Empire Of Souls 173 Shadowy Affairs 3

"One of my agents on the new continent is dead.. Eneran, how could this be? I only just spoke with him not long ago and he was alive and well."

Mythras was surprised by the sudden revelation and quickly attempted to ascertain what happened. She used her G.o.dly powers in an attempt to quickly deduce the truth, but she was strangely inhibited. She could see the body of the dead Eneran within a dark alley in a Human city, but not much more. There were no signs of any other life in the immediate vicinity. She attempted to recreate the scene of what happened, but she found her attempts to be stifled. There was a strange aura which she realized belonged to the Church of Murder after a quick scan with her divine intent.

"A dagger of the Church of Murder? It doesn't make sense. Eneran had an agreement with Cyric's agent, why would they be involved with Eneran's death?"

She was furious and threw the cracked crystalline mirror across the room. Eneran was a powerful agent of hers on the new continent. His loss would hinder her efforts there. It wasn't as if Legendary beings grew on trees and her a.s.sets were already spread too thin as it was.

"You dare kill one of my agents? Did they see an opportunity to strike now that things have transpired as they did on the Steppes? Was it to gain an advantage in their war on the continent between the Federation and its enemies?"

Many thoughts went through her head as she considered the motive and implications of this. Ultimately, she could only draw a few a.s.sumptions and also considered other more nefarious possibilities.

"I have very few capable agents on the new continent, but it seems I may need to focus more attention on it than I originally thought. This can not go unpunished. Nurturing a Legendary being isn't that simple, it requires time and an investment of my divine power. I am already stretched thin protecting my a.s.sets on other continents and with meeting my quotas for the Eternal War."

Mythras sighed with frustration, "Mortals think being a G.o.d is so wondrous, but is it really that much different? Only our concerns and perspective change and become much more broad. We no longer worry about raising a family, providing a home and food for our children, working in order to provide money to live. As a G.o.ddess, I must provide for my worshippers, protect them, shelter them. Our currency may not be gold, but there is still a cost that must be paid. It really isn't much different at all."

She reminisced about the matters of the past and her motivation for ascension, "Was it all worth it? Perhaps living life as a mortal isn't so bad."

Even though she thought that way, it wasn't as if she could go back. Still, the memories of then remained vivid in her mind. The struggles, relationships, and the road to her ascension. She still remembered those days all too clearly. Back then, she could only look towards the heavens with hope, thinking she might finally have true freedom. However, she had only been deceiving herself. Her perception of life and the universe may have grown, but the freedom she thought she would find still eluded her.

"I will need to pet.i.tion the G.o.d council to move one of my saints to the new continent. This will hurt my interests elsewhere, but my intuition is warning me of danger. There is that Moksha to consider as well. There is no way I would believe that it was just a coincidence that he happened to run into me. His words were cryptic too. He must know something, but what could it be? I may need to seek council from High G.o.ddess Auriel, perhaps she can contact Gaea. I am concerned that those Elder G.o.ds may be involved in this. This may be a time of great chaos and the new continent may very well be the center of it."

Normally, the problems in the mortal worlds wouldn't elicit such interest or concern among the G.o.ds. For most, the new continent was a piece of meat which they hoped to devour as much of it as they could. There was no more concern for it than that. Mythras saw something else, a beginning of chaos. Her intuition as a G.o.ddess of magic and mysteries was not to be underestimated, but it wasn't just that. There were too many strange coincidences. The strange movements of Abaddon, the rumors of war once more between h.e.l.l and Paradise, and now the abnormal situation on the new continent. All of these things were telling her that something was coming.

"I must speak with the yellow G.o.ddess immediately. High G.o.ddess Auriel will have an idea of what to do and if things are as I fear, then it is imperative that word be sent to Gaea."

________________

Moksha floated somewhere in the void and looked out into the starry sky. He wasn't present in his true form, just an avatar, so he wasn't concerned for his safety. The void could be a dangerous place if one were not careful. There were many deities which resided in the void and they would even fight with each other on occasion to settle a variety of disputes and there were also other dangers. 

This part of the void was within the protection of the Nexus sphere however, and there wasn't too much danger. The Nexus sphere was a creation of combined laws which protected the Nexus from the vast expanse of the void outside the Nexus. It was similar to cutting out a piece of s.p.a.ce and creating a protected environment. If not for a Nexus sphere, a Nexus would be constantly in danger from outside threats. 

There were an infinite number of dangers within the vast universe. Sometimes dangerous beings would find ways to breach a Nexus sphere and enter the void of a Nexus, but this was rare. Only extremely powerful beings could do this and only for a short period of time. Nonetheless, a great calamity could happen because of this and so deities often patrolled with avatars. This wasn't something that Moksha was required to do and he had just come out for a different purpose.

"Seven continents, each a separate world revolving around a central star. A complete, but artificial, solar system. It has been a long time, too long. I have watched this Nexus grow from one world to another, but this is not my home. My home is long gone and only I have survived the test of time. Yes, survived, but can it truly be called living?"

Moksha shook his head as he floated in s.p.a.ce and turned to look at the seventh continent, the latest to be a.s.similated into the G.o.d Nexus.

"I wonder, what will you do next cursed one? We are far more similar than you can imagine. Will you end up like me, or will you do what I never could? You have the power to escape all of this. What choice will you make in the end? Or will you even be given the chance to make such a choice? Even I am tempted… Should I really enter these murky waters?"

There were many thoughts that crossed his mind as he stared at the world below. He wasn't sure yet if his decisions so far had been correct and he hadn't fully decided on how far he was willing to go.

"The G.o.ds have become too complacent as of late, but that doesn't mean there aren't those watching and biding their time. I must move carefully. I wonder who will take the bait. Chaos, chaos is what I need. Only then may I find a path to freedom. Oh An-Namrud, my lucky star. Grow, continue to grow. When the time is right, I expect a magnificent show from you. Do not disappoint me. I am betting everything on you, the one chosen by Babel. Why she chose you, I will never know. What makes you so special? I struggled for untold millennia just for a piece of this vast universe, but I am still a prisoner. That is why I couldn't let you have it too easy. You needed to suffer for what was so easily given to you. I who was rejected, and you who are blessed. We were both chosen by our worlds, vessels of fate. But I am just a reject, while you were chosen by Her."

Moksha clenched his fist in anger as he continued to gaze at the planet before him. But then he sighed and visibly deflated. As if he had given up on all hope.

"I hope you made the right choice. I am tired of waiting for my end to come. I am only a wisp, a strand, an incomplete and irrelevant existence. Don't think I will make things easy for you An-Namrud just because she chose you. Perhaps I will send some of my toys down to play with you. My golems have no souls, so they won't be easily detected by other G.o.ds and it isn't as if golems aren't commonly used among deities. They are good tools to remain inconspicuous. They may not be as good as mortal servants, but they have their benefits. It's just a test, I am sure you will overcome it. I will be eagerly antic.i.p.ating your arrival."