"What do you mean he's gone again?!" she raised her voice, shouting at these subordinates she employed in her service. She had ordered those they replaced to keep her father safe from any and all threats by spiriting him to a safe house established by her for protection. With him absent in this dark time, there was no telling what could have happened to their world. If Siralos couldn't govern his heaven and the mortal plane of the Land of the Sun effectively, there would certainly be chaos throughout both spaces that would've plunged one another in darkness. Effects of that sort were already taking place with the mortal plane in turmoil because the theocratic empire there erupted into a schism that divided followers of the faith. Once it began, Igls Unth and her regiment of soldiers still loyal to her and the true faith were uncertain as they feared recovery could've been nigh impossible with the current state of affairs as they were in their religious sphere of influence.
When the massive civil war within the Sun Heaven began, it was unclear who was correct. Nobody knew which set of ideals to follow and who to believe in as far as those who advocated in favor of their respective beliefs. The Sun Heaven was where this schism first started, and many of the inhabitants were afraid it could also be where it ended, leading to the fall of their heaven from the prestigious grace it had once held in the Land of the Sun. Some fled to other worlds, finding a great deal of better solace in worlds where current events were more stable than in their homeland. Others remained behind, trying to maintain their respective grips on civilization before it crashed. If it did, it would figuratively burn and be an ultimate death of society; nobody in the heaven could stop it, and the mortal plane was incapable of solving these problems as well due to intense strife.
Amongst the opposition on all sides, there were three main parties at first: Igls Unth along with her followers who tried to restore their order and maintain it; a party of citizens seeking order as well, but also sought to replace Siralos as per their religious customs; and Hastur with his army of angels who defected from both sides to serve him. These sides made a triangle that functioned as the civil war's comparison with all three points fighting for control to make what the respective sides believed was right into law. As the conflict worsened over time, it was Igls Unth's party who realized something was dreadfully wrong: Hastur and his forces did not fight against them and the citizens because he was letting them both fight amongst themselves. That was part of his plan, and it was currently bearing fruit. Although she attempted to make peace with citizens, her plan initially created opposition among her own forces. That caused a third to break away and attack the citizens, wounding them and wiping out a chunk of them just as they themselves were wiped out by both said citizens and Igls Unth when she tried to reintegrate them. Then they went ahead with the peace talks that failed due to the actions of her soldiers when many of them broke away in disagreement over the idea. Another third dissented and began fighting the citizens who had now been weakened, yet that third too was eliminated by the citizens and her. In short, both sides accrued heavy damage.
Because of her party's instability, Igls Unth acknowledged that affairs were at their worst. Her party had split into three different factions, two of which were similar and had attacked another party only to be destroyed completely. Yet the citizens were all killed off as well, both because of the heavy casualties inflicted upon them in the prior conflicts against her treasonous soldiers along with the significant casualties Hastur and his party dealt upon them. Hastur's party emerged as the victorious politically militant institution, having lost no troops at all and not experiencing any and all casualties that harmed the other two sides. Because of him, the citizens were all slaughtered as their party was erased entirely from the civil war. That left two opposing sides left: him along with his party, and Igls Unth and her remaining third. Of the two, the latter was heavily weakened while the former was in perfect shape to do anything they wanted and kept Igls Unth and Siralos in check.
Believing only a miracle could help them secure victory over their foes, she braced herself for the worst and ordered a detachment of the finest troops in her arsenal to escort her father to the safe house and protect him there. That squad consisted of about two hundred soldiers, whereas the remainder of her forces were a little over three hundred—precisely three hundred twenty-seven as the main force while the soldiers with the Sun God numbered a hundred ninety-four. Combined it was a force of five hundred twenty-one individuals, including herself and Siralos; unfortunately, a broken man like him couldn't really be counted even if his daughter and the others accepted him.
"I-I'm afraid so, Commander," the lieutenant addressing her spoke, confirming their worst fear that had emerged recently at this time. He was right to be nervous because the God they were all striving to keep safe and fight for really was gone. "Our last message from the troops assigned to ensure Lord Siralos' safety has come back negative. No messengers were able to make it, though we did receive communication via telepathy through some of our clerics. According to their report, the last one they were able to send through before all of them were slaughtered, Hastur along with the entirety of his whole army—five thousand, eight hundred fifty-three troops—surrounded them all. Although they've confirmed some of his soldiers perished in the conflict, ours all died. Nobody from among the regiment survived, save for Lord Siralos as the final words relayed to us declared Hastur personally kidnapped him during the massacre. Lord Siralos' fate is in his hands now."
"Dammit!" Igls Unth swore under her breath, having finished listening to the report which pertained to that critical incident. This turn of events not only displeased the angelic lady, but also frightened her as well because the Sun God was her father, her creator. With him gone, this horrible civil war was bound to end in Hastur's favor since he'd become the new God of their world. Even so, he had already won anyway because his forces significantly outnumbered her own and she was in no condition to fight him. If Igls Unth encountered the man again, she'd definitely lose to Hastur and die by his hands. Yet the fear of also never seeing him again was also afflicting her and them. To her troops, Siralos was an excellent leader, a divine, omnipotent deity who would've led all of them to victory. To her, he was just that and more as he was her father and creator; he gave Igls Unth meaning and life, and she swore to serve him as both his most loyal subordinate and daughter.
"W-what shall we do, Commander?" one of the other lieutenants at this war council asked timidly, fearing the wrath of whatever darkness was closing in on them. "S-should we flee for—"
"NO!" Igls Unth screamed in anger and cut him down with her newly forged longswords.
"C-C-Commander?!" a troop leader squeaked fearfully, watching her commit the murder.
"Our primary objective is to rescue Lord Siralos!" the Commander-in-Chief declared with confidence in their strength. Unfortunately, even she realized that confidence was misplaced since her remaining regiment consisted of average soldiers, some of whom were promoted at once to fill the massive gap of experienced military leaders who had either defected and died, or stayed while still dying because Igls Unth ordered all of those who remained on her personal faculty of generals and other military leaders following the major defections to guard Siralos at the safe house. All of them were dead now, leaving the entirety of her remaining followers to her. All of them were quite unsuited to the roles she expected them to fulfill in place of her deceased staff because none of the soldiers left with her had any experience in combat. They were all mere recruits whereas Igls Unth was the only experienced officer among them, hence why they made objections to her decree.
"B-but C-Commander, w-we're heavily outnumbered! Our enemy already knows we don't stand a chance against them, and they're fully aware of our position too!" another troop leader said to raise valid arguments against acting against Hastur. She was not wrong, however, for they were indeed outnumbered and out in the open. Their main headquarters remained in the Sun Tower, and none of them abandoned it—they couldn't because Hastur and his troops already laid claim to the lands outside the capital citadel, mercilessly torturing and killing anyone who opposed them along with anybody too weak to even join their cause. Their opponents could've come right in to murder them all, but chose not to because Hastur wanted Igls Unth to suffer as punishment for everything she did during the civil war and before it too. Her remaining troops suffered with her as well.
"Bullshit, I don't give two shits about our numbers or the foes' strength!" she retorted while threatening her with the longswords too. "Lord Siralos means everything to us, and I shall not hear any sort of backtalk against saving him! We are marching right out there, and we shall kill Hastur and all of his followers at once without fail! We may be outnumbered, but our cause is the just one in our world; his is not! Hastur deserves nothing, he does not deserve to be a God! That is why we shall be victorious over him, and it is also why we shall never fall or succumb to him! Got it?!"
"We've already lost!" another poorly promoted military leader protested. "Look at us, each and every single one of us is tired and ill prepared to withstand this war! Our supplies and resources have all dwindled down to almost nothing! We will not survive! Our best bets are to either abandon our heaven and go elsewhere, or surrender and join Hastur! We cannot hope to defeat him!"
Igls Unth cut him down as well. "Silence, I shall not hear a word of anybody deserting our cause just because our foe outnumbers us and has become superior to even myself! We shall come out of this conflict victorious on behalf of Lord Siralos for his sake because I say so, and I'm aware that he too shall also say so! Anybody who defects by fleeing or siding with Hastur will die by my hand! Do I make myself clear, or must I slaughter you all to get this through your thick skulls?!"
"Pot calling the kettle black, you're just as insane as Hastur!" one of the lieutenants yelled at her, angrily leaving his seat to take his leave of the debate. He wasn't the only one who noticed the change in her. Others at the meeting also saw how the stressful pressure from the turn of events was affecting Igls Unth, and they didn't like it because it scared them. They had three options: stay by her side in the coming slaughter and die at Hastur's hands; side with Hastur; or leave. For some, if not all of them, the latter two options made more sense than the first. "I've had it with this shit!"
"Yeah, I didn't sign up for this shit!" another shouted and left his chair too. Some of those who remained stayed seated, afraid for their lives because Igls Unth would've killed them.
"Are you all daft?!" the Commander-in-Chief retorted. "Hastur will kill you all!"
"We've got better chances of staying alive with him than with you, lady!"
That counter-retort made Igls Unth growl angrily, upsetting her because her support wasn't getting any better by increasing. It was in fact dwindling like everything else they had. They were right, and she was wrong; unfortunately, she didn't give a damn about who was right or wrong. A trivial argument like that meant nothing to her anymore. All that mattered was Siralos, her creator and father, and she would be damned if she didn't save him from whatever torment Hastur dealt.
…
"How are the preparations going?" he asked from the platform he stood on with both hands folded behind his back as he watched some of the soldiers under him establish the framework they were building. The portal they planned to construct was coming along smoothly, nearing the end.
Having chosen only the most experienced of generals who supported him as the civil war began as his trusted staff of advisors, he worked with them to kill the opposition by playing both sides against one another and then moving in to slaughter one and severely cripple the other to the point where Igls Unth was so weak that she would definitely lose. He had figured the Commander-in-Chief planned to try making peace with citizens who began to reject Siralos, but not the religious customs that served as their world's laws. Hastur risked gambling with an idea that she would lose supporters over time since he believed part of her forces would attack the citizens. To ensure that bet was successful, the angelic man participated in their downfall by having spies pit the opponents against one another. Having accomplished that with all of the spies escaping uncaught, he did the same thing again. That second time was the only remaining shot he needed to eliminate the citizens, for he had known they would've hated the party under Igls Unth after her dissenting troops fought them. By utilizing more spies, the angelic man caused another third of her forces to dissent, battle the civilians, and lose despite inflicting heavy damage. With the citizens weakened, he only needed to move in with the complete force under him to massacre the rest of them and win unscathed.
Once one party was removed from the equation that made up this triangular civil war, there were only two competing parties left: his and Igls Unth's. He could care less about her, and wasn't worried about dealing with her. Hastur was fully aware that his opponent's forces were divided, a firm weakness on Igls Unth's part now that all of her experienced soldiers had been slaughtered in the recent raid. His spies reported back about Siralos being moved to a safe house, and they knew the exact coordinates of its location that enabled them to meet the enemy forces head on along the way there. Their ambush was successful, and again they were victorious; although they lost some soldiers on the mission, the goal was accomplished nonetheless: capturing Siralos. With the former Sun God in their captivity, Hastur brutal tortured Siralos to steal his magical powers and energy to form the portal. After he stole the Lebabylonian Blade, he calibrated the various torture equipment in the Sun Inquisition—which Hastur began using as his main headquarters for his forces after killing the Head Inquisitor and stealing his title—to have the same enchantment which was on the weapon. This enabled the torture equipment to steal energy from Siralos, and his life force which was included within that energy was powering the portal. Their target was the Gray Garden.
"It is getting there, sir," one of the clerics under him responded, saluting his presence over them. "Soon it shall be fully opened so we may successfully invade the Gray Garden and win this time." She smiled confidently, believing they would be successful in the invasion this time.
"Excellent, keep at it and increase the effectiveness of the torture. We shall need all the life from Siralos we can acquire to power this thing. Though be sure to let him live so he can continue to suffer," he commanded, allowing the clerics and paladins operating the portal to keep working. Turning around, Hastur ambled into the adjacent office and sat down at the desk that was now his. Eyeing the sun angel across the room from him, he raised his hand and beckoned the man over so he could hear the latest report. "Leihsuk, give me a status update on our opponent's movements."
Decked in a pure golden robe with flowing red hair reaching down to his waist, the angelic cleric approached Hastur's desk and bowed before him, opening his eyes to reveal green irises that fell upon his leader with benign grace. "But of course, Milord," he addressed the other angel with a regal title, acknowledging Hastur as his superior. "Our spies who still reside among Igls Unth to this day have done wonders with their silver tongues. They have split her regiment into thirds once more: one faction seeking to join us, and another that wishes to leave the Sun Heaven. Only those who remain steadfastly loyal to her only out of fear have remained. All of them in each faction are but mere recruits whom you are free to slay in the two departing factions; however, if I may, might I offer you a bit of advice regarding the faction requesting permission to enlist with us, Milord?"
"Very well, you may speak," Hastur allowed him to pose his suggestion.
"We use those disgustingly inexperienced recruits as fodder, shields for our more superior troops. By means of using their poor training to our advantage among Igls Unth's own retinue that consists of her own poorly trained soldiers, they could potentially pick off some of her forces."
"And in doing so, let them fight amongst each other again so we can slay Igls Unth and her party for good. A well-thought out plan, one we shall implement into our program and utilize it to the fullest. As for the force that wishes to leave, see to it that they all killed by further infighting if possible. Have our spies among them produce further tension between them via decisions on where they plan to go, and also play on guilt of those who fear leaving and wish to return to Igls Unth."
Leihsuk shut his eyes and bowed again, happy to comply with the order. "As you wish."
"One last thing: has the letter to Ivlis pertaining to the weakened states of his sister and his father been drafted yet?" Hastur inquired, seeking to also pit the Flame Devil against Igls Unth as well. "With him eliminating her for us, we can progress onwards with our invasion at once."
"It has been completed at your request, though the secretary is writing a final draft."
"Good submit it at once after it's been completed. I need not read it, for I have already said exactly what I have planned to say when I dictated it to him. See to it that letter goes out quickly."
Once again Leihsuk bowed in compliance. "Understood, Milord."
…
Watching the sky from a balcony outside his bedroom, the Flame Devil merely blinked and drank his soda. At times like he thought about the old days when he still worked for Siralos. Back then he was the only one whose eyes were open, the sole individual who could secure and take in knowledge of everything around him. He saw some things he agreed with whereas matters of other concerns made him wonder. Ivlis thought long and hard on topics that caught his eyes, enrapturing his attention to absorb him into manuscripts and scriptures he studied to become a better follower of his father, the man who created him. Many hours of days were spent in the Sun Tower library, his face directed towards the books that captivated him. Although he did face ridicule for his ideas and the fact he'd been the only demon Siralos created, Ivlis was quite happy with his lifestyle as a bookworm. Even after he received the opportunity to produce his own demons, he was satisfied because of his passion for reading and intricate knowledge he sought to study through research.
It was a shame those traits led to his downfall at the hands of Siralos. His creator, the man he once considered to be his father, betrayed him. The Sun God hadn't created him to be loyal, but to question the faith that drove the Land of the Sun. In doing so, Siralos attempted to give himself justification for Ivlis' fall from the Sun Heaven. By questioning their world's religion which relied heavily on the sun since the sun was the faith's focal point, he fell into Siralos' trap. He could not do anything to save himself because even though he acquired plenty of knowledge and became an intellectual scholar among his fellow demons and the angels who resided in the Sun Heaven prior to his fall, Ivlis was not able to grasp the issue of who could belong in the light and who couldn't. He hadn't understood the nature of why some individuals were cast out of it without ever receiving it, and he also couldn't get how those who lost it couldn't be welcomed back via redemption from atoning for whatever sins they committed against the light. To him it felt confusing and unfair, for it seemed like the light was being tailored only to specific individuals who gained it from faith. Its prejudicial aspects in that perspective were apparent in the blind faith people had in the sun which befuddled him since he didn't understand why the angels were not asking questions about the light.
Then came his fall when he posed those concerns to Siralos while inquiring about what he needed to do in order to make a difference by improving their religious customs to include subjects such as redemption and atonement. The Sun God refused to listen, choosing instead to declare Ivlis as a traitor and tear his wings off before casting the poor demonic man into their world's hell. That was the plan all along, and Ivlis was a foolish pawn who played himself into that checkmate. That was a costly move he was unaware of until after he had fallen when his hatred towards Siralos had begun to consume him, engulfing Ivlis into a state of anger against his creator. He wanted revenge against the man he once referred to as his father, and did anything necessary to ensure he garnered power for that endeavor. Ivlis beat down all the other factions in the Flame Underworld, becoming the Devil through civil warfare and holding his title and power very carefully. At some point he'd gotten word of the Gray Garden and chose to invade it so he could steal Kcalb's power, though his invasion failed and he had no choice but to retreat after losing many of his troops in the assault.
Ivlis sighed, staring at the sky. "This is all your fault, Siralos…" he muttered, drinking his soda. "My life was fine until you showed your true colors. Everything went to hell because of you. I swear I shall have vengeance upon you, you wretched cur." Averting his attention down from the sky, the Flame Devil observed a training regimen of soldiers in his army practicing for the invasion. A while back he sensed something was wrong within the Sun Heaven, feeling something he hadn't felt before: conflict. The Sun Heaven was in turmoil, and although he did not know exactly how it occurred or what was going on, Ivlis wasn't going to let this opportunity pass. He sensed his former comrades up there were getting weak, but from what? It didn't matter to him so long as he seized this chance for vengeance. Once Siralos was out of power, he would lay claim to the lands he once considered his home to reclaim them for himself. Ivlis planned on making knowledge available to everyone who supported him, and would even usher in ideas he believed in. While the Sun Heaven had been a place of religious fanaticism with the mortal plane following it blindly like the angels under Siralos, the Flame Underworld became a scholarly place under Ivlis despite a tendency for destruction. Intellectual pursuits became a norm, and he'd spread them in the Sun Heaven as well.
Taking a deep breath he turned to head inside, sauntering down the hallway while finishing his soda. Making his way towards the throne room, Ivlis pondered on an odd passage he discovered in one of the old tomes he found within the Sun Tower's library. Having located a dusty collection of manuscripts that hadn't been tended to for what may have been years, decades, centuries, or the longer millennia, the Flame Devil—then an ordinary flame demon—had uncovered such a treasure trove of knowledge that he cleaned them up as best he could before poring over them. Every single one of them provided historical accounts on their world's past, and the most ancient tale concerned an order of angels who had sealed something evil away before founding the Sun Heaven. Reading over that particular passage, Ivlis learned the evil was replaced by the sun and that its light became the foundation around which the Land of the Sun was created. For some strange reason, however, the passage encouraged angels to protect the sun without converting its light into divine holy magic that deities could use, warning those who did about a tainted corruption such power produced. He couldn't help but wonder what it was about, but Ivlis planned on following that advice and studying it too so he could better understand what it was about, what that evil was, and how to keep it sealed.
Upon entering the throne room, he caught sight of Emalf approaching and sat down on the throne just as his subordinate reached the foot of several stairs leading up to his throne. "You have business with me, Emalf?" he inquired nonchalantly, accepting a letter the lesser demon gave him.
"You've got mail, sir," Emalf commented casually, sticking his hands into his pockets and watching the Devil cut into the envelope with a letter opener Ivlis retrieved from his jacket pocket. "There's no return address, suggesting the sender is anonymous. Whoever it was wasn't found; all we found was the letter left behind on the entranceway doors. I examined the envelope; there's no poison of any kind on it, and I certainly couldn't smell any in it either." As Emalf's curiosity began to get the better of him, he further analyzed the envelope for any additional details that might have been inside once Ivlis removed the letter. Yet nothing was written inside, showing it was all blank. "There's nothing else in here aside from that letter. I can only wonder who sent it to us and why."
"I don't know who our mysterious benefactor is, Emalf, but this individual certainly seems to be aware of one thing," the Flame Devil began to explain. "Apparently the weakness I sensed a while back from the Sun Heaven is confirmed. According to our mysterious sender, Siralos finally fell after becoming mentally crippled by two or three enigmatic foes. Igls Unth attempted to restore order, though was faced with a civil war. Whoever informed us of this wants us to get involved by smashing Igls Unth's forces to utterly annihilate them." Ivlis smiled, grateful for this opportunity.
"What if it's a trap, sir?" Emalf asked, wanting to avoid the complacent attitude they were displaying during their invasion of the Gray Garden. "Should we prepare with caution in mind?"
"Duly noted," Ivlis replied, flashing his subordinate a sinister grin. "Let's get to work."
…
"Everybody is preparing for war these days…" she murmured softly to her friend, looking out over the pasture in her dream with a sigh that escaped her mouth. The angel's lone eye blinked, her somber facial expression indicating she was depressed over the state of affairs and how they've taken a recent turn. With the way things were going, the Gray Garden was going to be involved in yet another conflict. This time, however, they weren't defending their world, but invading another instead. Technically they were defending this world along with other worlds too, though the tactic this time was to take the offensive by committing effort into said invasion. It saddened her how an assortment of peaceful ideals like the ones defended here were kind of contradicted by this affair.
Following the Smoking God's visit to their world, Etihw received a message directly from Justim himself. The God of All Gods had reviewed the recent events fairly, taking all options into consideration while listening to the advice of others involved in the matter, namely Fumus. While the Smoking God did offer his recommendation of allowing the Gray Garden to retain its neutrality in the war against Siralos, Justim wholeheartedly agreed despite requesting military aid. As Fumus informed Kcalb during their meeting, he said Justim probably couldn't spare any troops to help in the defensive invasion. His prediction turned out to be correct, and it loomed over everyone which meant the Gray Garden did indeed have to supply troops. Such news was disheartening since many people of this world could've died or gotten seriously injured in this conflict, yet brave souls were numerous in volunteering to enlist freely for the sake of protecting their world and other worlds.
In light of her pride about how good-natured they were and how they were considering the much bigger picture, Grora felt otherwise due to more recent events—namely the discovery of her being the one who killed the cat demons' parents. That revelation horrified her, shocking the poor angelic lady to her very core by shattering the foundation of who she was and had become, not just to others besides the kitties, but also to Ater and Arbus themselves. Both felines were also terrified of it, yet Arbus despised her for everything whereas all of that frightened Ater. The fact that she'd been involved in a radical organization led by a man who sought to advance his own interests was something Grora accepted as much as she didn't like it. Now, though…now it felt like she was not ready to fully accept it anymore, that she wanted to abolish her past for good by going back in time to prevent it all from happening. If such a notion were possible, she would take it regardless of the consequences pertaining to messing with the past and future by changing the former. But it wasn't.
"It is what it is, Grora," Robin remarked to try and help her come to terms with everything. Seeing the living angel in this state of constant depression worried her. She'd known Grora during the war—not that well, but still—and it bothered the spiritual angel because it didn't seem like the old Grora she knew. Before, Grora was always a hothead, rushing into the fray to save her friends and others she cherished. Even though she attempted to think things through and over, a lot of the time she usually had to be the one in need of saving whenever she went too far. Sometimes Grora had to be stopped from pulling crazy stunts. Now Grora looked to be a shadow of her former self. "You cannot change the past, but you can live for the future by taking control of your present."
"It is what it is…" Grora repeated those words, finding no solace in her friend's comforting presence and the words she spoke. "Just as it always is…fate's a fickle bitch, isn't she, Robin?"
"True, it can be erratically unpredictable in how fate flows," Robin concurred with her to raise another point of her own. "Yet there is a silver lining in the fact that we are in control of our destinies, Grora. The choices we make can define the path we take in life even if we cannot see the end of it. Fortunately, we can prolong the journey to prevent ourselves from reaching the end at a quicker pace by making steady decisions that will affect the length of our respective paths, as well as the paths of others who are connected to us. These links are connected to more chains too."
"An unending chain of bonds…with others, through others…" Grora sighed, feeling defeat at the end of her own path was already close ahead. She faced a mountain of a hurdle about Arbus and Ater, uncertainty weighing her down from making the ascent to reach them. Saying sorry was not going to be easy, and neither was proving it for that matter. After killing their parents alongside all the abuse she put them through, Grora was beginning to believe there was no point to anything anymore. Perhaps she should've simply given up, an idea that occurred to her as she looked at her spiritual friend. "My choices in life defined your end, Robin…they defined the end of others along with you. I was responsible for your death, and the deaths of many more…by ending their paths."
"You did…" Robin agreed, feeling she had no choice in the matter but to use some kind of psychology on the other angel. By acting as a mirror of some sort, she hoped to help Grora acquire a sense of gentle rejuvenation. Reaching a hand up to tenderly stroke the living angel's cheek, she looked deep into Grora's eye and removed her eyepatch with the other hand. It may not have been the best way of going about it, but at least Robin tried her best to soothe her friend's spirits. "You've made poor decisions, Grora, choices you couldn't take back in the end. At best you could only see to it that you made the attempt to apologize for those choices, knowing forgiveness was difficult to acquire because that decision was up to those affected negatively by your negative actions. They've had three options: forgiving you; not forgiving you, but overlooking the offenses; and not forgiving you without overlooking the offences. Some may have chosen to forgive, others not despite letting you have another chance. Yet in the long run, nobody chose the third option; some went with their second choice, but gradually began to change their minds and pick the first. They had it, but would not take it because it would've only led to more pain and conflict. That's why they didn't take it."
"I know, but…Ater and Arbus never knew until Aleista showed them…"
"Give them time and space to adjust to the reality of that dilemma. Let them be, Grora, for they must make their decision by choosing one of those three options I just went over with you."
"Sure…" Grora murmured, gently turning her head around while putting the eyepatch back on. The smile she usually had on her face wouldn't come back. "That's all I can really do now…"
"I'm afraid so…" Robin commented, thinking of something she could say to cheer her up. The only idea that came to mind was her own death due to Project Dynol Peiriant and Germain. A morbidly mournful thought, but an idea nonetheless. She smiled at Grora after taking a deep breath, prepared to implement it. "If it makes you feel better, Grora, know that although you might've had a hand in my death, it was not by your hand that I died. It was because of the demon I encountered and Germain that I met my own end at the very end of my path. You were one of the links I've held close to my heart in life, and I still keep a firm grip on it in death." When Grora didn't say anything in response, Robin looked away and tipped her head down in shame. "I-I'm s-sorry, I-I didn't—"
"It's okay…I forgive you…" Grora interjected softly, "but thank you anyway…"
"Your welcome, Grora…" Robin sighed, figuring she should've changed the subject since this current one was upsetting them both. "Anyway, moving on, what became of the meeting Kcalb and Wodahs attended with Fumus? Have Aleista and Soa declared some kind of war or something against the Gray Garden?" she asked, wondering what happened with that. She had been watching over Grora for the past several days, so she was too busy taking care of her to look into that.
"They're neutral, alright," the living angelic lady began to explain. "They'll probably chose to reside in our world permanently and protect it from other Great Elders, ones that aren't as good and friendly as M'nellkor, while making deals with the inhabitants. Aleista's gone elsewhere from what I heard, traveling elsewhere to retrieve their Third Liaison. Only Soa and M'nellkor are here; I can only hope he'll restrain her if she tries anything funny or dangerous against us. We've got an assurance from them about their perspective of our world and their intentions too, but that isn't all. After Aleista departed, Soa informed them that they've gone to the Sun Heaven and dealt with the Sun God; Siralos isn't dead because they didn't kill him, though they did murder a bunch of crucial individuals under him. It was retaliation for what that squad of sun angels did when his first try to invade failed. They even showed him to M'nellkor and broke his mind by letting him see him."
"So Siralos was already taken care of. But then why is the war still necessary?"
"It's exactly as we've said, Robin: it is what it is, just as it always is. Siralos has to be tried and punished for his actions. Everybody, even Fumus knows since he received permission directly from M'nellkor through Soa that he can allow his people to know about them and Aleista. He was told he could relate the information to his army, and now our own military knows too."
"You're both just going to invade while the Sun God's down and out, so to speak?"
"Yep, it'll be an easy victory because we won't have to deal with Siralos. His daughter on the other hand, Igls Unth, will still be a problem if we encounter her. According to Justim's angels from an embassy he had in the Sun Heaven, a civil war had begun there with three different parties vying for power. She must be one of them, and I bet Hastur will be one too. Justim couldn't place his own people in danger, so he had ordered for them to bail when the civil war began at first."
"Why's there a civil war?" Robin inquired, wondering what happened over there.
"Beats me to be honest, but Justim said his angels claimed Siralos was incapacitated in his mind and that Hastur revealed his condition to the Sun Heaven. Igls Unth supported her father and he didn't, finding support from many angels among the chaos. The third side consists of civilians, angels who wanted to retain their religious values and customs while abandoning Siralos."
"I can only imagine how that'll affect the mortal plane in his world. The humans there may likely be affected by the catastrophe their heaven is experiencing. They might cause a schism."
Grora shrugged, shutting her eye. "Whatever, it doesn't really matter to me. How they work with humans in their world is up to them since it's their business. I mean, I do care about them and how they're affected, but I can't do anything about it. The humans in our world all died due to our war, and many of them became angels while others became demons. Lady Etihw didn't create any more humans with her magic, so we just left things the way they had become and made peace. It's been as simple as that, and I wouldn't have it any other way. At least that's my opinion on this."
"Well, then let's discuss what would happen if Igls Unth were to become a Goddess," came an idea from her friend. "If Siralos is unable to govern his world as its God, she would be in a firm position to acquire the role if her party was to follow a monarchial dynastic philosophy. However, considering the religious values of her world as Lady Etihw said once around the time of Ater's betrayal, the rite of passage would need to be followed. If selected by the sun, she's a Goddess."
"Pretty much; she's already in a position to take it without that rite of passage," Grora said.
"And we already know Hastur would want to become the God of Existence."
"He'll fail because he's involved in a three-way civil war; he can't fight off two opponents on one or two fronts and two more another. Sure, he might utilize spies to pit his opposition in the civil war against one another, but he still can't take on Fumus and Sir Devil. Hell, if Ivlis somehow joins in on our side, it'll be much harder for him to secure victory for his goals. I doubt Ivlis would not be unaware of what could be going on over in his world's heaven since I'm sure he would have sensed the chaos. All we have to do is make sure he's on our side and try to enlist Igls Unth too."
"Long story short," Robin began to deduce from her friend's line of thinking, "you've got plans to form a massive square around Hastur; a pentagon if you get the third side in the civil war to join in. If Igls Unth hasn't already tried to establish a truce with them—and I'm sure they would make one since they share a common foe and values they could discuss and come to an agreement on—or if she has, you've essentially acquired enough allies and their forces to outnumber Hastur and his forces. That's quite a clever plan, Grora, though what if he eliminates both enemy parties."
"Then we've still got Fumus, and Ivlis if he sides with us. I think he will since he hates the God of his world, thereby uniting us against Siralos. It might not be enough allies, but we're more than capable of dealing with Hastur. That much is certain, but I don't know about the portal though, because any one of the parties in that civil war could be coming through. We can still hammer the enemy force in from all sides regardless of who's leading them, though I can definitely bet it would not be Siralos due to his mental incapacitation. Igls Unth probably wouldn't either since she'll not have time to focus on us, leading to one possible suspect since the party wishing to abandon Siralos will be contending with Igls Unth:" Grora finished her explanation and turned to Robin, "Hastur."
"Do you think Hastur might've captured Siralos?"
"Possibly, though we'll still be prepared either way," Grora replied. "He'll be trapped with no way out of the portal except for the retreat back. We can follow him and pick off his forces one by one if they don't overpower our own at the portal. We've already got an entire army at the ready to deal with whoever comes through it, even if it isn't him. Hopefully we can handle the enemies, however many there are of them." Although that was easier said than done, she realized the 'done' part was going to be difficult achieving depending on how many soldiers were invading their world a second time. The sun angels may have been persistent, but they could've also been foolish. Still, they were a threat that had to be taken care of in order to ensure they wouldn't threaten anyone. A positively optimistic desire, but one not without its hurdles, however large or small they were.
…
The final chapters of Atonement are coming, just as the imminent war against the Sun Heaven is. The main players are moving into their positions, but events have yet to unfold.
There are a couple of tidbits I just want to point out regarding some of the content in this chapter. First, Leihsuk's name is backwards for 'Kushiel', the angel of Judeo-Christian folklore who is known as the Rigid One of God because he punishes people in Hell. According to some Hebrew accounts of him, Kushiel is one of the seven angels of punishment and utilizes a fire whip to punish nations while residing in the Third Heaven. That bit about the Third Heaven was mentioned in the Second Book of Enoch, and you can find this out on Wikipedia.
With regards to Ivlis' passion for scholarly pursuits, I think that could be a very good aspect of his character because we know Siralos created him with Ivlis' eyes open. This might imply that Ivlis would be open to exploration and intellectual pursuits because he might take in information better as he can see things his peers among the sun angels couldn't since they were blindly obedient to Siralos. Their closed eyes symbolize this faith in the Sun God; even so, the fact they don't open their eyes could indicate their faith in him is blind, meaning they can't see beyond what Siralos advocates. The fact Ivlis' eyes were open meant he could think and ponder on things that caught his attention and interest, leading him to pose questions as well as theories on certain subjects. This would've contributed to his fall while asking Siralos about what he had to do regarding what he knew about their faith, religion, and the light. It was also a matter of wondering who the light might've belonged to and who should've had a chance to bask in it too. Though Ivlis had become tainted by his rage towards Siralos, leading him to become consumed by vengeance, I believe he certainly once was—and still could be—an individual who is worthy of receiving good character development, canon or non-canon.
With this in mind, I think the divide between Siralos and Ivlis could be an allusion to the Renaissance and Enlightenment, historical periods when intellectuals developed sciences to explain natural phenomena. The Church didn't approve of their work because their work questioned religion, drawing attention via the logical explanations that shed light on subjects the Church claimed could only be understood through religion. I believe this could be a case for this allusion because of the characters' eyes: Ivlis' open eyes; Igls Unth's closed eyes; and Siralos' open eyes. Siralos is the Sun God, the omnipotent figure of the Land of the Sun who could do anything in his power as a God, so he can come up with ideas and make them so as he doesn't have opposition from those who believe in him. Igls Unth believes in him as do the other sun angels, though their eyes are closed which may indicate they prefer religion over a collection of sciences they want to ignore because of their firm beliefs. As I've said earlier, it is also interesting to note how their closed eyes could also symbolize blind faith which is blind because they won't acknowledge the sciences as real proofs, thus contributing to this theory. Ivlis' eyes are open, and as I've also said, he would be open to things of interest to him. Things like natural truths might not be explained by religion, so he'd have to investigate such notions by asking questions and posing theories. This conflicts with religion, the ideas Siralos makes and advocates for, leading to Ivlis' fall; thus being an allusion to the aforementioned periods of history mentioned earlier. I might be wrong, but it is interesting food for thought.