Finis Chaldea

[Bloodedge]

Ki did not speak. Anu should not have been surprised by this, but he thought this topic would at least cause some form of positive reaction. What he received instead was an old voice... no, it was better called ancient even to the likes of Anu himself. Shock overtook him as a physical form manifested. That visage was an unfamiliar one, but that aura and... those eyes... he could never forget. "You..." he murmured, a lump in his throat forming with a single word. "How dare you return to this world? Things are not as they once were; you cannot be held here!"

Upon this insistence by Anu, the mysterious male chuckled. His descent toward the ground was a casual one, during which his tone became rather amused. "Really? Did you think the world being unable to handle me would be enough to forestall my return?" he asked, though no answer was expected this time. In fact, his mouth would be the next one speaking yet again just after. "Such disrespect on the day of my rebirth. Kneel when you speak to me, and do not speak unless spoken to," the raven-haired one said without so much as looking in Anu's direction. His path led him toward Ki, who answered his earlier inquiry without speech. A gesture would suffice, would it? No. "And you, the warrior woman. Can you keep your determination to be silent in my presence? The energy I once saw in you is long gone, why? Who is this woman, and where is the battle maiden, the child of Anshar and Kishar? This thing is a farce with the gall to not even look at me when given the chance."

[Apollymi]

There was apparently a great deal of discontent in the former father of the gods. He did not like this apathy from his 'wife' when the children weren't around to buffer for him. Her kindness for him alone had long since run out and there was no more obvious moment than this. Interestingly enough, Anu's next words were not for her, instead they were for the destructive influence now walking before them. Though Anu's understanding was wrong, what he knew was once the truth. Things cast into the Void were not supposed to be capable of coming back to the surface, if this one could rebirth himself though... given the look of his aura there was no problem.

After all, if she remembered correctly he was among those who made the most valiant sacrifice any world would ever know. In light of that, a bit of respect should have been standard. But too much time was spent by Anu as a god above others, he lacked common respect. That much was obvious by his treatment of those beneath him. Ah but it seemed that was being corrected an order was given with a strange amount of authority all before this same man began talking to her. And he remembered her? Oh, not even as she was now, he knew the full breadth of her being. A time before those little gods were birthed into this world, when Ki was a battle maiden. The disgust that had previously been on her face was replaced in a moment by a smile which seemed to contain the only positive emotion she'd shown since Anu had showed up. Her form was a farce and she wouldn't speak? Well, that would be rude though she could not speak in front of Anu she could perhaps make an adjustment or two. Her form began to change in a moment like this... The robes of a white and blue nun disappeared for white and golden form untouchable by all. It was a form she had not taken in quite a while but one still uniquely divine. That blindfold of hers disappeared as well. The open robes full of golden threads had large holes present one at the breasts and one over her womb. It seemed it protected nothing and that staff of scales was replaced by a magical staff with green gems and some strange white metal permeating gold. A feathered hat still adorned her head and those closed eyes of hers were no longer shrouded.

Her eyes towards this black haired man finally opened to reveal deep red eyes with light in them not unlike those seen in the face of three of her children. These eyes, seemed to flow with magic as they settled upon this newcomer, though they did, waver a tad as she took in a rather fit and interesting form. Those eyes of hers seemed to plead something but she possessed the ability to speak without her own voice, that would allow her to maintain her vow. "This form isn't one I take anymore. The core of this being and a few of its traits were passed along to the next generation... The other form is one I took as part of my atonement. To offer help to the one most wronged by the gods," she explained. The Mother's Mercy was still present and something she embodied. Just the same this voice was almost silent to one like Anu it likely wouldn't seem as if she was speaking at all as she addressed the raven haired male before her. "I would have offered you words properly without his presence. Should I offer congratulations on your rebirth or would that be in bad taste?"

[Bloodedge]

While Anu stood in bewilderment, the outlander of this world watched a display quite fitting of his grand rebirth. Ki abandoned that mockery of a form in favor of her true self: the divine one he once saw ravaging battlefields in her youth, alongside that nigh-quivering thing standing behind her. She had some words for the man who called out her audacity, though they were words delivered with no movement of her lips. How queer. She'd taken a vow of silence, but he could hardly accept it holding true in his presence. Damned be the bearded brat nearby; he wished to share words. "Those with power do not atone," he spoke without reducing himself to speech of the mind. "Whose forgiveness do you seek? Is it mine?"

Whether his most recent question required answer or not, it seemed he wouldn't wait for it. No, he was content to take in this form he'd yet to have a proper look at. Ki boasted a visage that could not, and should not be touched, but another step forward had the strange male reaching out to tilt her chin and take in the look of her face. "Congratulations would be wasted without your words. Save it. You'll need to make up for the rudeness of an improper welcome. I think I have some ideas about how you can do that." This man spoke with arrogance, making implications Anu understood by the look on his face. "The audacity! You bring your filth back to this world, and now you think you ca─"

Thump.

The speech of Anu managed to garner this man's attention for just a moment. In that moment of eye contact that came as a result, one drumbeat resonated throughout Anu's body... which proceeded to burst from within as if his very core had been assaulted. In the wake of this, the black-haired individual sighed. Could the ones now calling themselves gods perish with such ease? "I did warn him. He seemed rather possessive of you. I've been watching for many cycles; I assumed the two of you parted ways long ago."

[Apollymi]

The form of speech chosen by Ki was accepted though with an obvious bit of discontent. Of course upon receiving the explanation it seemed to be no real issue at all. Still he made an interesting claim that those with power do not atone. "I cannot agree in this case. I seek not your forgiveness but I know I have not wronged you... the Holy Maiden was wronged and I could not protect her. As Mother to all that burden is mine to bear, though her kindness is such that it is likely she would not blame me, which is exactly why atonement is necessary," she explained the situation in open terms. Of course, the details of the wrongs perpetuated by various gods were likely known to this man, none seemed to register higher on her list than the fall of the Holy Maiden, which took place in large part due to the man she'd once called husband. Of course, he likely didn't know she knew of his wrongs, he likely didn't remember the others he'd compounded leading up to this point. He was without question a disaster walking among men.

In a moment like this the black haired man walked forward and reached for her. One like Ki did not often feel the need to avoid hands which aimed for her. The form she had was one which should not be capable of being touched but strangely her face was being tilted towards this black haired man's as she shared more words with her. According to him, her congratulatory statements would be wasted without her voice and she'd need to make up for the rudeness of greeting him improperly. Did Ki understand this man's meaning? Yes. She understood him to be flirting with her rather brazenly and her initial reaction to it was one of physical reaction a face which flushed at this man's rather brazen attitude. She'd not experienced such a thing in thousands of years...

Unfortunately she would not be allowed to relish in the sensation. Anu was still here and was still talking. Apparently he took some sort of issue with the way she was being spoken to, she couldn't stop the initial snort at the audacity which caused him to speak out on her behalf. If only he'd understood that kind of possessive behavior enough to follow through on it and keep his manhood within his own robes perhaps half of the worlds problems would not currently exist. Strangely, Anu soon ceased to live by virtue of the heartbeat of the man before her. He claimed that he'd warned him and went on to question that possessive behavior. He'd been watching a few cycles and thought the pair had broken up? "He is rather possessive of me but not enough that he did not possess many others ignoring the binding of our marriage and the sanctity of our union. After the birth of the last goddess of our Sept, he strayed in a way I could not forgive. I took on my vows then but Wisdom pleaded I heal myself. To avoid further tainting our union I took a different form. In his blindness he married me to another as part of his plans to keep the hold of Celestia on the lower world strong. I do not think he has realized that yet, nor do I think he has realized I have known of everything he has done for millennia. My mercy cannot be everlasting."

[Bloodedge]

"Oh? Haven't you wronged me?" he questioned, his voice carrying a somewhat teasing tone as the smirk refused to abandon his face. "I appear for the first time in this world, you greet me as a lesser version of yourself, without even your core, and you even brought with you an animal unfit to be kept as a pet. But, I did say I would give you the opportunity to make amends," he concluded. Clearly, his effortless flirting had already taken its toll on the goddess in some small regard. Pale flesh had taken on quite a bit of color, and he'd yet to even try. How fortuitous it was that he encountered this one upon his arrival.

Ah, he seemed to be running out of time. Anu had been out of commission fully for a couple of seconds now. He had roughly a three second window to revive any individual without consequence to their original self, and in this case, he figured he may as well respawn that... thing. "Ingal," he chanted with a snap of his fingers, causing Anu to reappear from a green magic circle next to his original location. He seemed wholly disinterested in matters regarding the Holy Maiden, though he knew well what had transpired regarding her. "The gentle one? Yes, I remember. Ignore that. I will personally absolve you of any involvement, even in sloth," he declared. What of Anu? It appeared he was still trying to get a grasp on what happened mere moments ago, so he would be left to that while the discussion continued.

Many crimes could be attributed to Anu, the so-called god among gods. This man remembered him as a mere boy trailing by his sire's coattails, a far cry from the sibling he was eventually bound to in matrimony. What a disgusting pairing. Upon hearing this tale, the outlander set his gaze upon Ki to scan her form. Surely the father of this world's gods had gone senile in his aging, to let such a thing rot away via his own negligence. "What a shame. Even so, that you would take another form for reasons so trivial is a waste. Why demean yourself for the actions of your lessers?"

Several moments had passed, and Anu finally gathered himself enough to join the fray of conversation. In doing so, however, he seemed to be missing the mark. "What was that?! What did you do to me?!" he asked. To this, the other male sighed once more. "That? That was only my heartbeat. I hardly expected your ilk to become so weak that my mere presence would do you in. But... it appears only you have become that pitiful." With those final words, he looked toward Anu once more... and once more, Anu's body erupted into a splatter of blood. This time was not the fault of a heartbeat, clearly, as Anu's face had collapsed before anything else occurred. Another sigh ensued. "Hmph. If my heart hadn't pulsed just then, it seems he wouldn't have survived me looking at him. Why have you bothered chaining yourself to this for so long? You could do so much better. Moreover, why will you not speak even when that thing is dead?"

[Apollymi]

Ah, he had more to say. Apparently, he took issue with the idea that he'd not been wronged. He had an entire itemized and flirty list which included, her appearing without her core, with a man unfit to be even a pet and some other simple but unfounded slight he'd allow her to make up for. "Oh? I did not bring him here. He came to me seeking to revive what he lost through is own idiocy. I do not willingly occupy the same space as him, do not lay blame for his presence at my feet," she said with a tiny bit of a haughty attitude beneath that well put together surface. "My core is a different matter entirely... casting it away was all I could do to avoid the corruption that would have caused even more suffering to those of this world. Myself and my children chose not to taint the world, casting away our cores was necessary, but those of us who did not die, are still retain the light of divinity," she explained of the situation. "I was merely on a walk checking on the progress of my youngest son, I hardly expected to be the one to witness your birth in this world," she claimed.

Beyond this point it appeared he had a good understanding of the world in its current state. He knew of the wrongs committed against the Holy Maiden and claimed that she should forget it. He'd absolve her even of her sloth in that case. "Hm, I seek not absolution, protecting children is a mother's duty and I will do so whenever possible. Besides, it was hardly sloth that caused that issue. And sloth has never been something attributed to me," she stated. Still, it was quite nice to know this man appreciated her efforts a bit and saw her for what she truly was. It was odd to realize how much she enjoyed this sort of attention and she should likely feel strangely considering she was still technically married. "Do not misunderstand me though, I still think it is quite a gracious offer from one like you~" she said. Ah, she was flirting back, this was probably a rather dangerous game.

Luckily or rather unluckily enough, Anu was revived within a moment. Such an old magic used in such a careless way. Her lesser form was a different matter as well, "To appear as a goddess is to attract worship and in this world to do that is to draw to yourself a tainted following. I simply refuse so a less glorious form is ideal for being able to carry on normally. You may not understand this but it is no slight," she finished. Still, they conversed as two semi-familiar people. Why did she feel the need to feed into this? She hardly registered the reason but she was far from arguing with the man at this point. That questioned was answered directly to him, only for Anu to die a second time in just a few seconds. Strange, was there simply that great a difference in their power? "Our bond is not broken at least not this pair. Without such a bond being dissolved the connection is an evil I cannot be rid of. That is not to say I enjoy him in any way, nor do I believe he sees me as more than something he simply possesses. And I swore he'd not hear me when he allowed himself to be seduced by his own daughter and disinherited the other causing imbalance in the world. There are not many people who hold themselves to their own word, but I will not be an oath breaker. The voice of his neglected, forgotten and foresaken wife, Ki, the mother of the Gods, will not be something he hears, even as he fades in and out of this world," she declared. Would he be reviving again? She did not know, but until there was nothing left between them, there was nothing she could do to speak in front of him without breaking her own word.

[Bloodedge]

Ki did not bring her brother-husband here. Alas, here he was, all because they still shared a link. Could it be believed that no fault was hers? The male so content to continue killing Anu with little to no effort seemed more amused by the moment, with this idea being a core reason. "The blame will be yours. Fear not; it is another thing you may earn forgiveness for," he proclaimed. The reason for Ki's missing Divine Core was given, but not understood. Corruption? He'd seen what became of those cores; all were touched by the Void. One such as Ki should never have been overwhelmed by something like that. Again, he wondered how weak the creators of the previous world had become. "Boring. Ingal."

Once more, Anu reappeared in no worse a state than he'd been in originally. Even the old god knew the heartbeat had not been what ended him this time. Perhaps he should avoid eye contact as the other male initially demanded? Yes, that would be for the best, lest he implode again. While Anu gathered himself a second time, the other male continued discussing matters with Ki, just as he intended from the beginning. "Don't think so simply. I can smell myself on you. Your sin is Pride, the father of all sins. Or... in this case, the Mother. That's what they took to calling you, isn't it? Even though you've been a mother so very few times? As for your protection of children, you may as well leave that to the first human woman. I've seen your offspring, and half of them are nothing to take pride in."

Ki continued speaking about tainting, as if such a thing could come solely from receiving worship. Within the Void, this man was an unquestionable god who garnered nothing but praise and worship, and he'd yet to be altered by anything. Surely one calling themselves a god could manage the same, no? "So, you creators have become easily seduced by the darkness of late? In that case, I should go about corrupting you myself for the glory of the Void... or whatever my kind has become obsessed with. My, my─ whatever shall I do to banish an oath in this world? I should be more than capable of undoing an event like that, if only to hear words in something other than my mind. Oh! What if I did this. . ."

Before Anu made another move or spoke another word, he would be left screaming in the aftermath of a simple finger snap. The ears and eyes of Anu spewed blood, neither related sense being functional for the time being. Apparently, the elder god could not move as he desired either. It was for his own good, of course; getting too close would probably cause a worse death than what he'd experienced thus far.

[Apollymi]

Apparently the blame was still hers, but she should not fear because she could earn forgiveness for that action as well. "Oh? This whole thing seems pretty arbitrary," she mentioned. Those words of hers came off a bit cheeky but she was far from afraid. Ah, what was more it seemed that the raven haired man was content to continue reviving Anu even after killing him rather arbitrarily. What was more he claimed her reasoning was 'boring'. Well, when ones power was being called negative to the existence of another it was likely it wouldn't be seen the same way by both parties.

Ah, but something else was happening. It seemed this man understood the corruption, but not why she chose to give up on it. He claimed that sin smelled like him... given how brazenly he'd appeared she could easily assume he wasn't being false in his assumption. He even went on to claim that there was no pride to be taken in half of her children. This would be a point of contention. "Those are no children of mine!" she said. "Also your words could be interpreted to mean we share some strange connection," she mentioned with a gentle upturn of her lips. The truth of the matter was, the 'children' of the gods who were very obviously leaning towards Anu had none of her influence. As such she did not claim them even though they'd been brought into this world by her. Strangely enough, this meant that Ki only claimed, Enlil, Metis, Kur and Gilgamesh, the others may as well have been strangers to her. Her outrage in that moment could only be properly punctuated by another grave injury to someone like Anu.

This man apparently wished to further corrupt her, or rather didn't understand how creators were corrupted. "Oh... I am sure only the Fae still refer to anyone as a Creator," she mentioned. Ah, but that wasn't really important either. It seemed that there was a way around the oath of Ki and it was made by this man offering a grave injury to the woman's husband in an instant. Her eyes widened for just a moment and though it was completely random she laughed. A giggle escaped her actual lips for just a moment. It wasn't that she enjoyed watching anyone in pain, it was simply such a ridiculous way to get something he wanted. "Oops, that was bad. I shouldn't laugh..." she said. Oh that was her actual voice wasn't it? She wasn't breaking any oaths by speaking now, so could spare a word or two.

[Bloodedge]

"That's because it is. Arbitrage is the way of this world, from what I see. But, that which is arbitrary is not necessarily asinine. In the Void, one learns such things are the most fun." If anyone knew the ways of the Void, of sin and corruption, and of pointless entertainment, it was this man standing before the Mother Goddess. For those who were able to inhabit this world since its creation, some other things had become commonplace... like disowning or never claiming children because they were disgusting little creatures. Ah, Ki took exception to his mention of those children, to no surprise of his. As for the alleged connection between them, there had always been one. "The Void opened some time ago, leaking the Destroyers' aspects into this world. It isn't by chance that I appear before you; it was always to be. You should be pleased, unless it is another form of connection you wish to have."

Apparently, only the Fae referred to anyone as Creators in this cycle. By his understanding, the 'Fae' were creatures most likened to the original world's Creators, so some amount of sense was made by this. Even so, he would be regarded as a Destroyer; there was little point to changing things now. "Then what is it you choose to go by? Will my people get a fancy new title to match? Shall we get rings, or those bracelets the mortals enjoy so much?" he carried on. Lo and behold, the sudden explosion of Anu's eyes and ears managed to garner some sort of noise from Ki after all. It began with laughter, obviously accidental in nature. That, however, evolved into speech at long last. She claimed she shouldn't laugh, but he believed there were many things she should be doing. "Why shouldn't you? Better yet, who in this world could stop you? Laugh, sing, dance and be merry. I can't fathom why you bother reducing yourself for petty reasons."

[Apollymi]

What an interesting bit of philosophy passing between the two. She supposed he'd spent the most of these last few thousand years in nothingness, what he did to amuse himself shouldn't really be a cause for great concern. "Whatever you find fun is no real concern of mine," she said those words and meant them. This was an individual who'd sacrificed everything he was for the sake of the world, how could he not understand what she was doing now? What was more, he knew of the opening of the Void and thus the aspects which had leaked into the world through him. Their connection in such a way was the reason he appeared before her, and according to him that connection had existed for quite some time. "I could think of no one I'd have enjoyed seeing as much as you. Though as far as I know there is nothing more to our connection than that likeness," she stated that little smirk returning to her face.

So, he wanted to know what she was called now, and how his people would be called if not Destroyers in this current incarnation of the world. "I am called a goddess, or more generally a Celestial. As are those of similar quality of existence," she said carefully. "If you wanted to know my name, I have many though none I am particularly attached to..." she clarified her current existence in those precise words. "Your people are still considered opposite of ours, so they've taken to calling you devils, or demons mostly it depends on the region. The world has become strange since the continent split." Still there were other words which played around in the mind of Ki, as she stood watching this man speak of matching titles, and rings or bracelets. "Wait, matching rings or bracelets... that would be taken as a marriage proposal by some," she mentioned. Surely, that wasn't his aim in appearing before her. Or maybe it was... he had been flirting with her unabashedly, even in the presence of the man who should have counted as her husband. Regardless there was a claim that she should laugh and enjoy herself for various reasons. Her speech was something she'd not done in long enough that she was beginning to enjoy the shift in conversation. "I should not find joy in another's suffering. Most could not stop me, I can only think of a few who could hope to, and most of them would do no such thing," she said of her own enjoyment of life. "I can't say I've felt like doing most of those things in longer than I care to remember," she mentioned. Even so, she could take solace in a moment like this.