The Red Hand

After a lengthy back and forth between Akagi and the two Gods, the final plan was hashed out. Cheofla and Teirea would join the other Gods as per Gale's original plan, but would be 'distracted' by the Twins. This would leave Akagi to fight the remaining four, whom the Demon would string along just long enough to allow her plans for Earth to come to fruition. Most others in the room thought this was both a foolish and dangerous gamble, but to the Demon, not only was it worth it, but it was essential that things turned out this way. Especially given that this would be the perfect opportunity to break the Gods' hold on the population.

"Do we at least get to go all out, Boss?" Zo asked, pumped up at the thought of getting a good scrap.

"I'd be disappointed if you didn't." Akagi replied with a wink, which made the Twins grin happily.

"You two do remember that you're not supposed actually to try and kill them, right?" Elariel sighed, knowing the two well and reminding them not to be reckless.

"Meh, if it happens, it happens." Ro shrugged, not caring about the fate of a God. "I can't be responsible for what I do in the heat of the moment."

"You two truly are your Mother's children." Elariel shook her head, though she strangely found it amusing to see them like that. "Just try not to get distracted and forget that we're all on the same side here."

"It's fine, if they got rowdy, then we'll just have to remind these children of their place." Cheofla smirked, intentionally trying to get a rise out of the Twins.

"Laugh it up, Grandma. But we'll see who's laughing when you're face down in the dirt!" Zo hissed as she and her brother locked eyes with the Goddess, sparks flying as their gazes met.

"Oh brother..." Elariel sighed again as Teirea shook his head, deciding not to get involved. "Anyway, I believe that concludes everything, so you two should cut the connection so that Gale doesn't catch on. It will be trouble if he finds out what you're up to and changes plans."

"Hold on, there is one more thing we need to discuss with you." Teirea said as he tapped Cheofla on the shoulder to get her out of her staring match with the Twins. "That is the main reason we sent our children to set this meeting up after all."

"Right." Cheofla said as she turned her attention away from the Twins, who continued to make faces at her. "Elariel, and this may be related to you as well, Halifax. Our sources indicate that Zenthala may have returned."

"WHAT?!?" (Halifax x Elariel)

{If they're both shocked, that's not a good sign.} (Akagi)

{Probably not.} (Yumi)

"Where?!? When?!? And did you find Helia?!?" Halifax practically leaped at Cheofla to get answers.

"Calm down." Cheofla tried to get her to back off. "And no. As of right now there have been no sightings of Helia."

"But if Zenthala is back, Helia has to be nearby." Halifax was certain that her friend and wielder had returned if the Sun God did. "When she disappeared, it was on Zenthala's orders, so if they're back, then Helia has to be too."

{Where have you been all this time?!?} (Halifax)

"That Helia woman was your wielder during the battle with Vikes, correct?" Akagi knew they were close, but didn't know much about their relationship outside of surface level information.

"She was both my wielder and friend." Halifax answered. "Helia is the Daughter of Zenthala and an unknown Primordial. She is the one and only example of a being that is Half-God Half Primordial, and quite the eccentric being as a result."

"To think that something so fundamentally antithetical to creation is even possible." Elariel shook her head. “It still makes my skin crawl.”

{Is SHE of all people shaming someone on that front?!? Elariel, you are basically a real-life gender swapped version of Zeus! That's one hell of a glass house you've got there lady!} (Akagi)

"Zenthala?" Ro spoke up, furrowing her brow as she tried to figure out who they were talking about. "I don't remember that name. What kind of God were they?"

"You haven't heard about them because Zenthala has no meaningful presence in the material world, at least they don't anymore." Elariel explained their backstory. "They are the God of the Sun, and were much more prominent during the early periods of mortal life in this world when they worshiped light itself. This kind of worship gradually died out and now exists only in small communities in the large desert of the Southern Continent. The vast majority of people on Enoris have no idea that Zenthala even existed, and the few that do would believe that they no longer exist since they haven't been seen 'in person 'since the war with Vikes."

{And even then, they didn't do that much.} (Elariel)

"I don't think Mom ever mentioned them." Zo couldn't recall a single mention of a Sun God in the stories their Mother told them.

"That's not surprising. Zenthala is an enigma to even fellow deities, and your Mother would've never met them even during their more active periods." Teirea noted that Zenthala tended to seclude themselves and only rarely appeared even in the distant past. "I've never been able to get a read on them or what they were thinking. They are truly an incomprehensible being, even among the divine."

"It's as if they have a completely alien way of thinking. I remember we all used to joke that something went wrong during their creation." Cheofla had given up trying to understand the Sun God eons ago, as had most of the other Gods.

"But if you're saying Zenthala's back, that raises so many questions." Elariel said as she quickly turned to Akagi. "I highly doubt Zenthala is some kind of threat to you, they don't really like conflict, but they never make moves without some kind of carefully laid plan. Much like a certain Demon Lord I know. I would advise caution going forward. If they've been intentionally lying low for four thousand years and plotting something, it could be dangerous. Especially given that they wouldn't take action unless they have things worked out. Out of all of us, Zenthala is the one to be most wary of. Not because of their power but because of their uncanny ability to seemingly know what will happen next and set schemes in motion that seemingly come to fruition despite making no sense."

{Halifax's own creation was partially their plan, after all. Though Gale would never admit that.} (Elariel)

"This kind of thing tends to happen as you hit endgame in a plot." Akagi shrugged, seemingly not worried about this new development. "As the dominoes fall people come out of the woodwork, and you get big reveals that completely upend the story. Just another day at the office. Though I will criticize the author here for lack of originality since this is quite cliche. But maybe if I get a badass final battle, it'll overlook it." She snickered.

"What? Would you rather the script just say, "And everyone died to the Demon Kitty, the end? " Halifax rolled her eyes.

"Whatever gets me back to being fluffed and basking on the warm rock in my garden the fastest!" Akagi waived her hand lazily before flashing a cheeky smile.

"Yes, yes. How dare reality force the Kitty to actually do work? Poor kitty, forced to actually do more than get pet and take naps. Woe as you." Halifax sighed as she shook her head. "Anyway, if Zenthala is now running around, that just adds even more headache to this whole thing. We've got no idea what they're up to and no idea what they even want. So yeah... That will be fun."

"What does this Zenthala even look like anyway?" Zo was curious what their physical form was given that each God tended to use a humanoid shape.

"That's a hard question to answer since they don't really look like anything." Elariel didn't know how to explain. "Unlike the rest of us, Zenthala only rarely coalesces itself into a singular form. Most of the time, they stay in an amorphous shape that is basically just a twisting mass of pure energy."

"Oh yeah, I kinda forgot you guys can do that." Halifax hadn't seen a God's true form in a very long time since they'd grown accustom to mortal inspired forms.

"I'd imagine that tends to scare the mortals." Akagi figured it was something akin to Humans seeing biblically accurate angels.

"I think having a blob of anything start talking to you in ear screeching tones is bound to do that to anyone." Yumi commented. “Its quite unpleasant.”

"Is that supposed to be a dig at me?" Akagi hummed at her with a look of suspicion on her face.

"Nope, I don't know why you'd think that would have any connection to your Demon Lord speak." Yumi shrugged. "There's nothing similar. Nopers."

"Bitch." Akagi clicked her tongue. "But, now that I think about it, I wonder if this Zenthala has anything to do with that Sol you two met when out looking for Labrys." She'd been briefed by the Twins upon their return and filed it away as something of note to keep an eye on. The Ninja tried to follow up on that individual but ultimately found nothing and couldn't be spared for a wild goose chase.

{It may even have something to do with our missing child case. We haven't been able to find Alm either, despite the Ninja's best efforts. How annoying...} (Akagi)

"Sol?" Halifax asked, unaware of that incident.

"We met this really strong lady back before you showed up." Zo explained their encounter with the unknown woman. "She had long silver/white hair and golden eyes, and she felt really strong. Kind of like the Boss... Well, not as strong as the Boss, mind you, but still, we didn't want to mess with her." She said, trying not to make it sound like she thought someone else was as strong as Akagi.

{Though now that I think about it, she's probably stronger than a regular God. At least, she's definitely stronger than Elariel when we fought her before being sealed.} (Zo)

"There are no Demi-Gods with that name, and it's not someone I recognize." Cheofla shook her head. "It's possible that was Zenthala. They're more than able to take shape and last I was aware they were in the material world in their full form, so it would make sense that their power was overwhelming compared to yours."

"Maybe it was that Helia lady?" Ro thought their might be a connection.

"The golden eyes would be dead on, but the hair color isn't since hers should be the same color as her eyes." Halifax shook her head. "And while she is powerful, she's definitely not on a Demon Lord's level. Though she's definitely strong enough to give members of the Pantheon trouble; especially since she was able to bring out my full power."

{All this back and forth is well and good, but the name Sol bugs me. That's the name scientific name of the Star that Earth orbits around. With the names that Halifax uses for her forms and some of the other things I've seen, I'm wondering if there is some kind of connection between them. Perhaps past crossovers? Questions for later, I suppose.} (Akagi)

"I believe that was everything we needed to discuss." Cheofla said as she turned to the two Demi-Gods. “You two should remain here. Having an easy line of communication with the Demon Lord will be invaluable in case we need to make any sudden changes to the plan.” She said, causing Marion to shrink behind Kelson further.

“Always a coward...” Kelson sighed.

“If they're sticking around, I'd like to put them to use.” Akagi didn't see a reason to kick them out. “Two Demi-Gods like them would be a nice bit of backup to the idiots back home.” She'd prohibited Halifax from returning but didn't mind a few Demi-Gods providing back up given that they were weaker than the Returnees.

“If you wish them to help stop Gale's invasion, then that's fine by me.” Cheofla didn't care how they were used, and Teirea nodded in approval. “The two of you will be placed in great danger, so I'd understand if you wish to refuse.”

“At this point, we really don't have a choice, do we?” Kelson knew better than to decline and mission from a God. “Either we try and stop Rehael which gives us a chance to live, or we get absorbed. I'll choose life, thank you very much.”

“I-I'll help you, Kelson.” Marion said quietly. “As much as I can...”

“Oh, so they get to go but I've got to baby sit the Vampire. I see how it is.” Halifax huffed.

“Again, you are too strong and would ruin my plans if you went.” Akagi hushed her. “These two aren't powerful enough to do it on their own but you might be able to.”

“I suppose I'll just take the implied compliment and move on.” Halifax rolled her eyes. “But I want kitty time for the trouble! And you need to make the ears extra big and floopy! I need to be able to bury my face in the floof!”

“Yeah, yeah.” Akagi rolled her eyes. “One custom kitty coming right up.”

{Hiss!} (Yumi)

"Regardless of all that, things are quickly moving toward the final confrontation with Gale. I hope for your sake and the sake of this world that you are as ready as you claim to be, Demon Lord." Cheofla said as the two 'holograms' dissipated.

"Why do I get the feeling that you're actually enjoying all this?" Halifax asked the Demon. “Its almost like conflict is your sustenance.”

"Because I am." Akagi deadpanned. "I live for this kind of thing."

{Tasty tasty drama...} (Akagi)

"Fair, I know well that the kitty does indeed like her drama." Halifax shook her head figuring that this was just par for the course. “You really are something else, you know?”

"And mystery too! Don't forget the mystery! I always like a good mystery!" Akagi laughed. "But don't act like you're not having fun either."

"I never said I wasn't, did I?" Halifax said, stretching her arms over her head. “I'll guess I'll just be relaxing until it's time for me to go to the Capitol. Maybe I'll pay a visit to Sherry for old time's sake once all is said and done."

______________________________________________________________________________

<Sol POV>

“What in the absolute Hells...” Sol found herself speechless as they delved deeper under ground until the staircase opened into a massive cave, in the distance of which one could see Alm's workshop. It was built within a large open cave and its odd shape with a large open 'court yard' reminded her of a combat arena, which Alm identified as the testing grounds. However, while odd the shape was not what had her concerned. “This power I'm sensing, what is it?” She asked Alm as the two continued down the large stone staircase as the cave lit up with magical torchlight revealing the true scope of the structure which was far larger than she'd originally expected.

“Your opponent.” Alm said casually as they continued down the stairs before reaching the bottom and stopping in front of the massive wooden doors of the workshop. “I spent countless centuries constructing this place. Within these walls are magical creations and experiments the likes of which this world is better off never seeing.” She paused as she tapped her staff on the door and channeling magic into it which caused the carvings on its surface to light up as it opened. “You will be facing my most... Let's say morally questionable experiment.”

“I do not like the sound of that.” Sol said as she followed Alm inside, dust flooding the air as the doors to the building swung open.

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