The group traverse the glistening terrain, sticking to the gravity-defying ceiling for a better view. Weight oscillates as they travel, waxing and waning each time they approach and grow distant from the light cores slowly shifting above... below? If down is upside down is it up or still down? Hm... Food for thought. Anyway. The journey drags on, hours peeling away into days as their food supply steadily dwindles. Passing over windy grasslands, or rather mosslands, and dense jungle-scapes, snacking on the occasional fruit and the rare straggling bug which clearly overslept on migration day.

"Whad'ya think?" Lyly asks peering up at the ground as she nibbles the last piece of meat left. "Could work. Hard to say from down... up here. At the very least there might be food." Above, or below, them lies a large sinkhole, coated in a layer of hard, bubble shaped stone and leading deep into the ground. One can almost feel the prickle of acid in the air emanating from the sinkhole below... no above them. "So should we send someone to scout it, or..." Lyly hops atop her perch, nibbling her fuzz clean from her meal. "Is there a point? I can just fly in and check with Aether. If there's nothing we leave. No need to split up." Aleph stands, stretches, and leaps, soaring up from the ceiling, and gliding down to the ground.

"We should be careful. This cave is clearly not naturally formed." Fluffy warns as they land, his complexion having returned to normal these past few days despite still not being allowed to walk. Taking his warning, Aleph pulls at the surrounding light and renders the group invisible. "I can't see..." "We've been over this. Neither can anything else." "Ah yes, the tried and true method of 'if we can't see them, they can't see us'. How could I ever have doubts." Ignoring the sardonic chitters atop her head, Aleph makes her way into the sinkhole, immediately being struck by an intense, vinegar-like pungence and the low hum of life.

Hopping in and sliding down the walls she comes to a stop at the base and flares her Aether wide. The cave winds and diverges, splits, joins, and loops in a chaotic matrix of tunnels and caverns. Within the endless array of passages, strange chitinous creatures seemingly composed of only legs cartwheel through the maze, several of which already barrelling straight for the intruding group. "Hey! Why are we visible again?" "Nothing here seems to have eyes. We were seen the moment I landed, so they probably sense vibrations. Or Mana. Or sound... Okay there's a lot of things they could be sensing. This place is a maze though. It goes deep, so it probably reaches the next layer, but we'll probably have to fight our way through."

Goldy hops to the ground, stretching as he readies for a fight. Didi steps just behind him, Fluffy resisting the urge to join them while Lyly just stays in place. "Guess I don't need to ask. Let's head this-" Krakoom! A shock-wave, seemingly from nowhere, cuts her off, the pulse of sound barrelling through the ground and shattering the stone around them. Sections of cave crumble the whole way down as the group fall through the floor.

Through the eyes of a panicked demon

Oh fuck! We're doomed! What's happening?! Am I still falling? Fwap! Crumble! Okay, I'm not falling anymore. Diala wriggles, liquefying her body to slither out from the veritable mountain of rubble dumped on top of her. Popping out into a narrow tunnel, she pats off the dust clung to her form and takes in her surroundings. Guess we've been separated. I should regroup. Her gaze is drawn to a writhing creature wedged under the heavy rocks and oozing white liquid. Seems a bit nuclear of a defence mechanism to cave in your own home, no?

Shaking her head she steps towards the pile. What should I do from here? Regroup? Where though? I don't know if they're above or below me. Aleph can see through walls, right? Maybe I should wait for her to find me? A slight tremble fills the earth, distant footsteps now approaching her. Waiting sounds tedious. We're heading down anyway, so I'll just go as far down as I can and hope the rest meet me there. Her body melts once again, weaving back into the rocks as she winds her way down, ignoring the rumblings around her.

Through the eyes of an agitated spider

"Holy shit! Think fast!" Lyla pulls herself from the shock and vertigo of the sudden strike and fall to cling to the nearest body she can find. Stone jettisons past and falls alongside them as they tumble and slide deeper and deeper, until they come to a rest. Stable. Great! Now I can use my incredible martial prowess to blow away these stones covering me. Flexing her muscles as tight as she can, she presses her legs against the rough stones, powder falling into the grooves between her fuzz as the earth is nudged... and they explode outward, crashing against the nearby walls. Wait, that worked?! The ground she clings to stands up, dusting itself off before peering down to meet Lyla's eyes. Ah, never mind. "Hey Lil' Blue. Guess we fell together, huh."

"Ah, yes. Good to see you too and all that." Lyla responds, hopping off of the elf's face and skittering a healthy distance away. "Great. Well. Which way now?" "Well, normally I would have chosen to just dig through these loose rocks. Seems more reliable than aimlessly wandering at least." Lyla stares at him for a moment before turning around. "You have fun with that. I'll head this way."

Through the eyes of a stunned monkey

Gol Dhee stumbles back from the collapsing tunnel, the only one far enough from the apex to dodge the shock-wave. Gripping the earth he stabilises the buckling walls and steps back toward the caved in rubble with a small flame held in his palm. They fell below... I should find them. The walls begin to tremble once again, and Gol Dhee turns to meet the source. A stream of cross-shaped beasts dart his way, coated in a shell and gripping the stone with fangs at the end of each foot. I do not need the distraction. His flame snuffs out, and his palms grasp at the walls, shattering stone and closing the tunnel in a crashing wave. Despite the force, the creatures continue to stubbornly writhe their way out from the stone, dead set on their target.

Through the eyes of a confused dragon

Ugh... How deep did I fall? Aleph pushes out from the rubble, grasping the stones around her with Aether to burst herself free. Where is everyone? Aether flares again, pushing through the stone and stretching into every opening within the spaghettified concoction of tunnels around her. I can see Fluffy above me... but nobody else. Are they further up? I should go meet them. As she takes a step forward her gaze drifts below to the source of the shock-wave. Whatever it is, it looks like it got itself stuck. I can barely sense it under the rubble though... What exactly is it? Shaking her head, she maps out the quickest route back up to her companions, darting onward once she finds her route.

A blur of violet charges through the endless tunnels, claws carving through stone as it surges around bends and soars over any creatures attempting to provide obstruction. Her advance continues uncontested as she winds through corridors, dashes up pitfalls, and around the knotted paths, until, "Ow!" Her charge grinds to a stop, a small wave of air from her halted motion pushing back some of her would-be obstructors, and she swipes at the shadowy pest now pecking at her scales. The creature deforms around her claws, continuing unfettered by her attack. "Ow!" Another appears, near unseen to her Aether as it begins to peck in tandem with the other. "What the hell?!" And another. And another. And another, until an entire swarm of shadows begin to assault her.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Aleph flares her Aether, preparing for a strike, prompting the swarm to grow more vigorous in their assault. What? I wonder... Doubling back, she instead pulls her Aether inside, focusing it to a point. In response the critters grow confused, fluttering around her lost and almost lifeless compared to before. What are these things?

Through the eyes of a ragged elf

"Fuu..." Fluffy pants, his stance held strong against the ravenous creatures mounting an organised attack in waves. "I knew it! You still haven't recovered. Seriously, you need to learn your limits, dumbass!" "Funny... My master... says the same thing..." His stance widens, another wave charging in strong ahead of them. As the beasts bound near, he steps in and swipes his fists, systematically dismantling each one with ruthless efficiency. Each strike snakes around their limbs and plows through the joints holding them together, one after another, again and again, until none remain in-tact and the next wave make their approach.

"You're going to collapse at this rate. Let me take over." "I'm... fine..." He declares between laboured breaths, taking a step forward to prepare. "Maybe if... I give it one big strike..." "Idiot! And cause another cave in?!" "Ah... Right... I'm not... thinking straight..." Lil' Blue puffs herself up in front of him, waving her pedipalps like a bodybuilder showing off their sick gains. "Leave it to me! I've got this!"

Through the eyes of a cramped demon

Pulled thin and squeezed flat, Diala wedges her way between the recently formed pillar of abrasive rubble running down the hive. This is going great! I can't even be attacked from in here. Crunch... Munch... Crunch! Crumble! I shouldn't have thought anything! To her side a long worm-like face protrudes, chewing through the stone as it tunnels straight for the demon. Swiftly slithering away, Diala squeezes her way out into open air, landing on a floor of intensely sticky webs. Unfettered by the stickiness due to her smooth, crystalline body, she skips onward in search of the source of the webs.

Around her lay dozens of creatures incapacitated within the tough bindings carpeted across the floor, their bizarre concoctions of legs making it indiscernible whether they're in terribly awkward poses or just look like this. As she hops around them they snap at her, impotently striking towards the only thing able to move here. I feel kinda bad for these things... Pebbles fall from above, signalling the oncoming strike of a creature burrowing in from above. Snap! Not that bad though. No amount of legs can save you from having your body snapped in twain by immense force. This thing is no exception.

She continues onward, crushing several more would-be attackers before shortly arriving at a tightly wound cocoon of webs, within which a distinctive yell can be heard. "What the hell?! They're eating the ceiling now?! That's gotta be cheating!" Having evidently decided they can't force their way through the wall of thread, the creatures have instead begun to chew away at the stone they're attached to, strategically ruining the structural integrity of the cocoon. Diala sprints up the webs, quickly disposing of the dozen or so creatures munching at the ceiling, leaving piles of goo and chitin in her wake.

"Demon? Is that you?" Diala pokes her head through the webs, her gaze meeting with eight cyan eyes and two exhausted green eyes. "Is Fluffy okay?" "Oh sure. You ask about him and not me." "Aren't you invincible?" "Ah..." Lyla pauses for a moment, stepping back in genuine thought, before puffing up with an almost palpable pride. "Fuehehe, I suppose I am! Hmph. You're forgiven. Oh, and the idiot is okay. He's just an idiot." "Hey... I'll be fine. Just need a quick rest and I'll be back in the fight." "This idiot..."

Through the eyes of a focused ape

Earth crumbles away, pushed aside by the tense grip of Gol Dhee's essence. Stepping out from the rubble his fingers pull at the air, arms littered with small cuts and bruises beneath his golden fur, and coated in thick splodges of white goo. The bright one's essence is near. He steps forward, a creature spiralling at him with untamable hostility, only to be grabbed from the air and crushed. More make the attempt as he strides down the tunnel, only to be met by a similar fate of being crushed, burned, or used as footing over the mess of webs caked across the floor. As he comes across a large cocoon, filling the hallway ceiling to floor, he spots a small figure similarly coated in white goop. "Fiery one. I see you handle this well."

Turning away from the hulking mass of legs she just bisected, the Fiery One waves to Gol Dhee, small droplets of white splashing around her. "Hey! They're not all that strong so I could do this all day if I wanted." "Indeed. A few showed promise, though this ordeal has been fairly boring of a challenge." From within the cocoon a tiny set of eyes poke out, glaring at Gol Dhee. "Don't say that! You'll jinx it!" She chides, evidently having jinxed it harder than he did, considering the wave of hulking creatures only now streaming forth from behind, gripping the walls and stepping over their fallen brethren to avoid the webs. "I knew it!"

Gol Dhee takes a stance, a wide grin on his face as he readies himself to wage battle against the oncoming behemoths. Barely able to fit in the tunnels as they march forth, stone crumbling beneath the grip of their jaws as they bare their fangs back, dripping with acid and hostility. Yet in spite of their intimidating demeanour... Krakoom! They crush just as easily under the weight of another shock-wave induced cave-in, the walls once again tremouring and shaking under the harsh impact. Feeling the air begin to waver, Gol Dhee's fur grows and turns white, his palms tearing at the air to form a small storm in counter to the next shock-wave aimed straight down the tunnel. Krakoom!

Through the eyes of a dragon on the run

Aleph hurls herself through the winding tunnels, coated in a vibrant cowl of violet as she beelines straight for the gathering group. As soon as the first speck of light from Lyly's fur comes into view, she yells. "Run!" The group turn to see Aleph bolting towards them, followed by a sizeable swarm of shadow forms voraciously charging after. Crashing in behind those, appears a writhing amalgam of formless shadow, a visage of pure malice as it gouges into the surrounding stone to launch itself ever faster.

The amalgam warps, wrapping around the air then condensing into a perfect sphere of pure void. And it bursts.

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The fourth great battle of the gods. A catastrophic war, the after-effects of which still linger even now, almost a millennium later. Unlike the previous great wars, what this battle lacked in magnitude it more than made up for in scale, its reach encompassing every corner of Magnus Mundus and even spilling into the other domains. Records indicate that it was after this war that Utopia was founded, replacing an older domain now lost to time.

Being the most recent of the great wars, it is also the one with the most surviving records. Several significant battles were documented in great detail and preserved by the Record Keeper. Of these, I'm sure we all know the story of the shadow of the labyrinth, one of the most pivotal events which led to the eventual etreat of the angels. A being which coated Avilar's dome and crippled the enemy forces. In a passage written by the Record Keeper themself, it is stated "Day turned night. Stars formed and bore their gazes upon us. Where the archangels had formerly brought havok upon the gods of Mana, they now stood impotent, their powers diminished and unruly."

Of course, we cannot discuss the fourth great war without also discussing its most significant event. The revival of Aoi, creator of Ao, mother to the Maolas, and her role in ending the war. It is said that in the time of greatest despair, where even Avilar's dome wavered and cracked under the ceaseless strain of battle, Aoi opened her eyes once more and struck down the army of angels, before forming her home island of