God of Nothing

A lone tree burned in the middle of a clearing, surrounded by Iona's squad. Aleph and his disciples stood apart from them, scanning the area for enemies just in case. This was the third portal they shut down today. It was unguarded like most of the others, allowing him to think through some things.

Hero. The weight of that word was not lost on Aleph. Back on earth, symbols of hope sprang up in hard times. They rallied the hearts of men, becoming beacons of light in the fight against the encroaching darkness. Truthfully, had never really been the one lighting the way, but one that followed. As a result, he watched that light be snuffed out repeatedly, only to be taken up by another. Emily took on that light until the end, carrying his hope up to her untimely end. Each beacon, no matter how large, laid to rest in his sanctuary.

And now, in another world, that same light is being thrust upon him.

"It is heavy."

"Master? Need to take a break?" A puzzled Brandon asked.

Aleph waved him off, snapping back to reality. He walked up to Iona, who was hunched over her map. He looked over her, watching her cross out another spot. There were several such marks now, the fruit of all their raids. Combined with the efforts on Carrack and Vaynard's side, there were a scant few portals remaining.

"Lady Iona."

"I'm just finishing up."

"Something is amiss." He insisted.

Iona sighed, keeping the map and standing up to look at him.

"I know. They're just letting us get these things like they've discarded them. We both know that isn't the case, so why?"

Aleph nodded in assent, his own thoughts also came up to that point. They used to put a lot more into defending these locations even to the point of having a herald's personal troops posted there, but now they've completely abandoned it. So what changed? Aleph could only think of one possible reason.

"The enemy knows I am among you, moving against them." He declared, remembering his exchange with one of the emissaries. Iona raised her eyebrows skeptically. She considered it for a moment, before raising her hands.

"I had my suspicions, but I still wish you'd tell me this stuff sooner."

She looked surprisingly unphased. Aleph tilted his head in confusion. He thought she would have a lot more questions, considering she was snooping around after him not long ago. Did he not keep his secrets as well as he thought?

"Okay. So, they know you're helping shut down the portals. So what?"

"As you have no doubt surmised, I have had some measure of success against Erebos and his flock. So much so that they are wary of me. Going from that, either they've truly abandoned these portals, for fear of wasting their troops–"

"–or they're gathering them up for a massive counter offensive. Shit."

Aleph nodded. It's good that Iona picked things up quickly. It lets him get to what he really wanted to say.

"How many more portals are left?"

"Not many. Carrack's side have given up pursuit of the ambushers and are focusing on raiding the portals themselves. They're a couple of days away, but if they're facing no resistance on the portals, we could call them over. Should I ask them to link up with us?"

"You better do so. This is all speculation, but if the enemy has truly gathered up all the ones meant to defend these portals, then we are talking about an army at least as big as the one you faced on Hios."

Iona shook her head in disbelief.

"...Dammit, Aleph. What did you do to piss these guys off, anyway?"

"I killed their god's avatar."

"..." Aleph was met with silence at the declaration. He still wasn't sure about what to disclose at this time, but since he was already planning on eventually bringing these people into the fold, he decided to be forthright.

"We need to know where the remaining portals are. There's a good chance that in one of them, an army is being rallied."

__________________________________

Rayse's mind was wandering as he tended to the horses. They had successfully raided a half dozen portals in the area over the past few days, all without opposition.

Today was a somewhat free day for most of them: Brig and Aleph had left to survey the final batch of portals, while most of the others stayed behind to prepare. There really wasn't much to do. Lacey and Brandon left to do their own thing, so Rayse was stuck here watering the horses. It was important, after all. They didn't bring them on every raid, but they were run ragged a lot of the time. Their condition still leaned towards 'pretty good', but that just means Rayse needs to do his job properly.

"Good girl…" He said, rubbing a nearby horse's mane as she had her fill. He felt strange. By all measures, this subjugation quest seemed to be a success, but he often saw Iona and Aleph out on the sides, huddled over some map and speaking in hushed tones. Rayse figured it was for a future operation, but they seemed so serious that it affected everyone's mood. The camp had an air of tension, like horses on a track, just waiting for the signal to run. Everybody's just hunkered down, waiting for a big fight to break out.

As a result, the daily sparring was paused for the time being. Rayse understood that, but those sessions were massive, spurring growth from them all. Even Eric, whose training and memories were wiped clean, had effectively caught up. His body remembered what his mind could not, and the sparring sessions served to bridge that gap. As a result, each of them had come to their own, and more importantly, had intricate knowledge on what each was capable of. Rayse missed pitting himself against his friends, but it couldn't be helped.

"Hey, you. Mage." Said a voice from beyond his vision. He ignored it, sensing the newcomer's presence for a while. The speaker was a young man around his age, talking down to him from the broken walls. He and his friends had been harassing the squad from the walls, taunting and insulting them from the top. It was mostly harmless, though they did try throwing rocks at them one time. A well placed tailwind stopped all that nonsense though. 

"Not speaking today either? Cowards, you've been slinking around under our walls for days. Why don't you just go away?"

Rayse still ignored him, keeping his focus on the horses. Even they'd grown used to his presence, though, and were not too bothered by it. He himself hid a smile, though, because if that guy was there, then…

"Hello!"

"Hey, kiddo."

It was one of the kids from Aleph's performance the other day. They were much friendlier than the adults in town.

"I got some carrots for the horses today."

"Oh? And where did you get these?"

"Our town has plenty of food! I would bring you some too, but my brother said not to waste them on stupid, stinking soldiers…" 

"Either way, thank you. These guys had been getting tired from all the grass. Wanna feed them with me?"

"Yes!"

They got to it, laughing and talking about various things while feeding the horses. His brother atop the wall still taunted him, but eventually gave up when he didn't get the reaction he was seeking.

Eventually, Lacey and Brandon returned to see the pair sitting down together.

"Hey, kid, you're back. What did you bring us this time?" Lacey said, ruffling the kid's hair familiarly.

"Nothing for you, you old bat." The kid said affectionately, making everyone laugh.

"Bat? Well then, I guess I can just give this bag of berries to someone else… Hey Rayse, can horses eat these?"

The kid pouted, again making everyone laugh, as he eventually went home with them in tow, munching on the berries as he went. It was true that the town had plenty of food, but they hardly ever ventured outside of the walls these days.

Brandon was butchering the bison they had stumbled across and was washing himself off in the stream, while Lacey sat with him among the horses. He gave her a peck on the cheek, making her smile even wider.

"What was that for? Hehe." She asked playfully, giggling all the while.

"I just felt like it. haha."

"Hey! Stop it, you two! You being lovey dovey is making my skin crawl." Brandon said, shuddering from the side.

Rayse laughed, trailing off as he saw something strange. There was a man on their side of the wall, leaning against a tree in the distance and staring at them. He looked like one of the townsfolk, but they hardly ventured out of the town, and when they did, it was only to harass the squad. One never wandered that far before.

"Hey… You guys see that?" He pointed it out, 

"What's he doing here? Shouldn't he be inside with the rest of them?"

A freshly bathed Brandon went to them, pulling on a clean shirt as he went. He looked in the direction of the town and back to the strange man on the outskirts. 

"Ohhhh, no. Guys, that's one of the guards."

"Yeah, we know, but–"

"No, no. He's one of the guards." Brandon said, pointing at the town entrance.

Rayse turned, and sure enough, he saw the same man standing by the gates, looking at them critically. His blood ran cold. They looked identical, right down to their clothing. Something's wrong.

"Any chance he has a twin?" Lacey asked.

"A twin wearing the exact same clothes? That's a weird fetish." Brandon was saying, but Rayse was already on the move.

"Pitfall." The ground opened up beneath the stranger, swallowing him up.A moment later, a shadow popped out of the hole, an animal of some sort. It ran in the direction of the forest.

"Okay, that's probably a demon."

"Let's go."

The trio ran after the creature, summoning their artifacts on the way. It was unnaturally quick, weaving in and out of trees as it shifted forms. It took various forms as it went: gazelle, monkey, even a bird. It took all they had just to keep track.

"I'll cut them off. Dark haste." Rayse went ahead, moving quickly to outstrip the demon. He jumped above the trees, tracking the being down below. He controlled his descent with his shield, an adaptation of his old tricks with his spear, eventually landing in front of the demon.

"Back for more, Deceit?" Rayse taunted. The demon shifted back into a form that resembled an emissary. The pale skin was a dead giveaway.

"Insolent! Mother has no time for you, child!" He sneered.

He knew that, of course. He didn't feel nearly as much pressure from this one. Besides, it was still daytime, and he had seen how Deceit had fled from the light.

His companions showed up at this time. They cut the creature off from the other side, surrounding him.

"Why don't you tell us what you're planning? Maybe we can let you slink back to Erebos' bosom." Brandon asked mockingly.

"Foolish child. I am only here to scout your defenses. The Abyss is already on its way."

Brandon's sword took on a vicious glow. He took a fighting stance, mirrored by his friends.

"That means you're useless then. Ready to die?" The demon shifted once again, reforming into a dark mass that grew by the second. The demon cackled, and Rayse felt its presence jump up by an order of magnitude.

"Kikikikik!"

The dark mass reformed, creating gross limbs that grew at awkward angles. Its torso split open revealing rows and rows of teeth, parted in an evil smile. A deep voice emerged from it, a guttural roar that elicited a primal fear from within Rayse.

"I will enjoy devouring you."