While the skies of the mortal world thundered with divine might, deep in the heart of creation’s shadow—the Underworld—a different kind of storm was gathering.
Far away from any divine cities of the underworld, there was a field.
It was vast, stretching to the horizon with no end in sight.
Golden sands, ancient and untouched, shimred with faint whispers of souls long buried.
The Underworld stretches to infinity, and even Hades has yet to reach the very end of it. He can do it if he put on an effort, but after so distance, everything else just beca an endless land of sand.
There was no point trying to explore it.
Although, if he has enough ti, he would love to explore it later.
And it is on this endless plain of sand where Hades planned on pulling the primordial mother.
He obviously couldn’t pull her at the heart of Underworld. The amount of damage it would cause would be devastating.
The Underworld gods are overworked and understaffed as it is, the order and circulation of souls would surely collapse if their workload increases even more.
Currently, at the very center of this endless plain, Hades, King of the Dead, sat on a throne made of obsidian and white bone.
There was no castle, no guards nor souls, just him alone on this endless plain, sitting on by his loneso.
His face, stoic as ever, stared at the massive magical formation in front of him. It was vast and complex, its glyphs floating in the air like constellations.
Twelve pillars of magic flickered, humming with power as the formation that they will use to pull Gaia took form.
A soft wind brushed the sands, and then, a flicker of purple mist manifested, and with it Hecate erged before Hades, robes of midnight trailing behind her, her lamp pulsing with power.
"Lord Hades, it’s almost ready," she said calmly, her eyes glowing faintly with power. "All we need to do now is to connect each pillar, and we can activate it."
Hades turned to her slightly, his eyes staring straight at her as he nodded in acknowledgent.
"Good," he said, his voice echoing like distant thunder. "Right on ti."
He looked up, his eyes glowed as if it could pierce through dinsions.
Through his gaze, he can see the intense battle going on in the overworld.
He was even montarily surprised when Zeus seems to have revert to his forr self, before power and arrogance got into his head.
He observed them silently, then, after a long pause, a faint smile crossed his pale lips. "I’m surprised... the Olympians actually managed to hold on for three days. I thought they would’ve asked for help."
Although, he did send Campe there just to make sure everything goes smoothly.
Hecate tilted her head, hiding a smirk. "They surprised too. However, I believe Lord Erebus is the main reason they can hold on for long."
"Erebus..." Hades mused. "Maybe."
Just then, a flutter in the air. Darkness wrapped around the throne like silk—and from the shadows,
Nyx, Goddess of the Night, materialized.
She sat casually on the armrest of Hades’ throne, resting her back against him like they had done this a thousand tis before.
Her voice was soft and cold. "Don’t give him too much credit. He can manage for long because he begged for my blessings."
Hades let out a low chuckle, rare and dry. "Then perhaps I owe you thanks, Lady Night."
Nyx waved a hand lazily. "That didn’t really help much. You should say your thanks to Khronos."
Hecate raised an eyebrow. "The Primordial of Ti?"
Nyx nodded, "I’m sure you can feel the distortion of ti around Gaia. Ti moves slower in her perception."
Hecate frowned as she looked up, and indeed. She felt it. How co she just noticed it now?
"That, and I believe those chains were also of great help." Said Hades as he leaned forward slightly, gazing past dinsions with his divine sight. "Such a work of art. Hephaestus is really brilliant. I’d like to et the man. A fellow inventor."
He thought of his own Breakdown Sphere, and the various inventions he had created to reach transcendence.
"Chains that can bind the gods and completely restrict them of their divinity. I wonder if he nad it already? If not, I would like to call it the Chains of Heaven."
Then, his voice turned grim. "However, those guys won’t be able to hold on for long. How long till the Gate finishes?"
Hecate answered, "Any minute now. I can’t give a specific ti, but the Gate will be finished before they get completely overwheld."
"Good," Hades said. "That will be more than enough."
Nyx slid off the armrest and stood before him, her black dress shifting like fog. "Well then, let’s review the plan."
She traced her finger in the air, and a vision ford, a miniature model of the battlefield above and the Underworld below.
"Hecate and the rest of Twelve Patrons will keep the Gate open," Nyx said. "We cannot afford even a second of lapse. If the gate closes, then Gaia can imdiately leave."
Hecate nodded. "The Underworld rejects her. She is life itself. Her essence fights this realm every mont. Only the Gate’s pull can keep her anchored."
Gaia can actually stay in the Underworld if she wanted to, but that required intense will power. So if she doesn’t want to actively stay, the Underworld would imdiately eject her out.
No amount of seals can prevent that.
The Gate will keep her anchored her. She won’t be able to leave even if she wanted to.
Nyx continued, "After that, Hades will keep her busy, and I will dive deep into Gaia’s soul. I’ll try to rip the entity out, force it to separate from her essence. There might still be sothing of the original Gaia left."
She turned toward Hades, her expression hardening. "If I fail..."
Hades nodded. "Then I’ll end it. Even if it ans killing Gaia."
A heavy silence passed between them.
"She wouldn’t want to be used like this," Nyx added softly.
"No," Hades agreed. "She wouldn’t."
The tension lifted slightly, and Nyx leaned against Hades once more, her voice lower now.
"I’ll try my best," she said. "She was... she is my sister."
Hecate looked at them both. "We should be ready. The Gate will open fully soon."
"We’ll be waiting," Hades replied.
*
*
*
In the distance, the formation pulsed harder.
The Twelve Patrons of the Underworld chanted in unison. Each one stood at a cardinal point of the formation, channeling their power into various runes.
Winds of divine energy howled across the field. Space trembled as ti seed to stop.
The Gate flickered, a spiral of swirling light and shadow.
Soon, it would open fully, and when it did—Gaia would be dragged here.
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