Otris twisted his white hands as he explained. "You plan to take over the Earth and its people, but you can't do that because you can't interfere with their souls without them giving you access. You can't even kill them without their permission. They are more powerful than you, that's why you're playing with their free will. Isn't that right, brother?"
Daien rolled his eyes and signaled Otris to hurry up with a wave of his hand. The insignificant conjectures bored him. He was impatient.
"You're playing with them, corrupting them to play a nauseating game of evil. You're breaking their souls with each insane game, but that's not all. You want to become one of them."
The corruptor waited for Otris to continue, but Otris stopped.
"And? Is that it? Is that all?" Daien asked anxiously.
"Did you expect something more, brother?" Likanet asked.
"Well... I don't know. Maybe I expected something more... longer and with more foundation to believe that about you. All this doesn't mean anything."
Likanet was losing his patience. "Otris's visions are clear. We saw your game, we saw what you devised to unbalance the world's scale. You want to create a being strong enough to decide to fight you and, thus, gain their free will."
The devil laughed at them with glee, holding his stomach with his hands as if his guts were going to spill out from laughing so hard.
"What? Do you think I'd exert myself just for the stupid human world? It's stupid, they and everything around them are insignificant. I have my world tailored to my taste: Morathor."
"Your law is greed, even Morathor is not enough for you," Likanet spat at him.
The devil narrowed his eyes, smiled, and shrugged. "That's true. You know me well, although I'd prefer something better than Earth. I'd prefer something like a hell of lava and pestilence or a place with a sea of thick, black oil like Morathor's. I find it extremely pleasant."
Without warning, Otris stiffened, opening his white eyes wide. He spoke in a trance, and everyone held their breath.
"There are two women. Their hair is on fire, and hatred consumes them. But one is in more danger than the other. One of them... is in real danger. Her smell... is nauseating."
He coughed, coming back to his senses, but his face looked more gaunt. He took a deep breath and spoke.
"The smell of her fury... is nauseating."
"Calm down, brother. We can do something for her... We can do something for all of them..." Likanet seemed hopeful, but to the devil, it seemed like nonsense.
"Well... Well... It seems like madness to me. I've already said what I think. Even if I wanted to play a game with humans, no one could beat me because I am the prince of chaos. I am much more than just any ordinary human."
Likanet faced him again. "Daien, do you doubt our brother Otris? Do you doubt a son of Divion?"
The devil rolled his eyes. "You forget, brother, that I am also a son of Divion. And that didn't stop me from falling into the abyss..." Likanet showed his teeth while growling.
"Enough. Enough, both of you," Otris ordered. "Likanet, don't take part in his game."
Likanet took a deep breath and calmed down, then spoke gravely while his black eyes almost sparkled.
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"You haven't won here, corruptor."
Daien smiled charmingly. He couldn't wait to see the faces of the archangels when he finished executing his plan when the last of his pieces were in place.
"Oh, brother. Don't underestimate me."
Otris watched the exchange between his brothers with fear and shook his head disapprovingly.
"It can't be, Daien..."
The smile spread even more across the devil's face as Simara's face formed in his mind thanks to his divine perception, with her dark brown eyes with a disturbed gaze, her white skin, and her long, fiery red hair.
"Why not? Why can't it be?"
"What are they talking about? What is he going to do?" Likanet was confused.
"He's already done it. Daien has seen her life and visited her on Earth. I'm sure he's already corrupted her path."
"No! What have you done?! She doesn't deserve to die in your hands..."
Likanet leaped forward and placed the blade of his sword against the devil's neck. The devil didn't move a single millimeter, he just smiled as the demons behind him growled.
"I haven't done anything, but you're right, nobody deserves to die in my hands, as you well know, but if they can die in your hands" —Daien whispered next to his brother's face as his smile widened with joy— "Why don't you say that? Oh, great archangel of war. Why don't you say that archangels don't do what I do because they're not allowed to? I am, that's why they fear and envy me."
"You're wrong, corruptor. Our existence pursues goodness and justice."
"I don't believe you. After all, I was also an archangel like you, and I became the Lord of Morathor."
"You became the lord of Morathor, land of putrefaction because you believed you could be more important and powerful than your Father, Divion. That's why you were degraded and incinerated to the abyss. So, since you couldn't be the most powerful in Heaven, you want to be the most powerful on Earth. We, the beings who inhabit the higher dimensions, know that power is goodness. Now, tell me, what have you done in the woman's life?"
The devil sighed. "Absolutely nothing. Humans don't need me to do anything to destroy each other. I was just there to see the calamity, the blood explosion, and all that."
"However, everything points to your game..." "Luckily, I decided to come. This is fun!" the corruptor thought.
"They keep talking about a 'supposed game'. Anyway, they're wrong. My aim is set on Morathor, not to mention that humans don't need me to do anything, they pursue evil without me having to influence them. Besides" —Daien continued speaking as he pushed the blade of the sword away from his neck— "you say that girl praises Divion, but didn't it occur to you to ask yourself why she praises Him?"
Otris took a step forward and spoke. "Where are you going with this?"
"That girl, Simara Novak, had everything. She lived in the filthy city of Valle Nevado with its tyrannical king, it's true, but knowing who she was and that, despite that, she managed to save her life, I'd say she was very lucky. She wasn't rich, but that seemed to be more of a blessing than a punishment. She had a mother who loved her, and sisters who, although they fought, also loved her. She had a family and a cozy home. She also had dreams and the possibility of fulfilling them. Food, water, simplicity, and unusual well-being in the dangerous environment she lived in. She possessed just the right amount of abundance to be able to grow, despite everything that happened, she was now happy and had love. Since she was born, Divion has been giving her a lot, that's why she praises Him and believes in Him. But... what if she didn't have all those blessings? Would she still praise Him?"
Likanet and the devil kept staring into each other's eyes until Likanet spoke with hatred.
"Now you're interested in true faith? That woman has been through many things, she's seen her clan die. "And now, her mother," Daien thought, but he just shrugged.
"After all, I'm a son of Divion just like you. I just want to see how far her faith goes and if she keeps it. It's simple to see, it's happened before: it's all just talk... nothing more. I assure you, she's just an ordinary human, they're horrible beings."
Likanet pierced him with his gaze. He hated him.
"You always have to stick your nose in where nobody calls you, always sowing discord" —Likanet clenched his jaw—. "Life is more fun with a little flavor. That's what I do."
"I'll be watching you... You can take everything away from her, you can ruin her, tempt her. But I am the right hand of Divion, His eldest son, and I have the power to forbid you from killing her. You are forbidden by Divion to take her life. As for the rest, you're free. If you can take her humanity away, this battle will be yours. Perfect."
The devil turned around, and his army followed him directly to Morathor, crossing millions of realities of all colors and shapes. As his black wings guided him toward his dominion, he thought about what he would do next and reveled in what awaited him.
"You can forbid me from killing her, except if she asks me to," he repeated to himself as he disappeared into the darkness.