[ Nemesis stirred and woke up still in the land of nightmare but the voices that plagued her head were long gone. Now, she could see clearly and hear soundly.
The Dark Majesty wasn't too far away from her, gathering some wood. "You're a long way from home, Invidia."
Nemesis was surprised to hear the stranger call her name and she voiced out her feelings. "You know me."
"My blood flows through your veins, Invidia, that is why Hel no longer plagues you with voices and images of naught."
The Titan nods. "I am most grateful for your help, Horatius."
The Dark Majesty turns. "You know me," he said.
"Of course. Your blood flows through my veins, shielding me from the torment of Hel but that same blood tells me about you; from cradle to this very point in time." ]
"Hunter, I have a question," said Kara.
"Shoot," Hunter replied.
"It's been bugging me for some time now," she said. "When we were at the Library, Scribe said only half a page of the entire Twilight of the Gods book exists and every book by Danke was destroyed several years before you were born and yet you knew their contents ... How?" Kara asked.
"Hm ... Maybe someday I'll tell you how."
Before Kara could say another word, there was a beeping noise from a printer that drew the green-eyed woman's attention. Kara moved towards the printer and took out three pictures. She spreads them across the table.
One was an image from the Collector's attack at Semper Store, another an image of the Collector rendered using Hunter's description, and the last one an image of Sephratis according to Danke's description of him. "You're right," Kara said. "These are the same person."
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•Sector 5
A portal appears in a room and Hunter and Kara jump out of it. "Here we are," Kara said.
Hunter looks around. "Yup! ... This is my room," said the sprite.
"Really?" Kara scans the room. "It's so ... Neat."
"Well yeah. I --"
The door swings open and Skylar walks into the room. "Hunter?"
The sprite smiles. "Hi," he waved.
"There was a sudden rise in heat energy, I thought someone had broken into your room," said Skylar.
"Oh ... It's just me ..." Hunter turned back. "Us. We have updates on the Collector case."
...
Skylar led Hunter to the room where Camille, Ishani, Max, Sypha, and Hachimura were.
"Hunter? You're okay!" Camille said.
"As far as I can tell," the sprite replied. "I'll fill you guys in on the details later, we have more pressing issues." Hunter turns to the green-haired woman next to him. "Kara, can you explain the situation to them."
"Of course," she shoots him a small smile.
"The Collector problem just got even bigger."
"No way that's possible," said Max.
"Well it is," Kara assured. "Thanks to Hunter we've learned something new and scary." Kara paused for a beat. "The Collector is Sephratis."
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• West Lionwell, United Republics.
"Mrs. Parker ... Mrs. Parker!"
Kelani looked up at the members of the security council, scratching her eyebrows. "Are you alright?" One of the members asks.
"Yes," she nods and shoots him a small smile.
"Mrs. Parker, are you aware that the director of the Core Intelligence appointed you as her successor?"
"Yes," she nods.
"According to our files here, you recently worked as a police officer up until a couple of weeks ago," the director of Transnational Intelligence pointed out.
"That is correct. I ... er ... It was an undercover operation. Director Betton wanted to infiltrate as many institutions as she could, I was placed in the police force."
"Mrs. Parker, before we continue, I'd like to remind you that lying to the security council is considered high treason."
Kelani nods. "I am aware. Everything I say is nothing but the truth," she lied.
"How many government institutions did Director Betton attempt to infiltrate?"
"I have no idea," Kelani replied. "She only informed me about that plan after she signed me up for the force."
"Did Betton sponsor the terrorist Ibrahim and his group?"
"I have no idea."
"What is NEOGENESIS?"
Kelani's eyebrows shoot up. "Excuse me?"
Kieran, the large maroon-eyed Director of Transnational Intelligence, leans forward. "Among the report Vittoria Betton, Director of the Core Intelligence, wrote for the office of the Supreme Leader of the United Republics includes an empty page with a single word: neogenesis."
Kelani shook her head. "I do not know what that means ... Isn't that a biology thing?"
Kieran facepalms and turns to the other members of the security council. "Are we really supposed to believe she's the assistant director of the Core Intelligence?"
"Vittoria is a very secretive woman, she kept all her cards close to her chest; she only told me what she wanted me to know. That is the case for everyone in the Core Intelligence. You can question as many people as you want, but I doubt you'll get anything."
One of the members of the council turned to the others. "If the Assistant Director of the Intelligence Core doesn't know anything who then are we supposed to question."
"I think we should call back the Director ... Who better to get our information from than the woman herself."
"I don't think --"
As the members of the security council argued whether or not they should call Vittoria back from exile, Kieran turned to Kelani who had a smirk on her face as she watched the members.
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[ Many demons from the in-between followed their ruler to Hel after he established his state. The domains in Grau Hel were separate and weak, so the Dark Majesty's campaign to conquer them all was as swift as it was easy.
In time, Grau Hel was united under the rule of the Dark Majesty with the goddess of divine retribution as his bride and Queen.
Not long after, Nemesis conceived and birth the Dark Majesty's first child, Luella. ]
...
Hunter grabbed a bottle of water.
[ Before Luella grew into the beautiful demoness she became, there was one who was considered the most beautiful demon in all parts of Hel.
Lilith.
Lilith was born in Weiss Hel where everyone considered her the most beautiful. The demoness hand was asked by many suitors across Hel but she rejected them all. Her beauty was talked about by plenty, and plenty more traveled to Weiss just to see her.
Words soon reach the Demon Lord Triacan. After he heard about Lilith, the Weiss Hel King became determined to wed the pure demon.
"I will wed the demon," he told his aide, Bahajid. "It is I who would be her spouse. Indeed, there is none more deserving to call the most beautiful demon his wife than the King of Weiss Hel."
And so gifts were sent. Thousands and thousands of them, ranging from exotic to rare. As they were being moved, demons watched in awe, jealous of the beautiful demoness and wishing they were in her shoes.
When Lilith received the gifts, she was neither moved nor impressed. She unequivocally turned down the gifts and the marriage offer but her mother who had birthed and raised the beautiful demoness by herself, interfered.
"Have you learned nothing from the stories we hear from the palace? The King might have been kind enough to send you gifts and ask for your hand but he will not accept such disrespect. Did you not hear of what he did to Gernob, the demon that failed to bring him the proper attire? Or about Gros, the demon who ate too loud? I do not wish that you be used as a character in another cautionary tale on simple courtesy."
"But mother --"
"Save it. My decision is final, you will be marrying the King."
And so she did. There was a huge celebration across the Weiss and Triacan made sure to show Lilith off by hosting a marriage so grande he dubbed it: "the greatest marriage this realm has ever seen."
That day, Triacan was unusually chirpier. "I want to show everyone how I conquered the heart of the unconquerable. The most beautiful being in this realm belonged to me. They moved throughout the Weiss after the marriage and people who saw the couple pointed and whispered, jealous of the King, and wishing they were in his shoes.
That night, Triancan died, just before he went to see his newlywed wife. Neither was the demon Lord ill nor was he old and so his family suspected foul play.
"Lilith, that snake! She has presented herself as a beautiful maiden and has killed our brother, the great Triacan, to ensure her purity is not soiled even if it was his right!" One of his sisters said as the late demon Lord's siblings convened.
Lilith's mother pleaded with her daughter, the beautiful demoness of Hel, to flee Weiss but she refused. "Fleeing would not prove my innocence, I did nothing wrong."
The throne of Weiss Hel was to pass to Triacan's oldest child or wife if he had no heirs. Despite the demonic culture of having polyamorous relationships, Triacan had only one wife: the most beautiful demoness, Lilith, whom he recently took as his wife.
Triacan's siblings did not like this and they made their feelings known, asking Lilith to step down and give herself up.
Lilith rejected the offer. Her refusal to flee Weiss Hel earned her some sympathy from some of the late King's generals who stood by her side while many others joined Triacan's siblings' ranks.
And so the war began.
In Grau Hel, things were never better. The newly established state was growing fast and so was its heir.
Luella was described as someone whose beauty seemed impossible. She had big doe gray eyes, long dark hair with bangs, and a mole below her left eye. The demonette was a jewel to her parents and people.
She usually practiced mysticism with her father who taught her as much as he could. One day, she jokingly stated that she had learned all there is to know about mysticism. Her father, the Dark Majesty, replied: "Mysticism is like taking every ocean in every realm and putting it in the same place, it reaches depths unknown to even the farthest divers. And learning mysticism is like trying to drink from the combination of all those oceans; you will not be able to drink it all in one lifetime." Luella never made a comment like that again.
One night, the Dark Majesty kept turning and shaking, prompting his wife, Nemesis, to hold him close and tight until he stopped.
"Is it the same as the others?" She asked.
He only nodded in response. The Dark Majesty had been plagued with visions about leaving Grau but he chose to ignore them and stay with his family. His wife was just about due with his second child and the Titan's third, she took in a young demon who crawled into her room not long after she birthed Luella.
"They are becoming more unbearable to you, I don't think you can stand them anymore," she said.
"I can ..."
"Shh." She soothed his heart with calm, warm words. "Do what you must. By the time you get back, Luella, Cora, and I will be here waiting for you," she said.
And so the Dark Majesty left his family but before he did, he taught his daughter something. "I will teach you about a type of magic never before seen in this realm or any other and I shall gift you a gift never before held by anyone in this realm or any other."
And so he taught her black magic and gave her the in-between to rule before parting after one last message. "I leave you with this not so that you may oppress those weaker than you but so that you may protect them and protect your mother, Nemesis, the dispenser of dues, and protect your sisters, Letu and Cora for my journey might last months or years or longer."
"Continue practicing magic, you might learn something I haven't."
And with that, the Dark Majesty disappeared, never again seen or heard from for the next five years.
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