"You are referring to those curiously foolish mortals who stumbled into my domain? They had it coming. I didn't force them to come here now, did I? And what increase could they possibly provide to my strength?" Shiva's words were blunt and harsh. He clearly cared very little for the lives of those referred to as mortals. To be fair, many ascenders disregarded the lives of those way weaker than they were. In their opinion, if you couldn't pose any threat, you weren't worth paying attention to.
And in reference to his words, a domain was the true manifestation of an element. It was an area where an ascender would be able to effectively use their elements, without much disadvantage.
"I just used them for sustenance. That was all I did. And I didn't even actively search for them. They came after me." Shiva's logic was sound. Indeed, he didn't go looking for victims. All those who had died to his law came of their own volition. One could argue that it was their curiosity and their inability to let sleeping dogs lie that caused this problem.
"Yes, their curiosity led them to you. But that doesn't excuse your actions. You acted like the hunter you were. When a hunter sets a trap in the forest, he counts on the curiosity and hunger of the animals in order to get some game. When his trap does pay off, does he blame the poor creature? No. He praises himself for his great wits and proceeds to take his prey home. You are no different." Indra had his eyes closed as he argued with Shiva. In his opinion, since Shiva knew exactly what he was doing, his actions were inexcusable.
"Besides, you didn't run rampant on this world because you knew about them, didn't you? And don't even try to play dumb" Indra questioned his prisoner, although the certainty of his tone did convey that whether a reply was given or not, he already had an answer.
"Hehe. Why would I play dumb? How was it? Finding out that there was an elder god and a battle god on this small world. How spectacular it was. Your reaction left me fulfilled." Indra did get his answer. Shiva didn't see the need to act ignorant.
"If he's here, then she must surely be as well. I may not have a way to truly put you down for good, but she might." Indra smiled faintly as he spoke. Though the smile was hidden by the darkness, his cherry voice was conveyed to his captive.
"What are you trying to do?" Shiva asked tentatively. From his reaction, Indra was certain that his suspicions were true. For only a few would bring such caution to 'The Destroyer'.
"I may definitely not have a way to seal you up for good. But the Absolute Queen might. She has done it before." Indra nonchalantly spoke his thoughts, completely disregarding the feelings of the one he was plotting against. Though this couldn't really be considered as plotting when you are telling your adversary exactly what you are going to do to him.
"Wait. What exactly do you want from me?" Shiva shook slightly at Indra's words.
He did not fear Indra. Although the later had bested him and forced him into a life of captivity, he wasn't under any danger, for a god couldn't easily be killed. Gods and Ascenders were similar in many ways, except they had greater strength and vitality. Killing an Ascender wasn't that difficult. They died just like everyone else. But obviously only ascenders or gods could kill ascenders. Gods were a bit different. To kill a god, one must first seal off their godhood, so they can truly be killed. Sealing off the godhood of elemental gods like fire gods and water gods wasn't that difficult a task. Their elements were pretty common and well understood. Almost all knew what to do to seal their godhood. However, there was a reason why gods like Seth and Shiva could run wild for so long without any fear. This was because the rarity of their elements made them essentially impossible to kill. Even then, Shiva was still different. The dangerous god had not just comprehended an element, but a law. Many gods and ascenders, had mastery over at least one major element, and several minor ones. But there wasn't really a link between their minor elements. Shiva was different. Instead of focusing on a major element, he focused on the minor elements of one law- the law of corrosion. And he had successfully done the impossible, mastering the law. This didn't give him much of an advantage though, since his mastery over a minor law was almost equal to the mastery of a major element. However, his efforts weren't for nothing. His mastery over his law was unexpected, meaning there wasn't much information on his godhood. This was why he was so dangerous. He basically couldn't be killed.
To seal off the godhood of a god was not as complicated as it sounded. It basically meant, finding the opponent's weakness. With a fire god, you knew that as long there was enough water to breakdown his/her domain, they would temporarily lose their god power, leaving them vulnerable to a good blow. But corrosion didn't really have a known weakness. And although darkness seemed like it would be vulnerable to light, it wasn't so simple. For instance, The Deep was so dark that even the rays of Zandor's sun couldn't penetrate it, and neither could the rain. This was because the laws of corrosion which were present denied them any power. So everything that came into contact with this domain was destroyed. It would take a truly powerful spell to break it. And this spell should be his weakness, for every law had a loophole. And although the weakness of Seth's power was obvious, there weren't many light users who were comparable in power to him. And those who were, didn't really care about his antics.
Although Shiva's weakness wasn't known, he was very cautious of the Absolute Queen. Queen Alexis was brilliant and calculative. Although she wasn't a battle god like her husband, she was a goddess of wisdom, and one of the few in the entire universe. Only entities like Athena of the 2nd heaven could compare to her. And just like Athena, she was also blessed with great battle strength. It was definitely not enough to introduce her into the ranks of the battle gods, but she was pretty close.
Shiva would be a fool to believe that his weakness would never be known. He was smart enough to avoid the truly troublesome opponents for a reason. He had no issues going against even Thor of the 1st heaven, the Prince of the Nordic Gods. For although Thor was laden with great strength, his wisdom did not match up to his legendary power. Odin on the other hand, was a different case. The King of the 1st heaven was wise and intelligent. Shiva may very well expose his weakness fighting against foes like him.
That was why he feared the Absolute Queen. Her title 'Absolute' came from her success rate. Her analysis never failed. Shiva would be a fool to go against someone who could succeed in locating his weakness. And history had proven that Alexis was able to do so.
"You know what I want Shiva. Tell me how you found out about this world, and I will keep your existence to myself only." Indra seemed to have gathered enough strength. He pulled the tube off his neck and lifted his formerly weary eyelids. His green eyes were even brighter than before, illuminating the entire cave like a brightly lit emerald. He looked at the figure bound to the walls of the cave. Two huge chains were connected to the arms of Shiva. These chains were completely gold in colour, yet the darkness of the cave hid their lustre. Even the beauty of gold was corroded by this element. It was evidence that Indra could only hold Shiva off, for The Destroyer still had his power.
The dark eyes of Shiva were filled with resentment, and a little bit of fear. Yet Indra knew better than to assume that Shiva's fear was towards him. The Corrupted Monarch only feared foes like the Absolute Queen.
"To think that one day, I, Shiva The Destroyer, would be brought to such levels of desperation by a battle god." Shiva gnashed his teeth as he declared.
"You flatter yourself Shiva. You yourself are just a battle god. Or do you think that you are any better. Were your law a more common one, I would hardly pay any attention to you. In fact, I would have been rid of you long ago" Indra's words sounded arrogant, but his words were true. All who knew him, knew his power. He wasn't one to be trifled with. Just like Ray, he was a battle god who could match up to an elder god. This was a mighty impressive feat. His title alone was testament to his power. He was referred to as the Lord of the 4th heaven. Although he wasn't the true ruler of the 4th heaven, to earn such a title meant that not many were capable of standing on equal footing with him on the 4th heaven, and possibly the entire cosmos. Shiva was popular, but even he didn't have such fame. Even in his weakened state, he could put up a fight, much less in his peak. He was absolutely right. If Shiva had a more common element at his disposal, Indra would have killed him long ago.
Shiva gnashed his teeth angrily at Indra's words. His pride wouldn't allow him to accept that he was inferior to Indra, although his predicament was certainly the evidence to that. For the only way Shiva could be captured and bound like this, was if the opponent was reasonably stronger than him. Otherwise, he had no real trouble escaping.
"Stop gnashing your teeth and tell me what I want to know. How did you get to this world? Who sent you here? And don't try to lie. Although this world is an insignificant one, a strong barrier protects it. It is not a barrier I can break through, much less you. That means someone gave you a loophole. A gap you could use to get in. At the very least, those involved must have an elder god by their side. Only an elder god can truly outmanoeuvre an elder god."
If stares could kill, Indra would long be dead. Shiva's stare was full of fury and resentment. Not only had Indra threatened him, but the battle god was looking down on him. If only he could break these bastardly chains that bound him.
"We both know you cannot break the chains that hold you. I conjured them with almost half of my power, which is not enough to kill you. But it is surely enough to keep you in place." Indra seemed to have a penchant for pissing Shiva off, for the god was well and truly ticked off.
"Are you going to say? Or do you want the Absolute Queen to handle your investigation. She's supposedly more stringent than I am, at least from what I've heard." Indra taunted mercilessly as he sat and waited for the answer which he sought.
"When I get out- and I will-I will make your life so miserable that you will wish that you were dead." Shiva gnashed his teeth as he vowed.
"Many have said this to me, yet few have lived till today" Indra wasn't bothered by the threat that would make the lesser man cower fearfully. He had long since lost count of how many times he had been threatened. It had become pretty normal for him now.
"So are you going to talk?" Indra questioned.
"Fine. I would speak. But you must promise to let me go. I would even vacate this world." Shiva negotiated. You would think that Indra would never let go of someone who was itching to kill him. But the Lord of the 4th heaven cared little for an enemy he could best.
"Okay. These chains would disappear once I leave the valley" He agreed without giving it much thought. Or maybe he did, but he definitely wasn't worried. And it seemed Shiva wasn't worried either that the battle god wouldn't keep his word. If Indra was a dishonest god, his reputation wouldn't be so neat.
"Good. Then we have an agreement."