Three shrieks erupted from the main control room as the ship ground to a halt. They had been drifting aimlessly for at least 26 hours, with no engine power and the bare minimum systems running. There was nothing though to crash into, just the vast emptiness of space.
“What the fuck was that?” Phovos growled as she headed over to the window, trying to see outside. There was nothing but darkness though. No stars, no planets, nothing. Clearly though, something was clinging onto the ship, stopping it from moving in any way.
“ARKAY!” Elksia suddenly shouted, running back and forth. The stress of their situation had broken the normally rather stoic Vrekan, causing her to panic. “ARKAY GOT US! HE’S GONNA KILL US!”
The ship suddenly started moving again, in a way that the ship really wasn’t supposed to move. Sideways and upwards. As if the ship was being held by an unseen force. Clinging on to a railing to keep herself steady, Ct’Era tried to peer out of a side window, only to realise that it was covered up by something very… big.
But almost as suddenly as it started, the ship stopped moving again. Outside, the colossal form of a glistening draconic creature could be seen, its scales shimmering in black, silver and blue. The dragon was holding onto the ship with its clawed feet, preventing it from going anywhere.
Before the three mortals could say anything, something began to materialize between them. A white light began to glow then quickly faded, revealing a strange-looking being that looked eerily like a beautiful Ksithan, except far curvier and with no fur, just a beautiful coat of emerald scales, broken up by the occasional diamond patch.
“Please, remain calm, my little Goddesses…”
“What ARE you?” Elksia gasped, almost blinded by the creature’s beauty. “You look like Phovos, if she was actually attractive and looked after herself!”
Phovos ignored Elksia’s comments, instead focused on the being in front of them. “Who are you and what are you doing here?”
“She is the Allmaker…” Ct’Era muttered. “She made everything. Including death.”
The being nodded. “I am the Allmaker, yes. But you can call me Kinisis. As to why I am here, well, I have little other choice. After all, there is nothing else left in this universe. I assume you have all already met my son Kairos?”
The dragon outside peered into the window, its massive blue eye blocking the view.
Phovos glanced at Kairos, then back at Kinisis. “I have. And I’ve met you too.”
“Actually, now you mention it…” Elksia interrupted, having calmed down a little. “I feel like I’ve met you both too! So what’s going on? You here to kill us so Arkay doesn’t?”
“No, I’m here to turn the three of you into deities for the next universe.”
Elksia fell silent. Phovos and Ct’Era were equally confused and speechless.
“D-deities?”
“Yes. After all, this universe is pretty much dead. But I don’t want to die without creating the seeds of another universe. So Kairos here is going to protect the three of you and help you build the new universe.”
Ct’Era and Elksia looked at each other, feeling both scared and excited. But Phovos had more questions.
“So we’re going to be gods? Aren’t we… completely not at all skilled enough to do any of that? I mean, we’re going to… build a new universe. That’s a pretty damn big thing… And what about the six vok we have stuck in cryopods?”
Kinisis shrugged. “I know. It sounds like a big task. That’s why Kairos will lead you all through it. As for the little ones, well, they’ll be your underlings. You will choose what they can do. Maybe they’ll be your gods of life and death. Maybe they’ll be demi-gods. Maybe they’ll be the progenitors of all your future mortal beings. The choice is up to you.”
“That’s…” Phovos blinked. “That’s insane…”
“Yeah… I don’t think I could… just dictate Retvik’s future…”
The Allmaker smiled. “By the time you come to those decisions, none of you will be the same. I mean, I barely remember the universe I was birthed from. Universes take time to build…” Kinisis trailed off. “Oh, I’m rambling on. As is the way when one faces their own demise. I need to get you all sorted out then get going…”
The three mortals were all very confused.
“I know, it sounds terrifying. But Kairos will look after you.”
Kinisis gently placed her hand on the head of each of the mortals in turn. They didn’t feel anything, but once Kinisis let go of them, a slight tingling sensation was left behind.
“Is that it?” Ct’Era asked.
“Yes.”
“I feel…”
“You’ll know what to do when the time comes. And speaking of time, Kairos is ready to take you all to your new home.”
“But we have so many questions!” Phovos exclaimed. Her words though were left unanswered as Kinisis faded away. After a few seconds, all that was left were a handful of sparkles and three diamond rings.
Outside, the Whenvern flapped its massive wings, then peered in through the window again.
“My dears, we have a long way to travel. Please make yourselves comfortable.”
The three former mortals sighed, then strapped themselves in. As the Whenvern began to fly away, they could see Kinisis’s calming glow in the distance, slowly disappearing into the darkness.
Once the survivors had left, Kinisis tutted to herself. The vacuum around her seemed colder, all of a sudden. She turned around to see a familiar face approaching. The smoky tendrils of the Thantophor began to appear, circling the Allmaker.
“Hello, son.”
The Thantophor edged closer and closer. As it did so, its body shrank and distorted itself, matching the Allmaker’s size. Once it got within speaking distance, it began to blink and reorientate itself. Kinisis reached forward and gently pressed her pristine hands against the Thantophor’s head. Again, the Thantophor blinked. Eventually, sounds stumbled out of its mouth.
“M-mother…”
“Yes, my dear. It’s that time already.”
The Thantophor looked around. There was nothing but darkness, nigh endless void.
“What have I done?”
“You killed it all.”
“It… it wasn’t time yet…” Arkadin trembled. Thoughts and memories from the last few weeks… months… years? He didn’t know, but the memories began to flood the Thantophor’s mind. “I… I didn’t want to… I didn’t want this… Not yet… not now…”
“Well, you killed it all. You killed your father. You killed your siblings. You killed me.”
Kinisis let go of Arkdin’s head and stepped back. Arkadin tried to reach for his mother, but his bloodied claws passed through her body.
“I left all my children parting gifts. I gave Epani the courage to fight back. I gave Yisini the gift of hindsight and consequence. I gave Kairos the seeds to a new, better universe. But to you, my dear Arkadin, I give you the most humble of gifts.”
Inky black tears began to form in Arkadin’s eyes. He tried to reach for Kinisis again, but he never made contact.
“Arkadin, I gift you this empty universe, without the power to change it. You never wanted to hurt anyone. Now you won’t hurt anyone ever again.”
For a third time, Arkadin tried to grab hold of Kinisis, to touch her one last time. But this time, as his claws came into contact with Kinisis, the Allmaker disappeared, crumbling away into a shimmering mist.
The mist quickly faded away, leaving Arkadin stunned. He gazed out at the empty universe, the realization of what happened slowly hitting him. He was trapped, cold and alone, doomed to never see or hear another soul. Doomed to relive his past actions. Doomed to spend eternity on his own.
“I’m sorry…” Arkadin whispered as he curled up into a ball, the last traces of warmth fading from existence.
“I’m so sorry…”