On a bustling street in the sweltering desert city of Nan Madol, Malika and her sister Iris were looking forward to trying out dango at the new stall. The sun was battering their dusky skin, but despite all the profuse sweating, they couldn't complain about getting more vitamin D.
“It's dango time!” Malika said, licking her lips in anticipation.
“But is it worth being out in this heat though?” Iris joked, wiping her forehead.
“It's not often we get to try out any cuisine from Yaruborudu! This is Mu, after all, we're quite proud of our culture. Perhaps too proud. So this is our chance!”
The sisters walked up to the stall, and Malika waved at the vendor. “Dango time!” she raved, looking down at the dango with sparkling eyes.
“Konnichiwa~!” The vendor said, bowing. “Which dango would you like today?” the vendor continued with a soft smile, gesturing to the menu beside her. “We have anko dango, kuri dango, cha, and mitarashi!”
With the irresistible scent filling her nostrils, Malika felt her mouth watering and her eyes widening as she went dango-crazy.
“One of each, please!” Malika extolled.
Not even gonna give me a chance to choose for myself, huh? Iris thought with a lopsided smirk.
“That will be…140 Munese dollars!” the vendor requested.
…
“And here you are!” the vendor chirped, handing Malika two skewers of dango and giving Iris the other two. “Thank you for your business! Sayonara!”
Malika and Iris bowed in unison before turning around to head back.
“Booyah! I told you I was gonna get some!” Malika boasted, taking a bite of the dango and smiling from ear to ear. Iris did the same, her expression looking as joyous as her sister.
“Hey, that was mine!” Malika boomed, glaring at Iris.
“I…thought we both had two each!” Iris sputtered, her eyes big.
Malika shook her head with a mocking grin. “Just messing around, sis!”
“...No wonder they call you the Desert Demon.”
“Yeah, yeah, let's just go back and get some more!”
Before Iris could open her mouth, Malika grabbed her hand and took off back to the dango stand.
The vendor turned around with a cheeky grin. “You are back already?” she asked in a delighted tone.
“You bet we are,” Malika shot back with a wink. “And I would like ano–”
The vendor, Malika and Iris found themselves in a bright ray of light shining down on them from the sky. They put their hands over their eyes to block it out.
“Yabei?!” the vendor crowed. “The sunlight in Mu is very strong!”
“Oh no, that's not sunlight,” Malika corrected, groaning and squinting as the light grew brighter by the second. Before any of them knew it, Malika and Iris disappeared in a flash, the light disappearing afterwards. The vendor blinked, processing what in the world happened to her customers.
★
Siren reclined in her chair, a few sunbeams shining through the window’s blinds and hitting her fair skin, which shone like snow. She brushed her crimson hair out of her face, and adjusted her headphones as she looked for a song on her phone. Once she found one of her favorites, she raised a finger to select it. Before her finger could even reach the screen, her door opened out of the blue.
The Animal Dealer?! Not right now! Siren thought, rolling her bright orange eyes and removing her headphones before looking at the intruder. A woman of bronze complexion who possessed meadow green eyes and aqua hair in a bob cut. She wore a light blue long dress and heels. She walked in, beaming while waving at Siren.
“Hello, Siren! How's the music coming along?” the Animal Dealer asked with a wink and smirk.
This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
Fine…before YOUR ass came outta nowhere… Siren thought, forcing herself to smile. “Great! Gotta have some tunes to get through the times.”
“I hear you,” the Animal Dealer replied with a nod, looking in Siren's fridge and counting her eggs.
Who gives her the power to do this crap to people?! Siren thought with a scowl.
“Your check-up is done! Have a nice day!” the Animal Dealer finished, walking out of Siren's home. Before she could close the door, a blinding light from the sky beamed down on her. She guarded her eyes with her arms, and took a step back.
“The hell is going on with you now?” Siren asked with a brow raised.
The Animal Dealer shrugged while continuing to block the light, which became stronger and made Siren cover her eyes as well. The next moment, the Animal Dealer blinked out of existence with the light following suit. Siren, staring at the scene with eyes full of bewilderment, shook her head and shrugged before putting her headphones back on, resuming her session.
★
A cold breeze whistles through the stone castle. Twelve individuals were sitting down around a large obsidian table, looking at the newcomers with blank gazes. Rain pounds against the stained glass windows, and thunder rumbles in the distance. Malika, Iris, and the Animal Dealer looked across the table at the other nine people, who stared back at them in silence.
“Welcome to the party, girls!” Kaz said, who sat five seats down from the Animal Dealer and the sisters. He smirked and leaned back, crossing his arms.
…Who the hell are these people…? Malika thought while taking a slow, hesitant bite from her dango.
A short hooded figure approaches the table and sits down, observing all of them as they stare back at it with anticipation. The figure tried to maintain a fierce aura, but its shortness and petite frame failed to intimidate anyone.
"Hello everyone," sounded a woman's voice, shifting in her seat. "As you may have heard, I am the one who summoned you all here today.”
"Well, it's certainly no secret anymore, isn't it?” Danemon said, his voice sharp and his icy blue eyes focused. “I’m sure many of us know who you are…Nyx." he ended.
"It seems word has spread fast, I see.” Nyx replied with a nod. “But, yes, I am the one you've been hearing about. I am a supporter of the Darkness, and as many of you know, I oppose the Ephemerals.”
"You oppose who, now?” Chelsea asked. “And you want us, of all people, to work with you?! How can we trust that you wouldn't just turn on us the moment we turn our backs?"
Nyx pauses before answering. "My intentions are pure," she says. "I have no desire for power or glory. All I seek is to restore balance to the world.”
“And what do we have to do with it?” Malika asked.
"The enemy of my enemies is my ally,” Nyx replied. “And any bit of power I find truly helps. We may not have the most favorable of pasts. In fact, to be completely open, many of you have done things that disgust me. But... The Ephemerals are an immediate threat that must be dealt with.”
"Nyx, no offense meant here, but why should we waste our time with you?” Vilho questioned. “We may not all get along like you think we will. Also, I don't know about the rest of the Cabal, but I don't want to be bossed around again. Don't act like we owe you anything."
"It's true that you don't owe me anything,” Nyx rebutted. “However, if my reports of what the Ephemerals have been doing are accurate, it's unlikely that any of us will survive if the Ephemerals aren't taken down.”
"Hey, hold on, Vilho,” Gabrielle demanded, her voice stern and her gaze piercing. “I actually think she has a point. The world is at stake here. You don't think we should at least hear her out?"
"Are you serious? What the hell do you have to go off of? You just take her word for it, that we're all in mortal danger?"
"How hard is it to listen and see what she has to say?"
"Alright, alright! Let's hear her out.”
"Thank you, Gabrielle. I... I know I might not be the most liked person. But I am telling you the truth. If the Ephemerals are not stopped, their quest for a world of eternal imbalance will come at the cost of our own lives. That's why I've gathered you all here. We must work together as a team if we wish to fight against our common enemy.”
"Well, that sounds nice and all…” Vilho said. “But what the hell is this whole 'Imago Cabal' crap about? What the hell does that even mean?"
"Imago means "the final stage". And the Cabal means "a group of people united in purpose and action". Together, we have one shared purpose: to oppose and stop the advances of the Ephemerals, and to prevent them from achieving their ultimate goal of a world of eternal light.”
Thunder claps as light illuminates the room; Nyx's shadow fades away and her face is fully revealed.
Her dark eyes were dull, illuminated by the dim glow from the candles that illuminate the table. As the strong wind blew through the room, her long, dark hair flowed over her shoulders and back, almost like a living creature.
"I promise you," she spoke up, "that all I seek is balance."
"She appears to be...a self-proclaimed goddess," Lotte said in a low, callous tone, her maroon eyes giving Nyx a stoic gaze.
"She speaks as if her words are the truth itself," Brittany said, a hint of snarkiness in her voice.
Danemon's expression turns to a cold facade in a moment's notice. "We all have our own agendas," he says. "What if we have different ideas about what 'balance' means?”
"Balance simply refers to the coexistence of light and dark." Nyx answers. "I aim to bring them to harmony, where each can exist in tandem with one another like two sides of the same coin."
The Cabal members look at each other, their minds whirring as they consider Nyx's words.
"She’s wise, I guess," Mathusalem said with a halfhearted shrug.
"But what if she is not?" Danemon says. "She could just be a very persuasive liar.”
"I promise you, as a goddess of the night, I am bound to tell the truth." Nyx said, her voice firm and confident.
"That doesn't reassure me." Vilho said. "We're going up against the light, the embodiment of goodness and virtue. No matter what you say, they're the 'good guys' in their own eyes and there's no changing their minds.”
"Let me put it this way," Nyx replied. "Good and evil, light and dark, even heroes and villains are all constructs constructed by society. What one sees as 'righteousness' is simply a different perspective. And in this world, the so-called heroes have lost their way.”
"That is nonsense!" The Animal Dealer shook her head. "Are you suggesting that goodness is meaningless?"
Nyx gave a small smile. "Goodness is whatever we make it to be. A word that we use to define what we believe is 'right' and 'wrong'. What matters is the essence of someone's actions, not the way we perceive it.”
"What about the heroes?" Iris asked. "If we're against good, then aren't we just ‘evil’?"
Nyx's gaze turns to Iris. "It is not that simple," she says. "Light and darkness are both necessary. Think of it this way: If there was only light, then where would the shadows come from? Or the stars in the sky? The moon at night? Darkness is just as necessary as the light to give balance. Light without dark would be nothing but blinding.”
"So then what is the ultimate goal for this Cabal?" Chisaru asked.
"To restore balance," Nyx replied. "The light heroes are far too powerful, and their unchecked strength has caused them to become arrogant, self-righteous and blind to the needs of others. It is up to us to rein them in.”
"So how do we plan to defeat them?" Chelsea quizzed. "We may be powerful in our own right, but they have an entire army of heroes on their side. We're severely outnumbered.”
"That is true," Nyx says. "But we have one advantage that they do not: wisdom."
Vilho raised an eyebrow. "Do you really think we can outsmart the light heroes?"
"If we plan everything out," Nyx answers. "Our strategy will catch them off-guard, and they will be powerless to resist us. There are many bright minds in this room, and I expect them to be put to good use.” she ended, looking at Courtney.
“Hey, you've been quiet all this time.” Malika said, looking over to Courtney, who was sitting beside her.
“I'm just here to fill my pockets,” Courtney replied in a nonchalant tone, being quiet enough so that Nyx couldn't hear.
Nyx took one more good look at the Cabal members, nodding in satisfaction as she looked over to Sylvie. “I believe we can stop searching for now.” she said.
Sylvie nodded with a wide smirk, putting a hand on her hip. “Mhm~! This is a good collection of warriors.”
“So, everyone,” Nyx announced. “We will travel to other worlds and spread more Darkness to combat the overabundance of Light.”
“And we'll give you the power to go to and from all the worlds at will!” Sylvie added.
“So please…help us fight this war.”
All of this, just because I went out for some dango… Malika thought, shaking her head with a slight smirk.