New Eden: Live to Play, Play to Live

Far away from Stellar Woodlands, in a dark region of space, a golden being calmly flew across the cosmos.

It was one of the rare moments when he was calm. Being surrounded by nothing made him feel at peace.

It was a strange thing for the God of Creation to feel at peace with himself most when he was surrounded by nothing. Like his own domain had shunned him.

Gaius had his eyes closed as his senses tracked a certain Ash Elf. But his mood didn't stay good for long when he suddenly vanished from his purview.

The maggot from Earth that called himself Astaroth, he couldn't locate anymore.

He had been looking at him closely ever since he had met him, feeling like it was strange that a mortal carried the essence of a long-since-gone goddess. He didn't believe the words of the mortal.

"Coincidences happen, yes. But not so many of them in a row," Gaius said, opening his eyes.

First, something had freed Psyche from her eternal prison, then her presence had disappeared, and now someone with her essence appeared?

This was too much to be a coincidence.

And now, the mortal he was tracking was hidden from his eyes. Very few beings in the mortal realm could hide anything from him.

"Why are these meddlesome Progenitors of Magic shoving their noses into my business again? I may not be able to kill them since the laws of the world forbid me, but I can still punish them. Do they not fear punishment, insolent monkeys?"

But as he scrutinized the barrier that separated the Paragon's domain from the rest of the mortal realm, he found something else which shouldn't have been there.

It took him a moment to lock on to it, but his eyes went wide when he did.

"This essence! This thread! I knew he was lying!"

Gaius' consciousness grabbed onto the thread that stopped at the barrier and pulled on it, following the essence thread to its source. He grinned when he arrived at the other end of the continent.

"Got you!"

***

While this happened, inside the mage tower that now housed Nalafein and his troops, as well as the Knights of the Sun guild, the prince was meeting up with his generals when he felt a crushing presence smash into his shoulders.

He wasn't the only one who felt this, as everyone near the gigantic tree and many miles around suddenly felt like a mountain had crashed onto their shoulders.

Many fainted immediately, while the others struggled to maintain consciousness.

"Psyche!" they heard in their heads, the ears of many starting to bleed, while some of the weaker players died outright.

The laws of the world protected the Natives from the psychic assault, but the players weren't as lucky. The stronger ones watched as their health bars dwindled, more and more players exploding into pixels.

Only four being in the mage tower weren't affected by this attack.

Gellumvire, who was strong enough to have been trained, if only briefly, by a Progenitor of Magic.

Nalafein, who was under the protection of the former.

The Progenitor of Magic, Edith of the Words, who instantly grew wary. She teleported to the last person unaffected, whose face was grave.

"Lady Nemus. He found you. You should leave before he starts killing people until you come out," Edith said, looking at the goddess severely.

But Nemus only returned her gaze with an icy stare.

"He can't. The laws of the world are already limiting his influence on the people. The only ones in danger are the Abnormals. And they can take a few deaths without too much problem."

Edith looked at her with a frown.

'Is she saying she'll let them die only to protect herself?'

"I can't hold this barrier long, Nemus. This is a god. Once he starts forcing his way through, it will only be a matter of time. And I don't intend on landing on his shit list for you," Edith warned her.

Nemus sighed.

"I didn't mean it that way. I won't cower from him. But delaying him also allows me to amass power. Can you at least distract him for me?"

Edith clicked her tongue.

"I'm not a pawn you can use whenever you feel like it, Lady Nemus. Nor am I your champion. Why would I do that for you?"

"Because it may very well be the difference between winning and losing this war. Gaius has no intention of letting you and your friends close the rift like last time. I am well aware of what happened the previous time he sicced the demons on you.

"This will be different. I can assure you that he will take on a more proactive role. It is why he brought the Abnormals to this world. Please. For the sake of everyone. Help me. Delay him, if only for a minute."

Edith swore in her mind. Edith had dug into why the Abnormals had suddenly appeared this time around. Every time they appeared, a terrible event occurred, and the world almost died.

Yet, there had been no Abnormals present during the last demon war. If they were here now, it was a sign.

"Fine," she spat.

"But the moment he becomes aggressive toward me, you are on your own, and the barrier goes down."

Nemus nodded, smiling at the Progenitor.

"Thank you. And when you see a young man called Astaroth next time, tell him I'm sorry. This is the most I can do for him now."

Nemus pushed Edith out of the room, making the latter swear at how easily she was forced out of her home.

But she had accepted to help. And she wasn't one to go back on her words.

Edith teleported again, appearing before the very twitchy Gaius, God of Creation, floating over the start of a new settlement, as he glared at the tree.

"She sent you to deal with me? Had Psyche lost her mind? If you attack me, the laws of the world will no longer apply to you."

"I wasn't sent here. I came of my own volition. And I don't know this Psyche you speak of. The only other celestial being here is called Nemus, and she is a new god."

Gaius crackled with energy as he released a beam of golden light right next to Edith, searing a part of her hair.

"DO NOT LIE TO ME, YOU INSULT OF HALF GOD! LOWER THE BARRIER!"

Edith's face went dark a little.

"I loved that strand of hair. But I can't let you through, Gaius. You are already hurting the mortals by simply being here. Go home."

"RRAARRGGHH!!!" Gaius howled in rage.

Before Edith could react, Gaius exploded with power, and the barrier that kept Nemus safe shattered.

The next instant, Gaius was before her, grabbing her throat and disappearing again.

Far away from there, Astaroth heard her voice in his head, for the last time.

'Take care of my creation, Astaroth. Take care of the souls of the innocent.'