Peril Harbor
House on 22nd Street
Hellcage turned to him at Marik's exclamation, and Marik felt Hellcage eyeing him curiously. Marik finally couldn't stand it. "What?" he asked.
"I was just wondering since when you were not a lunatic yourself. I could still vividly recall the half-crazed look you gave me as you knelt and pleaded. Such a vibrant expression. How beautiful!" Hellcage narrated.
Marik paled as he heard it. "You! Shut up!" He turned to Jelen, Ellar, and Kailam. "This isn't what it looks like!"
Jelen and Kailam had somewhat confused expressions, while Ellar had a polite smile on his face. Marik almost started to palm his face. "Hellcage! Stop causing such misunderstandings! Think of my reputation when you're not thinking of yours!"
Hellcage smiled, even though it wasn't visible; everyone could feel it. "Marik, my dear admirer. There's no reason to be ashamed. After all, that was a memorable moment when you gave yourself completely..."
"Agh! Don't say anything! If I was just a little insane before, you're driving me completely mad!" Marik grabbed his ears and quickly headed away from them.
"But Marik~" Hellcage called after him lightly, but when he saw that Marik was out of hearing distance, he turned to the others.
"Alright. I've seen that some Wendigo have gained abilities related to camouflage. That'll come in handy. I have a few targets I want them to kidnap and extract information from them. Then eat them and leave no trace. Some of them have families, so try not to involve them, but if you can't, then get rid of them too." He began to give instructions.
He raised his hand on which a cloud of black smoke formed, from which a piece of paper emerged. "Here are the names and addresses and the kind of information I want you to get out of them. There's no need to rush, so don't act hastily." He handed the paper to Kailam, whom he considered the more reliable of the two.
Ellar was still smiling politely. "You are rather gentle with your husband, Mr. Hellcage. You don't want him dealing with the dirty business, do you?"
Hellcage paused for a moment and moved the top hat on his head a little. "His progress is going well. Some things have to be done slowly. After all, I don't want him to break. Good hearts like his need to be nursed."
Ellar nodded understandingly. Jelen looked at him and then at Hellcage. "Then why don't you spare him too?" She asked.
Ellar chuckled and answered himself. "Because I'm not a good person."
Hellcage nodded in agreement. "That's right."
Hellcage then turned his attention to Ellar. "As for you, I have a task as well."
Ellar placed a hand on his chest and bowed slightly. "I will do my best. What do you want me to do?"
"Use your artistic talents to ingratiate yourself into the Midnight Queen's favor. But don't do anything to harm her. Act like an ordinary talented artist. If we don't obtain information on Mystery Trader within a month, we'll shift our focus to her," Hellcage explained.
"A month? That long?" Jelen wondered. Hellcage made a vague motion with his hands. "What do we get more of than time?"
*****
End of the World
Caila gazed towards the door, not fixating on anything in particular. She kept replaying the last memory in her head, relieved that it hadn't caused any mood swings, but she couldn't stop thinking about what had happened to Supernova. First, he had been betrayed, then he was murdered, and finally, he was turned to stone.
Wasn't that a little too much misery for one person? She was also quite interested in how Supernova had dealt with the gods in the end. She was intrigued by what Hellcage had said about the minor gods. What exactly did that mean? What was the difference between the minor gods and the greater gods? Was there anything beyond the greater gods?
Caila could only speculate. So she assumed that the newborn gods were minor gods. So was she a minor god? Caila assumed that Supernova was a greater god after all, but due to some events, he had degraded back to a minor god. That was Caila now.
So according to her memories, she would have to absorb the other gods to ascend to a greater god again?
Caila turned her head, relishing the ability to move like that, and remembered the green-haired person she had blasted away from her space. I guess she could call it Divine Space now?
She quickly returned to her initial thought. The green-haired bastard. Was that a minor god? Given how easily Caila disposed of him, she would be more likely to say he was beneath her. So what were the levels of gods then?
Caila was snapped out of her thoughts by the familiar sound of wind blades, so she redirected her attention. Opera soon flew through the door, briefly glancing in Caila's direction before heading straight for her favorite vase.
Caila could only sigh inwardly. "Did you save him? Where is he?" she asked aloud.
Opera didn't even pause and soon began to settle into the vase with only her strawberry-eyed head peeking out. "Yes," Opera answered the first question but didn't bother to respond to the second, closing her eyes as if she were very exhausted by the whole task.
"Like a piece of rock..." Caila muttered, but she didn't try to forcefully extract information from Opera. It was enough to know that the butterfly boy had been rescued, and he would find his way to her eventually. Caila paused. "Good work," she complimented Opera before turning away from her.
Opera didn't open her eyes but turned so that her face was facing the wall.
Some time passed when Caila was interrupted from her thoughts by another visitor. Well, more than one visitor.
Zenobe appeared in the company of... a frog man. Caila fixed her gaze on the flattened face, but this time no name appeared in her mind. She had no idea who it was. Along with them came the young butterfly boy. He looked a little different than Caila remembered.
His old tattered clothes were gone. He was now wearing a tight-fitting outfit with short shorts but high boots that covered almost all of his legs. On his hands were gloves with wrist and arm guards, complemented by a dark budna with round, colorful decorations that matched honestly but seemed unnecessary. Especially for a flyer like him, the unnecessary frills were rather in the way, in Caila's opinion. Finally, his dark hair was held back by a headband with a head torch. The whole impression was nice, and he looked like a little explorer.
The boy had bright blue eyes that were full of determination, but Caila was intrigued by his wings. Were the front ones like that too? His wings were beautiful, shining with all the colors of a rainbow. The boy stopped when he saw Caila and began to tremble a little, but the frog man put his hand on his shoulder and led him uncompromisingly in front of the throne.
"My Liege! The monster has been killed, and we have retrieved its corpse for safekeeping!" was the first Zenobe to excitedly sing the news of the intruder's demise.
Caila turned her head to her and nodded in agreement. "Yes. Well done, Zenobe." Zenobe beamed and hurried to the throne, where she knelt. Caila stared at her for a moment, wondering what she wanted her to do. But then she saw Zenobe stretch her neck and adjust her head, leaving Caila momentarily speechless.
Really... What are you, a dog?
Caila inwardly lamented, but then she reached out and patted Zenobe's head in praise. Caila wondered if Supernova had finally raised a bunch of loyal worshipers with a strange habit of getting their heads patted.
She looked down at her hand and pondered. Wait. Didn't she do that with Lambert too? For a moment, Caila had a horrible vision of standing in a huddle of worshipers and patting them all on the head. 'No! I'm definitely not doing that! It's weird!' She exclaimed inwardly.
Zenobe laughed contentedly and straightened up. "I met these two on the way here. Master Brasho found the boy in the harbor and wanted to take him to you. Naturally, we couldn't bring him to you in such a ragged state, my Liege. So I dressed him properly. And I found he didn't have your mark. He is an outsider." She pointed to the boy, who bowed his head in alarm.
The frog-man named Brasho nodded his head, then knelt down as well. "The boy had a golden gag in his mouth. It was attached to his teeth, but I managed to remove it without having to pull any out. However, it turns out the boy can't speak," he explained and then pushed the boy towards Caila.
The boy appeared very reluctant and remained standing in front of her, shivering all over. Caila thought she was frightening to him, unaware that the boy had no trust in the gods and thought that in running away from one god, he had fallen into the hands of another.
Caila, meanwhile, wondered how to communicate with the boy. She wanted to know why the thing was chasing him, but if the boy couldn't speak, it was hard.
As the silence stretched on, the boy became more and more frightened until even his wings began to tremble. "Come closer," Caila finally said, seeing that the boy looked like he might faint soon from fear. "Don't be afraid. I won't hurt you," she assured him.
The boy was unwilling, so Brasho had to push him again until he was within reach of Caila, who decided to try the only thing she could think of.
She placed her hand on the boy's head and then stepped into her Divine Space and touched the golden light that represented the boy. His light was still pure and bore no signs of another god.
Caila could not enter his subconscious and view his memories, but she could communicate with him in this way, just as she could with any potential worshipper. "Rest assured, boy. I won't hurt you, and I won't do anything against your will. Tell me who you are and why you ran from that monster," she demanded, speaking calmly in his mind.
The boy panicked for a moment, but their connection made him feel that the god had no ill thoughts against him. It was a few seconds before the child's uncertain voice sounded. "That wasn't a monster. That was a God Elite Warrior. Something happened to him... he was chasing me because I ran away from my god."
Caila's interest increased. She definitely wanted to hear more about the other gods. "Why did you run away from your god? Which god?" she asked him.
"The god of Harvest and Plants, Arzen. He is an evil god who has enslaved my people and lies to his worshippers," the boy said with disgust in his voice, mingled with hatred.
"Tell me about it," Caila wanted to hear more, but she tried not to push him too hard. She felt that the boy was wary of her.
"No," the boy refused to tell her about it. Caila had a feeling that was the favorite word of all the kids who talked to her. He could shake hands with Opera.
"Alright. Why did you run away? What are you hoping for?" Caila changed the question and didn't press it. She knew she would find out eventually; all she had to do was gain the child's trust. How hard could it be?
"Finding help. To free my people. No one knows," the answer was quick and full of passion now. The boy was a little warrior.
Caila pondered this and nodded her head in thought. "Do you want us to help you?" she asked, thinking about doing it anyway. After all, if her information was correct, she would have to absorb other gods to make herself stronger. She felt no remorse if it was going to be some asshole enslaving people.
The boy hesitated again, so Caila continued. "If you want to defeat a god, you need another god to do it," Caila just guessed. She had no idea if it was true. "And by pure coincidence, you found another god. Ask, and it shall be given to you."
"Will you help?" the boy finally asked.
Caila paused for a moment, and remembered Radiant, remembered the treacherous government, and remembered her murderous parents. A wave of excitement that came out of nowhere ran through her spine. "Nothing would give me more pleasure than killing the monsters that hide behind the mask of kindness," she replied.
Caila knew it was true.
*****
Divine Domain Meeting Hall
The Meeting Hall was created from the domain of one of the murdered gods. After the Recognized Gods had made a truce, this place was used as a meeting space where they could peacefully discuss matters such as the allocation of territory, the possible need to encroach on another god's territory, threats, and other concerns.
The unoccupied domain was the most appropriate place for such a meeting because none of the gods would ever accept such an invitation. After all, in one's own domain, the gods were strongest, while the powers of another god were weakened. There had been enough instances of such kills that eventually inviting someone into one's domain had become the same as expressing a desire to kill them.
Arzen sat in one of the comfortable seats, waiting, but for now, he was here alone. He had his arms folded across his chest and was tapping his finger impatiently on his arm while he watched the ripples of cosmic energies through the high-arched window.
Arzen could no longer remember which god had once inhabited this place, nor did he care. The room was large and circular with a polished mosaic floor, thick gilded support columns holding up the high ceiling, beneath which swung majestic, great golden chandeliers. In the front stood a comfortable-looking sofa with white upholstery behind which was a high arch that gave a view of the depths of space.
Arzen was sure his domain was much better. This place was decaying.
There was a click of heels, and Arzen turned his head at the sound. From behind a pillar emerged a tall woman in a neat pink suit with a red shirt that revealed a plump neckline, her hair the same pink color as her suit, and the color of her eyes hidden behind the smoky lenses of her round glasses. She was beautiful and elegant, but her eyes showed guile.
"You." Arzen was disappointed that the first to appear was the God of Disease, Decay, and Death, Paloma.
"Yes, me," Paloma replied haughtily while she paused and put one hand on her hip. "As always, it's a pleasure to see your mossy head, Arz," she said pompously, inspecting her long, neat nails.
Arzen turned his head away from her, pretending she didn't exist.
Paloma smiled mockingly. "Aww, don't give me the cold shoulder, Arz. Are you still sulking about how I tried to kill you? Tut, tut, that was so long ago. You're such a baby," Paloma taunted. Even though Arzen's shoulders shook with rage, he didn't react to her words.
"You keep making fun of him, Paloma. If it were me, I wouldn't want to talk to you either," came a reply from somewhere else, and another figure stepped out of the shadows.
It was a man, only a few inches shorter than the tall Paloma, but where he lost height, he made up for it with muscle. Despite his red uniform, it was obvious that his body was fit, his muscular chest accentuated by the golden cuirass that reached from his waist to his shoulders. His voice sounded hollow as his entire face was covered by a mask that looked like a sharp bird's beak, and his eyes were hidden by round aviator glasses.
On his head was a red cap adorned with white feathers, and all that could be seen of his real appearance was his white curled hair and ears. The most noticeable thing besides the bird mask, however, were the white bird wings that grew from his back.
Arzen looked at the newcomer. Galett, the God of Wind and Freedom, was much more pleasing to Arzen than Paloma. "Arzen, I hope you called us for something important. I am a very busy man. If I wasn't around, I wouldn't have come at all," Galett turned to Arzen, and Arzen's moment of sympathy was gone.
Arzen gritted his teeth internally. "Of course, it's important. Do you think seeing your faces pleases me?" He replied, but in truth, he was beginning to hesitate a little, wondering if he had been rash to call everyone together.
"Goddess of the Sea and Storm, Siphon isn't coming," another voice announced from just beyond where Arzen sat, startling him. He turned to the man in the black suit and dark blue tie. His face was also wearing a mask, though not as extravagant as Galett's. His was more white and plain, with only a few gold stripes on his face and forehead. The mask revealed his black eyes and dark grey skin color.
Despite the mask otherwise covering the rest of his face and head, his voice didn't sound muffled. "Baa, can't you come normal for once?" Galett asked, shaking his head.
"I came normally. It's not my fault you don't notice your surroundings," Baa, God of Moon and Night, replied.
"No one else will come. The God of Steam is too absorbed in his project. The God of Earth and Natural Disasters is not interested again. The God of Fire and War is in the middle of a fight with some pirates; she doesn't want to miss that. And the God of Time and Space hasn't spoken," announced the last person to appear.
The youngest Sun God, Luan. Luan was a pretty woman with chocolate skin and fluffy black hair, who wore a plain white pant kimono tied at the waist. Behind her back was a large giant wheel from which sun flames rose constantly.
Although Arzen didn't specifically dislike Paloma, he truly despised Luan. However, his disdain stemmed more from the fact that Luan got along with each of the gods and was rather popular among them. And that annoyed him.
"And of course, they all let you know," Arzen said venomously.
Luan looked at him. "Yes," she replied, not reacting in any way to his displeasure. "If no one else comes, then we can get started. Why did you call us?" Luan continued, settling herself on the ground in the pattern of a lotus, the fire around her slowly turning behind her.
The others sat down at various times as well, but no one sat down next to anyone. Everyone found their own seat.
Arsen wanted to start with the point that burned him the most first but changed his mind and began with something else instead.
"Due to certain circumstances, an Archbishop ran away from me. If he shows up at your churches, I hope you won't let him convert." Arsen raised his hand, and green lianas flew into the air from his palm, manifesting the form of the escaped Archbishop.
He was angry about that too. If that bothersome Evil God hadn't interrupted him, Caspian wouldn't have escaped the reach of his influence.
Paloma yawned theatrically. "Is it finally falling apart?" She asked, swinging her leg over. Her hands rested on the armrest behind her, maintaining her mafia boss posture.
"That's what happens when you pretend to be something you're not. Once your worshippers find out you're a goddamn bastard instead of a benevolent god, they'll turn away from you." Paloma shrugged and smiled.
"That's why I never pretended to be nice. Better to be a bitch from the first moment. None of my worshippers care. Hehe."
Arsen gritted his teeth at her provocation. "You're the god of decay, disease, and death. I think they're satisfied just by the fact that you don't look like a rotting corpse. Though your appearance as an overgrown flamingo is also questionable."
Paloma laughed. "Lame, Arz. That's just lame."
"That's enough," Baa interrupted calmly. "This isn't an every-year meeting where you can argue all you want. I have my agenda, so hurry up, Arzen."
Luan nodded and closed her eyes as if it hurt her just to look at the two. "Yes. My worshippers are busy preparing for the Sun Festival right now. I can't ignore them for long. I'm getting an increased number of prayer requests at this time."
Galett pulled a file from somewhere and began to sharpen his beak. "You're too kind, Luan. You should learn to discern the prayers that matter and not let every little thing bother you."
Luan bowed her head a little. "Even a small thing can be important."
Galett continued grinding and muttered something that sounded like "That youth."
Arsen cleared his throat. "Now, on to the second thing. A new Evil God has appeared. And he's quite aggressive. He's already dared to provoke me."
"Hm? Evil God? Did you really call us for that? Can't you take care of a newborn god?" Galett asked with remorse in his voice, already regretting coming.
Arzen mentally gritted his teeth again. "One of my worshippers escaped into the Border Fog, and..."
"Ha! Another escaped worshipper?" Paloma didn't miss the opportunity to tease Arzen.
"As I was saying, he escaped into the Border Fog and someone started playing with my blessing. Violently tried to take over my worshipper. When I pointed out the rules to him, she attacked me. We're dealing with an Evil God with ambitions," Arzen continued.
Galett shook his head and straightened his wings. "Again. What do you want from us? Can't you take care of one Evil God?"
"Of course, I can handle her! The problem is, I can't find her! She left no trace. And if she's moving with the Border Fog, no one will probably find her." Arzen argued that it wasn't that easy.
Baa patted his knee with a long finger. "She's probably using the Border Fog's interference to her advantage. That's rather clever. The fog is too unpredictable and mysterious even for us. If she has shielded herself with the Fog, we can do nothing but wait for her to step out on her own."
"Am I supposed to wait for her to attack me on her own?" Arzen snapped in frustration.
Baa looked at him. "I can try to look into it, but the Border Fog is also beyond my capabilities. The only one who has any knowledge of it is the God of Time and Space. You can turn to him for help."
Arzen hesitated. The God of Time and Space was someone Arzen didn't want to mess with like the Goddess of Sea and Storm. They were one of the Elder Gods who were a few steps away from ascending.
"Hm... No. No. I'd rather not burden him with that. If your offer stands, I would gladly accept your help, Baa." Arzen stepped back.
Baa leaned back comfortably. "What will you offer me in return?"
Arzen was not surprised by the question. After all, no one here were friends, more like competitors, and if anyone got the chance, they would eliminate each other. And despite Luan being liked by the other gods, she would suffer the same fate. Fewer gods meant more believers for others, and the more believers, the more they could accumulate the power they needed to not only perform miracles but also to empower themselves and the possibility of becoming a higher being.
"What do you want?" Arzen didn't try to guess and simply asked. Baa wouldn't speak unless he had something on his mind.
"A pint of Prana. Clean. Or one of your Butterfly slaves. A woman."
Arzen was not very willing to give up so much Prana. It took his slaves forever to clear that much Prana, and he didn't want to give it away. Even though Arzen didn't feel like sharing his slaves either, it was still a better option for him than giving Prana.
"I'll give you a slave," Arzen finally promised. "What do you want her for? Butterfly people aren't suited for such activities."
A wave of utter disgust rose around Baa. "You are out of class. Only someone with a limited intellect like you could think of such a foolish thing."
Arzen restrained himself from snapping a curse at him but held back, needing his help. Someone's help, and he was the only one willing.
"So what do you want her for?" wondered Arzen.
"You don't need to know the details. You wouldn't even understand. I just want to see if a butterfly can become a Moth," Baa said it in a way that made it clear he wasn't going to discuss it further.
"Now that we're done, tell me what you know about this Evil God," Baa returned to the original topic.
Arzen nodded and tossed his hair off his shoulder. "A woman. Completely shrouded in a cloak, but I saw her face. She looked menacing. Skin rather grey and purple, part of her head missing and replaced by blue flames, eyes like two blue prongs. She used her strange fire on me. It was like an incandescent, it was just a small wound, but the thing bit through like nothing. If I wasn't in my domain, I might be in trouble. I find this Evil God rather troublesome," Arzen described his encounter with the strange god.
Baa was silent for a moment and didn't move, finally lowering his head slowly. "That sounds really unique," he said.
Arzen's face contorted. It wasn't exactly what he had wanted to hear. He had wanted to find that woman and completely destroy and kill her. His blood pressure had risen in anger, causing his chest to rise and fall faster, but he had stifled all the rage inside him.
"Is that all?" Baa ignored him and stood up, straightening his jacket and looking down at Arzen.
Baa nodded and turned around. "As soon as I give you the first information, send me your slave," he said as he left. A moment later, Arsen was alone in the hall, where he began to take his anger out on the chairs.
*****
Domain of the Moon and Night God, Baa
A lone moonbeam fell on the black glass floor from which the tall figure of Baa emerged like a ghost. Baa's domain was entirely made of black glass and crystal. The place lacked any decoration, and the only thing that could be considered furniture was a single, lonely chair.
Baa walked over to the chair without making any sound and raised his hand to his face. A crack appeared at the back of his head, opening up like an unfurling bud, and Baa removed his mask.
"Haaa..." He let out a long exhale, and a cloud of steam rose into the air. He set the mask down on the chairs and headed in a different direction.
The white mask on the chairs slowly turned around, and black eyes moved in the pits of the mask, watching their owner leave.
As Baa slowly walked, he reached out his hand, and the outline of a door appeared in front of him, which he opened and stepped inside.
In Baa's ears, there was the sound of a light clink and the crackle of a growing crystal. The room contained numerous glass containers, covered by shining crystals of various sizes and shapes.
Within each of the crystals resided an object, creature, or person frozen in time, suitably illuminated to display their perfection.
Baa didn't look at any of them and walked with a steady stride towards his destination, located in the section for special phenomena.
Upon finding the exhibit he was looking for, he stopped in front of it and shoved his hands into his pockets, silently staring at it.
Beneath the glass vessel lay an uneven, distorted crystal of a bright blue color resembling a zigzag lightning bolt. Baa raised his hand and ran his palm over the glass, while thin black tentacles began to appear around his head, wriggling like worms and reaching out to the exhibit.
"My predecessor wasn't insane after all. Blue flame. It actually appeared," he said in a voice that concealed a trace of excitement.
"You don't know what you're getting yourself into," the voice of his predecessor echoed in his mind. Baa held the previous God of Moon and Darkness pinned to the ground, his body left over and broken from a lost battle, and quickly sucked out his Prana, completely destroying him. Not only his body, but also his life and soul would disappear and completely turn into energy.
Even something like divinity had a price to pay. Only those willing to be ruthless, willing to give up their soul and wander into the abyss after death instead of reincarnating could reach divinity. Once his predecessor's Prana was completely exhausted, his soul would be trapped in the abyss forever.
"I know what the price is," Baa replied calmly. The predecessor laughed dryly as his face gradually shrunk.
"Hahaha... naive child. You haven't seen anything yet, and you don't know what true Godhood is. It's a pity I didn't get to see her return." The old man extended a shriveled hand toward a certain exposure.
"What are you talking about, old man?" Baa was impatient with the words of his predecessor, whose eyes held more disappointment than fear.
"Someone like you becomes nothing but mere food. My Liege, I will wait for the glow of your blue flame in the abyss." The former God of Moon and Night withered and turned to dust, and even that crumbled into nothing.
Baa straightened and frowned. "Foolish geezer."
Baa remembered it well; after all, this was the moment he had gained complete divinity and taken his first step on his path. His predecessor's words left him wondering, though. Who could the old fox admire so much?
"When I find her, I will let her join you in the abyss, old man," Baa promised, looking forward to having some fun for the first time in a long while.