Hello friends, family, gentlemen, and germaphobes, I have come back from the dead!!!! Yes, yes, I know, shocking. Honestly, I made this fanfic because I had an idea and just wrote what came to my mind. And I didn't really feel like I knew enough about any sort of fandom or series to write about a series confidently. A petty excuse to take an 8-month break, huh. BUT, I have returned, and I am now regretting dropping what I know is peak, not meat riding my earlier self. But on we go!!
======================
I walked through the rift thinking about how I would proceed when I returned to Ulmuna.
The familiar sight of the church fills my vision as I get up again after passing out for the 3rd time in less than a day.
Never mind the fact that I walked through a rift to regain consciousness of myself while I lay flat out on the ground. All in all, what an interesting hour it's been for me.
"Thorn! Are you alright?" Zynch asks me in a tone that sounds weirdly worried for someone whom he had met less than an hour ago.
I wave him away as I get up again, "I'm fine, I'm fine." The old sense of warmth and familiarity I had felt when I came into the church was replaced with a stronger sense of connection, most of which pointed towards the statue of Metus.
Which now leads me to wonder, what to do now that I am a world-hopping demon who feeds off fear, fear that generates from the creatures he creates from that fear. All while serving a god who is a multi-universal entity.
I recoil as I think about what just happened to me. The feelings and thoughts I have towards those events overwhelm me for just a second before I get myself together.
Not the time, onto more pressing matters.
I need to decide who to bring with me and how I should prepare.
Not that there are a lot of options, as only two people on this entire damn planet aren't running away at the sight of me. I doubt they'd listen to me if I told them, "I just met up with a god who will let me go to cool worlds. So come with me, young Yalta's, as we spread fear across the galaxy!"
I cringe inside as I play the scene in my head. I hear whispers coming from my side as I see the "Father" walk up to me with a drink that seems like it could kill a human with a sip.
"Drink," he says, offering me the cup. "You must be tired from your travels. This will replenish your stamina."
I look down at the little gremlin wearing a red cloak and take the cup out of his hands. Its black color gives me slight goosebumps as I study it.
As I'm thinking about it, I am gifted with enlightenment from Metus herself. If the Father worships Metus, and I have just become her apostle, wouldn't that make me... his god's angel in simple terms?
"Father," I say suddenly. "What is your role here?"
He jerks back at the sudden, deep sound of my voice. "Erm, I am here to spread the beauty of Ba-Ef, the omnipotent god of fear!" he replies with conviction in his tone. Great, a religious fanatic. Hope he believes that I'm an apostle, or else I'll be condemned out of the church and put on the streets.
"Wonderful, it is nice to see that you still hold the belief of our god in this place of ruin." I rise up to my full height, setting down the cup of unknown fluid he gave me. "I have been sent from Ba-Ef to restore order to this planet and spread fear to all!" I flex my wings to their full span, causing their claws at the ends to scrape the ceiling.
Light poured through a window right above the statue of Metus, beaming onto me, which undoubtedly elevated the feeling of divinity that he must be feeling. Zynch and the Father stared at me with what I could only guess was surprise, considering all other features were hidden in shadow.
I really am hoping they believe my theatrics enough for me to trust me. Enough trust that they'd come along with me to whatever world I go to.
The Father muttered out a few words, "Has Ba-Ef finally ended our punishment?" His voice sounded needy, desperate even as he prostrated in front of me.
Well, it looks like that worked out well.
***************
The Father's POV
Is it finally time, time for our punishment to be over?
I can only remember Lord Thorn's mighty figure as I prostrate. Tears fall down the side of my face.
Is it finally over? Can we go back to how it was before?
The punishment Ba-Ef put upon us wasn't random, I know it. We started veering away from him in favor of worshipping the science that he gave to us.
We made the mistake of believing the creation to be the creator.
For that transgression, our race is in tatters, struggling to find the will to live another day.
Now I see, Ba-Ef was merely testing us. Those faithful, while those who treasoned against our god suffered.
"May I speak, Lord Thorn?" I asked the divine entity sent by our god to correct everything.
"You may," he replied. His voice was rough, deep. Far beyond any Yalta's voice. It was holy, divine, sent from our god.
"I-I have been faithful throughout these years of retribution. I had told them to stop worshipping Ba-Ef's creations and worship Ba-Ef himself. They did not listen, they told me I was lingering on to the past. The days when we ruled supreme over these lands. Every Yalta knew the name Ba-Ef and the power behind it."
"Ba-Ef knows all. You have not failed. These... years of retribution had come to an end. I mark the beginning of a new era," I heard Lord Thorn reply.
Those few sentences sent shockwaves through my being. I felt it resonate with me at a level that felt spiritual. At last, we will rise again from the ashes of the sinful and claim what is rightfully ours, the world.
I look up at Lord Thorn, filled with a determination I hadn't felt in years, "What do you require of me, Lord Thorn?"
***************
Zynch POV
Wow, okay, that took a turn.
I look at Thorn with suspicion and Father with concern. This sudden declaration of being sent from a god that hasn't been relevant in what, a few decades? I call total bullshit.
The reason I brought Thorn here was that I knew the Father was the most decent man out here who would help anyone. I helped Thorn even though he looked like he could kill me at any given second because he looked lost, something I knew all too well.
The Father prostrated in reverence as I stayed standing. If I had been confused by the appearance of Thorn, this just added a whole new layer to it.
The Father talked to Thorn about retribution and punishment, the actual conversation flew over my head as it felt like I was listening to the rambles of a man gone senile from the things he'd seen.
"What do you need me to do, Lord Thorn?" I heard the Father ask.
"Wait, Father, please get up," I went towards him, trying to make him rise.
"Do not speak to me!" He roared with a ferocity that didn't seem to come from someone who seemed so meek and nice.
"You! You people are the reason we are like this! But now, Ba-Ef will let us rise again and spread the faith!" His finger pointed towards me with hatred in his eyes.
"I prayed to Ba-Ef that he'd eradicate people like you from the world. Cleaning it and making it again as one that has come together under his faith. But YOU ruined it! Now he is angry and is giving us all divine punishment for the actions of those like you!" He yelled. The chambers of the temple echoed with his voice.
So this is how he felt, harboring hatred for all this time while he helped others. I don't know how to feel.
I look between him and Thorn. I'm angry at Thorn and somewhat grateful. Angry about the fact that he came here and turned everything upside down. The Father whom we knew as the helpful religious leader who never turned anyone away.
Grateful because now I can finally see how he felt all along. His own feelings were kept hidden deep beneath his benevolent actions.
I looked at Thorn, the realization that if the Father was correct, then he'd probably kill me. Make sure that I am purged from existence to make sure that weeds don't grow again.
'What will you do now, Thorn?'
***************
Thorn POV
ALERT! ALERT! NOT GOING AS I PLANNED!
So a lot of new information with the Father's outburst and what I think was him submitting to me.
Firstly, Metus wasn't exactly popular in this world. Or as they call her, Ba-Ef. She supposedly used to be the leading god but somehow disappeared into irrelevance.
Secondly, the Father is batshit insane. The level of insanity that he'd kill someone if he felt like it would be within Metus' wishes.
Thirdly, the Father doesn't really like anyone here, which isn't really helping, considering I do want Zynch to come with us during our whole world-hopping thing.
"Calm yourself," I say as I walk over to the two. "He serves a purpose to Ba-Ef as well."
I really need these two to calm down, specifically talking about the Father. He might ruin the whole thing of getting powerful allies along the way if he's berating them for being sinners the whole time.
"Zynch, you don't believe that I am a missionary sent from Ba-Ef himself. You don't need to. All I ask of you is that you come with me on my mission," I say to Zynch.
"And what would that be?" he asked, stepping back with every step I took.
"To spread fear," I replied, my voice deepening slightly, causing the floor to shake from the bass of my voice.
I suppose I should do something that would at least make it seem like I'm not some alien who is lying about being an apostle.
Maybe this is the time to make my first creature. I don't need something big, just something flashy enough to make Zynch understand I'm not lying.
For a fraction of a second, I look within myself. Trying to see if the powers Metus had given me would activate or turn on. Now that I'm looking, I feel a new form of energy within me, rippling through every fiber of my being.
I imagine a harmless creature that would show Zynch that I'm telling the truth. Something small. Something dramatic.
The energy I felt before gathers in my chest. It detaches from me, branching off into its own individual, separate being. Oozing outward was a glowing red liquid, its form pulsing and shifting.
Zynch looks at the energy in horror. That same fear somehow feeds the detached liquid as I feel it grow stronger.
The red liquid glows bright before settling. into the shape of a ball with wings. It finishes its transformation before it's revealed to be a flying eye with bat wings.
Yes, I wanted to make a flying eye. What can I say, it was the smallest harmful creature I could think to make on the spot.
Zynch and the Father both stare at the creature. Its presence was simply enough to convey what I had wanted to.
The Father prostrated again at this show of power while Zynch simply looked in disbelief.
The eye looked around before crashing through the doors and flying into the sky. I felt like I had a connection to it, despite none of the energy I had being directly connected to it.
I could tell that it wanted to fly around, a sort of primitive curiosity for its surroundings. Good to know that I would have to factor my creations being intelligent beings in the future.
I simply decided that having it cause terror to the people living in Cilnoth wasn't worth the hassle and wouldn't look good for me in the long run, so I terminated it. It disintegrated into red flakes before they scattered.
Zynch looked at me as if I had grown a new head. The sheer confusion he had on his face had me struggling not to laugh as he just looked at me.
In retrospect, he has every right to be confused about what's going on and what I am. I was a creature that was almost double his height, spoke his language, and is now claiming to be a godly being.
It's honestly a shocker that he didn't run away as soon as he saw me.
"So you are a deity," Zynch muttered after a few minutes of silence. The Father was still prostrating from the divine act of creation I had pulled off, whispering what I think to be prayers.
"Not quite. I am the apostle of one and the one sent to correct this world," I said, still in my greater than thou persona. It oddly felt satisfying to make Zynch afraid, and the Father pray to me, well, Metus, but I'm basically Metus the Second.
"I understand. What exact purpose do I serve... Lord Thorn?" Zynch asked, confused about how to address someone as great as me.
"Just call me Sir. You and the Father will come with me to the other worlds as we conquer them and make them understand fear once again," I respond. I'm guessing this is the beginning of my adventure as the great Thorn.
This feels weird that I'm already going to a new world after just coming here, but this place has nothing for me to really ground my power in except for a few starving Yalta.
"Other worlds?" They both ask in unison.
"Yes, I have the power to send us to different worlds that are in different universes that are ripe for the taking. So, Zynch. Father. Are you coming with me?"
They both look at each other, a small hint of tension between them with the Father's previous outburst, but they seem to come to a conclusion.
"Yes," they both nod together as both come towards me.
"When shall we leave my Lord?" The Father excitedly asks. I can tell he feels excited to just be near someone like me.
"Right now."