The messenger bursts into the room, clearly out of breath. I scrutinize him idly, fingers poised to blow him into a million pieces with a single thought. He is a Lesser Angel, which meant he had been created and sent by Lumenia. And if she uses an envoy, she's got bad news to break.
"Humanity has gone extinct."
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I suppose I should introduce who I am.
I'm Dementia, the goddess of Chaos. I was known by many names in the past- Talli Rua, The Dark Assassin, and many more- but now, I'm Dementia.
I woke up in a forest, started killing things, and eventually ended up meeting my creator, the former god of Chaos. I killed him, then ate his soul, which resulted in me becoming the new goddess of Chaos.
Did I mention that the former god of Chaos was also my father?
He abducted some poor mortal woman, tortured her to insanity, then impregnated her. And then he imbued the fetus inside her with the sin of Gluttony, one of the Seven Deadly Sins.
That fetus was me.
His reasoning for doing such things was that he wanted more chaos- and the fact that he was going to absorb me back into him when I came back- but I doubt he expected me to kill him.
After I devoured his soul- courtesy of Gluttony- all of his power went to me, which meant that I got to live in his giant obelisk-slash-palace in the middle of the City of Gods, with hundreds of thousands of monsters to care for my every whim.
What's the City of Gods? Well, it's not really a city- it's a whole different dimension, where gods live. It's also where the gods show off their powers the most. Some built gigantic palaces (as Praeliora, goddess of War, did) or curated libraries housing billions of obscure texts (as was the case for Cognitus, being of Wisdom).
When my father woke from his slumber, he marched into the center of the City of Gods- yes, a dimension can have a center, and only the most important gods live near the center- and raised the obelisk. The other gods tried to stop him, but only managed to get a stalemate.
This was because of the Balance of Power.
For some stupid reason, the powers of the 'good' and 'evil' gods are supposed to cancel each other out. However, because there's only one 'evil' god, all the power that was supposed to be spread amongst multiple gods went to my dear father, and consequently, me.
I'm not complaining, though. It's the only thing stopping the other gods from simply casting me into the Eternal Abyss, a dimension exclusively used for housing prisoners the gods deem evil. Of course, there's nobody in it, yet. But I can tell, whenever another god looks at me. I can see it in their eyes. That cold, condemning look.
It was hard enough to get them to acknowledge me as a replacement for my father in the first place, not when they consider what I did cannibalism and patricide. Lumenia herself, goddess of light, led the vote to cast me out of the Council of Gods, and the vote was divided neatly down the middle. To my surprise, the last voter, Cognitus, voted in favor of me remaining on the council, so I got to stay.
Cognitus happens to be the god I get along with the best. On first glance, he might not seem like much. In fact, if you can see him at all, it means he's taken on a physical form just to converse with you, and that's a great honor. To put it simply, Cognitus is the sum of every idea that has ever been, and since ideas are invisible, he is, too. But knowing how humans prefer to talk to things they can see, and also knowing that such habits rubbed off on me during my time as a mortal, he appears to me in the form of a floating, lumenescent crystal. As a being of knowledge, he has no morals, no bias, no gender- in fact, I should call him an it. But whenever I talk to him, I can't help but get the feeling that his 'voice'- although he doesn't have one, we converse through telepathy- is rather masculine.
Lumenia, of course, is my most bitter enemy. She might be the benevolent, kind goddess of Light on the exterior, but any of her followers would die of shock if they got to see inside her mind. She's constantly thinking of ways to discredit me, to make sure I am punished for simply existing. Again, I thank my powers for the fact that she can't do anything to me unless she's backed by all the other gods.
Other than those two, there are a slew of other gods, all reigning over some function- Praeliora over War, Vitalis over Life, Mortem over Death, and so on.
Rather surprisingly, Vitalis and Mortem are very good friends, perhaps because they understand the need for balance the most. This is also the reason they stay neutral to any decision made by the Council, and although they have seats on it, they never attend any meetings.
Mortem isn't considered an evil god, as I discovered to my chagrin when I asked him about it a few days after I became the new goddess of Chaos. My conversation with him went somewhat like this:
"Hey, Mortem."
"Hmm?"
"Are you an evil god?"
"What? No!"
"Why not?"
"Death, although some consider it 'evil', is a natural fact of life. In a way, my domain is part of Vitalis's- the same way her domain is part of mine."
"Oh."
"Unlike your domain, Chaos, which serves to do nothing but cause trouble."
"Jeez, I get it. Stop."
As you can probably imagine from the provided transcript, calling him an evil god did not sit very well with him.
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I snap my mind back to the situation at hand, and glare at the cowering Angel in front of me. It- well, he- has a good reason to fear me. When I'm mad, I enjoy the therapeutic effects of murdering whatever happens to be in front of me at the time and bathing in its blood. Of course, after the first time, I never forget to shield my clothes from the blood.
I hear amused chuckling from my left, and I turn my head to glance at Lust, my chief of staff and head maid. Lust is technically my sister, in a way. When she came back from sowing death and destruction, my father, the lecherous fool he was, decided to keep her alive instead of absorbing her due to her incredibly good looks. After I replaced him, she was more than happy to continue working for me, mostly due to the fact that I didn't try to grope her every few seconds. That, and the fact that I had a soft spot for her, since she was also imbued with one of the Seven Deadly Sins.
As the head maid, she had been absolutely livid when she found me soaked in blood- or rather, my ceremonial robes soaked in blood. She had shouted at me about how I should treat my clothing better for three hours, then tied me up and left me squirming on my bed for three days. It was a good thing gods don't need to eat or take a leak. After that, I had requested a sparring session with her- of course, without my newfound godly powers, since that would be slightly unbalanced- and I had been thrown around like a pebble in a tornado. Being another embodiment of sin, I should have anticipated her incredible strength- but I didn't. That is also when I learned to never let my guard down, although I really should have learned that after I killed my father, since the only reason I got close enough to kill him was because he became complacent, overconfident in his immortality.
Today she's wearing the guise of a tall, busty redhead, with a maid uniform cut in a way that exposes the maximum amount of bare skin yet is still modest enough to pass for public wear. The Angel's eyes dart to her, and he gulps, knowing that to stand at my side, one must have an immense amount of power- enough to make the Angel look like an insignificant insect.
"Ahem."
I clear my throat, focusing the Angel's attention back on me.
"So, how did they wipe themselves out? It hasn't been too long since I ascended, and back then the world was fine."
"Well, er, your godliness, with all due respect, it's been two thousand years since you reached godhood."
I jump from my seat in surprise. I'm pretty sure that it's only been, what, ten years? And yet, this Angel is telling me otherwise.
"Nonsense! Surely it hasn't been that long."
"Erm, if I may explain, time progresses differently in the City of Gods. While in here only ten years may have passed, in the realm of the mortals much more time has gone by."
I sit back down, contemplating his- its- whatever- words. That makes sense, in a way. It explains why gods are normally very distant- they simply don't realize anything's going on in the mortal realm. I should have dropped in to check on them more often.
"Well? Is that all?"
"N-not exactly, my lord. The Council of Gods has requested your attendance in a meeting to decide how to repopulate Earth."
"I see. Well, tell Lumenia I'll be there in half an hour. Now, leave."
The Angel wastes no time in sprinting out the doors of the obelisk, and disappears, leaving behind glowing white feathers.
Lust turns to me, one eyebrow raised.
"Why would you need half an hour? You're already wearing your robes, and with your teleportation powers it should be simple to get there in no time at all."
"I've got a few things to take care of first. Don't worry about it."
I run into my bedchamber, and after making sure there isn't anyone trying to look in on me, I open an ornate wooden chest. Immediately, I am transported into another dimension, one filled with junk.
I found this dimension while trying to learn more about my godly powers. After ascertaining that the dimension was uninhabited, I threw all my things in it, and created a gateway to it inside a wooden chest in my room. Inside this dimension are all the magical knickknacks my father owned, with my only addition being the equipment I used as a mortal. This equipment includes the Shard of Eternity.
What is the Shard of Eternity? It's a fragment from back when the Lightless Star exploded into gods, one tiny fragment, too small to have enough power to be a god, struck the Earth. By small, I mean small- it's small enough to fit in my hand. Conveniently, it has a very sharp point, and it's what I used to kill my father. Despite never being able to reach godhood, it was still able to kill him, as a god is the only thing that can kill another god.
This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.
Oh, you want to know what the Lightless Star is? So, basically, in the very beginning, before anything existed, the Lightless Star existed. One day, it exploded, making all of the major gods and also creating the Earth, its sun and moon. But after that, there was a mass of darkness left behind, that slumbered for eons before waking up and causing a ruckus in the City of Gods. You guessed it, that was my father.
I run through the piles of junk, throwing things out of my way, until I see a blue glow. The object emnating the glow is a diamond-shaped gem, filled with what looks like tiny sparks. I reach out and grab it, then put it in one of the many pockets on my robes. Recreating an entire species is no easy task, and just in case Vitalis deems it impossible with the power we have on hand I want to bring along some backup.
Finding the way out is harder than finding the Shard, as this dimension is impossible to navigate, what with it being so cluttered. I doubt even with a map one would be able to find their way out without a good amount of trial and error. Even if I'd memorized what the piles of junk looked like, the fact that I knocked so many of them over would render it useless.
After roughly half an hour, I emerge from the chest, and carefully close it. I then rush out of my room, through the hallways, past the guardsmen, who salute me with their halberds as I run by, through the entrance hall, and out the gates. As soon as I clear the threshold, I teleport myself in front of the building the Council uses for meetings.
When I arrive, I land on someone and we both go down in an untidy heap. I blink multiple times, realizing the person I've landed on is decidedly female (or has a female appearance at the moment). I know this, because my head is pressed against their formidable breasts. Combine that with the rather revealing red-and-gold armor she's wearing, and there's no doubt who she is.
Praeliora, goddess of War.
I jump to my feet, and leap backwards, just in time to dodge a truly ferocious punch. Even as I watch, the shockwave from the punch travels until it hits a giant statue of Praeliora, leaving many large cracks.
"You- you perverted beast! How dare you try to sully a pure maiden like myself!"
Praeliora, face red with anger, lunges at me, trying to pummel every part of me within reach. I continue dodging, while apologizing in rapid-fire gasps.
"I'm- sorry for- accidentally- touching your breasts! I swear- it wasn't on purpose- and you know Lust isn't part of me- so I don't have- any such desires!"
It's true. Because Lust isn't a part of me, I have never felt any carnal desires during my ten years as a goddess. During the more boring periods, I considered using my absolute command over monsters to force them to fuck me, but it was a mere whim, and I never acted on it. Of course, there's no way a meathead like Praeliora will accept that as an excuse.
Sadly enough, she's one of the more intelligent gods. Unlike most gods, who are simply airheads, she possesses some common sense. The only other gods that aren't dumbasses are Vitalis, Mortem, and Cognitus.
But seriously, most of the gods are fucking idiots.
Praeliora continues swinging at me, blatantly ignoring the property damage she's causing. That is, until Vitalis and Mortem show up. She immediately stops, and greets the duo, though I can still feel her eyes boring a hole in my back.
It's blatant favoritism, that's what it is. If I'd gone mad and started smashing things left and right, I bet you my domain that they'd put me up on trial again. But no, when darling Praeliora does it, it's completely fucking fine. Having to deal with other beings is tiring at best, and utterly infuriating at worst. This is why I enjoy Cognitus's company so much.
The inside of the Council building is a large room, with a round table in the middle. I say large, but you probably won't be able to grasp the concept with your feeble mortal mind- when a god considers something large, it's usually bigger than your entire measly planet.
To be quite honest, this building's a huge waste of space, even if the City of Gods has an infinite amount of it. The only features it has is the round table in the middle, and the chairs around it, so what do they do with the rest of the space? Why, it's for the escorts some of the gods invariably bring, of course! Take Lumenia, for instance. The stupid bitch insists on taking a small army of Angels wherever she goes, and an army, however small, takes up a shitload of space.
Most of the Council members are already seated, making me, Praeliora, Vitalis and Mortem the last ones to arrive. My seat is to the opposite of everyone else's, and everyone except Cognitus always makes an effort to sit as far away from me as they can.
At the table are Helios and Lune (two well-muscled men representing the sun and the moon you could almost mistake for twins, if not for their contrasting hair color), Cognitus (wearing the form of a multicolored, floating crystal), Tenebra (goddess of the dark, which isn't part of my domain since it mainly consists of nighttime), Alitura (represents nature and motherhood, patron goddess of elves, and the one I call 'titty monster'), Petro (literally a living slab of rock, cares for earth- not the planet, but actual dirt- also prefers to be called with masculine pronouns for some reason. The patron god of dwarves), Mare (mermaid with seaweed for hair. I don't need to mention what she rules over), Cael (half-naked guy wearing a toga that likes riding clouds. His domain is air, which is why I sometimes imagine him controlling all that air between the other gods' ears), Flamma (a silhouette of a busty woman made from flame), Geno (old dude who I'm told has a giant cock. God of fertility and fatherhood), and Ebrius (a perpetually drunk sleaze who's supposed to preside over parties and general revelry).
As I take my seat, the doors burst open once again, and Lumenia enters, leading her entourage. I put my hand to my face, realizing that I simply dismissed her- or rather, the lack of her- when I looked at the other gods. While an army sounds like it would be incredibly conspicuous, since I see it so often it's just turned into background decoration to me.
Lumenia sits down, and Vitalis clears her throat.
"Ahem. I assume you all know why we are here?"
Everyone nods. Even if they didn't receive a message, they would have noticed from their sudden lack of overwhelming power. The power of a god is based off their followers' devotion, and the less followers they have, the less power they get. This is another reason my power is so much greater than any other individual god- technically, all living beings are my followers. Each time a sin is committed, I get a teensy little bit of power. As it is, though, due to the lack of actual shrines to me, I'm considered the goddess with the least followers.
"Just in case there's someone here who didn't receive the full memo, I'll explain anyway. Humans, our most devoted followers and the source of most of our power, have gone and wiped themselves out. Not only that, they have left the entire Earth barren from their use of destructive weaponry. The same goes for other humanoid races, whether it be elves, dwarves, or the fae."
Huh? I didn't know that the entire Earth had been ravaged in such a way. It must have been a huge shock for Alitura.
Cael lets out a derisive snort.
"As if the fae matter to us. They don't believe in gods in the first place, so why do we even bother?"
"And yet, they are still living beings, and under my jurisdiction. Any complaints about that?"
Cael shifts around in his seat uncomfortably as everyone's stares focus on him, and stays silent.
"Good. Now, I believe I can leave restoring nature to Alitura, Flamma, Mare, Cael and Petro. However, there is a complication."
She pauses, her lips pursed together tightly.
"Creating life is an incredibly exhausting process, in both a physical and magical way. The fact that I don't have a reference point to go off of is another problem, but one that can be easily solved through using more power.
"This is why I would like to ask you all to lend me your power. All of it."
A series of gasps ripple through the seated gods. Her request is by no means a trivial one- even if the other gods are weak compared to me, they possess considerable power. I lean back, my arms crossed, expecting to be passed over since surely Vitalis is worried about my chaos and corruption leaking into the power I supply. As if reading my mind, she looks directly at me.
"Yes, you too, Dementia. Humans are by nature rather chaotic beings, and we need your power for this."
I sigh, and nod my head imperceptibly in assent. She claps her hand together, and motions for all of us to get up.
"Good! Now, please, take turns sending your power into the air in front of me."
All of us line up in front of her, and drain our power. The visual representation of power is strangely beautiful- like a multicolored spider's web.
When my turn arrives, I hesitate before I start.
"You sure you want all of my power? Not just the same amount everyone else supplied?"
"Yes, I'm very sure."
My power, made of black, glistening strands, goes to join the others in front of Vitalis. She begins moving her hands and fingers in complex patterns, almost as if she's knitting using the supplied power. I go back to my seat, and watch her work. Soon, I feel my eyes begin to droop, and I look around to see that the other gods have slumped over as well. I close my eyes, and sleep.
Technically, a god has no need for sleep. But a god also has no need for technicalities.
When I sleep, I dream. Back when I was a mortal, I used to have grandiose dreams of devouring the world whole. Now, I dream of memories. My father's, specifically. This one involves my mother.
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Mother shrieks as she thrashes against the chains binding her to the stone wall. In front of her is Father, lovingly carving chunks of flesh from her right arm with a curved, serrated knife. Mother's screams grow louder when Father cuts through muscle and into bone.
'Oops! You shouldn't flail around so much, dearest Alisha. You could get seriously hurt.'
He chuckles, and goes back to what he was doing previously. With meticulous care, he strips her arm of every bit of outer flesh, leaving nothing but torn muscles and ligaments beneath. He pokes at her arm, and her voice gets louder still. And then, her own shadow coils up around her ankles, and makes its way up to her arm. Even as I watch, her skin, which abruptly ends at her shoulder, begins crawling out towards her hands. In seconds, her arm is completely healed, and Mother's screams subside into small sobs.
Father puts the knife on a tray full of tools to his left. He then picks up what looks to be an ordinary fireplace poker, and with a single thought, its entire length begins glowing cherry-red, an indication of its heat. Mother begins moaning for him to stop, but of course, he doesn't listen. He eyes her for a minute, then suddenly plunges the poker into her stomach.
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I jerk awake, and fall backwards, tipping my chair with me. I land in a heap on the cold marble floor, and I realize the reason for my abrupt awakening is Cognitus- he came up to me and nudged my thoughts.
"Vitalis should be done any time now."
I stand up, and see that the individual strands of power in front of Vitalis have coalesced into a ball. But she's obviously having trouble, and every time she tries to force the strands to stay together, they fly apart. She stops to wipe the sweat off her forehead. I call out to her, and she turns to look at me. She's frowning, although I don't know if it's because of my question or something else.
"What's the problem?"
"For some reason, I just can't get this to work. I don't understand. This is the exact same procedure I used when I first put humans on the planet! There shouldn't be any reason this won't-"
She gasps, and puts her hands to her mouth.
"I-I've just realized what we're missing.
"I need the essence of a god to complete this."
The essence of a god is different from their soul, but here, it doesn't really matter, since to gain either of them means the death of a god. Already, the other gods are backing away from her, shaking their heads, except for Ebrius, who's still snoring away in his seat, skin of wine in one hand.
This is why you always have a backup plan.
"Will this work as a substitute?"
I draw out the Shard, and hold it aloft. Vitalis gasps, Mortem recoils, and Cognitus suddenly turns red, but other than that I don't get much of a reaction. That much is to be expected, considering all the other gods only care about their own domains.
"Is-is that-"
"The Shard of Eternity? Yes, ma'am, it is. So, is it going to work?"
Lumenia cuts in, with a confused look on her face.
"What's a Shard of Eternity, and why is it such a big deal?"
Cognitus, ever the scholar, gives the rest of the room an impromptu history lesson. By the end, all of their eyes are wide in shock, and I'm pretty sure Flamma's jaw hit the floor. Lumenia's face is scrunched up, more in anger than anything.
"Well, so that's all nice, but why does she have it?"
I smile at her. It's not a nice smile. In fact, it's the creepiest one in my arsenal, and as the goddess of Chaos, my arsenal is pretty impressive.
"If you actually bothered to give a shit about the affairs of mortals for once, maybe you'd have found it. Finders, keepers."
Her face looks like it's about to start emitting steam, so I turn to Vitalis and hand over the crystal. Immediately, she breaks it down into the same threads of power we gave her, except there's something different about them. This time, when she forces the threads into a ball, it stays together, and it starts shrinking, until it's completely gone. Vitalis stumbles and falls on her back in exhaustion, and whispers something that manages to echo throughout the entire hall, despite it being barely more than a wisp of air.
"It is done."
At that moment, Ebrius chooses to wake up. He blinks blearily, and stands up, his footing unsteady.
"Is it already time for the meeting? Uh, what was it about, again?"