A small campfire burnt quietly in a cave, the depths of which were indiscernible in the echoing darkness. Two men sat at that fire, one in an archaic suit of armour made of iron while the other wore rich robes and finery. Even as the fire flickered and spat neither spoke, the armoured man more akin to a statue in the silence. The man In robes lightly tapped on his knee finally setting a conversation in motion.

A strong graunching sound could be heard as the knight shifted its head to look at the man. Even the knights voice seemed to carry an endless amount of rust

“You came”

The robes man had a much finer and soft voice but still replied succinctly

“yes”

“You are early”

“The fire has dimmed”

“Indeed… why are you here?”

“You let someone through, didn’t you?”

At the mans question the knight pondered for a while before answering

“In this place you lose sense of time, it has already been so long. I blinked and 8 became 10”

“Answer the question”

“Don’t you find it ironic? Humanity calls them demons, yet have you ever stepped back to look at what we have done?”

“So, you have… this makes things difficult for me”

“It really doesn’t, you know full well what happens to those who enter this sanctum”

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The robed man gave a long sigh before answering

“Then why don’t you tell me something, a final story before you feed me to the flames”

“Hmmm, you pick which one, do you want the stories of the Mythics, some truths of this worlds history, or the tales of those humanity has eliminated”

“Are the ones humanity has eliminated and the Mythics not the same?”

“If all the Mythics were dead, then the world would no longer continue to exist… it is close though.”

“Then let’s go with a truth of the world”

“Sure, your god is a lie, this world was not created by them, though they did help create humanity.”

“Is that all?”

“No, but the full story is too long, and I do not care to let my throat go parched in this hell without water”

“And it hasn’t already? You have been in this cave for several thousand years”

“Fine, the true god of this world left long ago, and in their absence, another came along, that God was a blind follower of the universe’s strongest entity, Nadir. That entity is so powerful that just blinking wipes out several million worlds, and I do not jest, this world has barely survived it the last three times.”

The knight smacked shifted in his seat and smacked his lips a few times before continuing

“Anyway, that God that came believing in Nadir corrupted the elves to create humanity, a much lesser species. That God gave the simple instruction to conquer the world to its creations. Humanity did very well, taking advantage of the other races kindness and even securing victory over a small clan of elves during the era of the united empire that was le by the dwarves. But as humanity survived and grew into the next era that God left, whether boredom or for some other reason.”

“I no longer wonder how you were taken for a fool, if anyone truly took your words to heart and survived, then humanity would implode.”

“Indeed, it is surprising how such a fragile species has managed to change the world’s name from something so beautiful to Malo-Dorus”

The robed man looked on in silence as his clothes slowly disappeared into the amber and crimson that engulfed him. the man didn’t know when it had begun but he knew this was his end, there was no pain, nor regret. All that filled the man’s mind even as his eyes melted into a goop that pooled on the floor, was pity. it was not a self-pity, but pity for the knight who guarded the eternal flame, the knight who let in someone who would surely die in this hellish world, the knight who is only remembered by those who wish him dead.

With a final gargled sigh, the man collapsed to the ground, his thoughts trailing off into the river of nothingness that his soul would never reach.