Arkadin clicked happily as he cleaned up an entranceway, a cosmic hole in the side of the universe. These entranceways weren’t that common, they normally produced by extrauniversal debris poking through the thin membranes of the universe’s side. And normally they would be dealt with by Kenon, the Void Lord and the universe’s main dealer when it came to extrauniversal issues, but since Arkadin was just passing by, he decided to deal with it himself. After all, it was the duty of all the gods to protect this universe, not just one.
Just as Arkadin finished sewing up the hole, Kenon appeared. At first, Arkadin didn’t notice him, but the dark, grumpy aura was hard to ignore.
“Oh, heya, Kenon!” Arkadin’s spirits were still pretty high. “I just finished closing this! I actually wanted to talk to you, funnily enough.”
Kenon grunted as he summoned a golden throne and sat down. “You seem bemused.”
Arkadin smiled. “I am actually in a good mood! I got rid of a nasty corruption and did something good for this universe! And, hopefully, with your blessing, I will get to spend time with a bunch of mortals who don’t instantly hate me!”
“Hm, really?” the Void Lord grumbled. “You do realise the dangers of Corruption, yes?”
“Yeah, I know!” the Thantophor chirped. “But I dealt with it! All sorted!”
Kenon leaned forward in his throne, his golden antlers dangling ominously.”Tell me more about the Corruption you destroyed, child.”
Arkadin blinked, not quite catching the question. “Pardon?”
“What was the Corruption you destroyed?”
“Uh, it was purple and aggressive, mostly. Why are you asking?”
“Did it have any markings on it?”
“I, uh, couldn’t see any past all the fire and stuff…” Arkadin was confused. “Seriously, why are you asking, are you worried I got some on me or something?”
Kenon got up from his seat. Arkadin couldn’t tell whether he was smiling or growling. The throne disappeared in a cloud of gold glitter, replaced by Kenon’s familiar golden staff. He edged closer to Arkadin and patted him gently on the head, then started to wander off.
“Thank you, Arkadin. You did a good job.”
“Kenon!” Arkadin exclaimed, chasing after the Void Lord. “Why are you being all… secretive with me? Also you totally didn’t say whether I am allowed to hang out with the Skyans or not! I know you like them and wanted to ask first!”
“You will find out…” Kenon tutted. “As for the Skyavok, go ahead. I no longer do favoured races, so you are free to claim them as your own.”
“I kinda… just want…” Arkadin stuttered, paused for a moment, then chased after Kenon again. “Kenon!”
The Void Lord stopped moving and turned around to face his child. “What is it, Arkadin?”
“You’re being… strange…” Arkadin tried to talk but he was tripping over his own words. He’d never had a good relationship with any of his family members so actually saying what he wanted to say was… harder than it should have been. “You never normally compliment me. I mean, I destroy Corruptions on a regular basis and you’ve never explicitly said that I’ve done a good job. Why are you saying this now?”
“Because you did a good job.”
Arkadin wasn’t buying Kenon’s answer. “There has to be something more to it!”
Kenon shook his head, the tassels on his antlers shivering in the solar wind. “Some Corruptions are far more dangerous and… infamous than others. Trust me, child, you will find out more soon enough.”
The Void Lord tutted once more, then summoned a portal, disappearing back to his palace on the edge of the universe. The Thantophor stared blankly at where his father once was, then decided to get back to work. He should have known better than to ask questions. Kenon never answered them.