So far, the trip was going rather well.

Bahamut had been scanning the globe since that morning, and he was very pleased at what he saw. Much of the world was warm now. And where there had been nothing decades ago, there were now trees and forests growing. The world had filled with life too. More creatures that he had never witnessed before had come out and were running around on the face of the world. There were a large variety of them now, and they changed from landscape to landscape as Bahamut flew by. They were able to live everywhere. Even the wasteland deserts had their own set of creatures living in them. Whales, tigers, bears, elk, squirrels, sloths…everything was amazing to see. Not that Terratopolis didn't have its own charm, but it still wasn't nearly as old as the rest of the world. It would take generations for it to equal the natural beautyGaia had achieved. Seeing the world as it was now, however, made Bahamut more enthusiastic to see it make this change.

He had also been on the lookout for humans. So far, he had seen none. The one race, the Lufenians, still dwelt in their city in the sky, which was still far more advanced than both the espers and the world below. He also passed by an elf town too. Their mode of living was strange, living entirely out of natural materials that the forests provided. However, it still seemed much more advanced and prosperous than the original human tribe he witnessed had been. But then again, he wasn't sure exactly how the human tribes were doing. He still had to find some. And so, to that end, he flew through the sky and struggled to locate one.

Bahamut also kept an eye out for his brother. When he swooped down for lunch on a rather tender-looking moose, it reminded him of their journey to this world for the first time. It had changed so much since then, turning into a world of light rather than darkness. And it was prospering so much now. Wherever Wyvern was, he hoped that he was enjoying it. Bahamut himself couldn't sense him as he flew over the Planet. And so, he had to just bear on without him, and enjoy what he could without the aid of his brother around him.

Day wore on, and still Bahamut scanned the ground, looking for signs of some human settlement. He searched for hours for one, but didn't see any. He almost wondered how he would recognize it. However, his rationale was that it would stand out just as the original human settlement had. And so, he continued to search and wait, looking for any sign. He thought again how much the humans might have changed. He couldn't wait to see it. He continued to search and struggled to see something.

Then, at long last, something did come over the horizon. But it wasn't what Bahamut expected. It was black, and stretching to the sky. Bahamut turned to a look of puzzlement at that. He narrowed his gaze and focused on it harder. As he continued to come forward, he suddenly realized what it was. He hadn't seen it in a long time…but it was smoke. Black, thick smoke…the kind that came from fire. Not just any fire, however, but true destructive fire. He had seen it before in the battles with Griever and its fiends. He couldn't forget it no matter what. Something was wrong over there.

Immediately, Bahamut increased his speed and headed for that location. Something had to be wrong…but what was it? There weren't any enemies left. Griever was gone. The Four Fiends were destroyed. What could be causing it? Another one of those Ark monsters? Bahamut scanned ahead, trying to sense a power in the area. But he couldn't sense anything. There were no strong powers over there. Nothing stood out. Perhaps it had already left? Bahamut didn't know. He just kept shooting forward, determined to reach the location quickly.

As Bahamut came up on the area, he noticed that it was a clearing in the middle of a forest. He soon came up on it and went over it, and as he did he saw that the clearing was not natural. It had been man-made. Old stumps of trees were still standing all over it, rough and hewed around the tops. Evidently, it had to be another invention of humans, an axe. He continued to fly forward, and as he did he looked up and saw the source of the blaze at last.

It was one of those new dwellings Leviathan had described. It was made out of wood and thatch laced together to make a small chamber that a person could live in. It was reinforced with hides of animals as well. A small barrier was made around the house, made out of wood stakes and cords stretched between them. Within the grounds of the barrier, there was a small field that was planted with the same kind of plant, the technique of farming that the humans had perfected. However, all of the plants were now ablaze. And so was the small hut. They were the source of the smoke, spewing it into the air as both things were consumed by a growing fire.

Bahamut quickly moved over into another tree large enough to hold him. He made sure to move silently and quickly, not wanting to alert his presence but still look down at the ground more closely. And he did get a closer look…but only to see worse. Two people were dead outside of the hut. One was a fairly young man. The others was an older one…possibly a mother and child. Both of them had been punctured in some way, roughly…although it didn't look like an animal. Something had pierced them with purpose. This had definitely been done by ones desiring to do evil. On seeing it, Bahamut's heart filled with grief. Innocent people had been here, and they had been murdered savagely. Their homes and property were destroyed. This was barbarism and wickedness…and Bahamut hated to see it. It tore his heart open. He loved the humans as if they were his own children, in a way. He had seen them develop so much and grow. He thought he had rid the world of this evil. He thought there was nothing left of it. But now, something else was attacking the humans. Something else was fouling the world.

Bahamut scanned the ground for signs of anything. Something had to have done this. But he could sense nothing. There were no strong evil things here. There were no powers like the Fiends or Griever, or even a lesser esper. But something had to have done it… This destruction had to be stopped. This evil had to be answered for. Finally, a voice struck his ear. A woman cried out in anguish…before being roughly silenced. And it was near, just in the woods around the clearing. Quickly, Bahamut wheeled his head over in the direction, and readied himself to tear the latest foe to pieces…

But on doing so…Bahamut froze. His face fell. His stared in stunned silence. It was the most horrible shock he had received in decades.

There were no fiends or espers or monsters.

There were only humans.

Four of them were gathered. They all were rough, dark-looking men. They were overgrown and shaggy, seeming to have been nearly wild people. They were dirty looking…and Bahamut could sense evil coming from their minds and hearts. They carried tools for cutting…but Bahamut took one look at them and saw that they weren't used for cutting wood recently. They were dripping with fresh human blood. The smell was so strong that it made Bahamut sick. He could still sense the terror and fear on the minds of the people when their blood was spilled. And now…they were laughing and carousing around one final survivor…a woman. She was screaming hysterically, half-naked, bruised, bloodied, and tortured. She had her clothing ripped and looked terribly abused. She kept trying to escape, but every time she got the strength to they struck her and sent her down to the ground. Then…one of them pinned her as best he could…and began to… It made Bahamut sick to look at it. The woman wouldn't take it. She kept fighting and screaming, as the others laughed at her and egged their foul friend on. The man, on his part, yelled at the woman violently to stop, slapping her around as he did so. Eventually, he sneered at her…and in a flash pulled out a knife made of bone and cut her throat. Spitting on her, he angrily rose and cut her still twitching body aside like she was a fruit rind, and turned his attention to a nearby tree, where a much-younger boy was tied and hanging from a branch. He stared at him with a ravenous look…

Bahamut felt ready to throw up. A cold knot formed in his stomach. This was the biggest horror…the most sickening shock…he had ever seen. The humans…they were engaging in such savage immorality that it defied logic. It couldn't be possible. But as Bahamut scanned their minds, he saw no revenge, no hurt, no excuse or reason for this. He saw only the feeling of power and superiority…the same as was in Crusader's mind. These humans…they were acting the same way. They felt invincible and untouchable…they were without remorse or concern… They had descended to the same level of evil and wickedness Crusader had. They were doing these terrible acts…without the slightest concern for the people they hurt. How? How could they possibly do this? Could they not see what they were doing? Could they not see that they were harming their own race, hurting their own people? Humans were struggling to survive as it was, and they were doing these terrible things…for personal satisfaction?

Bahamut felt so dizzy and sick he wanted to fall out of the tree. Thoughts swarmed over him. Always, he had sensed some evil in the humans…but now the icy reality of the situation clenched his heart painfully. They were capable of supreme wickedness. They were capable of evil far beyond what they had once been aware of. They had the ability to do such horrible, horrible things, and to have the same state toward their sin as Crusader had. Bahamut had never believed it. He never thought they would reach this point. But they did. And now…he heard the mocking laughter of Crusader in his ears… He heard its evil voice ringing through his heart to the tune of the human's wicked glee below…telling him that the humans would one day become this wicked…

…No.

No…I won't believe it.

There are people like Palad in the world. There are humans that are capable of great good too. They still exist as well. As long as they do, I'll continue to have faith in humanity. These…these people are twisted and evil…but they do not represent all humans. They are only some…not the majority. These people were innocent that they hurt and killed. And now…

Now…they shall die for their crimes.

Bahamut shock quickly began to vanish. His anger built instead. As it did, the sky began to turn dark. The wind began to pick up. Heat gathered around him. The ground shook beneath him. These effects grew in magnitude with time. The wicked men, seeing this, turned away from the boy they had just began to strip and looked to the sky in confusion. Now, their confidence vanished, and fear began to replace it. Seeing that, Bahamut began to hiss a deep-throated growl.

That's right…fear. Show it. Show me more of it. Heartless…wicked…foul little monsters… I sacrificed so much for you. I tried so hard to help you. And this is how you repay me? This is what you think you can get away with? Did you not think that someone would know? Did you not think someone would make you answer for your crimes? Did you think you could do such a thing…and fail to arouse my anger! You…evil, horrible men…you will pay dearly for this…!

As the men grew more fearful, Bahamut finally revealed himself. Hissing, growling in fury, his voice shaking the air and the world around him, Bahamut flew out of the tree and landed right in front of the men. He stretched out his full height. He flashed his tail and extended his wings. He gave out a bone-chilling cry, roaring like the voice of doom. The men saw this…and immediately turned white as ghosts. Their revelry was forgotten. Their eyes filled with pure fear. They were totally consumed by it, and unable to move. They stared in terror at Bahamut, stretching over them. They couldn't even scream. Heat poured from Bahamut's mouth. His eyes blazed with a horrible light. He blasted at them angrily, his voice full of anger and rage.

"You monsters! You fiends! You despicable wretches! How dare you engage in this wickedness on your own race! Your own kin! Heartless…soulless…merciless creatures! You murdered! You plundered! You destroyed! You ravaged! You killed three innocent lives in your insolent evil! Never was there even a trace of pity in your minds regarding any of them! And so…there won't be one shred of pity in my mind as I slaughter you all like the worms you are!"

Bahamut's vision went red and his mind clouded as he unleashed his rage. He wasn't sure exactly what happened. His fury was simply unleashed. A ball of fire went out and blew up the first man. There was nothing left but burnt flesh and bone thrown everywhere. Then the men screamed and tried to run. But it was too late. Another was burned alive, roasted with horrible heat. Still another was sliced into ribbons by Bahamut's claws. The last…Bahamut bit in two and blood exploded everywhere. When he spat out, there was nothing left but the lower torso and entrails…and a horrible taste in Bahamut's mouth and throat. Only then were they all dead. Only then was the ground covered with carnage and more death. Only then, did Bahamut's anger subside.

The sky cleared. The ground stilled. The wind grew calm again. Still, panting in anger and fury, Bahamut stood, wings unfurled, on the field. He held for a long time, fuming in rage and anger. But in the end, he exhaled hard. He relaxed at last. His excitement died, and his wings slowly lowered. Only then did he take another look over the field. And as he did, he saw the blood, burning, and flesh he had left in his anger. He saw the carrion men or what was left of them, and saw them lying in pieces all over the field. Two were still aflame, and the scent of rotting flesh was strong in his nostrils. He panted and snorted, looking over it all. Then…and only then…Bahamut felt remorse.

He had killed them.

He had killed them all.

It didn't help that they had earned it. It didn't help that they probably would have done it again. It didn't even help that he had saved another by killing them. He had still done it. He was a murderer. He had slaughtered them all. He let his anger take over him, righteous or otherwise, and he had acted without pity in a gesture of bloody revenge. Realizing that…realizing the horror of what he himself had done…he slumped lower to the ground. He let his head fall down, and let the wings fall to his sides.

He couldn't believe it. He let his anger get the best of him. He let it turn him into a killing machine, and he had acted in such a way. That was not his. He never acted like that before…except in battle. Against foes like Ark and Griever he was brutal, but not to humans. Not to his favored race. But he had been taken over so much…taken over by anger and a want to kill. For a moment…he saw the humans, his favorite race, as nothing better than those he destroyed. And so he had treated them in such that way. He didn't regard them as anything else than them. And in his rage, he had done such terrible things…

Unacceptable.

Never again could he act in this way.

But Bahamut had a sinking feeling that he hadn't done away with all the wickedness of men simply by killing these four. There could be more in the world. If there wasn't yet, there could be in the future. And he couldn't allow that either. Something had to be done against them. Someone had to defend people like these innocents that had been killed. Someone had to defeat them or stop them from hurting anyone else. But who could do it? Certainly not him. No, he would never risk taking human justice into his own hands again. If he did, his anger could spill over to the rest of the race…as he realized it nearly had today. No, he could not regard humans like that again. So who? Another esper? Why should he intrude into their lives? Besides…Gilgamesh was already on the world, and he was only one person. No, there had to be more. There had to be a system…a group…some togetherness that could handle this. But even that had to start with one. But who? Who could do it? Something had to deal with this wickedness, and to put it down whenever it arose. But who would do it?

"Sniff…hic…"

Bahamut opened his eyes at this. He raised his head, and looked over the field. As he looked over the field, he suddenly moved his eyes past the carnage and death and toward the source of the noise. When it rested on it, he found that he saw the little boy. He was still bound against the ground, but he had seen all the death and might of Bahamut. And so, naturally, he was scared. Scared…or grieved. Indeed, his dead mother was just in front of him. The child had lost everything…everything dear to him and related to him. His home was burning. His family was gone. He had nothing left…and by the looks of it, he was nowhere near one of the tribes. He was out on her own here. Bahamut's pity began to swell again. That poor boy…all on his own…alone…with no one to care for him…

…But then, an idea formed in Bahamut's mind.

Yes…yes, why not? Defenders of humans…dispensers of their justice…should it not be humans themselves? Should it not be people from their own race…proud, upstanding people, who maintained codes of goodness and order among them, and who would best deal with them in their own ways? And wouldn't a human sentencing a human be far more just than an esper doing it? Yes…it should, shouldn't it? And it could be. And it could start right here.

Bahamut at last rose up from his position. After that, he lumbered forward across the fields of death toward the fallen child. He circled him, for his face was down, and turned around so that he faced him. His head was down, but he suddenly gasped. Then, he went still as death. He dared not move. Fear grasped him. He tried not to shift or breathe, hoping that Bahamut would not see him somehow. He quivered in fear slightly. However, Bahamut merely lowered his claw, and proceeded to cut his bonds. Immediately, the boy was free, and his limbs went to the ground.

"Look at me." He told him.

Terrified, stricken, and quivering, the boy could not disobey. The voice was too loud and commanding. And so, quivering, sweating, and fearful, he slowly looked up. His eyes slowly went across Bahamut's body, looking at its size and power. All the time, his fear grew. At last, he looked at the beast's head, and into its powerful eyes. Immediately, he froze. He had been paralyzed by the esper.

"Do not fear me." Bahamut told him. "You are safe now. I won't hurt you. I have stopped the men who attacked you. They won't hurt you ever again either. What is your name?"

The boy swallowed hard. He quivered beneath him. He was terrified at the esper. He could barely move. After seeing what it had done, he was scared to death of it. Yet its voice was comforting and reassuring, and it tried to soothe him and quiet him down. It gave him enough bravery to speak somewhat. "…Haan." He slowly answered. He swallowed and paused a moment. He didn't want to look away from the creature, afraid to incur its anger. However, he did risk a look away. He looked down to his mother's body, then quickly back. "Is…is my mother…dead?"

Bahamut bowed his head in response, breaking the gaze and freeing Haan somewhat. "…I'm sorry."

Haan's eyes filled with tears. He bowed his own head, and began to weep again. Already he had seen his father and grandfather murdered as well. But now, his mother was gone too. And the bitterness was too much to bear. He couldn't see life without them. He couldn't live without them. They were his whole existence, and now he had nothing. He soon was sobbing loudly, but covering his face and keeping his head down. He cried into his hands deeply and wouldn't look up. His heart ached and his body felt cold. Never had he felt so alone and cold…so unloved and helpless in the world. But now, his mother and relatives were gone too. Gone, and they would never come back. He couldn't take it.

However, at length, a warm hand enveloped him. Something pulled him up and pressed him to its chest. The chest was warm as well, and the owner held him gently at that, letting him cry against it. He continued to do so for a long time. But in the end, he sniffled and looked up to the source. What he was was the great beast from earlier, hugging him to him and looking down sadly. However, he didn't feel so scared of him now. He felt somewhat more at ease at this point around him. He felt that he was friendly and kind, and right now, in his vulnerable state, he was the only one being good to him.

"Come." He told him at last. "We're going."

Haan blinked at that, and sniffled a little. "…Going where?"

"Your new home." Bahamut simply replied. And in another moment, the human boy was spirited away from the world of men and headed to a new remote place of Bahamut's chosing.

The man gaped in terror before him. These were the feared monsters of the woods…the devilish creatures of evil. If anyone ever saw them, they were doomed never to be seen by men again. And now, they loomed before him, grinning wickedly and flashing their teeth. The man had thought it would have been safe to travel through these woods. He hadn't believed the stories. And now, it was too late. He was miles from civilization, with no one to hear him or help him. He cowered against the ground which he walked on. He shrank back, as if to go into the dark woods and flee from them. But there was no escape. He could only stare at them in terror and fear the coming destruction.

The dreaded Sylph had found him.

The four green faeries flew around, giggling like mad. They buzzed around his head like mad insects, their eyes flashing with mischief and devilry. They rubbed their tiny hands in glee and looked at him with malice.

"Ooo…what shall we do to him?" One chirped.

"Let's suck the life out of this one too!" Another added.

"Nah. I'm full."

"Then let's turn him to stone!"

"They have that stupid look on their faces after that…"

"How about we make him a frog?"

"I hate warts!"

The man was petrified. Immediately, he threw himself on his knees and pleaded before the faeries. "P-Please, Sylph of the woods! Have pity! I lost my way! I didn't mean to disturb you!"

The Sylph quieted down after that. They looked at the begging man for a moment. Afterward, they looked up to each other, and gave each other a knowing smile. A grin was on their faces. Finally, one turned back to him and spoke.

"This is your lucky day. It's our little sister's birthday. So we're going to let you play a little game."

"If you get the question right, you win a big prize!"

"But if you get it wrong, we put you to sleep for a hundred years!"

The man trembled in fear, but didn't argue with the creatures. Another flapped down and hovered right in front of his face. She grinned wickedly, folded her arms behind her back, and asked her question. "…What is my favorite color?"

The man panicked. Sweat burst out on his brow. The Sylph giggled madly, loving to see him struggle and strain for the answer. A few tense moments went by as he trembled and tried to think. Finally, in the end, swallowing and scared out of his wits, he gave an innocent shrug, and spoke. "G…Green?"

"Correct!" The Sylph chirped in reply. Immediately, the man looked overwhelmed and relieved. He was stunned into silence as the Sylph came forward and kissed him on the cheek. She flew away after that, while the man still kneeled in shocked amazement. He didn't move, but slowly a smile began to appear across his face. However, the Sylph continued to look devilish as they backed up, and full of mischief.

"Ok…here's your prize!"

"You get to sleep for two hundred years!"

The man's face turned to shock again, this time in fear. But it was too late. Giggling, the four Sylph swirled around in a circle. They shot forward and hovered around the man's head, swinging around in a great circle. As they did, small sparkles of dust appeared to rain down from them and fall on the person below like a soft mist. The man looked surprised for a moment longer, but then his eyes turned glazed, his eyelids drooped, and giving a great sigh he fell backward and landed on his back. Moments later, he was snoring loudly. The Sylph stopped circling, and in a giggle they all cheered each other on for a moment. Then, they turned, and in a flash began to fly away down the road. They flew a considerable distance from the cursed man before they began to speak again.

"You see the look on his face?"

"Priceless!"

"I love that joke!"

"I hope another human fool comes down the road today!"

"Me too! I feel like trouble!"

"Me three!"

"Me four!"

"Hey, look! There's one!"

The Sylph looked up ahead to the direction their sister pointed. As they did, they saw that there was a figure ahead. He was tall…but he seemed to be a human. His back was to them, and he was dressed in a full-length, blood red cloak. Seeing another victim, the Sylph giggled in delight.

"Let's go!"

"Alright! Two in one day!"

Swirling around each other, the Sylph began to fly forward toward the man. They were eager at first, already plotting more mischief. But as they got closer…they noticed that the wind was growing still. The air was slowing down, and seemed to get stagnant. The forest grew cold…and dark. It felt a lot more like death rather than life now. The sun seemed to be blotted out. And a rotten stench seemed to be coming from up ahead. It made the four mischievous espers feel a bit uneasy. However, they swallowed, and tried to regain their composure as they kept flying to the man. They tried to focus on the jokes they would play.

At last, they reached the man, and immediately they flew around behind him and lapsed into their old behaviors.

"Hey you!"

"How are you today?"

"You want to be changed into a frog, a pig, or a midget?"

The figure didn't react immediately, but after a pause slowly turned and faced the Sylph. As he did, the confidence and cockiness of the Sylph quickly turned into unease. There was no man there, but instead a white skull, twisted into a horrible grimace that now beamed at them. The skull had no eyes, but instead had two red burning lights that glowed like coals. As the thing turned, the lights focused on the Sylph and burning into their own gazes. The Sylph recoiled at this. For the first time in their lives, they felt terror on seeing this thing. And so, for a moment they shrank back and stared back in fear. But it only lasted a moment. After that, they resumed their own cockiness. One flew forward and yelled at him.

"Hey ugly! What're you doing in our forest? You're not a human!"

The thing paused, but then answered in a bone-chilling voice. The Sylph quivered at it, because it was deep, cold, and foul. It made them freeze and tremble at the sound. "How observant of you." It answered grimly. It looked them over for a minute, then spoke again. "And what be you over-sized insects?"

The Sylph were stunned, but only for a moment. After that, they immediately huffed in anger. Their hurt pride was stronger than their fear. Their bodies turned tints of red, and they began to flap around angrily and yell back at him.

"How dare you?"

"You know who we are?"

"We're the terrors of these woods!"

"We're the most feared creatures on the Planet!"

"We're mean!"

"We're nasty!"

"We play naughty tricks!"

"We're the Sylph!"

If possible, the skeleton seemed to raise an eye socket in intrigue to this. "The Sylph?" He asked. He supplemented it with a low chuckle a moment later. "So…Starlet's little brats survived after all…to become naughty." He laughed a little at this.

This only made the Sylph angrier.

"Hey!"

"Don't make us mad!"

"We'll get you if you do!"

The skeleton snorted coldly. He turned and fully faced them. The air grew darker and colder. "You really think so?" He asked. "Then go ahead. 'Get' me."

The Sylph paused at this, and felt fear again. Never before had anyone not been unnerved by their actions. Never before had anyone been so certain and brave around them. And that confidence shattered their own. They grew tense and fearful, wondering what they were dealing with. They hesitated at this, not knowing who this guy was or how to react to this bravery. However, in the end, one of them asserted their boldness. She flew up and announced a cry. "Sylph! Chi-phago! Now!"

The others immediately cried out in unison in reply. Quickly, the four Sylph swirled together and formed a circle. After doing so, they began to spin rapidly in mid-air. As they did, a whining sound began to fill the air. It sounded sharp and distinct, like wind blowing through the trees in just the right way. It made a sharp whistling sound. The sound quickly began to grow, altering pitch and going up and down. As it did, the ring of Sylph began to glow with a pale green light. It grew brighter and brighter as the sound grew, seeming to gather more strength and power. At last, after a few moments of this, the ring came forward, and began to sail straight for the skeleton.

The man responded by merely lifting a cloaked hand, aiming a bony palm at the four, and then seeming to somehow spew a black, noxious miasma from the middle of it. It seemed to swirl with a life of its own, yet it was death and decay to all around it. The plants in the area wilted just from being nearby. The smoke swirled and turned colors ofrot and sickness, and immediately spread over the approaching Sylph. Within seconds, they snapped out of their attack. Instead, they all separated, grasped for their throats, and choked and gasped for air. But that wasn't all. The poisonous fumes made their blood turn to fire. Their skin felt like fire ant bites. Their eyes itched to the point of wanting to tear them out. Their muscles became stabbing pains. Soon, they all feel to the ground, and the skeleton continued to throw his poison over them. They writhed in agony, feeling more misery and anguish by the second. Their throats turned dry. Their thoughts turned to chaos. They wanted to die right there, only to be spared from the agony of the miasma. They screamed and whined in pain, helpless and dying under the cloud.

But at last, the skeleton broke it off. He calmly pulled back his hand and cut off the miasma. Then, he patiently watched for the next five minutes as the Sylph continued to writhe and cough violently. They trembled as if feverish, and looked pale like death. But slowly, the horrible effects left them. Their bodies slowly eased down. Their pain subsided, and they were able to be in control. Still, they were weak and agonized from the cloud, and writhed on the ground and moaned slowly. But once they had quieted down, the skeleton calmly addressed them.

"Now that any foolish ideas in your minds have been eliminated," He sneered. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Hades, the true power of this woods and soon the world. I am the essence of all that is fear and pain and death. So unless you four would like to taste of it once more, I suggest you never act so indignant to me again.

"That said, I come to the reason for my coming to you. You four have admitted that your lives consist of bringing mischief and misery to the world. Very well. That is exactly what I desire you to do. I can find much use for four espers on my side, and what I want you to do is to do what you have been doing, bringing mischief and misery to the world…only under my command. Do so, and you will be well rewarded for your efforts. Join me, and I will grant you all that you desire and make you goddesses among the denizens of this world."

The Sylph continued to writhe and moan a moment longer. But then, they slowly began to raise their heads. They glared at Hades, some anger in their appearances now, and spoke back. "And…if we refuse?"

"Then I have no further use for you, and you will be destroyed." Hades calmly responded. At that, he pointed his palm at the four again and again began to spray them with his deadly miasma. He only managed to do so for a second, sending the Sylph into another writhing fit again, before they screamed out to him.

"No! Please!"

"We'll do it!"

"We'll do whatever you say!"

Hades smiled at this, and cut off the miasma. Again, the Sylph had to writhe and moan for a few moments. But in the end, the mists died down, and they were free again. They writhed on the ground once again helpless, their once free spirits now bent under the yoke of their new master, their pride broken beneath his cruelty.

"That's better." He stated. "Know only this. You belong to me now, and you shall call me master. Ever attempt to break the bond that I now hold your lives with, and you will die much more slowly than you were just now. Now rise up. We have great work to do…work that will take generations to complete. And even so, it is only a small part of our overall goal. That will take much longer. There is much to do in the meanwhile to make all things ready. And we must start at once…right here."

Hades looked up and glared at the horizon, narrowing his gaze on the world that surrounded him…the world which he was now the enemy of.

"…It will take much effort to bend this Planet under the reign of chaos."

To be continued...