Kairos sighed as he brushed dust and rubble off himself. Underneath him were the battered bodies of many a demi-god he had summoned to assist him. There were probably about ten beings here, most of them unconscious or just waking up. All around them though, there was nothing but rubble. Gazing upwards, the Whenvern could see stars fizzling out, disappearing into the distance as the universe continued to expand, fading away into the void.
“Is it done?” a voice squeaked below the Whenvern. “Is it over?”
Kairos glanced at the serpentine being that was hiding under his armoured plates. “Yes. It’s all over now. They’re gone.”
“So’s the universe. All gone. All dead.”
“You and Epani saved what you could, yes?”
The Allbirther nodded. “Yeah. We saved the important things. All sealed within its own bubble. A universe inside a universe, really. One Epani doesn’t want you all inside.”
Kairos tutted. “What do you mean by that?”
“She’s angry. She doesn’t want to lose what’s left. She sent me to give you a message, that she wants to protect her new little universe and doesn’t want Kinisis inside it. She wasn’t too fond of you either. And Kenon’s only allowed back if he does so as a mortal.”
At the mention of her name, Kinisis appeared, covered in glitter and other shimmering items. Despite everything that had just happened, she looked pretty good. By her side was Kenon, still covered in dirt and dust. By her feet were twelve heavily armoured guardians, all armed and ready to attack anything that fared threaten Kinisis.
“What did you just say? Epani won’t let me back into my own universe?”
Yisini shrugged. “Her logic is that, because you blew up your universe, what is left belongs to Epani and I, because we saved it all. I’ll be honest, I kinda agree.”
The Allmaker frowned. “You… agree?”
“You blew up your universe. The biggest of many mistakes that put us all in danger….” Yisini tried to explain calmly. “The idea is that we start fresh. Epani and I look after the things we saved. You guys look after what you saved. We meet every weekend for brunch and otherwise live separately. Heck, frankly, you’re lucky Epani was willing to let Kairos and I back in if we asked nicely. She just lost 99.9% of everything she had ever made.”
Kinisis looked shocked. She became even more shocked when she realized that Kairos and Kenon were both agreeing with Yisini.
“You’re probably right, sister. We have to protect and grow what we have left. And we can’t risk hurting the survivors even more. We’ve lost enough as it is…”
Kenon nodded in agreement. “Yes, very true. And, if I am honest, I could do with a break.”
“A break? What? What are you all on about?” Kinisis shrieked. “We have a universe to rebuild!”
“No, you have a universe to rebuild…” Kairos tutted. “I’m done fucking around, I’m going to take whatever’s not dead and try and protect them, because I don’t have a real purpose any more. Yisini, you and Epani can have whatever planets or stars or whatever you saved. You deserve them.”
“And what about you, Kenon?” Kinisis hissed, crossing her arms. “Are you buggering off too?”
Kenon shrugged. “Actually… I wanted to ask Yisini if I could come and live inside your protected areas as a mortal leader. Kairos isn’t the only being here without a purpose. But, what with me being a Voidborn… Staying out here probably won’t safe for me. If that is alright by you, my daughter?”
Yisini and Kairos glanced at each other, surprised by Kenon’s request.
“Well, uh… I’ll have to ask Epani… And she’ll want you to follow her new rules… But I assume she’ll say yes.”
Kenon clapped his hands together, smiling just a little. “Thank you, dear, I very much appreciate your kindness. We could all do with a break. Even if it is just temporary.”
“But… but…” Kinisis struggled to speak, completely caught off guard by all that had just been said. “But… what about… all of this? What about me?”
Kairos grunted, moving away and beginning his new work, picking up the unconscious bodies of the few beings that were still alive around them. Kenon began to fade away, heading off to where Epani had hidden the old survivors. Yisini however remained for a moment.
“This… this isn’t what I wanted…” Kinisis sighed. “This isn’t how it was supposed to end. We were supposed to rebuild our universe and you’re all… going away…”
“Nah, don’t be silly, Kinisis. It’s just a temporary thing. We just need some space to sort ourselves out and to mourn and all that.”
“But…”
Yisini tutted, before slithering away. “It’s all fine, Kinisis. Just consider yourself lucky that you’re still here… As for me, I have a lot of work to do…”