"I see... so not much happened on that front then?" Arnold tapped the table once Ashton finished recalling the past.
However, Ashton raised an eyebrow based on Arnold's reaction. He was sitting before the 'One Above All' as called by the precursors, but he didn't seem to be all that mighty.
Sure, Arnold was strong, but his nonchalant behaviour was strange. At least, that's what Ashton felt upon eting the guy.
"Looks can be deceiving," Arnold smiled, noticing Ashton's gaze.
"Wait, you can read minds?" Ashton questioned.
He wondered why Arnold bothered asking him about the last ten years when he could have just read his mind to know everything.
"I can do many things," Arnold replied, pointing to his vertical third eye. "Soone gave this power, so it would be impolite not to use it now and then.
He continued, "As for the reason, I wanted to understand your character, and it looks like you're an honest person. At least you were honest with , either way."
"It's not like I would dare lie and piss off soone like yourself," Ashton chuckled before taking a sip of the drink Arnold had brought with him.
Strangely enough, Arnold wasn't drinking. Ashton had questioned him about it, and Arnold's reply made him think he was already drunk. He had been sober for a few centuries and wasn't going to change that anyti soon.
"You shouldn't lie to the weak either," Arnold chuckled. "Who am I kidding? I lied to my wife just to et you. You see, Nina doesn't like it when I go universe hopping alone."
"You're... married?"
"Why do you sound so surprised? Of course, I'm married. I was once human, a proper mortal human, you know."
"Forgive for being an idiot, but I'm having a tough ti believing soone like you could ever be weak."
Arnold let out a hearty laugh. It wasn't the first ti he had heard those words, but it made him laugh whenever soone said it. Who would have thought that soone like him, who once worked as a lowly porter, could be where he is now?
However, he wasn't there to relive the past. After all, Arnold had important business with Ashton. Sothing that couldn't be ignored any longer.
"Well, now that you're done, it's my turn to tell you sothing," Arnold said, the smile disappearing from his face.
Ashton sensed the seriousness in Arnold's tone, prompting him to set the drink aside and listen closely. Yet, nothing could ready him for the words that Arnold spoke.
"Your universe will soon be destroyed," Arnold said, facing outside the window.
"What? Who'd do that... who can even pull off sothing like that?" Ashton questioned, and his thoughts instantly went to the only person he knew with such power—the man standing before him.
"It's not , but an existence even I can't take lightly," Arnold sighed heavily. "There's sothing much bigger at play here—the Primordial gods.
My predecessor, Lord Shiva, managed to keep them under control for a long ti. But after he rged with ... the outer gods, the Primordials, started moving towards other universes, devouring them to feed their own universe."
Ashton was hearing every word that Arnold said, but he was having a tough ti believing him. How could soone 'devour' a universe to feed their own? Stuff like that wasn't possible... at least, it felt like it to him.
"So you're trying to say that, my universe, this universe is their next target?" Ashton scoffed, thinking it was a joke and expecting Arnold to agree.
However, Arnold shook his head instead. "They already tried once and failed."
When Ashton heard those words, he recalled the vision where he witnessed Arnold rescuing the precursor from an unknown entity. A being so powerful that even the entire Precursor army, at the height of their strength, couldn't defeat it.
"You an to say that was a Primordial god?" Ashton asked, but Arnold shrugged it off.
"'That' was just a foot soldier."
Ashton's jaw dropped. A re foot soldier was strong enough to force the mighty precursors on their knees? How was that even possible?
"I'm aware how you feel," Arnold mumbled, placing his hand on Ashton's shoulder. "But that just goes to show how strong they are, and their power would only increase as they devour more and more universes."
"Can we even stop them?"
Those words escaped Ashton's mouth, and for the first ti in their eting, Arnold was speechless. He could have lied about it, and Ashton would have believed him. But he didn't say anything to him.
"It'd be impossible for to do it alone," he finally broke the silence. "I tried once and barely made it out alive."
"That's why you're here..." Ashton muttered as he realised the purpose of Arnold's visit.
"That's right. I'm gathering capable warriors who can stand a chance against the Primordials," Arnold admitted. "Astaroth was supposed to join , but he did what he did, and now-"
"You're left with ."
Arnold nodded. Astaroth was his first choice because he was ruthless and a soldier in his core. Soone like him would have been consequential to have by his side. But now that he was no longer there, Ashton was the second-best choice.
However, Ashton didn't know what to say. On one hand, he was strong enough to deal with the precursors on his own. But on the other, he wasn't sure if he could protect an entire universe from the Primordials by himself.
"I won't force you to make a decision, but I think you know it's a battle we have to fight together," Arnold said, interrupting Ashton's thoughts.
"How many of us are there?"
"Four, including and you," Arnold replied. "All of us are incarnations of lord Shiva in one form or another. Dealing with the Primordials would be easier... but only if we unite."
"Wait, wait, wait... we're all what?"
"You heard it the first ti. We're Shiva's incarnations. There's Zok, the lord of animals, and Zaen, the enraged one also called Rudra," Arnold explained.
"Then there's , the disciple of Sadashiva, in charge of the multiverse, and you... Shava, the Dead one. Or, in simpler terms, soone who should be dead but isn't."
Ashton was a bit shaken. Not by the fact that he was sohow related to an actual god but because Arnold confird he was supposed to die instead of Astaroth, but sothing changed their destiny.
"So, what's it gonna be?" Arnold asked him. "Are you in?"
"...it'd be rude to turn you down after you went through all that trouble to get here."
"Wise choice. Now co, let's introduce you to the gang," Arnold smiled and opened a portal before the two walked in... for another adventure.
The End.
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