Death and Absolution

One final thrust finished the gateway off for good as the doors rolled into the Main Hall. Daniel abided no obstruction when making his presence known. He took another moment to assess the surroundings and observe what had taken place in his absence. His attention first being drawn to the renewed goddess, as she stood again on her own two feet, healed and alert. Yet behind her determined gaze, one could see her strength was fallow as she could barely move. Consilium was left quietly slumbering while Mobius was on the verge of mastering a demonic hound. Meanwhile, Potestas appeared to be pinned beneath the other. His body bloody as his hands struggled with the razor peaks of Nameless teeth. The great beast was unable to overpower him, yet it seemed as if their strengths were equally classed. Potestas could not free himself, but he also could not be beaten.

​Growing tiresome of these demons, Daniel started in Potestas's direction. Without need for hesitation, he swung his hand into the creature's body. Meeting no more resistance than it did the first time, the gauntlet dissected his enemy. A line for each finger, and slices at a count of six. The Nameless hound fumbled aside before being stricken with death.

​Potestas had a moment of relief as the dog was slain. Though his content did not last. He looked upon Daniel and could see that darkness had overtaken him. For a god, there was no light to perceive. Yet unlike any other mortal before; it seemed as if he moved in a cloud of shadow. His body stuck within a hazy shade. His very presence accompanied by the chorus of pandemonium.

​"Daniel, what have you done?" Potestas attempted to say. His eyes bulged when a hand struck him at lightning speed. Metallic fingers reached out and pinned him down once again. Meanwhile, another arm lurched up in preparation for a fatal swipe.

Abigail could hardly feel her legs. She braced her body on whatever suitable item she could find, needing a prop just to stay standing. However, weakness could not withhold her now. This was not a moment to falter; this was her chance for redemption. If the gods are to take blame for apocalypse, then she was willing to share blame for salvation as well.

The horrific finale of Daniel had at last been revealed. This was the manifestation of his anger. This is what abandonment had led to in the mortal world. Realizing now that the true opponent of this war had not been an enemy from above; rather it was the inevitable enemy being created within. Daniel would only be the first of many. The world had become a misled realm of longing and selfishness. Elements like wisdom that were given to men had become tainted portals. Each doorway they open leading only to eventual cataclysm. For this reason, the goddess understood how powerless she is to stop the end. Even with all the strength in Heaven, she would not be able to fix this. It was as Erich said before, 'the fate of this world rests in the hands of men.'

Though it was impossible for the goddess to see Daniel clearly, she believed she had one attempt left to reach him. Her voice was direct. The sound meant to pierce the shell of disorder surrounding him. Looking in the direction of where Daniel wasn't, Abigail whispered, "Remember who you are. Remember your light."

With metal fingers positioned to reap Potestas's throat, Daniel heard quiet and calm speech. It played as echo, yet soon became chorus. The implications it carried, matched by the words of Mythiiandros froze his mind. They replayed in his head; heed not their inglorious rhythm… His body held fast while the lingering verses rumbled. Lowering his arm, Dan then thought harder about the goddess's words, remember who I am. Who am I?

Thinking about who he was had always been a challenge. In the past it would not have been a simple question to tackle –the true answer needing disguise by the voice of deception. However, that was not the case this time around. If for nothing else, frustration alone guided him to find the correct response. For the first time since this all began, he had a moment of clarity. Potestas continued to struggle, yet all his strength could hardly move Daniel an inch. The enchanted mortal spoke out loud; though the speech was intended mostly for himself, "Who I am is a mere witness and casualty of your war. Yet I have been a passenger for much longer: a passenger to myself since my earliest memories. An idle observer on the edge of mania. More content to watch the world around me burn down in flame. This is life in a world of shadow. Where light becomes an odd nuisance –a freak. Where people eventually fall in line with their despair, becoming as one with it. And when they finally do, they give up their desire to choose; it rules them. They do what I have done: pass blame. Never accepting responsibility for my actions, allowing another self to be my king. Even now, if I were to kill you, I would not be following my choice. Because, I would not choose to slay a god."

Relaxing his arm fully and backing away from the divine, Daniel stepped towards the center of the room. Abigail engaged what little strength she had and shambled over to Potestas. It gave Mr. Gosting as much time as he needed to find his intended destination.

"I did not ask to be a part of your war, yet it claimed me." He continued, "When it did, I thought I lost what little control I had left. Being forced to understand only bits and pieces when I could, trying to make some sense of what was happening to me. Yet blind obedience was what I allowed time and time again. Because blind obedience is what this tragedy requires to play on." Shaking his head, "No longer will I stand aside and let my decisions be made for me. I am in control of my life now. I will end this. To end chaos, order MUST be attained. I must not fear Change when it takes its course. I must not allow Time to be restricted in the moment, for the past cannot withhold the future. I will rise to Power by exposing my weakness. I will attain Wisdom by forgetting my stupidity. I will save Life by enduring death. To attain Order, one must find balance within themselves first." Closing his eyes, Daniel took in a calm breath. He then spoke in a clear commanding voice, "First, I must remember my light."

A moment passed after Daniel spoke his command. A shuffle of new feet entered the room and he opened his eyes. Before him stood a small child in a leather coat; tears streaming down his face, yet he made no sound. The boy looked into his empty eyes and he began to glow. He spoke to himself, "I'm sorry for what I made us do. I'm sorry for what I've done to you. That I made you watch as I took light from this world. There is no one left to blame but ourselves. We must atone for what we've done. Will you help me? Will you help me endure our punishment?"

Daniel's dark reflection gazed upon his lighter side. The boy wiped a few tears off his face before nodding; then extended his arm out in anticipation. Taking the first step towards him, Dan reached his plated arm forward. The two of their hands met and there was a flash! Their bodies merged together and what was once an image of chaotic darkness had become a quiet collection of unity. His eyes calm and white, yet his irises continued to gleam with orange halos. His hands were still covered in divine steel, but now his back was adorned with two black crooked flaps for wings.

Deities and demons bore witness to this powerful ascension, never having seen something so masterful conjured wholly within the mortal domain. They were in awe. The divine had been silenced; becoming as mere spectators to the following event. For Daniel had invoked the elements given to men at the dawn of creation. And with their perfect mastery he could at last comprehend his choice. Realizing now that in this moment he had risen above the gods themselves. For the preservation of life had been set upon his mantle and the fate of the world had been handed over.

Turning his clear gaze upon the Nameless, Daniel began a bold strut towards the tree trunk. Three steps to cross till he would enter the garden to visit the master. The red flowers in bloom will be the deathly carpet for his doom. For the master is very upset, his dogs slain, and his home destroyed. Chaos only serving to fuel irrationality and disobedience. His leaves began to glow.

Unheeding and unyielding, Daniel continued his determined approach. He does not know what to expect when he reaches for that gem. He doesn't need to know. Knowing wouldn't matter. This is his choice; this is his payment for the sins he committed. It is what he is willing to do to make things better.

Standing now under the canopy, he set divine steel to demonic flesh. His claw dug deep, and black blood was shed. It seemed as if the Nameless master hesitated to retaliate. Yet before Dan could tug, the leaves suddenly burst into purple flames!

Shadows and fire lit his body ablaze. Daniel stood within the furnace of wrath and hatred. Enduring flame and poison as he struggled to pull. He shrieked in agony as the pain began to overtake him! Unable to find a firm hold on the crimson stone, he collapsed to one knee. The jewel gave way only slightly while the flames continued to mount.

Able to do nothing, exiled gods surrounded a purple blaze. Abigail began to weep as Potestas turned his head and wore a frown of shame. There was a sudden high-pitched noise, as if something began to charge. The flames quietly dimmed as the fires quenched. Then, without any indication, a cracking sound echoed. When this sharp noise was triggered the flames roared ten times their original strength! Final wails of absolute suffering resounded from the Nameless garden as Daniel at last succumbed in hellfire. His body charred and nearly ash when one arm fell to the burning floor. Yet with this tiny swing, out tumbled the key from the furnace.

​The sky was a swarm of sand and fire. A red endless plane that stretched for all eternity. Beneath its tumbling surface were the bones of the Damned. Tucked into their resting place where darkness can be free. The sands of hell a burial to mark the passing of dark energy. Lost from Within –forever now Without.

​Though not all things are meant to remain where they lie. Sometimes after great tragedy there are pieces that become scattered. Important pieces of a larger more important whole. If these pieces are never collected, then the tragedy is complete and conclusive. Yet with their restoration, tragedy may in part be redeemed. That is what brought her to this desolate place.

​Across the empty ravaging plane, a woman moved within a sphere of light. At the interface of this glowing flare, the sands of hell obeyed its master. Not willing to pierce her aura, this malicious place conceded peace in Abigail's presence. For if one was to look towards her, where her feet should stand on burning sand, you would see that rather she stepped on cool blades of flowering grass. A blossoming garden was the surface for her bare skin. And the air above her calm and clear, as if she moved in a cloudless summer day in paradise.

​Every step the goddess took brought her closer to a single gravestone. A stone one might easily overlook during this burning sandstorm. Yet this was a very strange sight to behold; because it was out of place. The wasteland of hell is a ubiquitous plane; graves have never been seen before. They should not exist. A special resting place unbidden by Heaven demonstrates disorder. It means something powerful is left unsettled. That's what truly brought Abigail down from her celestial tower.

​When her light came near the grave, words were revealed on the stone. It was a poem from a tortured mind. A collection of words meant to give perspective and attempt self-understanding. This is one way a lost mind may try to find itself. Unwilling to refute the truth, these words act as narration of sin, yet also a song for redemption:

Behold the nightmare in my head,

The terror and horrors left unsaid.

They call and form,

They twist and mourn.

Never sparing, never caring.

In the darkness my shadows lurk,

From the depths and pitless murk.

The ones to hold can never run,

A murdered woman,

The Stricken One.

Screams of pain heard from afar,

She stole my heart,

My Little Star.

In this I bare my greatest shame,

But lust a thing I cannot tame.

She steals my sight but does not call,

She'll pay the price and share my fall.

With her blood I shall paint the past,

So the death of a star will forever last.

I take her now within perdition's flame,

Absolution's ink rewrites my shame.

For the time has come to see it through,

The gods of eternal life must pass anew.

Their time of pain withholds assent,

I shall judge and herald their final repent.

​"Daniel, I have come to return my gift." The goddess spoke above his tomb. "It is time for you to rise. This place is not meant for you anymore."

​When Abigail gave her command, she waited only a moment before smiling. Turning around, he stood before her as an adult human image. At first stricken with a look of confusion, Dan's eyes rolled back and forth as he observed where he was. Yet when he looked upon his goddess, his mouth turned to a smile, "It's you."

​Walking over and putting her hand on his cheek, she answered, "Yes it's me. My light has been restored. Yet not by a god was my strength returned…I'm glad to see you again, Daniel."

​Before she said anything else, his brow wrinkled as painful memories came to mind. He could not help himself from asking, "Is it over? Did I do something right, or did the world still end?"

​Taking a step back, she looked into his clear eyes. "You saved life by enduring death, as you said you would. That is why it has been decided."

​"Why what has been decided?"

​"Time lacks a guardian now. It flows without guidance. You have been appointed as Aerial's replacement. It was agreed amongst all of us that a mortal should command this element. The gods are attempting to learn from their mistakes. Heaven and earth had already lost touch once, we cannot allow that again. You Daniel –are the one we intend to raise. We need you again, more than you could ever understand. There is a great deal of work before us. We must bring light back into the world of men."