Do I hate Arascus? I am uncertain. A certain part of hates him but there is a funny little thing that happens when I look at the man. I also see Paida of Rancais. I am certain the woman absolutely does not even consider my existence because we are not diatric opposites. She is of a nation, I am sowhere in-between. The UNN does not have a patron Goddess for I am her, but likewise, I am of Democracy. It is odd, maybe if another democratic nation managed to conceive of a Goddess, the UNN would create one too, but I am uncertain. Ultimately, monarchy is stable until its not, in the Old World, they make permanent governnts that are almost designed to incarnate a patron, here though, the chaos and instability that constantly makes my people flip-flop on whether the UNN is the best nation on this world, or the worst, or sowhere in between, happens every election cycle.
But I know that when I saw Arascus, I had hatred at first. And it was the sa hatred I had directed at Paida. Both of them are older than and both of them encroach upon my territory. And territory not of Divine desne but of character strength. I have always prided myself upon being the sole voice of reason in managing the UNN. Oration is a strength, it is not my desne given to by the heavens, it is my strength and the source of my pride.
And then I t Arascus and I realised that the water I was swimming in was but a pond. Now that I think on it, the White Pantheon rarely left the mountain, I have seen Fortia and Maisara and Helenna rally but I have never thought of truly engaging them in the field of speech. Allasaria too, of course. But again, none of them have ever decided to co and humiliate in my chosen field as Arascus did.
Because it was a humiliation, because that first ti he ca to batter down Ciria with his words, I simply stood, in awe, and I realised how much I hated that such skill could exist. Reality though was that I did not actually hate Arascus, I hated myself for not having that skill.
Ultimately, it is the recognition that Arascus is better than that killed the hatred.
And now, I shall strive to be better than him.
- Entry written into the diary of Goddess Etala, of Democracy.
Ciria threw her hands up into the air as she stalked through the room she had pulled out of the ground for Halkus and herself. “AAAHHHH!!!” Her scream echoed around the walls of stone bricks. She couldn’t form the wallpaper for them but that was only because the land here lacked the raw materials to do it. “AAHHH!!!!” She scread again.
Halkus took a deep breath, sighed and sat down on one of the wooden massive wooden chairs she had pulled out for them. And as always, although she loved that about him, he remained silent and simply watched as the light of his life went tried to pull her own golden hair out. “That doesn’t regrow quickly you know. It’s not a wound.”
Ciria stopped tugging on her locks and turned to him. “Did you see that?!” What had just happened? Kochinski had the stage, how had she been painted into the situation? What did Arascus even say? And then Etala arrived. Ooohhh high and mighty Etala, who was seeming more and more like an Imperial sympathizer day by day! Oooohhh high and mighty Etala, who professed herself the patron of Democracy as she was working with Arascus! And for what exactly? To get Ciria away from her the UNN? Who exactly was building New Alkai again? Surely Etala did was not thinking that Ciria was doing nothing here! “Did you see what she did?”
“She threw us out.” Halkus said dryly as he folded his arms. “That is what she did. Her and Arascus had this planned.”
“She threw us out!” Ciria shouted. “She threw us out. Her and Arascus had it figured out to remove us.” Halkus sighed and looked down at the ground.
“I know Ciri.” He said, for a mont, Ciria stopped pacing in the small room, she loved that nickna and she stared at the husband in the small room. She had not even bothered to fix it with a door, it was just a space for privacy, the light was skylights and blurred windows she had ford out of the sand in the ground. “But what are we going to do now?”
There was no more screaming to be done. She was stressing him out, she was stressing herself too. They had tried to engineer a thod to kill Arascus, they had even made the planes together. It was a perfect plan, it should have, would have worked. But then they picked the wrong target. What exactly where they going to do now! The man was practically kidnapping them! And to the Empire as well! “We will build his towers.” Halkus said. “And then we will leave and better off for it.”
“Will Etala even let us back in?” Ciria asked. The mont she said the words, she suddenly realised the horror of it. Wait… “Wait, but seriously? Will Etala let us back in?” Halkus stared at with wide eyes.
“I don’t know Ciri.” He said.
“She won’t.” Obviously she wouldn’t. Why would she? The woman was an Imperial pawn! A sympathizer! A traitor to the very desne that had created her! And Ciria was here trying to keep the UNN independent, of course Etala would take the chance to simply close the border.
“We’ll just walk in.” Halkus said. “Or take a plane if they’re flying.”
“Do you really believe that?” Ciria asked.
“I believe the scenes from Rilia.” Halkus said. “Unless it’s fake and Arascus just has set up a way to get us out of the UNN but I assu there’s simpler thods to do that than feigning a massive strategic success.” He pursed his lips and looked at Ciria. She saw his dark eyes, and she knew exactly what was going on through his mind.
“I know what you’re going to say.” Ciria said. “And yes, of course we will make the towers. It’s for Arda. I don’t trust Tartarus either.” Halkus smiled, chuckled and Ciria could practically see the tension leave his body.
“Sotis, I don’t know with you.” He said quietly.
“WHO DO YOU THINK I AM?!” Ciria scread. “HALKUS!” Halkus shook his head and waved his hands defensively.
“Just in that eting earlier.” He trailed off, Ciria’s glare made him carry on. “Well, you were saying…”
“I was very obviously making a political point. Of course I don’t believe that Tartarus will stop at the border. I don’t even believe they’ll win at this point, just as it’s obvious Arascus doesn’t actually think they’ll push through Ainai.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because the nuclear missiles aren’t being launched at Kht right now.” That silenced the room, it was a terrible admission, Ciria had wanted to call Arascus’ bluff in public but how could she? He would imdiately fra her as saying that she was advocating for the erasure of a hundred million lives. The two Divines watched each other, Halkus from his seat, Ciria from her spot where she had been pacing about. And then, the tension was not broken, it was cranked up by a hundred magnitudes. The very air seed to turn to concrete.
A knock ca on the stone construction that Ciria had fashioned for herself and her husband. It was a slow, steady beat of three, but it was obvious from too high up to be a human. Halkus sat up imdiately, Ciria launched herself out of her seat. “That’s him.” She said as they stood in silence. Three knocks and nothing else.
“I heard it too.” Halkus said. “It’s…” He look at the wall were the sound had co from. “You should open it Ciria.”
“And if I don’t?”
“We can’t leave him standing out there.” Halkus said quickly. “And what? Are we going to flee now? Against him?” Ciria hated that her husband was correct. The God had fought in wars that Ciria could only imagine. What choice did they have? She made a pathetic wave of her hand, her fingers curling involuntarily. The room which had been a precious, private hideout suddenly felt ever so claustrophobic. The air seemingly gotten the consistency of sludge. It was a foul-tasting and freezing sludge worst of all. Even the skylights, which she had thought so bright, now held behind them a mockingly blue sky.
The wall shifted, it opened up and fresh cinder brick dragged itself back into the ground. And no matter how much Ciria wished it a tree, or maybe one of those stupid pranks were children stood on each other’s shoulders, was Arascus. The God of Pride stood tall and broad in his imperial uniform of black and red, gold and silver. He glanced upwards at the fact she had made the entrance too small. That wasn’t even on purpose, the man was just huge.
A flick of the wrist adjusted the structure and made room for his head. Even she wasn’t that petty. Arascus did not enter, his eyes passed over Ciria, then to Halkus, then around the room as if he was expecting soone else here. And finally, he spoke. “We will sort this out now.” Arascus said, he stared at Ciria and at Halkus. “The last ti I was returning from the UNN, soone ordered assassinated.” He eyes were not accusatory, they were certain. His gaze passed from Ciria to Halkus and back again and he crossed his arms.
“I…” Ciria began and trailed off. This was the first ti being so close to the God of Pride, and he was so huge that two Ciria’s could fit into his space and leave space for part of a third. She took a step back as Arascus’ cold eyes fixed her. Halkus stood up and stepped into the space between them.
“I did it.” He said. That was a lie entirely, they both did it. Ciria’s failure at telling her husband to shut up resulted in a squeak. Arascus stared at Halkus for a mont, and then her husband went on. “Ciria had no part of it, the planes were my design.”
Arascus shook his head. “I will give you so advice Halkus, you make apologies personal.” He said dryly. “You say sothing like ‘Ciria hates you and I can’t stand seeing her this way.’ I may have believed you then.” Halkus’ hands curled into trembling fists. “But no, I ca to tell you that I knew, and I have known since I saw the plane first fly. The UNN does not have the technology nor ans to invent, design, test, build and field interceptors that could compete with Imperial planes. If you simply strapped rockets to a civilian plane, it would have been more difficult to tell. Maybe Malam would have had to run an investigation.”
Ciria wished she could bite her tongue off. She should not say anything. Let Halkus handle it for once. “Then you know already.” Halkus said. “So what shall be done with ?”
The fact Arascus smiled sent a chill down Ciria’s spine. “Nothing.” He said. “I’ve co to tell I know, that I am not stupid, and because it would obviously devour you to live in the fear that you are going to the Empire whilst I’m wondering who tried to kill . I am not wondering, and I have no intent to do anything about it.” Was that supposed to be a threat? It certainly felt like one. Ciria wanted him to scream or argue or berate. That at least she could engage with.
Halkus straightened and drew his head up, even now, the God of Industry was shorter than Of Pride. Arascus rolled his eyes. “Do not look at like that Halkus, I have just forgiven you and your wife for plotting an assassination on .”
Halkus asked the question that Ciria could not voice. “Why?”
“There is not a single deity on this world that has a clean slate.” Arascus said. “I have waged war against Kassandora, I have had to step into the middle of conflict between Allasaria and Irinika in the past. The Empire was conceived with her as the first daughter, she turned down.” Ciria’s eyes grew wide. That was history she did not know of. Allasaria was supposed to start the Empire? Well good riddance that she did not.
“She did not take you up on the offer.” Halkus said.
Arascus nodded. “No. Look at her White Pantheon and look at the Empire now. There is a lesson in there, I’d advise looking for it.” He smiled, made a single nod and turned. “I will you see at the INS Tremali within the hour, do not worry for your safety, unlike you, I kill openly. You would know if your life is in danger.”
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