CHAPTER 480

  THE RETURN

  It looked as though the starlight from the void was stolen and brushed over the canvas of the sky, forming colors that should not be, drawing shapes that were remarkably eerie and unnatural . Mortal and immortal eyes gazed with strange pensiveness toward the high-skies, unsure as to what to think . Why, perhaps, was the first thing to come to their minds . Just a few hours ago, the sky was its usual color —— the blue, occasional flash of gray and silver in the cloudy regions, and a few darker ones hanging overhead of the few, isolated regions .

  Yet, now, that blueness, the beauty, was gone; far and wide, streaks of light formed arrays, which in turn bound together through a rather complex set of nodes not even the cleverest could decipher, blanketing the sky in a massive formation that seemed to have neither the beginning nor an end . No, that was wrong; no formation had them or at least had them separately . It was impossible to spot it, however, no matter how hard one looked .

  Daniel and Shane, having reunited after a brief, separate stint spent in the training camps of their vocations, both stared toward the sky with the tinge of terror and awe . The news had already trickled from the top down to the lowest reaches of the Empyrion —— big-shots of the world, be they at war or not, had all come out and unified in order to defend Noterra against the impending threat of destruction . Few could understand, including the two of them, what sort of ghastly thing could threaten the entire world, though even fewer bothered trying .

  Litha and Vyrove were some of the few who’d stayed earthed, overseeing the day-to-day life and ensuring it continued properly regardless of what was happening to the sky . Though the news was shared with everyone, the details of it were not; the Origin Father of the Devils was dead, slain by the Empyrean’s hand . In the process, the entire world of Hell was destroyed, shattered into shards of the flaming rocks that were spat out into the void —— and some of those molten, grossly oversized rocks were now hurling toward Noterra .

  " . . . he really did it . " Litha said, breaking the silence . Her bright eyes shimmered, part in awe and part in terror, as she focused on the colorful sky . "Did you believe him when he said it during the meeting?

  " . . . I imagine few, at most, did," Vyrove replied, smiling bitterly . How could he have believed him? Hell . . . even to them that was a gap beyond understanding . An entire world, perchance even larger than Noterra, inhabited by billions . . . who would dare believe a madman who proclaimed he would destroy it? "He’s accelerating the plans . "

  "Yes," Litha nodded somberly . "However, I don’t think he predicted the aftermath of his actions, and the impact they’d have on Noterra . "

  " . . . I wish I could be there when he appears and looks at the sky . The expression would be worth it . "

  The two fell silent right after, tearing their eyes away from the sky; they could not be tempted . Nor were they, in reality . Vyrove had a little aspiration of throwing himself into the high-sky, next to those who could topple the world over with their fingers, leaving his family behind to fend for themselves . What would come of today’s results? He was not clever enough to predict, though he had a few, silent musings . As all did, really .

  Y’nn was one of them . He stood propped in the high-sky, checkered into the corner of the Two’s ’side’ . Y’vol alone accompanied him this time around —— others could hardly help at this scale, as unfortunate as it was . Even Y’vol would have to strain himself considerably to keep up, to say nothing of the rest .

  " . . . mad lad," Y’vol whispered into Y’nn’s soul, his voice trembling faintly . "You’ve sold us to a madman, you fool! Fuckin’ hell, he destroyed an entire world!!"

  " . . . I don’t think that was his direct intent," Y’nn replied, stroking his chin . "Merely an unexpected byproduct of the clash . You’ve sensed it, Y’vol . That last burst of energy . By gods, I’d never felt anything more soul-stirring than it . All our wars prior and all our bouts and fights now seem more akin to children’s play in comparison . "

  "Aah, if I survive these days, I’ll give the bastard an earful . Fight the Devils, who cares? Don’t go blowin’ up the planets, though! Dangerous business . . . "

  "——whatever may happen, we’ll live . I promise you that much . "

  "Tsk, shut it, old dung . Best keep yourself alive if you can . Let me deal with the cards of Fate myself . "

  " . . . since when did you care much about Fate?" Y’nn quizzed .

  "Since the thing actually appeared . " Y’vol shuddered, his eyes subconsciously tracing over to his left, to the far distance, where a red-trodden figure lay entwined in strange, ever-changing threads .

  She floated independent of the reality, entrapped within the ever-changing, spun web of threads that linked the whole of the world . Most showed at least a faint apprehension to her appearance, yet few dared to display it outwardly . That was, however, not the case for a relatively small group huddled up on the other end .

  Most from the massive entourage had returned, yet plenty still stayed —— Ella, Lucky, Alison, Hannah, Cain, Alex, Valkyria, Titus, Amadeel, even Sena had joined despite the protests . Save for Ella and Amadeel, others hardly bothered hiding their disgust or even outright hostility toward the two figures clad in silver and red respectively —— Gaia and Fate .

  Ella’s gaze shifted away, shaking her head bitterly . Her eyes landed on the approaching figure, surprising her slightly —— One . She hadn’t met him before today, at least she believed she hadn’t . Myths hardly did him enough justice —— that was her first conclusion after a brief inspection . He wobbled over with a confident expression and pace; stern yet not arrogant . He had the bearing of apathy, yet soul-embedded care . Another paradox, Ella mused . Just how many of us are there?

  He kept a respectful distance and stopped, close enough that there were no secrets between the two, yet not too close as to pose a significant threat . His dark eyes eyed her closely, yet she couldn’t read them . It seemed, at least to her, he too had long since ceased being an ordinary human .

  "——I don’t think I’ve had the pleasure . " One said, smiling faintly . The colors of the above draped over his face tenderly, giving him a peculiar, ethereal appearance for a moment .

  "Perhaps for the best," Ella replied, smiling back . "I’m hardly worthy of meeting someone of your high status . "

  "If you aren’t, then none are, I’m afraid," One chuckled . "It seems," he wiggled his index finger slightly, cutting off Ella and him from the rest —— no matter who tried, they’d no longer be able to hear a word of what was said between the two . "I’ve remained blind despite my best attempts . Who are you?" he asked inquisitively .

  " . . . someone irrelevant," Ella replied . "Just a backdrop to a much larger story . "

  " . . . I highly doubt that," One said .

  "That is on you then, no? Not me . "

  "Perhaps," he nodded with a smile . "But I would still like to know all the ones I’ll be defending my home with . For all I know, you might spin around and stab us all in the back . "

  "Then your worries are for naught, I’m afraid," Ella shrugged . "I’m simply a content housewife, merely sightseeing and looking after the young . "

  " . . . that quasar was worrying," One probed . "I’m afraid I’ll have to ask the young Empyrean some questions . "

  "Go ahead," Ella said, her smile widening . "Try questioning him . See how far it gets you . "

  "I’ve been told my methods are hard to resist . "

  "They may as well be," she nodded . "But, I imagine, they’ll fall short of his innate need to insult and humiliate . If I were you, Alladin, I’d leave the boy alone . Your goals do not clash, and even hardly intersect . "

  " . . . " One’s eyes stretched slightly; it has been a long time since he’d had an involuntary, emotional reaction —— part of it came from her knowing his name, but a greater part because he couldn’t even remember the last time his name was spoken . His ’father’-given name . During the age all children were given practically exactly the same names, his father dared defy . "Interesting," he said, his lips curling up into a smile . "Not only do you know my name, but you also know my intentions and goals . That seems a bit unfair, no? I hardly know a thing about you . "

  "Why would you? Are you trying to court me, perchance? I’m afraid I’m already taken . And, as I understand, so are you . "

  "Clever quips have their place, I concur," he chuckled . "But, I imagine we can do away with them for a little while . I will question the boy . "

  "And, as I said, be my guest . " Ella said, her smile vanishing . "Why are you reporting it to me?"

  "So you won’t be surprised when things go awry . "

  "Oh? So you’re aware they’ll go awry?"

  "Aren’t you worried I might accidentally kill him?" One asked .

  " . . . no . " Ella replied simply .

  "No? Oh? And why is that?" One probed further, an intrigued smile curling upon his face .

  "Because if you do," she said simply . "You’ll die as well . "

  "By whose hand? Yours?"

  "His," Ella replied . "It seems to me that even someone as wise and experienced as you fails to understand . Alladin . . . the capacity for the deconstruction of Chaos . . . is immeasurable . Don’t sully the path he walks on . If not for him, you’d all be either dead or chained slaves by now . Or, likely, forgotten by the cosmos itself . "

  " . . . I’ve long since unsubscribed from the Myth of Chaos, Maiden," One said after a short silence, his voice sonorous . "Preach all you wish, but to me it is you overstating its capacity . I’ve seen Chaos at its best and at its worst, and it is hardly worth the terror you describe . "

  " . . . wise up," she said simply, slowly cutting the dome around them . "And go back to your studies —— they may be useful yet . "

  Alladin stared into her eyes for a little while longer before turning around and walking away . He did not fear her —— he did not fear anything or anyone at this point . But, she did inspire a few insecurities —— namely in his overarching needs . He couldn’t defeat her speedily, of that he was certain . He could if he brought a few more along, but that was a price he was unwilling to pay .

  He paused for a moment, glancing toward the space above that suddenly raptured . All eyes veered over as a bloodied figure shot out, landing squarely in the high-skies .

  Lino came to a halt instead of descending further down and toward the Empyrion; he glanced about with the eyes of wonder and confusion, spotting hundreds of familiar and unfamiliar faces . Some watched with him hatred bounding the age, some with curiosity, some with anxiety, some with relief, and some with reverence . He cracked a grin all of a sudden, causing Lucky, Hannah, Ella, Alison and the rest to immediately groan and look away in embarrassment .

  "Howdy, lads!" he exclaimed . "By god, I did expect some celebratory party, but not this! You sure did go all out! Ha ha, ah, to think that even the fair Two, and even fairer Three——oops, no, not her, khm, I meant to say Seven——wait, no, she’s not here either . Right, Gaia . Our beloved Mother right over here . Ah, I’m touched, I must admit . This reception is indeed worthy of a tear . Ah, would you look at that . I’m far too parched for a tear . Would a quick whizz suffice?"