As you step out onto the balcony with Roary, you're taken back by the beautiful view of the kingdom and the evening sun slowly inching its way towards the horizon outside of the kingdom's border wall. There are thousands of buildings and millions of the kingdom's inhabitants below you, all hustling and bustling in the city streets, preparing for the coming assault by barricading themselves inside their homes and taking up arms to protect themselves and their families. You and Roary both lean forward on the edge of the balcony railing and he speaks to you in a sincere tone, looking out over the kingdom with admiration.
" Listen, Abbadon, about what I said earlier regarding teaching Mimi spells… I hope you don't mind. I understand that learning magic can be dangerous, but she really wanted me to teach her and I was thinking it would help her if she needed to defend herself. I know you had trusted me to keep her safe but- "
" You're fine, Roary. She has Faerah's blessing, so there's no way any being of this verse could harm her, unintentionally or intentionally. If anything, I think teaching her to defend herself was actually a smart decision because as long as she has Faerah's blessing, there's really no risk of anything going wrong. "
You respond in an understanding tone. Roary sighs in relief before turning his head and looking at you.
" Thank you, Abbadon. There's been alot on my mind lately and I wanted to get that off my chest. "
Roary then looks back over the kingdom as he continues talking to you.
" These enemies of yours are no joke. We got one hell of a fight coming our way, and for the first time since I was a kid, I'm actually scared to fight. Being tortured like that back in Voldoor really fucked me up… I've never felt so powerless. "
You think back to when Roary was being suffocated and skinned alive in front of you and your heart aches picturing the image of Roary's peeled off face in your head. You respond and ask him a question out of curiosity.
" Yeah… I would be lying if I said that I wasn't scared as well. How'd you recover so fast, anyways? You look very healthy and there isn't a single mark on you from your wounds. "
Roary's face suddenly takes on a thoughtful expression and you can tell that he's deep in his feelings as he answers you.
" When Aatu sent those monsters away, he brought us straight to Moriarch and used his Time manipulation to rewind the clock on the state of my body. I could feel my body aging backwards and my organs returning to their healthiest state, and by the time he was finished, I felt like I was back in my physical prime again. All of my scars from fighting in the war are gone and I feel like I'm a young teenager again. He told me that I'm incredibly lucky to have survived an encounter with unbeings the likes of those and I made sure to show my gratitude for him saving me, but still, after going through that torture, I can't shake the feeling of hopelessness that's eating away at me from the inside. After experiencing what it's like to face power on that level, I don't even think Moriarch's army stands a remote chance in fighting back. "
Roary then looks down over the edge of the balcony with a smirk and makes a remark in a self-doubting tone.
" I'll be honest, when we first met, I really underestimated your power and the power of your enemies that you and Tom spoke about. For most of my life, I've been the strongest there is, but seeing the level of power that I witnessed in Voldoor really opened up my eyes to how powerless I really am… I'm just a man and I have no place competing amongst the Gods. "
You immediately turn and glare at Roary questionably before reassuring him in a comforting manner.
" Be that as it may, Roary, there's nothing wrong with you being weaker than beings like me and the Gods. You're incredibly strong for a human and I believe you definitely still do have a place fighting alongside us. Sure, you may not be as strong as us, but it's unrealistic to compare yourself to Gods anyways. You may not be able to fight a Valghul, but I know you can hold your own against an overwhelming amount of men no problem. Back in Voldoor you held your own against ten of Gareth's clones, which is something that Gareth was skeptical that you'd be able to do back on his cruiser. Any normal man wouldn't last five seconds in a fight with a Minder like Gareth, let alone ten of them at once. Even if we don't stand a chance in this coming assault on the kingdom, I have no doubt that you'll at least take tens of thousands, if not, hundreds of thousands of their forces out alone before they even put a scratch on you. "
Roary looks at you and smiles softly as he responds.
" You think so? "
Putting your hand on his shoulder, you smile back and give him an answer with a determined face.
" I know so. "
" Thanks, man. "
Roary says as he goes in for a hug and you give him one, patting him on the back before going back to leaning on the railing beside each other. You and Roary continue looking out over the kingdom as Roary gives you his condolences.
" I'm really sorry about what happened to Tom… It's messed up, what happened to your brother, and I wish I was strong enough to help you free him. "
You look down in uncertainty as you respond.
" Truth is, I don't even think I'm strong enough either. When a mortal man is possessed by a Valghul, it can kill an entire pantheon of Gods effortlessly. Valghuli Exemplars are the same way, but Exemplars possess a God instead of a mortal, so you can already put into perspective the power that they wield over regular Valghuli. Tom is a different story though. Tom's power was extraordinary, even putting Gods to shame, and to think The None himself is occupying his vessel really makes me feel like I have no chance at beating him. I don't even think that I could take Tom on in a fight without him being possessed, let alone him being possessed by an unbeing that's looked at as an equal in power to The One. "
" The One? Who's that? "
Roary asks, curiously. Realizing that Roary isn't as informed as you are on The Omniverse, you answer his question.
" He's the being that created the Gods of this verse. Actually, he's the creator of every verse and the Gods who preside over them. I was there when Aatu and the others were born, watching The One create the Gods before he sent me down here to Aria… "
" Holy shit. You're old as fuck, Abbadon! "
Roary says, flabbergasted by that information. You roll your eyes and reply with a playful remark, telling him how old you actually are.
" Over a hundred billion years. Even I have a hard time believing it myself… "
Roary's eyes widen in disbelief as he tries to wrap his head around your age.
" That's insane! You don't even look a day older than 25! "
Suddenly, you see a giant bubble-like dome slowly form around Moriarch, touching the ground a few miles outside the border wall. You look up at the beautiful translucent blue dome above you and Roary's does the same before talking about it.
" And there's the shield barrier that Sir Gerard was talking about. It requires ten of Moriarch's most prestigious mages to maintain by using an advanced form of magic called Meditative Casting, and it's said to be nigh impenetrable, absorbing and converting everything that touches the outside of it into raw mana to fuel the barrier even more. I've never actually seen it in person before, but I'm definitely not disappointed. It's beautiful. "
" Do you think it'll be enough to halt the advancement of the opposing army? "
You ask Roary in a curious tone. Roary responds in a serious and blunt manner.
" Maybe for a little while, but it's not without flaws. Mana is a limited resource that everyone in the kingdom is going to share, and if it runs out, we won't be able to cast any spells until it naturally regenerates again. Also if any of the ten mages in the castle who are keeping the barrier up lose their concentration even for a split second, then the barrier is going to fall and we'll only have Moriarch's border wall to protect us, leaving the kingdom vulnerable to attacks from the sky. "
" Then let's do our best to protect those mages and make sure that doesn't happen. "
You say ominously as you watch the sun slowly set over the horizon. Then, almost as if it's right on cue, you begin to see a horde of red robed cultists creep over the edge of the horizon in all directions. Through your heightened senses, you can hear the distant rumbling of their footsteps billions at a time, and your heart sinks in your chest once it fully dawns on you how great in numbers their forces actually are.
" Come on, Abbadon. Let's go back inside. "
You have a difficult time taking your eyes off of the intimidating amount of cultists before you, but after a moment of getting your head straight, you follow Roary back inside from the balcony.