“We could not extort them to gain our powers, Skollhati. Our duty was to protect them, It has told us so.”
“We are not extorting them. We are simply….. Utilizing what was already there.” A god with Silver skin said, whilst sitting at his table with 11 other gods.
The god with Golden skin rubbed his forehead. “It is still disingenuous. Gaining prayers by deliberately bringing calamities? The humans suffered enough from constant monster attacks.”
“And they will pray more to us whenever there were calamities. Thus, increasing our powers to protect them from creatures of the Abyssal Realm.” A goddess with a Pearl Heartstone agreed. “I don’t see what is so disingenuous with that.”
“Exactly.” Skollhati, the Silver god agreed. “If my wife and I use the tides to raise the water high enough to make humans feel threatened, they will pray to make the waves go away—“
“I will have to decline, Skollhati. Nereid.” The golden god sitting at the highest seat said to the both of them.
“We cannot use fear for prayers. Otherwise, what would be the difference between us and the Abyssal gods?”
Skollhati scoffed. “Vesuvius does it anyway with his wars and bloodshed. Shouldn’t he be an Abyssal god, then?”
A god with Sapphire Heartstone was busily drinking wine from a goblet when he heard this, and slammed it. He grabbed Skollhati by the collar.
“What do I have to do with this!? It’s my domain, if you have any complaints, bring it up to Creator!”
Another god with the same blue color as him, yet the complete opposite demeanor, calmly sipped his drink as he said:
“It’s because of your brash behavior that you get into everyone else’s nerves, Vesuvius.”.
“Shut up, Pallas!”
They continued to fight at the table, with more and more voices joining into the fray. It had become so loud and chaotic that even the golden gods’s voice could not be heard as he begged them to calm down.
“Everyone… Everyone, please…..”
His head hurt at this constant bickering everyday, not to mention taking care of the matters among gods and humans as the Highest of the Highest Order.
Whenever he told him about this, that man would just laugh at him and say:
“If I were you, I would have just blinded them and burned them all to crisp whenever they do that.”
He found himself agreeing more and more with his words, and eventually caused him to shout.
“All of you, SILENCE!”
At this one word, everyone suddenly stopped bickering and went quiet.
They all looked at him in surprise, as he never raised his voice or used such a tone on them before.
The golden god became ashamed under their gazes of confusion and concern. He cleared his throat, and said in a tired voice.
“We shall continue discussing matters at a later time. Please leave me be for a while.”
A goddess with a rose gold color frowned and placed a hand over his.
“Are you feeling alright, Aurion?”
He shook his head. “Yes, Seelie. Just… I need some space to sort myself.”
She nodded, still worried, and joined the others. Leaving him alone on this table.
Sitting on his throne, Aurion felt more weak and helpless than any other ruler in this world.
They consider him the ‘King of the Celestial Gods’, yet he barely feels like one. Just the one that Diamant gave the responsibility to watch over the welfare of both gods and humans in Its place.
He moved out of the meeting room and went out to his garden, where several golden apples hang from golden trees, and golden lions napping by the shade of it.
He took one of the apples and sat beside his lions, softly caressing their mane.
Munch! Munch!
He heard the sound of someone loudly eating, and turned to the shadows.
He sighed. “You were watching again, weren’t you?”
A disembodied wide grin first appeared, then followed by a face, along with a whole body. Dark as the night from head to toe.
“It’s hard to resist watching the jesters of your court. They are hilarious. Can’t say if my favorite was Skollhati or Vesuvius.”
Aurion smiled a little. “Do not call them jesters, Dark Lord. They are powerful gods of their own right, just like you and I.”
“Ah, but that’s where you’re wrong, Sunshine.”
The Dark Lord took the apple from his hand, which instantly rotted from his touch. “They are nothing like us. We have came into existence before them, and I have existed before any of you.”
“Not to mention…..” He sneered, and Aurion knew immediately what that meant.
“No…. If you are going to propose the same thing to me again, you are just wasting your time, Dark Lord.” He shook his head nervously. “My decision is final, and I shall not be tempted—“
“What’s the matter, Sunshine?” He took his wrist. “You know very well that there’s no point in resisting, do you not? Slowly, you are seeing the error in the present state of things, and wanted change as well.”
“This is the only way to change. To bring forth a new era of Creation.”
Aurion tried to pry his hand away, but the Dark Lord gripped it tightly, his sharp claw-like fingers digging into his skin.
“Fausforus, let go—“
“Our union will bring that era. Why must you be afraid of it? Why must you be afraid of the Creator?”
Aurion gulped. “Because this is not what It intended for us—-“
“Then why was the phoenix created? Why did your blood and my blood…..”
He let his fingernail pierce through Aurion’s skin, and the god winced, as his blood made of pure light fell on to the rotted apple…
And Fausforus pinched himself to also draw dark, pitch-black blood on the same apple…..
Which then turned back to a healthy, golden one.
Fausforus watched it with great interest, and took a bite from it…..
Yet the apple quickly regenerated from that bite as of it never happened.
“That….. Did it really….?” Aurion took this apple with his fingers.
Fausforus chuckled. “An apple that never runs out. An immortal fruit. And I am not playing any tricks on you, Sunshine. It was not an illusion.”
“Go and take a bite.”
Aurion looked unsure, feeling as if he was being tempted into something wrong. But…..
He eventually bit the apple too.
It really was not a trick. He can feel that he had indeed consumed the apple and yet it just grew back its flesh and skin that it lost.
“It was meant to be this way, Aurion.” Fausforus told him. “You and your kind were created because I asked for it. I asked for you. We ruled the lands before you did, and are therefore your Elders.”
“Listen to your elder brother. Heed my advice, for I know far better than you.” He said with an untrustworthy grin. “You did not listen to me last time, and gave away our first creation to It.”
Aurion shook his head. “As I should. Phoenixes belong to Diamant—“
“No, it belongs to us. WE created it. You gave it away.”
He took Aurion’s hands that were still holding the apple.
“Let us create more, brother. You and I. Become one with me, your blood with my blood.”
“Light and Darkness, Life and Death to create a new world. Together.”
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