Ashton watched the city in a mixture of fascination and horror. From his location in Gatal’s residence, he had an unreserved view at the events that occurred below and far away. Along with him was Soul and the room was quiet despite its occupants. Since the mighty shriek that had taken the city Soul had stopped his frenzied rush and strayed to the large window to Ashton’s left.

The part of the city that Gatal’s place was in had been left relatively intact, but Ashton knew that that would not last for much longer. Every clash the two gods made was like watching a painting being created in reverse. With every brush stroke, the colors of the canvas receded to nothingness. For the most part, Ashton felt like he was simply waiting for his death.

The greatest horror that Ashton faced was not the destruction that the gods were creating, but the city’s reaction to it. The city was silent as his room was. There was no fear, no anger, and no pain among the citizens and soldiers of The Endless City and the lack of noise made the whole experience seem surreal. The whole city waited with supreme confidence even as the physical structures caved in around them, they died without compliant.

Suddenly, Drake, and Gatal appeared inside the room and Drake carried the divine weapon he had gone looking for, glowing dimly. Along with him was the lieutenant that had safeguarded it. Upon his entrance, Fallow stumbled slightly, disoriented from the movement, but he quickly stabilized.

Without saying anything, Gatal split off, heading directly toward Soul, who looked back calmly at Gatal’s agitated approach. Now with Soul, the two talked quietly together, even as the enemy rose and confronted Kami at the city’s end.

Drake spoke immediately, his voice in a panic and his face pale with fright, “We need to get out of here! The city’s going to be destroyed!” he pushed Fallow forward to Ashton. “I’m going to go get the others, I’ll be right back!”

“What do you mean?” Ashton cired. “When did you learn to do spatial movements?”

Drake answered back wildly, “Gatal just showed me, I think I got the hang of it.” In another instant, he was gone.

Ashton stepped forward and helped support Fallow who had stumbled and fallen from Drake’s forcefulness. Ashton said to him, offering a helping hand, “It’s good to see you again, Lieutenant.”

“Nothing like meeting at the end of the world,” Fallow replied shakily. “Who is it that Drake is getting?”

“Probably the men we had trained and served with.” Ashton replied with worry. “I do not think they will come too willingly though.”

Fallow didn’t respond, but walked slowly to the window and looked out. A blinding flash of light made him throw his hands up and step back quickly, but a moment later he was back at the window, gazing out again. A deep fresh scar was the visible now. Fallow shook his head in disbelief.

Ashton spoke next to him, “It’s like the land is erupting.”

“What do you mean?”

Ashton shrugged, “In my land, sometimes the earth itself heaves up fire from below. It is a terrible thing.”

Another blast wrecked the city and the whole palace shook dangerously. Dust and rubble fell from the ceiling.

Suddenly, the voice of Soul rose loudly, interrupting whatever Gatal was saying to him, “I will not move from here Gatal! Stop trying to tempt me away!”

“Soul!” Gatal persisted, his voice frantic. “The roof is coming down around us!”

Soul sighed, and seated himself on a nearby chair. It was covered in soot and dust, but Soul sat upon it at if it was a throne. Fallow and Ashton turned to watch their exchange.

“Do you remember, when I first met you, what I had said to you?” Soul started, looking at Gatal with concern.

“Like it had only happened yesterday.” Gatal said breathlessly.

“You were lost and alone, traveling the wilderness without any guide or purpose. When I found you, you were ready to give up and die, swallowed up by your own despair.”

Gatal nodded, his face full of pain, “You took me in.”

“When I confronted you, you attacked my army. Even at that point your powers were formidable. It took the whole squad of priests with me to subdue you, the leader wanted to kill you outright as an enemy.” Soul reached up and poked Gatal. “But I saw something else in you, I saw in the ability to love and serve. You are right, I took you in, in hopes that Kami could save you. And hasn’t he? Hasn’t Kami given you new life and new purpose? You have served him well and faithfully over these long years and have supported his cause and he in turn has supported you. Now why? Why now do you choose to leave him after everything he has done for you?” Soul chuckled softly. “And why now, now that his time of victory is at hand?”

Gatal looked back at Soul with tearful eyes. He responded with deep emotion, “It wasn’t Kami that had given me new purpose. It wasn’t Kami who I had chosen to follow. When I met you, I saw something completely different, I saw a man, and man of dignity, intelligence, grace, and nobility beyond that of the human race. You misunderstood me, Commander. I had just come from a land whose god had been slain and killed by the very god that is attacking Kami now! What faith I had in the strength of gods of gone from me. It is not Kami who gave me new life, it was you! I had chosen to follow you because I believed that you had a great destiny to fulfill in the universe. That is why I can’t have you die meaninglessly here!”

Soul responded, his voice hard and cold, “Then you have chosen poorly, Gatal. I am only mortal while Kami is eternal. What sense is there putting faith in the flesh?”

Gatal turned away, overcome with emotion. Fallow and Ashton watched on, as if witnessing the harsh separation of lovers. Soul turned and looked out the window again towards his god. His face was alight with passion.

Suddenly Drake appeared again, standing in the middle of the room, gripping his weapon tightly in one hand. His eyes were wild and he seemed unsteady.

“Drake!” Ashton started, “What happened? Where are the others? Are they already…” he didn’t finish his sentence.

Drake turned and looked at him, his face contorted into pain and anguish, “No, no! They’ve decided to stay. They refused to come with me!”

“What do you mean?” Ashton cried. “Just take them anyway forcibly if you have to!” Soul turned and looked at them, his eyes passively taking them in.

But Drake was faltering, unable to think or talk straight. He said to them, “They didn’t believe me! They thought I was dead, the yelled and cursed at me, driving me away! I wanted to take them, but they stood up to me calling me unholy names. They thought I was a devil, tempting them away from their salvation and appearing in the likeness of their friend. They didn’t believe me! I told them the city was collapsing; I told them that they would all die!” Drake fought back sobs. “They wouldn’t come!”

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

“I understand their confusion.” Soul broke in calmly from his seat. Everybody turned to look at him. “They all saw you die already and they only knew you as a human. But don’t be so worried,” he added, with a small smile. “They will not perish. For today god will destroy evil and peace will come to The Endless City once again. Your friends have fulfilled their purpose and will live to see Kami’s glorious triumph!”

Hard faced, Drake strode forward violently, standing before Soul who hadn’t moved an inch from the abrupt confrontation. Standing before him, Drake glared down at Soul. Without a word, he looked up suddenly and stretched out his hand towards the wall. In an instant the wall and ceiling exploded and burst away from them in a loud crash, disintegrating into dust and tearing open the room and revealing the whole city stretched endlessly away from them and the colossal gods towering over the people. As if Drake had taken away the sound suppressors, the shrieks, roars, and tectonic crashes of the battle taking place filled what was left of the room. Fallow and Ashton fell back onto the ground, covering themselves and fastening themselves to the floor lest the get sucked out by the gale that now flowed through the building. Soul and Drake didn’t move.

Drake shouted over the noise of battle, pointing outwards at the now entirely visible ruins of The Golden City. “LOOK! LOOK!” he shouted, “Can’t you see? The walls have come down! This place will be your tomb, it’s over for the city!”

“Yes!” Soul shouted back, getting up and see the new view for himself, “Yes, yes! The walls must come down and the secure places tossed into ruin! It will be rebuilt and Kami’s people will be resurrected; the new city will be greater than ever before. No longer will we need to worry about fear and danger and war! It is the end of the old age; Kami will restore all that is good!”

“You!” Drake screamed in frustration. “You and all your experience, your gifts of intelligence and insight, do you see Kami winning this fight? You know the histories, has there ever been a time when Kami was not pressed upon every side, his enemies circling him bent on destroying him! Kami was killed the moment his city was surrounded 500 years ago! Can’t you see it?”

Soul looked at Drake, and put his hand upon his shoulder. His eyes shown in pity and he said, “Yes, I can see all that you see, Lord Vessel. Indeed, your eyes are probably keener than mine.” A great crash happened quiet near and below them and giant shard of crystal ice grew astoundingly from far below them, reaching up toward their room and bringing with it a rush of cold air. Soul ignored it and continued. “But what differs is our understanding of the reality of the world. You see the world only through what your senses can perceive, relying upon your mortal and fallible reasoning. I defer to a much greater and higher understanding, one that surpasses the limits of even a vessel! You plead to my experience and competency in war, but I tell you the truth that I had only ever relied upon the strength of Kami in all my battles. What could I ever accomplish alone if not for the will of Kami-sama? Even now I put my faith in Kami-sama, for what else can mortal man do?”

“We can run, and we can fight for ourselves!” Drake cried desperately. “Gods have ever brought misfortune and tyranny to humans. We are crushed beneath their shadows; we are pawns in their games! They do not care for you, or for anybody, but only to what matters to them!”

“You are wrong.” Soul replied shaking his head. “You are so wrong! Kami has given his all to us! Just look at what he gives us even daily! Food and water! Light in the sky and protection from the enemy! Kami-sama cares deeply for his city; didn’t you hear his cry earlier? It was his rage that his precious city was wounded. There is not a single fallen man that he does not know of!”

Another terrible shriek filled the air, rendering asunder walls and buildings from its power. Drake was thrown to his feet at the sound again, unable to withstand the assault. When he looked up, the whole western side of the city had vanished, leaving only open air and unfathomable depths. Drake stared at it in horror.

“Gatal! Drake!” Ashton shouted, holding tight to a broken pillar base, “We need to leave now!”

“Right,” Drake said, trying to bring himself to his senses.

Gatal moved forward, reaching out his hand and grabbing Drake. Gatal shouted, “I’ll make the spell for the Portal, you will provide the power!” Drake nodded, taking his halberd and shrinking it down to only feet in length. He stowed it upon his back, and let Gatal grab his hands, bringing both sets of hands forward.

Drake suddenly felt drained and a second later, a black spot in the space formed, growing slightly, and then expanding suddenly into size, being about Drake’s height in diameter. Ashton recalled the portal that had brought him to The Endless City, how huge and utterly terrifying it was. This one too, bore the same characteristics as the prior one. Inside of it was pitch black and it seemed to suck in the light and sounds around it like and endless consuming maw. Strangely, Ashton did not feel apprehension towards it, only relief.

“Hold it steady!” Gatal commanded. Drake’s eyes widened in fear as Gatal left him alone, holding the portal in place. Gatal bounded back to Souls side, speaking with him again.

The sounds of the battle grew louder around them, become increasingly chaotic and destructive. Drake shouted toward Ashton and Fallow. “We gotta go now! Quickly, you two!”

“Where does it go?” Ashton asked mildly.

Drake shook his head, his eyes wide, “I assume the wilderness, hell if I know. Ask Gatal! At the point, any place is better than here!”

Fallow suddenly looked like he was having second thoughts and stepped back from the portal looking intensely frightened. Ashton grabbed him and pulled him forward to the portal saying, “No turning back now!” Fallow offered little resistance.

The floor had started shaking and continued to tremble as if it was an earthquake that was unrelenting. At the edge of the portal Ashton paused a second and shouted at Drake, “You must come quickly too!” Drake nodded and without hesitation Ashton plowed through, taking Fallow with him who cried out slightly and then was gone. Only Soul, Drake, and Gatal were left.

Drake yelled out one last time, “Will you not come, Commander?”

Soul replied back simply, a soft knowing smile on his face, “Kami-sama will win and his salvation will arrive. Have some faith, Drake.”

Drake gawked at the man for the last time. Even among this city that was literally crumbling around him, even as Kami fought fiercely above him, laying waste to the people he had sought to protect, Soul still professed his undying faith in his god. Such confidence Soul exuded, that a small part of him had to wonder if the man was right, that even after all that was happening there was to be a good and wholesome ending for the city. The last section of the wall that they could see was washed away from them, but a trace of longing fluttered inside of Drake. The next moment, he squashed it forcefully.

Soul turned to Gatal and said, “You should go, friend. If you are staying here only for my sake, I do not want it. Go with these young men, and maybe, together, you will find what you are looking for. Or stay with me, and witness the power of Kami-sama.”

Gatal stood frozen, his eyes brimming with tears. Drake shouted, “Come on old man! Leave him here to die, if he wants it so bad! There no reason anymore for you to stay!”

But Gatal refused to budge, or even respond. Off in the distance, Drake saw Central Library get blown away, its occupants disappearing silently. “Damn it!” Drake screamed, “Get over here!” Drake reached out and grabbed the old priest, but the man mutely resisted against him with his magic, not even turning to look back at Drake.

Furious, Drake shouted, “Stay here and die then, all you fools!”

“Take care of yourself, foreign vessel,” Soul said seriously to Drake. “This city was never meant to house you anyway. You should go find your own god. I'm sure you'll come to find your purpose with him.”

Drake shook his head in disbelief, and then looked up at Kami for the last time.

The only lights in the city left were the gold and purple flashes that came from the two gods above. The lights blended and melded in horrible twisting patterns as the gods clashed each other in earth rending violence. Suddenly, Drake was reminded of a dream he had had so long ago. It was an image of two dragons battling, roaring and bellowing in their madness and fury, destroying the world around them.

The city was all but gone now, this building standing alone and abandoned among the devastation. Drake last view was of Soul sitting down on his chair that had somehow remained, calm and relaxed with Gatal standing silently behind him. Soul’s legs were crossed and he was leaned back comfortably with one hand on his chin as if in quiet anticipation. His face was upturned, gazing at his god, with joy and beauty.

Repulsed and horrified, Drake turned away and entered the portal, never to step foot inside The Endless City ever again.