Sacrifice (Volchan+Viper)

[volchan]

Her tiny lungs burned for air as she stumbled on weakened legs towards the docks. The screams of fallen and victor rang out in the darkness among the clashing of swords and the blares of trumpets driving on their attackers. She felt the hand around her small wrist tighten as she was tugged faster towards the waiting boats. She was still in a sleepy haze, but her heart was beating rapidly in her chest.


“Just a little further.” A woman's voice said; the same woman who was pulling her along by the arm.


Suddenly torchlight surrounded them and the woman pulling her screamed. Two slender arms wrapped themselves about her as she was tightly embraced.


“Please!” The woman cried.


“Please spare my child!”


Through the tangled mess of hair and shaking limbs, swords and spears glinted in the firelight. The sound of a blade cutting through the air broke through the desperate cries, followed swiftly by the piercing scream of the woman shielding her.


Something warm and wet sprinkled her face and arms. Looking down, she could see the woman, her mother, curled in on herself and bleeding out fast from a serious sword wound. In stunned silence all she could do was stare in shock, her voice caught in her throat. She could feel her body shaking, feel the tears running down her cheeks, and feel her heart throbbing madly in her small chest.


“Mm-m...”


She tried to speak, but her lips wouldn't move. It felt as if time had stopped, so when two large hands suddenly grabbed her and snatched her up it was as if she'd suddenly been slapped.


“Mama!” She cried, kicking and squirming to try and free herself. She reached out for the woman as she was carried off, watching in horror as the bloodstained blade impaled her mother's heart.


“MAMA!!!”


-----


She gasped and sat up, panting heavily. She could feel the sweat beading on her forehead as she put a hand over her heart to try and settle herself.


“...Dream...” She murmured to herself, closing her blue eyes in relief. The dreams had been getting worse lately, and had been coming to her more often. It was one of the few memories she had left of her homeland, and it was filled with blood and suffering and death.


Standing up from her small bed, she went to the barred window to look outside. The sun was almost up, which meant she didn't have much time left. She could feel her stomach turning at the thought of what fate awaited her; the last six months had gone by in almost no time at all. Six months of strict dieting, grooming, and being kept under lock and key. In all honesty, she'd been living better in the last six months of her life than she had in the last 15 years. Even so, no normal person would look forward to what she would soon experience.


There was a small knock on the door before the lock turned and an older woman with tanned skin and dark hair came in, followed closely by a handful of other younger women. All of them were garbed in bright red clothing and each carried bowls filled with different things ranging from food and water to oils and perfumes and different accessories such as gold earrings and bracelets.


“It's time to get ready.” The older woman stated, motioning for her to sit down on the chair in the corner. The young woman did so without a word.


As the other young women stripped her and covered her in lotions, oils, and perfumes, she sat quietly, keeping her eyes downcast as she'd grown accustomed to by now. Her appearance was quite different from the others in the room. Her skin was much, much paler than the others' and her hair was stark white. It had been cropped short since her youth, but in the last six months it had been allowed to grow out and was now almost to her shoulders. Along her neck, arms and legs ran bands of turquoise that she'd had as far back as she could remember. They were the markings of her people; a people whose name she could no longer recall. The strange marks weren't the only things on her skin: there were also old scars here and there; evidence of her upbringing.


“Stand up.” The older woman ordered, and she stood. Soon enough she was dressed in bright red attire with gold stitching and had gold adornments woven through her short, white hair. Several golden bracelets and anklets later she was ready, and the young women stepped back to await their next commands. The older woman circled her like a bird of prey, eying each inch of her to check for any flaws. After several suspenseful hums and grunts, she stopped.


“She is ready. Let's go.”


The other women immediately surrounded her. None of them laid a hand on her, but she already knew that trying to escape was useless. For the past six months she'd fantasized about how she could possibly escape; knowing all the while that it was a fruitless effort. Even if she did break free, there was nowhere she could hide.


The group made its way down a long set of curved, stone stairs and into a large open space that had the appearance of an inner temple. On one side of the room was a large doorway leading to the streets, and on the other stood a massive statue of Moloch; the god of fire, battle, and destruction. He towered at least five men tall with unholy armor and a giant sword that could easily cut six men in half with a single swing. All around the giant stone statue was an alter adorned with candles, incense, and goblets of fresh blood. Each day animals were sacrificed and drained to have their blood poured over the alter, which was by now stained red with countless past offerings. Today, however, Moloch would be given an extra special offering.


“Is she ready?” A male voice spoke up from the doorway. Standing there was a group of men, most of them appearing to be soldiers. One man in particular stood out; the man who had spoken. He appeared important, and carried himself as such.


“Yes, my lord.” The old woman answered, bowing. The other girls, including their captive, did the same.


“Then let's be going before the mountain becomes any angrier.” He responded. Without another word the group left the temple and began their way through the city and up the steep trail leading to the top of a smoking volcano. Others watched from their homes or storefronts as they traveled past, bowing in respect and at times giving cries of praise. The young woman could only trek on, her eyes glued to her sandaled feet. If only she had the power of flight; she'd leap into the air and soar away somewhere far from this cursed land.


It took a good four hours for the group to finally reach the top of the volcano. The heat was already intense as dark smoke rose up out of the fiery depths. The young woman could feel herself beginning to tremble now at the thought of what she was about to experience. All she wanted in that moment was to run away but, as if reading her mind, two of the soldiers grabbed her wrists and pulled her closer to the edge, making her choke back a cry of distress.


“Take off her sandals.” The old woman said. The sandals were promptly removed, leaving her standing barefoot on black ash and rock. As her wrists were held out over the pit, she felt herself wanting to beg for her life. Even as she opened her mouth to speak, she couldn't push out the words. In that moment all she could think of was her mother; pleading for mercy as her child was taken and she was cut down. She didn't want her life to end like that......she didn't want to die curled up in tears crying out for compassion that wouldn't come. No. She would face this with her eyes raised; with her head held high...even if she was barely able to stand from the terror.


“Moloch; god of our ancestors!” The old woman shouted out over the volcanic pit.


“Today we offer you pure blood; the blood of your warslave, of your conquered enemy!”


Taking a long, jagged blade, the old woman sliced a deep cut across the young captive's exposed wrists; earning a sharp cry of pain from the girl. The warm blood dribbled from the snow-white wrists and into the volcano, which almost seemed to tremble in anticipation. Once the subtle shaking subsided, the woman continued on.


“May this sacrifice please you and bring our people another twenty years of favor and prosperity!”


Turning from the volcano, the old woman gave the soldiers a nod. Without pause, pity, or word they threw the young woman into the smoking pit. It all happened so quickly she didn't even have time to scream. As she tumbled downward into the ever-heating cauldron of molten rock she imagined herself sprouting wings and flying to safety. The last thing she registered before being consumed in the heat was the blue sky slowly disappearing in the thick ashen smoke...


-----


Heat: unbearable, unfathomable heat consuming every inch of her being. That was the first thing she noticed upon coming to.


“U-Uhn....” She managed to groan, though it hurt terribly. Her nose and lungs were filled with ash that burned and stung with each breath she took. She tried to open her eyes, but the heat was so strong that even the smallest sliver scorched them. Reaching out, she weakly tried to feel where she was. She had been thrown into the volcano; wasn't she supposed to be dead? Had she somehow landed somewhere near the bottom? Was she going to die a slow and painful death?


Her frightened and pained tears sizzled and evaporated against her ash-dusted skin as she came to the realization that she was going to suffer, perhaps for a long time. She was too weak to move; let alone drag herself into the lava to die faster. Her whole body was wracked with pain; she could even still feel the blood running down her arms. How was she not dead already? How had she ended up in this position?


“h....help...” She managed to whimper. She didn't know who she was asking, or even if any god out there would listen to a lowly creature such as herself, but at this point she was desperate. She would accept death with open arms, if only this pain would be taken from her.

 

[Viper]

The world began with a wish, a strong desire by a creature with no form, no singular consciousness, and no name. They wanted to fill the emptiness that pervaded everything. Through sheer force of will, the first god was awoke and from that god came many more. As centuries and millennium passed by, more gods appeared while those who were no longer needed vanished back into the nothingness. The universe which was once nothing but the void, soon became a place filled with color and life. Planets, the elements, animals, all came to be as more and more gods were born. During this time the gods were not the ones we know now, they were shapeless or sharing the appearance of whatever it was they embodied. One day a new species was created unlike anything that came before it. The God who made this species called them Humans. The new creature was more intelligent than the other animals yet was still strong enough to fight. Their greatest virtue however was that they were capable of understanding that there was more in the universe than what they could see. They understood that someone above them was watching and impacting their lives. This one trait changed everything.  Suddenly the Gods were given a place in both worlds and not just faceless witnesses, the humans gave them names and personalities similar to their own, offering them gifts in the hopes that the storm would pass by without doing harm or the harvest would be plentiful. Those who accepted their new roles in the humans lives grew strong from the power that came from worshiping while those who rejected it soon found themselves fading away as they were forgotten.


Those are the Gods that the world is dealing with now. They are not the same, very few gods have survived the cultural growth that came from humankind spreading over the world and in turn abandoning old religions. It was almost like a God created humans only for humans to turn around recreate the Gods.  Humans had a gift that no other creature ever had, a collective willpower strong enough create deities. If a large group of people believe that storms are just a cruel form of weather sent to destroy crops, a god will be born in order to embody that belief, however across the ocean there may be a population that thinks that the storms are just the sky's way of crying and so a somber god will be born to embody that notion. Sometimes humans can do more than just make a god, they can change an existing one. As time goes on, people change and so do their beliefs. The Gods cannot help but change in order to continue to embody their element the adjust to the changes, in fact it is likely that they don't even notice that they are different people once the change is complete. They are how they are, and it is all they have ever known.  Finally, the last power that humans have more so than another creature, is their ability to kill gods. Not physically, although there are ways of doing that, but if mankind completely forgets a God or the world on a grander scale no longer has a need of them, that God will slowly fade away until even their immortal thrown crumbles into nothingness. Humans are the ants standing beneath all powerful beings yet they have the ability to make the ground crumble beneath them even still. 


Despite this dependency, the life of a God was easy, sometimes too easy, which often left the Gods with too much freedom and boredom. A bored immortal is a dangerous immortal. Sadly, it was rarely the Gods who  had to suffer because of this, it was the mortals who they were supposed to watch over and protect that more often than not became victims.  Fear worked just as well as kindness when trying to make mortals make offerings and worship you after all.  The humans scuttle on the ground, so easy to kill and deceive... it would only take one finger to ruin them all. Yet the Gods don't, because in the end they need humans.  That did not mean that they were kind to their people or enemies of their people though.One such example was a village built far too close to an active volcano, their houses on top of stone which was formed from remnants of past eruptions. The God of this village, worshiped above all others at least, was Moloch. Fire, war, and destruction was his territory and his presence could be felt where ever there was strife. And this village had a lot of it. They may have been normal people at their heart but there was a willingness to do the immoral if it meant that the volcano stayed dormant for another year, they knew that if they did not appease Moloch they would be dead before they could apologize. He was a cruel God. Each year, when the sun was positioned directly above the mouth of the volcano, a sacrifice jumped, or was thrown, into the volcano as an offering. Moloch demanded it and so it was done. This year was no different.  When an offering was shed in his name, a God could always feel the sacrifice like a shiver down the spine, especially when that offering was blood. A deep voice chuckled when he felt that familiar sensation "Here it comes!" The god said, standing up and exiting his temple like home.


The outside of his home was remarkable to say the least. The Home of the Gods. A series of floating islands connected together by bridges, rocks, and other such unique paths. All you could see in any direction was clouds, and the weather was always perfect here. If you were to look at the lower most island one would see mall buildings all clumped together on the same chuck of stone, yet the higher up the chain were mansion like temples that had islands dedicated to themselves. The higher the island and larger the temple, the more powerful the God who owned it.  It was glorious and would be impossible to replicate on earth, for so much majesty was only possible in dreams with magic.  At the very top though was a circles of thrones, a gathering place for all of the gods and forbidden to any spirit, demi-god, or monsters. Moloch's temple had it's own island, he was rather powerful after all of the wars that the world had been in, so he was sitting pretty near the top of these floating islands. His island seemed to be made of molten rock which swirled in gorgeous patterns. It was still warm but not hot enough to burn, almost like warm sand at the beach. The occasional burst of steam will free itself from the stone and literally dance about the land in order to reenact past battles.  Fire torches  lead the way to the temple which was more of an armory than home, statues of warriors were on the perimeter of the building like guards while inside weapons took up the bulk of the room.There was a throne and other random luxury items fit for a god as well.  


The god of destruction was very similar in appearance to his servants on earth, darkly tanned and always battle ready. He stood tall and wide, every inch of his body muscled to perfection, with two deep scars on his chest and a small one on his face.  Gods could not be wounded by normal means, but they could be hurt by a handful of weapons that were made to kill gods and gods alone, so when hurt like that even a god gets scarred.  His hair was auburn and eyes were a vibrant orange that flickered like a fire.  He wore dark red greaves with matching gauntlets, both adorned with sharp points.  The things that separated his from a normal soldiers were that there was an obvious lack of armor on his chest, the way his gauntlets seemed to shine with venom, but the thing that stood out the most was was metallic tail that could stretch far past his own height if he wanted to but normally the tail just curled around his waist like a belt. He certainly could not be mistaken for a human, that was for sure. 


Moloch exited his temple to see a girl laying on the rock, dressed in what remained of  a familiar shade of red. This girl was different however, her hair was pale just like her skin and blue tattoos coated her body. Due to the lava she had passed through to get here, she was only wearing ashes and rags now so seeing the markings trailing over her body was easy. His first instinct was to snarl, seeing that color pattern reminded him too much of his neighbor and rival, Nerus.  Yet the more he examined her, and the scars on her body, his rage turned into an amused sense of pleasure. A foreigner then, captured and sacrificed. This was not the best sacrifice he had ever gotten but it would do... at least she was pretty. As Moloch leaned in the doorway of the temple, his arm holding up his weight, he heard the girl mutter a request.  He thought about it for a second, the pain would go away on it's own eventually, but on a whim Moloch decided to grant this mortals request immediately.  He waved his spare hand in her direction before the heat visibly lifted off her body and dissipated in the air. "Unless you want to get burned again mortal, you should probably stand up and thank me for that." He spoke, his voice deep and in the back of his throat, adding a touch of rumble to his words.  Grinning down at the girl with a smile that was not kind but more taunting than anything, he waited for his new pets reaction. 

 

[volchan]

The young pale woman lay there trembling in pain and hardly able to breathe with all the ash in her lungs, but then suddenly all the pain and heat seemed to evaporate from her body and drift away. Even the ash in her lungs and nose sifted out of her. For a moment she was stunned. Had she suddenly died? But.....she could still feel the warm rock under her.



A sudden, deep voice spoke out and without thinking she opened her eyes in surprise. It didn't hurt this time as she was able to take in the strange scenery around her. This place........it wasn't the bottom of the volcano at all. In fact, it didn't even seem to be the same world she'd existed in all this time. From her point of view, she could only make out the black rocks and cracked ground of her current location, as well as a vast expanse of sky.



“Where.....” She started, her voice drifting off as she managed to sit up. The gold that had been woven through her hair chimed in the warm, dry breeze and the mostly-burned garment she'd been forced to wear slipped down one of her shoulders, causing her to take notice of her own condition. As soon as she realized she was barely covered, she felt a wave of anxiety come over her and she tried her best to keep the most important parts hidden. She was covered in ash but......her wounds seemed to have healed. She knew for a fact she had been burned, but the injury was gone. Even the cuts on her wrists had closed up; leaving only faint scars behind.



It was then that she recalled hearing a voice. She turned her head to seek out the person who'd spoken to her, only to go into shock upon seeing the being standing nearby. She knew that form......it was Moloch. She felt her heart starting to thump loudly in her chest. Did this mean she was dead? It couldn't be a dream if she could feel pain, and she was certain she'd been thrown down into the volcano. She could feel her mouth drying up at the thought. She'd known she was dying.....but to actually be aware of her own death? She suddenly felt even more terrified than she had standing at the edge of the volcano. And what was to become of her now? She'd been sacrificed to a cruel god; a god she'd served unwillingly for the last fifteen years of her life. The same god who had brought about the murder of her people, the death of her mother, and her own enslavement. Looking at him now, seeing that mocking smile on his face, she felt once again as if she'd been stolen away and chained.



She'd heard his command, but it hadn't really registered until that moment. It was obvious he was threatening her. She was used to being threatened by now; used to bowing her head and taking whatever others did to her. How could she go on like this? Every ounce of her being already knew what kind of god Moloch was; she'd seen what others did in his name. How could she possibly be here with him? She had no idea what ultimate fate he had in store for her, but she couldn't exist like this anymore. Even in death it seemed she'd have no peace.



Standing with a slight wobble as he'd said, she looked up at him. He towered over her, making him appear even more threatening. She already knew he could break her with a single finger.


“...Thank you.” She said quietly, giving a small cough. Even though the ash was gone, her throat still felt scratchy. Although she wanted to spit at him and curse him for what he and his followers had put her through, he had helped her when she'd asked. Now, though, she owed him nothing. Turning her gaze from him, she took in her surroundings again; this time with intent. The edge of this place, whatever it was, wasn't too far away. Perhaps if she ran for it she could throw herself off the side. She couldn't live for eternity as this god's slave. She would rather kill her own soul than to be put through anymore torment.



“...I can't do this.” She muttered to herself before suddenly sprinting towards the edge of the floating island. She had no idea what would be below or around, but she knew she couldn't stay here. Managing to reach the end of this new world, she didn't hesitate. She leapt from the side and into the sky. The first time she'd fallen she'd had no option, but this time it would be her choice to die.

 

[Viper]

At first, Moloch thought that this mortal knew her place already. She had stood up when told  and said thank you like a good girl, yet out of no where she turned on her heels and bolted away.  Moloch did not move, no, he just stared after her with a vague sense of amusement. Aw, how cute. The little pup is trying to kill herself. Moloch thought patronizingly with a small smile, watching her rush away from him and towards the edge of the island. She didn't hesitate, she jumped right off into the clouds.   It was futile, this realm was like a bubble, there was no way out of it unless you could teleport. Instead she would just fall for eternity.  Many people had went over the side of  the islands before, sometimes by accident other times not, and the Gods didn't think too much of those people. They just let them go and replaced them with another mortal. Although, once every few decades they would do a 'clean up' day where they would fly into the clouds themselves and retrieve all of the jumpers from over the years. Needless to say, after decades of endless falling, they never considered throwing themselves over again and seemed much more eager to serve. All you had to do was threaten to push them off the island and they started whimpering and begging for forgiveness even if it wasnt their fault. It was one way to get servants to follow orders, and Moloch had learned this through experience. 


For a few seconds he considered letting her fall for a few years, it would teach her a lesson about running away from her master. It may break her spirit a little bit though, which Moloch was actually against. He liked spirit, he liked when his people had a fire in their eyes. This girl apparently had a lot of it despite her pale form and it would be a shame to ruin that before he even had time to enjoy it... or get sick of it. So with light chuckle, the god of destruction teleported towards the edge of the island where she had jumped off a few seconds ago.  He could still see her falling and like a whip, his armor like tail unwound from around his waist and darted towards the mortal. It wrapped tightly around her form, the sharp point of the tail purposely ending up pointing directly at her throat. It probably hurt as the rest of her body tried to fall only to be yanked back when her waist was unable to follow the decent. Moloch did not immediately pull her up, instead he let her hang there like a piñata as he leaned over the edge, grinning down at her helplessness. "Yeah, that's not going to work, girl." He called down, even cupping his hands around his mouth just to drive the point home that even with a several meter head start, he still caught her with ease. There was no escape. "You can't die here even if you wanted to! If I let you fall that's all you would be doing until someone decided to help... and no one would have for another 50 years!" Slowly he drew her back up towards the island however not fully, instead he kept her suspended over the edge although face to face now. "I think I deserve another thank you for not leaving you to that fate, don't you think?" He was visibly enjoying this. His mouth grinning to the point that even his slightly sharp canines were showing in all their glory.  He was taunting her and rubbing it in her face that this was the second time he saved her from torture in the matter of minutes. 


"New behave yourself pet, if you run away again I won't be as merciful. I would hate to have to cut off those legs just because you won't stay still." Moloch warned her before pulling the human back over solid ground and dropping her roughly onto the stone. He crossed his arms, his tail winding back around his waist as he did so, and looked down at the human. Slowly his ember eyes ran up and down her ashen body before nodding as if he made a decision . "We're done out here, come on, let's get you cleaned up and in some clothes. You look pitiful right now."  His words were unsurprisingly blunt, not holding back any of this thoughts no matter how rude they may come off as.   One should not expect the god of war to be kind or think of others peoples feelings, he noticed actions, not emotions. That was someone else domain and therefore not his problem. The reason he wanted to get her clean and in some new clothing was not out of the goodness in his heart. It's not that he respected a woman's modesty, he walked around without a shirt on so he had no problem with nudity as a whole either, the problem wasn't even that she would dirty his temple.  He just hated to look at weakness, and a woman in rags did not exactly scream 'my life belongs to Moloch' which was the look she should have been giving off instead of 'pathetic mongrel'. Oh, and seeing someone who reminded him so much of Nerus wearing red instead of blue would be hilarious.  Moloch took a few steps in the direction of his temple before turning over his shoulder, his eyes narrowing "Are you coming or do I have to make you, pet?"  He threatened for the third time, his eyes daring her to challenge him. He granted mercy once, and that was one more time than normal. 

 

[volchan]

As she threw herself over the edge and began to fall into the infinite sky she closed her eyes. This was it; she was killing herself to escape her own unjust...well...death. It should have terrified her, but in some way it was actually peaceful. She'd always dreamed of flying away somewhere better; she supposed this was the best she'd be able to do.



She was just starting to enjoy the breeze pushing through her hair and brushing against her skin when suddenly something wrapped around her abdomen and she was brought to a sudden halt....or at least her abdomen was. The stop was so sudden that any air in her lungs and fluid in her stomach was forced out of her, causing her to wretch. It was as if he'd been kicked in the stomach twenty times over. She struggled to catch her breath again, coughing violently for a few moments before groaning in pain. She'd barely had time to notice the reason she'd stopped or the sharp point aimed at her throat. When she did, however, she was overcome with emotion. Hanging there, at Moloch's mercy, she felt defeated again. Why did this god insist on tormenting her? What had she ever done to him?



He called down to her from where she hung, telling her it was useless. What did he mean she couldn't die? Surely this wasn't all that awaited her. No.....there had to be more than this. What about her mother? Her people? Where were they? She just wanted to be with them again. She couldn't exist like this anymore! She'd been beaten, tortured, whipped, starved and humiliated for fifteen years...how was she supposed to carry on like this? She'd always kept going because she'd believed there would be an end; that she'd either escape or find rest in death. Now even in death she was to be tormented? What kind of cruel reality was this?



By the time Moloch brought her up to face him, there were some tears running down her face. She'd learned to hold back emotion, but this was too much. It was as if all her hope was being snuffed out. He demanded another thank you with a smirk on his face. She knew that look well; the soldiers had given that same look while simultaneously tormenting those they'd captured. She'd been crying and shaking all curled up in her cage and they'd just laughed as if her pain and fear was some kind of joke. She wanted to bite him, hit him, slit his disgusting throat. Her anger could be seen muddled behind the tears in her eyes, but even with all that anger she knew better than to act. She was wise enough to know what kind of retribution those actions would bring and so, swallowing her pride, she gave another 'thank you' to the being behind all her torment.



The god told her to behave herself, threatening to cut off her legs if she tried to escape again, before dropping her carelessly to the ground. It wasn't a soft landing, and with a small grunt she lay there curled up in pain and defeat. When he called her pitiful she didn't respond. She'd been called worse things in her life, and she supposed that in this moment she probably did look quite pitiful. No part of her wanted to move, even at the prospect of being cleaned up and dressed in better clothes. She would prefer to lie in those rags in the dirt than be in Moloch's company. Even so, when the god spoke again with that threat in his voice, she moved. It took every ounce of herself to stand; not only because she was in pain, but because she had no desire to obey him. She wanted to run again, to kick at him, to claw his burning eyes out, but what chance did she have? As much as she might struggle, she couldn't fight a god. No.....it was better to obey and bide her time for now. Until she better understood her environment and situation, there was little she could do. She would have to listen to him and save her strength until the moment came that would ensure her freedom.



She bit back the pain throbbing in her abdomen and followed; albeit a little slowly. It wasn't easy to walk when it felt like your spine had been snapped and your insides crushed. She wasn't sure what Moloch would have her do, but she hoped it wasn't anything too terrible. For now, she was just relieved that she wouldn't have to go around naked.

 

[Viper]

Moloch did not flinch or avert his eyes when he saw the mortal girl puking and heaving. If he were not a man of war, it probably would have been considered unhealthy the way he did not find any of this abnormal or even revolting. Puking, blood, human waste, all of that was fairly common to find on a battle field and he had watched countless mortals do what she was doing, and worse, for centuries now. He was immune to it by now... actually, Moloch had no memory of it ever bothering him.  Not even seeing the humans tears rolling down her face bothered him. Tears were common on battlefields as well.  If anything, her cries were just proof that he was winning.  


When the girl muttered her thank you, Moloch reached  his gloved hand towards her face. Using his thumb to wipe away the tears falling down her face, unintentionally getting a bit too close to her eye with his pointed gauntlets as he did so, "There's a good girl" He whispered with approval, his smirk a juxtaposition of the gentle action. When Moloch pulled his hand away he immediately flicked off the salt water, a look of revolution flashing on his  face as he did so. Water was such a revolting substance to touch, it was one thing to see it but to actually make contact with the element was a displeasure that Moloch avoided in most cases.  He pitied the creatures who had to not only touch the stuff, but drink it as well. He had such a hatred towards water rarely even watch over naval battles, the battle had to be especially bloody for him to do that. The only reason he put himself through the annoyance in this case was because If you wanted to train an animal well, one had to have a strict level of discipline but also show praise when they did something right. To Moloch, touching her without hurting her was the greatest showing of approval.


The walk to the temple was painfully slow, his sabatons clicking on the stone floor at an unsteady pace. He kept having to adjust his long stride so that the human did not fall too behind. He had already chased after her once and she would lose her legs before he did that again. Speaking of,  she was running only minutes ago, where did that spirit go?  Perhaps her mind was already breaking? Being among Gods could sometimes have that effect on people who were not mentally strong. It was odd, they knew about Gods and believed in them, yet when faced with the same deity they shattered like a mirror. Perhaps this was what the mortal was feeling, her thoughts literally weighting her down?  Moloch hoped not because if so she would be useless to him, and make it so that he just wasted five minutes of his immortal life saving her.  She better not have wasted his time or else both she, and the village who sent her, would be punished quickly. 


The temple did not have a door or even a curtain, it was just an arch way decorated with depictions of past battles leading into a place where battles could easily take place. Weapons lined the walls and stacked on racks scattered on the stone tiles. In the middle of the room was a fireplace that crackled with living fire. The flames danced and swayed with intelligence no normal flame could possess, occasionally taking the form of a woman or an animal before splitting off from the fireplace to examine the rest of the room. When Moloch entered the temple the fireplace seemed to react, growing brighter and higher in response to his presence.  Even from the doorway you could see several other people in the room, polishing and sorting the weapons with varying degrees of enthusiasm. Some of them were obviously not human, horns or translucence giving them away, yet there were a number of them whose species was not clear. They could easily be human by the way they had shadows under their eyes and scared bodies yet when you were basically immortal, could you really call yourself humans still? As the pair passed by, each one of them bowed to their God before staring at the 'new girl' without even trying to hide it. Some looked simply curious, others had eyes full of pity, yet there were a handful that were already giving her glares. 


Moloch on the other hand did not even give a single glance at the others in his temple, heading towards the back of the room with long legs. Once there, not too far away from the throne made up of thick iron with torches on the actual arm rests, there were piles of red and gold luxury goods that could rival any kings treasury.  The God threw himself onto his throne, casually lounging without grace or care, with his chin resting on the palm of his hand. He stared at the mortal and waved with his free hand towards the piles, "Hurry up and clean your self up, there is a bucket in the corner and clothes are probably in those piles."  The bucket was not Moloch's idea. The fact that he had that in his temple was insulting, something that he would killed someone over if it happened on earth, but after a number of his servants lost the ability to speak due to dehydration he agreed to having a small bit in his temple.  It also should be noted that Moloch did not take his eyes off of the girl even as he ordered to bathe, not offering her any sense of privacy nor it even cross his mind that he should let her change in peace.  

 

[volchan]

The young woman followed after as quickly as her body would allow. She tried not to show the pain she was feeling, but couldn't help but put a hand over her abdomen. She was fairly certain she'd broken something, but since it seemed she couldn't die she supposed she had nothing to worry about in the long run....although the pain itself wasn't pleasant. She took deeper breaths to stifle the pained groans wanting to push from her throat and carried on behind Moloch. She had no idea where he was leading her, but there was no point in questioning it right now. She had to reserve strength and bide her time.
 


They entered the temple and were met with a large fire that seemed to respond to the god as if it was self aware. There were also several other beings, some human and some not, working. The girl assumed they were also slaves to Moloch. Her eyes scanned over them as they moved past, taking in the different responses they had towards her. She was almost more concerned with the pitying looks than the aggressive ones. She was used to aggression, anger, and hatred....but pity made her feel there was something to be afraid of. She already knew she was in a dangerous position, but those looks made it even clearer to her that her time here was not going to be pleasant.
 


They made it to the back of the temple and entered what appeared to be a throne room. Moloch went to the giant, iron chair and practically threw himself into it. Lounging there with a bored look, her ordered her to clean herself off and change, motioning to a bucket and a huge pile of clothes all in the shade of red. After that he just watched her, which was unnerving enough in itself without the thought of him doing that while she was naked. She glanced from the god to the bucket and back with a slightly bewildered look. Was he really going to make her bathe in front of him? He was apparently also a god of perversion then.
 


She walked over to the bucket of water before glancing at him again. She wanted to tell him to look away, but how could she do that? She didn't want to end up in even worse condition than she already was. Besides, she was used to perverts like him. Growing up she'd dealt with her fair share of creeps, and she'd grown used to finding ways of dealing with such situations. Glancing around herself for a moment, she took note of some golden lamp stands sitting nearby. Without a word she went over and moved them so that they were a few feet apart before taking a long piece of red cloth from the pile and tying each end to both stands to make a sort of curtain. If he insisted on leering at her, she'd find her own privacy. She didn't want to get into trouble, but she wasn't about to let herself be gazed at by the likes of him.
 


Now that she was hidden from prying eyes, she took off what remained of her clothing as well as the gold she'd been covered in. Since there were no rags, she used her burned clothes instead. Dipping them in the water, she began to scrub herself from head to toe. It wasn't perfect, but it would do. She closed her eyes and tried to enjoy the sensation of the water on her skin. The country she'd been taken to as a child was land locked with no view of an ocean or lake in site. The only time she'd been able to feel water, besides drinking, was when she was able to bathe; which hadn't been as often as she'd liked. In the last six months she'd bathed more often than in the last fifteen years.



Reaching her stomach, she doubled over in pain for a moment and looked down. There was very dark bruising on her abdomen; it looked like she'd been severely beaten. It hurt to clean, but she scrubbed it anyway. Within another ten minutes she'd cleaned off all the ash and was now as pristine as she could get with only a bucket of water to wash herself. Setting the dirty, destroyed clothes down she reached past the her curtain and grabbed whatever she could. It didn't matter too much to her what she wore, as long as it covered her chest and groin. Growing up a slave she'd become accustomed to accepting what she had. Honestly she was thankful she could wear anything at this point.



Changing into the clothes she breathed a small sigh. She had a tunic and loose pants on now, both red with gold stitching. It seemed that was what everyone wore around here. Honestly it was what most people had worn back in the land of the living, at least the people she'd been around. Now that she was clean and covered, she felt a little lighter. It helped that all that gold jewelry was no longer wearing her down. Steeling herself, she untied the cloth from the lamp stands and put it, and the stands, back where they belonged. She then walked back towards the throne, but didn't get too close. She didn't say anything, mostly because she didn't know what to say. She still wasn't sure what she'd end up doing in this place.

 

[Viper]

Moloch cocked his head to the side as he watched the girl grab a handful of lamp stands.  What in the name of.... me.... is she doing?  Moloch wondered, curious enough not to stop her. It took until she had attached a long cloth to the posts that her reasons became clear.   "Humans..."  He muttered, rolling his eyes, chuckling in response.  He had never understood why humans were so sensitive about showing their bodies to others. They were fragile and sensitive husks, prone to illness and injury, made only to temporarily host a soul until it was time for death.  Besides, their naked bodies were nothing special, after a while they all started to look the same.   The only reason Moloch had been watching her in the first place was to make sure that she didn't try to run and to see her tattoos more clearly. There was nothing perverse about his gaze, that hadn't even crossed his mind, and now that it had he couldn't help but laugh at the notion. She flatters herself too much... He thought, relaxing back in his throne and turned slightly away, still keeping her, or rather the cloth, in his peripheral vision.  Humans always made life more complex then it had to be.  It was both annoying and endearing the way they treated their body like treasured secrets rather than just a perfect medium for cutting and hitting. 


Gods may have looked human but it was just the form they had decided to take when humans started to perceive them that way. In reality Gods had no form, Moloch's true form would not look human or even like a flame, he would be just an idea with no visible representation at all. That was why most Gods did not possess shame when it came to their body. Not only because they were often physically perfect but because this was just an appearance with no greater meaning or substance.  If a God wanted to, they could take different shapes, a child to an elder, male to female, the animal which represented them, their basic appearance would be the same though... unless you were a certain two faced god who could take any form as if it was his own. The person they walked around the God's Realm was their 'default' look,  born from humanities general belief in what they would look like.


The girl was taking so long that Moloch eventually stood up from his seat and picked up one of the nearby weapons, a dagger that was a bit more gaudy than he liked but it was made surprisingly well with perfect level of sharpness and weight. It would do for now. Moloch took the blade and sat back down.  Just holding the weapon in his hand made the God start to smile to himself again, he always felt better when his hands were busy.   Even though he was still in a rather relaxed position, the spun the dagger in his hands with practiced, flawless motions.  It was liked he was born for weaponry... and he was so that made sense.  He watched the dagger flash in the fire light with an almost hypnotized gaze, he could see all of those who had died by this blade over the years within the metal, their final moments etched into the daggers cracks and crevasses.  No one else would be able to see these memories, not even the other gods, this was his pleasure alone.  Sure he could just look down to earth and witness the cruelty there if he wanted to, but it was nice to be able to re-watch his favorite wars whenever he wanted to without having to deal with the god of time. 


When the mortal revealed herself, taking down and returning the lamp posts to their rightful places, Moloch was not displeased but nor was he impressed.  Her chosen outfit was uninteresting and ordinary, just clothing he had taken from sacrifices in the past if he was remembering correctly.  Not to mention the clothing covered her skin quite a bit, which means that many of her tattoos were also covered.  That put a damper on his plans a bit but the ones on her face and arms would suffice for what he wanted to do. "Finally! Why is it that woman always take so long to get ready?" Moloch exclaimed, getting up from his throne and throwing the dagger to to the side of the room without care for who or what may have been over there. It was just sheer luck that no one was hit this time. In the past Moloch had accidentally thrown a blade into someones chest, and probably would do it again, just because he was not paying attention to where he was tossing his toys. "Come on, pet, there is someone I want you to meet. You'll like him, you two have a similar sense of style." The god said as he passed, grinning like a shark who had caught the scent of it's prey. Luckily for the mortal, she was not the prey this time, she was just the bait. 


Moloch lead the mortal back out of the temple and towards one of the edges of his island. There you could see a bridge that was similar to the rest of the island in that it was made of solidified magma, the only difference being that this one looked like it had been frozen mid wave, turning into a thick ice halfway across the gap. Across the bridge fusion was a whole new world. Instead of fire and magma, the other island was made of ice and had rivers flowing off the sides, an endless waterfall descending into the cloudy abyss.  The temple was pure white and sparkled in the light even from so far away. In fact, the whole island seemed to glimmer like a jewel.  Scattered down the path that lead to the temple were flags, some large, some small, yet all with different designs. One could see them flapping in the wind, wind that did not ever touch Moloch's island even a little bit, and in a seemingly random pattern the wind would change directions. 


At first it seemed like Moloch was going to walk all the way across the bridge and enter the watery territory but he stopped only inches away from where the bridge stopped being  igneous rock and became ice instead. He had no intention of crossing that border if he could help it. "Hey, Nerus!" Moloch called out loudly, cupping his hands over his grinning mouth.  "Come out here Old Man and say hi to my annual sacrifice! I think you'll like her.... she's one of your people!" His words brimmed with pride, clearly enjoying the fact that his sacrifice was stolen from Nerus... and that he could do nothing to get her back.  A person belonged to which ever god they were sacrificed to, it did not really matter who they served the rest of the time. That was the unofficial rule among Gods, one that even dark Gods respected.


At first it seemed like no one was going to show up and for a few minutes nothing moved on the other island besides the wind and water. Moloch became visibly irritated when he did not get an immediate response, his armored toe tabbing with increasing force and frequency every extra minute that he had to wait.  Just as it looked like he was about to blow up there was movement near the entrance of the iced temple. Out came a man, thin and walking with graceful steps across the slippery looking surface. The stranger took his time, slowly walking towards the bridge as if he was ignorant of Moloch's impatience. It was only when he reached the bridge that one could see him clearly. The man wore merchant like clothing, flowing white robes that reached down to his ankles and hung loosely around his pale form. A light, sky blue cloak hung over his shoulders and was tied in the front with a decorative pendant.  His pale skin was tight around his defined features, making his ice colored eyes stand out like they were beacons. Finally, long white hair flowed all the way down his back and ended slightly past his butt.  The strangers expressionless face was the polar opposite of Moloch's which was always either in a snarl or grin, and from the way his eyes were not fully open he seemed to be in a constant state of disinterest. 


When the stranger reached the bridge he looked at Moloch, then the mortal, and then back to Moloch, "That she is." He said simply before the God of Destruction could speak first. His voice was far more gentle then Moloch's, but also less expressive in tone. "The poor girl... ending up in your bloody hands" He said, tilting his head to the side and causing a few strands of his white hair to fall over out of place.


"I know right!" Moloch agreed, not denying that she was in a bad situation, laughing as if he was pleased with the reaction he had received.  For someone who had not known Nerus for long it would seem like he did not care at all, but Moloch had been living nearly as long as Nerus and had learned to pick up on the subtle signs of emotion. It made it easier to annoy his opposite. "Anyway,  this is your ex-god Nerus, the God of Water, Wind and Sailors." He introduced, placing his hands on her shoulders to make sure that she was facing the other god, wanting her to fully understand that he would not be helping her escape. "Say hi to Grandpa, my pet."

 

[volchan]

The young woman had no response when Moloch commented on how long she'd taken getting ready. Anything she said would probably only get her beaten. Of course, when he stood and tossed his dagger away, she couldn't help but flinch. For a moment she had thought he would cut her, or at least strike her. Instead, he walked past her and told her to come with him. Apparently there was someone he wanted her to meet. His words confused her though; similar style? Why did she get the feeling she was walking into a trap of some kind? Either way she couldn't refuse, and like an obedient child she followed after him, pushing through the pain in her gut.


The god led her back out of the temple and towards the edge, where a massive bridge stood. It wasn't until they got closer that the girl could see the nearby island. The sight of it made a strange feeling stir up inside her. It was a mixture of rapture and longing. The temple glistened in the sun like light shimmering on ocean waves and the blue banners tossing in the wind made her think on the memories she visited now only in nightmares. What was that place, and why did it make her think of her homeland?


The two continued onto the molten bridge. The girl felt uneasy walking on it after having been tossed into a volcano; not to mention she was currently barefoot. Thankfully the bridge was hot, but not so much so that she was crying out in pain. They were nearly to the center where the two islands met when Moloch stopped and called out to someone called 'Nerus'. When he continued on, saying that she was one of Nerus' people, the girl felt her body seize up a bit in shock. What...? What did he mean? Suddenly she was overcome with confusion and questions began bouncing around inside her head. Even as time began to pass and Moloch became impatient, all she could focus on were the thoughts spinning around in her mind.


Finally, out from the shimmering temple walked a figure. It made its way slowly to the bridge, and as she took in his form she was overcome by the sight of him. They looked so similar there could be no doubt that he was the god of her people, but the name Nerus was unfamiliar to her. No, there was something scratching at the back of her mind. Something she wanted to remember, but couldn't. She wanted to reach out and touch him, wanted to run to him, but something held her back. As familiar as he felt to her, she didn't know him. Anything she'd ever known or believed about him had been stolen from her long, long ago. As much as her soul yearned for him, she couldn't will herself to move towards him.



She ignored Moloch's taunts, her eyes glued to the pale being in front of her. When told to say hello, she felt the tears finally break past her eyelids and slip down her face. How she wanted to reach for him, but with Moloch's hands placed firmly on her shoulders she knew it wasn't possible. Looking at Nerus, she could see he also was making no move for her. In fact, he seemed indifferent to the entire situation.


“If you are my god...” She started, doing her best not to burst into outright sobs.


“...then please, tell me, where is my mother? Why didn't you save us? Why did you abandon us?” She asked, feeling her body beginning to shake from the emotion; emotion she'd held inside for a very long time. She felt her hands clench into trembling fists as she fought to maintain control of herself.


“I don't know you! They took you from me; took everything from me! Why? Why didn't you come for us? Were we not good enough for you?” She cried, feeling her heart breaking at her own words. She took a few steadying breaths, trying to regain a somewhat calm demeanor.


“I don't care anymore...my life hasn't mattered for a long time. I just want to know my mother is happy...please.” She pleaded, her face reddened by tears. She couldn't believe she'd just yelled at a god, her own supposedly, but she'd gone so long without any explanation. She had hoped to be with her mother in death, but since it seemed that wasn't an option anymore she at least needed to know she was alright.

 

[Viper]

This is just getting better and better. Moloch thought, chuckling as he stared daggers over the girls shoulder. Halfway through her little break down the god took a step away from the girl, partially to avoiding her disgusting tear drops but also giving her the space to do whatever she wanted to Nerus, verbally...or physically. This was what he had been hoping for, an explosion of rage born from one of Nerus's followers and her feeling of abandonment. Moloch had always had a very active role in his followers lives, sometimes too much of a role some would say.  Sure he was rarely kind in his actions but at least his people knew that he directly took an interest in their lives. Nerus took the opposite approach, leaving them to their own means most of  the time as if he wasnt there at all. He only took action either way, helpful or vengeful, occasionally when he felt that the situation of his followers was unfair or was caused directly by another God. 


Nerus did not respond to the humans outburst until she was completely finished, tears running down her face in waves.The water gods only expression change came when he raised an eyebrow, "Have you finished?" He questioned coldly, his mind working to figure out exactly who this girl was. It had been a fair bit of time but he vaguely remembered those markings on her skin, they belonged to a sect of his people who had the unique tradition to get tattoos individual to their family.  "Understand this child... The role of a God is not to intervene every time something bad happens to our followers. Our job is to keep the  balance on earth, not play babysitter.  If that were our job then humanity would rely on us completely for everything and become dependent on divine intervention to fix the every problem.  I have faith that my people can care for themselves when faced with strife, just as they have faith that I will keep the ocean waters from flooding their homes during a storm." His explanation was blunt as he tried to make her understand that his policy was to trust in his people rather than possibly cripple them with his help, "And I abandoned no one. I morn the passing of every one of my loyal followers. But it is not in my role to stop life, and death, from happening as fate has written. All I can do is thank those who passed on for their worship before they head into Death's arms, everything that happens before or after that is not in my control." To put it simply, Nerus was admitting to the sobbing girl that he did not know where her mother was or if she was happy because the moment she died she went to another Gods side, out of his domain. 


"I am sorry for what you suffered under Destruction's people, child." Nerus did admit, staring at the girl and ignoring the ever present snickers of Moloch behind her "Your people where kind and loyal, it was a shame that they met their end in such a barbaric way to dirty creatures.  All I can assure you is that  in their final breaths they knew my favor. I can do nothing else to ease your pain or change what was." Despite his blank demeanor, Nerus honestly did feel bad about what happened to her and her family, he simply was unable and slightly unwilling to show it, That did not change though that their deaths were a small price to pay in order to keep humanity fighting for itself. 


Moloch jumped in on the conversation at this point, "You hear that pet? Grandpa here purposely left your mother and clan to die! Now I may be evil and bloodthirsty, but at least I don't choose to let my loyal followers get stabbed in the heart as I watch on... most of the time." Unless one was paying close attention, one would not have noticed that Moloch had just directly stated how her mother had died.  Meaning that he also had direct knowledge about what his people had done that night.  It just took a while for him to remember that specific raid. There were so many over the years that they all just got jumbled up! Moloch made a point of attacking Nerus's followers whenever possible, subtly directing his people towards their villages.

 

[volchan]

The girl felt her heart drop into her stomach when Nerus responded so coldly to her emotion. There was no sympathy in his voice as he went on to explain his role and lack of responsibility over the fate of his followers. How could he say such a thing with a straight face when both of them knew how big a role Moloch played in his followers' lives? Although...Moloch probably wouldn't fight for his people either. He'd probably enjoy watching them slaughtered as they called to him for help, as long as they weren't being killed by people he hated anyway. As Nerus continued to explain himself to her she clung to the hope of learning her mother's fate, but as he revealed that he had no control or knowledge of what happened to the lives of his followers after death she felt that hope shatter and break away.


She didn't even realize she'd fallen to her knees until they began to sting. The ultimate shock and heartache of realizing that she would never see her mother again, that she would exist having no idea what had become of her...it felt as if all the light in the world had been snuffed out. She felt suffocated, constricted, and isolated. She had no memory of the god of her people or her religion, but surely this couldn't be the god they'd served. He spoke about their deaths as if he were talking about insects. The destruction of her home was probably no more meaningful or painful to him than watching the destruction of an ant hill. Even as he apologized for what she'd gone through, his voice was emotionless. How could he not care? How could he say something without even a hint of emotion?


She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing would come. She had no energy left. Within the last hour she'd gone through a painful sacrifice, learned that she was eternally enslaved to the god of her tormentors with no hope of escape, and now she was face to face with the god of her people who seemed to care little about most anything. The worst part, however, was that she still yearned for him. Maybe it was because she had no memory of her people or their ways of life, but she desperately wanted to be close to that part of herself she'd lost as a child. She felt as if she were looking at a piece of herself, but no matter how far she ran she couldn't catch it.


Moloch spoke up suddenly. His words caused the girl's entire body to stiffen. As empty as she was a moment ago, she was now suddenly filled with pain and rage. The one memory she had of her mother, as awful as it was, was precious to her. To hear it repeated by the likes of Moloch, used to drive more anger towards Nerus, was enough to make her forget the two were gods.


“Don't...” She muttered through clenched teeth, digging her fingers into the rock until her nails broke.


“Don't you speak of my mother!!!” She shouted, turning on Moloch. Her mind was blank and her vision a blur as she leapt at him. Of course he'd been there, of course he'd seen. He got all kinds of pleasure out of watching innocent people die. What was most painful was that this cruel god remembered her mother, while her own god probably couldn't pick her out of a crowd.


“I hate you!” She screamed, throwing all her mortal weight into her punches and kicks. She hadn't ever been a violent creature, but so many old wounds had just been reopened and exposed that she couldn't handle it. She was so angry and hurt she didn't know what to do with herself. Even though she was attacking Moloch, she honestly didn't know who she disliked more at this point. Her own god didn't care about her; to him her and the lives of her people were completely expendable. She felt like a fool for ever believing a god could possibly care about a human.

 

[Viper]

As the mortal  fell to the ground the Gods made eye contact, glowing red eyes met still blue ones. They were opposites in every way besides one, both of them were glaring. Moloch looked too pleased with the turn of events, enjoying the way this girl was falling apart before his very eyes and that all of that could be blamed on Nerus. The way he looked at both the girl and his enemy was cruelty incarnate. He didn't understand it and he never tried to, but it was only when Moloch saw others suffering that he felt truly alive.  Nerus on the other hand glared at his foe with a quiet rage, hidden just beneath the skin and waiting for a chance to break out.  Although Nerus would admit that he had a hand in this, it was truly Molochs fault in the great scheme of things. If he did not exist, if his people were not so cruel, then this girls people would still be alive and Nerus would not be forced to watched his people suffer or be cursed by them like he was at this moment. Humans should not have to suffer for the crimes and whims of their Gods.


The pair of Gods looked like they were just about to start up one of their frequent feuds when the sound of a woman yelling snapped their attention back to  the ground, or rather the mortal who was just kneeling on it.  Moloch was just opening his mouth to laugh in the grieving woman's face for daring to order him around when she pounced at him.  He dodged the first attack with ease just by taking a step backward. He was the god of battle, if he couldn't avoid an attack from a mortal girl with no combat experience then he did not deserve that title. A spark lit in his eyes when the fight began, his eyes less like glowing embers and more like you were actually looking into the mouth of the volcano. Yes this is what I wanted! Moloch thought as he continued to block or dodge her attacks, raw insane glee on his face, yet as it went on his methods of defense got more and more violent. At first he would just brush her aside but as time went on he started to push and throw her away instead. Oh he was still very much amused by her but that was where the danger was, the more fun he was having, the more violent he would become as he let himself go. 


Nerus knew that it was a bad idea to let this go on. Whoever this girl was, she was his even if she claimed to hate him now. Not to mention he felt an odd connection to this girl, more so than he usually did when he encountered one of his followers. It was odd that this girl who hadn't even grown up with his stories seemed to have a stronger spiritual connection to him than most. The water god had been thinking on this topic while the fight went on. The mortals anger was so strong at that moment that Nerus believed it may gain her a bit of favor in Molochs eyes and so it would be to her benefit if he let the fight continue freely. Moloch had a love for people with tempers for some reason.... At any rate, Nerus was content to stay out of the way until she exhausted herself or Moloch grew bored. At least that was what he thought he would do until he noticed something change suddenly in Moloch's movements. It was subtle but his hips began shifting side to side, and Nerus knew from experience that when he started to move like that it was only moments before his tail unfurled and pierced his enemy. Pitiful.... getting so worked up that you use your tail even when fighting an ordinary human... Nerus thought, deciding that it was not fair or right to let the human be on the other side of Moloch when he was on the offensive. Moloch's using his tail which was both armored and poisonous, was taking this little scrap a step to far.


Just as the tail flashed into the air, aimed towards the mortals core, so did Nerus. He rushed towards the girls side, taking hold of her arm in order to hold her in place while his other arm held a sword made out of pure ice. When the point of the tail hit the ice it bounced off with a sharp clink, a shiver going down his spine at the same moment for some unknown reason. "I think that's enough pointless fighting for one day, Moloch. Stand down before you break her." Nerus spoke, staring at his enemy with cold eyes.  She may not have been his at the moment but she was his follower in life, there was no reason to fully abandon her just yet. As he did this he really hoped that the mortal would  become docile or at least not try and attack Moloch again. If that happened then there would be no way to diffuse the situation without a full scale battle ensuing. 


Surprisingly, it actually worked. Moloch chuckled and his tail returned to his waist, "For once you're right old man, I would hate to break my new toy already." He admitted, relaxing his stance but not his smile. With a demeaning smirk he turned to the mortal "That was fun pet, maybe next time I'll actually let you hit me." And he was being honest, sometimes he actually let his servants stab him in order to let out aggression. It's not like he could die and wounds would heal in minutes if not sooner, it was just a fun activity that let everyone release some put up rage. No harm no foul... as long as Moloch gave you permission to do so. Sneaking up on him and stabbing him, if you managed to land the hit especially, although those who attempted were punished as well, would result in punishments that made falling for eternity a blessing. "I guess I got what I wanted out of this for today!" Moloch said, looking at Nerus who was still gently holding the mortal in place, "Are you going to let go of the girl now gramps or what?" 

 

[volchan]

In her blind rage the girl continued to rush at Moloch, regardless of how many times her punches and kicks missed. She wanted to land a blow, just one, on that cocky mouth of his. Each time she went at him he became more aggressive, though looking at his face he didn't appear angry. If anything he appeared elated by the fact she was attacking him. She wanted to hurt him, even the slightest bit, for all the pain and torment he'd put her through; especially for what had happened to her mother.
 


She rushed for him yet again, only to be literally thrown back this time. She tumbled across the ashen soil, her body making a thud before coming to a stop. It took her a moment to pick herself back up; being thrown by a god was no small ordeal. Her feet and arms were scraped and bloody and her nose was also bleeding. She didn't seem to notice her own condition, because she went at him again. It continued on like that, with her trying to land a hit only to fail and end up further injured. She wouldn't give up though, not until she struck him or he took back his words.
 


At least that's what she thought, until suddenly Nerus appeared between them and grabbed hold of her to stop her from moving. Things had been going so fast she didn't realize what he was doing until the loud clink echoed through her skull. She realized then that Moloch had planned to run her through with that strange tail of his...and Nerus had protected her? Why? He hadn't defended her for the past fifteen years, so why now? Although she was confused by his actions, she appreciated them. It was the first time since being captured that anyone had come to her defense.
 


She panted as she tried to catch her breath, a bit battered and blooded after her scuffle. It was sadly one-sided. Moloch didn't even had a scratch on him, though if she was honest with herself she'd admit that she never anticipated actually being able to hit him. He was a god, after all. Of course, when he mocked her she couldn't help but glare at him a little. The being was far too cocky for his own good; she really hoped he got the shit kicked out of him one day.
 


It wasn't until Moloch brought attention to the fact that Nerus was still holding onto her that she realized the god was indeed still grasping her arm. She'd never been this close to him before, and even though he appeared cold there was something warm in his touch. The sensation of being in contact with her god brought a feeling of warmth and comfort that flowed through her whole spirit. Without thinking, she leaned forward a little and rest her head against him. She felt...peaceful. It was the first time she could remember feeling this way in all her life. She hoped he didn't mind, and she didn't care if Moloch did. She just wanted to feel like this, even for just a moment.

 

[Viper]

When the mortal placed her head against Nerus's chest both of the Gods were taken aback for a moment. It made them think of Odion the way her emotions seemed to change within a single moment, raw anger to affectionate peace within the time it took to blink once. It was odd, and something such static beings had never felt for themselves. For that reason, and that he was not one for much physical attention, it took Nerus a moment to react to her. He did not stop her which was a plus but in most cases he would have ignored the person and just stared straight ahead. This time however he could not get the shiver out of his head from earlier. The sensation that came to him when he touched her skin was odd yet so familiar. This girl is more than just a survivor from a massacre Nerus concluded with resolution to figure out exactly in what way this girl was 'more'. 


Slowly and gently the water God placed his hands around the girl in an almost hug like manner. She felt mortal in everyday, she breathed, she had a pulse, and there was nothing physically mystical about her as far as he could tell. Although now that they were closer, the girl enveloped in his being, he could sense something spiritually off about her. It was not in a bad way, although Nerus would by lying if he said that he did not sense the corruption of Moloch newly planted within her spirit, in fact it was mostly the opposite. Her soul felt a small bit... like his. The idea made him pause before with his usual blank face he removed one of his hands from the embrace. Slowly he took a few strands of her hair in his hand between his thumb and forefinger, slowly running them down the white locks and he was just holding the tips of the mortals hair. Nerus bent down and pressed the strands to his lips. It may have looked odd to an outsider who did not understand what he was doing yet Nerus did not seem to think twice about the action.


It was at that moment that the God realized the truth of this girl.  Against his better judgment and instincts, the corners of his lips twitched up slightly as he released the girls hair. It should have been obvious just by looking yet it took Nerus making contact in order to know that this girl was more his child than he had thought initially.  Her hair was not just a curse or rare biological mishap, it took form due to the blood of a god who also had white hair running within her. She was Nerus's child not just in worship, but an actual descendant of one of his demi-god children. Had it been dormant in her family all this time or was she aware that her blood was not 100% mortal? It didn't matter at the end of the day, either way Moloch's fun was about to be decreased greatly... and that is why a rare smiled found its way on his cold face.


Moloch took notice of that smile and instantly grew both confused and furious. Nerus did not smile often, he did not show expression often at all, so when he did Moloch knew that something large was going on that would work against his wishes. Damn it! What did he figure out!? Moloch thought. He could not sense the Nerus within the mortal and so he had no idea about what was going on, although even if he did get a hint he probably still would not have thought of it. Unless it was battle tactics Moloch was not known to be the most intelligent of Gods, after all, he was a man of action not thought. "That's enough!" He growled, "I've had my fun so now me and my pet are heading back. You can just watch helplessly from your island as I take my sacrifice with me." With his rage growing and the enjoyment of the situation fading, Moloch reached out to take hold of his sacrifice but was instead slapped away. "She's mine, Nerus... you have no say in where she goes. That is up to me alone." The words were slowly spoken but still held the same amount of rage, this was just the calm before the storm... or eruption rather.


"Actually... I do." Nerus answered as he dropped his arms back to his side and ending the hug. You couldn't see it, but there was glee hidden far beneath his skin. Both of the Gods hated each other and so took pleasure in messing with the other, Moloch was just more obvious about it. "Have you not realized? This hair is more than just a fashion statement." As if to demonstrate this Nerus leaned down and toyed with a few strands of the girls hair, purposely directing their gazes towards the near identical hair pigment that both of them shared. "She may be your sacrifice but she is of my blood... meaning that I have claim here as well." Call it a Gods intuition, or just that he knew that Nerus would not lie, but Moloch believed this instantly. His eyes widened like hell opening up to swallow the world as his mouth began muttering curses, some of them were human and others were in languages that no one had heard in centuries. This had never happened before or at least not as long as their pair had been in existence so in the back of their mind both of them knew that this situation would not be solved easily or instantly, yet for now Nerus savored his small victory. Moloch in the mean time was busy deciding if he should try to kill them both and solve the problem instantly or wait and see what the 'higher ups' deemed the correct action to take. The latter was the wiser choice since this was a first time situation but knowing Moloch, that was not the option was was winning.


Nerus took the opportunity to turn to the girl again, his face once again a blank mask. He was ignoring Moloch mostly at this point, only taking enough interest in the fire god to make sure that he did not get a stinger in his back. "Excuse me, I did not mean to speak as if you were not here." Being direct and semi forceful is just the only way to deal with such a thick headed God. Nerus added in silently, knowing from experience that when dealing with Moloch it was best to act as if it was just a one on one conversation. "Tell me child, what is your name? Were you aware of the nobility that your bloodline possesses?" He wanted to know about this girl since she was his in more ways than one. Not to mention he needed to repay her for what he let happen to her family and helping her survive Moloch would be a decent way to do so. She did not fit into Nerus's belief in human independence since she was already far outside of the 'normal' mortals life. Helping this human a bit would not harm anyone.

 

[volchan]

The girl didn't expect a response from Nerus, other than perhaps being pushed away, so when she felt his arms slowly embrace her she was overcome with emotion. She didn't make a sound, but she felt more tears push past her eyelids and drip from her chin. She'd felt so alone for so long; the affection, as small as it might be, was more than she could handle. She'd grown up in a foreign land, unloved and abused, believing her own god had deserted her. Maybe he had and maybe he really didn't care, but at this moment just feeling him embracing her was enough for her.


She thought he would let her go, but instead she felt one of his hands move and then gently grasp some of her hair. For a brief moment she thought he might pull it, and tensed up a little in nervous anticipation. Instead, she felt the fingers gently run down her hair before Nerus quietly leaned down and pressed his lips against the ends of the pure white strands. She stared in a bit of a shock, still resting against his chest. She had no idea what to make of the action, but she saw a small and subtle change in his expression that lasted only a moment. Had he started to smile?


Moloch must have noticed it too, because his glee suddenly turned sour. He barked at Nerus about taking her with him before reaching for her. The girl closed her eyes tightly and stiffened in preparation for being ripped away from her god yet again and dragged off, but Moloch's hand never reached her. She heard the slap and her eyes fluttered open again to take in the strange scenario. What in the world was going on? Why was Nerus suddenly behaving so protectively?
 


The god ended the embrace and the girl hesitantly pulled back a bit to stop leaning on him. She didn't move far though; she was nervous about what Moloch would do to her after what had just happened. As she listened to the two continue to speak, Nerus pointed out her hair and reached out to touch it again. She didn't stop him, but it was obvious that she was just as bewildered as Moloch was from the water god's actions. It wasn't until he revealed the truth behind her hair that her expression changed from confusion into shock. She felt as if she'd just been struck by lightening. Of his blood? Was he honestly saying that she was his physical descendant?


Any of her other thoughts dropped from her head as she began to churn the newly made questions over and over again within her mind. There were so many questions, but no answers. Who was her mother? Her father? Who was she? How in the world had this happened? What did it mean for her from here on? She was so overcome by all the noise in her head she barely noticed Moloch's string of curses at his own realization. Even when Nerus finally addressed her she didn't respond right away.


A few moments after her god had spoken to her she blinked. Looking up at him one could see the utter confusion and surprise bouncing around behind her eyes. She just stared for a moment before realizing that her god had asked her a question; one she had no idea how to answer.


“I......um.....” She started, at a loss for words at the moment. She felt like she was having the most peculiar dream. Could all of this actually be real? Finally, after a few more moments, she regained enough of her wits to properly respond.


“I don't remember the name my mother gave me......but his people called me 'Dua'.” She replied with slight unease, giving a small motion towards Moloch.


“I have no memory of things before I was taken away, but I honestly had no idea that......I don't know what to make of this.” She admitted. She felt singled out and unsure of where she stood now. All those years of being treated like an animal, only to find that she carried Nerus' blood. Had her mother known what she was?


“I don't understand...” She started, her gaze shifting slowly between the two gods.


“....does this mean I'm not....human?”

 

[Viper]

Nerus was far more patient than Moloch, able to wait for hours in he needed to without complaint, so when the mortal took her time responding he did not mind. The only down side was that by the time she did speak up Moloch had more or less recovered from his red haze and was back to focusing on the conversation in front of him. He would not stand for this. It did not matter if this girl was a descendant of Nerus, she was his sacrifice no matter how blue her blood was. He would not just hand her over without a fight. They would have to drag her out of his burning, strong hands before he killed her first. He would rather no one have her than give Nerus the satisfaction of winning. Moloch always wanted to win and even if he lost, he would not lose alone. Moloch was petty like that and even though he knew it, he did not care one bit. A warrior did not go down without a fight after all. This was no different. 


The pair of Gods reacted differently when they learned that the girls name was Dua. Moloch on one hand found it funny that she would have such a peaceful name considering that she was a sacrifice, and that she was probably only given that name because they knew she was going to be nothing more than a tool for showing their worship. When he was motioned towards, Moloch just chuckled unapologetically. If her first name meant that much to her then she wouldn't have forgotten it no matter the pain, clearly it was not that important or memorable. If anything his people did her a favor by giving her a name that meant more in her life than just a way to identify herself. Nerus on the other hand found the name oddly nice considering the beasts who gave it to her, it could have been much worse after all. "Due means prayer... how appropriate for someone with so much spirituality within them." Nerus commented aloud, giving an approving nod. She may not have chosen the name herself but it was still her name, and no one liked their name to be spit upon. 


"I would be surprised if you did understand." Nerus continued, familiar with demi-gods and their descendants even though he often did not interact with the handful of 'grandchildren' that he had. He refused to admit that he did not fully know or understand the other problem of her situation that revolved around who she belonged to now that she was in this realm, did she even realize the conundrum that her existence was causing? It wasnt every day the Gods were faced with a new problem. "But yes, you are human."


"Mostly" Moloch cut in rudely, taking two large steps so that he was now standing a mere foot away from the pair. "You're not completely human pet, but your not a God either so don't get any funny ideas that you are equal to us in any way. It's not like your the only human who is the descendant of a god. It happens all the time so it's nothing to freak out about, all you probably got is a bit of that old mans boring personality and stale hair color." Nerus gave Moloch a cold glare as the other god informed Dua of her heritage however this time it was Molochs turn to ignore the other god. He simply continued with a begrudged look on his face, "Like I just said... you being his descendant means nothing. You are coming back with me no matter what either of you want." 


"Fine." Nerus agreed shockingly, his face void of expression. Moloch's face twisted into confusion when Nerus said that, he never believed that Nerus would all of a sudden step down and give up. There was no way Nerus would just let Moloch win, the old man was just as petty as he was! "However she is to be sent back to me at dawn." Nerus finally continued in a dull voice, clarifying what he was thinking. "Both of us have claim over Dua and there is no way either of us are going to give up willingly, so until we figure this out.... I'll have her half the time and she will serve you the other half." The plan was to have Dua be with Moloch during the night because the fire god was slightly more docile when the moon was out. The down side was that Nerus was more irritant during the day, but he had no doubt that he could keep his temper better than Moloch no matter the time of day. Nerus wished that he could override Molochs claim to the girl entirely but the pair of Gods were similar in power and renown, meaning that until someone of higher status took a stand the pair had no choice but to find a way to share... which neither of them wanted to do.  That left Nerus as the one to be the bigger person and try to find peace like usual, "Well? Is that agreeable?"


Moloch opened his mouth to immediately refuse yet part way through his outburst his snarl turning into a grin. Actually this could be good for him! Having someone inside of Nerus's temple, with permission for once, opened up a lot of chances to mess with the water god... all Moloch would have to do is trick or force the girl into doing his bidding and soon enough Nerus would be without peace entirely. This could be more fun than he originally thought, "Fine then, I get her when the moon is up and you can have her when the sun is in the sky. Outside of that we are free to treat the girl however we want." 


"You can't kill her." Nerus immediately specified, to which Moloch just waved him off in a 'yea yeah, I know' motion. Nerus let out a light sigh, glad that Dua would be safe for at least half of the day but also concerned that Moloch had given in so easily. Whatever he was planning, Nerus would deal with that when it came to it. He was growing tired of being in the other Gods company... as most people did when around their enemy for an extended period of time. Nerus turned back to Due and bent down so that they were slightly more face to face, "That's the best I could do for you ..." Nerus whispered to the girl. "Come to me the moment you see the sun touching my temple, all right? In the mean time do your best to survive his company no matter how obnoxious he becomes."

 

[volchan]

Dua nodded when Nerus mentioned the meaning of her name. She hadn't understood it as a child, but once she'd become familiar with the language it had become clear.


“I was bought by the head priestess of Moloch's temple.” She explained. The name itself had also probably been meant to mock her a little, as she'd prayed earnestly for relief to Nerus, but she didn't want to say that in front of Moloch, who would no doubt use such information to torment her further.


“In all honesty, it probably was the best situation I could have ended up in, given the circumstances.”


Nerus went on to say that she was human, but before she could respond Moloch stepped in with his own response, closing in the distance between them and making Dua tense up a bit. He then continued on, stating that her having some god's blood running in her veins didn't mean much. He seemed especially adamant that it didn't give her any equal footing to them or any right to her to decide her own fate. She couldn't say she was surprised. In all her life she couldn't recall feeling godly or inhuman in any way, so what he was saying was probably true. Still...she had hoped it might give her more rights over herself; a hope that was quickly being snuffed out by Moloch.


“I see...” She responded halfheartedly, keeping her eyes on Moloch but sticking closer to Nerus. She didn't necessarily trust either of them at the moment, but she at least knew that Nerus was gentler and less likely to torture or beat her for no reason at all.


Moloch continued on, saying she was to return with him regardless of what she or Nerus wanted. The dark god had barely finished his sentence before Nerus responded. The water god's response didn't just shock Moloch; it had Dua staring up at him with her mouth nearly hanging open. Had he really just given her up again? It wasn't until Nerus continued on that Dua began to understand what was going on. Both of them had rights of ownership over her...so...she was going to be passed between them? She wasn't some toy to be passed around and shared! However, she had to admit that it would be better to be split between them than to be wholly Moloch's. At least then she'd have some small amount of peace...or at least she hoped so.


She stood quietly and listened as the two went back and forth over their arrangement. It was depressing to realize how little choice she had in the matter, but it wasn't anything new for her. At least this time she had someone who was willing to try and help her, it seemed. Of course, when Moloch mentioned being able to treat her however they wanted she felt a chill run down her spine. Nerus immediately added they couldn't kill her, but that wasn't really her main concern. She was more worried about what Moloch would do to her without killing her than she was of actually dying.


The two finished hashing out the details of their agreement before Nerus leaned down a bit so that his face was closer to hers. He seemed a bit apologetic about the whole situation, but from what Dua could tell it was honestly all he could give her at this point in time.


“I understand.” She replied quietly, though her heart was starting to drum a little in her chest. She was very nervous about going back with Moloch now that he knew the truth about her. Whatever torment he'd planned to exact on her before had probably only increased by now.


“...Thank you.” She added with some slight hesitation. She was grateful that he was taking steps to help her, but she felt uncertain about his character. Did he actually care about her, or was this some kind of game to him? She supposed it didn't matter so much right now; either way it meant less time with Moloch.


She really didn't want to go, in fact every ounce of her being wanted to grab hold of Nerus and refuse to leave, but it was already apparent that he wouldn't be able to protect her completely. The sun was fading and that meant she had to go with Moloch. What was going to happen to her now though? Somehow it felt even worse going with him now than it had back when she'd first arrived in this place. It took her a moment, but she made herself move from Nerus' side to Moloch's. She hoped the sun would rise again soon, because she felt that somehow her nights were going to be a whole lot less pleasant from now on.

 

[Viper]

Moloch did not hear what Nerus was saying but he could guess. It wasnt that hard to know when someone was talking bad about you, especially when said person was the one you hated the most in the world.  Moloch often took those insults as compliments since he prided himself in being a bloodthirsty monster. It just meant that he was playing his role well if people were complaining.  A true insult in his mind would include someone calling him weak or saying that he was 'going soft', both of which was not fit for the personification of destruction. Nerus on the other hand was nearly impossible to insult, he had a thick skin that rarely could be penetrated by words. His blank expression was not a mask, it was just a reflection of the way everything seemed to run off of him without any impact at all. He had emotions yet they were often so mild that no one could see them and they had little control over how he reacted to a situation. Moloch was emotional at his core, and so insults had an impact on him either for good or bad. Nerus was not, in fact Moloch seemed to be the only one able to get under his skin effectively and consistently. 


Perhaps that was why, even though they were technically in agreement at that moment, that they glared at each other as Maye returned to Moloch's side. Nerus with his cold blue eyes slightly narrowed and Moloch with a furrowed brows and a wide smile to match. "Good girl." The warrior said like he was talking to a dog, not even glancing at her at the same time. "Come on, if I only have you for the night I intend to make full use of you." His loud boots turned on the molten stone and stomped away, this time making sure that Dua kept right by his side, pushing her if necessary in order to make her move faster. The fire god walked home with both a sense of victory and rage. Moloch often suffered through this mix of emotions, one emotion he always felt deep down no matter what and the other he had earned the right to experience frequently. It was wrong and semi unhealthy, but he knew nothing else so he was unable to see that near constant inner turmoil was a problem.


"I shall go contact the high ups and set up a meeting, hopefully we can bring an end to this soon." Nerus informed the retreating pair before he too turned and started back towards his own temple, not looking back. Once back in his home, he summoned a spirit and gave it a message to deliver to the higher ups. The 'higher ups' were just the other Gods and Goddesses who were older and more powerful than those whose islands were positioned below theirs. Despite this, for the most part though the Gods lived in a democracy, any God above a certain status would be called upon to deal with issues deemed to great or unusual for one being alone to handle. Nerus and Moloch both could be classified as a 'higher ups' technically but they were not top dogs in any way, they were positioned more in the middle between the most powerful Gods and those living on the cut off point. Below the cut off were hundreds of unimportant, unmemorable Gods who were so weak they may as well have been mortals themselves or just those who did not have entire populations calling their name every morning. The one thing working in Nerus's favor was that he was well respected among his brethren and since he rarely called meetings for his own issues, his matter would be pushed to the forefront of peoples minds. Their curiosity would be too great to wait long. Some may even try to find out what the problem is even before the meeting takes place so that they can sate their curiosity. Gods were the best at waiting when needed but the worst when they could do something about it.


Back with Moloch and Dua, the pair had just entered the temple and it seemed like being home let Moloch relax... or rather he was aloud to be his true self. "Damn it!" He exploded, his rage winning against his pride over mostly winning his encounter with Nerus. At his shout the other servants instantly quieted and tried to distance themselves from what was to come. "I'll make that block head pay for challenging me. No one challenges me and gets away with it.I may not be able to kill him but I will make him suffer. This is the last time he ruins my plans!" The words were said with a growl and gradually became louder with each passing sentence. Moloch seemed to grow more and more upset with every sentence, and in turn the flames scattered about the room grew larger and more wild. That was not all unfortunately, certain parts of the floors and walls began to crack as if just his rage held the power to destroy them, even some of the weapons started to warp as if they were about to snap in half.  The servants were in a frenzy, trying to appear casual but clearly also trying to flee the area. They knew what happened when Moloch became this angry."Who does that white haired freak think he's dealing with!? I don't care if he fucked some human centuries ago, what's mine is mine! If he thinks he's beaten me then he is wrong!" Moloch continued ranting to no one in particular, waving his hands in furious motions at the same time, until he his words became near incoherent as he mixed other languages with his enraged screaming. It want even about Dua personally at that moment, it was just that Nerus was trying and succeeding and taking something from Moloch due to stupid loophole in the way things were normally. 


It all came to an end however with a large boom. One of the nearby statues blew up violently, sending shards and chunks of varying sizes propelling across the room dangerously fast.  Following that and the dust settling came screams of pain. To the east of the room was a servant pinned to the wall by one of the chunks of statues, his tears mixing with the scarlet blood that dripped into the floor beneath him. The blood seeped through the cracks while the tears pooled on the surface of the floor as if the mans pain was still just an offering to his god. Moloch did not visibly take notice of what his temper had just done, he was too busy panting and clenching his fists to care. If anything, the screams subconsciously had a calming effect on the twisted god.  It had the opposite effect on most of the servants though who either hurried to help the man get off of the wall before he got cut in half by gravity or rushed to start cleaning up the mess the explosion had made. "I'm going out. Clean this place up, pet." He ordered through clenched teeth, clearly not finished expelling his fury just yet, he was only in the middle of a momentary clam.  This time he didn't even walk, in a plume of smoke Moloch simply vanished into the air as he teleported to earth. There was a war going on down there and he planned on evening the odds a bit by making their gun powder 'mysteriously' going off at vital points in their formation. Seeing their confusion as their own equipment turned on them would make him feel better, as would the massacre that would surely follow. 

 

[volchan]

Dua managed to glance back at Nerus briefly before Moloch started back for the temple, pushing her to get her moving. He didn't seem to want her moving too far away, because whenever she began to lag behind due to her injuries he'd give her another shove. She'd heard Nerus speak but hadn't been able to respond. Who were the higher ups, she wondered. She knew nothing of other gods or the way this realm worked, so for her most everything was a mystery. She had no idea what these 'higher ups' would say, but she was worried about the idea of ending up as Moloch's property. At the moment it seemed her chances were about fifty/fifty, which she wasn't a fan of. She'd either end up in a possibly good situation or a terrible one.


She could sense something boiling under Moloch's skin, but she didn't realize how intense it was until they passed into the temple. Almost immediately he let out a loud, angry curse that startled her and caused her to jump. As he spoke the air grew heavy with rage and his voice took on a dark and dangerous quality that sent shivers down Dua's spine. The fire within the temple began to blaze and the girl took notice of how the other servants were responding. This was obviously a common occurrence here. Of course, when the ground began to shake and cracks began to form she huddled down a little in defense. She'd been through earthquakes before, but nothing quite like this. She could feel the air thickening until it became hard to breathe. The amount of rage this god was displaying seemed absurd; was he really that sore a loser? Hell, he hadn't even lost yet!


BOOM!!!


Before she could register what had happened, she was thrown back by a powerful blast and tumbled across the stone floor. For a long moment she was stunned, her ears ringing, before slowly the sound of crying and groans of pain seeped into her ears. Looking up she could see the shattered statue, as well as streaks of blood from some of the servants who'd been caught up in the blast. As others rushed to help those who had fallen, Moloch spoke again. She hardly had time to register what he'd said before he vanished in a plume of smoke, leaving her there to pick up the mess he'd made.


For a moment she lay there, unsure if she herself were injured...or rather more injured than she'd already been. Looking down at herself she could see some blood, but nothing that seemed bad enough to keep her down. Honestly she was so stunned from what had just happened she wouldn't have known how bad her injuries were regardless. She had no idea when Moloch would return, but she knew that if he came back before she was finished there would be trouble.


She stood up, feeling her body tremble but little else. She was mostly numb at the moment. Had she still been alive, she certainly wouldn't have been able to get up like she was now. Mindlessly she walked into the chaos as the others scrambled about trying to help those who were hurt and pick up any fallen weapons. She had no idea where anything was, or what to do with the huge chunks of rock that were scattered across the floor. All she could really do at the moment was observe and try to copy what the others were doing. Hopefully everything would be straightened out before Moloch came back; she certainly didn't want to experience that smothering rage again.

 

[Viper]

The war on earth was not a large one, just a conflict between two neighboring states who both wanted complete control over some canal or something. Moloch didn't really care about the details. All he knew was that on the east end of the soon to be graveyard, was a general shouting at his men in the attempt to get the riled up and ready to fight to the death. It was the normal 'fight for your wives and children', 'make them pay for every fallen man', and 'Die for something here or Moloch will kill you for nothing." It was not super original but it got the job done most of the time. Today though these men would have something more than just a pep talk to get them motivated. They had the God of War on their side, and that god was angry. He would accept nothing less than massacre today. 


Hidden from mortal eyes, Moloch stood glowering by the side of the general and stared out at the soldiers. Some of them were normal men, farmers and the like, while others were men who once thought their time at war was over, yet all were about to have one thing in common... a courageous need for blood. Moloch raised his hand at the horde of men as if he was telling them to stop yet that was the opposite of what he was doing. Radiating from his hand, weaving through and touching each of the battalion, was heat that washed over the men with raw confidence. Only a handful would notice the change in heat but none would pick up on the foreign  Moloch wanted a battle and he would not get it if these humans were too busy cowering in their boots to kill. He did not change their nature or anything but gifted them with just enough of his own bloodthirsty to get them going. It would fade within the day but for now they were men of the sword and blessed bu their god. This would give them an edge over the enemies but he was not done yet. 


Teleporting invisibly to the west side of the battle field were the fools who stood against Moloch's followers. They didn't have Gods but instead worshiped nature itself... idiots. Well they would soon see how much the dirt cares about their lives as it absorbs the nutrients in their corpses. Using his knowledge over war tactics that grew both from his soul and decades of experience, Moloch quickly figured out where and which places would be the best places to weaken in order to grantee his peoples success.  All it took was one movement to cause all of the spare gunpowder to explode at the same time, just a snap of the fingers and the army would fall into chaos. Just feeling this power in his hands, the control over if these people lived or died, brought a smile to the gods face. He still wanted to watch the fireworks though so with a laugh that no one could hear, Moloch took his thumb and forefinger and snapped them only once. The second explosion of the day was louder and made the ground shake through sheer force, killing several people instantly yet leaving far more injured or at least burned. Blood fell from the sky like rain as Moloch continued to laugh as it dripped over and down his auburn armor, his voice drowning under the sound of an approaching army and the screams of men who knew their lives were coming to an end. Moloch felt so much better now.


~~~~


Back in the realm of the Gods, things were slowing down rather than picking up. The servants were cleaning or tending to the wounded mostly on their own but there was a handful of people working and talking in groups. Everything from skinny teens to muscular old men, there was a wide variety of people in service of Moloch. Although most of them were men and even more of them had the same dark skin and hair that Moloch possessed.  "Hey, new girl, come help us bring this outside will ya?" A lanky man wearing a deep red tunic called out to Dua. He did not look like a warrior by any means, his arms were thin and his eyes were squinting as if he could not see far away very well. He and two other people were struggling with the base of the now destroyed statue, consistently having to right their hold on it so that it did not slip out and fall on their open toed feet. It was taking forever which was why they called to the first person they saw which just so happened to be Dua. When, and if, Dua took hold of the base the stranger gave her a friendly smile, "Thanks, grab that corner and be careful not to drop it. We are going to toss this over the side of the island to get rid of it" He explained as they started out of the temple door.

 

[volchan]

Dua was in the process of trying to gather together the smaller and more manageable chunks of rock when she was called to. Looking up she could see three people trying to carry the large base of the statue and scrambled over to grab the last corner. She didn't really think twice about who they were or the fact they were most likely from the same group of people who'd enslaved her; by now she was so used to being ordered around by those with dark skin and hair it was second nature to follow their orders.


When she glanced up from the massive base she was helping carry to see the man smiling at her she was a bit confused. It wasn't the kind of smile she was used to seeing; it actually seemed nice. When he explained what they were going to do she nodded.


“Okay.” She replied, doing her best to keep the base lifted even as her sore torso screamed at her to stop. She bit her bottom lip a little to focus herself as they made their way slowly out of the temple. She'd carried heavy things before, but never something like this. She felt as if her arms might snap under the weight, but thankfully there were four other people there to help her keep things balanced.


As they moved inch by inch towards the edge of the island she took the time to observe the other three around her. She hadn't been the only slave working in the temple while alive, but she hadn't spent much time with them or carried on conversations. She wasn't sure how the others here would treat her seeing as how she looked so different, but the ones back in the land of the living had treated her as if she were somehow even lower than they were. Actually, now that she thought about it, what kinds of jobs would she even be doing for Moloch, or Nerus for that matter? Sure, she could polish weapons and clean up any tantrums Moloch threw, but that wouldn't really take much time. She felt herself wanting to ask the others, but she was nervous. She wasn't used to speaking unless given permission.

 

[Viper]

With a large heave the four servants through the base over the edge and into the clouds were it soon fell out of sight. That was really the only way to get rid of trash and other debris in this realm. They did not have landfills like earth, they just had an infinite drop with no true end. It worked just as well so no God stopped their servants from tossing things, and occasionally people, over the side.  The lanky servant let out a large gust of air once the job was done, taking a moment to catch his breath and relax his arms. "Thank God that's over... why did I get roped into doing that when there are muscle men everywhere you look? So annoying..." He wondered aloud before glancing up towards Dua, eyes lighting up as he remembered that she was there. Standing back up straight he grinned down at her "Hey, thanks for the help! We couldn't have done it without you!" He was chipper, perhaps even too happy considering where he was and who he served. "The names Alphonse" The boy threw out his hand as if he wanted to shake hands. As he did this the other pair of servants started to head back towards the temple without a word, leaving Due and Alphonse alone near the edge. 


"I saw you when Moloch brought you in earlier" The servant continued afterward, running his oddly long fingers through his shoulder length red hair to get rid of the sweat that was forming after all of the heavy lifting. "He's always bringing new people home around this time of year but I have to say, they normally don't look like you. A lot less pale and a lot more brawny" He explained, motioning towards her as if to make his point even more clear.  "I guess it doesn't matter, you must have something working for you or else you probably wouldn't be here right now. Moloch doesn't accept sacrifices without a virtue or reputation of some kind. So what's your thing? Are you an assassin from another country, super smart, or what?"  He was visibly curious as to what made her considered a worthy sacrifice to the God of destruction. Most of the time Moloch got warriors, bandits, and other such killers yet sometimes he would get seasoned generals, wise old men, or his own priests who possessed nothing else but dedication. In the end they all offered something to Moloch that he could make use of and Alphonse wanted to know what she had going for her, he was very curious.


"How are you liking it here so far? What about Moloch?" He asked casually as if she had just moved to a new town of her own free will, "I have been here for a while now so if you have any questions just ask and I'll be happy to answer them! You won't get the same offer from a lot of the other people here, they take a while to warm up to newbies." Alphonse laughed at that and for some reason that he was not sharing, he saw humor in the other servants animosity. He did not offer further clarification. 

 

[volchan]

Dua felt a lot of the pain in her body fade as they tossed the heavy object over the side. The relief caused her to breathe her own sigh as she rubbed her sore arms a little. She was just preparing to head back when the man who'd called to her earlier spoke up. She couldn't help but stare at him as he addressed her; how in the world was he so cheerful? He certainly didn't feel like he belonged in this place.


“Um...you're welcome...” She replied hesitantly when he thanked her for her help. She couldn't recall ever being thanked by anyone before.


The young man threw out his hand, which caused her to stiffen for a moment, as he said his name. Dua stared at the hand as if she'd never seen one before. She gingerly reached out and awkwardly touched his palm with her fingertips before drawing back again. She wasn't all that familiar with handshakes, and even if she had been she wasn't very comfortable with strangers.


“Dua.” She replied, figuring she should share her name since he'd told her his.


The man, Alphonse, went on to comment about her different appearance. She hadn't really seen someone like him before either; red hair wasn't exactly a common trait in Moloch's territory. He then went on to ask her why she was there. The question gave her pause for a moment; why would Moloch accept her? She supposed in the end it was her appearance. After all, he probably got a lot of enjoyment out of keeping someone who looked like Nerus under his thumb. Of course, she couldn't really tell Alphonse that. She certainly didn't want him or the others knowing about Nerus' blood running through her veins. Any devout followers of Moloch would no doubt have it out for her if they knew what she was. She supposed all she could really say was her...well...she supposed it was her profession.


“I was a slave to Moloch's people.” She responded. She didn't really feel like saying more about it, and if he asked she probably wouldn't add much. She understandably wasn't too trusting of others, especially those she'd just met. Besides, she didn't really want to live those bad memories over and over again.


His next question made her tense a little. It was a dangerous question, honestly. If she answered wrong she could get herself into more trouble. Why was he asking such a thing anyway? How did she like it? What did she think of Moloch? Did that mean he actually enjoyed being here serving that monster? She had to think about how to respond. She couldn't say that she hated Moloch, but she also wasn't going to praise him either.


“...It's about what I expected, as is Moloch.”


It was really the best answer she could give to such a strange question.


He offered to answer any questions she might have, adding in that most of the others took a while warming up to new faces. The fact that he found it funny was bewildering to her. What kind of person was he, to find this sort of place and situation laughable?


“Uh....thank you?” She replied, still somewhat thrown off by his demeanor. Did she have any questions to ask him? She supposed there was only one thing she could think of for the moment.


“So...what do you normally do? I mean...there are a lot of people, so how do you keep busy?” She asked, glancing towards the temple. Having been raised as a slave, she felt uneasy about standing around talking when there was work to be done. Even though Moloch wasn't around she felt anxious.

 

[Viper]

Alphonse's friendly expression did not waver in the slightest even after the awkward handshake nor did he point out how odd it was, he just returned his hand to his side as if nothing had happened. He didn't even stutter when Dua admitted that she was a slave, "A slave huh? Interesting... we have a few of those here but Moloch rarely shows a huge interest in them. I guess you caught his attention because of your appearance. I hope you prove yourself before the excitement of your look wears off." Once again Alphonse did not clarify what would happen if she failed to prove herself but it was not hard to guess what would happen. It was the same thing that happened to anyone who bored Moloch or did not impress him. They were gotten rid of one way or another. "I guess this isn't that different for you then, huh? Lucky you, there were a lot of people that came here over the years who never served anyone their entire lives. At least you already know how to take orders... that should help keep you in one piece." Alphonse added in the last sentence quietly as if to himself, although he was clearly still talking to her.


"It's... what you expected? Well that's an answer I have never heard before." The boy tilted his head to the side in a visible show of confusion. "Normally people comment on the glory that is the realm of the Gods or say that they are scared of Moloch... you must have nerves of steel not to be put off even a slightly." Alphonse paused slightly before continuing in a nostalgic voice, a small smile forming on his lips. "I can't blame you though, I felt similarly when I came here... I guess I was already used to think kind of stuff when I was brought here so none of it really surprised me." Just as quickly as the other servants gentle gaze came, it vanished as he returned to his previously bright mannerisms. "Glad to hear that though! It will be nice to have company that isn't shivering in their boots every time Moloch walks into the room."


"No problem, it's the least I can do." He said immediately waving her off, smiling at her still, "It will be easier if I show you..." Alphonse spoke cryptically, chuckling to himself as he started walking away from the edge. "Come on, this way!" He prompted looking over his shoulder at Dua before moving again. Although at  first it looked like he was taking her back into the temple but at the last minute he instead started walking around the perimeter of the building, towards the back. "I often act as a runner for Moloch, delivering messages and the like, but I'm an exception." He said this with a touch of pride as if he was pleased to have this unique position "Everyone else when not cleaning tend to be left to their own devices. Some Gods work their servants to the bone but Moloch is better than that and trusts his people to make the best use of their free time however they choose.  Back here is where most of the servants go when not working, we tend to sleep and eat back here too.  Moloch keeps us well fed so you won't have to worry about starving. Even if he didn't ,we cannot die from hunger... although it still hurts if you don't eat every few days." It wasn't until he rounded the corner that Dua could actually see what he was talking about.


It was a training camp. Tents and campfires littered the area behind Moloch's temple in an unorganized fashion, people mingled freely about the camp as they ate, danced, or slept. Where there was not living necessities there were dummies, weapons, and open spaces fit for combat.  It looked like a place one would train an army. None of the weapons were as fancy as the ones within the temple but they still looked to be of decent quality. Just from where the pair of servants stood, they could see plenty of people training, some obviously taking it more seriously then others. People were running around the perimeter of the camp, showing each other fighting techniques, and in a handful of cases actually trying to kill each other. Just like Moloch this place was loud yet full of energy. No matter the time of day this place was always filled with the clashing of swords and laughter. It was not clear why these people were training since there was no official teachers or guards to enforce it however it appeared that all of the servants were in decent to great physical condition so they must have been training despite that they were not being forced.


"This is our home." Alphonse said after giving her a moment to observe. "Most people spend their free time here in order to stay far out of Moloch's way. And before you ask, they are training for a reason. Moloch generally likes strength and combat prowess so they do this to gain his favor."

 

[volchan]

Dua didn't comment when Alphonse hinted at the danger she might be in if she didn't prove herself to Moloch. For now she was safe for one reason; she wasn't just Moloch's. Until the higher ups gave their opinion he couldn't kill her. Torture? Probably. Humiliate? Most likely. However, as long as she was half Nerus' she'd be spared from death...at the very least.


“Yeah...I guess so.” She replied when he commented on her previous experience as a slave. She supposed it had prepared her in some twisted way for being in this position; but then again she wouldn't be in this position in the first place if she hadn't been a slave. Again he hinted at danger, but Dua brushed it off. She'd been tormented emotionally, physically, mentally, and even spiritually for years, so at the moment she wasn't all that afraid of what Moloch could do to her. Of course she didn't want to be tortured or put through pain, but she had a faint glimmer of hope that she might end up with Nerus. She didn't know him well, but at least he seemed less likely to cut her up into pieces or throw her into lava.


“Well, I guess this place, as a whole, is different from what I expected. Moloch's island isn't all that different from the landscape I grew up in though, and having lived under his followers' thumbs for so long I had a pretty good idea of what kind of god he'd be.” She explained.


“It's not even that I'm not afraid...I just don't really care what happens to me anymore.” She admitted. Having learned that she would most likely never see her mother again, she didn't see much point in caring. The only hope she really had at the moment was in Nerus; a god who'd abandoned his own followers and would most likely have abandoned her again had she not shared his blood. When Alphonse went on to mention his own thoughts on first arriving, she got the feeling they'd shared some similar experiences in their past lives. Perhaps he'd gone through pain of some kind as well.


Dua nodded and went along, thinking that they were going back inside. Instead he led her around the side and to the back. She thought it strange that Moloch would allow them free time, or that he wouldn't be a taskmaster and constantly keep them working day and night. From what she'd seen of him he was too cruel to just let them run off and enjoy themselves. Even the fact that they could sleep and eat sounded weird to her. She'd been worked like a dog while alive, and often went underfed or unfed altogether. Why would a god who was so cruel and destructive allow his servants any happiness?


They reached the back and came to what appeared to be a camp of some kind. There were several fires lit, allowing one to see the multitude of people eating, fighting and sleeping. She felt a little uncomfortable in the environment, especially since she was new. The sound of swords clashing didn't really make her feel all that well either; such noises tended to bring up bad memories for her. She didn't show any outward discomfort though, as she didn't want to draw anymore attention to herself than she already would be.


“I see.” She responded when he mentioned why people were fighting or training. She had little to no interest in gaining Moloch's favor, at least with how things currently stood. She supposed if she ended up belonging to him she'd have no choice but to do something drastic; whether it be trying to get in a better position here or getting herself killed and put out of her misery altogether. She hoped that Moloch would just leave her alone, but now that he knew she was related to Nerus she doubted that was going to happen. If anything he'd treat her worse than before.


“We should finish cleaning.” She said, turning back to go into the temple. She may not like Moloch, but she also didn't want to get beaten or whipped for not doing what she was supposed to do. Until she knew her fate all she could do was try to stay out of Moloch's cross hairs.