Monarch Of Darkness, Arsene

"You sure this is the way?" Zariel asked, fiddling with Little Jin's lips, a curious look in his eyes as he played with his son, barely at the age where he could fly better than he could walk. He cooed at the playfulness of my brother's actions.

"I'm following the resonance of my blood," I told him, glancing at the gentle aura surrounding him and his child.

I had been staring at him for a long time now, observing most of his actions, and it was honestly strange seeing how frightened he was to hold his child. It was like a monster gripping a tiny infant, unsure how much pressure to apply without harming the little one.

Was he scared to corrupt him? …He corrupted me.

"By the way, aren't you suppose to be in prison? Why are you popping up now and again? Not that I'm complaining. Are you, by chance missing your big bro, aren't you."

He shrugged. "God of Order and Chaos here. I can do whatever I want most of the time. Tenebrae didn't bat an eye when it came to me. However, I am responsible for rewriting a few innate laws. An acceptable punishment. Seems she has a grand vision for the future."

"And your Ok with her bossing you around? I'd have thought you'd throw a fit." I teased, shooting the brat a smirk. "You two were once enemies."

"Tenebrae was a means to an end. Still is, as far as I'm concerned. Her being one of your lovers changes nothing. We merely share a common goal for the future with this Shadow Proclamation. It's both Lawful and Chaotic."

"Dada!" Jin shouted. " Hungry!"

"Oh!" I looked down, somewhat ensnared by the spawn of the evilest bastard I know. He was so innocent. Dada? Is Zariel not the man that gave the order to wipe out the thirty-three heavens? How strange… the innocence of a child sure is accepting, isn't it?

"I didn't know he could talk."

"He speaks very well. The brat just likes to play. He's a very sneaky one." he said, the timbre of warmth jaw-dropping.

"Then, shall we take you on your first hunt?" Zariel proposed, planting Jin on his two feet. "The Godwoods, from what I can see, is a holy land. The air is purer than most higher realms, the laws clearer, as are the concepts. I'm sure the monsters here are equally strange and tasty. Summon your bow."

"No swords?" Jin said.

"Keep one on your waist. But don't draw it unless the beast approaches." Zariel said. "A sword can be quick, but a bow teaches patience."

Jin's silvery eyes glistened at the wisdom of his father. He nodded, materializing a shortsword for his waist and an elven-style bow, seemly forged out of a root of sorts, in his right hand.

Zariel smiled faintly, not enough for Jin to tell, but… I could.

"Thinking of our first hunt? Mother said those exact words to you." I said, forging a bow from the darkness. "You know, when I was a mortal, I had this affinity to a bow… one that never amounted to anything."

"I know.'

"You reminded me today why it didn't." Bitterness crept up like bile in my throat. "It never dawned on me before, even when I didn't have an inkling of who you or she was… Some part of me refused the bow. How peculiar of a sensation to have. Almost seem impossible."

"You talking about Grandma!" Jin questioned, lifting his bright expression to us, a grin on his face. " Big sis said she was the best."

"Big Sis?" Zariel and I glanced at each other.

"Yup. Big Sis." Jin confirmed, nodding away. " She looks like Aunty Lili."

"How about that…." We muttered.

"And what about her was the B… no, never mind," Zariel muttered, changing his mind. 'We already know, don't we."

"Yeah." no need to revisit the past… no matter how much we seek it.

"Let's see... Shall we hunt a dragon?" Zariel proposed." There is one a few hundred kilometers away."

"Like Aunty Tia?" Jin said, a hint of recognition and dismay colluding with one another. His expression grew cloudy.

"You like dragons, huh," I muttered, and a thought came to me. " Then how about you take the lead in the hunt? You're the one hungry, right? You got a problem with that, Zariel?"

My brother shook his head. " I approved. But if he can't find anything. He'll not eat."

"EHHH! Daddy! Is mean!"

Zariel smirked. "That's the price of your actions. So you better think fast. We all must face the consequences of our actions. Even you, my son."

"Unless your me." I pointed out, flicking my glorious ashen hair. Seeing a way to test the boy. " When you are awesome like me, you can do whatever you want."

Jin glanced between Zariel and me and stepped toward his father, causing me to grin at the sudden sense of alertness. "So he's innately lawful. Interesting."

"He's a child… they tend to model what they see. It'll change as time goes on." Zariel casually remarked, rustling his hair. He smiled. "You're the leader now, Jin. Take the lead."

Little Jin grinned, pulling himself out from behind his father, a bow in hand, as he dashed forward. We followed through the dense forest lined with various trees of gold and amber. The serenity of this forest was seemingly euphoric as it was dangerous.

Mephisto really fucked everything up. And for some damn reason, Zariel helped him.

The Destruction of theThirty-Three Heavens was merely a necessity to force a faster fusion between Iluthath and the other various Heavens, which became a success, but at the cost of many of their lives, whose soul was seemingly taken away by the Fallen, and the Angels.

Currently, Iluthath and the Twelve realms sat above the Origin Realm: And on my head, I had a massive bounty. As did many of the Order, but no one dared to attack them. Zariel, by himself, had already slaughtered a few Rankers who thought themselves righteous. Their souls are now burning in hell... Fucking idiots.

But now… Iluthath is in a rather tough spot. Monsters born nowadays are dimwitted but powerful. It would seem the higher the Realm, the less intelligent beings one sees. Almost like monsters with intelligence are more of a privilege than a right in the higher realms.

Then there were mutations from the damn near impossible shifts in Higher Dimensions. Be it organic matter or various metals or energy, mutations began to occur, resulting in new races, new laws, and more…

It was all a shit show. Most civilizations had long perished… at least those without the protection of high-realm beings.

I swear the only Realm that benefited the most was the Etherial Realm with its legion of the undead. Who knew those undead bastards had the ability to mutate so much?

"Found one!" Jin whispered, pointing towards a wolf-shaped beast carrying eyes like a reptile and skin like a serpent.

He stopped, and a strange bitter-sweet scent pressed against my nose, sending pangs of numbness that faded with my adaptation.

"Poison," I said and glanced at the boy's father. " Can he eat poisonous shit?"

Zariel shrugged. " Guess we'll find out."