When the girl finished, the commander could hardly believe his ears. The strange man they had found was the god of death? That he’d single-handedly ended three daemons without an issue? That the elder had murdered this girl’s mother and this Vwalta ended him as well? None of it made sense.

Yet, the commander couldn’t help but put pieces together. Vwalta had that strange animal that the commander had never seen, plus he hadn’t had any issues stalling the daemons the first time. Then, there was the fact that the man was nowhere to be found, and none of his patrols had seen Vwalta leave the village.

He doubted that the genial, benign-but-odd-looking man could sneak past the trained guards.

However, that would mean another god had entered the fray, and the commander knew the monarchs wouldn’t like that. No one would like that, in fact.

The vicious pantheon across the sea would see a new god as competition, and do everything possible to kill this newcomer. The monarchs, god-kings in their own right, would see things the same. Only the scholars might be amenable, but it was just as likely they’d try to capture Vwalta and use him for experiments.

And then there was Tivwo here. A girl—no, probably a young woman now. Ordeals like that tended to grow a person. This young woman would be a target as well. If the pantheon learned of her, or the monarchs, they’d kill her. The scholars might protect her, but only in exchange for studying her.

The commander realized that he’d already decided what the girl said was true. He blinked in surprise at that.

“What do you make of this?” the commander asked his companion.

The other knight frowned. “I don’t want to believe it… but at the same time I find myself unable to disbelieve.”

The commander nodded. He turned back to Tivwo. “Girl, I’m about to ask to do something that you might consider private. I’m going to scan you to see if you’re telling the truth. And before you ask, if you say no I’ll have to assume you’re compromised in some way. While you don’t look possessed it’s possible a new type of daemon has taken you, one that’s subtle. We have to make sure. Please understand.”

Tivwo gulped, but nodded. “Okay. I understand.”

The commander smiled, the first time in a long time since taking his post. “Thank you.”

The man opened up his sight, instantly filtering out everything except Tivwo. He’d had years to practice, unlike the young woman in front of him, which let him quickly parse what he needed.

And what he saw he almost couldn’t believe.

True to her word, Tivwo’s mother resided in the ribbon behind. The woman’s soul had wrapped herself around her daughter in a constant hug, protecting her from the harsher world.

But there was more. Between Tivwo and Turum sat a blue-black chain of energy. Energy so pure that the commander saw only one thing, binding. The two’s souls were chained together by a contract, something the commander thought impossible.

“Ancestors,” the commander muttered. “It’s all true.”

“What?” the knight behind said in surprise.

The commander stood and placed a hand on Tivwo’s shoulder. “Please, give me a minute to converse with my companion.”

He pulled the knight to the side and out of earshot. “We need to decide what to do. Now.”

The knight’s mouth was open in shock. “You mean she’s telling the truth?”

“Yes, and you know as well as I do that means trouble. Heaps of it.”

The knight fought through his surprise and nodded. “The monarchs won’t like it.”

“No one’s going to like it,” the commander hissed. “This is going to upset balance of the world, which means she’s a part of it whether or not she wants to be.”

The knight nodded, his face solemn. “Then, do we take care of it?”

The commander shook his head. “I’m not about to have a kid’s blood on my hands, and neither are you.”

The knight grimaced. “No, you're right.”

“Then here’s what we can do,” the commander said. “We say this Vwalta was a traveling scholar and that he took care of the daemons before the soul weaponer arrived. We take the girl with us, say I grew a conscience when I let the girl’s mother die or something. I raise her and we keep her hidden. No one else has to know anything.”

“That’s dangerous,” the knight replied.

“Any more dangerous than these patrols?” the commander countered.

The knight sighed. “No. The only difference is we’re up against thinking beasts instead of dumb ones.”

The commander clapped his companion on the back. “We’ll get through it. Now, let’s all go get our story straight.”

***

Across the seas, to the west of the monarchs and their continent, sat the land of the gods. They weren’t true gods, not like Sod and Davy Jones. No, these gods were once men and women. These were gods that had learned to use their divine power to mimic divinity itself.

The entire continent was the god’s domain, controlled by the six gods. Those outside the continent called the gods the Vicious Pantheon, for they were ruthless in their wars.

Those living on the continent just called them the Six.

Today, the Six were gathered together for their recurring meeting. The brothers, Tayach and Tayom, gods of light and dark, led today’s session in their mirrored palace.

Vweshu, the god of water, arrived first, appearing on the palace grounds in a localized rainstorm. His neatly trimmed brown beard sparkled with dewdrops, matching his stern hazel eyes. A flowing robe hung over his features, masking his physique.

The god of water looked up at the opulent palace, a grand display of silvery mirrors and obsidian walls that represented the brothers, and sighed. Today would be another tiring meeting.

“Flashy as always, Vweshu,” a sharp voice said.

The water god turned to see Sha, goddess of wind, appear with her lover Pom, goddess of earth, on a grand carriage. The goddess of wind sat primly, her flowing blonde hair tied into a tight bun. Her robe, as if to clash with the bun, hung loosely on her frame.

Pom lay over her lover, her clay-red hair braided in intricate detail. Her robes were loose as well, and Vweshu scowled at their impropriety.

“A waste of energy, don’t you think?” Pom questioned, her voice giggly.

Vweshu rolled his eyes. No doubt the two lovers had spent the entire time inside the carriage fooling around.

“If you two spent more time doing your duties instead of each other maybe you would have energy to spare,” Vweshu spat.

“I do think the man’s jealous,” Pom tittered. She brought a hand up to stroke Sha’s cheek.

“How sad,” Sha replied. “Perhaps we should soften his sheets one night?”

“As if Vweshu would ever want you two for a night,” another voice said liltingly.

Vweshu smiled as he turned to see his partner Ch’Kai gliding down from the sky on a cloud of steam. The androgynous woman hopped off the cloud toward her lover, who guided her to him with a quick stream. The two embraced as Ch’kai landed, the fire goddess planting a kiss on Vweshu’s lips.

“Good to see you, my love. I hope these two haven’t bothered you too much.”

Pom rolled her eyes. “I don’t know what you see in him, Kai-kai.”

“Please, Pom-pom, we both know you hated mom’s nickname more than I did.”

Pom huffed and buried herself into Sha’s stomach. “They’re bullying me again.”

Vweshu started to massage his wife’s shoulders. “Come, love. No need to get worked up. Let’s go inside and see the brothers.”

Ch’kai relaxed under her husband’s care. “Alright.”

The two walked into the mirror palace, leaving Sha and Pom behind. The two women spent a few more moments embracing then followed.

Each of the gods knew where to go, and all of the palace servants knew to avoid them. Their steps echoed down the halls, stopping in front of an atrium split evenly down the middle. Inside sat the brothers Tayach and Tayom, the two playing a game while they waited for the others.

“Ah, Vweshu and Ch’kai, so good of you to come!” Tayom said jovially.

The god of darkness was a round man with sandy, almost graying, hair and a twinkle in his eye. He wore a patterned white robe cinched tight around his waist.

“Yes, always a pleasure,” Tayach said.

The god of light was equally as round as his younger brother but with none of the jovial nature. His black hair sat neatly trimmed on his head and his stern gaze could petrify most commonfolk. He wore a patterned robe as well, but was obviously upset about the fact.

“Save the pleasantries, if you please,” Vweshu said as he walked in. “A wandering scholar came onto my holdings recently and has caused nothing but trouble. I must return soon so the less dogmatic practitioners aren’t swayed.”

Tayom nodded. “There have been a number of scholars as of late. I find it best to control them with a bit of good food and drink. Their tongues buzz like bees once they have a few drinks!”

The god of darkness chuckled at a thought only he recalled.

“Aw, is poor Vweshu having trouble with the citizens?” Pom jeered as she walked in.

“No more than you,” Vweshu sneered. “If I recall, you’ve had three uprisings from cities in the past week.”

“Come now, friends!” Tayom boomed. “We aren’t here to bite at each other’s throats. This meeting is meant for us to build solidarity!”

“And to make sure none of us betrayed the other,” Sha said, activating her sight.

The other gods did the same, each of them gleaning information about their fellow pantheon members.

And then it was done, as quick as a blink.

“Good to know we are still pactmates!” Tayom laughed. “Now, I have imported a new breed of fish from the central continent that you all simply must try.”

The god clapped his hands and settled into his chair as servants stepped into the atrium with plates of fish delicately chopped and seared.

“I will admit it was a process to acquire but I say it will be worth it!”

The other gods all sat down and prepared themselves for the meal. Vweshu wanted to leave, but he could afford Tayom a small courtesy. If only so the god could ask for a favor later.

Plus, Ch’kai looked interested in the fish.

“Now, tell me,” Tayom said once everyone had sat down. “Does anyone have news on our other projects?”

Sha took a bite of her fish, gave a flash of a smile before returning to a neutral expression, and spoke. “The Central continent fares better than the Eastern. Likely because the monarchs care less about their subjects than the scholars.”

“The new energy bonds well to the living,” Ch’kai said. “Most of our reports show that once used, our altered energy absorbs the bodies original energy and transforms it, increasing what’s available.”

“Excellent,” Tayach said.

“There is still a stabilization problem,” Pom said. “Our altered energy burns too quickly, leaving most who use it dead before they can act.”

“It doesn’t matter as long as it destabilizes the other continents,” Tayom said.

“There is less of that than I would like to see,” Vweshu said, earning a glare from Sha. The god of water wiped his beard clean of fish oil with a quick application of power.

“We had predicted using the altered energy on commonfolk would lead to a quick burst of power that they could use to overthrow their oppressors. Then once they burned out we could send our Hands in to take over. However, my Ears tell me that most commonfolk use the power to remove beastly threats.”

“But there are still those who revolt,” Sha countered. “Our issue is one of picking targets, something I believe you were responsible for?”

Vweshu sighed. “Yes, but I did say this first round would be testing. I always expected our predictions to fail. After all, the other continents haven’t enjoyed our rule for the last four hundred years. But even then, I expected more.”

“We did find most of our success with the minor nobility,” Tayach mused. “Perhaps if we focus solely on them?”

There were murmurings of agreement around the table.

“And what of the Eastern continent?” Sha asked.

“Why, I believe I have the perfect answer for this!” Tayom laughed.

The others turned to the god of darkness.

“It’s simple, we give samples to a few ambitious research students. Those too young to follow proper safety measures and are desperate for recognition. They’ll eat our energy right up and thank us for our kindness.”

The other gods nodded.

“Then we can collect them at our leisure,” Tayach said.

“On that note,” Tayom looked to Vweshu. “How goes collection?”

“Collecting the altered energy is simple enough,” Vweshu started. “However, that has been small trouble with soul collection.”

Sha sneered. “Having performance issues?”

Vweshu ignored the jab. “The souls that burn out are easily collectible, for the most part. There are a few that seem to drift, or eat themselves entirely, but nothing outside parameters. It’s the souls caught up in everything that’s the problem.”

“How so?” Ch’kai asked.

Vweshu smiled at his wife. “It seems the altered energy bonds does something to the soul on death, giving it a modicum of freedom. These souls can then move freely and aren’t bound to our energy. This has made collection difficult, and my Ears have informed me that the monarchs are starting to learn of these ‘daemons.’”

“Hmm,” Tayom mused. “Perhaps we shouldn’t worry. Collecting the burned souls is more than enough for our needs, and the daemons should help destabilize the continents. Nothing like an unanswered threat to help move revolts along.”

“Then, onto our other matter,” Tayach said. “Garegom is passing.”

The other gods looked at the god of light in surprise.

“The beast emperor is dying? Truly?” Sha asked.

“Truly!” Tayom laughed. “And his son is still a child!”

“Well, isn’t that convenient,” Ch’kai muttered.

Vweshu stood. “I’ll have my Hands across the waters shortly. They’ll dispose of the prince without trouble.”

Sha stood as well. “As if I’ll let you take all the credit. No, each of us will send two Hands.”

“Twelve hands is too much,” Tayach argued. “One hand each.”

“What’s to stop the hands from killing each other then?” Sha countered.

“Come now, Sha,” Tayom said. “The last time was a mistake! You know as well as I!”

“And isn’t it convenient that your Hand died before I could sight him?” Sha spat.

“Please. You would have been angry if Tayom hadn’t killed the Hand immediately,” Vweshu said.

“Don’t you speak for me,” Sha hissed.

“Enough!” Tayach shouted.

The other gods jumped.

“Cease these petty squabbles,” the god of light groaned. “We bind the Hands to each other so if one is killed by the group they all die. Now, please take your squabbles somewhere else.”

Tayach stood and marched out of the room. Tayom stood as well, bowing to the others.

“I apologize for him. His experiments are not going well and the stress is getting to him. However, I agree with his suggestion. I’ll send the contract by messenger shortly. Brother, wait!”

The god of darkness hastened out the atrium after his brother, leaving the four gods alone.

Vweshu stood next, holding Ch’kai’s hand. “Come, my love. I think we should make preparations.”

Sha stood with Pom, “As should we.”

The gods stepped out of the room, leaving plates of half-finished fish on the table.