Rezod92
Izurich
Lexisheeps
xxjessicaxx
Timemaster
Eviledd1984
pkken
VitaVitaAR
PKMNB0YTriumvirate
Once again Azura soared through the heavens after having fired herself out of Galbar’s atmosphere. Once again her target was a sun hanging high above it. This time however that sun was intact, shining brightly down on the world below. This time Azura had wanted to make sure that she would not inadvertently ram the active sun like she had the debris field of the dead one. As a result her approach was a cautious one, one intended to pass by the sun so she could scout out a safe landing site, if one where available, instead of simply aiming herself at it and hoping for the best. It was though this measure that she was one of the first people to actually be able take in Heliopolis at their own leisure rather than being in a rush or too away from it.
At first Heliopolis was simply blinding light, the ray of sunshine emanating from the boxed star and projected by its lense dissuaded any closer inspection. The transition from that sunbeam and into the darkness beyond was a sudden one that took Azura by surprise. Once her eyes had adjusted she she got too take in the majestic city for the first time. It was, in a word, magnificent. She had seen creations of others down on Galbar and she had seen the ruins of a sphere before, but neither had prepared her for the beauty that her fellow gods were capable of when allowed to work without any constraints. Heliopolis was a vast metropolitan planetoid floated in the center of the sphere. It was a shining white cityscape, made of artisan carved marble that had been masoned into the finest architecture and then polished to an immaculate sheen. Stout columns stood in regimented rows along the sides of buildings, holding their great triangular roofs aloft. Yet despite its magnificence the city was empty of life, its pristine condition unmarred by the passage of the living. The emptiness of the lonely city spoiled its glory in a way, but perhaps, Azura thought, it was a home for those who had not yet been born.
It was certainly not what she had expected, but it did make landing a far easier task than it would have been on a giant super hot ball.
Azura had angled her launch so her flight would send her up, over and eventually around the sphere rather than straight into it, so she used some of the air she had brought with her to alter that trajectory, blasting some forwards to lower her speed so that when she began to descend she dropped onto the top of sphere. With far more grace than she had entered the Lustrous garden Azura breached Heliopolis’s outer barrier and was delighted to discover that there was air inside it, allowing her to cancel any left over momentum with just a few flaps of her wings.
In a matter of minutes, Azura’s feet landed on white marble and she was in the middle of Heliopolis proper. She stood in front of the central palace, from which the sun ray cascaded across the stars and to Galbar. She took a moment to marvel at the sight, when a voice from behind startled her.
“I know you to be Azura,” Aelius said. “Welcome to Heliopolis.” Asceal and Liana stood at his side.
Azura’s startled head twitched to the side to bring them all into view, but it quickly became clear that they weren’t overtly hostile to her intrusion she calmed down enough to strike up conversation, abit one that started rather clumsily.
“Hello! Yes, I am Azura. Love what you’ve done with the place by the way. Ah, If I’m remembering rightly you’re Aelius, Asceal and...” here the parrot paused, floundering monetarily as the architect given knowledge failed her “who might you be?” she concluded, her gentle inquiry directed at the unfamiliar figure made of vines who accompanied the two gods.
Liana, who had been busy admiring Azura’s multi coloured feathers and ignoring her words, jumped at the question and pointed to herself uncertainty as if seeking some confirmation before replying sheepishly, “I’m, uh, Liana. Hello.”
“Liana is still adjusting to her new form,” Aelius explained. “Asceal saved her and crafted her a body. The rest… could not be saved,” he said, suddenly sombre. “Forgive us if we seem out of sorts.”
Azura cocked her head to the side and, her voice touched by concern, asked “Saved her? From which disaster?”
“The only one that matters,” An expression of anger crossed Asceal’s face as she spoke, “Katharsos’s massacre of the souls that accompanied us to this universe.”
Azura was shocked by this information. The massive parrot’s beak opened and closed several times as she attempted to respond and failed to find the words each and every time. After a dozen or so attempts she finally managed to utter an almost uncomprehending “what?” followed moments later by a mournful “Why?” as the horror of such an act began to set in. Finally, after her mind had fully wrapped itself around the monstrous piece of information the same anger that had crossed Asceal’s face gripped her as she asked “how?”
“Asceal saw it for herself,” Aelius answered. “She told me Katharsos was pulling souls away from Galbar against their will. They were burning - billions of them.”
Part of Azura wanted to doubt, to reject the notion that she had been brought into a reality where such cruelty existed. If this was true however, then there was no time for doubt. “But can we save those that are left?”
Asceal felt some small measure of hope rise in her as Azura spoke. It was heartening to see another god feel as she and Aelius did, even if it didn’t change a thing in the moment. When she replied it was with a somber tone, “A few, but not enough.” She shook her head and hesitated, it was painful to admit her powerlessness, “Even saving one, saving Liana, it wasn’t easy. I’ve sworn to do whatever I can to help others, but until we know what Katharsos has done to ensnare and destroy so many I fear we can only pluck the occasional soul from his grasp.”
Azura tried to mull this over in her head, thoughts swirling around her mind like a hurricane but one thing stood clear in the eye of the storm: the memory of her conversation with Parvus. Though most of the discussion had been poisoned in her mind by the god’s manipulations he had spoken of the dangers of war with what she felt was sincerity. She had agreed with him that it should be avoided, for the time being at least, and yet here she stood on the precipice of divine conflict.
“If they are suffering and dying as you say, then I will do all I can to help them break free of his tyranny. If you don’t have answers I can help look for them and I can help spread word of this heinous act.“
Aelius nodded. “The more allies we have, the easier our task will be. The other gods must be made aware of this tragedy. In the meantime, we should investigate. The more we know about Katharsos’s methods, the easier it’ll be to stop him.”
“I agree. A good place to start investigations would be share what we already know? There is so much going on that I have not seen. So much destruction and chaos that could add to this crisis that I don't want to be blindsided by anymore. As things stand, i worry this sun might explode the moment I leave it.” Azura finally brought things back to why she had come here in the first place. She had learned of but one disaster. Greatest of them all it may be, but there were still so many others left to uncovered.
Aelius frowned at the mention of suns exploding. Heliopolis wouldn’t come to that, would it? As far as he was concerned, it was their last bastion of hope. No - he saved it once, from Mel. He’d do the same as many times as necessary.
“Agreed,” he said. “No more surprises. Come, we can talk more inside.” Aelius gestured to his citadel. The gods and their companion climbed the steps before disappearing into the hall. While they spoke of the past the unseen moon was born and shattered below them, the eye of desolation burned and conniving gods set traps for mortals yet to come.
