The atmosphere of the grey planet was a cemetery of dust when the Three Gods descended. Their white boots didn't touch the soot; they hovered a fraction of an inch above the devastation, glowing like beacons in the eternal dark of the void.
Sanru looked over the fractured landscape, his white eyes landing on the two fallen forms. "A demon..." Veylar said, his voice a low rumble of disgust. He looked at the mangled, crimson remains of Khalruum, then at the shattered Red Spear lying nearby.
"Burn it to dust," Selura commanded, her voice crystalline and cold. She knelt beside Eiden, her long white hair brushing the grey earth as she gathered his unconscious, scorched body into her arms with maternal care. "We need to take Eiden home."
Veylar didn't hesitate. He leveled a palm toward the creature's corpse. A flash of absolute, purifying light erupted—a silent supernova that left no shadow. When the brilliance faded, the Crimson Serpent was gone. Not even a cell remained. The three deities ascended, streaks of white and gold cutting through the vacuum as they bore the new Fourth God back to the Land of Gods.
They landed on the dark, dew-slicked grass outside the Sage's mansion. The doors burst open instantly. Gavran was the first out, his movement frantic despite his limp and the exhaustion weighing down his massive white wings. He bolted toward them, his glowing white eyes wide with terror and hope. He reached out, and Selura gently transferred Eiden into his shaking arms.
Gavran pulled Eiden against his chest, holding him with a desperate, crushing intensity. Veylar stepped forward, tapping Eiden's forehead with a single finger. A ripple of stable, divine aura flowed through the contact, stitching together Eiden's internal wounds and cooling his charred palms.
"Thank you..." Gavran whispered, his voice breaking. He turned, limping slowly back toward the sanctuary of the mansion, shielding Eiden with his wings. Vaelus and Dravien rushed out to meet them, flanking Gavran and supporting his weight as they disappeared inside.
Selura looked toward the horizon where the sun was beginning to rise. "We must head to the Golden Throne Kingdom," she said, her eyes reflecting the dawn. "The people there are wounded." Without another word, the Three Gods vanished into the light.
One Year Later
The sunlight was a warm weight against Eiden's face. He felt the familiar rhythm of a heartbeat against his ear—steady, strong, and protective. He opened his eyes to see the white and golden grass of the Land of Gods dancing outside the window. He was lying on Gavran's chest; the winged Sage was still deep in sleep, his arms wrapped securely around Eiden's waist. They were both shirtless, sharing the warmth of a single white blanket.
The sound of soft footsteps and hushed whispers drifted in from the hall.
"Oh, thank you misses Whitecrest, truly, the children have been a handful," Eiden heard Iris's sharp, rhythmic voice.
"Oh, please. Just call me Sienna," his mother replied with a light, airy laugh.
Eiden sat up slowly, careful not to jostle the sleeping Gavran. The door pushed open, and a parade of his family entered, each carrying a small, swaddled bundle. Selyndra, Iris, Sienna, Seraphaine, and Agora—each held a tiny life in their arms.
Sienna's eyes met Eiden's. She froze, her breath hitching. She quickly handed the infant she was holding to Iris and rushed to the bed, pulling Eiden's head to her chest in a fierce hug.
"Oh, Gods..." she exhaled, a heavy sigh of relief finally escaping her after a year of waiting. She pulled back, cupping his face and kissing his forehead, her grey eyes shimmering with unshed tears. "I'm so glad you're okay."
Eiden looked around the room, his gaze moving from the golden beauty of Selyndra to the ethereal presence of Agora, and finally to the sleeping infants. "Are those...?"
"Yes," Sienna whispered. She took one of the babies back from Iris, gently laying the child into Eiden's arms. The infant had Eiden's brown-toned skin and a tuft of snowy white hair, his tiny features a perfect mosaic of the Union. "We wanted you to name them, but you were still in a deep sleep, so... we named them."
She pointed to the baby in his arms. "This is Nedie. We named him that because he looks exactly like you."
Selyndra stepped forward, showing a baby with golden eyes and black hair. "This is Aurelius."
Iris gestured to her bundle. "The one with the crimson eyes is Kaelen."
One by one, they introduced the nine children: Liora, with her father's grey eyes and feline ears like Dravien; Vane, who shared Morvath's tall, graceful stature; Seraph, named after her mother; Xylas, with Vaelus's emerald spark; Mina, who already possessed twelve tiny, flickering tails and soft, growing blue ears like Agora; and Gale, who possessed tiny, budding white wings just like Gavran.
Later that afternoon, the rest of the spouses—Dravien, Morvath, and Vaelus—returned from their duties. Seeing Eiden awake, they swarmed him, a chaotic and loving collision of black robes, feline tails, and relieved smiles.
Gavran woke mid-afternoon, his hands immediately searching the empty space beside him. Panic flared in his white eyes until he looked out the window. In the backyard, under the shade of a Great Tree, he saw them. Eiden was sitting in the grass, surrounded by his spouses and Sienna, three of the babies crawling over his black cloak while he laughed.
Gavran walked out, his limp nearly gone, and sat directly behind Eiden. He wrapped his arms around Eiden's waist, resting his chin on his shoulder and closing his eyes, breathing in the scent of cedar and mana.
Eiden reached up, gently ruffling Gavran's white hair. "I missed you too," he said softly.
That night, the great bed in the master suite was a sea of white silk and black fabric. All eight Sages lay in a protective circle around Eiden, each holding one of their nine children safely against their chests. The ninth, little Nedie, slept tucked into the crook of Eiden's arm.
As the silver moon of the Land of Gods rose, the Fourth God closed his eyes. The war was over. The divinity was stable. And for the first time in an eternity, the First Divinity was simply home.