The Old Scholar

Fortuna braced herself as she found herself walking down a long corridor, the walls had beige wallpaper lining them and the floor was made of hardwood. She felt as if she had been here before but her memory fails her as all she recalls is nothing but the sounds of battle, the screams of her victims and the flashes of blood upon her hands. she shudders at the images flashing before her as she continues down the corridor, walking through it's twists and turns. 

"Gagh! Not again" She mumbles as she clutches her right arm and collapses onto her knees, what used to be confined to her hand had spread all over her arm. 

Her arm was now covered with black skin that had replaced her fair color, along the length of the arm was an array of cracks that glowed and pulsated with an eerie crimson glow that was usually dark, whenever it did flash it sent a surge of pain through her and at first it was bearable but now she could barely keep upright. leaning onto the wall to keep her aloft. 

"Come on Fortuna, get up" she urged herself as she stood back up and continued down the corridor, 

After a few more minutes of walking, she finally reached the end of the corridor. In front of her was a single wooden door with a metal doorknob and as she was about to open the door, she stopped as she heard shouting from the other side 

"You cannot possibly be serious Ma'am! Fortuna is a damned traitor and murderer!" a young man's voice shouted angrily

"I already made my decision and I shall stand by it. Fortuna will be allowed to govern her two worlds" An older woman's voice answered him 

"But that's giving power back to those who betrayed us! betrayed their creator! killed untold billions of her fellow Prime Gods all because it made her stronger!" the young man's voice continued 

The memories of blood and violence flashed before Fortuna's eyes again and she steeled herself as she took several deep breaths to drown out the sounds of screams 

"Calm down....calm down" she muttered to herself as she twisted the doorknob and proceeded inside 

Stepping forward, she was greeted by the sight of a large square office, on the other side was a woman standing in front of a comfy chair. In front of the woman was a large rectangular office desk that stretched down to the floor and was made entirely of dark oak. On the top of the desk was a stack of papers on one side with a pair of pens while on the other was an open book that was before a picture frame facing towards the woman. The woman herself was dressed in a long-sleeved shirt and a dress that went all the way down, hidden by the desk. She had a scarf around her neck and she had a pair of angular glasses resting on the nose of her face. Said face had an unreadable expression on it that Fortuna had a problem looking at as she felt a shiver down her spine after making eye contact with her. 

Her eyes then shifted to her left and she saw a handsome man dressed in a well-made suit with black gloves, he was tall and had a well-built frame. his slicked back hair and handlebar mustache were black and his eyes held a fiery anger as he locked eyes with her, his fists clenching as he was visibly fuming at her presence. It took Fortuna a few moments before she could recognize his face, but when she did she knew why he was especially angry with her. His name was Draken, a fellow Prime God, and was the brother of one of her many victims during the war. 

Shifting her gaze to her right she saw another familiar face, a beautiful and tall woman in a pristine all-black military outfit with gold chains and cuffs. Her pristine bluish silver hair cascaded down her back and her blue eyes locked with hers. Her left hand was resting on the hilt of her similarly silver rapier that was holstered to her side and Fortuna gave her a small nod that was met in kind. This was Valora, Fortuna's warden and the person who had brought her to heel during the war, nearly killing her if it wasn't for the Eternal Evil being bested moments before her blade ran through her. 

"Ah, speak of the devil. You're finally here Fortuna" The woman in the center of the room voiced 

"I am here as per your request, Miss Manager" Fortuna replied as she bowed her head

"Why is she here!?" Draken shouted as he pointed at her furiously 

"Because I have a meeting with her, I ask that you leave us to that meeting Draken" The Manager replied to the seething god, her eyes locking with his

"This is outrageous, it's unacceptable!" Draken shouted as he stomped forward and shoved the book and picture frame on the desk to the floor, his eyes still locking with the Manager's 

Glancing down at the fallen items, the Manager saw that the picture frame was shattered and that the book was closed, heaving a sigh as she swiftly retaliated by grabbing Draken's throat and slamming him onto the hardwood floor, cracking parts of it, the speed of which surprised all three of the gods in the room. 

"I believe you forgot who you were talking to Draken. And for that, I find it unacceptable" the Manager told him, her icy voice filling the air, 

Draken tried to say something in return but the pain coursing through his body and a spell that the Manager placed on him prevented him from doing so, his eyes widening as he was unable to speak. 

SNAP!

With a snap of her fingers, Draken was set alight and he began to silently scream as his body was covered in blue flame. The pain shot all over his body as he tried to put it out but only made it worse, the fire melting and chewing through his suit and skin. His eyes began looking around the room and when they landed on Fortuna, his anger boiled as he rushed toward her in an attempt to take her with him

SLASH

But a sudden slash by Valora to his kneecaps made him collapse onto the floor, stopping a few meters from his target. His hands reaching out to grab her as Fortuna began to back away, utterly terrified by the sight of Draken's flesh visibly melting, as he was able to mutter something out to her, that being "Murderer". With a final slash from Valora that decapitated him on the spot, Draken's body ceased to move. 

"Tsk, a shame really. Valora, do we have a replacement for him and his world?" the Manager asked as she waved her hand and the body disintegrated into nothing, snapping her fingers again which made the shattered picture frame and book return to their original positions on the table, returning to their state of being before being shoved down. 

"I believe so Ma'am, I have several candidates in the Abyss who could possibly fill his role" Valora answered her as she sheathed her blade 

"Good, send me their files later" the Manager replied as she sat back down on her comfy chair 

"Right" she added as she clasped her hands together and locked eyes with Fortuna

"Fortuna Bismuth, the third Prime God to ever be created. With titles such as the "Favored Daughter" the "Peerless Warrior Goddes" and most recently the "Traitorous Daughter" or the "Second Avatar of Salvation" you have had quite a blood-filled story" the Manager continued as she brought up a paper filled with all the details about Fortuna 

"It is not a past I am proud of" Fortuna replied as she bowed her head in shame 

"Uhuh, I can see why. Killing multiple of your kin, slaughtering untold billions upon billions, I can see why you wouldn't, hell after reading all of that I would order you executed for your previous blatant disregard for life" the Manager continued 

"If that is to be so, then why not just do it and free me from my torment" Fortuna replied, her voice laced with pain and regret 

"Because I believe in second chances if the person truly deserves it" the Manager answered her, causing Fortuna to raise her head but still not lock eyes with her 

"Valora was your warden yes? in your time spent in the Abyss?"

"Yes. she was" 

"Well, she has informed me that out of the countless Prime Gods there, you are one of the few who aren't or at least not showing that they are insane, shouting into the void for death or basically no longer responsive. But instead still have their sanity and critical thinking skills"

Fortuna stayed silent as the Manager rose from her seat and walked over to her 

"Are you truly sorry for what you did?  sorry for the pain you inflicted on countless lives?" 

"I am. And I will do anything to redeem myself" Fortuna answered her

"Even if it costs your life?" 

"Yes" 

"Then I believe you will do fine. for the truth is this, the Curator is currently in a coma" 

{!} 

Fortuna's eyes widened as she heard this, her heart sinking into despair as she fell to her knees, tears flowing down her face and onto the floor.

"No, it can't be" she uttered with disbelief 

"It is, hence why I am trying my best to bring in fresh blood to refill the Prime God pool as without the Curator new ones cannot be made. Hence this project, You are going to be the first in what I hope will be a long line of previous Chosen who will redeem themselves by fulfilling the job they had before our creator went into a coma" 

"I understand. I will do my best" Fortuna weakly voiced as she took a deep breath and rose to her feet, her right arm pulsating again

"Good, and if you do well, then maybe you will find redemption" the Manager added as she waved her hand and Fortuna's arm returned to normal, with the infection returning to only her hand, 

"I will keep that on you to serve as a reminder, a painful reminder if you will. To remind you of your duty, and if you were to ever get out of line, then the fate you will face is death" she finished as she looked into Fortuna's eyes 

"I understand" Fortuna nodded as she shifted her gaze to her hand, the cracks still glowing crimson but with less pain than before

A/N: Hello! So I was able to finish two chapters and I wanted to post them before going back to my main series, I hope you enjoy this chapter as well and I wish you all a good day and as always Stay Safe and Enjoy Your Day!