-----Chapter 12: Dominion or Survival-----
Sofia's breath was uneven.
Her body stood still, but her mind churned.
The silence between her and Aria stretched, heavy, suffocating.
"Look around you, child."
The goddess's voice was calm, unwavering, but there was something beneath it—something Sofia couldn't name.
She turned.
The world before her was a fractured nightmare. The land was unfamiliar, patchworked together from remnants of different realms. In the distance, mountains stretched into the sky—mountains that had not been there moments ago. The rivers twisted unnaturally, their waters bending as if the laws of nature were still trying to understand what they had become.
And the people—they were breaking.
A mother clutched a child who had already stopped breathing, rocking him back and forth as if her love alone could restart his heart. A man screamed at the sky, demanding to know why his gods had forsaken him. Others sat in the dirt, eyes empty, their minds refusing to accept what had happened.
This was not just despair.
This was annihilation of the soul.
And yet—
"They are safe now," Aria said, stepping beside her.
Safe?
Sofia clenched her fists.
"They are not safe. They are dying."
"They will heal. Under my guidance, they will find salvation."
Salvation.
She had once believed in that word. She had preached it.
But now, standing among the shattered remains of countless worlds, it felt hollow.
And then—she saw it.
A flicker in Aria's expression. A brief glint in her eyes.
Not sorrow.
Greed.
It was so faint that she almost doubted herself, but it was there—the hunger, the desire to be followed.
The promise of salvation, not as an act of mercy, but as an exchange.
Sofia's blood turned cold.
She should have confronted her. She should have questioned it.
But she didn't.
Because what choice did she have?
She exhaled sharply, looking once more at the people around her. The suffering, the loss—they needed someone.
Even if that someone was a goddess who had let them burn.
"I will follow you," Sofia said at last.
Not out of faith.
Not out of love.
Out of desperation.
The Rift Opens
The moment she made her resolve, the air shifted.
It was subtle, but she felt it—a ripple, a disturbance.
The torches flickered. The ground trembled, ever so slightly.
And then—
A scream.
Not of grief.
Of terror.
Sofia turned just in time to see one of the portals twist violently. Unlike the others, which had simply deposited lost mortals, this one pulsed with something different.
Something wrong.
Then—it emerged.
It did not step. It crawled.
A jagged shape slithered out of the rift, its limbs unnatural, twisted, as if it had been forced through an opening never meant for it. The first thing Sofia saw were its eyes—hollow, predatory, burning with something ancient.
The second thing was its fangs.
The moment its feet touched solid ground, the beast lifted its head—and its gaze landed on the humans.
The hunger in its eyes was primal. Absolute.
Its lips peeled back, revealing jagged teeth slick with saliva. Its nostrils flared, inhaling the scent of prey.
Then, it lunged.
Sofia moved before she could think.
Time fractured.
The beast's claws tore into the earth, its body coiling, muscles tensing. The world blurred. It was too fast. The people wouldn't have time to run. They wouldn't have time to scream.
But she did.
The weight of her sword felt heavier than ever, but she didn't falter. **Her body knew before her mind did—**she had to kill it.
Her feet slammed into the dirt. Her blade sang.
The moment the creature leaped, she met it mid-air.
Steel met flesh.
A sickening crack echoed as her blade sliced through the creature's hide, black ichor spraying across her armor.
The beast roared, its body twisting in pain, its tail lashing violently.
It hit her like a whip of pure iron.
Sofia barely had time to react before the force sent her flying. The world spun, her back colliding against the ground hard enough to rattle her bones.
Pain shot through her spine, but she didn't stop moving.
She rolled. Just in time.
The creature's claws slammed into the dirt where she had been, carving deep trenches.
Too close. Too fucking close.
She forced herself upright, legs screaming in protest, but she gritted her teeth. Her sword was still in her grip. That was all that mattered.
The beast recovered, snarling, its wounds leaking but far from fatal.
It eyed her now.
Not as prey.
As a threat.
It lunged again.
This time, Sofia was ready.
She sidestepped, fast, her boots skidding across the dirt. The creature's claws missed her by inches, but it didn't stop—it turned, adjusting mid-motion.
Too smart.
She had one chance.
Before it could land its next attack, Sofia twisted her body—
And drove her blade deep into its throat.
The impact shook her arms. The creature let out a choked, gurgling snarl, its body convulsing as black ichor poured from its wound.
It staggered.
And then—
It collapsed.
The ground trembled with the weight of its fall.
Its body twitched once.
Then it stopped moving.
Sofia stood over it, chest heaving, sword dripping.
The mortals around her had frozen.
Some looked at her with awe. Others—fear.
Aria, however, remained unreadable.
"You understand now, don't you?" the goddess finally said.
Sofia turned to face her, gripping her sword tighter.
"Understand what?"
"That not all who come through these portals are human."
Sofia's lips parted, her mind racing.
"Some worlds in the Lower Realm were ruled by species far beyond your comprehension. Beasts. Titans. Creatures that did not answer to gods, nor to men."
Sofia's stomach twisted.
"You mean to say…" Her voice faltered. "That there are more?"
"It is a possibility."
A possibility.
Her fingers curled around her blade.
The gods did not know how many more would come. How many monsters. How many threats.
Sofia glanced at the people—huddled, helpless, terrified.
She thought of the woman clawing at the dirt, of the man clutching his dead son's cloak.
She thought of the world she lost.
She would not lose this one, too.
She lifted her chin, gaze hardening.
"Then I will protect them."
Aria arched an eyebrow.
"Even if it means bowing to the gods again?"
Sofia swallowed.
Her pride told her to spit at the thought. To deny it.
But pride did not save people.
Desperation did.
She gritted her teeth, looking out at the mortals—her people, whether they had once been or not.
"Even if it means bowing to the gods again," she said, her voice unshaken.
She did not know what would come.
But she knew one thing.
She would not let them die.
Even if she had to fall.
Even if she had to break.