First Demonic Dragon

It wasn't a wholly uncommon phenomenon.

As hard as it may be to grasp for some, there are some civilizations that do not establish a creationism theory. Nor do they really entertain the thought that there could be something higher than them in existence.

They essentially live their lives thinking that everything simply is and just so happens to be where they are.

It also helps that... these civilizations do not have gods.

There are no figures coming down from the heavens to chastise, fuck, or maybe even eat them.

It's not Abaddon's first time coming across a culture like this, but it had been quite a long time since the last meeting, so it took him a bit by surprise.

Sevasina and her son both looked equally ready for an explanation.

"How should I put it..." Abaddon rubbed his chin. "Gods are are the reason why certain aspects of your daily life are present or occur to begin with."

"They are also uselessly lecherous, lazy, incompetent zealots who spend their time lording over spineless mortals who don't know any better, so that they'll ply them with worship that they don't deserve and tributes they are perfectly capable of getting themselves." Shin interrupted.

Everyone in the room fell silent and stared at Shin like they were waiting for him to spontaneously evaporate.

Sevasina's son Taro gave Abaddon another nudge. "Why is the grouchy man here?"

Shin all but fell over onto his face.

"Believe me, Taro, I've been asking that same thing." Abaddon sighed with a broken heart.

"Can you make him leave?"

"Taro.." Sevasina gently scolded.

Abaddon and his wives laughed. Even the pets released their own versions of hearty chuckles.

The only one who didn't seem amused in the slightest was Shin- The butt of the joke.

"I'm afraid not, little one. Despite all of my power, I can't just make him up and disappear." Abaddon rubbed the young boy's smooth head.

"Well, I'll be able to make my own self disappear as soon as we get this briefing over with." Shin retorted.

Taro: "You promise?"

Shin became an unhealthy shade of red. Abaddon could literally hear his blood pressure rising.

Since the human seemed to be reaching the limit of his patience, Sevasina tried to give the room full of foreigners as adept a retelling of her world's history as she could.

-

Amassierre has historically been a relatively peaceful planet.

There have been some historical conflicts here and there, but none so large that they could be considered more than civil wars.

Their planet is roughly 60% landmass and 40% ocean depths.

The inhabitants of this world refer to themselves as the Assan and they are able to develop bodily characteristics in response to their environment on a greater scale than humans can.

Sevasina and her son are what humans would recognize as aquatic Assan. Their skin and bones are unusually dense to help them withstand cold ocean temperatures and crushing depths.

Depending on the specific terrain, Land Assan have varying degrees of the same features.

Darker skin or lighter skin, fluid sacs to retain water and prevent dehydration, and sometimes stone-like callouses along their bodies.

For the most part, things have largely been peaceful here. An ideal world's history.

But all of that would change when the Melding started. Stay tuned with empire

Everyone everywhere had visions of eight golden stars plummeting from the sky and marring the land.

With the arrival of the stars came the merging of minds. And while everyone writhed in agony over their new memories, their world practically tore itself apart.

The landscape changed practically overnight.

Few buildings remained standing. Even fewer proprietors remained alive.

That was roughly four months ago.

In that time, much information has spread. Some of it proven true, other parts remain mostly word of mouth.

Every two weeks, the land trembles once again and the topography changes.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

It's hard to keep up structures with constant earthquakes, but using certain flexible materials along with creative magics make it possible.

With the landscape changing so frequently, the Assan are naturally forced to wonder the purpose behind it.

And many speculate that it has to do with the stars that have fallen from the sky.

The world must be forcing them to search for them, yes?

And perhaps if they found them... they would get back the things they have lost.

It's a theory that just about anyone who took the time to think would have come to.

So people ventured from their homes. They began searching for the fallen stars.

And unfortunately… some found them. And they lost themselves in the process.

They refer to themselves as the Annointed Lords. Regular, everyday male and female Assan who claim to have been touched by the metaphorical hand of a higher power.

Some say they guard the sites of the fallen stars fervently so that no one else can touch them. Others say that they welcome those who tread near them and whisk them away to… somewhere far.

Perhaps to the place where their missing family or loved ones had gone… no one was really sure.

But they wouldn't exactly be given much time to figure out on their own either.

The locals here call it the fog.

It is an ominous white mist that rolls in at unexpected intervals and brings with it anarchy.

Creatures that are practically unseen in this world, but whose power is incontestable.

They are said to fiercely snatch entire towns from the safety of their beds and drag them off to creation knows where. As many as ten villages go missing in the span of a single month.

The people fear they are living in the end of days.

The combined madness of knowing their alternate lives, and the frustrations brought on by the fear of death at every corner, has eroded their societal stability.

When everyday is uncertain and you are practically living on borrowed time, does anything even matter at that point?

You can burn the whole world to the fucking ground, and all the people who would mourn it will probably be gone tomorrow.

Many Assan have adopted this mindset.

Because, if the world is going to end, then shouldn't you at least live without worrying about the opinions of others? The restrictions of morality? The pressure to remain upstanding?

And thus, the formerly peaceful world of Amassierre is facing a war on three fronts.

Regardless of the outcome, it is certain that the winner of this battle will not be the Assan people.

-

Taro was fast asleep in his mother's lap.

As his mother spoke to the room, Eris altered the sound waves before they reached his ears. All he heard was the sound of a gentle lullaby that knocked him out cold.

He shouldn't have had to hear such a frightening story. Better now that he slept and dreamed of childish things that had no bearing on the world. He was at the very least entitled to that.

"Have you heard anything about a man with a beard made of flame..?" Valerie asked once the story was over.

The anxiety on her face made Sevasina feel bad that she didn't have a different answer.

"I haven't… I am sorry."

Valerie wasn't really expecting much to begin with, so all she could do was smile politely and try to ignore the slight weight of disappointment on her chest.

"You don't need to apologize for anything… You've already been a tremendous help in helping us get a grasp of what's going on here." She said.

If the brothers really were involved on the world, then the dragons had to be careful about expanding their senses and keeping their auras concealed.

Spreading themselves out too widely would come with the risk of losing their advantage of secrecy.

Getting a lay of the land from the locals, however unverified it might've been, was ultimately better than nothing for now.

"Tell me.. As these 'gods', can you undo everything that has been done..? And help us get back everyone who has been lost..?" She asked Abaddon.

"We can… but I believe it'll be better for now if you and your village get somewhere safe first. Your world will only get more dangerous as time goes by." He said.

Sevasina stared at Abaddon with a hint of suspicion.

A look he understood all too well.

"I assure you, I'm not an agent of the mist, nor am I one of these Annointed Lords that you spoke of. I just want you and your son to get out of this world so that you can't be used."

She continued to stare at him, but a little bit of her suspicion waivered.

"Do you know where the taken ones go..?"

"I have some theories."

"They don't return to those they're missing… do they?"

Abaddon shook his head. Everyone who ceased to exist when the universes were merged was inside of Oblivion. He was the only one who could take them out.

Any other iteration would have to be an imitation made purely from one's memories. It would never be the missing individual's true soul and personality.

Sevasina shifted her sleeping son in her arms and stood up after taking a moment to think.

"You've given me back the one thing in life I've ever really cared about. I'll trust you now, but… I do not know if I can convince many others to do the same."

Abaddon was hardly surprised by that. "Don't force them. If they don't want to come, then that will have to be their choice to live with."

Abaddon clenched his hand and a portal opened up right in front of Sevasina; startling her.

"Go back to your village now. We'll have preparations made for you by nightfall." He smiled.

Sevasina gathered her courage and tightened her grip on her son. Nodding at everyone, she proceeded to walk through the tear in space without reservations.

Once it was closed, Abaddon sighed and turned his head to Thrudd.

"Text your sister. See if she can make plans to accommodate a small number of guests in her realm."

"On it." Thrudd pulled out her phone.

She was halfway through sending a message to Thea when she paused and looked up at her father.

"Those aren't stars that fell to this planet… are they?"

Abaddon felt a migraine developing as he flopped onto his back.

"No they are not, my dear… no they are not."