Universal Vengeance

Vengeance is a dish that is best served cold...

She walked through the cave entrance, cautiously choosing each step. The walls faded from stone to solid ice. There was a chill in the air, a chill that hates. She shivered as she walked and lit the torch when it was too dark to see. The light danced off the icy formations that erupted from the ground and reached from the ceiling.
She couldn't tell if it was the wind or a sound resonating off the ice. She heard roaring, angry and filled with longing. She stopped and watched the ice. The formations moved. It was slow and deliberate like a dance. The formations were strangely shaped. One would expect the straight spikes that dangle from the roof after a cold winter night, but these... these looked like flames.

Universal vengeance is the rarest of all Universal Maladies. To some it is a sign of hope, to others it is an ill omen. Vengeance is a cruel mistress, and for the universe to long for such cruelty one can assume it can't end well. Universal Vengeance is not caused by outside forces. It is a natural phenomenon. It is a vendetta, a call for justice, and it implies that reality is fighting back against the maladies that plague the world.

Fueled by Hate

Hate is a strange emotion. It takes so much out of you. To hate is to care so much that you pretend to care so little. It's personal in every way. Hate is not anger. Anger has a quick burn when compared to the long and slow process required to develop hate. It is no different than the hatred that comes from the world.
Universal Vengeance is fueled by the hate of the universe itself. It knows it is being ripped apart at the seams. It knows that the maladies are the cause. It keeps its hate in secret, burying it in caves and the darkest depths of ancient ruins. It casts it into the ocean. It twists and pushes it deep, imagining it is a knife in the back of its enemy.
There is no greater indication that the universe is alive, but it is anything but well.

The Thermal Heart

None have been lucky enough to reach this far, but at the center of the infection lies its source. Hovering above the ground of some strange chamber of metallic hexagonal structures is the thermal heart. It burns quicker, the ice grinding against itself as it attempts to mimic the flame, a ball of ice that wished to be fire.

Within its frozen core lies a treasure. It is the source of malady. To crack open the heart is to receive a gift. It is a gift from reality, forged in the fires of its malice. If one were to take this gift, the malady disappears.

You wake up outside with a phrase whispered in your ear. The words gnaw at you if you refuse to listen. It's agony will ring in your mind and you feel the hatred as reality demands to be heard...

Bring...

Them...

Ruin...

— Unknown

So Cold it Burns

Universal vengeance is distinct among the other maladies. Any area afflicted will become colder than anywhere else on the planet. As one moves deeper, where the ice dances slowly in a form like burning flame, the cold disappears. The ice seems to radiate heat. One could hold their hands out and warm them, but you mustn't touch.

This is the ice that hates. You may feel that reality loves all living things, but it's easy to hurt the ones you love if it is hate that drives you. The ice will scold the skin. It will char and blister until only ash remains. One must be wary of removing their clothing. It'll be hot, yes, but the clothing is all that protects you.

What Lies Within

It's unclear exactly what gift reality grants to those who venture deep enough. The heart radiates a painful heat, but cracks like an egg when struck. Should one persevere, they will find themselves rewarded. It could be anything. It could be a weapon. It could be an arcane power lost to time. It doesn't matter what it is. Reality demands its use.

by ITSO