It wasn't long before the Gods got bored with waiting for the perfect time to strike. The Apple God became ambitious. He became greedy and one night, he took the city. Shadows swarmed the streets with sharp smiles and just as sharp claws. Sudden doors opened and dragged helpless mortals into nightmares and strong winds shut the city down. Strange bird-like creatures ran through the streets, as merciless as the Shadows. One by one, Gods revealed themselves to the mortals, laughing at their fear. They felt like something again but Brian wanted more.

As the sun began to set a few days later, the God of Revenge watched the large great horned owl circle above the smoking buildings, stars glittering in it's feathers. The God of the Night circled the sky a few more times before turning towards Jonathan, gliding on the strong wind. The owl perched beside Jonathan on the railing, ruffling it's large black feathers a few times. The God's big yellow eyes glanced at Jonathan before looking back out at the city.

"Evan...I need to talk to you." The owl looked up at him again for a moment before shadows began to swirl around him. Black feathers turned into red leather and soft black hair. Yellow eyes became a warm soft hazel. Evan now stood beside Jonathan, a look of wonder across his face as he looked at the fading sunlight. A cluster of feathers still stuck to his skin but he didn't bother to pluck them. He was too captivated by the way the sunlight was reflected off the broken glass on the buildings and the colours in the sky above them. Brian had given him the day and every part of it was stunning to Evan but he noticed that it was nothing to the others. It bothered him that they weren't appreciating the beauty of the world around them; they wanted to destroy it.

"I still can't get over how beautiful it is." Evan smiled, forcing away the bad thoughts. Brain didn't want him thinking like that. "You never told me how beautiful it was, Jonathan. Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because the day isn't for you, Nyx. You are for the night. For the stars and the lovers and the people who are sad so you can show them beauty in the dark. We can still stop this, Evan. We can fix it. Just snap out of this fucking trance! Please." Jonathan's voice broke. Evan stared at him, his face seemingly blank. "Come back, Evan. Come back."

"Come back to what, Jonathan?" Evan suddenly demanded, anger welling up in him. "Come back to darkness? To a miserable existence? I'm actually something now, Jonathan! I'm not some submissive quiet God anymore! I have power! I have light!" Evan's voice got louder and louder as he spoke. His hands began to shake, the sky darkening faster above them. "I am not nothing anymore and I will not let you make me nothing again!" Jonathan suddenly flew back, falling onto the hard cement roof. He winced in pain, blood dripping from his cut open knee through the tear in his knee. Evan's gaze softened, a feeling of guilt washing over him as he saw the blood dripping onto the pavement. "Jonathan...Jon...I'm sorry." He stumbled towards him, kneeling at his side. He pressed his hand against Jonathan's bleeding knee, healing the wound. "I'm sorry...I didn't mean to hurt you. I just need you to understand that this world now is perfect. The day is a gift and it has been taken for granted. I can't let that happen anymore. We have each other and we have the world. We are almighty." Evan had never said these words before. They tasted strange; they tasted poisonous. Jonathan looked disturbed.

"You aren't yourself right now. You have to snap out if this, Evan. Please. Fix this." Jonathan begged.

"I feel more like myself than I have ever felt. This what I am meant to be and I have Abellio to thank for it. He set me free. Be free, Nemesis." Evan smiled, his eyes wide like an owl's. Jonathan pushed him off, spitting at him.

"How can you say those things? How can you act like this? It's disgusting, Nyx! How dare you call yourself a God?" Jonathan yelled, getting to his feet as he stared down at the Primordial. "How dare you?"

"Because I can! Because I can do whatever I want! Because I can destroy you and every other God but I don't want to. Abellio knows that. You know that." Evan snarled as he got up, his palm covered with Jonathan's blood.

"You aren't in control. Brian is. You're his pet. You do whatever he asks. He wants you to kill mortals for no reason other than scaring the others and you do it. You aren't in control!" Jonathan shot back. "You can't do anything. He just makes you think you can. He's in your head! He's making you say these things!" Evan was silent for a few moments, a smile almost as wide as his Shadows' spreading across his face.

"You're jealous."

"Excuse me?" Jonathan stammered.

"You're jealous. Of me and the attention that Brian gives me. I know what people say about you. I know what you feel for me. I know that people think you are obsessed with me." Evan laughed, glancing away like a blushing schoolgirl. Jonathan's hands curled into fists, tears welling in his eyes. "You are jealous of my power too! I don't need weapons like you do." Evan smiled as he looked back at his friend. "You are full of jealousy!" Despite denying it, despite pretending that nothing was wrong, he knew that Jonathan was right. He felt so in control but at the same time none of it was his. Strings were tied around his wrists and ankles, forcing him to dance exactly how Brian wanted. He could pull at them and refuse as much as he wanted but he knew Jonathan was right.

"Me? I'm jealous?" Jonathan spluttered. He began to laugh before suddenly shoving Evan towards the roof's railing. "Why won't you snap out of this?" He raised his fist, swinging at Evan who blocked the blow by grabbing onto his wrist and twisting it around. Jonathan cried out in pain, his wide eyes locked on Evan who aimed a sharp kick to his stomach, the force throwing him back. "Evan! Stop!" He dodged Evan's punch, able to hit him back as he pulled himself up.

"You are useless for not believing in this cause! You are a useless God!" Evan screamed though the words were not his. He swung at Jonathan who grabbed onto his arm, pulling him closer and gripped his collar. Evan choked as Jonathan spun him around, pinning him to the railing.

"You don't believe in it!" Jonathan yelled, tightening his grip on Evan's collar. He saw Jonathan's eyes glance at the street far below, making him smile again.

"You won't do it. You care too much." Evan snapped. "You will always be useless!" Narrowing his eyes, Jonathan suddenly shoved Evan backwards, sending him over the railing. The air whipped around Evan, pulling at his red jacket and hair. Neon lights flashed past him. The ground was rushing up to meet him. A part of him wanted to meet it too but the strings pulled and he found himself in a flurry of shadows and feathers. His wings caught the cool evening air and sent him upwards into the darkening sky. He flew over the roof, seeing Jonathan watching him with wide eyes. He spun and dove towards the God of Revenge, his talons stretching out to grab onto him. Jonathan fell to the roof as Evan tackled him, shadows swirling around him as feathers disappeared. Letting out a yell of rage, Jonathan threw Evan off.

"Don't ever call me useless! I am something!" Jonathan screamed, his eyes flashing red. Evan smiled; this was what he wanted; it was what Brian wanted. He wanted to unleash the anger inside of his friend. He wanted to make him let go and let his power consume him after all this time. In a flash of silver, knives appeared in Jonathan's hands as he lunged at Evan who jumped back, a wall of darkness surrounding him. "Fight me! Fight me!" Jonathan screamed, hitting the wall that Evan had created. He watched with a smile as Jonathan broke through the Shadows that shattered like glass around them. Evan let out a gasp as Jonathan's hand curled around his throat, pushing him back to the wall. The air was choked out of his lungs, an overwhelming feeling of guilt consuming him. He wasn't sure why he felt this way but he knew it had something to do with the God of Revenge. He gripped into Jonathan's wrists as he raised him into the air, his feet kicking as he struggled to breathe, gasping as tears of pain fell from his eyes. "I am something, Nyx!" Jonathan snarled, his red eyes locked onto Evan's.

"That's enough." Brian's voice suddenly called out. Jonathan dropped Evan to the cement, his eyes flashing red as he turned to look at the God of the Apple Tree. The Celtic God tossed a red apple from hand to hand, smiling at them. Evan watched with wide eyes, a longing for it filling him as he heaved for air, feeling bruises on his throat that matched Jonathan's hand. "Why were you fighting?"

"N-No reason." Evan lied, keeping his eyes on the apple. He didn't notice Jonathan shoot him a glare as he managed to push himself to his feet.

"I don't allow fighting among my Gods. I can't risk you getting hurt. I need you." Brian reminded them. Jonathan wasn't listening but Evan nodded, wrapped up in the trance that had been put over him. The harsh sound of yelling from the street below suddenly caught their attention. Brian brushed past Evan, tossing him the apple as he went and peered over the railing to the street below. Evan didn't pay any attention, biting into the sweet apple. Jonathan looked disgusted as he watched the smile grow on Evan's face as he tasted the apple. "Come on. We don't have time to waste tonight." Brian headed back to the stairs, leaving Evan and Jonathan alone on the roof.

"Evan." The God of Revenge stopped him when he started towards the stairs. "I'm sorry I hurt you."

"You didn't." Evan smiled as he bit into the apple and headed down the stairs, forcing Jonathan to follow. He felt powerful. The feeling made him feel like he was floating through the world. It made him feel like nothing mattered. With help from Brian, he no longer disappeared during the day. He didn't sleep anymore and he didn't want to despite the feeling of exhaustion that had begun to creep in on him.

On the floor below, the other Gods watched them enter with smug expressions that told them they knew about the fight. The door to the old apartment suddenly crashed open as Marcel dragged a swearing Greek God into the room.

"You killed him! You fucking killed him!" The God screamed as Marcel threw him to the floor at Brian's feet. Evan recognized the God, a part of him breaking through the heavy trance that held him. He knelt in front of the God, meeting his anguished gaze.

"Anthony…" Evan stammered.

"What are you doing here?" The God of Gentle Death grabbed onto Evan's arm. He started to answer but the strings pulled and he found himself going silent as he got to his feet, throwing Anthony's hand off him. "You're on their side? You're a fucking disgrace! None of you should be calling yourselves Gods! You killed Cody!"

"It was necessary. Not all of us were created with such great powers, Thanatos." Brian snapped as he stepped forward. Evan's chest tightened as he thought about Cody's death, wondering what exactly Brian did. It hadn't occurred to him till now that it should be impossible for such a simple God to have so much power; enough to put him in a trance.

"Taking a life should never be necessary!" Anthony yelled back. Evan was shocked; he had never seen him so angry before. He remembered him a gentle God, one that never raised his voice or got violent in any way.

"Maybe in the old world...But in this world that you will help us create, blood will be necessary. You will help us, Anthony. You should be excited about this!" Brian knelt in front of him, a bright smile on his face. Anthony spit at him. Brian rose to his feet and the strings pulled on Evan who suddenly stepped forward, kicking Anthony hard in the ribs as he ignores Jonathan's protests. The God of Gentle Death cried out in pain as Shadows grew in the corners of the darkened room, slithering on the walls and the floor towards him. Evan wasn't in control of himself and he couldn't fight it as much as he wanted to. He couldn't hurt Anthony who had been his friend ever since the creation of life. He had been there to help bring him back when he lost control. Jonathan was right, he is Brian's pet and he hated it. As he was forced to create more Shadows, he hated Brian more and more for making him do this. He is a Primordial God, not a young, stupid God like the others.

"No! Stop! " Anthony screamed as the Shadows got closer to him, their eyes flashing red with excitement at the idea of spilled blood. "What do you want?" The Shadows retreated to the edges of the room as Brian knelt once more beside him.

"We need you to agree to help us. We need your word." Brian said gently. Anthony stared at him with wide eyes, unable to say a word. Jonathan moved closer to Evan, his mask pulled over his face to hide the look of fear in his eyes. His rage had ebbed, leaving him feeling weak. Evan pretended that he didn't notice but he also took a step towards Jonathan, finding some comfort in knowing that he was still there despite what he had done and and what he continued to do.

"For what?" Anthony spat. Brian didn't answer. Evan's strings pulled and the Shadows flared up, their wide smiles glinting in the dim light. Anthony screamed as they swarmed towards him, scrambling backwards into a corner.

"Evan stop it! You know him!" Jonathan shoved Evan harshly. Shooting a glare at Brian, Evan felt the trance weaken and crack. The Shadows faded, their smiles upside down in disappointment.

"I can't do this." Evan stated, glancing at Anthony and wondered if he would ever forgive him.

"Weak." Marcel laughed.

"He isn't good enough, Brian." Craig snapped.

"Nyx just isn't strong enough anymore. We told you, Brian but you didn't listen." Daithi added.

"Ares would have been better but no. We got these two." Lui rolled his eyes.

"Useless. We're doomed." Arlan sighed.

"Shut up!" Brian yelled. The strings pulled but Evan refused to listen. He held Jonathan's gaze, reaching for his hand when a sudden pain overwhelmed him. He coughed, covering his mouth with his free hand. When he looked down at his palm he saw black poison. He gasped as he coughed again, tasting blood in his mouth.

"Evan!" Jonathan cried as the Night God fell into his arms, choking on the poison. He coughed blood and poison onto Jonathan's hoodie as hs lowered him to the floor, his eyes wide with terror and pain. "Brian please! Stop!" Jonathan yelled, as he clung to Evan who choked and shook from the pain. Thinking that he had been forgotten, Anthony scrambled to his feet and ran towards the door only to be stopped by Lui, a strong rush of wind throwing him down to the floor. Evan could barely focus on what was going on. Everything seemed so chaotic and sudden, but as the his vision blurred and pain overwhelmed him, he couldn't think of anything else.

"Marcel, Lui. Get Nyx outside. We don't need him for this." Evan faintly heard Brian's order and Jonathan's scream of rage as Evan was pulled from his arms. He fell to the floor, struggling for the air as he was suddenly dragged to his feet and pushed out into the hallway. He gasped, spitting blood and poison to the floor as he gasped for air.

"Jonathan stop!" Marcel crashed into the wall beside Evan, blood dripping from his broken nose. Jonathan's eyes flashed red as he stepped forward, his hands curled into fists. Evan could only watch through tears as Lui tackled Jonathan to the floor as Marcel grabbed onto his shoulder and pushed him towards the stairs. He stumbled down them, leaning heavily on the railing as he tried to focus on healing himself but there was so much going on that he couldn't. He kept thinking about Anthony and what they would do to him and what was going to happen to himself if he didn't start fighting back.

The front door was pushed open as Marcel shoved him forward, unable to stop himself from falling to his knees on the sidewalk. "I never would have you join us." Marcel said as Lui threw Jonathan down beside him. Evan couldn't tell if what Marcel said was kind or not. For the sake of his own sanity, he decided it was kindness.

"What are they doing to him?" Jonathan cried as he scrambled towards Evan, pulling him into his arms. "What are they doing to Anthony?" He didn't get an answer. Evan felt a rush of warmth as Jonathan began to heal him, the pain fading away. "It's okay...It's okay."

"I got you into this mess...I'm sorry, Jon." Evan breathed, wiping the blood and poison from his face with his sleeve. Jonathan shook his head with a smile.

"Even if you didn't, I would still be here to protect you " He whispered so Marcel and Lui wouldn't hear. Evan smiled but it wavered as he looked back up at the window where he could faintly make out Brian standing there.

"They don't deserve it." Evan whispered, moving away from Jonathan. He sat on the curb, watching the empty street with sad eyes.

"What do you mean?" Jonathan wondered. Evan didn't answer, only staring at the night sky above him. He had loved it once. He had thought seeing the wide universe above his bruised and tattered planet was beautiful and awe inspiring once. There were more Gods like him out there, among the first like him but they had faded away as new Gods replaced them, leaving him alone to float through the universe on a rock too small for the countless Gods that clung to it, all claiming it was theirs.

The mortal life didn't seem much better. Their natural instinct was violence, to fight or run from things they did not understand. Evan came from space, from the great power that created the universe. Inside of him was the night; he is full of stars and darkness darker than anything else in the universe. He was not created in the mind of a human philosopher or storyteller like the others. They did not deserve the beauty of the night that he had given them.

"No one deserves it…" Evan whispered, lowering his gaze to the younger God. "Day and night...No one deserves it."

"What are you saying? Evan, what's wrong? Tell me!" Jonathan reached for his hand but Evan pulled it away. He didn't want comfort. He didn't want kindness. "What you do mean...No one deserves it?" Evan wanted him to stop talking. He wanted everything to stop and to leave him in nothingness. He could feel his control over himself slipping away as the anger inside of him grew and he knew that he wouldn't be able to live with any damage if he caused it; the out of control part of him didn't care. The more the strings of the trance Brain had put on him pulled, the more angry he became with everything and everyone. Maybe he wouldn't care as much as he thought he would. "You're scaring me, Evan." Jonathan whispered as he stared at the Night God with fearful eyes. Evan couldn't meet his gaze, keeping his eyes on the pavement.

"I'm sorry if I hurt you, Jonathan."

"You didn't, Evan! None of those things you did was you." Jonathan gave him a reassuring smile. Evan was glad that he didn't understand. "I'm sorry I threw you off the roof and choked you. You should be upset about that."

"No. I know you don't forgive me. I know you hate me right now. You think I'm possessed. I'm not the person you knew before...Maybe I've always been this way just kept hidden away and Brian just happened to set me free." Evan laughed.

"Don't talk like that. You aren't cruel! You're a kind God! Think about the beautiful night sky! You put so much effort into making it beautiful for the people who need it to be. That's who you are." Jonathan cried, not caring about Marcel and Lui hearing anymore.

"I haven't loved the night for a long time, Jonathan." Evan spat, leaving him at a loss for words.

"But you have to…"

"Do you love revenge? Do you love the feeling of hot blood on your hands and the screams ringing in your ears?" Evan turned his head sharply to look at the God of Revenge who was surprised by the question.

"Evan...I-"

"Answer the question."

"Not always. Maybe if the person really did deserve it then I enjoy it but…" Jonathan trailed off, realising that Evan had got him to say what he wanted. Satisfied that Jonathan now understood, he looked away from him, his eyes scanning the empty, neon lit street. They weren't in the best part of L.A. but it didn't matter to them. Brian had said that soon every part would be the best part.

A sudden rumble shook the streets, the street lamps and neon signs flickering aggressively before plunging the street into darkness. While Evan felt safe, the other Gods panicked, squinting through the darkness to see what was happening.

"What did Brian do?" Marcel cried, looking up at the window as a bright flash of light shone through it. The ground beneath their feet shook again more fiercely, sending anything lose above them crashing to the pavement. They ducked for cover as glass shattered from windows, raining down on the street in sharp, glittering shards. The pavement began to suddenly crack and split as the earth's surface split to welcome the monsters below to the world above.

"No...He didn't…" Jonathan stammered.

"He did." Evan smiled. Clawed, skeletal hands broke through the surface. The monsters pulled themselves through the cracks in the earth, their horns and claws glinting in the flickering lights, their teeth barred and dripping with saliva. These were the monsters from the dawn of time, made from the chaos that had created Evan and the other Primordial Gods. Brian had unleashed the underworld on the world of the mortals.

In a flurry of feathers and shadows, Evan took off into the night sky as a another, stronger shock wave brought down unstable buildings and ripped open more cracks in the earth's surface. With the monsters came the heat of the hellish world below. Hot wind pulled at the owl's feathers, and smoke clouded the sky. The sounds of chaos, the sounds of Hell echoed up to him from the streets below.

This world was his for the taking. Evan couldn't wait to cut the strings and to take back what they did not deserve.