Chapter 2:
Survivors
The Princes go to Hell?
As Tott-za slowly raised his bruised and battered body off the deck of the once magnificent StarGazer ship, a large hole was visible on the starboard side. He touched his limbs to make certain they were still attached.
He had only survived due to Xander using his Source Divinian powers to ensure that he still lived through the ordeal.
“Xander! Xander! Where are you and where are we? Did anyone else survive?”
Looking around he finds Xander, the God of War, standing over her body...of Nia-Tuk.
Xander stares down at her corpse, not saying a word or moving a muscle.
Tott-Za breaking the uncomfortable silence, “X…Xander, is she dead?”
The God of War not moving his stare from the broken form laying at his feet, answers, “Yes…yes, she is dead along with the rest of the crew and the ship is destroyed. I am stuck on this planet with you, fortunate, isn’t it?”
Tott-Za taken aback by his comment, exclaims with tears in his eyes, “This was your fault! The entire crash is all your fault, and you know it! Numbers don’t lie; If you had listened to me on the ship and approached coming close instead of rushing in, they would all be alive!”
Xander looking at Tott-Za silently, looking a hole through the boy. He could kill Tott-Za for those comments. It would have been very easy but would’ve defeated the purpose of saving him.
The God of War also ponders the fact Tott-Za was correct about his statement, for Xander allowed his anger for Tott-Za’s presence to blind him to possible danger. Xander then speaking to Tott-Za, responded with the words, “We are leaving to burn Nia’s body and we will spend the night by the ship. Tomorrow we shall go to the Elvish capital, there may be something we could use to get us off this planet.”
~
Lord Talidor takes another large drink of wine as Warr-Za explains why they should not rescue Tott-Za and Xander Talidorson from the former Elvish planet Naku Eden.
“The boys need bonding time my love! If we rescue them now, they will learn nothing! They will not ever be able to come close!”
Talidor looking into the eyes of his bride asks, “Would we not be risking their lives if we do not intervene?”
If he showed his face, it would have a concerned stretch in it. But even Warr-Za can imagine his owl mask emote sadness by his question, of which she couldn’t relate to or really care about even if she tried. It only caused her more inconvenience and frustration.
But underneath his façade, the Lord of the Universe’s eyes shifted from focused, to blurry with near tears for Tott and Xander.
“My love,” said Warr-Za, taking his hand and gently stroking it, “We are still watching them from afar, they are safe, this will allow them to search the area and finish their mission.”
Lord Talidor, now totally engulfed in his wife’s beauty, “I will not intervene until they have fulfilled their mission.
The King God spoke with a powerful boom in his voice.
“Excellent decision, my love,” said Warr-Za, and then she added, “What about the horrible stress Xander is under as God of War? He has just lost his crew, his ship, and his home. He needs to take some time off. After all, the God of War title was never meant for the Source Divinian, but the Void Divinian.”
“Perhaps you’re right, my love,” Talidor concedes, “Xander only filled the position of God of War because none of the predecessors of the Void Divinian could survive wearing the power suit, none except for Tott-Za.”
“Yes, love, Tott-Za is no mere mortal,” Warr-Za responded.
“We shall discuss this issue more,” stated the Ruler of the Universe as he drinks more wine, “But let’s not rush it either, after all, Tott-Za has yet to access his Void Divinian powers, merely alchemy and some magic.”
~
As Xander builds a large funeral pyre for Nia-Tuk and crew, Tott-Za now knows since he and Xander were alone he could probe the God of War for answers to questions concerning himself, and to get insight into Xander himself that he can report back to Goddess Warr-Za, “Now that it’s only us do you think we can bond as the Source and Void Divinians and stepbrothers?”
Xander, very frustrated with Tott-Za, continues to build a large pyre to burn the night, answers Tott-Za with brutal honesty, “Tott, I have seen what the Void Divinian essence does to the vessel, that means you as the vessel, and none of your predecessors survived it. I admit, somehow, you’ve managed to outlive being the Void longer than any of them did. But how do you expect me to believe your fate will be any different from theirs? As far as us being stepbrothers, your mother only sent you here to spy on me and my mission!”
Tott-Za angrily fires back at Xander, “THAT IS NOT TRUE! I wanted to be here!”
He looks away from Xander’s large frame.
Xander coldly stating, “The fact you deny about your very nature...”
“I’m not denying anything!”, Tott-Za interjects, not allowing Xander to finish his statement added, “Stop trying to spin this around on me!”
Without missing a word Xander finishes his statement, “I am simply referring to your existence as the Void Divinian. Tott, you are a Destroyer; Everything you touch, in one way or another, you destroy. You will betray me or someone else close to you. Honorably or not, it is your true nature. Perhaps because of your denial is why you can’t access your Divinian powers, your mind is rejecting it.”
The God of War continues building a large fire, for his lost commander and crew.
Tott-Za, shaken to his core, remains silent to Xander until the pyre was complete.
“Xander, should we say words before you light the fire?”
“Words?”, Xander asked confusingly, “What words will I say? It won’t return them to us. We shall light this, then prepare for the evening and to make leave for the Capital tomorrow.”
“Nia-Tuk,” Tott-Za’s eyes filled with tears, “You really loved her, didn’t you?”
Xander lighting the fire, “More than you could ever fathom. I was going to ask for her hand in marriage. That was before the Warmongers’ attack.”
As they began the long walk to the Elvish Capital, the silence of the travel was deafening to Tott. He was accustomed to being around noise all the time, servants, machines, etc. The planet of Naku Eden had been destroyed, no trees, no water.
Thankfully Xander had a device that could make solid water particles.
The new atmosphere was affecting Tott’s ability to breathe.
“Xander, I need to rest. We have been marching over this rugged terrain for over 4 hours,” Tott-Za stated having trouble inhaling and exhaling.
The God of War angrily responded, “Take 5 minutes.”
“I need a fire to cook my meals, Xander.”
“Fine, Tott, create a fire and take 15 minutes.”
Tott-Za using his ability to create fire, blasts a bundle of sticks and builds a massive fire in moments.
“What was that?”, Xander looking curiously at Tott.
“I am a fire spirit,” Tott-Za states puffing his chest out a bit at finally having Xander’s attention.
Xander sits next to him and asks, “How is that possible? I thought you were just a mortal.”
“My biological parents were King and Queen of a fiefdom on Phantomlor Earth. They were the most ancient family rule in Phantomlor. Apparently, we came from a line of fire alchemists. This was how my family rose to power,” Tott-Za said with pride, taking great satisfaction for having these abilities.
“What happened to your parents, Tott?”, Xander asks him bluntly, looking at Tott-Za directly into his brown eyes, seeing his soul.
“I know an evil warlord wanted my parents’ kingdom. The kingdom was invaded, and my parents were murdered. I was just a baby inside a burning castle, left for dead. My parents’ ally, Warr-Za showed up and turned the tide of battle. She rescued me, took me in and raised me as her own and annexed my parents’ kingdom,” Tott-Za answered, not looking Xander in the eye.
The God of War rubbing his chin, his black hair flowing in the wind, stated, “Interesting that Warr-Za was so kind as to rescue you from certain death and to take over your parents’ kingdom for you.”
Tott-Za very furious, jumps up from his sit and yelled, “How dare you! You were not there! You do not know how things went down! She saved me, she saved my life!”
Xander sitting, very amused by Tott’s behavior, smiled.
Suddenly there was a loud noise and his smile turned to the instant action.
The God of War suddenly realizes he and his traveling companion are in danger and begins to survey the landscape.
Tott-Za instantly aware of the look in Xander asks him, “Xander what is it, what is wrong?”
Xander puts index finger on his lip, “Something is out there, something I cannot identify.” Tott-Za began to unsheathe GodSlayer to be prepared for any attack. Suddenly out of nowhere many undead zombies being led by 2 large, muscular built creatures, at least six and a half feet tall, completely red, with small horns, and long red tails.
The demons seem to be attracted to the flame that Tott-Za started.
“This is a kill crew, Tott!”, Xander states.
“What is a kill crew, Xander?”, Tott-Za asks faintly.
“A KILL crew,” the annoyed Xander explains, “A group sent around to finish the stragglers that are left on the planet, and we are the stragglers!”
Tott-Za now realizing the danger he and Xander face, wields the infamous GodSlayer sword in combat for the first time! The glowing blue blade, forged with Gemmantium metal, has amazing magical properties and can kill anything allegedly. The blade is almost as long as himself, for he struggled holding the sword.
The 2 demons commanded nearly a couple dozen Elf corpses, Xander had heard rumors that demons could reanimate the dead within days after their death.
Xander dismissed these as fantasies created to scare little godlings who were smaller than Tott-Za. The dead Elves moved swiftly for undead creatures, 5 were on Xander, and tried to overwhelm him with sheer numbers. This plan would’ve worked on a lesser opponent, however Xander was the God of War. He ripped the arm off one undead and used it to knock the head off another monster. 5 monsters sprung upon an unprepared Tott-Za, who managed to use his fire spirit magic and set two of the creatures on fire. But when he attempted to use the GodSlayer his skills as a swordsman were lacking. This allowed the 3 to gain the advantage over him.
Two of the monsters held Tott-Za while the other bit hard and deep into his flesh!
“AAAGGHH!”, Tott-Za screamed loudly and fell to the ground.
Xander seeing this, he swiftly defeated the other 2 zombies and then immediately ran to Tott’s side.
Tott-Za looking up at Xander with the color leaving his face, attempting to give him the GodSlayer, “Just leave me here…Xander…you are right…I am just a waste of space!”
The Prince of Phantomlor tried giving the GodSlayer to Xander, but the boy had no longer had the strength to pass the sword, and it fell to the ground.
“No…you are not a waste of space Tott-Za, you are my brother!”, Xander says to him.
Xander grabbed the GodSlayer sword from the ground and felt an instant power rush through his body! It was as if he and the sword were one. The God of War easily defeated the zombie elves.
The 2 demons now furious and speaking an unknown tongue attempted to kill Xander with Hellfire.
Hellfire is the ultimate weapon of the demonic armies of the Black Heart of Hell, including Heaven, the hellish blue fire can be used by angels as well, depending how it’s used and perceived, as known as Angel-Flare. It can incinerate a mortal’s very soul, or harm a god, even kill one under the right circumstances.
To the demons’ astonishment and for the first time in their hellish existence they knew fear; the Hellfire was absorbed by GodSlayer and then hurled right back at the demons! They both were knocked off their feet. Xander moving so quickly the demons could not see him until it was too late, and both their heads were removed from their bodies, rolling to the God of War’s feet.
~
Lord Talidor kept a close eye on the situation, and then with grave concern in his voice spoke, “My Goddess, I must protest maintaining this current course of action.”
“Oh…,” said the Goddess who was devouring grapes as she and her husband witnessed the battle between their sons, the demons, and the undead, “What is the matter my love? Our boys are bonding and taking on a quest to find Elvish metal and weapons.”
“And survivors,” Lord Talidor added, turning around to her.
“Right…of course,” Warr-Za responded nervously, proceeding to eat another grape.
“Heaven’s sake, Warr-Za, our son is near death and in my son’s care now! We can transport them back home, and heal Tott-Za,” said the Ruler of Ragnarök whose concerns could be noted in his physical gestures.
“My love, I want to see how this all plays out,” confidently states Warr-Za with her eyes shut and index finger raised up at Lord Talidor, “Do not forget Xander is a doctor as well as a warrior. He’s a healer, therefore I want to see if he will save my son.”
“You are willing to place your son’s life in Xander’s care, and might I add they’re on a hell planet now. The danger they face, especially for a mortal are too many to count.”
“Very well, if Xander cannot save him, then we shall teleport them back home my love,” Warr-Za stated without a hint of concern for their well beings.
“As you wish, my Queen,” Lord Talidor closes with, opening more wine to bury his sadness.
~
Tott-Za lies dying on a makeshift hospice bed created for him by Xander, attempting to save his life from the bite he suffered from an Elvish zombie under the control of higher-tier demons.
The bite is a form of infection that Xander had never seen before. Xander, God of War for the greatest empire in the universe, and one of the top healers in his father’s vast regency. Having been trained in every known form of armed and unarmed, he was just as well versed in medicine.
Xander was and is clinically trained medical doctor though he rarely used it to save lives, but to end them for efficiency. As he used all his medical knowledge at his disposal, Xander realizes that there is nothing in science that can be done to save the mortal life of Tott-Za. The infection that flows through his bloodstream is magic in nature and only magic could save his life. Xander carefully removed the cloth on Tott’s arm, hen then placed his hand on the infected wound.
“Come on, Tott-Za, wake the fuck up!”, Xander gritting his teeth, his eyes burned a bright blue, as his blue Source Divinian aura burned bright too, demonstrating his power and ability, “Don’t die on me, damn it.”
Xander was able to feel the infection in Tott’s body and burn it out, although he wondered if this would affect Tott-Za in unexpected ways, 2 powerful magics working through a mortal’s body.
Tott-Za lies peacefully, asleep. He was at peace, at home, when the boy was an infant. In a grand room, a nursery fit for a prince, the next in line to an ancient and powerful kingdom. He can feel the love and warmth feigning over him, the mother and father he never knew. The King and Queen of the kingdom, powerful and kind rulers, like Lord Talidor both just and loving to their people. The Prince of Phantomlor had never known such warmth and love in his short life, the feeling of security and safety. Tott then has a very disturbing image of his cradle filled with blood, an overwhelming sadness and despair. He feels helpless as both his parents are slaughtered like cattle. All he sees is blood and feeling their pain. Then the only thing he can see is the laughing face of Warr-Za over him as an infant in a pool of his parents’ blood. Tott-Za can feel the hatred coming from Warr-Za even as an infant, disdaining him and his parents, their kingdom, and everyone in general. He hears Warr-Za whispering in his ear, the day the Prince of Phantomlor was given the GodSlayer sword in a much celebrity ceremony, “Stay close to Xander, use the GodSlayer on him if you must. It is why I gave one such as you that blade!”
While unconscious and dying, Tott-Za has never seen the world and his life so clearly as he does now.
As he fights to regain consciousness and to understand what he just witnessed. Was it a dream? No, Tott-Za thought it was more than a dream, it was a flashback to his childhood. Those were images of his past, and what could he do about it?
Xander in the background of where Tott-Za was laying, he stood still like a statue of long hair and muscle, his massive shoulders blocking the rising sun.
“So, you are awake. I see it took long enough,” Xander states looking in Tott’s direction.
Still confused about his visions, and how he can be alive, Tott-Za stands up and stretches, “Xander, what did you do to cure me? I was bitten by the zombie…I…I should be dead.”
Xander unmoving with his arms crossed, and in cold manner states, “I used my Divinian powers to heal you. Because you were infected with magic, I was basically able to cure you with magic.”
Tott-Za looking and sounding surprised, “You…you saved me again? Does this mean you have accepted me as your brother, I think you called me your brother!?”
“Now I know you’re imagining shit,” Xander cracked chuckling, “It goes without saying you and I are stuck with each other.”
“It goes without saying, aye?”
“Did you hear me say it?”, Xander asked turning serious again after being briefly amused by Tott-Za once more, uncrossing his arms.
“No…”, Tott-Za answered looking down, ashamed.
“Listen here and listen good,” Xander now walking towards Tott-Za, “I am not your DAMN brother, nor have I called you my brother, you are my responsibility while I am in command of this mission. As the lone survivor of the crew, I need to get you back safely. Given how frail your mortal body is…you nearly died twice already if not for my powers. Getting you home will be no easy task, you need to just run and hide from now on.”
Tott-Za looking disappointed with Xander’s statements.
“But that’s what I don’t understand,” Xander continued, pondering, “The fact you have outlived your predecessors as the Void Divinian and adapting so impressively well under this Hellish atmosphere, any other human would’ve died from almost immediately. This tells me you must still be in the first phase of your Divinian form. Hmm…yes…late bloomer perhaps. But once you ascend to your form fully you should be able access your Void Divinian abilities similarly the way I do as the Source Divinian.”
Tott-Za barely listening to Xander’s assessment, nearly asks him about his visions or flashbacks, but the Prince of Phantomlor thought better than this, for he did not want to volunteer any information to Xander about himself, at least not what he saw.
“Xander, are there any side effects to these magics being used on a mortal, like weird dreams, or visions?”
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The God of War squinting his eyes as if to see what Tott-Za was really asking, “No…no dreams should occur at all, you might have mental flashbacks of major moments in your life. Why are you asking this, Tott, what did you see?”
“Oh, no, it’s nothing, Xander, I didn’t see anything. I was just curious if there were any side effects. So which way is the Elvish Capital?”
Xander noticing Tott-Za was changing the subject, but was not in the mood to argue, “We are half a day’s walk from here to the Capital, and we need to get moving.”
~
“Lord Talidor? Do you see how my plan has brought the princes together, how they are now bonded and stronger together?”, Warr-Za said smiling from ear to ear, making her more beautiful and even more deadly in appearance.
The Queen Goddess squeezing her breasts together with a self-hug, as she always resorts to utilizing her sexuality to keep the Ruler of the Universe in good grace.
“It does appear that your plan to leave them unaided on the planet has worked, my Goddess,” Lord Talidor admits, “Nonetheless, it was still a large gambit, you bet with your son’s life. Tott-Za nearly died from a magical infection. He is only mortal, if it wasn’t for Xander’s Divinian powers, he would’ve been lost.”
Lord Talidor looking at Goddess Warr-Za for a hint of apprehension over her actions that endangered her son and nearly led to his death.
He would find no such concern; in Phantomlor all ends justify the means.
“Only the strong survive,” Warr-Za responds, “I am proud my son was able to survive such an ordeal my love. Do not let his appearance or demeanor fool you, Tott-Za is much stronger than he looks, strong enough to be the God of War for an empire. A symbolization that the Ragnarök and Phantomlor realms are together as one.”
Warr-Za taking the Lord of the Universe’s hand on her heart and her breast, “See love how my heart flitters at the thought of us all together as one kingdom! For Ragnarök, Phantomlor, the Gneox Court.”
Lord Talidor now totally entranced by his beautiful bride, smiles behind his owl mask, nodding, “Yes Goddess, we need to follow your lead more my love.”
The Queen Goddess with a huge smile Lord Talidor is giving her, moves his hands into her gold bra.
~
“How are you feeling, Tott, are you able to keep up?”, Xander asked Tott-Za as they both moved under what was once a blue star, now the atmosphere ripped asunder by the dark magics of Hell itself.
The planet itself has been destroyed by the Warmongers, the population was completely obliterated and gone, the demons’ total war strategy is magnificent and horrifying.
“I am doing okay, Xander. But I might need to take a break in half an hour or so.”
Xander, coldly and curiously asks, “How are your lungs, are you able to breathe or is it strenuous?”
Tott-Za trying his best to not cough, “It is becoming more difficult to breathe out here, and it gets worse with each passing hour.
“Very interesting. I have a theory about that,” Xander said with each passing moment getting further ahead of Tott-Za.
Tott trying to get Xander to slow down without asking him to stop, “What is your theory on the planet, Xander, why, is the atmosphere changing?”
Xander stops moving so Tott-Za can catch up to him, he needs to have him in earshot to explain his theory, “So, Tott, my theory, you know the theory of how the Warmongers and the demons move, correct?”
“Yes,” Tott-Za answers, “The Warmongers and demons rip holes from Hell to planet, move their forces into the planet, the rip another dimensional rift to leave the planet they destroy.
Tott-Za had read the intelligence reports and other theories from the top minds of Phantomlor.
“So, you’ve done your homework,” Xander nodding his head, “Yes, my theory is that when the dimensional rifts occur, Hell burns the atmosphere and causes the sky to bleed. Basically, what I’m saying is the rifts are bringing Hell to the planet, literally we are seeing what Hell looks like.”
“They are terraforming planets and turning them into new hells,” Tott-Za gasps.
“I am afraid so,” Xander responds.
“Xander that means they are trying to not just rule everything but literally turn everything into Hell!”
“It makes the most sense, with everything we know about the demons, plus we can see with our own eyes what the results are and what Naku Eden has become as well as the other planets that fell before.”
The God of War was not known throughout the galaxy as a healer or grand scientific mind, Xander was known as the God of War, a proud and mighty warrior. Warr-Za seems to have underestimated Xander and his intelligence and ability to understand nuances and scientific mind to make theories that seem the most likely true. The Queen Goddess just views Xander as a fool and broadsword, Xander is much a scalpel, he can make surgical precision strikes with his body and mind.
Tott-Za thought even on a Hell planet Xander can give him the chills.
As Xander and Tott-Za make their way into the former capital of the Elvish people, Tott remarks to Xander the lack of skeletons in the capital, “We have never discovered skeletons on any planet the demons visit.”
“They are either somehow devouring the skeletons, or totally destroying them with Hellfire,” Xander replied.
The Prince of Phantomlor simply nodded, not knowing what to say to such horrific findings.
“So where are we going in the capital, Xander?”, Tott-Za asked for he had never been on Naku Eden before much less knew the city and the top forgers and scientific minds.
“We are going to the top weapons forger and scientist in the capital, which means he was the top mind on a planet filled with great minds,” Xander stated as he looked over the entrance of the capital with the gates aflame with Hellfire.
Overlooking the fiery entrance of the Elvish Capital, Xander is thinking about the number of times he has walked through these gates on diplomatic missions, retrieving weapons for the war, and to just visit with the noble houses. The Capital was always lively with over 8 million Elvish souls inside, not counting all the other races and visitors in such a vibrant city. Now the city is charred beyond recognition and ash. As Xander and Tott-Za make their way down the gold and silver walkways; Tott noticed how beautiful the city once was, the Elvish Kingdom was always known for being wealthy in precious metals, and not just Gemmantium, but also gold, silver, rubies, emeralds, and so many more. These combinations of metals and gems made the city shine, even after being turned into Hell.
The palaces were made out of gold and silver, Tott-Za could not take his eyes off the palaces. Never in his short life had he seen such wealth. The Phantomlor palaces are squalor by comparison, and Ragnarök is only second best for Lord Talidor doesn’t even have palaces made of solid gold and silver.
Xander grabbed Tott-Za by his arm and stated, “This is the way, we are going to the forger and scientific street. It is 5 streets from the main palace on the left side of town. We will be going to the forger and engineer, Larz Vizer, the greatest mind in the Elvish Empire.
“So, if any weapons, Gemmantium, or anything else of value still exists, it will be at his forge and lab,” Tott-Za responds, not knowing the streets or the city, follows Xander down the curvy streets, which were of course empty, the silence was deafening.
Larz Vizer, the greatest Elvish forger, metallurgist, and alchemist in his generation, possibly in their history. Vizer is the direct descendant of the first Elvish king and metallurgist and as such had access to ancient, powerful, and forbidden knowledge. His was the grandest shop on the forger and scientific road in the Elvish capital.
Xander knew the streets well, going to gather weapons for Lord Talidor’s forces, and other diplomatic issues. Vizer was a wealth of knowledge, history, and arcane lore. He was one of the primary sources of knowledge on Hell and the Warmongers for Xander and his preparation as the General God of War.
As Xander and Tott-Za made their way down ash covered streets. Tott-Za had to look away and cover his eyes when looking at the extra burned corpses, some all just ash in place. They looked almost beautiful, Tott-Za thought to the mother clutching her child, the mother holding her child’s head. To see this amount of horror was almost too much for Tott. He had never seen a dead body before yesterday, now he has seen 8 of the StarGazer’s crew, along with an untold number of Elvish bones and ash. Xander notices how nervous Tott-Za is around the ash and bones.
This is his first time seeing dead bodies, and it also being Hell-inflicted it is a lot to take in, but a necessary experience if Tott-Za is expected to ascend in his full Void Divinian form, equal to Xander as the Source Divinian.
Xander recalls seeing his first dead body, and his first kill. He was only 12 years old, a young squire for the captain and his father’s elite guard. Lord Talidor had sent his elite guard to protect a far-off planet to stop raiders. It wasn’t much as he recalled, until one of the bandits attempted to kidnap young Xander as a hostage to get a free ride off the planet to safety. Young Xander managed to break this bandit’s arm and neck, and the incident was so quick it was soon forgotten, all suddenly came rushing back to him upon the Elvish people of bones and ash.
Tott-Za followed Xander and arrived at the largest building on the street. A giant hammer and anvil were in front of the large forger shop. He thought all this for making horseshoes! Tott has never seen such a magnificent forger shop; 3 stories high with a large basement and cellar as well. Magical water flowed from the Never-Ending Spring for this magical water strengthened the metal Vizer would work with.
The entrance of the shop was ornate with gold ceilings and silver floors, and marble columns. Its majesty of the building was also in tragic correlation to the holocaust outside the door. The ash of the dead was as high as the mammoth doors on the outside of the building.
“Xander where would Vizer have hidden the weapons and Gemmantium ore sources?”, Tott-Za asked wondering where anything could be in this mess.
Sheilds, swords, axes, spears, and many other weapons Tott-Za had never seen before decorated the walls.
The odd weapons fascinated Tott, asking in awe of the incredibleness and curiously asks, “I have never seen anything like this before, Xander, what is it?”
Tott-Za got Xander’s attention.
Xander pondered where the great weapons or at least the Gemmantium ore could be located. Although not an Elvish forger himself there were forgers in his father’s kingdom who could use the ore. At this point, finding just about anything would be useful.
“It is called a triton, Tott, it is a weapon for use in water, rivers, or oceans predominantly. Though it can be used very effectively on land too,” Xander answering Tott’s question.
As both Xander and Tott-Za make their way through the intimidating structure filled with large and deadly weapons. It made Tott nervous, the lack of light in the forge unnerved him, he could not see in the dark and avoid possible dangers. Xander leading the way, the lack of light did nothing to prevent the God of War from seeing, on the contrary, Xander can see in the depths of space, so no blue star or hellish planet conditions left by the Warmongers.
“We are going to the sublevels of the forge, Tott-Za,” Xander addressed him.
Vizer kept the best material and weapons in a vault that had its own flow of magical water and breathable air.
“He has a vault, what could he possibly have in a vault!?”, bewildering Tott-Za, “Vizer left all the gold and silver on his floor and ceilings! What could be more valuable to him than that, Xander?”
Tott-Za was confused by such a possibility.
“There are items,” Xander states to Tott-Za as he leads the boy down the stairs into not just darkness, but pitch black, “Especially to one such as Vizer; he was the keeper of ancient knowledge and wisdom that even Lord Talidor seems to have forgotten. Also, we have been unable to find any Gemmantium, or Gemmantium weapons, in this building yet. It is the only logical place it could possibly be.”
Xander’s unique physiology allows him to be the perfect predator during the daylight, but especially in total darkness. A hybrid combination of Elder God and Elvish lineage; Long ago, the God of Gods, Ragnor took an Elvish Princess as his bride to seal the treaty between the Gods and the Elves. The product of this union was Lord Talidor, the Ruler of the Universe chose the most powerful of the Goddesses, and she gave birth to Xander.
The Prince of Phantomlor has always been in awe of Xander’s powers, many in the GX Court say he is the second coming of the God of Gods, that he has the potential to rival or even surpass his legendary Grandfather in power.
As it stands now, the God of War has to just make certain Tott-Za does not accidentally impale himself on a spear or tumble down a flight of stairs.
Xander leads Tott-Za down to the very bottom of the forge, marveling at the different chambers in the halls. The farther down he and Tott went the more incredible the discoveries; in the Alchemist Hall, Xander and Tott-Za discovered a formula for turning mundane metals into gold and silver. That explains why everything in the Capital are made of both these precious metals. As amazing as this discovery is, it also means the Elves violated the treaty so long ago. Any new or ancient discovery was to be shared with the Gods. This makes Xander wonder if the Elves were hiding other sciences and magics that the Gods could have used to better the realms.
These are disturbing implications of the possibility of greater discoveries or threats, Xander knew now he had to be very careful, especially with Tott-Za by his side. They continued going through and looking room-to-room. Xander realized how large Vizer’s forge is, he has always heard rumors the largest portion of the forge was underground and unseen by Vizer’s clients.
The halls and rooms were littered with weapons of every shape, size and type, “Xander, Xander, what are those? I have never seen those types of weapons before!”
Tott-Za was dumbfounded by the number of weapons and so many he did not know what they were or how they would be used in battle.
“Those are maces, Tott-Za, they are long-range weapons, it is a highly brutal weapon that can smash shields and skulls, a crushing weapon,” Xander answered, “You really do not know what most of these weapons are, do you Tott-Za?”
Feeling inferior to the God of War, Tott-Za answers, “I know swords, axes, shields, and now tritons and maces.”
“It makes no sense,” Xander confusingly states, staring at Tott-Za, “How did you get named Captain to a Phantomlor army without being educated on warfare, weapons, and tactics? I don’t get it.”
Tott-Za answers Xander honestly, “It was mother’s idea, she desired that I be a captain, she said it was because she wanted me to learn and to one day become the general of her forces.”
“She should have trained you before she named you an office,” Xander states while looking down upon Tott-Za, making him feel even smaller, “Come along, we must find any Gemmantium weapons or ore in this facility. I am certain Vizer has it here, but it will be at the most secure area in the forge.”
As Xander and Tott-Za entered the last room of the forge, there was still no sign of Gemmantium of any sort.
The God of War now becoming desperate and frustrated with the situation, “Where could Vizer be keeping the metal!? We have been over this place twice and nothing!”
The Prince of Phantomlor shaking his head, “I do not know where the Gemmantium could be, Xander. You mentioned there was a rumor of a vault, but not in the sublevels!”
Tott-Za just gave Xander an epiphany with his comment, the vault had to be even lower! It made sense, most of the buildings and structures were built upon older settlements and structures. This was Xander’s best conclusion.
“Help me locate anything that looks out of place, Tott-Za, or if you can sense anything that is different!”, Xander instructs.
“Sense anything?”, Tott-Za asked puzzled, “What are you talking about Xander and what are you looking for?”
Xander spoke to Tott-Za as he used his keen senses, searching for an entrance to a secret passage to an even lower level of the forge. In the smallest room of the sublevel the God of War could sense something coming from behind a wall, and the wall seemed to be fake.
“This is it, Tott-Za,” Xander excitedly exclaims, “This is the entrance to where the vault must be! There is cold air coming from behind this wall, and the wall itself is hollow.”
Tott-Za once again amazed at the powers Xander wields, “Can you access the hidden passage behind the wall?”
Xander once again using his truly spectacular senses, his eyes burned blue, now able to briefly see the hidden passage. A push of the wall and there was a stairwell leading even further below the ground. The Source Divinian could see perfectly in the dark, like a nocturnal creature, his keen senses enabled his vision to be superior in the dark as in the light. Whereas Tott-Za was consumed by the darkness, blinded by it, for he had no such powers or keen senses, so Xander offered to lead and show him the way.
“I can handle it Xander,” as Tott-Za held his right hand in the air and concentrated, suddenly his hand bursts into flame, smiling at Xander, “Not as useless as you thought?”
The God of War was taken aback by Tott-Za’s demonstration. Tott-Za was very proud of both his powers and bloodline. But now wasn’t the time for showing off.
“Impressive, we can admire this later, but for now we must stay on task and find whatever Vizer has left as his legacy. I shall take point going down the staircase, stay close behind me.”
Xander made his way down the staircase.
Tott-Za stopped for a moment as his eyes burned red briefly and involuntarily, feeling strange, but then proceeded to follow Xander down into the darkness.
The Source and the Void Divinians made their way down into the darkness of the forge, Xander noting how much he was unaware of the forge and possibly Vizer himself. Xander had been to Vizer’s forge, hundreds if not thousands of times, and was kept in the dark much to Xander’s chagrin. It’s understood now Xander was merely a client to the Elves and to Vizer specifically, but the Elves have violated their agreement they had with the Gods.
Hiding the ability to create gold and silver, that should have been reported to Lord Talidor immediately. It was assumed a great deal of Gemmantium had been allocated to Vizer for the making of weapons. However, it was never reported by the Elvish King how much and where the other amounts of Gemmantium were being distributed.
The Elvish King was to report to Lord Talidor, or to the ambassador and they would have reported it to the Ruler of Ragnarök. Because the God of War never knew how the resources were truly being allocated during a time of war, it is disturbing. As the most trusted, or should be most trusted, and longest ally since the time of the Great Beginning and Xander’s Grandfather, Ragnor.
The relationship between the Gods and Elves has always been symbiotic; the Gods annexed Naku Eden and allowed the Elves autonomy for their government and King if decisions were reported to Lord Talidor for approval.
“Xander how much further down the staircase, it’s taking forever!”, Tott-Za stated to Xander, this mission has taken its toll on the Tott, for the young boy was exhausted already and nearly died twice.
One in a crash that could have been avoided if Xander was not so full of hubris. The other near-death experience was Tott-Za’s first taste of real combat. Although technically a captain in Warr-Za’s forces, Tott-Za had never been in any combat situation before, and he was terrified.
“I do not know, Tott-Za,” Xander answers, “I have never been this far underneath the forge before, only have I heard rumors of a vault that lay under the structure for the most valuable of Vizer’s arsenal and items. I merely thought these were just rumors, but it appears this time they were true. We can at least accomplish our objective and return with weapons, or the precious metal ore, or both.”
Continuing down the spiraling staircase until Xander stops and held his arm out to prevent Tott-Za from going forward, “We are here, Tott-Za, here is the infamous vault that is truth instead of rumor.”
Tott-Za in awe, observing the vast vault with a gasp; it was a giant door, at least 4 times taller than Xander himself. The door gleamed from a metal Tott could not identify, he knew it was not Gemmantium, but another rare metal. He was told that such a metal existed and was used for jewelry and security. This metal had been utilized in Phantomlor for locks, small vaults, and the like. Warr-Za preferred gold to ornate her outfits and black marble for her palaces.
Xander and Tott-Za approached the colossal vault, both were in awe of its vastness and splendor. The Source and the Void Divinians were equally taken aback for neither knew about its very existence. The great vault was locked and surrounded by the dead bodies of demons that looked to have been crushed.
Tott-Za stunned by demon corpses scattered around the vault door, “Xander what happened to these demons?”
Studying the demon bodies with his greater than mortal senses, Xander answers, “The demons were crushed against the vault, the Warmongers and demons somehow made it down here.”
“That does not explain why they are dead, Xander!”, Tott-Za exclaims, still shaken at the site of dead bodies.
“Tott-Za, these demons were tossed against the vault, by something powerful,” Xander elaborates, studying the vault and demon corpses, “It would appear when fists and conventional weapons failed to damage the door, the Warmongers simply tossed the demons at it! That means, Tott-Za, that the demons did not gain access to whatever is behind this door!”
The Source and the Void Divinians examined the vault, and both came to very similar conclusions.
“There is no way in, Xander, the vault door is locked and secure,” Tott-Za giving his opinion on the situation, “I do not see a verification code, eye/hand scanner, a key, or anything of the sort. Never have I seen anything like this before, not even in the palaces of Phantomlor!”
Tott-Za touches the vault with his right hand, rubbing the door of the vault, continues stating, “This metal is very interesting; what is this metal, Xander, it is not Gemmantium?”
Xander examining the vault door with his keen sense and answering Tott-Za without looking upon him, “It is another rare metal found on Naku, not as powerful or capable of destroying Gods or demons, but it is more in abundance than Gemmantium, hence the size of the vault.”
Stepping back, Tott-Za looks upon the whole of the massive doors, “So Xander how do we get into the vault?”
Xander moving Tott-Za farther back almost to the final step of the stairwell, “I am going to attempt to melt the door and locking mechanism.”
As Xander reached into himself, concentrating, he created a blue light of fire, “ANGEL-FLAREEEE!!!” It consumed the door and the vault. But when the Source Divinian’s hellfire-equivalent power was finished burning the door and lock, it remained undamaged. Xander had never seen anything besides Gemmantium stand up to his Angel-Flare attack.
“Move, Xander, I want to try!”, Tott-Za giddy to attempt his flames upon the door and lock, began to create flames from his hands and arms!
Xander wide-eyed, “Tott-Za do not do this! It is too dangerous!” But Xander’s warnings fell on deaf ears, as Tott-Za set his fire from his hands to the door and vault! However, unlike Xander’s mystical flames that were simply burned out on the vault door, Tott-Za’s more natural flames were hurled with greater force and power at himself! Xander moved so quickly that Tott could barely see him move, depositing Tott-Za onto the ground by Xander. Tott-Za was barely able to avoid his death from the concussive blast of his own flames being sent back upon him.
“IGNORANT CHILD!!!,” as Xander grabbed Tott-Za and helped him to his feet he scolded Tott-Za at the same time, “If hellfire could not damage the vault, what made you believe that regular fire would be a success!? The demons were killed by being hurled back at the Warmongers with even greater force than they were tossed at the door!”
Rattled by yet another near-death experience, Tott-Za asks, “So…so how are we going to get into the vault!?”
Xander did not answer Tott-Za’s question, he walked back towards the vault and closed his eyes and began to concentrate on the lock to attempt to open the vault! The God of War was strived to force the door open with his Source divinity power, in a very different and unique way than he had ever used before. Xander kept focusing on the locking mechanism and opening it; he could feel his Source divinity power flowing through him and the vault. But it was a different type of energy that Xander had never accessed before!
A great blue circle encompassed and flowed through Xander; the God of War suddenly had a vision of a woman with bright yellow eyes, the vision only lasted for a moment, but was so vivid! While Xander was obtaining a new power, Tott-Za had to hide behind the staircase to keep himself from being engulfed by the Source Divinian’s power! As the power flowed from Xander to the lock, his blue electricity entered the locking mechanism, forcing the lock to open from the inside! The door flew open as the remaining electricity leftover and power that Xander released upon the door kept going into the vault.
As Xander and Tott-Za cautiously walked into the vault, the electricity via Source Divinian power continued a trail through the vault and into the last project Vizer was working on. The female form laying on the cold table had the Source Divian electricity flow into her!
Along their path to the mysterious woman body, Xander and Tott-Za triggered Vizer’s last hologram recording of himself; a bulky Elf with thick glasses and wispy hair, wearing a complete and slick leather outfit and coat.
“This is Larz Vizer?”, Tott-Za asked curiously.
“Hmm,” Xander confirms, “Indeed it is.”
“As a father, I have failed Aisling in this life, but I won’t fail her after my death. This is my last chance at redemption, or at the very least doing my final due diligence. My daughter deserves another chance at life, whether it is just a few more years or a few thousand, it is the infinity her soul needs to be fulfilled. I am no saint, far from it. For most of my career I have created weapons and technology responsible for so much death and atrocities in the name of the Gneox Court. For that I have made my peace with it, which is why in this final project, this immense power, shall only be inherited by no one more deserving than my beautiful daughter. Aisling has love, compassion, and strength; she can offer a warm, loving, and motherly embrace that I believe will lift the darkness from the realms…”
In the recording of Vizer’s talk of ‘warm, loving, and motherly embrace’ Tott-Za briefly side-eyes at Xander, glancing with hints of disgust, jealousy, and hatred towards Xander. Although Warr-Za is still alive, Tott-Za was aware his toxic relationship with his stepmother was nothing compared to the much healthier relationship Xander had with his biological mother before her passing, which made Tott feel resentful. It is something that Tott-Za could never relate to.
“This is my legacy I leave to you; the Gods of Ragnarök & Phantomlor wanted me to create the ultimate weapon…and I succeeded.”
Vizer’s recording then cut off.
The vault resembled a structure of antiquity, it was arcane and magnificent at the same time. Tott-Za paused to take in all that he could from his limited senses, and his path only being illuminated by his left hand, “How old do you believe this place is, Xander?” Tott-Za kept looking around to get a better look at everything on the walls. The upstairs had great weapons, but below Tott could feel the grandeur of the vault.
“I don’t know Tott-Za, but it is said the capital was one of the oldest cities on the planet, second only to the Valley of the Ancients, which is said to be the first settlement on the planet. I have not seen any sign of Gemmantium weapons or Gemmantium ore, so I have no clue what ultimate weapon Vizer was talking about. Vizer would have the material at his forge, and one would presume this is where he would keep it,” Xander said to Tott-Za as he continued to search for any sign of Gemmantium.
Tott-Za continued to marvel at the ancient structure, this was by far the oldest building that he had ever entered, much less had the opportunity to explore.
As Xander and Tott-Za moved through the vault, neither of them could find or detect any sign of Gemmantium. The duo moved back to the vault and found a large table with what appeared to be a body underneath a cloth!
“Xander, why would a forger have a dead body on a table!?”
“I am sure there are a myriad of reasons, Tott-Za,” Xander answers, “Most would be disturbing or disgusting to imagine.”
The God of War could not sense life coming from whatever laid under this white cloth.
“Xander, should we see what is underneath this white cloth?”, Tott-Za asked Xander while staring at the form on the table.
“Yes, we should determine what we are dealing with.”
But before Xander could pull the cloth back, fire began to emit from the form’s feet! The gleaming being quick, as quickly as Xander moved off the table and had flown the far side of the vault! The yellow-eyed figure was flying around the vault with only Xander and Tott-Za standing there with their mouths open, as the gleaming, yellow-eyed figure of a woman flew to the top of the large vault and unleashed a blinding white light!
~
Story by KR Kraken with Ryan D. Cox
Based on the characters created by KR Kraken
Special thanks to the KnightmaRe Allegory team; Kevin Ruben (Xander), Dan "Bat-Dan" Kersey (Tott-Za), Shannon Lummert (Warr-Za) for inspiration/models of the characters
From the worlds of Savage Knightmare