Within the Temple of Order…

Pushing into the massive tunnel the super mutant behemoths had come from, the Legion quickly found themselves in a large atrium. The walls, floor, and ceiling all seemed to be made from a type of white, alabaster marble, and was inlaid with elaborate golden engravings. On the far side of the atrium, were two massive double doors that looked to be made of solid bronze or gold, with relief carvings of two figures, one on each door. On the right was a beautiful, fey woman, obviously of Elven descent, wearing armored robes, carrying a staff with a crescent moon at its top. Meanwhile on the left, it was the figure of a human woman, but similarly resplendent in form, wearing a plainer, long flowing, strapless dress, wearing a crown of flowers, and carrying what looked like a goblet or grail in her hands.

The room itself would easily be considered beautiful if it wasn't for the layer of viscera and gore the super mutants had decorated it with. Blood, limbs, and other chunks of unidentifiable meat were spread across the room. Mesh wire gore bags filled with the shredded remains of Geth, Imperials, and Covenant were placed in corners, obviously used as food storage. The ramshackle and shoddy construction typical of super mutants was apparent in the few wood-scrap metal structures spread out, meant to give shelter and some kind of defensive perimeter. By the doors were large battering rams made from trees from the Forever Fall, as well as pickaxes and sledgehammers. The doors themselves were scratched and marred, but beyond superficial, surface damage, still held strong.

Wynne walked up to the doors, both examining the damage and appreciating the design. "It appears that the super mutants were trying to break through here."

"Seems so." Shepard agreed, looking at the scratch marks several dozen feet above them. "Looks like this is what they had those behemoths here for. Wonder what this door is made of where even those monsters could barely scratch it."

As Shepard stepped forward and placed her hand on the door, the engravings began to glow bright white, ringing for all to hear. Shepard swiftly shifted back, hand on her gun in case she accidentally activated a trap. The rest of the Legion flanked around her, weapons raised as well. However instead of an arcane explosion or similar trap, the doors slowly began to grind open, revealing a wall of pure white light.

Tentatively, Shepard walked up to the wall of light, and pushed her hand through. It was like pushing through a thick fog, and it didn't burn or incinerate her, which was good.

"Magic?" Shepard rhetorically asked.

"Magic." Wynne answered anyway.

The commander sighed. "Well, only way to go is forward. Eyes up and be ready for anything!" She called out to her soldiers as she leveled her gun and began to walk into the light.

Stern faced and focused, the rest of the Legion readied their weapons and followed suit.

Light. Blinding light. That's all that filled the vision of the Legion. By the time the light receded, the Legionnaires saw that they were in a completely different room. The Legion found themselves in a wide open, marble floored atrium with white alabaster walls and shining gold inlays similar to that of the door, except free of the gore the previous location had.

Behind them they could see the doors they had walked through, now sealed shut. In the center of the atrium was a multi-tiered fountain, atop of which there was the statue of a naked baby spewing water from its mouth. On the farside of the room, were two curving staircases, starting on opposite sides of the room and connecting to a balcony on the floor above, where doors going further into the castle could be seen.

"What the Hell." is all Shepard could mutter out, shocked by their sudden displacement as well as the gaudiness of their new locale.

"Oh come now it's not too bad." Wynne said, sensing Shepard's dislike. "I for one think it's rather stylish."

"That's one way to put it." Six added on, unimpressed by the frivolity of the decorations.

"Apologies if my home is not to your taste." A new voice called out, female and regal, but tired and strained at the same time. "But I do have to maintain a certain kind of aesthetic. Comes with the position and all that."

The Legion's heads snapped to the source of the voice, many weapons automatically raised. Standing on the balcony above them was a woman. Wearing plain but beautiful silken white robes and a gleaming, jeweled circlet, the woman looked like that of the elf on the entrance to this place, if only aged by hundreds if not thousands of years. Her once unmarred skin was wrinkled and gaunt, her once flowing hair now wispy and white. She looked feeble and ancient, as if a stiff breeze would be all it took to crumple her.

Several of the Legionnaires lowered their weapons at the non-hostile nature and the apparent fragility of their host.

Six meanwhile, leaned over to Wynne. "Hey Wynne look, it's your mom." taking a crack at Wynne's age.

Wynne frowned as she jabbed him in the leg with the butt of her staff. "Oh hush you, don't make me turn you into a toad."

Ignoring the antics of her teammates, Shepard was the first to walk up to the elderly elf, gun lowered but still in her hands. "You have our thanks for letting us into your home, but I have to to ask. Who are you?" Shepard had an idea, but she needed confirmation.

The elf gave a wry grin, responding, "Who do you think I am?"

Shepard had to shove down the urge to roll her eyes. Of course she's cryptic.

"Are you the Goddess of Order?" Shepard clearly and plainly asked.

The grin remained on the woman's face. "That is one of the names I am known by, yes." The goddess began walking down the stairs to meet them. "I have been called many other things as well in my long life. The Goddess of the Moon, of Dreams, of Fortunes, even the Lady of the Lake amongst others. But you can call me Lileath. And I suppose you all want an explanation."

Shepard sent a glance to Wynne and Pyrrha, their two resident Fantasy-worlders. Both shook their heads, not recognizing the name. She then looked back at Lileath, and sighed as she holstered her weapon. "Yeah, that would be nice."

This tale begins in a world. A world very similar to some of your own, but to others completely alien and incomprehensible. In this world many races formed at the behest of the Gods, as well as at the will of ancient beings even older than us.

First came the Slann, ancient amphibious creatures of great intelligence and magical prowess. Following them the lizardmen were birthed, to be living weapons to protect their masters. The Old Ones that created them helped set the foundation for the world itself, and much that existed was thanks to them. In this primordial time we Divines crafted our own children. Men, Elves, Dwarves, and even Orcs.

"Wait, wait. Orcs are real too?" Shepard cut in, disbelief palpable in her question. "As in like, Lord of the Rings, savage warmonger Orcs?"

Lileath's eyes only narrowed at Shepard for the interruption to her tale.

Suddenly Shepard felt pretty meek and embarrassed for interrupting a goddess. "Sorry, please continue."

Lileath cleared her throat and continued her tale.

I was one such Divine. I watched over my children, the elves of Ulthane, helped them grow and develop as the Old Ones continued their engineering. But a mistake was made.

In their hubris, the Old Ones drew upon power from another realm, great gates in the poles of the world, connected to an immaterial dimension of chaos and malevolence. The warp gates created by the Old Ones collapsed, and Chaos was unleashed into the world.

For millennia, the forces of Chaos warred against the mortal races, nearly driving them to extinction, only to be beaten back and forgotten in the fabric of myth and legend. So began the great game for the Gods of Chaos, as they had become obsessed with burning the world to ashes. This cycle continued repeatedly, until the Gods of Chaos grew in such power that not even the united mortal forces of Order could stop them.

Soon the Old World burned under the fires of Chaos. Champions of men, elves, dwarves, and lizardmen lay broken beneath the might of their dark counterparts. I, like many of the other Gods, knew that defeat was inevitable, so I hatched a plan.

In the centuries preceding the End Times, I used my powers to create a new world, hidden from the sight of the Gods of Chaos and the Gods of Old. This world, called Haven, was designed to save the souls, both alive and dead, of mortals from the grasp of Chaos. For when fighting against Chaos, death is no end, only a prologue to far greater suffering within the Warp.

For a time, my gambit worked. Haven survived as the rest of creation was unmade by the Dark Gods. Many souls of men and elves were led to Haven, spirited away so they could be reborn in peace.

I had thought that my children and I would be given respite, but alas, it was not meant to be. I had underestimated the scope with which Chaos existed. The immaterium, and by extension Chaos itself, was not simply dark parallel to my World, but to all worlds. While an infinite amount of universes and parallel worlds exist throughout the eternity of creation, there is only one realm of Chaos, which connects all of them. And soon, Chaos had found me.

Kairos Fateweaver, two headed lord of change, and near omniscient seer of the Chaos God Tzeentch, had discovered Haven with his multiversal knowledge from the Well of Eternity, the nexus of all realities. With his dark powers Kairos invaded Haven with a mighty host of daemons and corrupted mortals. The guardians of Haven, my mighty Grail Knights and Handmaidens did what they could, but soon they fell before the tide, and Haven was brought low.

And so, in my desperation, I did something unforgivable to save this land. I began drawing upon the souls of other worlds, other universes that were nigh untouched by the corruption of Chaos. Haven, being a pure, immaterium world, warped and changed, adjusting to the memories of the material minds of these newcomers. And these new champions, with talent, skills, and powers unseen by Chaos, were able to beat back the Daemon Prince's forces, and banish him.

But for the Immortal lives of the denizens of the Warp, a single defeat would never mean the end, only the beginning. Kairos' defeat only further attracted the attention of the Prince. In retaliation, he began to summon his own servants from the same worlds as I did, calling upon champions antithetical to my own.

So the next bout, the next cycle, began. Only this time, the Kairos and the forces of Chaos were the victors. And there I was, at the mercy of Kairos and his Legion, ready to accept whatever fate the Dark Gods had planned for me. But to my shock, Kairos let me be and recreated Haven himself.

It did not take long for me to ascertain what Kairos' goal was in leaving me. This was a game to him. A match of regicide where we would draw upon heroes and champions, and play them against each other for the fate of this realm. Many times we would play this game. For every victory I achieved, Kairos would be banished for a time, only to eventually return once more. Every victory Kairos achieved, he would simply retreat and remake the world once more.

"WHAT!?" a voice called out, interrupting the story.

All faces turned to the source, an utterly livid Pyrrha Nikos. A vicious scowl marring her face, her eyes were red as if she were ready to cry. "A game!? That's what we're here for? What about the fate of the multiverse!? About stopping chaos from reigning throughout!?" Pyrrha was furious, and looked more than poised to draw her weapon.

Shepard and all of the others were inclined to agree with her. Shepard was okay with fighting, killing, and dying when it served a purpose. A greater good for the protection and betterment of her people and her civilization. Dying for the entertainment of some Dark demi-god was not something she found appealing, and from the aggressive stances of her allies, neither did any of them.

Lileath gave the Legionnaires an impassive look, one that carried only the very slightest hint of regret. "That was a lie, a misdirection. Quickly I found that my champions would fight harder if they believed they were saving their own worlds, so falsehoods were given. "

…

Silence. It was the loudest silence Shepard ever had the displeasure of experiencing. The silence did nothing to assuage her utter shock and disbelief at the callous truth. Everything that they'd been fighting for was a lie. The deafening quiet was only shattered when Pyrrha took two steps forward, tears now running down her face and weapons in her hands. The others, while not as blatant with their emotions, were angered and eager to escalate the situation further. Lileath, to her credit, did not seem fearful or intimidated. Or if she was, she did a good job at hiding it.

Pyrrha took one more step forward, ready to lunge and attack, when something clicked in Shepard's brain.

"Wait! Stand down!" Shepard yelled, almost making Pyrrha stumble as she cancelled out her forward momentum. The huntress turned to the commander in confusion, and all eyes were now on Shepard.

"Why tell us this?" Shepard called out to Lileath. "We walked in here, bumbling and blind, with no idea what was going on. You could have continued the lie, told us that we needed to fight to save our home universes, and we would've let you play us like a damn fiddle. So why tell us the truth if it meant us possibly turning against you?"

None of it made sense. If Lileath created that massive lie because logic dictated it was the most efficient way to gain the loyalty of her warriors, why break it now? The other legionnaires paused once this fact was revealed, realizing that Shepard was right. Righteous, indignant anger was replaced by confusion and curiosity.

In a brief moment, Lileath's stoic, unreadable expression morphed into a smile. "Why aren't you the sharp one?" Lileath chuckled out, to the displeasure of the mortals in front of her. "I tell you the truth now because circumstances have changed. The cycle is broken, Kairos Fateweaver is no longer in this world, and there is now a chance to save it and save the souls of many others from the grip of Chaos."

Immediately the tension left some of the legionnaires, knowing that their struggle was not for nothing.

"By the Maker why didn't you lead with that." Wynne muttered under her breath.

Lileath's old crone form just smiled. "And where would the fun be in that?"

Shepard felt like she was going to have an aneurysm. Forcing herself to sigh at the Goddess' almost childlike nature, Shepard refocused the conversation. "You said something changed. How? What happened that would cause this cycle to be so different?"

"At the start of this cycle, Kairos made a mistake. He summoned two beings who, individually, were exceedingly powerful. Once together, they did something even he did not expect. They merged, creating a new being whose power rivaled his own. Then, they went even further beyond, and consumed Fateweaver himself." Lileath explained, her brow furrowed with an expression of worry that seemed out of place on the normally childish goddess. "Now, using the reality warping power of Kairos, this Amalgamation of beings seeks to consume me as well, and use our powers combined to free himself from this realm and return to the material realm."

That… was a lot to process. On the positive side, they weren't being played anymore. The negative however, was that they now had to fight a reality warping devourer of gods. Shepard turned her head to look at her team and they didn't seem to be taking any better. Pyrrha looked like she wanted to throw up, while Wynne was beyond exhausted and was forced to take a seat. Sarah, Six, and Galen, with their stoic countenances, did not have such an overt reaction, but grit teeth, clenched fists, and tense stances told Shepard that they were less than pleased.

"While I know this seems… grim, this turn of events provides us with a chance we may never get again. Chaos had turned what was once a Haven for souls to be saved into a Final Destination where the dead battle to oblivion. With Kairos now gone, if we can defeat this new Lord of Chaos, I can reforge this land into what it should be, back into Haven, and move it to the farthest reaches of the Multiverse, hidden from Chaos' sight. That is why I am now telling you the truth. So you may understand that you are no longer game pieces for a twisted god's sick sense of amusement, but instead the only hope for a countless number of souls to be saved from an eternity of torment at the hands of Chaos." Lileath finished, her proclamation just barely helping keep whatever cinders of hope within the Legion alive. "Now, is there anything else you want to know?"

A pause flew over the legionnaires. While they were upset, and rightfully so, they needed to get as much information as they possibly could right now.

Pyrrha walked up first and spoke, "How does Chaos connect to all realms? None of us have seen anything like Chaos before."

"You haven't?" Lileath raised an eyebrow. "That is where you are wrong, Pyrrha Nikos. Every world is affected by chaos, regardless if they know of its existence or not. And the Dark Gods of Chaos, despite all of their power, are not omniscient, and many words escape their notice. But when warriors slay their enemies in a blood fueled rage, they unknowingly invoke Khorne. When conspirators plot and scheme, they are sending silent offerings to Tzeentch. When a person decides to dedicate themselves to the extremes of hedonism, whether it is drugs, sadism, or sexual, they please Slaanesh. And every soul that falls to disease and plague is sent to Nurgle. It is an unfortunate, but despite all of its horrors, Chaos is both a natural and necessary part of the multiverse."

Pyrrha was taken aback. "Necessary? How can such a terrible thing be necessary?"

Lileath paused for a moment, considering her words. "Chaos is only dangerous when it is rampant and unchecked. Balance is the key. Without Order, the multiverse would simply be ravaged by chaos and destruction. Nothing would be able to survive the random violence of such a multiverse. Conversely, should only Order exist, the multiverse would be consumed by stagnation, ultimately never developing. Chaos in and of itself is not inherently evil. It brings pain and suffering yes, but also brings change and evolution. Even the Dark Gods themselves each have positive aspects that help mortals as much as their darker sides damn them." As Pyrrha mulled over the Goddess' words, Lileath spoke again. "But make no mistake. Chaos as it is now is a terrifying foe that only brings ruin. You would do well to banish any thoughts of invoking their names, lest you soul be forever ruined."

With her question answered, Pyrrha stepped back, allowing someone else to take their turn. This time it was Sarah Lyons who walked forward.

"Who did Kairos Fateweaver bring into Haven that could defeat him?" She asked. These were the most dangerous foes they needed to face, so knowing as much about them was paramount.

"The first was from his world." Lileath pointed to Galen, whose eyes widened in surprise. "He was once a Sith Lord of immense power, and even more immeasurable hunger. His powers allowed him to consume the life force of thousands, if not millions, feeding him. As he fed his hunger continued to grow, as did his power. He may have well wiped out all life in that galaxy, had he not been defeated."

"Darth Nihilus…" Galen whispered out. While he was no historian, Galen's tutelage under Darth Vader granted him knowledge of many of the former Dark Lords of the Sith, from Marka Ragnos all the way to Darth Bane. Nihilus was seen as a creature beyond both the Sith and the Jedi. An eldritch being who threatened not only the Jedi and the Republic, but all life.

Lileath nodded her head. "The second, is not a god, but a devourer of ones. He was once but a man named Aldrich, hailing from a world of darkness and cinders. It was in this world that he fell to the temptation of consuming the flesh of his fellow man. This corrupted him, ruining his physical form in exchange for immense power. So powerful he grew that he even consumed a God. Fortunately, he was defeated, and his cinders were returned to its proper throne."

"So if this Kairos-Nihilus-Aldrich fusion is trying to escape, does that mean he's not dead? Are we really dead?" Shepard asked. If there was a way to get back to her galaxy, she'd be more than happy to take it.

Giving a rare, genuine frown, Lileath shook her head. "Unfortunately, all of you are truly dead. The only way your souls could've been brought to this realm was if they were separated from your physical bodies through death. The only reason this Amalgamation can possibly return to the material world is thanks to the reality warping powers Kairos and I possess. And I alone do not have the power to restore you to life. Not anymore."

"Anymore?" Shepard raised an eyebrow.

"The power of Gods are based upon the faith of their followers. Gods can perform miracles and blessings for their followers, which in turn increases their faith and numbers. The more followers there are, the more psychic-magic thoughts and beliefs are fed the god, giving them more power. It is a symbiotic relationship that many gods in many realms are subject to. In my prime, restoring you to life and returning you to your worlds would've been a simple task. But now? With no followers? I am unable."

Shepard frowned. While she wasn't expecting much, it was still disappointing news. Six was the next to move forward and ask his question.

"So I'm assuming this break in the cycle is why the forces of Chaos get entire armies while we just have to scrape by?" the Spartan questioned.

"Indeed. Normally, the game would be balanced, one champion of Order for one champion of Chaos. But those were rules that Kairos bound himself to. Now this new Lord flaunts his powers, summoning whole armies to attempt to subjugate and consume me."

"But he doesn't have control over them." Six interjected. "The armies he summoned have spent more time fighting each other than they have us."

"Yes, same as I cannot control you, the Amalgamation cannot control the forces he summoned. Ironically, this has slowed his campaign, and done more harm than good." Lileath allowed herself a small smile.

Six nodded in return, his mind already moving to the next objective. They cannot change the fact of why they were summoned here, but they can control what happens from now on. "That's good. If we are able, we should coerce the different sides to going to all out war with the Sith. False flag operations to sew discord." he suggested. "And I am to assume you cannot summon armies for us to have as well?"

Lileath chuckled at her own weakness. "Unfortunately no. Even summoning individuals alone comes with a great cost I do not easily recover from. But I do have something else with which I can aid you with. Go to the- AAAAGHH" Lileath screamed as she was blasted by a beam of crackling orange energy.

As the goddess collapsed and fell to the ground, all of the Legion turned with weapons immediately raised. It seemed that during the conversation, no one there had realized that the doors behind them had once again opened.

Standing at the entrance was none other than Kai Leng, red lightsaber in hand, as beside him was Grand Admiral Thrawn, wearing his pristine white Imperial officer armor, aiming the Staff of Ragnos at Lileath, as well as an entire strike force of Dark Jedi and Skulls Parasite units. Leng wore a bloodthirsty snarl as he readied to leap upon them, while Thrawn was composed, head tilted up as he looked down upon the Legion.

Kai Leng was the first to make his move as he roared out. "FOR CHAOS!"

A/N, 5/19/20: This was a long chapter. Not entirely sure how I feel about it, just because it's pretty much 4k words of exposition. But it's important exposition, as it went over most of the happenings of the plot. All honesty, this is where a lot of stuff changed when I took that small break. I had originally planned for the God of Chaos and Goddess of order to be OCs, and unrelated to Warhammer, but after playing a lot of Total Warhammer, and after learning a lot more of the Warhammer Fantasy lore, I couldn't help but change the story to include it. As for the creation lore that Lileath talked about, I found the Warhammer Fantasy creation lore to be a bit vague and contradictory depending on the viewpoint, like actual history is, so I decided to take some liberties with it.

Also, the main bad guy is now revealed! And I'll admit, I am not a man of great creativity, as I am once again using Darth Nihilus. But to be fair, I had Darth Nihilus planned to be the main villain of this fic way before I even conceived of Jaune Arc, Lord of Hunger.

Review Responses:

Slim A Lou Prime: Thanks! Sev is always a good one to write.

Guest/ niochristou: Like I usually say, I do keep who I am and am not bringing secret for spoiler reasons.

Brother Bov: Purge the unclean! Excise the cancer that is mutation!

Dekuton: Thanks! I feel like the older Fallout games tend not to get a lot of love in the fanfic world. Which makes sense, since a lot of people haven't played them, me included, but they have a lot of cool characters and lore points that could be used more often.

Ptl: I'll be honest, that's a good call that I didn't think of, even though there are multiple of them. Though I'll say that I don't think Pyrrha knowingly met any of the cyborgs, as both Ironwood's and Mercury's cybernetics were hidden, so she wouldn't have known how cybernetics would react.

Also I believe something is going on with FFs reviews because while I get emails for some reviews, I am unable to see them on the site. Hopefully FF will fix whatever the problem is.

But regardless, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, continue to stay safe, and I'll see you in the next one.