"No human being, when you understand his desires, is worthless. No one's life is nothing. Even the most evil of men and women, if you understand their hearts, had some generous act that redeems them, at least a little, from their sins."
― Orson Scott Card, Speaker for the Dead
Thunder clapped, a ripple of sound that sank into Ven's aura and disappeared. The One God opened his book, sword held in an overhead guard. His mouth opened in a roar as the faith in his body rushed to fuse with his weapons.
'Sorry, but I can't give you the battle that you want,' Ven reachout to his own followers, the vast ocean of faith that rested beneath his skin. He drove it into his runes, body driven to the extreme. 'This has to end now…'
Aura gripped like a fist around them both, Ven slipped closer. A shadow, highlighted by runic script, Ven bent past the One God's sword. Two fingers extended like a spear, he traced the lines of power under his opponent's flesh. A single thrust, the delivery of a spike of aura under the skin, and chaos erupted within the old god's frame.
Ven wrapped the god in his aura and held him still, until the riptide within faded to minor tremors. Lady Fate drew closer to them both as Ven withdrew his aura and dropped the One God to the cathedral floor.
"You didn't fight fair…" Smoke and blood flowed as the old man struggled to his feet. The golden body was no more, just a hollow eyed grandfather covered in wounds. "I want a rematch…"
A fountain of gore vomited from the One God's mouth and silenced his bluster. Lady Fate rolled her eyes and pressed her hands to the gods back. Thick bands of emerald flowed, until a trace of colour returned to the old man's face.
"Are you ready to stop and listen," Lady Fate rapped the One God and the top of his bald head. "Or should I let him kill you and save everyone else?"
"I'm sorry, Milady…" the old god grumbled. He sent a resentful glance at Ven, before he hung his head and sank to his knees. "Must I transfer the leadership of my pantheon to this… abomination?"
"What have you got to lose?" Lady fate gave a frustrated sigh, fingers pressed to her temples. "You and all the other gods of faith will die if you don't, you big idiot!"
"But…"
"NO BUTS!!!" Lady Fate pulled the One God to his feet and stared into his eyes. "You promised to always follow me, and this is the path I've chosen."
Air huffed from the defeated god. Deflated and weary, he turned to Ven and raised his hand. A collection of runes, not a formation but a list of signatures, hovered into the air. Ven's eyes flinched as he scanned, each one was the true name of a god. Countless numbers, a collection of every deity born of faith.
"Take it, but know that my only loyalty is to my mistress," the One God gave the script a gentle push and sent it into Ven's hands. "With this, you may claim half of the faith I collect, but I shall never obey your commands."
Ven barely heard the disagreeable god. The second the pantheonic contract landed in his hands, a tide of faith rolled in from the multiverse. Distilled by the gods within the pantheon, it carried no hum of prayer. A pure infusion of strength that joined perfectly with his own reservoir of faith.
"Let's get started," Ven let the contract flow under his skin and began to draw. Vast swaths of scripture that spiralled outward, aimed to enclose the multiverses as a whole. "Our fight has moved up the ending…"
Space with the remnant universes had entered a cycle of decay. They had little time before mortal life became impossible. Half his focus stayed with his hands and painted more and more runes that joined his formation. The rest sank into his realm and knocked on his system's core.
"Older Sister…" Ven sang out Min's nickname for the system avatar, eyes widened in his best impression of a puppy. "I need your help with a spell…"
"I've been watching," the avatar floated from the depths and snorted. Finger extended, she flicked his nose and gave him a glare. "If we do this, unless you want to sit in stasis for a trillion years, it will take ALL of your current wishes!"
"Fair enough," Ven grinned. He'd gained those wishes in his sleep, so they meant little to him. "Get ready, the formation is almost complete."
Ven returned all his attention to the creation of runes. His speed redoubled, hands a blur as he expanded his planet capture spell to encompass all that existed within this multiverse. The last word fell into place and the system star illuminated his inner realm with an explosion of power.
White fire erupted from his pores and connected to the formation, a river of energy that tested the limit of the fragile space. Runic script replaced the heavens, words of power that blotted out the space between the stars. Ven pulled a key from the void and inserted it into the air.
A single twist and both Lady Fate and the One God flinched in shock. Reality flexed, folded, and shrank from Ven's sight like a marble of the purest light. The realm at his core trembled, a vibration felt by all within. Space opened up, expanded and filled by new worlds and stars. The outer edge hardened, wrapped by the realms of both Concepts and Gods of Faith.
"Someone is happy," Ven let a smile crawl onto his face. The will of his realm had broken into song, a ballad of greetings to the new arrivals. "I just hope I won't have to sleep this time…"
– – – –
"I smell the reek of dogma…" Cain shook his soil covered body and turned his eyes to the stars. He had entered a period of isolated cultivation long before Ven fell into his sleep, but something new had come to the realm. "Ven has collected a One God and some others… not mine, but…"
A flash of red passed through his vision, rage so deep it had joined with his soul. He made a vow, long ago. Death to the Gods, death to blind faith, or death to himself. He'd signed this pact with his brother's blood and never looked back.
"What are you doing, Ven…"