Villain Retirement



"…I do not want to ride the wave forever, Riley Ross."

"Are you saying you want to die, Navi?"

"We can not die, Riley Ross. We will only cease to exist."

"...And if you cease to exist, what… what would happen to the rest of us?"

With Riley and Navi's conversation almost as if completely out of the realms of possibility, Alice's somewhat questioning tone quickly humanized the air around them. Alice looked into Navi's eyes, not knowing whether she was actually allowed to address this… god. But she could not help it.

They were inside a trendy dessert store—this is definitely not the right place to decide the fate of creation itself. And Alice could just not believe she was hearing all of the stuff she was hearing right here and now.

"You're like a pretty freaking important god, right?" Alice forced out a chuckle, "If you're gone then… something will go wrong."

"I am not a god, and no. Something would already have gone wrong if I am gone," Navi answered Alice's question without looking at her, "And Riley Ross is the key to that."

"Why… would you even want to die?" Alice breathed out, "You don't want to ride the waves forever? Like you want to die because you've already lived for too long…? But shouldn't… I don't know… Shouldn't your kind see time differently?"

"Time?" Navi finally turned to look at Alice as she moved away from Riley. Her face, however, was a little confused as she repeated her words, "Time, time…

…Time is the same for all of us. Down from the creatures that live inside atoms, to creatures that hold an entire universe in their palm—time is time."

"...That's not what they said in Science class," Alice smirked, "You know, that old guy with the weird hair? Wait… are you telling me he's wrong?"

"There are no such things as right and wrong."

"Don't you mean 'right or wro—you know what, nevemind…" Alice just rolled her eyes, waving her hand as she just walked away and took a seat at the nearest table, 

"I didn't know what I was expecting when talking to a… whatever you actually are. Whatever, just talk about the end of everything like I'm not here. Man, wait 'til Diana hears this. She would freaking regret not coming with me."

"You have not answered Alice's question, Navi," Riley stood in front of Navi, "Why do you want to cease to exist? You said you and I are the same, but we are not. I was created and born, you just came into existence."

"I want to cease existing because I exist," Navi once again closed her eyes as she took in a very long and deep breath.

"Are you tired, Navi?"

"No, there is no such thing as exhaustion for us," Navi smiled, "If there is, then Death is the one that deserves to be tired. Death's role is Death, and with creation, Death will always be there."

"But you are a primordial that exists to watch, foresee, and record the events of all creation, Navi—is that not also tiring?"

"No."

"Or perhaps you are just bored of the channel?" Riley tilted his head to the side, "Have you not found your Italian Mafia Reborn yet, Navi?"

"Italian Mafia Reborn…" Navi looked at Riley, "...is not that good."

"..." Riley's eyes instantly grew wider as he looked Navi in the eyes; his head, almost wanting to shake, "...Why would you say that?"

"Because it is true," Navi nodded to herself, "I have foreseen its end."

Riley let out a small gasp; his head once again shaking as he looked at Navi.

"You do not have to worry, Riley Ross—it will not end until many lifetimes have passed. It will drain its story to the last drop of its existence," Navi started walking around as she looked up, "It is very much like my existence, Riley Ross. I am completely different from the others—If I cease to exist now, all of the universes will move on completely unmoved…

…I do not want to exist because my existence is useless, without meaning, unnecessary. I know everything, but what do I do with the things that I know?"

"If you truly know everything as you said, Navi. Then you should know what to do with the things that you know—if you do not, then does that not mean that you do not know everything?"

"Paradoxical, is it not?" Navi smiled, "But those two things are different, Riley Ross. I do not know what to do with it because that is not my purpose. My purpose is to know, not to act. The only reason I exist is because existence exists."

"But you are acting now, Navi."

"Not at all, Riley Ross. What I am doing now is just in passing. If I act, the others will too," Navi shook her head, "I am the oldest of the Primordials, I know what they are going to do once I do, indeed, act."

"Italian Mafia Reborn is good," Riley Ross suddenly shifted the topic as he also shook his head, "You do not know everything."

"I do. That means I also know what I like and do not like."

"Then you and I are truly not the same, Navi," Riley's eye slightly twitched; his breaths, slightly heavy, "And the fact that nothing changes if you disappear once again proves that. Because if I disappear, everyone and everything will become… brighter."

"I am not talking about our similarities in how we affect creation, Riley Ross. I am talking about our creation in creation itself."

"Hm?" Riley just blinked a couple of times as Navi placed a finger on his chest.

"You and I are the same in the way that you are also the same with the others," Navi's eyes were as if they were looking through Riley, literally, "No, Riley—you are not created and born, you just came into existence…

…You and I are the same."

"But I was born, Navi," Riley shook her head, "I came out from Alice's womb."

"Yes," Navi then looked at Alice, who was now just minding her own business at her table.

"D… don't look at me," Alice quickly raised both her hands, "It was a different Alice's coochie he came out from."

"Yes," Navi nodded, "But he was not supposed to. Alice Lane, no matter what revisions Diana Ross would do, can not, should not, would not create life inside her."

"Thanks for letting me know my infertility is outerversal."

"I meant that it is impossible for Riley Ross to have been conceived by you. He just existed inside Alice."

"You're saying it as if I'm not his mother," Alice playfully rolled her eyes.

"You are not."

"Well, yes. Not technically—his mother is the Alice of this universe."

"No," Navi shook her head, "You are not his mother. You can not."

"Pfft, what…?" Alice forced a chuckle, "Like, what are you even trying to say? Riley literally popped out of Alice's vagina. He literally told me and I started watching videos of what it looked like, and it's nasty."

"Yes. Riley came out of her, but he was not conceived by her," Navi shook her head, "Like us, Riley was not created or born, he just existed."

"You mean he just like popped up inside Alice as a fetus?" Alice continued to laugh, "How crazy is—"

"Yes."

"What?"

"Riley Ross popped into existence," Navi almost replicated Alice's accent, "That is why Death does not know you, like she does not know me or the other primordials. We are not technically alive. We do not exist, but we are here."

"You mentioned Ruin being Nothing's son, Navi," Riley squinted his eyes.

"Not in the sense that you are thinking."

"Is it possible I am also Nothing's son?"

"If you are, he will tell you every time. He… is like that," Navi smiled, "Be warned, Riley Ross. I know what you are now, that would mean the others will soon know too. Machina would be the first to know, but it does not matter."

"When will Death know?" Riley quickly asked.

"It would not matter even if she does," Navi shook her head, "You can be stopped, yes. But like us, you are inevitable. You will bring creation into nothing, and everything will just cease to exist…

…I believe that is the reason why you exist, Riley Ross. Death delivers, Ruin holds, Riley does."

"That doesn't even make freaking sense," Alice started pointing at Navi, "Stop believing the nonsense of this primordial shits, Riley."

"Riley Ross," Navi once again faced Riley and placed a finger on his chest, "Once Death finishes closing all the doors of creation itself that you destroyed, you will be the only one remaining on the other side…

…you are the Ender, but the End."

"The Final Boss," Riley nodded, "I already knew that."

"I am looking forward to that, Riley Ross," Navi once again smiled, "But for now…

…it is goodbye."