The centre of the universe was always a strange place, often described as a “beautiful wasteland”, a combination of crystal asteroid fields and curiously flat plates scattered with faint streams and the odd bit of foliage. All of this led to the vast castle that Kinisis, the Allmaker, called home.
The Keep of Kinigi though had been altered. While its walls remained as strong as ever, they had been moved and expanded, turned into a defensive fortress, designed to protect a brand new object that had recently appeared. A colossal, crystalline box stood in the centre of the keep, newly erected and humming gently.
“Don’t you think that’s a little over the top?” Yisini asked as she shifted her weight, her long, serpentine tail hanging over the castle walls. To her side, Kairos perched on a stone tower, looking vaguely annoyed.
“It is completely over the top…” Kairos tutted, tapping his claws together in frustration. “Not fucking fair that he ends up like this. We were doing so well before this happened.”
The crystalline box, despite its shininess and glossiness, was mostly opaque. However it also hollow. Past its twenty meter thick walls were internal chambers, filled with consciousness-stealing gases. The entire contraption was a prison, a tomb, for the sleeping Thantophor. Kairos and Yisini were present only to watch the final procedures, as the tomb was sealed shut.
“Okay, so I’m not alone in all of this…” Yisini sighed, obviously upset. “I had a great chat with Arkadin yesterday. He was clearly upset about this as well.”
“He won’t be upset about it any more…” Kairos snarled, flapping his wings and lifting up off the tower, down to the grassy plains below. Yisini uncoiled herself and followed, joining Kairos as he stepped through the oddly pink grass. “How long is he being imprisoned for?”
“Kinisis said until I was finished working on Kenon, making him a Void Lord again. But I think she’s gonna make it permanent.”
“Really?” Kairos’s temper only got worse. “That is… that’s bullshit!”
“Yep. It’s bullshit. And not because Arkadin was unwilling. He actually didn’t seem too upset about being sealed away for a hundred years or whatever. Always liked his naps… What Arkadin didn’t like was how Kinisis mentioned things. Made him uneasy before putting him to sleep.”
Kairos turned back to Yisini. “What do you mean by that?”
“She wants to do experiments. Things that are normally mine and Arkadin’s domains.”
“I… I don’t follow.”
Yisini shrugged. “I don’t get it either. But I’m worried and I have too much work to do to be worried.”
“What sort of work?”
“Putting Kenon back together, for starters. Arkadin did a really good job of tearing him apart. If he’s gonna be free, I have to fix Kenon first. And then I’ve got to get started on the amazing ideas Arkadin gave me. It’s all rather worrying though. And upsetting for Arkadin.”
“Yeah…”
“Well…” Yisini shrugged some more. “Arkadin’s not upset any more. Because he’s asleep.”
“That is a horrible way of putting things…” Kairos grunted.
“I know…” Yisini sighed, joining Kairos in his melancholy. “But it could be worse. He’s just sleeping. He’ll wake up soon. I just hope Kinisis doesn’t do anything stupid while he’s asleep…”