CHAPTER SIX

With great reluctance, Xyreen set off to the Observatory to see what chaos consumed Wa'suria with her own eyes. She didn't expect it to be worse than she knew it to be. Neither was she foolish enough to hope it might look better. Rather, it was a gnawing suspicion that she could not bring herself to face that made her dread the Observatory. In her entire existence, Xyreen had never once questioned Desaphanus's ways. But eleven hours after her creator's death, she felt the sharp sensation of doubt, and she did not like it.

This was not to say she had reached the point of outright heresy. She knew Desaphanus's power was supreme and his wisdom far beyond measure. She had been made to know this. And yet, a rogue thought poked about, a realization that went against what she had always assumed to be true. From the Observatory window, where she could see Wa'suria awash in a thousand different cataclysms, the realization grew a touch stronger. She wasn't ready to face it yet, so she pushed it deeper and locked it away.

From the Observatory, one could behold Wa'suria in the slightest detail, but Xyreen didn't bother with the slight details. She didn't need to hear every cry of man, cursing a god who had abandoned him, or see every demon who swarmed upon the land like flies on a fresh corpse, or smell the burning flesh as entire kingdoms were consumed in raging pyres. They were all very pressing problems, but Xyreen had much larger issues to deal with at the moment. Even larger than her growing doubts.

"There you are. We've been looking all over for you."

Xyreen sighed. Running the universe was a constant duty. She might not have minded if she were doing a better job of it.

"What is it now? Has the natural order suddenly reversed itself? Are rabbits now eating wolves? Or perhaps the air has turned to lead?"

"How should we know?"

She glanced over her shoulder. It was Tod and Pira. "You're back. Any luck?"

"None," Tod replied. "Looks like you're having some trouble."

"It is not going as well as I would have hoped," Xyreen had to admit, though she hated to. She turned away from the window. The perishing world was more than she could take.

"We're here to help," Tod said.

Xyreen chuckled. "Well, that solves everything, doesn't it? And I was actually worried for a moment."

"There's no need to be sarcastic."

"I believe there is."

"Just because you can't keep the universe together, that's no reason to get snippy."

"And I suppose by that you think you could do a better job?" Xyreen asked.

"A pack of rabid badgers could do a better job."

Xyreen and Tod locked glares.

Pira stepped between the elder god and the Divine Wisdom of Desaphanus. "That's enough. Wa'suria is dying. We've got to put aside our differences and work together."

Tod folded his arms across his chest, still glaring from the corner of his eye. "Yeah. Sure. Whatever."

Xyreen flapped her wings. Her beak bent in a deep frown. "What do you suggest then?"

"Would you excuse us a moment, Tod?"

"No problem." He had a seat on one of the marble benches on the other side of the Observatory and watched Wa'suria burn.

Xyreen shook her head. "I still can't believe he is Desaphanus's brother."

"A more different pair, I couldn't imagine," Pira agreed. "But he is an elder god. The only elder god the universe has left."

"You aren't proposing that we hand the cosmos over to him?"

"No, of course not. Not all at once. He isn't ready for it yet, but you must admit, we're not capable of running everything by ourselves."

"I don't know. I think I'm getting the hang of it."

Pira spun Xyreen around to get a good look at a world in its death throes.

"Only an elder god can keep the order. Tod is far from ready, but perhaps if we gave him just a little at a time, he might grow into the job."

"I don't know."

"There has to be something you can give him. If it doesn't work out, how much more damage can he do?"

"I suppose. But he doesn't look very well. Are you sure he's up to it?"

The angels glanced over in Tod's direction. His blue skin had a slightly greenish hue, and he seemed to be having trouble breathing.

"Frankly, I'm not," Pira admitted, "but if he is willing to try, we should be willing to give him the chance."

Xyreen ran it through her mind. It didn't seem right to give the universe to the Creator's shiftless brother, but it was clear that no one else in the Palace of Heavens was up to the task. And even if Desaphanus disapproved, he would surely disapprove even more so if she let his glorious universe crumble further into chaos.

"We do need someone to judge the dead," Xyreen suggested.

Tod spoke up. "I'll do it."

The angels straightened.

"Orc ears," he explained. "They hear everything. So point me in the right direction, and I'll start judging."

Pira took his arm. "I'll show you the way."

Xyreen grabbed Pira by the shoulder. "No, there is something more important. The demons need to be cast back into the Hollows. You have to lead the holy hosts."

Pira hesitated. It was her purpose to beat back the Fallen hordes, but she didn't like the idea of leaving Tod unprotected. It would be a terrible thing to lose both elder gods on the same day.

"I'll be fine, Pira. Go ahead and slay some demons."

The Righteous Anger of Desaphanus couldn't shake the notion that leaving Tod's side was the wrong thing to do, but she couldn't shake the holy fury boiling within her heart either. It had been some time since she'd slain a demon.

"Be careful, Tod."

"You too."

Pira flew off to assemble the Army of Light, leaving Xyreen and Tod behind. A chill ran through the Observatory as they shared a moment of cold silence.

"I'll show you the way," Xyreen said.

"Thanks," he replied. "And just for the record, sometimes, I have trouble believing Desaphanus and I are brothers too."

***

The Hall of the Dead had been built in its own domain, closer to Wa'suria than the Palace of Heavens for convenience. Tod caught a ride on one of the black barges that ferried departed souls across the Gray Sea to the first step in their afterlife. The tremendous fortress sat upon an island of stone. Clouds rumbled overhead, but it never rained. Color existed in the realm, but it was a drab, lifeless sort of color.

Perpetual twilight covered the realm.

The barge pulled up to the docks of the floating isle, and angels herded the dead down the gangplank.

Tod stepped out of line and was immediately confronted by a pair of angels.

"Back in line."

Tod held up his hands. "I'm not dead."

"That's what they all say." The angels seized his arms.

"But I'm here to judge the dead."

"There's one I haven't heard before," the left angel said to the right. They shoved him to the back of the line. "Where's your record?"

"I don't have a record."

"They were supposed to give you your record on ship."

"But I'm not dead."

She sighed. "I swear, nobody does their job right anymore. Keep an eye on him. I'll go see if I can find his record." She asked Tod, "You didn't happen to get the name of your collector, did you? Never mind.

Stupid question. Nobody ever does." She wandered off.

Tod glanced from death angel to death angel. One of them knew why he was here. He'd heard Xyreen tell her. But all the pale, white-haired servants of death looked alike to him.

The waiting line from the Hall of the Dead stretched for several miles. It wasn't moving, and it wouldn't until he started judging.

He reached out with his power and tried to touch the angel's mind so she might understand he told the truth. Nothing happened to her, but his stomach tightened uncomfortably. His nigh-omnipotence still had a long, long way to go.

Tod tried explaining to the angel again. "Really. I'm not dead. I'm here to help. Xyreen sent me."

She rolled her eyes.

With the mess the universe was in, sorting out this misunderstanding could take a few hours. Possibly even longer. There was nothing Tod could do but wait.

"This is no way to run a cosmos," Tod thought aloud. Another barge full of passengers unloaded its cargo, and the line of the dead grew a little longer.