Ah, it is you, Jonah. I see we finally have someone who passed all three tests! Very well! Get over here!"
The last line was shouted so that it echoed in the cave, and the next moment, a man appeared whose back was turned to Daneel and Jonah.
He seemed familiar, but Daneel couldn't place who he was.
"Turn around, and bow to your senior disciple brother."
"Very well, Master."
With that, the man turned around, and Daneel was greeted to another shock.
He almost reeled as he was experiencing too many in the span of just a single day, but he controlled himself and stared at the one who was actually scared.
He was familiar with this man, and he knew him, too.
As the Head of the High Council of Angaria stared at the one whom he was supposed to bow to, a single thought passed through his mind, and it was echoed in the mind of the one in front of him.
"What the f*ck is going on?!"