Act 1, Scene 5

8th of the 10th Cycle

The sky was still dark and overcast when Aether landed at the foot of the Statue to cheering crowds. The Void 'wings' on his back closed as he felt its power worm it's way out of him. The light on his chest piece turned from black back to blue.

"A-are you hurt?" Amber rushed over and grabbed him by the shoulders, checking for any wounds.

He was fine, and said as much, even if a bit strained. While aerial combat is nothing new to him, flying with Void wings is. See, they don't provide lift like material wings do, instead they sort of carry you in a space of nothingness, defying gravity quite literally.

In any case, he was always the better fighter when compared to his sister. New experiences are always a pleasure to have, even if this experience wasn't pleasurable in the sensation department.

Slow clapping.

"You've actually got the power to go up against the dragon… are you a new ally? Or a new storm?"

An eyepatch, a fur shoulder wrap, and extremely flamboyant clothing. Indeed, Aether felt like socking him in his pearly white teeth already.

Act α, Scene 5

They had celebrated too early, of course the twin dragon gods weren't going to siege the Lunar Palace alone. In hindsight, it should've been obvious they were there to test the defences, for which one of them paid dearly.

Once again, it seemed like all hope was lost. The sound of ten thousand feet marching in unison sent shivers up her spine. A mutual feeling all the defenders had, Lumine felt. The gods had marshalled their armies from every corner of the razed city to put an end to the last bastion of Khaenri'ah.

Beasts and creatures of all kinds appeared on the streets and skies leading to the Palace. The Stag God commanded a small force of cranes and stags, backed by a massive earthen dragon with the tail of a tree. But the soldiers feared the five more humanoid creatures more, each wore a dreadful mask and commanded an element. The soldiers called them the most fearsome of the Illuminated Beasts.

The Winged God brought a legion of a thousand angels, or what she assumed were angels. For they were as terrifying as their leader. Some looked more natural, with two to six wings. Others were more disturbing, great balls of fire surrounded by three golden wings, not unlike an armillary sphere, except each of the rings were inlaid with a hundred eyes. Their thundering voices could be heard, otherworldly and indecipherable.

And so on and so forth. The Fire-haired Goddess rode on a great flying lizard with a large crest on its head, and below her were warriors wearing the skin of beasts. The Ice Goddess brought gunners riding on chariots tethered to massive ice bears and hussars wielding lances of glowing ice. And this mighty host will be upon them within the hour.

As she retreated inside, as she neared the war room where the Prince was holding council, she could hear the Prince and Dainsleif in heated discourse.

"The barrier will not hold them! It was made to be anti-divine, it will halt the gods in their tracks, but their armies will hardly feel a shiver walking through it."

Dainsleif continued, "we need to flee! Our nation is its people, not the land. As long as we escape, we rebuild and avenge our losses in the future."

"And where will we go? We are surrounded on all sides, even from above!"

Dainsleif was grim as he answered the Prince, "Then we will have to go down. The catacombs beneath the Palace lead straight to-"

"The Abyss!? Are you mad?

"With all due respect, Your Grace, they are the only sensible option left. Our ties with the divine have been severed completely, and we will be hunted to the ends of the world. The Abyss is now the only place the gods cannot reach."

Lumine entered the room, and only a few officers noticed her. One of them spoke up, "It makes sense, they hate the gods as much as we do. Even if we may not be allies, the enemy of our enemy is our friend."

She could hear the other officers murmuring in agreement. She hated to shatter their only hope, as the Prince opened his mouth, she spoke.

"Too late, they are less than an hour away. It will take at least three hours to evacuate everyone."

Pin drop silence was her answer. One general slumped in her chair, another put his hands in his face. Most looked to the Prince for a decision.

After a minute of stifling silence, he spoke. "Ready the First and Third Orders, we sally out and stall for time, I will lead them myself."

As Dainsleif moved to interrupt, the Prince shot him a glare and pressed on.

"The Second Order will stay within the Palace confines to act as a rear guard. If we fail, make them bleed for every inch of hallway they take. The Fourth Order will escort everyone else into the catacombs. Dismissed."

Four people stood immediately, three men and one woman, Lumine assumed them to be the Order captains. They were loyal, she thought, to obey a command to die without batting an eye. How great must the Eclipses be to garner such unflinching fealty?

They saluted, "Hail to the eternal Eclipse!" and left to ready their men. Soon, everyone else trailed behind them until the only ones left in the room were the Prince, Dainsleif and Lumine.

"Dainsleif, you will accompany the Fourth Order, and lead them into the Abyssal Kingdoms"

The armoured knight looked stricken, "Your Grace, as a Royal Guard my duty is to-"

"Your duty is to protect the soon to be last surviving member of the Eclipse Dynasty"

He looked confused, "But, I thought you were the last-"

The Prince interrupted him again, looking irritated now, "Have you forgotten my sister's son? He is my ward, he may not bear the Eclipse name but he still is of our dynasty. His name is Torsten Alberich."

Dainsleif still looked hesitant, but relented nonetheless.