Another touch of Seth's armband brought him back to his palace in Takhar. Shoftiel rose at his appearance, holding one of the leather-bound tomes he gave her and giving him a most confused expression.

"My Master, what is this?" Shoftiel asked as she drew near to him. "What does it mean? Is this a test for the faithful?"

Seth touched her cheek with one hand. "My dear friend, I'm afraid I don't have time to explain everything now. We have to move quickly if we're to have any chance of stopping my colleagues."

"Colleagues?" Shoftiel's eyebrows pressed together, her apparent befuddlement growing.

"I have another task for you," said Seth. "Start gathering people into the Sanctuary." He pointed at the stone archway nearby. "Male and female, archon and human. Gather those of good reputation there, and then go there yourself."

"Why?" Shoftiel stared up at him with fearful eyes. "Master, what's happening?"

"It's the end of the world!" Seth snapped. "Please, we don't have much time. I have a small chance to stop it, but if I fail, you need to save whomever you can, and ensure that the truth survives." His hand left her face and rested on her shoulder. He held his gaze with hers and gave a warm smile. "It would mean the world to me if you'd do this."

Her agape mouth closed, and the expression of bewilderment on her face turned into one of stony resolve. "I will do as you've commanded."

"Good!" Seth turned from her and whistled. In response, three black, metallic orbs about the size of his head floated into the room and hovered around him. He held his right hand in front of them, and a sword made of pure, white light formed in his hand. With one final deep breath, he prepared to touch the adonium runes upon his armband.

If there is any Divine power in the universe, I beg for your help now.

His fingers pressed the runes, and in the blink of an eye his surroundings vanished. A strong wind whipped across him, carrying his dark locks with it. His feet touched down on quartz tiles. The vast landscapes of Ymir stretched out in every direction around him. Mountain ranges stood to the east and to the west, with open plains of grass below. Thick forests spread out toward the northern horizon, and rocky hills led the way south, to the sea. The sun shone in a cloudless blue sky, with the three moons peeking through the eastern mountains.

It took Seth only a moment to realize where he was: Migdal, King Lugal's tower city, which stood tall enough to connect Ymir's surface to the Archonic cities floating in the sky.

Across from him, upon a throne of marble, sat the instigator of recent troubles. The man rose from his chair, clad in a white toga. His skin was white as alabaster, except where his adonium tattoos gave a cerulean glow. His eyes shone like twin suns, and four strong arms extended toward Seth as if for an embrace.

In a voice that shook Seth's bones, the four-armed man said, "Is the god of justice the first one to embrace my greater divinity? Or have you come to betray all existence?"

"Lugal, you need to stop this!" Seth bellowed across the expanse.

"Stop this?" Lugal frowned. "I thought this was why the gods created us, so that we might bring the All-Father back." He patted his own chest. "The All-Father lives in me. The eternal Age of Peace is at hand."

Seth shook his head, his three black, metallic orbs drifting through the air behind him. "You and I both know that's not true."

All four of Lugal's arms fell to his side, and his once friendly visage twisted into wrath. "Well, your lot set that precedent. It was your lies that built this world, made it what it is. Why shouldn't I strive for what you achieved?"

"Because it's wrong," said Seth. "It was wrong when we did it, and any empire built on deception is bound to fall eventually."

Lugal sneered. "'Eventually?' 'Eventually,' you say? All things come to an end 'eventually.' If all you are here to do is offer mindless platitudes and pitiful pleas that I show a virtue you and your kin do not possess, then be gone with you!"

"The others are going to destroy Ymir!" Seth clenched his fingers tighter around the hilt of his sword of light. "If you don't stop this madness at once, they're going to lay waste to the world you know."

Lugal turned his burning eyes toward the blue skies above and grinned. "I welcome them to try. This tower isn't just my palace, it's a power source. Adonium has been ingrained into its very walls, allowing me to wield magic never dreamed of!"

He waved his hands, and in the blink of an eye the sky filled with black clouds rumbling with thunder.

Seth fell back a step.

A wicked grin flashed across Lugal's face. "Ha! Did I just make the so-called god of justice flinch? Moments like this have convinced me of two things. First, that mere mortals can rise to become gods. Second, that I have the power to do just that, and may well do it better than any of you did."

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"You don't want to drink from the same cup as we did," said Seth. "It may seem like finest wine, but it is pure poison. Feigning divinity poisons the soul. People I once considered my friends have gone mad. Even the one I loved lost herself to this lie. Lugal, I'm here to stop you from making the same mistake."

"Oh?" Lugal crossed two his arms while the other two rested fists on his hips. "Here to stop me? Then why have you not stopped them?"

"With your help, I might be able to," said Seth. "I'm prepared to tell the people of Ymir the truth about everything. If we stood on this together, we could set Ymir free of their control and see this world live in peace."

"Ha!" Lugal dismissed the argument with a hand wave. "I don't need you to bring peace to my kingdom. I will not fall for your tricks anymore."

Seth sighed and raised a hand to his sweat-covered brow. "Don't make me do this. If you won't stop, then the only way I have a chance of staying their hand is by putting you down. I don't want to hurt—"

A blinding flash of light interrupted Seth's statement. Electricity arced around an invisible sphere that surrounded his body, each branch connecting with the quartz floor. What followed was thunder so deafening that it brought Seth to his knees.

The black, metallic orbs floated in front of him, ready to deflect more of Lugal's attacks.

"I want to thank you for coming here," said the four-armed Titan. "You've given me the opportunity to slay a god, thus proving my power."

Anticipating what was to come next, Seth covered his ears as a barrage of lightning bolts bombarded his force shield. None could penetrate or even weaken the protection the orbs afforded him, but the thunder that followed rattled his bones.

No! If I die here, then Ymir's fate is truly sealed!

Despite the pain shooting through him, Seth charged at his foe. Lightning bounced and radiated off of his force shield, scorching the ground. Just when he got within range, he leapt.

In a flash, a blade made of pure silver and covered in adonium runes appeared in two of Lugal's hands. Sparks flew as he parried Seth's blade of light.

The tumultuous clouds above continued their assault upon the tower's roof as Seth and Lugal fought at its apex. Each parry and thrust spoke to the thousands of years they'd spent studying the art of swordsmanship.

Fierce hatred turned Lugal's yellow eyes into twin red suns. It was wrath meant for a pantheon of genocidal swindlers, all directed at the one who should have guided his peers toward righteousness rather than allow this façade to go on as long as it did.

Every time Lugal deflected Seth's sword brought them closer to the destruction Empyrean had in mind. He could not allow their battle to drag on forever.

When Lugal proved too proficient a duelist, Seth fell back and raised a hand to unleash a torrent of white fire at the Titan. In turn, the king of archons raised a shimmering wall of ice to protect himself.

The sheer force of every spell the two casters threw at each other shook the tower upon which they fought. Pillars cracked and split. Stone melted in the heat. The quartz upon which they stood shattered, sending sparkling crystal dust into the air.

A crack louder than the constant thunder rang out, and the top of the tower broke away and crumbled. As the ground vanished from under them, Seth and Lugal remained standing upon the air itself.

The Titan raised all four arms and holes began to appear in the air around him, each one leading to some other, faraway place.

Are those waygates?

He received his answer as volleys of arrows snapped forth from each of the portals. Seth raised his force shield to protect from the barrage. Every shaft broke against the invisible sphere surrounding his body.

He must know none of the arrows will ever get through. It's a stall tactic!

Seth glanced toward the sky above him. Black clouds parted, and something glinted in the heavens.

I have no time!

The runes upon his armband caught the corner of his eye.

No! I can't retreat! If I'm here, that's sure to give the others pause. They wouldn't really kill one of their own.

The barrage of arrows stopped, but the waygates remained open. Seth's relief was short-lived as countless six-winged archons emerged from the portals. Each carried a staff that glowed with adonium infused runes. The legion of casters surrounded Lugal, ready to give their lives to protect their god-king.

"Today you witness the death of a lesser god!" the Titan bellowed.

The six-winged archons prepared to attack him. Seth knew that he could never fend off so many and still have a chance of defeating Lugal.

I need to act now!

Seth ran his fingers over the armband, activating the enchantment, but this time it did not take him to Nyx's starship or to his own inner sanctum. He appeared just a foot behind Lugal's back.

With all the strength he could muster, he drove his blade into Lugal's back. The weapon pierced clear through the Titan's ribcage, emerging out the other side. Seth held the sword in place as the rest of Lugal's body dissolved from the light's intense glow.

Terrified, the six-winged archons fled.

Seth released the breath he'd long held and gazed up at the sky. The dark clouds vanished, but something far more ominous replaced them. Starships belonging to Nyx, Montu, Anu, and Rakos descended from the heights.

Hands trembling, Seth raised his armband in front of his face and turned a few dials on it. Into the device, he said, "Lugal is dead. Their uprising is over. There's no need to do this!"

The voice of Dr. Nyx spoke back through Seth's armband. "This has already been decided, Axtin. Come, be mature now. Stop throwing a fit because things didn't go your way."

"I'm here!" Seth cried. "I'm down here on Ymir, with these people, and I'm one of you! You can say they're not people all you want, but you can't say I'm not."

The voice of Admiral Montu responded, "You are a traitor, and this is a time of war. Only one punishment suits wartime treachery."

Tears filled Seth's eyes. He choked them back and tried to still his trembling arms. "Dr. Anu? Atticas? I thought we were friends!"

"Then teleport back to your starship," said Atticas Anu. "It's not our fault if you don't get out of the way."

Starship cannons began to glow, preparing to annihilate the surface of Ymir.

For a moment, he considered teleporting onto their bridges and doing to them as he'd done to Lugal, but the idea of killing his own, even at a time like that, sickened him. More importantly, he'd never have enough time to eliminate every member of the pantheon before they started the bombardment.

Pillars of white light shot forth and blasted the surface. Intense heat grew all around Seth.

Fine!

Seth touched the runes on his wristband once more. In a flash, he found himself on the deck of his own starship, watching through his window as fire scorched the surface of Ymir.