Aaric's brain felt as though it was melting out of his ears, a searing, viscous agony that threatened to consume him entirely.
He was pouring every ounce of his willpower into Oculi Viridiflora, enforcing it with potent divine energy and the Aether Veil to wrestle control of Apophis.
Aaric stared into the abyss of eyes that adorned the Serpent of Chaos, and the abyss stared back.
He saw visions of creation and destruction, birth and death, the glorious rise of civilizations and their, crumbling collapse into mad darkness.
In front of his mind's eye, he watched a god mold his creation with infinite love and meticulous order, only for Apophis's very existence to unmake it.
Apophis was not simply a monster; he was the conceptual embodiment of pure evil, a force that despised life and abhorred order. He did not unmake to create space for new life. He unmade because he loathed the very notion of existence.
Aaric was channeling an ocean of divine energy to impose his will on the serpent, yet against the creature's primordial resistance, that ocean felt like a single drop of rain falling into a volcano.
Ra approached Aaric, placing a heavy, grounding hand on his shoulder to anchor his fraying soul.
"Your spirit. Call her. She can help you," Ra said, repeating the words like a mantra, pouring his own immense strength into Aaric to keep him standing, to keep his mind from fracturing under the strain.
Aaric heard Ra's voice as a faint echo, the words distorted as if spoken through deep water.
"Chaya," Aaric whispered, focusing desperately on the tether that bound his soul to his spirit.
A vision of an enormous winged snake flooded his mind, its scales glistening, one wing a vibrant, ethereal blue and the other black as the void.
"Come to me, Chaya. I need you," Aaric whispered to the image.
The snake in his mind neared him at incredible speed, surging through the connection of their souls to manifest in the realm Aaric was in.
By this point, Apophis had mostly healed from the grievous wounds inflicted by Ra and was turning his full, terrifying strength to shatter the control Aaric was attempting to exert.
The serpent hissed, and darkness writhed along its colossal body, shaking the very foundations of the Underworld with its fury.
Suddenly, a winded serpent ascended from the shadows beneath Apophis.
Chaya struck, sinking her fangs deep into Apophis's flesh, infecting the primordial chaos with her unique, spiritual poison.
After delivering the strike, Chaya made a hasty retreat towards Aaric, dissolving into motes of radiant light that flowed into his body.
Aaric's hair darkened to the deepest shade of midnight, while swirling blue joined the gold in his eyes. From his back, two magnificent wings erupted; one of blue energy, the other of solid shadow.
His silver flame flared to life, forming a protective ring and circle behind him, shielding his mind from the crushing psychic weight of the chaos serpent.
However, Aaric now had a firm grip on reality. His divine energy was being converted into pure, unadulterated Order, a force that directly counteracted Apophis's Chaos.
Ra, seeing the shift, was finally able to pour his own divine energy directly into Aaric to bolster the process.
Slowly, the hissing ceased. The violent twitching of the massive serpent stilled. One by one, the countless eyes of Apophis turned a dull, docile green.
{Isolating Apophis to the Oculi Viridiflora dimension.}
The voice of his skill rang in Aaric's mind, and Apophis vanished from the Underworld, transported instantly to Aaric's personal dimension.
{Permission required to use the fused state you are in to stabilize Apophis's energy.}
Aaric granted the permission without hesitation. The power of his fused form was used to tame the wild chaos Apophis represented, wrestling and changing the snake's energy into a stable state.
{Do you wish to use Apophis as fuel to ascend to godhood of the highest level in the Dreamlands?}
'You tell me. Is there a better option? I wish to ascend to the top with my parents at my side and eventually the women I love, when they are ready,' Aaric asked in his mind, feeding the skill his deepest desires so it could calculate the optimal path.
{You have plans for the subject Typhon?}
'He will be absorbed by Mum's Oculi Viridiflora,' Aaric answered.
{Analyzing.}
{A way has been found. I suggest you use Apophis and Typhon for the dimensional isolation of the island for now. When you wish, your loved ones can ascend.}
His skill seemed to have found a way.
{Recommendation: Procurement of divine flowers at the level of Apophis and Typhon.}
'I may have some already from the large chest full of flowers and seeds Lord Hades gave me,' Aaric thought.
While this conversation took place in the sanctity of his mind, his physical body finally succumbed to exhaustion. He collapsed and was carried gently into the castle by Ra.
Chaya separated from him, coiling around his unconscious form in her normal size.
"What happened? Is he okay?" Daphne, Luna, and Fleur crowded around as Ra carried Aaric inside.
"He's fine. He just strained his mind too much. He should wake up in an hour or so," Ra assured them, his voice surprisingly gentle as he placed a comforting hand on Daphne's head.
"Ra... is he?" Taweret asked, hope trembling in her voice.
"Yes. The snake will not terrorize your creations anymore," Ra spoke solemnly, his shoulders feeling lighter than they had since the beginning of creation.
Taweret sighed in relief and approached Aaric. She touched his hair, her hands glowing with a soft blue light for a second before she nodded.
Aaric was taken to a quiet room in the castle and laid on a soft bed. Ra and Taweret left to give them privacy, leaving the girls with him.
"I-I will... leave you with him," Fleur said hesitantly, turning to the door.
"You can stay," Daphne said softly, glancing at Luna, who shrugged and climbed onto the bed to lie beside Aaric, holding his arm possessively.
"Really?" Fleur asked, surprised. Daphne nodded.
Fleur sat on a nearby chair while Daphne hugged Aaric's other arm and lay beside him as well. Chaya simply coiled herself on his stomach, resting her head on his chest.
It did not take long for Aaric to wake. He kept his eyes closed for a moment, just lying there in the warmth, thinking.
'Do I just pretend for the rest of my life? The girls are going to scold me for hours now,' Aaric thought with a heavy sigh in his heart.
"I know you are awake," Daphne said after a moment.
Aaric stopped pretending and opened his eyes, his lips pressed into a thin line.
"Well? Good morning?" Aaric offered with a wry, apologetic smile.
Daphne and Luna sighed in unison and hugged him tighter, burying their faces in his neck, seeking his warmth.
"Just make this up to us by staying like this," Daphne murmured, inhaling his scent deeply.
"I am happy you are fine," Fleur said after a moment of silence. She approached the bed, leaned in, and kissed his cheek softly. She gave him a small, genuine smile before turning to leave.
"Thank you, Fleur," Aaric called out softly, he was thanking her because she cared.
Fleur nodded and left the room. She walked towards the main hall of the castle and was greeted by Taweret on the way.
"Has he woken up?" the goddess inquired.
"Yes, My Lady," Fleur answered respectfully.
"Come, sit with me, child," Taweret offered kindly. Fleur nodded and sat beside the goddess.
"Thank you," Fleur said with a smile when Taweret offered her some tea.
"What troubles you, child?" the goddess asked, her voice tender and knowing.
Fleur chewed on her bottom lip, struggling with how to articulate the storm of feelings inside her.
"Ah! I understand," Taweret said suddenly with a knowing chuckle, eliciting a blush from the Veela.
"Well, all I can do is advise you patience, child, and offer my blessing," Taweret added. Her hand glowed blue for a moment as she placed it on Fleur's head, soothing her worries.
"Thank you, My Lady," Fleur whispered as she felt the blessing wash over her.
Taweret had given her a basic blessing, yet even that was potent enough to make her formidable her own world and the waking realm as a whole.
However, raw power was not truly what Fleur sought. She did not want strength for the sake of strength; she needed it to feel worthy.
Taweret seemed to sense this. "I recommend you explore the Dreamlands then. There are infinite possibilities here. You have my protection," she said. Fleur hugged her in gratitude.
The Veela and the goddess were joined by Luna, Daphne and Chaya who was coiled around Daphne after a short while.
"Where is Aaric?" Fleur asked them.
"He is with Ra," Luna said, and everyone settled in to enjoy tea and relax after the chaos of the night.
Meanwhile, Aaric and Ra walked through the castle corridors, Ra leading the way.
"You know why I only govern over these seven planets and there is just me and Taweret here?" Ra asked him as they walked.
Aaric shook his head.
"Well, there were more. Many more I created when I was younger," Ra started with a small sigh. "I was much more involved in the development of my people as well. Every world I created had an avatar of me, guiding and helping them."
He gestured to the planets now visible through a tall window in the castle.
"They then gave me Taweret, the personification of the river of life. I was happy to have a fellow god to cherish," Ra added, a hint of a smile touching his eyes.
"The next, however... was that snake. You see, they considered me all-powerful. And someone all-powerful must defeat the personification of power and chaos every night to give way to every new day."
Ra shook his head. His creations, in their infinite love and devotion, had given Ra his greatest enemy simply because of their blind faith in his strength and dedication.
"I lost some fights against him, and he ate most of the worlds. Leaving me with these seven. I isolated them in this dimension and created an opening for it in Olympia. You see, I had helped Zeus once," Ra explained as he opened the door to a large chamber.
Inside was a trove of artifacts, fangs, and scales. There was a large glass container full of black blood, piles of divine seeds, and an abundance of divine flowers.
"Every time my creations imagine another god, I take the seeds or flowers and snuff out the religion before the god can be birthed into existence," Ra said, gesturing to the pile. "Some of these flowers are of gods even powerful than me, never to be birthed."
He pointed to the container. "Those are the fangs and blood of Apophis. And you can have all you want."
Ra stood by the door, arms folded, waiting for Aaric to take his pick.
Aaric did not truly need most of the items. He already possessed all the divine seeds and flowers he could ever need.
So, he selected only the flowers Ra indicated were of immense power, and took the blood and fangs of the chaos serpent. He stored them in his separate space and nodded to Ra.
"If I may ask... what will you do now?" Aaric asked Ra.
Ra nodded and led him to an adjoining room. Inside was a glass tube containing a metallic skeleton, several divine flowers, and a white wisp of flame submerged in a pool of purple liquid.
"I am creating my Son. He will guide and help my people while I give them the certainty of the morning to come," Ra said, gesturing to the tube.
"You don't wish to guide your creations?" Aaric asked with a tilt of his head.
"I wish to pass on my throne to him and live among them, not above them," Ra stated, looking off in a specific direction. "I met a woman some years ago. I may go to her, kill any suitor or husband she may have, and live with her for the rest of eternity."
"Well... I don't think she will appreciate the killing part," Aaric said, scratching his head with a look of utter bewilderment.
"She will not?" Ra asked, genuinely surprised. "Doesn't that prove I can provide for her better than whomever she is with at the moment?"
"I don't think so. She may just hate you on top of that," Aaric said with a firm nod.
"What should I do then?" Ra asked, leaning in towards Aaric.
"First, you don't kill the husband of the woman you wish to spend eternity with. Second, I recommend you just stay with your people for a bit... just see their customs and values. And third, do not break the first rule," Aaric stated, speaking slowly and emphasizing every word.
"Huh," Ra expressed, surprised. "I will do that then. Who knows, I may even find a woman more worthy," he said with a nod and a shrug.
"Good, good," Aaric sighed in relief. "And let's not see it as her being worthy of you. You both being worthy of each other would lead to a better eternity, but we can work on that." Aaric added with a raised finger, getting another shrug from Ra.
"There is still time for that. My son will need to grow up and take my throne when I deem him worthy. I will observe my people and live with them in disguise for some time then," Ra mused aloud.
"No killing people?" Aaric asked.
"Yes, not until they are a threat to innocents," Ra nodded.
Aaric nodded and shook hands with Ra firmly, his wry smile twitching slightly at the god's logic.
A/n: Give me your thought on the chapter and reviews on the fic.
And.. you got any power stones? Well, hand em over then.