272, 2/2

Erick stood on a silver hill and stared at the black sky—

Solomon opened a [Gate] next to him and stepped out, looking… different. Erick allowed himself to stop looking at the sky, to look at Solomon, head on. He was… more solid. His eyes were platinum instead of grey, and shot through with lines of gold here and there. His skin was flawless, along with his platinum grey beard and hair.

Erick said, “So that [Gate] means you completed the Worldly Path and also True Wizardry, and got a mantle of minor divinity. Big day for you, too.”

Solomon smiled. “It all kinda happened fast. I hear you had something to do with all of that.”

“I did some Fate Magic with Phagar a few months ago. Tried to help you along with a bunch of others. Didn’t foresee the divinity, though. As long as you’re comfortable with it, I’m happy for you.”

Solomon made a long bench on the silver hill and sat down. Erick sat down with him. Solomon said, “Destiny is trying to Ascend, too, but we all told her to calm down. I heard you tried for her, too.”

“Oh yeah,” Erick said, looking up at the sky. Only a thin sliver of the view held any stars. The rest was the full-black of Fenrir. Not even the [Terraforming] storms remained. Nothanganathor was moving, and most of it was happening outside of sight. “I tried for a lot. Destiny, you, Sitnakov, Killzone. Even put some effort into getting Jane and my other kids there, but that would have been forcing something that wasn’t ready at all. I put the most effort into making it all happen at the same time. The gods did the same; more so than I knew they were doing. I had a feeling that Nothanganathor would notice as soon as we achieved something which he could not, and which could actually threaten him… and he has.”

Solomon looked at the sky with Erick. “Storms are gone.”

“Yup.” Erick pointed at a particular spot in the black sky. “Right there. Do you see it?”

Solomon looked— He breathed deep, and then he sighed. “Yup.”

Erick pointed to a different part of Fenrir. “There, too.”

“… Oh yeah.”

They were tiny red glints. Barely noticeable. If it weren’t for Erick’s monumentally enhanced senses and his ability to See beyond illusions, then he would have missed them. The red glints were small, with the one on the right bigger than the one on the left, but it was definitely there.

Erick said, “They’re more noticeable in the future.”

Solomon’s eyes flickered. “Yeah they are. And… It’s spreading? Yeah. It’s spreading. Whatever it is.”

“Nothanganathor has been doing something to Fenrir, but now he sped it up a lot. In a day you’ll be able to see it, fully.”

Solomon pulled a beer out of the air, made a copy, and handed one off to Erick. “Time enough to take a minute or twenty.”

Erick took the beer. It was good. “Did you hear? Chernom came back. Can barely tell the difference between him and the old Killzone, except for the mannerisms.”

“I think Chernom’s fangs might be smaller,” Solomon said, “Holds himself completely differently, though.”

“Oh no doubt about that. Anyone looking would not think Chernom was Killzone. I wonder if Killzone will change his name back.”

“He’s not really Kosomov anymore, so I doubt he’ll change it.”

“Wrought don’t really go backward with their trauma, do they?”

“Ha! No one really does.”

Erick nodded.

For a long moment, the only sounds were the sounds of the Silver Forest all around. Wind blew through the silver canopies of mountain-tall white, eternal stonewood trees. Smaller winds rustled the much, much smaller normal trees, with their brown trunks and green canopies, hanging out and growing at a normal tree-height.

Slimes abounded, and birds made their homes wherever they wished. Birds were the first to colonize the land up here, and they loved it. The most prominent birds were Koyabez’s starlings.

Those little silver birds were wonderful to watch in flight. They were like parrots, but bright silver and they formed almost 4-pointed stars when in flight, and when seen from below. They chirped at each other as they flew across the peaceful world, in Koyabez’s Silver Forest.

Poi had once shown Erick a transformative memory when he saw one of those birds, one time. He had sighted the creature when he was searching for answers in his life regarding the Dragon Stalkers who killed his mom, and about the Quiet War, and about hatred in general. Seeing that bird had been Poi’s call to Peace. After that Poi had gone to Spur’s Army to put his anger to use in a way that even Koyabez could appreciate. Of course it had been more complicated than that, but that was the outcome after years of soul searching when Poi was a kid.

Solomon watched the birds with Erick, and his mind probably went to the same places.

Solomon asked, “Did you manage to get that Fractal Mark in your [Telepathy] undone?”

Erick smiled. “Does Wise King Solomon think I should?”

“I poked at mine, but rapidly decided to stop that. Rozeta did all the hard work. I got a reson wallet like you, now. Rozeta said the Mark didn’t like being messed with by outside forces so we had to break the Fractal Mark to make that happen. We made what we could out of it.” Solomon said, “Rozeta warned me about that before we did the procedure. Still glad I did it.”

“… Huh.” Erick said, “I didn’t imagine that it would just… break.”

“From my understanding, Killzone and Sitnakov broke theirs at the same time.”

Erick nodded. “Big day.”

And then Solomon asked a serious question, “Why didn’t you try to get Jane, Abigail, Bethany, Candice, or Evan Ascended? Or at least Wizard Ignited? I mean… You talk about time frames… But I gotta ask, man.”

Erick asked his own serious question, “Did they want it? How far does a Demigod of Wisdom’s knowledge actually go? Or Rozeta’s new powers, for that matter? Do you think I could have helped my kids in that way? Or how about Ophiel? He deserves it just as much.” Erick said, “No; they were too far away from that sort of help, and if they ever found out during any part of the process it would be a horrible backlash.”

“… Fair enough.” Solomon said, “I’m going to work on Igniting them.”

Erick considered… that. And then he nodded. “Good. I hope it works out. They might listen to you more than they listened to me.”

“They’ve gotten better about accepting help, you know. They got dragon’d… But I suppose the journey to Ascension is personal, otherwise whatever True Wizards came before would have control over those who Ascended afterward, simply by being there at the base of the creation.”

Erick nodded. And then he smiled, and said, “Wise.”

Solomon barked a laugh.

Eventually, Solomon finished his beer.

Erick finished his beer, too.

Solomon pointedly glanced at the red glints on Fenrir’s surface, then said, “That’s going to take a full week to manifest at our current time dilation difference. You have time to make something of your own Fractal Mark.”

“I’m pretty sure I know what it has to be, and it’s not going to happen now.”

Erick was talking about something he didn’t want to think about.

Solomon understood, because he was Erick, but different, and then said, “That’s one option. You could choose a different option that leaves the Benevolent Sky with a future unhindered by uncertainty.”

Erick chuckled at that. “Come on now, Solomon. There should be some wisdom in leaving some uncertainty in the future.”

Solomon huffed a laugh. “I should have picked a different name. You and the girls and Evan make fun of me way too much. Melemizargo even started, too, by giving me this Wisdom Mantle.”

Erick smiled at that, and then he said, “I don’t want to make the Benevolent Sky foolproof. The future should be written differently from what the prognosticators say.”

“Yup. That seems pretty wise to me, too.” Solomon asked, “Ready to get back to it? Or are you gonna stare at the sky for a while?”

“For a little while longer. You headed back to the Blue Corps? Or back to your ‘kingdom’ of dungeon delvers and slimes?” Erick said, “I like what you did with Dungeon Island, by the way.”

“They’re all great people, there.” Solomon said, “There are a few more things to pull out of the Black Gate, with some of their help. Rozeta and Melemizargo expect Nothanganathor to have a few specific items, like the World Crasher Mallet and the Whirlpool. The Mallet is about as simple as it gets, but the Whirlpool would destroy Domains and other Authorities across a few lightyears of space. I’m going to grab the Light Shield and the Bulwark Bastion to counter both of those… Maybe a few more items, too.”

Erick shuddered a little. “Terrifying.”

“Yup.” Solomon paused. “I’ll look into getting something for morale, too, now that you mention it. I’m not even sure of a target for that…” He decided, “I’ll ask around.”

“See you soon, then.”

Solomon got up and walked through a Genesis [Gate], saying, “Soon.”

The gate shut.

Erick stared at the sky for a while.

There was a lot he could be doing and yet he had done as much as he was able to do. War would soon be upon them… or at least Erick hoped it was a war, and not an annihilation. Wars were winnable.

For the briefest of moments, Erick considered betraying Melemizargo and giving up the Painted Cosmology. It would be the easy way out. It would ensure the survival of everyone else… for a while, at least. And then Erick shook that thought away. Aside from Nothanganathor’s questionable ethics in upholding his deal to ‘take Melemizargo and no one else’ or however-the-fuck that slimy leviathan had phrased it, it was the ‘for a while, at least’ that really made Erick ignore the deal. How long was ‘a while’? Never long enough, even if it was millions of years long. Nothanganathor had proven himself as more than willing to play the long game.

And then there were all the smaller universes that Nothanganathor was going to consume if he were allowed to take the Mantle of the God of Magic.

No; Erick would not bargain with that horror.

He would not capitulate.

He would not falter.

Nothanganathor was going to die, and then he was going to be sundered in turn for what he had done to others, and for what he promised to continue to do to others.

Erick wondered what the Erased One’s opening move would be…

Aside from those glints in the sky, whatever they were. They certainly weren’t beam attacks aimed this way. They were something else entirely.

– – – –

– –

– – – –

– –

– – – –

On a black metal beach, a bright Red sky stretched all the way to the Throne of God. It was a wonderful view to Oozy, as he walked with a drink in hand. The drink was cold and the black metal burned his flesh, the soles of his feet sizzling on the surface of Fenrir. That was wonderful, too. All sensations were good.

Oozy wished that Everbless would have done some real terraforming, though. It all looked so shitty out there. Bare metal? Scattered lands? Scattered trees that were like splashes of green in the Red sky? Bah. That stupid World Tree could have done so much more by now. They had had a year and a half to get ready for Erick’s return, and now Erick was on Veird and Veird was already at…

Oozy hummed. “Are they at a year already? Under that Shelter?”

Maybe a little over a year, actually. Another hour and they’d have another year under that Shelter. Two years of prep! Surely Nothanganathor wouldn’t give them that much prep time, right? Of course not. Nothanganathor just wanted the garden to be ready for plucking; not turned into an unassailable fortress.

Surely it would be starting soo—

The sky vibrated, the heavens twisting into a whisper, into a command.

Nothanganathor spoke, “The time is here.”

Oozy smiled wide, revealing way too many teeth as he crushed his drink in his hand. He laughed at the world, at the endless, half-realized expanse of adamantium and scattered lands and oceans larger than any planet, all ahead of him, and at the bright Red sky overhead, that filled the entire space between here and the Throne of God.

The universe thrummed.

“We set the stage.”

The True God stretched Red out into the sky of Fenrir, like needles the thickness of planets, threading through the void between the Throne of Nothanganathor’s Sun and the land where mortals walked. Those needles touched down and scraped existence into reality, ripping apart the veils between worlds and showing the true forces of God for all to see.

Oozy cackled as he gazed upon the True Kingdom.

– – – –

By the end of the first day after the ‘Big Day’, Erick knew this wasn’t going to be a normal war.

The two Red glints on the Surface of Fenrir were expanding at a phenomenal rate. They had been barely visible 24 hours ago, and now both of them were obviously visible. When Erick held his hand out, the first spot was less than the size of his pinky nail, while the second Red glint was half that size. With some very rough math, Erick estimated that each glint was maybe ten times the size of Veird’s diameter. So the Red glints were maybe 800,000 kilometers across? Less? More? Who knew.

Looking at those glints reminded Erick of looking at Jupiter in the night sky, back on Earth.

By the end of the second day, there were 79 Red glints on the outer surface of Fenrir, and the initial glints were more like smudges.

By the third day, the glints revealed themselves as something else entirely; they were a transportation or a reorientation or some other sort of transformational, Infinity-based magics. Specifically, Erick guessed they were reality reorientation magics. Solomon and others had more nuanced ideas. Whatever the specific case, everyone saw and understood what had happened, though they weren’t sure what Nothanganathor’s real goal was.

The Red glints had washed out across the land, and though they left Red wounds on the world, they also left behind civilizations. Villages and towns and cities. Metropolises. Oceans of life. All of it noticeable. All of it known. That’s what really got people worried, and for multiple reasons.

In a large auditorium in the Blue Corps center of Queen Anhelia’s Kendrithyst, the combined forces of the world had a meeting.

Erick wasn’t a speaker today. He watched as Jane stood in front of the generals of the combined Armies of the Blue Corps, and leaders of the world, in front of a projection of one of the most prominent Red glints. It was a close-up image, as much as could be had from millions of kilometers away, and though Red lingered everywhere, it was clearly an image of a mountain range.

A bunch of spheres floated around a central mountain inside the Red glint, like an orrery.

“The Orrery of Rozeta,” Jane said, as she spoke of the image behind her. “It’s been confirmed by Rozeta herself.” She flipped to another Red glint, and this one was less well-known, but Erick recognized those dark streets anywhere. “And this one is Death Throne, in the south. We haven’t put any names to any other of the locations, for all the rest were too crowded with Red to see what was happening, but these were the first two to come out, and we’ll likely know the rest as soon as the Red pulls back some. We’ll know more in the following week, because the Red Glints are expanding faster and faster. Fenrir is catching up to our time differential.

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“In 14 days, we expect Fenrir to fully match our timeframe. The Shelter of Veird doesn’t need to be broken at all by Nothanganathor, or dropped by us, because Nothanganathor can simply match our speed.

“As for what is to come:

“We believe that Nothanganathor has stolen parts of Veird and is setting us up for some sort of ‘attack of our own’, or perhaps a lateral attack of some sort. That’s the bad news. More bad news is that many people who have been Erased or which we have killed appear to be coming out of those Red glints. We’re not sure what is happening there, but here is an example of something we can point to and see for what it is:”

An image appeared of a lich and a woman, walking along in a castle in Death Throne. There had actually been a bunch of examples of what Jane was showing, but she chose to show this one.

“This is Lich Toenail and his human slave wife Contay. Toenail was one of the main forces behind the eventual Redding of the Fractured Citadels and central Quintlan, because his current wife, Contay, was taken from him by the Red. Here he is, with her once again. So he got what he wanted, even though we killed him, and Quilatalap personally oversaw his containment, and we all oversaw his Sundering.

“More bad news:”

Jane switched lightward images to show the Orrery, where Teressa stood with Dariok and Lenitha, frozen in Red time, smiling as they looked up at the Orrery floating overhead.

Teressa and Dariok were in the audience, too, sitting beside Erick. Dariok had come back to real life just the other day. Lenitha was with Ophiel in Benevolence itself. Lenitha had no idea about all of this, but Teressa and Dariok knew of what was going to happen at this presentation as of hours ago, when all of this shit first appeared in the sky, so they had put their daughter into Benevolence. Lenitha was having a good time with Ophiel.

Jane said, “If Nothanganathor is bringing Erased people back to life, then that is what he is doing, but we doubt that any of these people coming out of the Red were ever Erased at all. We believe these are side realities brought into this one. Whatever the case, we will keep you all apprised as we strive to understand what is happening, but for now, we’re treating these people as versions of ourselves taken from other Veirds that Nothanganathor has consumed.”

The audience was rife with small words and disbelief and worry and scoffing and open hatred.

Jane let the audience calm before she continued.

Jane continued, “The good news is that the Red glints are still holding across the Orrery and Death Throne, and all the other lands that we can’t really see yet, so they’re still time-locked, even if Fenrir is speeding up to catch up to Veird’s timeframe. We expect all of that land to remain time-locked, until Nothanganathor delivers some sort of ultimatum. And then he’ll release them for whatever reason, or he’ll do something else.

“And that’s the state of the War.”

Jane called for questions.

People instantly started talking over each other.

It was organized chaos, and Erick helped to manage that chaos, but he was mostly outside of the command structure of the Blue Corps. This was Jane’s show. Erick’s forces only personally consisted of the Valkyries, and Shivraa, the minotaur Harmi, and a relatively new wrought Valkyrie named Phillal. The Valkyries were already in attendance, and hearing what they needed to hear with regard to this public information session.

Erick soon found himself speaking with King Alfonin Stratagold and the human adamantium king of Titanite, a man by the name of Somov Titanite.

Sitnakov was over with Jane, talking to some people from Nelboor, that included Nirzir.

Alfonin asked Somov, “Have you taken Killzone back into your Heavies?”

“No,” Somov said, looking at Sitnakov on the other side of the auditorium. “Though we have spoken with him about old times. He saw his parents for a brief minute. When this is over and we have won, we will consider more unification.” Somov looked up at Alfonin, his face going unreadable. “Titanite wishes to reforge bonds anyway; to put aside all distaste and rivalry.”

Alfonin said, “Stratagold accepts.”