---

Contented with Onca's endeavors on Galbar thus far, Axnas' circumspective gaze shifted towards the infinite expanse of the cosmos. This hallowed pool of subtle light adorned with the diamonds of a million moons and of a million stars were weaved upon the cosmic ether of divinity, all hung in the frame of a myriad of galaxies, all drifting aimlessly from its progenitor in the center of existence.

It was here, from the genesis of reality itself would he the Flayed Prince, the Prime Solarus, naturally begin his conquest of it all.

Conquest...

The word rung true within the depths of his soul and he turned to regard the stripped carcass of a sibling he knew little about. What was left of him only remained an orange sphere one hundred spans greater than the Galbarian moon. Soon only embers of star material swirling in a deadly dance would prevail.

The first conquest...

The words rung true within the vestiges of Axnas' heart and spurred him to action. His brothers demise served as the catalyst to the birth of his own doctrine; a dishonor it would be for him to simply feast on his innards and forget his short existence.

With a heave Axnas plunged his hands into his own belly, casting divine ichor into the void. Slender fingers slide past tissue and grasped at mechanisms of digestion and without disinclination tore them free. The tube, seemingly unending, flowed from his body and by divine command bound itself around the blazing core until its light ceased to shine.

"Flesh of my flesh, dazzling exemplar of my machination, come forthwith." he decreed.

Immediately, the sinew flared to life and began to expand and writhe. Pink tissue became dark scales, eating the light around its mass while a head burst forth hissing like water dousing an inferno. Stone-like, steel eyes embedded in an otherwise unbroken sheath of scales flared to life and achieved sentience.



”My child, second of the Balam ― agents of my inexorable imperative ― Imalla, go forth, honor the life of my blood, and conquer the stars.

A column of plasma exploded from the maw of the serpent in response. Imalla, the Cosmic Devourer, bellowed, eager to obey. Axnas would oblige him soon, yet preparations where only beginning.

---

Larwen had left the confines of Pervanon, taking to the skies to survey his kingdom. Surprisingly, and to his anger, he found his siblings had done vile work upon the Anathema’s. Greenery and the essence of imperfect souls were everywhere. It had seemed in his short absence from the surface, they had put the foundations for their life in his mountain range. But from the mouth of Pervanon, his perfection was spreading. Even now it had begun to reach several of the surrounding mountains, and the valley’s that they towered above. Such beauty had no equal, for the stone had turned black, the ground was an amalgamation of twisted plants and lovely growths, while the waters were a shade of crimson. Nothing could pierce such color, and drinking it would only show enlightenment of Larwen’s ways. This growth was progress, and soon the Zilsarix would walk among these lands, learning the ways of their God.

Such joy Larwen found himself in that moment, to see his work in progress, that no other feeling would be had. But it was a short moment, for the greenery of his siblings was still there. Like a smudge, it would soon be wiped away for his own touch. Feeling a mix of satisfaction and loathing, Larwen then flew away from Pervanon further, trying to find the extent of the other God’s works upon the mountains. Eventually he arrived in a peculiar spot, secluded in a valley of bright sickly things, with little creatures flying about them. But what caught his eye for the moment, was a simple house sat in the middle of it all. He had not known what a house was, but something about its shape felt right to call it such a thing. He stopped his corruptive influence, not knowing who resided nearby, and the tall God stared at the house. And the cabin stared back.

Meanwhile, Lasis sped along the ground, tracking one of her golems. She passed by grand seas, grand deserts, and massive islands, before finally coming to a stop near a mountain range. She could very well detect the work of Larwen in the mountains, and she abandoned the pursuit of her golem. She had more pressing matters to attend to. She, in one strong series of hops, jumped the mountain range. Coming to a stop outside Pervanon, she then examined the corrupted life around it, and knew what had to be done. Lifting her book once again, she blazed a valley clean of corruption in a grand display, before rapidly chanting into her book.

Brick by brick, a grand castle was laid down. It started humble at first, but she worked on it with patience, creating a breathtaking castle. But what, exactly, was a castle without a steward and a garrison? To this effect, she pulled a quill from her book and began to scribble designs in it, deep in thought.

Larwen had stared at the house for a little while, coming to terms that it was there. He had walked to the door, a small thing by his height, and had placed his hand upon the doorknob, when he felt a large part of his perfect land die. To be ripped apart and returned to imperfection. It was a new feeling for the God, one he quickly found himself hating. Losing himself to anger, his hand darkened the doorknob with his corruption and the God of Perfection took to the skies once more. He flew as quickly as he could back to Pervanon, trying to locate the source of the culprit, the scourge of his beauty.

What he found infuriated the god even more. Lasis, he knew her name but not her, had taken the valley he had so admired, and defiled the land with imperfections. A large castle, unsightly to his tastes had also been seemingly thrown in to spite him. Taking it all in with anger, Larwen then landed before her, breaking apart the ground with his fall.

His voice roared with fury, ’”LASIS! You dare? You unsightly creature. This work will be devoured by my wrath.”

Larwen then moved towards her. Lasis simply remained with her face in the book, responding with a simple, ”Sssh, I’m working.” She continued to scribble in her book, still deciding fully on her designs. She then, after a few minutes, stopped, placing the quill back in the book, before continuing with a, ”Here, watch this.” She proceeded to reach into the book, and with considerable strain, began to pull something out of it.

Closing in on the short Goddess, Larwen was angered at her uncaring nature even further. To openly defy his will was one matter, but to blatantly ignore him? This rebel would pay. He loomed over her now, and reached toward her book. Lasis stopped pulling whatever it was out of her book, proceeding to use her now-free hand to slap away Larwen’s arm, saying, ”You haven’t seen what I’ve made yet, just wait!” Larwen gave a growl as his hand was slapped aside, but he would teach this Goddess a lesson. From the very hand that was slapped away, Larwen summoned forth a divine weapon in the form of a large spike mace, taller then even Lasis. He then brought the mace high into the sky, and would bring it low to crush her. Lasis, in response, simply moved out of the way with a particularly rapid display of balance. She said again, ”I’m going to stay here until I finish what I was doing,” The ground where Lasis had been exploded, sending dirt, stone and grass flying in every way, a large boom echoing throughout the valley. A sizable crater was all that remained, but Larwen simply looked as Lasis from across the crater, his grip on his mace tightening. ”You are a fool if you think I will ever allow you to continue unabated. This mace. It will break you.” Larwen then leaped at her.

She once again simply moved out of the way with fluid grace, responding to Larwen with, “I’ll just keep doing this until you grow tired.” Once more the ground erupted in a flurry of debris, both craters forming a sort of strange eight in the ground. And once more Larwen was without satisfaction. But Larwen smiled, ”Little Goddess, I am not one quick to tire. But if you will not leave, then why bother with you?” He recognized that Lasis was too quick for him to catch without an element of surprise, but her castle was not so quick as she, nor was the ground she changed. With a mighty leap, he jumped towards it. Ready to strike it down with many a fierce blow. Lasis lifted her arm, and once his mace met with the castle and land, it reflected off harmlessly. She simply shook her head. Larwen fell to the ground, such protection was alien to him, how was it possible?

He looked back at her with hatred unfounded, gritting his teeth he said, ”You have made a grave mistake upon this day, little Goddess.” He paused, then said, ”Go on then, show me.”

”Great!” she responded, reaching back into her book. After a few minutes of pulling, the resistance gave way, pulling out an insectoid. And then she pulled out another. And another. She then, once finished, said, ”They will resist your corruption until the end of time. If you try to kill them yourself, I will be there to protect them. Best of luck with this valley!”
Larwen looked at the insects, no, the vermin before him. They were disgusting. Lasis was a foolish Goddess, but he did not doubt her words. ”You are a cruel creature. All I want is perfection, how can you not see? Such… life is not tolerable to my order, to my will. A blight upon the land, upon the universe…” He looked at Lasis directly then stated, ”You will pay for this, I swear it till the end of days O’sibling mine.” Larwen then vanished from sight, returning to Pervanon, bitter and angry.

He turned to the Zalsarix as he walked into the depths, ”We have work to do, mine children.” he paused once again as he looked at the mace in his hand. He had forgotten that such a weapon had been created, and such a weapon needed a name.
”Willbreaker.” Larwen whispered, as his eyes faded into black.

---

The Birth of Lord Naisegai and the Forging of Pürihallgraal

Things were progressing quickly on the Island of Surm, though not necessarily quickly enough for Césure Virgule's tastes. His children were learning quickly enough, certainly much faster than could be expected of lesser lifeforms, however they were still very much in the pre-civilization stages of thinking. It had been three whole days since his arrival to the Sea of Suremus and Andja and Saaja were still wrapping their heads around the concept of fire. Césure had many things still left to do, and the pile of extra work that was doubtless accumulating the more time he took to get himself settled was a heavy concern on his mind. He did not want to have to deal with the back-up of his sluggishness several centuries on from now, and the amount of dead who would linger could greatly increase the likelihood of anomalies and abominations cropping up, which he had neither the patience nor the inclination to have to deal with.

The next course of action for Césure was clear, and he tapped into Might, and carved another form from Surmite, beautiful and arresting in its imperious figure. The Suremuse Koguja, had need of a father. One who was like unto them, but also not. Furthermore, Césure's attentions would be elsewhere, but he still wished to have a hand in his children's affairs, whether it was to manage the Temple once that construction was complete, or merely to make certain that their tight-knit civilization prospered, as his disciples of death. The Avatar then, would be made in the image of the Koguja, and imbued with a portion of Césure's awareness and power. Lord Naisegai's eyes flickered open and he stretched his powerful crackling form lithely. Both Naisegai and Virgule experienced the strange sensation of looking at oneself but not, before their split mind acclimated thanks to the godly Might's powerful effects.

"I'll get some clothes, and then continue to teach the Koguja. As soon as they are capable of self-organization, the construction will begin on the Temple's outer structures. The chamber will be ready when we are." Naisegai intoned proudly, before departing at a nod from Césure.

The most pressing task to hand now, Césure dove into with relish. He flooded his hands with godly Might, and seized up the monumental ball of metal which he had ripped from the deepest parts of the planet, and began shaping it to the required form of divinity. He added accents of surmite and more than once, he sped off with the grail to a distant land to add one element or another. From the Plains of Madness, Césure took crystals of madness, of Gremju's make, to adorn the grail. From Pelegath's Swamps, Césure tore an entire scale plate of the back of a Vyre, with godly ease, which he used as the grail's foot. To complete the grail, Césure finished it by adding several spores of Ley from the Locus Amoenus's building site, as they had already begun to grow numerous there.

Pürihallgraal, Grail of The Damned, was complete. Césure's great works would soon be finished, and his labours begun in earnest.

When Regulus reappeared in the forest, he looked around. His cats were prospering on the rabbits and mice he created, however while his wolves had the rabbits to eat, it was hardly enough to substance a growing population. There was other creatures that dwelled in the forests, but few of them made a suitable source of food for his wolves, however one, the hyracotherium caught his eye. A memory surfaced in his mind, and he realized what he need to create.

He went over to a tree and grabbed a stick. Making a hole in the ground with his spear, he planted the stick in the ground and commanded it to grow. The stick grew into antlers, and form the ground emerged a deer. And then, deer appeared all through the forest. While he still did not think his work here was done, the forest and the steppe were only small parts of the world.

He took a step forward, and appeared on the back of the Island Turtle. For a moment, he simply sat down and looked up at the sky as the giant turtle glided across the ocean's surface. He thought about what he would do to protect the oceans. There was other gods, but he was not quite sure who he could trust. His Island Turtle was powerful, but only one creature to patrol the entire sea, and his griffins could fly over the sea, but had very limited ability to fight within it.

The ocean floor might as well be a different world to Regulus, perhaps he would need the aid of another god.

---

After spending a great deal of time brooding over his failure with Lasis, Larwen had finally gathered the Zalsarix before him. They illuminated the darkness with their bodies, casting a eerie glow upon the Perfected God. He held Willbreaker in his hand, having thought upon the powers of the weapon and its abilities- deeming it worthy of its title. Not only was it quite destructive, but those in its presence would succumb to its effects. For the Willbreaker was a very literal meaning.

Now, Larwen knew that the insectoids would be multiplying, growing in strength to challenge him. He could not allow this, but he could not intervene for the moment. In time he would, but for now Larwen was content to go about his scheming. For he needed an army and to build such a thing he first needed captains, those pure of soul to command.

He would teach the Zalsarix to wield a weapon, for all captains needed tools for war. He gifted to them the knowledge that would allow them to tap into their energy and summon forth a blade. Their very bodies were powered by unholy fire, their very souls manifest, and now they would know to control that flame for a purpose. They would be near the top of the hierarchy that was too come.

Then Larwen used his might to break apart the ground before him, molding the stone into a large, shallow pit. Once this was complete, Larwen took one Zalsarix and broke the creature in half with Willbreaker, then poured its blood into the pit. The Zalsarix did not move as their kin died, but watched with fixed expressions as the broken Zalsarix's bodily fluids coalesced at the bottom. Larwen then willed the rest of his might into this blood, and the thick green liquid bubbled and grew hot as it rose up to the pit's edge. It gave off noxious smell, and illuminated the cave even further.

Satisfied, Larwen spoke, "This is the Forge of Purity, and we shall use it to great effect mine children. Stay here for but a moment, I shall return."

Larwen then left Pervanon, searched throughout the mountains, once again ending up in the valley of the cabin. Here he found what he was searching for, imperfect creatures, some resembling his siblings but in smaller stature. As he came before them they shrank in fear, some flying away while others stared at him. Larwen simply smiled, and snatched up one of the Fae. A fairy with bright red hair, she struggled in his grasp but Larwen simply whispered to her, "You remind me of her, O'Unsullied mine." For upon his touch he could feel Seihdhara's influence. This was her creation, how perfect.

Larwen flew off with the Unsullied, back into Pervanon he went. He could have corrupted the young fairy within his grasp, but why waste his newest creation? It was time for a bathe. By the time he was in front of the pit, the fairy was screaming and biting his hand. "Watch now my Zalsarix, watch and see." Larwen then placed the Unsullied into the pit, as she fought desperately to escape. But there was no hope, for her perfection was at hand. After only a moment of being submerged, a new creature emerged, and she was truly beautiful.

Larwen turned to the Zalsarix, "Bring anything of imperfection to the Pit alive, we shall build an army in my visage." As the Zalsarix left, Larwen looked upon his newest Perfection and smiled.

It was not hard to find the challenger. The trio of Watchers had agreed upon their respective quarries even as Gremju's large mouth saw him embroiled into a disagreement with Orfai. So it was that Makaizael immediately moved to observe Gremju's doings from afar while his two brothers had been made to search for the whereabouts of the demons called Larwen and Kikoquatl.

The youngest Lord of Civilization steeled himself in silent loathing as he overhead Gremju's justification for having sown the seeds of madness; the demon had corrupted every mortal that would ever be from this dawning time onward, and had nothing to offer save a grotesque lie, "I have given some the chance to take a glimpse outside of their cage!"

His omnipotent father's wording had somehow failed to convey the depths of depravity that these 'demons' lurked in, but Makai understood the brevity of the situation now. His orders echoed in the canyon of his mind for the thousandth time: Go unseen...Merely observe.

So it was that he flew after Gremju, low, low to the sweet ground that was sheltered him from wary eyes. In the naked sky the Watcher would be easily seen for there were still no birds quite so large as his sturdy form nor bestowed with six wings; however, low to the ground and as far back as he could go whilst keeping the devil in his sight, Makai proved elusive indeed.

So it was that he shadowed Gremju all the way back to a waste called the Plains of Madness. It was a craggy place covered in desolate and lifeless sands with a few sparse clusters of some strange crystals, though it seemed that the demon was determined to see that soon change. Makai whispered a word of power to the sand and had it wreathe him so fully that he was invisible amidst the bleak landscape, and then he watched for days as Gremju fashioned some manner of corrupted trees that grew upon the odd crystals and rose from the land like plague boils. Some time later, there was another god that came: Kap Gam. That elusive, quiet one that had been there at the very moment of his birth, and yet had slipped away and become a mere ghost of a memory since then. Was she his mother, or was it the Earth?

Confused meandering of the mind gave way to piqued interest as he witnessed her steal one of the crystal trees before fleeing as quickly as she had come, probably none the wiser about him having witnessed the act.

He was left again with the sand for company as he stalked a demon from the crevices of its own lair. As the days passed, there came much more movement. Small feet shuffled through the sand, marking the birth of Gremju's imps. Makai noticed that they preferred to stay close to the center of the waste, where the otherwise sparse 'trees' congregated into a glade that seemed to be Gremju's favorite place.

But sometimes they would grow bored and wander off, as the one before him had done. The small creature seemed to be milling about aimlessly even before the oddly-shaped pile of sand before it, but then it bristled. It turned to where it felt Makaizael's gaze falling upon it, and though it did not immediately see the Watcher's eyes peering out from behind the sand, the Lord of Civilization knew then that his guise was gone.

So before the imp could cry out, Makaizael instinctively projected an aura of order and calm just as his father had done to the mortal centaur, yet Makai was not so powerful as his Promus, and these imps had a natural turmoil within their hearts and were not so easily pacified as centaur.

Piop had been wandering around as he usually had, there hadn't been much to do since their creation other than eat and sle-oooohhh whats hiding under that mound? The imp felt a strange sensation wash over him for a moment before he let out a strange sound somewhere between a scream and a cackle. The imp's scream thing caught the attention of several nearby imps who began to approach the mound and Gremju himself, who had been lounging around on the central deposit of Grem crystals.

There was the soft and quick utter of some incomprehensible word, and the sand piled around Makai instantly sloughed off his form so thoroughly that not a single grain clinging to his flesh or many wings. He could perceive the imps' palpable surprise and their curiosity that was perhaps muddled with fear, but it was their master that concerned the Watcher. The thought flashed through Makai's mind to take to the wind with all six of his wings and to flee as fast as his might allowed, but that would spell bad intentions. Perhaps there was a better way. His racing heart began to ease with the realization that his father's attention was only a word away.

Gremju stared at Makai for a moment, looking mildly confused before his mouth broke into a grin "Ohhh, another visitor? I must be getting popular, eh?" The challenger cackled at his own joke before hoping down from the hill of purple crystals to meet his visitor face to face. Well, not quite face to face as Gremju barely stood taller than the imps never mind Makai "So, what brings you to my happy little corner of the realm?" he asked, a great grin still on his face.

"I have come to bear witness to your works." It was not a lie so much as a...less abrasive truth, or at least that was how Makai justified his answer.

Gremju giggled "Well, what do ya think? I'm quite proud of my imps and the crystal root trees. I still need to breathe some more life into the Plains though. It still seems ehhh, dull."

"The foundations for a civilization seem to be in place," he could answer truthfully, "but it shall be a most peculiar one, without the manner of order cultivated by my father that the mortals can achieve greatness. What purpose do your works here serve?"

Gremju waved his hand dismissively at the mention of order. "Order, laws, structure, bah so boring. The less of 'em the better as far as I'm concerned. My imps will have one job which is to protect these trees from intruders, hopefully none as strong as my dear siblings of course. Other than that I plan to little the little fellas free to roam the world and do as they wish, put on shows, share what they know about the Plains of Madness and maybe entice a few explorers to visit, maybe they'll just decide to cause some mayhem frankly they have my blessing as long as they spend some time here protecting these trees. Eh, thinking about it I probably need 'em to communicate so they can sort out a schedule for it or something..hm, reckon you could help me out?" the imp father asked, seemingly forgetting that Makai had been spying on him several moments ago.

"The power of Speech is held by Promus, my father, and he did ordain me and two others with the power to bestow His Gift among other things. Your request is one that is easily granted, though I have questions of my own: why would you spurn order and structure and yet hope also for the boons that it bestows? Do you think that Speech alone is enough to make these 'imps' more than mere beasts if they will reject all other aspects of civilization?"

Gremju shrugs at Makai "Does a mortal need to waste away their life to an arbitrary system to be considered intelligent enough for speech? These plains will act as a store of their history while I guide them along but they will only be bound to this place every once and a while. I hope they'll have plenty of time to learn and educate their kids while guarding these trees. I get they need a tad of structure but that's all I'm going to impose on them, you can let them speak and let me deal with the rest, right? You don't need to look at these fellas ever again if you think their way of living is wrong."

"It is not my place to deem a race worthy or no. All fall under the grace of Promus unless the sun rises in the west and sets in the east, or he himself denounces them. I will give unto the imps Speech and Civilization, and at the end it will not have been I who held them back."

Even as the demon no doubt rolled its eyes upon the Watcher's back, ignorant to how its own corrupted design had tainted the imps and the influence of its flawed philosophy would shackle them forever, Makaizael turned to the lowly creatures. "I bid ye Rise! Rise above your station and be learned in Speech!"

Gremju watched with satisfaction as Makai did his work. After several moments one of the nearby imps blinked and said "Bloody hell this is weird innit?" the challenger cackled as his imps spoke before saying to Makia "Brilliant! You've got my thanks. Tell ya what, I owe you a favor now I suppose eh? Call on me when you want to call it in although don't expect me to take on one of my siblings or something extreme like that right? Gremju turned to the imps that had gathered around him. "Right then, I want you all to get into groups of twelve alright? You'll be expected to work with that group at the time I tell you to guard the Crystal Root trees from potential threats. Rest of ya can do what you like, got it? Now scram and sort your gangs out, last group to sort themselves has to guard the trees first. You'll hear me in your mind when it's your turn to come here" with that order the imps began scampering around, talking awkwardly but quickly to each other as they attempted to sort themselves into twelve groups using a tongue they had only gained the use of several moments ago. Gremju giggled as the imps ran about the glade trying to sort themselves.

In a way, Makai's failure had been utter and complete; where he had come to witness the demon's evil from afar, he had been discovered and even made to aid Gremju in his devices. Yet in another way, uplifting the imps was among the wisest things that could have been done. It was true that they worshiped the demon as a King of Imps and Patron of Madness, but now they also had a Lord of Civilization.

The answer was made clear, then; he had to choose the most worthy of the imps, those who were the calmest and possessed the least aptitude for mayhem and madness, and to them he would offer give freely gift that they would take. That one band could craft a rudimentary civilization whilst their brethren wandered as nomads or wallowed in useless squalor, and in leading by example they might eventually raise all of the other imps to a higher station. But until then, they would be his Chosen among the imps and the ambassadors or Promus. The imps themselves could be the spies that kept watch on Gremju, if only they would submit to Makai's godly authority and embrace the guidance of Promus.

It seemed unlikely that the demon would even forbid such an arrangement, so Makaizael went so far as to ask for his blessing in the endeavor, "The imps speak, but they could do so much more. A tree should not be content to merely flower when it could bear fruit, and likewise there are many more gifts that I could bestow upon the imps. You need only permit me to stay longer, and in time this holy place could be guarded by an entire kingdom of imps rather than a few lazing guardians."

Gremju paused for a moment to consider the request, after a moment of thought he pointed at the imps as they continued their struggle to form twelve groups, "Alright, if you can find enough imps that are orderly enough to make a stable civilization, go ahead. If you can get them to become a power to rival the other mortal races that will eventually rise up then I'll happily allow them to live with my blessing and I can only assume the blessing of Promus. Buuuut as a catch I'm gonna have to test 'em myself when they've progressed enough. I'll give ya two days with the twelve groups assembled to try and find the imps you want, after that they're leaving to wander the world while you try to civilize my creations. That sound good to you?" the challenger asked after stating the offer. "Oh and no fancy magic to bind them or change them, that's cheating and I'm not a fan of cheats." he added.

"Then the deal is made."

_{Time: Takes place between one-week and four-weeks after the Day the Gods Came}

Seihdhara watched as the Sullied and Unsullied burst across the globe, warring and fighting as they went, and watched also the terrifying power of the First Warsword. Even now it struck down one unfortunate Sullied or another, cleaving them in twain and causing them to burst into a great cloud of magick and dust. The very act of creating the Warsword had sapped her, its aura... there was something about this feeling.

Suddenly nauseous, she called Dwynen to her and splashed into the sea, leaving the singing island behind her and sinking beneath the waves. Dwynen fluttered above the water, trying to keep the flame-haired goddess in sight. But it was no use, and her efforts were swiftly cut short as a Sullied suddenly swooped upon her, caught her, and flew away laughing and cackling, a pair of Unsullied hot on his heels.

Seihdhara noticed Dwynen's plight, distantly, and thought to help. But her body felt heavy and the feeling of being afloat in the water, being carried away and cushioned without any effort and without any joint or part of her body being overburdened, was serene. She could feel it now - the reason for her heaviness. Her bloating belly. She laughed inwardly - it was only natural that a such a worthy sword should impregnate her. But with what - residue? Too meek! And yet here she was with a life grewing within her. Another child - a boy, she knew, and smiled as she whispered his name inwardly. She knew he would hear and know.

Telum Dei... Telum Dei

She remained in the water long, and she quickly regained her strength. An unfortunate Goldari thought to take a curious peck at her floating hair, and the keen-eyed goddess struck it down with a single struck and ate its flesh raw. It tasted of Larwen and she gagged as she vomited it all back up - and from the ejecta there swam little creatures, keen-eyed like the one from whose stomach fluids they emerged, and who immediately set to consuming the corruptions and discharging them as nothing more than their most basic elements - natural fertiliser for the seabed and food for the microbial beings that inhabited the seas.

Seihdhara swam upwards and broke through the surface, stepping onto air. It had been some four weeks, and her stomach was completely bloated. And as she ascended higher, the first pangs of her new motherhood reverberated through her, and by they time she had reached the first layer of the heavens, a crying babe was entangled in her crimson hair. Bloodied, it was true, and naked, but she raised him up to feel the sun and he smiled.

'Telum Dei, my child,' she half-whimpered and brought him to her face, kissing blood and membrane away, her tears intermingling with the birth fluids, 'Swordson,' and then they fell very suddenly. And as they descended he grew in her arms until they hit the water and he was full-grown, his eyes staring into her eyes of green.

This new man.... nay... This new GOD, though thrust into existance but moments ago, who had already come to know so much; his name, his purpose, how to use his immaculate power... Now found himself staring into the beautiful green eyes of his maker; his mother; the goddess Seihdhara. It was in that moment; that Telum dei's aura manifested itself; a red glow wrapping his body like the midday sun in a heavy fog, his eyes now shining as bright as the sun, and crimson as his mother's hair.

The god's eyes snapped shut, for fear of blinding his dear mother; and was astonished to realize he could still see. Telum dei then manifested clothes for himself, as a means to (partially) stifle his deific glow; a simple robe, a pair of Sode, and a straw hat. "Thank you mother, for bringing me into this world, if you ever have need of me, speak my name into this blade"

*Telum dei holds out his hands, between them, shines a magnificent light*

"I dub this blade 'Ursus Mater', its name and beauty a tribute to the goddess responsible for creating me"

*Telum dei begins to move his hands toward Seihdhara as if meaning to hand her something, suddenly the light begins to form a blade*

As the light began to fade, in its place sat a magnificent shortsword, the blade was a beautiful silver, dressed in an orange glow, its edge; sharper than a razor, the handle was a dark mahogany, wrapped with a stunning leather grip, the pommel; carved into the head of a roaring bear. Telum dei held out his masterful blade, offering it to the the goddess before him.

Seihdhara looked for a few moments at this first of her new children, noting that he had taken care to dress himself, noting that his first act - that of closing his eyes - had been done out of some instinct to protect her, noted his strong voice - though he spoke far too formerly to his own mammeh! She smiled warmly, and the water around her sizzled and bubbled. 'You grew into a jimmy so strong too soon,' she muttered, 'look at you making your mammeh a sword so she can protect herself - and I haven't even had time to protect you! Your mammeh's lad alright.' She took the blade in two hand and raised double-edged shortsword high for inspection. It was a thing of astounding beauty, it hardly felt like she was carrying a sword at all - all of it, from hilt to razor-tip seemed but an extension of her arm, the warm aura intermingling and congealing with her own essence and uniting with it.

Sheathing it - it merely dissipated into a shower of golden dust and light which enveloped her in a protective warm mist. She laughed at this, joyful at the wonders of her son's creation. 'Thank you Telu - it is a wonder. But the truth is - you are the greatest gift of all, my very own lad.' And she hugged him tightly and seemed to sniff - though whether she cried could not be ascertained since they were in water. Then she took him by the hand and they ascended once more to the surface. 'This world is wondrous, Telu. And now that a child of mine inhabits it, it is almost perfect. There are many gods - they may look down on you because you are younger than them, but we are all siblings. Some are idiots; they have tasted power and are driven to acts of sadistic debauchery by it. Some are pompous and full of their own self-importance. Some see absolute kindness as the way, and others are blunt and have no time for the emotions or sensitivities of others. And I do I think is right and what brings me joy!' And she turned to Telum Dei with a broad smile, teeth showing and eyes creasing, 'like you! You are right and have brought me joy.' Then she gestued with a hand towards the far horizons, 'now go! This world has waited on your arrival, and I know there are many who are in need of you even now.'

"Farewell mother, I'm sure our paths will cross again, but for now... There are legends to be made!!!" Telum said with a smile and a bow before rocketing off into the horizon, searching for heroes worthy of wielding his creations. Seihdhara laughed as he rushed off excitedly - he was his mammeh's boy alright.

*high over the continent *

Though he was just introduced to this mystifying new world, Telum dei's only focus was finding a hero worthy of wielding one of his mighty blades. It was at this time that a strange phenomena caught his attention. There was a large forest covering the land far below him, yet, something seemed odd about it...

Stopping to contemplate why this forest was so... unnerving... Telum shortly realized parts of it didn't seem to fit, they were warped, and twisted, defying all logical thought. Slowly descending to look more closely at this mismatched jigsaw of a forest, the Swordson realized that this had to be the work of a god, not a noble god, but a dark, twisted thing.

His disgust quickly turned to excitement as his feet touched the profaned ground, for where there is darkness, so too shines a vibrant light, this is where he would find his first hero, one worthy of wielding one of his blades.

Her dark carapace stained in Vyer-fluids, Newygnong emerged from the darkness and looked to where the Swordson stood. There was corruption there that needed cleansing, but something about this stranger - the way he was dressed, the crimson aura surrounding him - spoke of divinity. And a very familiar divinity at that. 'I do no know you, yet you reek of godhood,' Seihdhara's hero spoke, 'you did not come through the Door. So who are you, and do you stand there to keep the Corruptor's influences safe from me? Even if you are a god, you will not be permitted to pervert me from the mission my Mother has given me.' And the great bug opened her mighty mandibles and seemed set on taking on the god in combat if he thought to protect the corruption from her.

Telum dei smiled as he turned to face this new voice, a magnificent creature, one that had obviously pushed itself through many battles stood before him. "What a magnificent creature!" he muttered to himself, ufazed by the bug's threats. Moving closer he saw that this creature had no arms, or any means at all to wield a weapon... its only apparent means of fighting being the mandibles being bared before him. "No, no, no! This will not do at all!" Telum grumbled angrily to himself. Moving closer he placed his hand gently on the creature's glistening carapace; this creature was his Mother's work... his sister! Grinning, he looked at his sister's face, "I know not this corrupter you speak of, but I do know one thing, I am Telum dei, Swordson, god of weapons... and you, are my sister." Newygnong's mandibles slackened in surprise - though the strange caressing had also taken her aback somewhat.
'Yo- your sister?' The thought was... terrifying. She did not know why, but it scared her. Her mother did not accept her, how could she have a sibling. And a sibling who seemed to... well... who acknowledged her. But this also meant that... that her mother now had a true child. It meant that her mother had... no need for her anymore. Had forgotten her. She did not know whether to be angry or terrified or sad, whether to lash-out at her 'brother' or to run away. But she did nothing - only watched him warily, and then with curiousity. 'So... that's what a worthy child looks like,' she said at last, pensively. And determination filled her beady eyes once more as she took in her brother's humanoid form. 'I plan to be worthy too. I will have a beautiful form - standing on two feet like the gods -, and our mother will love me even as much as she loves you.' Perhaps there was small amount of bitterness in her words, but it was determination above all else. Even now she no longer stridulated but spoke words, even now she did not crawl on the earth, but walked on four feet. And yes, one day she would walk on two. 'When do you think it will be, Telum dei? When do you think Newygnong will become worthy?'

Hearing this declaration made Telum's smile grow even larger, "Oh, but my dear sister, you already are..." and with those words a blinding light filled his hands, and took the shape of a long, slender, katana. The blade was held in a long white sheath, ornamented with shapes and materials reminiscent of Newygnong's magnificent carapace. Unsheathing the sword, Telum revealed an astonishing silver blade, with an ornate golden crosspiece, and a night black handle with strips of white string forming the grip. With a quick, fluid motion, Telum dei made a minute cut across his sister's side, spilling her lava-like blood all over the blade. "With your blood, I hereby dub this blade 'Purity', and eternally bind it to you." as he said this, the wisps of red, yellow, and orange blood fused into the blade.

Newygnong immediately began to transform; her large, insectoid body slowly took a slender feminine shape, all but two of her legs fell off, and on her upper body, sprouted arms... By the end of this transformation, the woman before Telum dei resembled little of what she used to be, the only similarity being the beautiful black carapace covering her body like armor, but in place of mandibles was a snow white face, with luscious black lips. The final change to occur was the crimson hair that now grew on Newygnong's head; exactly like that of her mother's. And she looked clearly shocked. She raised a carapaced hand and looked at it, moved her armoured fingers, felt her toes moved a hand across her chitinous, humanoid torso. She was... had become...

Beautiful

A smile broke out across her pale face, her dark lips spreading. It was not the broad, giddy smile of her mother, her lips remained tightly sealed, but there was a spark in her jet-black eyes. That she had done it. And her hair was red - the red that only those blessed and loved by her mother bore. She looked down shyly and muttered a small word of thanks to her brother. 'This... thank you Telum. This feels... right. Better.' She looked to the corruption at Telum's landing place and took a step towards it, her face suddenly hard and cold, her black lips returning tightly to place. 'And that needs to be-' and then she realised that she... did not know how this new form worked, exactly. She had no weapons - perhaps her carapaced fingers could function as claws, but they were nothing like her mandibles. She looked to Telum, 'I- my mandibles. I need them back.'

"You have a far superior weapon now, I will show you how to use it..."


The newly formed blade ( now in its sheath) floated out of Telum's hands and floated pointing downward in front of her. " That blade; Purity, is the bane of this corruption, any corrupted substance will burn at it's very touch, now, draw your blade"

*to demonstrate, Telum manifests a katana in his hands and draws the blade*

The movement came naturally to Newygnong, as though she had - somewhere deep down - always known about this weapon and always known how to use it. She gripped the hilt and paused, taking in the texture. It was familiar. Comforting. And she drew, the image of her mother flashing before her eyes and guiding her movement. She stood frozen and wide-eyed, and then she laughed. 'How was that?'

"You are a natural sister! Now, thrust the blade into your enemy with all your might, and observe your newfound power!" Hefting the blade and looking to the slowly bubbling earth and the small tendrils that every now and again crept further outwards int he corruption's incessant growth. Silently, she took a step forward and drove Purity's point into the ground right where her brother had set foot when he landed.

The corruption bubbled and burned at the blade's very touch, in but a few moments the corruption in a small diameter around the blade had all withered, crumbled, and died. Newygnong bent down and inspected the area of damage. The corruption had, indeed, been completely eradicated. It was a much faster process than her fluids. She looked at the blade with newfound awe.

"Though this blade has the power to rebuke the corruption, it's area of effect is quite small, for now... Over time, this blade will become more powerful, and gain new abilities just as you do, it will be your stoic companion for all of time. This gift, my dear, is a LIVING blade, the first of my finest creations, soon after I leave; she will awaken, and take my place in aiding your quest... Now, this corrupter you speak of... would you enlighten me more of him?'

'The Corruptor...' she murmured, her eyes distant. She rose and looked to Telum, 'Larwen is the name I know it - or him, I think - by. On the Day the Gods Came he declared it his intention to make everything "perfect",' and here she gestured to the corruption all around them, 'and perfection to it is this that you see all around. This... I don't even know what it is. It's not death or decay - those things we see all around and are of Pelegath's making, they are part of the natural order. But Larwen, it seeks the destruction of all of that and the recreation of everything in its twisted image. If you walk a while you will certainly come across the Vyer. They are of Larwen's making, aggressive, hostile creatures of corruption. Mother bid me destroy thm where I find them, and eradicate all of Larwen's taint. And so I do.' She flexed one of her hands, 'but now I feel more prepared, more able. I think the time is right to venture forth from this place and seek out the heart of the disease. Perhaps the time is right to confront Larwen at the fount of corruption.'

"Sister, though that blade gives you great power, you are not yet ready to face a god... Gather your strength, and assail his vile font, I will ensure Larwen does not stop you."

With that, Telum dei set off to find the god of corruption and distract him from Newygnong's plan.

---

"What is your name?" Larwen whispered to the Perfected Unsullied. They had left the Forge of Purity, and now walked through the black corridors of the mountain. The unsullied was non responsive for a moment, as if contemplating the question.

After a moment of silence, she responed, her voice whispy but still retaining an semblance of her old accent, "My name was Rowan, but now it feels all wrong mi'lord."

"As it should child, for you have been born anew, forged into purity upon this earth. Rowan is the past, a time when you were not enlightened to true perfection. A new name you need, and I know it. But it must first must leave your lips or hold no meaning. Think upon it, and come to me when your search is complete."

The now nameless Unsullied paused, then looked at Larwen, "Thank you, this gift... it is a true blessing. I will not dissapoint you, mi'lord." She then bowed and left him.

Larwen reversed course, and went back to the Forge, where he would wait to see what the Zalsarix would bring back.

As Telum dei flew over the continent, he saw that the other gods had been very busy, creations littered all about the land; like a child's discarded toys. As he reached the mountain range, he saw the first signs of Larwen's corruption, slowing to a halt, he surveyed the defiled landscape. Throughout the twisted, warped, and distorted land, large chitinous.... monsters could be seen abducting any form of life that did not fit their master's definition of 'perfection'. Without a doubt, these hulking beasts would be Telum dei's ticket to finding Larwen. Landing softly on the ground, he carefully suppressed his godly presence, and materialized a large grey cloak to hide his glowing form. Slowly approaching one of the corrupter's creations, Telum submitted himself to be taken prisoner.

And so Larwen's Zalsarix came after a long time, bringing forth all manner of unnatural life and beings who did not need to exist as they were. It seemed many of the Fae were battered and burned, with many missing wings. It was unfortunate that so many were mutilated, but it was still better then them being whole and disgusting.

"This pleases me,"Larwen said in a silky voice as he watched the Zalsarix toss their victims into the Forge, "Forgive my siblings dearest creatures, for they created you in their image. Imperfect and unnatural, against my order. And you, Seihdhara's Fae, I pity you the most. But fear not, for soon, you will be free from their curse upon thy flesh."

And more perfections emerged from the Forge, mostly Fae, but a few other creatures as well. And as the line grew shorter and shorter, as the screams came less and less, there at last came a figure different from the rest. It stood taller then the others, wearing clothing to conceal what lay beneath.

"Stop there my child," Larwen motioned to a Zalsarix pushing the being forward, then floated over to them. "What is this? This smell... so familiar but not the same. Almost like... her. And his mood soured, for he did not care for anymore uninvited guests.

"What might you be then?" Larwen asked the bundled God.

After seeing the horrors spawned of Larwen's 'forge of purity', Telum had to know why... why create such abominations? How is this perfection? How could anyone, especially a god! Justify this?

Raising his head slighly, "How could you do this?" Telum asked Larwen, "Is creating such horrors truly noble? How could becoming subject to your will be benevolent? What warrants the creation of these bastardizations?"

Larwen smiled. "I do not expect such a lowly cretin to understand the whims of my will. But I will enlighten you. Firstly, my children you call horrors are anything but, for you are the horror in their eyes. In my eyes. They were without purpose before I made them perfect, before I made them whole. Without my guidance, my will, they will be forgotten in a world that is lost to true beauty. My siblings and their ilk, their spawn, their very creations, they must be shown the true path of purity. It is the only way. It is a gift, one you shall see." Larwen then motioned for the Zalsarix to begin prodding the cloaked figure towards the forge.

As the Zalsarix went to prod Telum dei into the forge, he turned, and lightly pressed his hand against the tip of the sword, and the sword would no longer move; rather, it refused to be moved. Turning back towards Larwen Telum spoke once more, " It saddens me that you are so deluded, driven to believe your vile deeds are that of grandeur, if this is a perfection you wish to share, to show the other gods that you are right, is there not another way?"

The Zalsarix tried in vain to move his sword, and Larwen seemed perplexed all the same, but when the man spoke again, Larwen's mood turned to that of anger. "Deluded? Vile? These are the words of an imperfection. A blight upon the universe, not needed to be believed by anyone of true sense. Little cretin, how can you understand? There is no other way. Not until my dear siblings are gone, or shown the truth of my ways. Now, I believe we've had this little chat long enough. It's time for you to change, Seihdhara spawn." Larwen then grabbed the man by his left arm, pulling him to the edge of the Forge.

Suddenly, with a jerk, Larwen's forward motion halted, "Tis a pity you would not listen, and choose a better path, but you have forced my hand." with that, the large grey cloak concealing Telum's divine glow burned away; before Larwen stood not a man, but a god.

Larwen was decieved, but not entirely suprised. Regardless, he let go of Telum and snarled, "I should have known, you reek of her. Always my siblings finding ways to meddle in my affairs. But you are not one of my siblings are you, nephew? This is not a surpise, I knew it would happen eventually. It was inevitable, but for her to send you here? Now, that was foolish my dear boy." Larwen then summoned Willbreaker to his hands, "I've been curious to see if my Forge would cure a God. How perfect that you might stand here before me, now. Shall we see?"

"I'm afraid not uncle, your arrogance will be your downfall... Telum said with a chuckle, a bright light turning into a nodachi in his hands, and slowly sliding his feet apart into a wide combat stance " Are you sure you wish to fight me?"

Larwen let out a sickening laugh, "Arrogance? I think not dear nephew." Larwen then swung his mace at Telum.

Catching just below the head of the mace with his sword, Telum pushed the mace slightly to the right, and sidestepped left in one fluid motion, "I am Telum dei! Son of god and sword! I shall not be taken lightly!" he declared, throwing a hard kick into Larwen's side.

Telum's kick landed, the momentum of the blow made Larwen stumble to his side. He quickly rebounded with haste, moving his body in unnatural ways to once again stand before Telum. "You should not have come here, Telum Dei." Larwen flatly stated. He then attacked again, swinging the mace at Telum's side, but fainting the attack midway, hoping that Telum would go to block it, then use is free hand to claw Telum in the side.

The feint caught Telum off-guard, and Larwen's well timed strike sent him tumbling back. This was going to be a tougher fight than Telum thought, " You caught me off-guard, but now, my eyes are open." Telum's blinding eyes snapped open, creating a crimson glare off the bottom of his straw hat, as he took a defensive stance at the exit of the chamber.

"Foolish child, you are in my domain. Your eyes might be open, but they cannot see." Larwen then vanished into the shadows of Pervanon, the only thing remaining were the ominious glowing eyes of the Zalsarix and the other perfected creatures, staring at Telum from across the Forge. It grew quiet, the air heavy with silence before the very mountain erupted. Telum would be assualted on all fronts by the very power of Larwen's corruption. A shadowy mist seething with hate and anger, finally unchecked to do as it pleased. All light would be snuffed out, even the Forge's green glow would cease, and the stares of monsters would be but a distant memory.

This tactic disgusted Telum, an honorable opponent would never resort to such trickery, he would be back, but for now he would bide his time, until Larwen would finally return from the shadows. Rocketing out of pervanon's depths, Telum once again resumed his search for heroes worthy of his blades; it will take an army to challenge Larwen's forces, and he would be ready.

'Elabeen!' The unsullied was beaten and battered, her wings seared and parts missing, 'Elabeen!' She rushed into a great winding tree through a small hole and descended into its roots where a great cavernous expanse opened up and thousands of unsullied rushed about. Seated on small bark seats were Elabeen and Fylmira, who had been appointed by the King and Queens of the Unsullied as Lord and Lady of the Unsullied Court at the Anathema Heights. 'Elabeen!' The injured unsullied called as she descended. The slightly larger Elabeen looked up and arose, and so too did Fylmira.

'By the Crimson Goddess Tingalina - what has happened to you?' Fylmira, adolescent in appearance, brought the injured Tingalina to her pert breasts in a pitying embrace.
'Speak, Tingalina,' Elabeen said, his red brows furrowed and the usually mischievous spark in his boyish eyes replaced by one more serious and worried.
'Rowan. It took Rowan.' Tingalina managed, sobbing into Fylmira's shoulder. 'It came out of nowhere - a monstrous thing.'

So was the beginning of the nightmare for the Unsullied Court at the Anathema Heights. For weeks thereafter unsullied after unsullied were kidnapped and never heard from again. The war effort against the sullied came to an abrupt halt as the fae everywhere fled from the coming of Larwen's raiders. But it was not long before the Lord and Lady of the Court could bear no longer to see the members of their court struck down one after the other, and they sent for aid from the Great Unsullied Court.

The Unsullied King, Brentylwith, was at the time leading his subjects against the Sullied Court at the Mad Plains, searing terror into the hearts of his eternal foes with Seihdhos. But when news reached him of the plight of the Unsullied Court at the Anathema Heights, he relented in his crusade and forthwith made for the west. And on his arrival, he was the met with the horror that hunted down his people and was taken up in a fury. 'What do they take the unsullied race for that they should hunt us so?' He roared, and descended to Fylmira and Elabeen - who looked far more worn and tired than they had mere weeks ago. 'Call up the unsullied, for I shall lead them personally against these creatures that have taken us for foe.' And so Brentylwith the King drew Seihdhos and led a great unsullied host - one so large had never before been seen to operate as one.

However, after engaging one of the kidnappers in battle, the King realised that the unsullied could not hope to resist these creatures with their bare hands. 'We cannot fight these creatures with our bare hands as we do our sullied foe - do you not see that the Crimson Goddess has given me Seihdhos? So go ye forth to the trees and take from them branches, and I would have you sharpen them on stones.' And with this, Brentylwith armed his people with sharpened staves, and when next they met a Zalsarix kidnapper - or Morigs, as the unsullied had taken to calling them - the hated creature was pierced by thousands of little spears and leaked its green, toxic blood. When a foolish unsullied thought to touch the blood, it screeched in pain and its hand began to melt swiftly. Were it not for the presence of the King, who swiftly severed the poisoned flesh, the fae would have died a most painful and ignomanious death. 'Do not touch the green fluids that from their depths emerge!' The King decreed.

One day, while stalking a Morig with a small host, Brentilwyth the King came upon a creature most strange, and he drew his great sword Seihdhos and bid the creature make known its identity. And the strange creature drew its own sword.

---

There is a tale that the fae, Unsullied and Sullied alike tell their children grow fearful of ever setting a foot on the land. The tale originated from a large gathering of Unsullied and what happened in the time is generally unknown. The day had been going as one would expect from the Unsullied, pleasant and fun, though no trickery as the Sullied cousins would engage in. Strange occurrences began when a small group had come back with news of a being dressed in strange garments with a sadistic smile had been wandering the area. When they saw its face, the sadistic grin it bore was enough to send chills down their spines and their wings had freezed in fear. It was much larger than them and worst of all, orange.

The lord was notified and the scouts went back to tracking the monster that was inhabiting the woods, however, when the group had returned back they had lost number. They were in shock and some were too terrified to speak, but the one who would speak told of how the beast had returned and it noticed them before they found it. It was an ambush and though the fae were supposed to be deathless, it drained them of their energy. The laughing all the sound it made and those who survived ran. The scouting group was nearly positive that it allowed them to escape to tell the tale.

Two weeks passed without incident, the orange-headed monster had not been sighted. Until it appeared right at the entrance of their little settlement. The lord met with it and it spoke to them in a familiar tongue, warning them to leave the area as a millipede was going to devour them all if they stayed. It gave the name of the millipede, Kikoquatl, Devourer of all.

The lord did nothing, believing that it was merely just a trick trying to scare them off so that it may kill them in a place where they would put up less resistance. Soon enough, strange rumbling had been detected, small tremors in the ground that grew with time. Then they stopped.

A few days passed with nothing happening, it seemed that the Pumpkin Man’s words had merely been a ploy and the lord laughed and hollered with his people. They would have held a feast if ate, but they did hold a gathering where they laughed and laughed. That was when the onlookers watched a great beast rise from the ground and swallow the lord and his court. It was the great Millipede, Kikoquatl. Just as the Pumpkin Man had spoke, now clearly a spirit of both evil and premonition.

The great millipede looked down upon the onlookers, its head the size of a great hill. It spoke to them, saying that it demanded tribute should they wish to not suffer the same fate. They agreed to gather anything it wished, and it demanded food. Food they would provide, and off they went to warn the rest of their kind. The Pumpkin Man had come back and taught them the proper way to honor the goddess. Those who stayed were said to construct a temple to which they can prepare this tribute, overseen by the devourer.

---

As she flew back to the Valley, she noticed something that made her heart sink. Larwen's influence was spreading to her little plot of land, devouring plantlife, turning the view from peaceful to nightmarish.

She sighed.

At least, the corruption had somehow not spread to the immediate area around the cabin she'd made, and it didn't seem to try to get close to it. Maybe her brother had some sort of respect for the creations of others, after all?

From the creation of the Sullied and Unsullied, the further Development of Gremju's little mad experiments, the growth of the ocean ecosystem... It was all moving fast, and this was the best moment to act if she wanted to try to save this world.

She giggled to herself as she landed in front of her cabin, Saving the world makes it sound way more noble than it actually is.

She opened the door and entered the cabin. She took in a deep breath of the homely air and sat down on one of the dining table's chairs. A quick, private message should be enough to summon the one who'd help her, she guessed. Boy, it was handy being a Goddess and being able to telepathically whisper to others.

"Gremju, do you have a moment to speak? I'd like to ask you something in person."

The great turtle approached a new continent that Regulus was unfamiliar with. The sense of corruption was strong here, and so he extended his divine perception out the nearby mountain range where the corruption was at its strongest.

He spent multiple days looking out and surveying the mountain, and forming a plan. He saw the helpless fae being taken by the forces of corruption and then corrupted themselves. It was a horrid thing. He clutched his spear tightly, power surging into it, and nearby griffins began to fly towards him and circle in the sky above him. He granted it is name, Anhur.

Though, he was given pause. His griffins landing on the back of the island turtle. He could not simply rush it with his spear, as he did not have the strength to fight Larwen directly, and he could not send beasts to aid them in fear that they would be corrupted.

He sat at the edge of the island turtles back, and peer into the alien ocean. Though, as he took a closer look, he saw souls hidden in the water. Though, the souls were not of any fish, they were within the water itself. An idea formed in his head.

From Anhur, a branch sprouted and began to twirl into a cone, and then form into a war horn. He took threads of his hair and tend it around both ends of the horn, and it formed into golden bands. He gave its name, Stormcaller.

He sounded Stormcaller, and as he did, the ocean in front of him began to boil releasing steam into the air that ascended briefly into the sky before disappearing. A magic fog then appeared over the Unsullied territories of Anathema Heights, magical in nature. It seemed to have no effect on the mobility or vision of the fae it was meant to protect while helping to conceal their presence from the creatures of chaos.

---

After a time, Imalla left the waning heat of the corpse star and descended into the bowels of his father to slumber until the day of the cosmos reckoning would come. The once blazing core now robbed of its warmth and strenuously chilled by the greed of Imalla's body, evolved into a white dwarf with little calidity to offer in the face of Axnas' fury. The breath of space further quelled its thermal bellows into a whisper and the serpents grasp smothered it until carbon crystallized and hardened into solid diamond.

Upon its surface Axnas resided, taking in the ever expansive plane of carbon crystal before him. The jewel glistened in his light, sending every color of the visible spectrum, translucent and resplendent, in an array throughout its plains. A riot of color, a work beyond art, a promise of bliss.

"Look how beautiful you have become, brother." Axnas whispered softly, lowering himself to caress the immaculate surface of the star. "Your purpose so grand, so magnificent, soon it shall be realized."

Axnas rose and with him the temperature as well. Chemical covalent bonds dissolved under his unforgiving intensity, turning diamond into carbon gas. Then gas coalesced into a liquid under the sheer magnitude of the dwarfs' own pressure. Wave after wave of heat danced in unity with gravity, liquefying vast spans of diamond until a lake of carbon as vast as galbars own Anathema Heights marred the smooth surface of the dead star.

With tender care, Axnas dipped his hands into the white, blazing surface of the lake and began to shape it as if it were clay. A figure, humanoid in visage but alien in countenance took form until perfection forced Axnas to stop after years. The second only took a half the time.

"Good." Axnas whispered. With a gesture, the twin figures hardened and crystallized features unique to the individual forming.

Rising into the atmosphere above he regarded them both, and saw that his work was good.

"Rise, and enter into the joy of your master." he proclaimed. Like the light from a quasar, Axnas glowed, shedding divine energy upon his creations. Diamond shined magnificently, taking in the energy of its creator. Sunlight flowed through there veins, carbon appendages shifted, and eyes of yellow, blazing with the fury of Axnas himself, opened wide.

The first Titans awoke.

---

After his little bout with Telum, Larwen had returned to his proper form and began to reside over the Forge once more. The Zalsarix were proving to be anything but disappointments, and his hordes of Perfected Unsullied grew in size. Remarkably, they retained their ability to catalog themselves into rank and file. Though none of them were Lords or Ladies, several still held sway over large groups of Unsullied and acted as unofficial leaders. This pleased Larwen, for a a mind was a precious tool when put to good use. Unlike their Sullied cousins who, upon further investigation, shown no signs of the same intelligence. More or less just animals, the Sullied would prove useful as soldiers. For the time would be soon when the war against the foul Insect would begin.

However, fate had other ideas. For several days after Telum left, the Zalsarix began to bring back less and less Unsullied. With many leaking blood from hundreds of small holes within their shells. Larwen, in his haste to gather an army, had not thought of what the imperfect Unsullied would do in retaliation. So Larwen questioned several of the higher Unsullied, and learned from them the culprit behind this mess, the Unsullied King Brentylwith. He had marshaled the Unsullied to fight, but it would take much more then sticks to kill a Zalsarix. Such impertinence made Larwen angry, to attack his children, with such crude weapons nonetheless!

The Unsullied would have to be taught a lesson. One that would remind them who they had offended. So Larwen walked to the entrance of Pervanon, at his tow several hundreds of Perfected Fae. With his perception he could see a the fog, magical in nature and obscuring the unnatural parts of the Anathema Mountains, the parts were the Unsullied lived. A new sibling had entered the war, Regulus. It was unfortunate that so many were against him, but Regulus would pay.

He turned to the Fae and spoke, "You are the true inhabitants of these mountains. Noble and splendid in your new perfection. Your kin are misguided, this King knows not his arrogance to attack me. You, my children, you will be my knife that stabs his heart. Go now! Go, capture, kill or do as you please. Reclaim what is yours and remind these heathens the true order of my world.!"

And they gave cheers of excitement, flooding from the mouth of Pervanon to truly begin this war of the Fae. And Larwen watched them go, his sadistic smile revealing in the thrill of what was to come. Larwen then took flight, for there were griffons a foot, and the Forge hungered for imperfection.

---

Gremju was once again lounging on the great pile of Grem crystals in the Plains of Madness. His imps had been struggling for several hours now to sort themselves into groups, he had expected them to take less time than this but it was fine, he had all the time in the world. As he watched the imps wander between groups he began to noticed they seemed to be running out of energy. He sat there for several moments inspecting the creatures before it hit him. He hadn't given them any water. In a panic the Challenger carved several small holes into the dirt around the plains and filled them with a murky purple liquid,it was 'normal' water but hey, couldn't just have normal old clear water in his Plains of Madness. After returning to his perch in the Crystal Glade he observed his imps finally drink after about a day or two of existence with nothing. As the imp father began to drift off he heard a voice in his mind "Gremju, do you have a moment to speak? I'd like to ask you something in person.".

The challenger sighed at the summons, this God business didn't give him a break it seemed and with a puff of purple energy the deity transported himsel to the source of the voice. It was far cozier than he had expected.

"Gremju! Welcome to the world's first cozy place," Aella looked at the clearing puff of purple energy and at the form of the brother, "How have you been? I saw your Imps recently, you've been having fun, huh?" She said with a smile.

Gremju grinned as his sibling spoke "Well it's been a busy few weeks but compared to the eternity in emptiness it's been a blast so far. So many things to do, so many ideas, although I admit it's probably best I save a few of 'em for a later date, don't want to cause too much trouble so soon eh?" he replied.
"So, can I ask why ya called me here? I'm trying to sort out my imps so they can start enjoying the world in their own way..although I think they'll survive a few hours alone, well if they can't I'll be pretty dissapointed" he asked Aella.

Aella pursed her lips and looked away. After a moment, she stood up from the dining chair and motioned toward the living room couch, made of fuzzy furs. As she took a seat, she began to speak.

"I'm worried, Gremju. About the future. You're aware of Larwen, right? I'm afraid our brothers and sisters are antagonizing him, making him suffer for no good reason. If this keeps up, how long will it be before we're at each other's throats? How long until I-" She shook her head, "How long until we end up with blood on our hands?" She looked at Gremju with sadness clearly showing through her attempts at a calm expression.

Gremju furrowed his eyebrows as Aella spoke, he approached the couch but simply sat on the floor opposite to his sibling. "In their defence, Larwen does seem to have a habit of turning fairly harmless animals into killing machines. Eh, if that's his thing that's his thing I guess. I think it's probably a good idea to stop everyone killing each other so soon either way though,I can't make my challenges if everyone has already killed each other." Gremju muddled his way through the sentence, seemingly reasoning to himself as he spoke, shrugging and then nodding as though to confirm that was his opinion on the matter.

The moment Gremju sat on the floor, Aella followed and sat on the floor in front of him, nodding in agreement to his words. "Yes, that's what I think. We all need each other, we give each other purpose! So it saddens me that everyone's so ready to strike each other down..." She said before stretching her wings and arms.

"But!" She smiled and grabbed Gremju's hands, "I have an idea! What if we prepare a gift - a peace offering for Larwen? Maybe that way he won't feel as compelled to take over Galbar for himself! I need your help to make that gift, though. I'm not very creative..."

Gremju scratched his head "Hmm, a gift for the guy who wants to perfect everything and sees everything we make as imperfect....now that...is....a challenge. Where to start eh? Well I think we should start by having a look at his own style of creation, considering Larwen thinks what he makes is 'perfect' we should make something in his own style. Sound good?"

"Sounds good!" Aella grinned and hugged Gremju, "Thank you, this means a lot to me, Gremju! I wasn't sure if you'd agree to help me, I'm glad I was wrong."

Eh, don't mention it. I guess ya just caught me in the right mood, one of Promus' spawn are working with some of my imps to try and civilise some of 'em. I'd rather not stick around, sounds pretty dull work and I'd rather be doing somthing more interesting. Like this." after speaking the challenger disappeared into a puff of purple vapour and reappeared a few steps away.
Gremju then gestured for the door "Perhaps we should start looking? I think some of the big fish by the beach had been affected by him, maybe that would be a good place to start."

"Good idea. Off to the beach, then. I'm sure it won't take us too long to figure out his style." She nodded, stood up from her sitting spot and walked out the door.

---

The large sea creature lunged forward in a burst of speed, its maw catching no less than a dozen members of the school of fish it charged at. It chewed, but everytime it closed its mouth, it writhed in pain.

"I think its mouth is hurt..." Aella said to Gremju before swimming closer to the creature, invisible to it. As it chewed, Aella saw the problem. A huge, sharp bone was lodged in its lower gums, and every time it closed its mouth, that bone was driven deeper and harder against its jaw, like a gruesome version of a chisel.

Aella winced looking at the scene and waved her hand at the beast, which froze in place. Carefully, she stuck her hand in its thousand-fanged mouth, yanked out the offending bone and healed the remaining wound all at the same time.

Gremju hovered over the water as Aella approached the creature, at a glance he simply said "Well, he likes red,spikey aggresive things apparently"

As the Challenger spent several moments examining the creature and taking into account his knowledge of Larwen's love for corruption, an idea began to take shape in his mind. "So uh, what if we made a creature that spread corruption through non-violent means? A thing that could entice mortals of their own free will to accept the corruption. It wouldn't be ideal but it'd atleast keep the peace for a time longer if Larwen used such a creature to spread his corruption that way AND it would show him some of us are more accepting of his weird habits than others." the Challenger suggested

Aella pursed her lips and floated over to Gremju's side, flapping her wings normally, as if she wasn't deep underwater. "That's... Actually much better than I thought we'd be able to come up with, heh." She said and smiled, "What if we mix a copy of Ipeyr's man with a copy of Larwen's newest favorite creation, then make the result into some sort of... Emissary? Prophet?"

Gremju shook his head at the suggestion "At best that would make our gift an ugly duckling, if we make him something it needs to be under his corruption. We'd have to corrupt one of Ipeyrs creations directly or our dear brother would probably see the gift as a half breed and not perfect. Meaning he's prrroobably just destroy it."

"True. What about corrupting a tree and make it bear really attractive fruit that once eaten, begins a process of corruption in the body of whoever ate it?" She tilted her head back in thought.

"Hmmm that could work" Gremju nodded at that idea. "Why not a talking tree though to entice mortals in of their own free will?"

"A talking tree, huh? Truth be told, I'm not too keen on the idea of a tree shouting in a forest. Maybe we should make it so it's only able to speak to people that are close enough and looking at it, to avoid it becoming an annoyance over the years."

The imp father sighed at the amendment to this suggestion "Yeah I guess this ain't my creation, some kind of psychic communication probably works best" Gremju begrudgingly admitted.

Aella put her hand on Gremju's shoulder and looked at Gremju's eyes, "Brother, please remember that this isn't a creation for us, it's for Larwen." She nodded and looked at the beast, waved her hand once more and let it swim off into the ocean. "Shall we go to a forest and begin our work?"

Larwen knew what had arrived when Regulus came, flying creatures made of flesh and feathers. They were utterly disgusting, but Larwen was use to such ugly creatures his siblings decided to create. They just needed an adjustment, a perfecting, to truly become what they were meant to be. There was few better ways to make Regulus pay for his unwanted intereferance, but it would do all the same. Petty as it was, Larwen would show him how he truly felt for coming to the Anathema's uninvited.

As Larwen flew he came into the mist, but it did nothing but irritate him further. His Zalsarix would not fair well, but the Fae might. It was not long before Larwen cleared the mist, and before him sat the Ocean, a vast blue with little. He did not mind the water itself, but what lay within was the true problem, perhaps he would have to visit his Goldari and populate these waters as well. Then the Vyre, he required them as well.

But such tasks would have to wait, for he had found the Griffons, and his brother. Seemingly riding a top a large creature of the sea. It was bemusing to him, and as he drew closer he spoke in his silky tones, "You are the third God to meddle in my affairs Regulus, and my patience with you lot is growing thin. What purpose is this Mist of yours?"

Regulus let the creature speak. Though he had one response, he took his spear in his hand and threw it at the monstrosity. During this time, his griffins recoiled back away from it.

Larwen was taken back by his brother's display, he barely had time to summon his mace and bat the spear away, before it would have pierced him. Larwen thought that Regulus was a civil God, but it seemed not all of his siblings liked to talk. A tragedy to be sure, but one he could deal with. He noticed the griffins take shelter within Regulus' grasp. Was the god afraid of him? Perhaps he could use that.

Larwen smiled showing his pointed teeth, "Such aggression brother, though it does not bother me. All of you are so... hypocritical. Rebellion, fighting, aggression, these are the traits I've seen so far from the gods. All agaisnt me it seems, never able to see beyond your own hubris. Larwen paused, patting Willbreaker with his non holding hand. "I have a proposition for you Regulus. Dismiss this nuisance from my borders," Larwen motioned towards the mist, "And I will leave that which is precious to you alone."

Regulus grasped his hand, and as he did, Anhur reappeared in it. He could only stare at the monstrosity with malice. He responded by pointing his spear towards the creature.

Larwen shook his head, it seemed that Regulus was fixated upon his demise. It was clear what the God wanted. "A pity that you could not agree. Though I suppose a brute such as yourself lacks the capability for reason. Very well Regulus, your creations shall be Perfected to serve my will."

Larwen then held out Willbreaker, and it began to exude is aura of domination towards Regulus. It would not effect him, but his animals would not fair well.

At first, the griffins began to coward in the presence of Willbreaker, however Regulus tightened his grap on his spear, and it began to glow. As he did, the nearby griffins fell asleep. The Island Turtle began to experience the effects of the divine weapon, but as a more powerful creature, the effect was slower.

Regulus took out of his horn and sounded it, and from it blasted a sudden burst of fog. As that happened, he tapped the back of the Island Turtle and commanded it to move away from the mountains. It was surpisely fast for how big it was.

The Fog wrapped around Larwen, obscuring his vision for but a moment until he was high above it. He saw Regulus retreating from him, and Larwen would let him go, for he was naught but a brute of a god There little dispute taught Larwen several things, but primarily that Regulus would protect his creations at any cost and that, was a weakness.

---

The Great Fae War, such an arbitrary thing that the great goddess, Kikoquatl, did not care to be involved in as it truly did not concern her. However, it did, given that word spread quick amongst the mortal populations of the Sullied and Unsullied which threatened to have her temple caught in the middle of a warzone. While she could have her loyal servant deal with this issue, he was already overburdened with preparations for the feast. Thus, there she sat in her temple, watching over her worshippers as they constructed the great temple around her, simply in thought of how to best deter those who would threaten the neutrality of her place of worship.

Kikoquatl’s form shifted into her smaller more regal one where she walked away from all those who would maintain and construct the opulent place. Those she passed bowed to her, not wanting to be devoured, something that the goddess was fine with them doing.

Her eyes inspected the temple and approved, the mortals were doing well in their task but she did not have the time to approve of their work. Kikoquatl had to stop war from reaching her doorstep, lest she wished the Unsullied and Sullied to slaughter each other in her halls where she was supposed to gain tribute. She descended into the inner depths temple, wanting to reach the base where she would think about what to do about this minor problem that may plague her in the future. Taking her time, Kikoquatl thought and thought about the best way to deal with this sort of thing.

Then it came to her, if she could produce something that displayed an immense amount of power then any force that dared threatened her temple would be scared off. The Devourer reached the base of her temple lit only by the ball of energy that floated next to her. The ball flew forward before going to the ground and doing what it was meant to do and melting away the stone, turning it into the molten slag that Kikoquatl tended to feast upon. But this time it was not a snack, it was the catalyst she would use for her no creation. Plunging her hands into the new pool of molten rock, she added in a different energy, an unstable energy.

The orange hue of the liquid rock changed into a softer, calming lavender that was dim in comparison to the ball of light when it was at its full radiant power. Furthermore, the consistency of the magma changed, no longer near solid and dense, it became a pure liquid before it seeped into the carapace of the energy goddess.

Lifting her hands from the pit, Kikoquatl’s hands emitted arcs of lightning from one another, though it was not exactly the same lightning that appeared in a storm. This lightning was different, she pointed a hand to one of the nearby stone walls. The lightning immediately discharged in one powerful strike and shattered the wall in a brilliantly explosion of purples. This new energy was destructive, but it would serve its purpose for her. The exact nature of the energy was strange, as though it was not like heat or motion energy, not even nuclear. It was its own branch of destructive energy.

It was arcane energy.

Kikoquatl tilted her head out of curiosity and teleported to the base of the stairwell outside her temple where her worshippers were lugging stone to the temple for constructive use. Once more did the goddess point her hand out into the forest that surrounded her temple and called upon the arcane energy she had just made. The explosion that followed sent a shockwave powerful enough to knock over the fae who were working from miles away, what was better was that the tree she was aiming at was nothing, and neither were many of the trees in that general direction.

The arcane energy would serve her well.

No more than a few moments after their agreement had been reached, his brothers had already scattered to the wind in chase. Both of them knew where to go, yet Larwen had already departed this place and his whereabouts were not so clear as those of the two other two demons. So Halazael remained in place for a few moments as he contemplated how to begin.

A gentle thrust lifted him even higher into the Celestial Sphere, so high that even the clouds were leagues below his dangling feet. This was a start, for it had been his plan to observe Larwen from afar and remain at a height so great that detecting him would be nigh impossible. Yet below him and the clouds there was only a vast expanse of oceanic blue and a sprawling carpet of green. There were no signs of the demon that he sought, at least from this high. He wasn't sure what he had been expecting; nothing short of half the world set aflame would have revealed the Corruptor's presence to his sight, but there were other ways to find a god.

When he closed his eyes and reached out to brush the fabric of the heavens with his bare hands, there were ripples and tears that he could feel along its seams. One such streak of turmoil and twisted magic led to the east; Halazael suspected that he had found the demon's footprints. They trod a path across the great sea and back around to the other side of the great landmass from which the journey had begun, and looming over the coast were the shadows of great mountains that jutted upwards like spears. In the middle of the range was one twisted spire that stood above all the others as a sort of standard, and even from the stratosphere above Halazael could sense the corruption within Mount Pervanon. It sprawled outwards from some cavernous depths within, creeping to consume the surrounding lands. Naturally, Halazael was apprehensive about approaching it.

Though his brothers were more prone to speech, their words carried less meaning. Whereas they had been carried away by their own tasks, Hala never lost sight of his purpose, and so he reported to his master. "Larwen has settled in a range of mountains near the shore. Corruption spills forth from his lair beneath the largest spire. I am in position to observe the area from outside."

Even spoken with the softest breath amidst the howling winds of the Celestial Sphere, the words found their way to Promus' ear. The air did not carry back the god's response; it merely echoed in Halazael's own mind as clearly as his own thoughts. 'You have done well. I bid you continue your watch, but beware the peril below. I remember the tragedy of a people called the Icarids, a people who I witnessed in my youth as they crafted wings of wax; they became as gods, yet flew too close to the sun and were returned to the earth by their hubris and impulse. Larwen's touch and that mountain are as the sun to the Icarid that is you. You must not draw too close in your vigil.'

The Watcher passed many minutes in contemplation. "My feet shall never so much as touch the ground."

Out of an abundance of caution, he concealed himself within the clouds by day and glowed as one of the distant stars by night. There were not yet any beings on Galbar so familiar with the heavens to notice another light join the constellations, so his brazen camouflage was perfect and it enabled him to draw close enough to the earth that he could witness the happenings within the demon's demesne. To his horror and alarm, he saw monsters emerge in the night to seize whatever beings they could find and carry them back into the vile mountain for nefarious ends.

When a small band of Zalsarix had surrounded a stray party of Sullied and sought to grab at the fae, Halazael took action and gifted the witless creatures below with one of the stars by his side. Propelled by the magic of his words, it fell from the Celestial Sphere, and when the meteor struck it killed fae and Zalsarix alike. It was his mercy.

A better fate than capture, or a tortured existence as one of the demon's slaves.

As the night went on, and one after it, there emerged more Zalsarix. He had thought to similarly smite them, but then he remembered that he was a simple spy, not some champion of the light. He thought ill of risking the demon's attention, so he was content to merely watch as the Zalsarix did what they would. The fates of those unfortunate fae and other creatures were of little concern in the greater scheme of things and far from valuable enough to warrant risking his own life for theirs. Halazael suspected that his master would agree with such an assessment.

As it turned out, they did not need him to be their champion. Others emerged; he witnessed the demon's confrontation with Lasis. The goddess played with fire as she erected a fortress right in Larwen's face, but she was far from the only one. He also sensed an unfamiliar, weaker presence sneak into Pervanon. When it made its escape and Halazael witnessed Telum's frantic flight from the labyrinths below, he could not help but shake his head and wonder at what sort of defect could cause bravery to reach such a point of foolishness.

In the distance, he could found that he could see a great host of Unsullied approaching Pervanon, led by some king that radiated power.

I predict that they all die.

He wore an empty visage and mulled to himself for some more time, but then Pervanon was suddenly alive as though it had been a mound spilling forth legions of raging ants. They sallied forth to meet the crusading fae that had come to challenge their master, and by this point Halazael found himself actually hoping that the demon would make another droll appearance on the surface even as his armies marched off to do their foul bidding and challenge their untainted brethren.

The Watcher's perverse wish came true. In a flagrant manner similar to Lasis, Regulus arrived and tried to make a stand against Larwen. He displayed some rabble in a show of force, though the fool seemed rebuffed with his grandstanding having resulted in nothing.

All of this he reported to Promus, who seemed impassive about all save for Regulus' intervention. The taste of his father's displeasure at Regulus' failed attempt briefly crept into the Watcher's mind, though not the rationale behind such emotion.

Perhaps he had simply hoped that the two gods would have killed one another. That might have been a favorable outcome, what with the demon gone as well as a foolhardy, rival god of civilization that doubtless would lead mortals astray.

---

As Larwen returned to his great mount after the bout with Regulus, he was tired of his siblings' interventions into his plans. From wretched rebellion to a failed attacks upon his life, he was fed up with it all. There was little hope it would ever stop however, being how they could never understand what Larwen wanted. They failed to see that perfection only had one form, and it was his. Beauty unfounded, and in order with his will. There was no other way for this.

Eventually Larwen reached the Forge of Purity, where his Zalsarix now meandered about, licking their meager wounds. it was the perfect opportunity to see how their numbers fared. He had sacrificed one to the pit, leaving the rest unscathed, but Larwen had counted three missing, but before he could have investigated further, Telum had decided to reveal himself, then the Fae challenged him, and then Regulus. So many excuses, but no longer.

His count had been true, three of the Zalsarix, his children, his first born's, they were missing and not by his own hand. He also doubted the Fae had anything to do with it either. No, something else was afoot here, and Larwen would find the truth. Whether it be unruly siblings, or a nefarious being yet unheard of, Larwen would make them pay. He slipped out of Pervanon in great haste, the Zalsarix in tow, for they would help him find their lost siblings.

The Zalsarix were made from him, his might and energy, it was easier then he had thought to locate them, or what remained. The Zalsarix huddled around a large crater, and Larwen stood in the center, touching the earth. Another disappointment it seemed, but how? A godly smiting? No, he would have felt the energy of the culprit if that was the case. Had it simply been a product of the universe, sending down a meteor to cleanse the Zalsarix? Unlikely, yet.. Larwen gazed up at the sky for the first time since he had arrived in the mountains, seeing nothing, but paranoia filled him. What if a winged thing had caused this? A servant of a god, or a god them self? The questioned needed to be answered, and Larwen needed something that could fly.

---

There was nothing lurking above for Larwen to observe even if he had possessed eyes capable of perceiving Halazael. The Lord of Civilization had already descended low to the ground and neared the entrance of the hollow within Pervanon, for the demon had left his lair and it had seemed as though he had similarly ordered out all of its inhabitants. The place was truly unguarded, and a burning itch in Hala's mind longed to see what sort of horrors lurked within...just out of curiosity. It would be so that he could report it all to his father, to Promus, of course.

A muttered word of power had melded his flesh with that of the starstuff from which he had been wrought, rendering him nigh invisible as he moved through the black tunnels as nothing more than a patch of the dark void that lurked in the gaps between stars. Then with the fortitude of his mind to act as a shield against the dark presence of Pervanon itself, Halazael traversed the tunnels. His eyes perceived every detail even in the darkest corners, such was the power of his nature.

He found himself descending downwards into the deeps, and with the passing of every increasingly twisted sight he thought that he must be nearing the end. The end never was around the next corridor though; the tunnels twisted on and on into the very roots of the mountain. It was not until several hours had passed that he found himself before the Pit that had birthed all of the corruption; he knew instantly that this was the source of the shadow that had fallen upon the land. It glowered in a sickly green light and burned with unholy fire, yet was gelid and flowing as if the strange liquid had once been the fiery blood of the earth before Larwen had touched it.

I should not have come this deep.

'No, you ignored my counsel and have drawn too close to the sun. Do you feel it? The wax already melts. I had thought better of you. Even now Larwen will be returning to his pit of despair; effect an escape if you sti-.'

He closed off his mind to Promus' bothersome prattling. He needed no such warning, for the foul vapors rising from the Pit were enough to make his skin crawl and he dared not linger lest the corruption find a way to take root in him. But he had seen all that there had been to see, and now for good or ill his purpose here would come to an end; he had no intention of returning to watch the outside of this mound for another moon whilst the demon's suspicions were aroused, so his vigil was over.

But if rousing Larwen's attention would soon be of no concern, he may as well leave a parting gift. He turned his sight towards what Larwen called the 'Forge of Purity' and uttered one syllable of power: fade. Like the light of a distant star that was stretched over the incomprehensibly vast voids of space until it fell upon Galbar's night sky in a form as close to nothing as something could be, the corruption spilling out of that well quickly began to wane. Soon the sickly green would dry and cool and the fount of unholy power would become as nothing at all, unless Larwen returned in time to reverse the process.

One could hope.

With the silent speed of a shadow on the wall, Halazael began to flee.

---

On his way back to Pervanon, Larwen felt something most profound, the Forge of Purity was waning in strength. He let out a terrible scream, and raced henceforth back to Pervanon. In his arrogance, he had thought no one would venture into his mountain, so he had foolishly left it empty. A most fatal error, less he arrive back in time to find the intruder and fix the Forge before it was too late. Leaving the Zalsarix, Larwen reached Pervanon and entered its depths. Upon his way down, he felt a strange presence lurking in the shadows, one vaguely reminiscent of his perfection but the Forge was his priority, so he raced on.

When Larwen entered the chamber, his fears turned true, the intruder had done something to cool the pit down. It would take time, but Larwen began to fix the damage before it became too severe. While he worked, Pervanon echoed with his whispers, "Unwanted guest, you will pay for what you have wrought. This is the promise of a God."

---

The crisp and refreshingly sweet air outside greeted the Watcher when he found his way out, but Larwen's echoing threat was not far behind. As he once more entered the stratosphere and traversed the Celestial Sphere, he had a moment to contemplate what he had just done. Somehow he was fazed by neither the imminent threat of his master's displeasure nor that of the demon's vengeance.

When he was above an empty expanse of water and in the middle of the ocean, he deemed the distance safe enough and cast off the shroud of darkness that had been hiding him thus far. It was with a shock muddled by heartlessness and apathy that he then noticed a blackened hue to the formerly pale skin of his right hand. With his left he prodded at the grey flesh, finding it toughened and gnarled. He drove a nail into a tender spot just barely deep enough to draw blood, and for a moment he thought that he saw the reflection of the Pit's green flames shine in a lonely drop of his blood that fell down into the ocean below.

---

The Tree overlooked the steep piece of land on which the Cabin was built. It was a contrasting sight to be sure. Placed higher than anything else in the Valley was this blackened tree, with two thick trunks twisting one around the other and reaching several meters up, where reddish leaves sprouted into a flat canopy. Bright red fruit hung off the lower branches, shining in the sunlight.

Aella bit her lower lip nervously as she looked at the tree from the front of her Cabin.

"I know we placed it here to show Larwen that we were okay with his creations and corruption living among the rest of us, but... Ugh, it doesn't really mix with the aesthetic I was going for with this little get-away from the world." Aella muttered.

Gremju shrugged at the great tree as Aella spoke "Eh, we can just move it into Larwen's territory later if he likes it. If not well er, well do what you want with it it's in your get-away" Gremju replied.
The Challenger thought that the tree could use a few more spikes but he supposed the corrupted tree shouldn't be too obvious.
"So eh, when can we expect Larwen to show up? You contacted him about our little gift yet?"

Aella perked up, "Oh! Le me do that right now-" She closed her eyes, took in a deep breath and sent the invitation to Larwen.

'Brother, it has been a while since we've talked, hasn't it? It'd be great if we could meet up for a chat and catch up, I have something to show you. I really hope you'll like it!'

Larwen had just finished fixing his Forge of Purity from the would be saboteur, when a voice erupted into his mind, one vagualy familiar and oozing with kindness. For it was Aella who called upon him, he knewe this now. But a kind voice could hide the pretenses of a greater danger, one Larwen had to be warry of. He would respond to her request, mainly out of curiosity. What could she possibly have to show him? He was still apprehensive about leaving Pervanon so soon, but this time the Zalsarix would be watching for any unwanted guests.

Larwen then summoned Willbreaker to his hands, and willed himself to Aella's retreat. He arrived in a shadowy haze right before them, mace in hand and standing taller then either of his siblings. "Gremju. Aella. Why have you summoned me? If you think to attack, I will not hold back dearest siblings. These days one can never be to careful of another God. I have had my fill of univited guests, and prideful warriors, always meddling in my plans. So, what is it then?" he finished in a rather cold tone.

Aella clasped her hands in front of her and, after a quick look at Gremju, looked up at Larwen's eyes - or at least, where his eyes should be on his face.

"Larwen," She began, "Our brothers and sisters have wronged you, they've attacked you and your creations, and I am sorry." She said as she walked closer to Larwen, wings half-extended.

"I couldn't stand by and watch and wait as our family hurt you again and again, brother. And so, I called upon Gremju to help me create something you'll like, something that will hopefully get the others to leave you alone to do as you wish." She spoke increasingly quieter as she moved closer, and stopped close enough to Larwen that the tip of Willbreaker pressed against her armor. When it did, she gently attempted to lower the weapon. ""It's okay, Larwen. I'm not going to hurt you." She smiled warmly at him and stretched her free hand towards him, motioning for him to take her hand.

Larwen listened to Aella intently, slowly realizing that she was not really a threat, but as she walked closer to him, Larwen could not help but be tense. All she had to do was whip out a weapon and try to attack him. Was she truly sorry for him? They had both created something for him?

Aella stood before him, trying to lower Willbreaker, so easy it would be to strike her down but Larwen, let the mace fall, then let it disappear as his hand fell. Her quiet words seemed to stoke a part of Larwen that he had not known about himself. He felt... at ease? When she offered her hand towards him, Larwen again hesitated, but her smile seemed friendly enough and... inviting. So Larwen slowly took her hand, and when their bodies touched, a hazy memory flashed before his eyes. A void of darkness, and one small light. It was humming. But as quickly as it came, the memory vanished. It left him questioning himself? Why had he seen such a thing, the very thing he had... devoured...

Trying to push it out of his mind, he began to talk, but all sense of his icy tone had vanished. It was more of a voice whose mind was elsewhere. "I am suprised by such a display of this manner Aella. Continue."

Aella grinned and resisted the urge to hug Larwen, knowing well that she'd been lucky he even agreed to take her hand. After throwing a glance to Gremju and nodding in the direction of the tree, uphill, she took off, leading Larwen to his gift. It was a weird thing for her, trying to comfort and lead someone who was that much taller than her. In her old home, she was the tallest of the pantheon.

The very moment Larwen turned around to follow Aella, he'd have been able to see the tree, standing proudly and overlooking the Valley. It wasn't a long walk, barely two minutes until one reached the strange tree. The ground around its roots showed signs of corruption, yet didn't seem to make attempts at expansion. Aella turned around and rested her back on the tree, fully extending her wings in the process. "Don't you think your influence looks that much more beautiful like this? Being around our creations makes it look as magnificent and unique as it truly is."

Holding hands, was an odd feeling. It was more of Aella grabbing on to one of Larwen's large fingers and pulling him along. Larwen did note that her hand was pleasantly soft, another odd thing to think. She was not perfected yet, he felt no need to exert such influence over her. Aella would definetly be better if she were perfected however. The Perfected God of Kindness. It had a certain ring to it, but would her soft hands remain? Larwen shook his head, trying to rid himself of such thoughts. Everything had to be perfected in his image.

Eventually he saw it, the tree. It was strange, a part of him but not entirely. This was the gift? As Aella spoke, he let go of her hand to get a closer look. Certain thoughts came to mind about the tree, but more specifically with what Aella was saying. There was a double meaning to her words, that which could not be avoided. This tree, it was only half perfect and the half that was not of him only existed to stop his influence from spreading. He let out a soft sigh, his siblings still did not see, but before he could say anything, the memory flashed before his eyes again. This time the hum louder and the small light closer but it quickly faded. His hands balled into fists, why was this memory plaguing him so? He looked to Aella, and her smile stopped him. Was it truly Kindness that perpelled her to act in such ways, or a deeper sentiment? Larwen was not sure.

"This gift..." Larwen paused briefly looking away from Aella. He didn't want to come off rude, for it seemed they had made this gift with genuine thought. He realized that they would not know what he truly wanted, not until they were like him. It would have to do for now as much as it felt wrong to think it. He looked back at Aella and asked, "What does it do?"

"Right! Gremju, would you be so kind as to explain what our gift does?" She said, not taking her eyes off Larwen partly because she was curious on his further reactions and partly because she really wanted him to like the gift. The latter one seemed to be failing already, so Gremju and his more matter-of-fact way of speaking might be what they needed to convince Larwen completely.

At Aella's request , Gremju burst into life with a cackle. In a puff of purple energy the imp father disappeared and reappeared in the tree itself before he began his explanation "So my dear brother this little tree we have for you here is not your typical method of spreading influence, no, no,no this is a tree of temptation bearing transformative fruits. Set one of these things up anywhere and it will start whispering into the minds of nearby mortals , telling them how amazing this fruit is and how they will be rewarded for consuming them. Try to hear the whispers, they ain't exactly quiet." Gremju spoke as he manoeuvred himself around the tree to one of the forementioned fruits, grabbing it with his clawed hands before once again vanishing in a puff of smoke and appearing closer to Larwen and approaching, holding the fruit in his hands, offering it to him.

The fruit was an almost spherical shape and crimson, it almost seemed to glow. "Here is one of the fruit in question, the idea is this method of alteration is admittedly slower but also more subtle, even at times when you are withdrawn these trees will slowly spread your influence. Also there's the upside mortals have to willingly consume them which should be an argument for those who would be outraged to shut their traps, but don't worry the whispers are quite compelling. Made 'em myself" he stated, pride in his voice as he spoke about the whispers.

Larwen listened as they spoke, listening to the whispers that Gremju talked about. They were enticing, but not everwhelming compulsive. Larwen theorized those with a very strong will could resist the temptation of such perfection. He also knew that this gift, no matter what it did, his other siblings would actively try and destroy them. A few made it abudantly clear, that they would not tolerate his existence, and Larwen knew that meant anything that held an ounce of his influence. But the fact remained, these two had gone out of their way to try and placate him and Larwen admired that, no matter how foolish it might seem.

But the truth of the matter was simple- No matter what Larwen did, others would still dissaprove. Perhaps it was his fault for declaring his intentions so soon, for he felt younger then, more prone to the whims of his powers. But how could his siblings see? They were blinded by their powers, creating and willing beings into existence that should not be. Larwen was simply trying to fix there mistakes. to give them an existence far beyond what they were originally. His improvements had to happen, there was simply no other way.

After a long while contemplating, Larwen spoke, "The others will not leave me alone, dear sister, dear brother. My very nature is an affront to them all, for they cannot see what I do. They are blind, stumbling about in the world and flooding it with their horrors. Their mistakes, I have to correct them for the universe wills it. I cannot change my nature, this is simply how it has to be. I am sorry." He let his voice drop to silence, for the first time he felt dissapointed in himself and Larwen did not know why. "This gift, I will accept it, but only between the three of us. You have... touched me in a way that I did not know possible. I shall leave your creations alone for now, and I will stop the flow of my influence into your domains if this is what you wish. Perhaps one day you will both see as I do, and then I will rejoice for I will not be alone. Until then dear siblings, I hope future encounters can be as plesant as this one. I must leave now, for I have been gone for too long and the war has only just begun."

Aella looked down at the ground dejectedly when the silence fell upon them, but looked up with wide eyes when he told them that he'd leave their creations alone. They had failed, that much was clear, but found Larwen's soft, mushy side in the process. Still, she had no interest in keeping her creations away from Larwen, so she slowly wrapped her arms around Larwen's waist and hugged him. "There is nothing in this World that would hurt me more than my family keeping away from me, Larwen."

"Even if you can't promise to turn toward a more peaceful path, I want you to know that you and your creations will always be welcome in my domains." She sighed and reluctantly released Larwen from her embrace, "Just... Try not to kill or kidnap too many of the mortals taking shelter under my wing, lovely Brother." She said as she stepped back and clasped her hands once more.

Once again Larwen was taken by suprise. Aella was hugging him, her presence was comforting to him, another feeling he did not know he was capable of. She spoke what she felt, but Larwen could not feel as she did about their siblings. Sometimes it was better to be alone, far less problems occured that way, but he said nothing as she held on to him. He gave her a very awkward pat on the back before she let go, and with it his feeling of comfort vanished. It was almost painful, but her next words gave him great joy, but at the same time, he did not wish to overstep his boundries.

"Beloved sister, this land has what it needs already," Larwen pointed to the tree, "I ask that you house the tree here and that will be it, for our siblings will surely think twice to destroy it in your domain. In return, I ask that you visit Pervanon and give it an equal gift as a sign of peace between us. I also pledge that the mortals in your domain, shall be untouched. However, I can not guarantee the safety of mortals who come to close to Pervanon. I should be leaving now." Larwen said, with a hint of longing as he looked at Aella.

Gremju considered to himself for a moment whether or not he had failed or completed his challenge. On one hand he had made a creation that was at least satisfactory in Larwen's eyes,but on the other the wars would continue to be waged. He decided he'd give himsef a B- for performance. After Larwen's offer not to corrupt his (and Aella's) creation's Gremju responded "Feel free to send your guys through the Plains if need be, I'd prefer you didn't alter anything in there and I'll tell my imps your creations should be fine but if you catch a few imps wandering around your domain feel free to deal with 'em, if they screw up maybe they could do with a change in lifestyle...Hmm that does leave the issue of Makai and his chosen imps though, er if you send any of your creations through keep 'em away from the big central glade because one of Promus' guys are trying to civilise a few of my imps around there. Not that I think it'll amount to much but I'd rather the Plains of Madness didn't turn into a warzone just yet" the challenger giggled to himself as he ended the sentence. Although he would love to see how Larwen's creation would fare against the 'civilised' imps he had his own fun challenge for them when they had advanced enough.

Larwen looked at Gremju, almost forgetting he was there, his words were most intriguing. Espcially about Promus and one of his guys. How many of these beings did Promus create and where did he send them? But it would have to wait, "Fear not Gremju, the war is here in the Anathema's between the Fae of Seihdhara and the ones that I have perfected. Blame Lasis for starting it, for she has built a castle in my domain, harkening to her rebellious nature. I needed troops to fight her own, the Unsullied King thought this was a poor idea, but here we are. Blame me or not, it was inevitable."

Aella pursed her lips and looked up at the peaks around them. "It truly was inevitable..." After a moment, she looked back at Larwen and smiled, "Thank you for coming, Larwen. Do expect me to stop by Pervanon soon, keep the place clean and pretty for my visit!"

Larwen then looked to Gremju, then to Aella and settled on her for a moment. He bowed his head slightly, 'Goodbye." And then disappeared back to Pervanon with more then enough to think about to last several lifetimes.