The Sun - Lord of Mysteries (fanfiction)

As an aura of tranquillity filled the air, the waning light dimmed even more than before. A ray of darkness erupted from the darkest point, heralding the arrival of the night over half of the twilight kingdom.

The ray soared towards High Castle, up to the highest balcony, and into a room with a twilight table. It then exploded and out of it came an ethereal woman with a crimson moon phantom behind her head.

"Amanises." Lilith rose from her seat and smiled warmly at the ethereal woman.

Badhiel grumbled at the appearance of the woman, putting away his sword of dusk and sitting down on his chair, leaning back.

"Ombella." Amanises smiled as she greeted her.

"Aucuses." She also greeted them. "Badhiel."

Aucuses nodded lightly to her. Badhiel placed his hand on his chin, indifferent.

"Sit with me." Lilith drew her to a seat near her. Amanises followed and sat.

"Badhiel." Aucuses said deeply, looking at the sun-set giant, who remained indifferent.

Badhiel finally snorted and waved his hand.

A cup of wine floated out of the twilight and landed in front of Amanises, who accepted it with a nod.

The hall was filled with silence and serenity.

Aucuses exchanged glances with Lilith before beginning on the issue.

"We have gathered here to face the threat." Aucuses said, with a solemn expression on his face. "If not nipped in the bud, it may very well be the end of all of us."

"So, it's time to put our differences aside." He went on, his gaze passing over all of them. "And band together to deal with the threat."

"If we are to form any sort of alliance, some level of transparency is required." Looking at Amanises, Badhiel said loudly.

Aucuses and Lilith also turned their attention to Amanises.

Amanises remained silent for a moment before speaking up, her voice ethereal.

"Salinger has found a connection with the River of Eternal Darkness."

"Is that enough, Badhiel?" she asked, an eerie aura filling the hall.

Badhiel didn't seem surprised; only a glint of realisation flashed across his orange eye.

"It really is..." He exhaled a sigh.

"When did you doubt?" Lilith asked with raised brows.

"I was always sceptical." Badhiel stated calmly. "After all, Death is closer to the Eternal River than Darkness and Twilight. It could be regarded as a foundation for the path." He looked at Amanises, who was deafeningly quiet.

He continued, shaking his head. "The seal on the end of the world is deteriorating. And the sefirots are extending their tentacles out into the world. It's pretty clear already after the blood moon night. So it wasn't difficult to connect the dots with Salinger's situation."

"Amanises." His eye narrowed as he finally said. "It's more than enough."

Amanises remained silent, her fingers crossed. Then, she turned to look at Aucuses. The meaning was obvious.

"That decides it." Aucuses smiled, leaning forward in his head.

"The alliance of the Four Gods"

"No contract." Amanises added immediately.

"Yes." Badhiel echoed with her, surprisingly. "There is no need for any contract."

"I wasn't planning on having one anyway." Aucuses laughed. "You know, I get bound just like everyone else."

In relief, Badhiel and Amanises leaned back in their seats, their shoulders lightly sagging together.

"You have a terrible sense of naming." Lilith cocked her brow while smirking. "You know that?"

"I know." Aucuses shot back. "So, could you bequeath a befitting title? I'll replace it right away."

Lilith went silent at that, as laughter echoed across the hall.

"Let's concentrate on the problem," Badhiel said, a slight headache forming as he considered the future.

Aucuses laughter died away, "Right." He sipped his wine before speaking solemnly.

"Salinger tried to openly descend on the northern continent, ignoring our presence and the consequences. Amanises, however, foiled his attempt. But, this should be more than enough to demonstrate his madness."

He continued, his gaze divided between Amanises and Badhiel. "Salinger is fighting the erosion of the river of eternal darkness, even attempting to control it."

"There are also consequences for biting more than you can chew. His sanity is slipping. And when it finally reaches boiling point, our world may be unable to withstand the resulting explosion."

Aucuses finished, reclining back in his chair and sipping his wine.

Salinger was still in his underworld. He hasn't left since the beginning of the century. It was what caused their awkward situation.

They very much wanted to eliminate Salinger. However, the underworld is in their way. They can only sit and wait until Salinger decided to leave the underworld and confront him.

The Tributary of River of Eternal Darkness is in the underworld. Unless they all have a death wish, they don't dare invade the underworld.

And, in this war, they were already on the passive side, whether they liked it or not, as they could do nothing about the situation in the underworld.

The air was thick with heaviness. Badhiel looked Amanises and inquired. "Did you notice anything unusual during his attempt?"

"No." Amanises tilted her head. "There was nothing there. Otherwise, it wouldn't have been so simple to destroy."

"So.." Badhiel sighed and tapped his finger on the armrest. "It's possible that his river situation is still complicated. He might even give up."

"Well.." Lilith said, shaking her head. "He could also be putting up a front to lower our guard before striking and drowning us in the river."

"It's definitely a possibility." Aucuses concurred.

"Whatever happens." Amanises said, looking around. "We should plan for the worst-case scenario."

"That is?" Badhiel asked.

"Salinger went completely mad in the process and also managed to gain a portion of the control over the tributary."

Aucuses spoke up, his eyes solemn. "We shall besiege Salinger at the first chance and kill him before things spiral to exactly that."

"It's going to hard to be kill him, Aucuses." Lilith mused, "After all, he is death."

"There's also Sasrir." Badhiel said, his face solemn. "Recent changes on the continent only point in that direction."

"I think..." Amanises said, ethereally, looking at Aucuses. "Sasrir could very well join hands with Salinger just to deal with you."

Aucuses remained silent for a moment while listening to everyone before saying. "It will undoubtedly be difficult to kill Salinger. Hell, the chances of us succeeding on the first try are extremely slim. But we are still going to attack with everything we have."

"As for Sasrir, Trunsoest will most likely join us as well. He will restrain them if they interfere, and one of us may assist Trunsoest if the situation becomes dire on his side."

He went on, his tone low. "If, just if, Salinger could already draw power from the river of Eternal Darkness."

"Except for myself and Amanises, everyone should immediately withdraw from the main battlefield." His solemn gaze was drawn to Lilith.

Badhiel and Amanises nodded to his words. Lilith chuckled, trying to dispel the heaviness. "We still have plenty of time, you know, the war may not happen for decades, and even then, Salinger may not have achieved that control."

"Still…" Aucuses said, pressing his temples "Given what has just happened, we will prepare for the worst and be ready at a moment's notice."

After seeing their silence, he concluded. "That concludes the meeting. We shall adjourned here once a year until the war."

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