The meeting hall of Hell's Alliance was deathly silent as the numerous gods and grim reapers waited for the words of one skeleton in particular. Despite their expectations, Hades remained silent and instead chose to look over all of them.
"Tartarus has fallen." Hades abruptly declared, wide eyes shooting into his bony form. Many gods had died under mysterious conditions recently but nobody expected the same of a god as powerful as Tartarus.
It was concerning, especially because there was not a single Longinus user in sight to replace their fallen forces. That alone was fine though, the murder of gods was the issue. Once was a coincidence, twice an oddity, thrice a miracle, but dozens of times? They had a traitor.
Trailing his nonexistent eyes over his allies, Hades couldn't see an obvious answer. But of course he couldn't, they had all lived a long time, and even if they couldn't hide everything they at least knew how to avoid suspicion.
"Rizevim. How has your Qlipoth been doing?" Hades inquired blandly. Just because he didn't have an answer didn't mean he had no clues. As the only devil in attendance as well as a certified madman it was very likely that Rizevim played a part in their slow descent into chaos.
"We're recovering perfectly, Skully. If anything, I'd be more worried about you gods. How many have you lost by now? Six? Seven?" Rizevim replied with an unhidden snicker and smirk. It was this condescending attitude that originally led to Hades' suspicions but now he could tell it wasn't him. The devil would surely provide hints on purpose.
"I see. Then we can speed up our plans." Hades replied uncaringly, completely ignoring the devil's words. It was a shame that he only got three Longinus users under his control but considering their strength it was more than enough.
Adding on his forces, taking over the world would be difficult but possible. The main issue was of course those among the top ten strongest like himself. Some would be easily deceived or assassinated but most would be troublesome.
"What of Lilith's development?" Hades asked stoically. Whether it be Shiva or Amaterasu, Hades had little confidence in beating them in head on combat. He was powerful of course but ranks were of little consequence to him.
Some he would defeat easily while others such as Amaterasu would be a different story altogether because of compatibility. He needed a trump card to assist him. It didn't matter if it was limited or even a one time use, he needed a leg up.
"It's nearing completion. Give us four more days and it will be done. However, I recommend waiting five days should any issues arise." Ceridwen, a Celtic goddess of knowledge, explained calmly, an endearing smile plastered along her face.
Humming in contemplation Hades kept his silence for a few moments. Five days was by no means long for beings like them but in this delicate time, it could be disastrous. How many of his allies may be killed? Was Lilith worth that cost?
"Good work." Containing his inner turmoil Hades simply praised the woman. It would surely result in a few deaths but was that not what he had summoned them for? For some to die to catch the traitor's tail? But even if that weren't the case, Lilith was worth it.
"Take care of my mother alright? I may be lending her to you but by no means are you allowed to do as you please." Threatening them as he often did, Rizevim only pointed a finger at the woman, sweat covering her body in an instant.
"Of course. I'd never throw away such an opportunity." Caridwen replied with only the slightest twitch of her smile revealing her distress. It was this stoicism that made matters difficult for Hades and she was far from the best of the bunch.
But, as she said, she'd never thrown such a chance away and was hardly a traitor. She spent far too much time researching and experimenting on Lilith to even consider giving away their locations. He doubted she even knew their allies died before he sent out notice.
Of course, that worked out well for him. The more focused she was the faster the victory condition would be in the palm of his hand. Lilith's body was strange, her ability to essentially give birth through flesh alone and not reproduction was invaluable to him.
His army was strong and his allies more so but they were somewhat low in numbers. And that was before the war even began. They needed her ability to create an almost infinite number of soldiers for them to even consider initiating the war. Many may die, but that was a sacrifice he was willing to make.
"Continue as usual. The day our desires become reality is soon so endure for now." Calmly encouraging his allies, Hades hardly cared for their desires. His goal was to control this world as an untouchable force to govern. In doing so, almost all suffering could be eliminated.
In that world, their dreams were… inconsequential. All that truly mattered was that by the end of this war, he would be the one sitting on that throne. That child deserved at least that much. He wasn't able to save her in life or in death but she deserved solace in knowing she was the spark that began this era of peace.
"Will do, Skully~! Still, I've gotta know. What do you plan on doing about all the murders? I mean, that's what you called us here for right?" Rizevim asked curiously, the smirk revealing the extent of his amusement as he threw the God of Death under the bus.
How would he mitigate the issue? He wouldn't. Not now at least. But he could hardly say such a thing. His position as leader was already heavily contended and doubted, saying such a thing would be akin to abandoning his vow.
"I will—" Hades began, the blaring alarms stopping him as explosion after explosion attacked the areas all around them. The roof shattering into fine dust just as Hades raised his staff, a wall of deathly gray energy blocking the dark blue spear of his opponent.
"Damn, you're ugly!" The Spear Saint Marco Aciano declared while barking with laughter, his spear abruptly coated in purple flames as his barrier began to fall apart at the seams. It was only half a second later that the barrier fell but that was enough time for his people to awaken.
"Can't you be a little more careful Marco?" Unfortunately for Hades, Marco was not alone. More than twenty five individuals hovered above them all and the overwhelming demonic energy that he somehow only now noticed proved there were more outside.
"So you weren't just hiding like rats." Hades spoke hatefully, his staff pointed at the feeble gathering. It wasn't as planned, but this was a fine way to begin a war.
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